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The tens of thousands of Filipinos working in Israel have grown used to conflict in the region, but some describe the recent clashes with Iran as the worst they’ve ever seen.
After around two weeks of intense confrontation between Iran and Israel, the United States insists that the war is over following a ceasefire agreement. Israel, backed by the US, saw Iran as a nuclear threat and struck at its nuclear facilities, and Iran saw the need to defend itself, firing missiles at its foe.
Some 30,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are there, most of whom are caregivers and hotel workers. Since the October 7, 2023 breakout of the Israel-Hamas war, the Philippine government has repatriated just over 1,300 from Israel. In the recent clashes, at least 346 asked to be repatriated as of Wednesday, June 25, according to the Philippine embassy in Israel. The first batch of 26 repatriates from Israel was brought home on Tuesday, June 24, along with five others from neighboring countries.
The trend remains that the majority of OFWs still see working in Israel as their best option, despite the unpredictability of the conflict in the region.
For some caregivers, staying to work in a place of war they’ve gotten used to is better for their families than going home to face uncertainty in their livelihoods.
Direct hit
Charlot Agustin David has been a caregiver in Israel for almost 17 years. In those 17 years, alarms from the Israel Defense Forces became normal. All new structures were mandated to have a shelter where residents can take cover. There were also bomb shelters scattered around for people to evacuate to.
In the early hours of Saturday, June 14, Charlot and fellow Filipinos she lived with at their flat in Rehovot received an “extreme” alarm on their phones. Still in bed, it was tempting for her to just ignore the alarm. Israel had iron domes and its David’s Sling system that protected its people from missiles.
But one of them in the group of four insisted they leave and go to the bomb shelter. Looking back, Charlot thanked God they decided to follow.
“After more or less five minutes, narinig na ho bigla namin noong nasa bomb shelter na kami ‘yung pagsabog. Meron ho kaming kasamahan na nasa bukana ng mamad, bomb shelter, na tumilapon dahil doon sa impact. Ako ho, nandoon sa may harapan ng pintuan, naanuhan din po ako ng impact at ng hangin at ng pulbura ng missile,” she said in an interview with Rappler.
(We heard the explosion after more or less five minutes of being inside the bomb shelter. One of us was at the opening of the mamad or bomb shelter, and was thrown back by the impact. I was near the door, and I also felt the impact and even the missile’s gunpowder.)
No one experienced major injuries in their group, thankfully. “Pero ‘yung trauma na dulot sa amin hanggang ngayon, talagang ramdam namin (But until this day, we still feel the trauma it inflicted upon us),” she said.
When they went out to see their flat, it was destroyed. Charlot’s flat, where she stayed for eight years with other Filipinos to rest after work, was gone.
“This is not the first time I experienced the war in Israel, but I can say that this was the worst… The level of damage caused by the missiles is worse. It’s really terrifying, no more kidding around. We really need to be extra cautious and alert, and we can no longer dismiss alarms and feel like we won’t get hit. None of that anymore. Even if there is an iron dome, you are not 100% sure and safe,” she said in a mix of English and Filipino.
At least 135 Filipinos’ homes have been damaged, according to June 25 data from the Philippine embassy in Israel. At least eight were injured, one of whom was critically hit.
Dexter Pamintuan, a Filipino community leader in Israel, felt the same. He has been a caregiver in the country for 13 years.
“Mas malala ang sitwasyon ngayon dahil sa matagal na panahon na nagkakaroon ng kaguluhan dito, ngayon lamang nagkaroon ng mga direct hit na hindi na mabilang sa mga daliri,” he told Rappler.
(The situation is worse now because, for the longest time that Israel has been in conflict, it is only now that there are direct hits we can no longer count on our fingers.)
To go home or not?
Even if longtime residents are describing the conflict as the worst they have seen, an underwhelming 1% are interested in returning home. This, despite the fact that the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) raised the crisis alert level in Israel and Iran to Alert Level 3, or voluntary repatriation.
Asked if repatriation requests increased after the DFA raised the alert level on June 20, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) chief Patricia Yvonne Caunan said that there have been constant calls to its hotline, but not all end up pushing through with repatriation.
When Israel was on Alert Level 2, or the restriction phase, Israel’s households could not hire new Filipino workers, but those who had existing employers or contracts could return. Under Alert Level 3, which the DFA issues when “violent disturbances or external aggression occur in a limited area,” neither new hires nor returning workers can go to Israel.
For the OFWs already there, it means that going home is still up to them. Those who choose to be repatriated will have all expenses paid, and are given a package of assistance from various government agencies.
