A FILIPINA nurse, abducted and raped; a Filipino construction worker beheaded because of religion; what will it take to make kababayans—caught in middle of the ongoing Libyan Civil War—to heed the Philippine government’s call for evacuation?
With a desire to rise from the slump, Filipinos choose to work abroad. Considering higher salary in exchange to hours of painstaking work, Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) plunge into the sea of opportunities beyond Philippine borders.
Foreign Undersecretary Rafael Seguis revealed that higher pay being offered during the war is one of the reasons Filipinos refuse to leave Libya.
OFWs are also unsure of what may welcome them in the Philippines.
The government has no choice but to evacuate only those who are willing to give up their jobs in Libya.
On July 20, an ordinary construction worker from the Philippines shocked the world on the news of his death. This hardworking Filipino with dreams of having comfortable life through working in another country, together with a Libyan and Pakistani companion, were stopped in a checkpoint and captured by militants in Benghazi on July 15. Foreign Affairs spokesman Charles Jose told reporters that the kidnappers demanded a ransom of $160, 000 or about P6.9 million.
The incident alarmed Philippine government causing them to raise the alert level 4 in which there would be evacuation efforts in the shortest time possible and no Filipino national will be allowed to travel to the war-stricken country.
Only five days after the death of a kababayan, a Filipina nurse who was on her way to work, was held captive by six Libyan guys for two hours. She was released after suffering an unspecified “aggression,” a health ministry spokesman said. A source from the security services revealed that the Filipina captive has been raped by the abductors.
Following these two incidents, the Philippine government to renewed its call for kababayans to leave Libya.
Though the government is spending money to transport OFWs back to the country, it will never be comparable to the money that the workers might get from working in a country where they are mostly needed.
Surely, the government’s effort is appreciated, but there is a better solution than spending money evacuating native workers from war-stricken countries.
The truth is, these hardworking OFWs fight their own wars, as they leave their families beyond their will because even the simplest lifestyle nowadays demand additional financial support.
Some even risk their lives sneaking tourist visas as their passageways to hazardous 2-year contract jobs—that is how willing Filipinos are to earn more than what they can back home.
Crafting local employment, with enough salary to survive each day, through the available resources in the country is the key solution to the dilemma. It may take some time, but there is a thick chance that Filipinos would consider staying in the country if there are job opportunities for them.
(AJPress)
