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01/28/2012
The Philippine government is reviewing its security policy for Iraq following the return of violence in the Middle East state and may increase the crisis alert level that would require repatriation of hundreds of Filipino workers.
On Sunday, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario will fly to Iraq to meet with his counterpart Minister Hoshyar Zebari in Baghdad to seek protection for Filipino workers.
“We will convey our position and request the Iraqi government to help us protect our nationals,” Del Rosario said amid rising tensions following the withdrawal of US troops late last year.
Del Rosario said there have been 29 incidents of violence from Jan. 1 to 15, 14 of which were in Baghdad. On Tuesday this week, four car bombs exploded in Baghdad, killing 14 people and wounding 75.
“We had expected some increase in violence after the US Forces pull out, but not to the extent that it has happened,” he said.
Although there were nearly 4,000 Filipinos secured by US military, the US troop pullout on Dec. 18, 2011 has significantly reduced the number of Filipinos in Iraq and has also resulted in a diminution of their security, the Foreign Affairs chief said.
“In addition, we further believe that there may be undocumented Filipinos working as household service workers and we are, therefore, fully committed to ensuring the safety and welfare of all our countrymen in Iraq,” Del Rosario said.
The challenge, he said, is to determine exactly how many Filipinos are left, where they are, and the quality of their security.
“We believe that their security may have become questionable and we may need to take them out of harm’s way,” Del Rosario said, adding the resumption in the operations of the Philippine Embassy in Baghdad, which had been operating from Amman, Jordan since 1995, will enable him to make better on-the-ground assessment.
The embassy was temporarily shuttered as security condition worsened after the U.S. invasion of the Middle East state in 2003. A ban on Filipino workers was subsequently imposed due to rampant hostage-taking of foreign truck drivers, including Philippine nationals, by militant groups.
Del Rosario will be accompanied by Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Administration Rafael Seguis, Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Esteban Conejos and Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary for Middle East and African Affairs Petronila Garcia.