MANILA – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) capped off its Holy Monday repatriation operations by welcoming an additional 179 seafarers from the United States and 23 shelter wards from Qatar on board Qatar Airways Flight QR932.
The batch was composed of seafarers from five Carnival Cruise ships – the Conquest, Ecstasy, Fascination, Legend, and Magic, the DFA said in a news release on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the 23 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from Qatar were wards who took refuge at the shelter managed by the Philippine Embassy in Doha.
The DFA, through its embassies in Washington DC and Doha, facilitated the safe return of the OFWs.
The department’s partner agencies – the departments of health and transportation, and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration – likewise assisted the returning Filipinos upon their arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
This is a testament to the Philippine government’s commitment to bring home every Filipino who wishes to come home, amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
All the repatriates underwent thorough mandatory inspection and quarantine protocols supervised by the Bureau of Quarantine.
Earlier in the day, the DFA welcomed 599 seafarers from five other Carnival Cruise ships. (PR)
