1st tranche of cash aid given to Houthi attack survivors – DFA

SURVIVORS. Crew members of bulk carrier MV True Confidence disembark at Djibouti port after their rescue by Indian warship INS Kolkata on March 6, 2024. Two Filipinos and a Vietnamese were killed after the Houthi missile attack in the Gulf of Aden. (Photo: Djibouti Ports & Free Zones Authority @dpfza/X)

MANILA – Filipino survivors of the Houthi missile attack in the Gulf of Aden have received the first tranche of cash aid, with more assistance expected once they return to the country, an official of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Tuesday.

At a media briefing, DFA Undersecretary for Migration Eduardo Jose de Vega said a team from the Philippine Embassy in Cairo traveled to Djibouti to personally hand over the assistance, worth USD1,000 for each seafarer.

De Vega confirmed that 11 of the 13 survivors are returning to Manila on Tuesday as scheduled, including one of the three injured.

The two others will remain in a Djibouti hospital while they recuperate from their “grave injuries.”

De Vega said the two might be repatriated in the next few days and would be flown home by air ambulance.

Meanwhile, their manning agency is working to bring M/V True Confidence to a nearby port and retrieve the remains of three fatalities — two Filipino nationals and a Vietnamese.

De Vega said a number of government officials, including legislators, would welcome the 11 seafarers tonight and “provide more assistance packages.”

De Vega said the government would ask them in a debriefing whether they were given the option to refuse to sail through the Gulf of Aden, an area recently classified as a high-risk area for seafarers.

“Certainly, we will encourage the DMW (Department of Migrant Workers) to check on this. Kung napilitan ba itong 15, we can ask them tonight when they arrive,” he said.

17 hostages

In the same briefing, De Vega said the country is in touch with foreign governments to help ensure that Filipino seafarers are protected, especially in the Red Sea.

He also recognized the statement issued by the United Nation Security Council condemning the attacks on merchant vessels in the area.

“So we have allies, we have friends with us and countries in the region are also assisting in the operations that they are conducting in response to this Houthi attacks,” he said.

“We have been in touch with the United Kingdom and USA to ensure that no harm comes to seafarers,” he added.

On the 17 Filipinos on board the vessel Galaxy Leader, also previously hijacked by the Houthi rebels, De Vega said government efforts are continuous to facilitate their release.

The 17 are still being held in Al Hudaydah in Yemen and the Philippines is “working with friendly governments to see if they could be released,” De Vega said.

“The Houthis are consistent in their statement that it would need an end to the war in Gaza before they will release the ship or seafarers,” he said.

“But, at the very least, we know that the seafarers are safe. Of course, they’re not in the best of conditions, but they are safe and able to contact their families.”

De Vega said the DFA is expecting that the working visit of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to Germany would also cover possible maritime cooperation to increase protection for seafarers in the volatile region.