MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has warned Filipinos against illegal recruiters offering jobs in Russia.
The Philippine embassy in Russia recently repatriated four Filipinos who surrendered to Russian police for overstaying.
Ambassador Carlos Sorreta said the four were among the first batch of Filipinos who availed of the embassy’s voluntary repatriation program this year.
Some 130 Filipinos in Russia were repatriated last year, according to the embassy.
Sorreta said majority of the Filipinos who seek the embassy’s repatriation assistance were illegally recruited and did not undergo the proper deployment procedures for overseas Filipino workers.
“Filipinos who continue to stay in Russia without a valid visa are in an unsafe situation that is further fueled by fear. There is the fear of being arrested and not being able to communicate with Russian police authorities due to the language barrier,” he said.
“Illegally recruited and undocumented Filipinos are also deprived of a lot of basic services such as access to public health services and even certain modes of transportation,” added the ambassador.