Philippines foreign secretary flies into Syria to repatriate workers

Some of the obstacles the government faced until recently was having to pay refunds to Syrian employers for unfinished contracts and fees levied by the Syrian government.

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MANILA // The Philippine foreign secretary flew to Syria yesterday to speed up the repatriation of more than 1,000 Filipino workers trying to escape.

Some of the obstacles the government faced until recently was having to pay refunds to Syrian employers for unfinished contracts and fees levied by the Syrian government.

The Philippine government has now obtained waivers from employers, said the foreign affairs spokesman Raul Hernandez said.

More than 2,100 Filipinos were repatriated since last March.