COVID-positive OFWs in Hong Kong situation now better
By Nidz Godino
“Many of them have now been transferred to temporary shelters unlike in the previous days when they were left to sleep outside hospitals or in parks,” Filipino Migrant Workers’ Union (FMWU) vice chairperson Eman Villanueva said in an interview situation of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Hong Kong who contracted COVID-19 are now better compared to the past days.
Villanueva made remark few days after Philippine Consul General Raly Tejada bared reports of three to 10 Filipinos in the territory forced by their employers to sleep in public areas such as parks after testing positive for COVID-19.
Several OFWs in Hong Kong who got infected by the virus were also among those who were forced to wait outside hospitals for treatment due to facilities being at full capacity.
“‘the situation now is probably a bit better compared to the previous days,” Villanueva added.
Villanueva said based on their estimates, over 30 OFWs in Hong Kong experienced such a plight, with the territory now on its fifth COVID-19 wave due to more transmissible Omicron variant.
According to authorities, Hong Kong hospitals are 90% full and could not admit patients right away.
The FMWU has then helped the affected OFWs by providing them with financial allowance for meals and RT-PCR tests.
“They also don’t want to leave the airport because anytime, if their RT-PCR test comes out, they will take flight home to the Philippines,” Villanueva said.
The Philippine government has lifted quarantine policy, whether facility-based or home, for fully vaccinated returning overseas Filipinos, starting February 1,2022.
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