DFA pays tribute to overseas Filipinos
THE Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Sunday honored, through a music video, the “selfless sacrifice” of over 10 million overseas Filipinos (OFs) for their contribution to national development.
As of December 2019, there were over 10 million OFs, 3 million of whom were temporary migrants or overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). The Asia-Pacific region, together with the Middle East, accounts for 87 percent of the total number of OFWs.
Currently, the DFA is facilitating the repatriation of distressed OFs from all over the world. As of June 5, the government has repatriated 35,411. Most of them lost their jobs because of the effect of the coronavirus pandemic.
In celebration of Migrant Workers’ Day, the foreign Affairs department released a music video that paid tribute to OFWs who work at the frontlines amid the pandemic.
The tribute video featured frontliner OFWs, ranging from health workers to supermarket staff and even peacekeepers from the United States, Saudi Arabia and Cambodia, among others.
It was launched at the DFA’s official YouTube channel and will be available across its social media sites, as well as the social media sites of its 94 foreign service posts worldwide.
“With the song, ‘Superhero’ sung by artist Jed Madela in the background, the music video highlighted the heroism and selflessness of the OFWs who chose to be away from their families to work in a foreign country to give them a better life, especially at this time of a pandemic as the song lyrics go, they are ‘more than a superhero,” the agency said.
The photos and video clips in the tribute video were submitted by the DFA’s Foreign Service posts that coordinated with the Filipino communities in their jurisdictions.
“The DFA assures you that it will continue to promote and protect the interest of overseas Filipino workers around the world,” Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Sarah Lou Arriola said.
“The DFA is always ready to assist Filipinos all over the world through its Foreign Service posts. OFWs in distress are reminded to contact the nearest embassies or consulates general in their area or get in touch with the DFA Office of Migrant Workers’ Affairs,” she added.