The Philippine embassy in Doha repatriated a total of 278 overseas Filipinos, including an infant, via a chartered Philippine Airlines (PAL) flight recently.
The chartered flight included 28 female wards who had sought temporary shelter at the embassy/Philippine Overseas Labour Office’s (POLO) Migrant Workers and other Overseas Filipinos Resource Centre prior to their repatriation, according to a statement on the embassy's website.
The repatriates, who were assisted by the embassy and POLO officials and personnel at the airport, arrived individually and in groups, with some of whom went to the airport as early as six hours in advance.
"The mounting of the chartered flight, despite Qatar’s inbound travel restrictions, was a result of close co-ordination between the embassy/POLO and relevant authorities in Qatar, such as the Supreme Committee for Crisis Management, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs, Qatar Civil Aviation Authority, Hamad International Airport and Qatar Airways," the statement noted.
The flight was operated on May 20.
"The chartered flight would not have been made possible without the invaluable support from the Department of Foreign Affairs, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines and other entities, including PAL," the statement added. "The embassy and POLO stand ready to provide appropriate assistance to those who wish to be repatriated."
Filipinos who wish to seek assistance should go to bit.ly/dohaperepat and register, the embassy's Facebook page adds.
