By Marita Moaje
MANILA – The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) has extended aid and verified employment records for dozens of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) affected by the magnitude 7.7 earthquake that hit Myanmar on March 28.
DMW Undersecretary Felicitas Bay reported during a press briefing in Mandaluyong City on Wednesday that a team from their department, the Migrant Workers Office (MWO), and the Philippine Embassy in Bangkok, visited the affected areas from April 28 to May 2.
“For the part of the DMW and the MWO in Bangkok, we have provided to our OFWs financial assistance — 58 in Yangon, and then there’s 11 who visited our Migrant Workers Office in Bangkok. So it’s a total of 69. Sa kasalukuyan po, meron daw ngayon dalawa sa regional office (Currently, there are two in the regional office),” she said.
Bay said they also informed the OFWs in Myanmar during a meeting with the Filipino community that if they would decide to return to the Philippines, they could also freely seek assistance at the DMW office or any of its regional offices.
During the DMW team’s visit to Mandalay, Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac also had a virtual meeting with the Filipino community.
“Nakarating sa ground zero ng earthquake in Mandalay. Nakita pa nila mismo yung Sky Dormitory na gumuho kung saan nandun yung apat na kababayan natin. Natukoy, na-identify na (They reached ground zero of the earthquake in Mandalay. They even saw the Sky Dormitory, which collapsed, where the four OFWs were. They have been identified), and we have helped, assisted all the families,” he said.
Despite the incident, Bay said no Filipinos have requested to be repatriated to the country. They chose to stay and instead requested help in reconstructing lost documents.
She said many workers lost their employment documents in the rubble of the collapsed Sky Villa dormitory.
Bay said the DMW team verified 32 employment contracts and issued five overseas employment certificates (OECs) to help OFWs resume work.
“Their first request during our virtual town hall meeting was help in reconstructing their documents. That was our first priority,” she added.
The DMW team also visited four schools in Yangon where the majority of Filipino workers are employed.
According to DMW data, there are around 800 Filipinos in Myanmar, 700 of whom are OFWs, mostly working as teachers, librarians, counselors, and administrative staff in academic institutions in Yangon, Naypyidaw, and Mandalay.
Meanwhile, the visit also included ground assessments and direct support to OFWs who were displaced or had relocated or stayed with friends and family in Yangon.
Bay said Myanmar remains under Alert Level 2, which allows only returning OFWs with valid job contracts to enter the country. (PNA)
