DFA stops OFW deployment to Sri Lanka

MANILA, Philippines — There will be no new deployment of Filipino workers to Sri Lanka, as the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) informed the public that it has raised Alert Level 2 in the South Asian country due to its current security situation.

On DFA’s website, the agency explained that under Alert Level 2 – also known as the Restriction Phase – there will be no new deployment of Filipino workers to Sri Lanka, and only those with existing employment contracts are allowed to return to the country.

“The DFA, through the Philippine embassy in Dhaka, is in constant coordination with the Filipino community in Sri Lanka in light of the mass protests in the country due to the ongoing economic crisis,” the DFA statement read.

According to the embassy, no Filipinos were reported injured during the recent incidence of violent protests.

Latest DFA data show that around 700 Filipinos are in Sri Lanka, which is experiencing its worst economic crisis since its independence from Britain in 1948.

For months, protests were staged over what critics said was former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s mismanagement of the island nation’s economy.

In May, the DFA said it has not received any request for repatriation from Filipinos living in Sri Lanka, but added that it is ready to assist them should the need arise.

The statement further added that the DFA, in coordination with the office of the Philippine honorary consul general in Colombo, will be providing the needed assistance to Filipinos severely affected by the crisis.

“The Department would like to emphasize that there are no plans yet to evacuate Filipinos from Sri Lanka at this time,” the DFA said. “Amid continuing tensions in the country, the DFA reminds Filipinos there to remain in their residences as much as possible, avoid areas where there are protests and refrain from joining the mass action for their own safety and well-being.”

For emergencies, Filipinos can contact the Philippine embassy in Dhaka through Facebook at www.facebook.com/PHinBangladesh, emergency hotline +(880)1915-47-7731, or email [email protected].