Duterte to DFA: Rescue stranded seafarers

MANILA, Philippines — Aware of the hardships endured by many seafarers stranded in different parts of the world during this pandemic, President Duterte yesterday directed the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and its attachés to bring them all home expeditiously.

“There are Filipinos who are…seafarers. Many are stranded. Some were left by their ships and were not allowed to dock or downloaded intended cargoes for a certain destination because of COVID,” Duterte said.

He lamented the plight of these overseas Filipinos workers (OFWs) abroad and underscored the need for Philippine diplomatic missions to act swiftly to rescue them.

“They were contaminated and some who were not escaped and others just stayed in the ships and just bear it all. Ito ‘yung mga Pilipino na minsan may nabasa ako, two years, three years na nasa labas, hindi makauwi (I’ve read about these Filipinos stranded abroad for two or three years and couldn’t come home),” Duterte said.

To alleviate their plight, the President directed the DFA to get diplomatic missions to work closely with concerned governments to speed up the repatriation of the stranded OFWs.