MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has sent letters to United States Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson requesting for the approval of granting Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for undocumented Filipinos in the US.
The request was made for Filipinos in the US who were affected by super typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan).
“Many of my countrymen in the US were affected by Typhoon Haiyan. This humanitarian assistance would provide temporary relief for them from the natural disaster,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario said.
The TPS designation was filed in December 2013, a few weeks after super typhoon Yolanda hit Central Visayas. Del Rosario sent the letters dated September 22 and the request is still under consideration.
Del Rosario met with the leaders of the Filipino-American Community last September 24 and assured them that the Philippine government will give its full support in pushing the TPS request.
More than 200,000 undocumented Filipinos will be allowed to stay and work legally in the US for 18 months if the TPS gets approved.
“In a little over six weeks, the world will observe the first year anniversary of Typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda. While the memory of the devastation still lingers in the mind and psyche of the Filipino people, we have not forgotten the unprecedented outpouring of international support for the Philippines," Del Rosario said in his letters to Kerry and Johnson.
Super typhoon Yolanda killed more than 6,000 people and affected 1.4 million others in 17 provinces. The US government responded by sending troops, ships, aircraft, and donated more than $86 million in assistance, Del Rosario said.
In the past, the US have granted TPS to undocumented aliens from El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Haiti after being struck by natural disasters.