A TOTAL of 22 distressed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) were repatriated from Bahrain yesterday.   

It was learned that the group of workers, mostly illegal, had been staying at the Philippine Embassy halfway house in Manama, Bahrain for several months.  They were finally able to return back home yesterday only after Philippine Embassy officials were able to secure exit visas for them.

Philippine envoy to Bahrain Ambassador Ma. Corazon Yap-Bahjin accompanied the repatriated workers back to Manila aboard Qatar Airways flight QR648 which landed at the Manila airport at 9:25 a.m. 

Most of the said workers are reportedly “runaways” who have escaped from their employers after having been subjected to various forms of abuses.

The embassy staff was able to fast track the travel clearances for the workers since it was the month of Ramadan, and people in the Gulf State are in a more giving and forgiving spirit.

“In the spirit of Ramadan, we took advantage of the employers’ spirit of charity and nahingi namin na huwag na sila maningil ng deployment cost para makakuha na ng travel clearance,” Yap-Bahjin said.

She also disclosed that since most of the Filipinos staying at the half-way house were runaways, their employers are asking for the reimbursement of $2,000 deployment cost before they can issue an exit clearance.  

“Nakaswerte kami at may mababait na employers na hindi na naningil ng deployment cost kaya napauwi namin itong mga kababayan natin,” she said.    Itchie G. Cabayan