JEDDAH — Illegal Filipinos are to be processed at the new deportation processing facility in Al-Shumaisy ahead of their expected deportation home. The first batch of 600 women and children were transported by eight buses hired by the Philippine Consulate and two buses provided by Jeddah immigration authorities on Sunday morning following negotiations between a consulate team led by Philippine Consul General Uriel Norman Garibay and Saudi authorities. The Filipinos were picked up from the Philippine Consulate premises and escorted by Saudi police and consulate personnel to the new facility, about an hour's drive from Jeddah. Garibay said about 100 were from the temporary shelter set up by the consulate for illegal Filipinos while the rest were from a campsite near the consulate and rented flats in Jeddah. He said those who were taken to the new facility are remaining illegal Filipinos who requested repatriation during the amnesty period and those who failed to correct their status or just recently decided to surrender. The new deportation processing facility, which opened on Nov. 4 to coincide with the first day of a campaign to crack down on illegal workers who did not correct their status, can accommodate as many as 40,000 deportees. The facility also boasts a fully equipped hospital, 140 processing workstations and seats in an air-conditioned hall for deportees to sit on while waiting for their turn, storage rooms for the luggage and personal belongings of the deportees and office spaces for consulate personnel helping their nationals complete deportation procedures. Garibay quoted Saudi officials as saying that the whole process will take only 48 hours as long as air tickets for the deportees were available and there were no pending police cases against them. He said his staff will assist the Filipinos in processing their exit documents and thanked Saudi authorities for streamlining deportation procedures.
