Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert Del Rosario met with Tunisian Deputy Chief of Protocol Mohamed Ben Salah and Tunisian business leader Noureddine Ayed and fine-tuned the evacuation program being undertaken by the Philippine government for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the light of escalating tensions in Libya.

Secretary Del Rosario, Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Esteban Conejos, Philippine Ambassador to Libya Alejandrino Vicente and a compact DFA team flew to Jerba, the Tunisian city closest to the Libyan border, and then proceeded by land to the border to facilitate the cross-over into Tunisia of Filipinos.

Secretary Del Rosario and Undersecretary Conejos departed Manila for Tunisia to oversee the Philippine government's efforts to bring Filipinos out of Libya in the quickest way possible.

In view of the escalating violence and widespread insecurity in Libya, the DFA is on a full relocation and repatriation mode. Apart from the Embassies near Libya, the DFA has mobilized its other Embassies and Consulates General to assist Filipinos who will be arriving in their countries from Libya.

Click here for original version of press release on the DFA website.