MANILA, July 30 (Xinhua) -- The Philippine government has sent an assessment mission to Iraq to oversee the security situation for overseas Filipino workers, who were ordered to be expelled by the United States due to an existing labor deployment ban by Manila, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a statement on Friday.
Presidential special envoy to the Middle East Roy Cimatu, who left for Iraq Thursday, will return to Manila next week to submit his report and recommendations to an inter-agency committee that closely monitors the work condition of Filipino workers and studies options to address their situation and concerns in Iraq.
"The inter-agency committee, composed of the Office of the Executive Secretary, Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Labor and Employment, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, among others, is expected to issue policy guidelines shortly after Ambassador Cimatu's return," the Department of Foreign Affairs said.
According to the DFA, there are around 6,000 Filipinos working in Iraq despite the Philippine government's travel and labor deployment ban to Iraq. But the Embassy of Iraq in Manila said the figure has swelled to 15,000, most of them working for foreign companies in Iraq's northern region.
Cimatu, the DFA said, will also assess the future of Filipino workers in Iraq in light of the phased withdrawal of U.S. troops there, including a major pullout of combat troops by the end of August, as earlier announced by Washington.
In the meantime, the DFA said the Philippine Embassy in Iraq is closely coordinating with OFW groups, their employers, and U.S. military authorities in ensuring the safety and well-being of Filipino workers.
On July 20, U.S. military authorities in Iraq directed its private contractors and subcontractors to identify within 20 days all foreign nationals working there in violation of U.S., Iraq, or their respective country's laws and policies, and to develop a plan for their repatriation.
Filipino workers in Iraq have requested the Philippine government to lift the five-year travel ban to Iraq to allow them to continue their work there. However, the government maintained that the ban will stay because of the volatile security situation in the Middle East state.
"The Migrant Workers Act mandates that the government adhere to strict guidelines in allowing the deployment of Filipino workers to other countries, and imposes heavy penalties on government officials who allow the deployment of migrant workers without the guarantees required by law," the DFA said.
Manila imposed the ban on Iraq following the kidnapping of two Filipino truck drivers in 2004 and 2005.
Truck driver Angelo de la Cruz was threatened to be beheaded by his captors in July 2004, but later on released after former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo capitulated to the demand of the kidnappers to withdraw a small Philippine contingent in Iraq -- a decision strongly criticized by Washington and other allies. Another Filipino, accountant Robert Tarongoy, was also abducted by militants and freed in June 2005 after eight months of captivity.
