• Monday, April 04, 2011
• Inter Press Service

Amidst political turmoil in Libya, thousands of migrant workers from the Philippines face a dilemma - either they risk their lives working in the conflict- ridden country, or they return home and face job insecurity.

Exequel Masucal, a former Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) who returned to the Philippines in March, originally wanted to stay in Libya and send his wife and four children home to safety. However, because of the children’s young ages and the dangers they faced crossing the border, he eventually decided to go with them.

'Normally, on Fridays, shops and offices are not open,' Masucal told IPS. 'When the conflict started, it was like Friday everyday. You wouldn’t see any people on the streets. If three or four people gathered, they would be immediately dispersed.'

'During that time, we were really scared to go out. We couldn’t leave the house,' added Lilia, Exequel’s wife. 'Schools were all closed because they had been turned into evacuation centres.'

Masucal started working as a computer technician 15 years ago for a Libyan employer. In 2005, he set up his own office equipment business. He and his family enjoyed a comfortable life in Tripoli - but in a flash, they lost their home, business, personal property, bank accounts and earnings when they fled the country.

'We left everything. Almost all Filipinos who left Libya weren’t able to bring anything - just their clothes. If you had a big bag, you’d eventually have to leave it at the border,' Masucal told IPS, adding that mobile phones and laptops were sometimes confiscated for 'security purposes'.

As part of the voluntary repatriation programme, the Masucal family was able to ride the government-chartered ferry MV Ionian Queen from eastern Libya to the Greek Island of Crete, and from there they boarded a special flight dispatched by Philippine Airlines (PAL) that arrived here Mar. 10.

Since they arrived, they have been staying in Rizal, 20 kilometres east of the capital Manila, with Masucal’s parents. 'Other OFWs who returned home whom I’ve talked to are really depressed. They have no jobs yet and weren’t able to bring much money in their rush to leave. Some are actually ready to go back and risk the war just to earn again,' Masucal said.

Despite calls from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) for Filipinos to return home due to the violent and uncertain climate in Libya, many preferred to put their lives in danger rather than risk unemployment.

'Filipinos are the only nurses left there, especially in the Tripoli Medical Centre,' Masucal says. 'The European nurses and other nationalities all pulled out during the first week of the crisis.'

The DFA made a 'last call' for OFWs to leave the country towards the end of March. Their latest figures show that approximately 1,600 of the more than 2,000 nurses in Libya have opted to stay behind. Around 800 nurses and their dependents are in Tripoli alone. Meanwhile, over 100 professors have also opted to remain in the country.

© Inter Press Service (2011) — All Rights Reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service

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