FILIPINOS fleeing from strife-torn Sudan have also sought refuge in Saudi Arabia, France and Greece.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said some Filipinos have opted to leave on their own, sometimes together with their employers.
They took the longer land travel to Port Sudan, east of Sudan, and from there joined the Saudi government’s vessels that ferry Saudi nationals and other nationalities to Jeddah via the Red Sea.
Heavy bombings and gunfire engulfed Sudan as two warring factions of the army try to wrestle control since Sunday, April 15. A 72-hour ceasefire was extended but there have been reports of bombardment pounding Khartoum and other major cities.
Sixteen Filipinos have arrived in Jeddah, where Consul General Edgar Tomas Auxilian welcomed them.
There are 58 others who are still in Port Sudan, waiting for the processing of their papers and a chance to join the Saudi-led repatriation.
Meanwhile, eight Filipinos were flown to Athens, joining a Greek military rescue flight.
A French crisis team in Sudan also took with them 39 other nationals including two Filipinos—one extracted via military plane and another joined a French Navy frigate.
“France stands in solidarity on the ground by answering the call of many European and allied partners who reported their nationals in Sudan. The French Crisis and Support Centre [CDCS] contacted them to locate them and proceed as quickly as possible to their evacuation,” the French Embassy in Manila said.
Evacuation at the Egyptian border
Most of the 496 Filipinos who fled Sudan took the land route and made it towards the Egyptian border.
The Egyptian authorities had finally cleared the first batch of 51 Filipinos Thursday, three days after they left Khartoum.
They are now in Aswan City, and have been billeted at a hotel.
The second batch of 227 Filipinos on board seven buses arrived in the port border of Argeen Friday, April 28.
Another batch of 100 Filipino evacuees left Friday in the capital of Khartoum on board two buses and are on their way to the Egyptian border as of this writing.
The DFA said the Egyptian authorities have agreed to allow the Filipino refugees to enter the border but they are being held up much longer for processing.
A number of Filipino evacuees complained there is no staff from the Philippine Embassy in Cairo to assist them at the border. Fleeing from the war is traumatizing enough, and they were told to stay longer at the border, without food, water and money.
The DFA said Philippine Ambassador to Cairo Ezzedin Tago immediately flew to the Egypt-Sudan border, despite the car accident he and his consul encountered Wednesday.
However, Egypt has imposed stricter border controls and required more documentation requirements from thousands of refugees fleeing from Sudan.
Most Filipino evacuees don’t have visas, or worse, they don’t have their passports with them.
“The issuance of visa is not under the control of the Philippines. But we are working on it,” DFA Undersecretary Eduardo De Vega said.
Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Secretary Susan “Toots” Ople and her team have also arrived in Egypt to help the Philippine Embassy in the repatriation efforts.
Ople said the DMW teams have spoken with the first batch of evacuees, and 49 of them are Islamic studies students in Khartoum.
She said the DFA and the DMW are doing their “best” in this crisis.
Around 180 Filipinos more have expressed intention to leave Sudan.
Image credits: DFA