RP urges workers in Iraq not to panic

RP urges workers in Iraq not to panic

PHILIPPINES: Manila is closely monitoring the situation in Iraq
amid rumors of a possible military strike by the U.S. and has
prepared contingency plans to evacuate hundreds of thousands of
Filipinos working the Middle East, the presidential palace said
on Sunday.

"The families of the country's overseas workers in the region
should not panic," a palace statement quoted Foreign Secretary
Blas Ople as saying.

He said that all Philippine embassies and consular posts will
immediately activate contingency plans to provide for the "safety
and protection of all Filipino nationals in the Middle East,"
once an alarm has been raised.

The government also noted that the large concentration of
Filipinos working in Saudi Arabia were also not in immediate
danger since Saudi officials have assured the government that the
kingdom was beyond the reach of Iraqi Scud missiles, the
statement said.

About 25,000 Filipinos working in the region were repatriated
during the 1991 Gulf War. --AFP