The Philippine consulate general in Jeddah pleaded to about 100 runaway Filipino workers Thursday not to assemble outside its premises, saying it is illegal under Saudi laws and could be “grounds for police action.” The consulate issued the advisory as more than 100 Filipino workers who had run away from - or abandoned by - their employers swelled at the Kandara bridge in central Jeddah over the past few weeks and have been seeking help from the consulate to send them home. Witnesses said the runaway workers have assembled in front of the consulate in the past few days to put pressure on mission officials to do something about their plight. They return to the bridge at night for sleep, especially during bad weather. Jun Soriano, a leader of the stranded workers, said the number of runaways has swelled to almost a hundred a week after the Saudi government deported a similar number of distressed Filipino workers last month. “We are now almost a hundred again. I think they came from the safe houses maintained by fixers,” he said. He complained that their situation under the bridge is getting difficult due to the extreme hot weather and they don't have anything to eat. “Most of us have nothing left in our pocket. I think majority of the stranded (workers) here were duped by the fixers who promised them an easy exit through the use of backdoor in exchange of huge amount. Now their last savings were gone,” Soriano said. In its advisory, the consulate general told the runaway workers “not to be deceived by ... unscrupulous individuals who promise to arrange repatriation for a fee ranging from SR1,000 to SR5,000.” “Those fixers are known and would be reported to the Saudi authorities for appropiate action,” the consulate said. It pleaded to the distressed workers not to assemble outside its premises as it could not help solve their problems. “The act of congregating outside the consulate premises does not help in the repatriatin process,” it said. “The Philippine consulate and Saudi authorities are exploring all avenues to effect the peaceful and orderly deportation (of the runaway workers).” The Kandara bridge has become a favorite destination of distressed Filipino workers as well as other nationals hoping that they would be picked up by Saudi authorities and deported immediately. Soriano said, while awaiting to be picked up by the Saudi authorities, they have sought the help of the Filipino community for food and cash donations to tide them over day after day. “We need food. We have no work here anymore. We don't have enough money to buy food,” he said. Since the news about their camping out at the Khandara Bridge spread to the community, donations from the Filipino expatriates began to flow. Filipino employees from the Danube head office, led by Ronnie Llave, donated groceries and promised to give more when they get their salary. A Filipino, who introduced himself only as Ken, and his colleagues at the Almajal Service Co. had donated a sack of rice and grocery items, aside from cash. Rizaldy Javing, a manager in a soft drinks company, and his family and friends donated boxes of bottled water and grocery items, along with trash bags and other cleaning materials. “I felt very sad when I saw them helplessly staying under the bridge, especially their children who are the most affected,” Javing said. “How are they going to cope especially at this time when the weather is not only hot but also humid?”
