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MANILA, Philippines — The 36 remaining distressed Filipino workers in Lebanon are to be flown home before the year ends, the Department of Labor said Saturday.

Citing a report from Irma Valiente, the assistant labor attache in Beirut, Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said the Lebanese General Security Department has agreed to waive all penalties and fines, thus allowing the 36 workers to leave immediately.

The workers, most of whom are domestics, are staying at the Filipino Workers Rescue Center, Baldoz said.

“The plane tickets of the 36, who are all female ‘runaways’, will be paid for by Caritas Lebanon, a religious non-government organization in Bierut. We are now finalizing the flight bookings of the distressed OFWs,” Valiente said in her report to Baldoz.

Baldoz had earlier directed all Philippine Overseas Labor Offices to fast-track the settlement of cases involving distressed Filipino workers so they could be repatriated as soon as possible.

She urged labor officials to work closely with the Philippine embassies, establish rapport with licensed overseas employment providers, and intensify networking and coordination with the immigration and labor offices of the host countries.

“I commend the POLO in Lebanon for sustaining our efforts to fast-track the settlement of cases and repatriation of OFWs,” Baldoz said. “This is, without doubt, the result of our POLO-Lebanon’s good rapport and active networking with Lebanon’s immigration and labor offices.”

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