Charlot is currently staying in an accommodation arranged by Philippine officials in Israel. She has gone back to taking care of her employers, a family with two children with autism.
Despite the raising of the alert level, she wants to hang on a little longer. Charlot is a single mother with three more kids she needs to put through college. The P150,000 in financial assistance from the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) and the OWWA will be gone in a blip. She earns a net of around 5,000 shekels in a month, or around P83,000.
The only circumstance that will push her to finally go home is if both the Philippine and Israeli governments say that it is time to evacuate. At 44, Charlot no longer wants to adjust to a new host country to work. She is used to Israel. She just needs to hang on for around five more years, until her kids are done with school.
“We cannot just decide to go home in an instant. We also think about why we came here — for our families, right? If we suddenly go home, what will happen to our responsibilities?” she said.
For Charlot and her community, inner strength and prayer is what gets them through.
Filipino hotel worker Armando Naz was one of the 31 repatriated on Tuesday. Despite being able to hold his partner and daughter again, he still plans to go back abroad to work.
“Marami sa kanila ‘yung nanginginig, natatakot. Kasi lahat naman, natatakot sila sa kanilang kaligtasan. Pero sa mga kasamahan ko na OFW sa Israel, marami sa kanila ang gusto nang umuwi talaga. Gusto na nilang magpa-repat, pero ang iniisip din nila, ano ‘yung magiging buhay nila pagdating dito?” he told reporters upon arriving in Manila.
(Many of the Filipinos [in Israel] are afraid. All of them are afraid for their safety. Many of them want to go home. They want to be repatriated. But they are also thinking, what life awaits them when they get here?)
The OFW added that other Filipinos told him that they thought the government assistance package was not enough to start anew, leading them to stay in Israel despite losing their jobs.
Working conditions
Like Charlot, 47-year-old Dexter feels protected by the Israeli government’s defense system. All the safety precautions the government implements make it comfortable to work there, despite the physical dangers of war.
Dexter has two sons with his wife back in the Philippines. Prior to going to Israel, he and his wife were factory workers in Tarlac — a minimum wage job. It still was not enough for their family, which led him to seek work elsewhere.
“Mas pipiliin kong makipagsapalaran sa delikadong kalagayan kaysa doon sa umuwi ka sa Pilipinas na wala ka namang katiyakan sa trabahong papasukin. Kaya nga kami nag-abroad eh, dahil wala kaming mga trabahong mapapasukan, o kung mayroon man, hindi sapat ‘yung sahod para buhayin ‘yung pamilya,” he said.
“Mas nakakatakot ‘yung kahirapan kaysa doon sa lagay ng giyera,” he added.
(I would rather take my chances at a dangerous environment than go home to the Philippines where you don’t have any certainty of a job to go to. That’s why we went abroad, because we don’t have jobs, or when we do, the salary isn’t enough to get our families by. Poverty is more terrifying than being in a state of war.)
When Dexter was in the Philippines, he was active in the local labor movement, and is now a coordinator for Migrante Middle East. This perspective allows him to make various comparisons in the working conditions at home and abroad, beyond salaries: strict contracts, complete insurance, an across-the-board minimum wage, and other benefits that Israeli authorities monitor in making sure the employers and agencies adhere to.
Here, trade union leaders continue to fight for higher wages and better working conditions that make it easier to stay.
Reactive?
OWWA administrator Caunan and DMW Undersecretary Felicitas Bay in a press conference on Tuesday said that no matter the alert level, Philippine migration authorities are ready to assist workers — whether documented or undocumented.
“The DMW, OWWA, embassy and Migrant Workers Office have never been short on inviting or encouraging our compatriots to avail the voluntary repatriation program. And also to add, we give assistance to our compatriots in Israel,” Bay said in a mix of English and Filipino.
Apart from the P150,000 in financial assistance, repatriates are also entitled to health checkups from the Department of Health, and livelihood assistance from the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority for gaining new skills that will help them in future employment.
Meanwhile, Bay said at least 470 Filipinos in Israel have received assistance in forms of temporary accommodation, food packs, hygiene kits, and counseling. As they expect more repatriation requests, the DMW is considering chartering special flights.
But for Dexter, the government’s response to OFWs in conflict zones is “reactive.”
“They are reacting because we are caught in the middle of a war. This is not the solution…. Why are we leaving the country in the first place?” he said. “The government must provide jobs inside the country. If I had a good job in the Philippines, I never would have left.”
The US may call the Israel-Iran clashes over, but with instability still simmering, Filipinos and other migrants know better than to hold their breath for lasting peace. – Rappler.com
