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101 overstaying Filipino expats fly home from Dubai

They all hurled a murmur of help. Some of them will never again play find the stowaway with specialists; moms and fathers will be brought together with their kids; married couples will by and by feel the warm grasp of their mates; and the youthful ones will have the capacity to proceed with their investigations. A dismal section in their lives has finished and another and promising one will start - all these occurred after they benefited of the UAE's amnesty program. 

 

A sum of 101 exceeding Filipinos, including six minors, flew out of Dubai on Wednesday. They were a piece of the 277 Filipino expats who were given a leave go in the primary seven day stretch of the 90-day migration absolution program.

Joy, 48, an undocumented Filipina expat who lived in Dubai for five years without proper residence visa is one of them.  she said: "I came here (Dubai) in 2012. I was not able to find a suitable job, instead of returning home, I took a risk and worked part-time cleaning homes and babysitting kids to sustain myself and send some money to my family in the Philippines. I had no legal documents and I was aware that what I was doing was illegal", reported Khaleej times.

"I lived in fear all those years, hiding from authorities. One time, I was almost caught during a random inspection. The policeman told me 'Ta'al, ta'al' but I pretended that I did not hear him and immediately ran away," Joy shared.

"My heart was really beating fast. What if I got caught? Then I would have been deported?," she added.

The amnesty program came as an early birthday and Christmas present to Joy. She went to the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) office in Al Aweer on August 1 to benefit of the UAE's general  amnesty program. That day she got her leave pass. What's more, much to her pleasure, the Philippine Consulate in Dubai paid for her outpass worth Dh221 and another Dh521 to expel her slipping away case. Besides she was given a free ticket back home, kindness of the Philippine government. 

Another inspiring story is that of youngsters Erica and Aldwin who will now have the capacity to proceed with their investigations back home. Erica, who completed secondary school at a Philippine school in Dubai, has exceeded for a long time after her mom's boss left the nation in 2015.

"My mother who worked for 13 years as a chocolate designer at a local confectionery in Al Quoz was left high and dry. Not only she did not get her gratuity, which amounted to more than Dh60,000, her employment visa was also not cancelled and we both had expired visas," Erica shared.

"Thankfully I was able to finish my high school studies and because of the amnesty program I will be able to go home without paying any fines and pursue my dream of studying tourism in college," she added.

The same happy development was true for Aldwin. A varsity basketball player, he thought he will not be able to continue his studies after his residence visa expired in 2016. "My father lost his business and worse his partner ran away with his passport. So I was not able to renew my visa. But we are going home now and hopefully I can find a school that will accept to fulfill my dream of playing for a collegiate basketball team," he said.

Two more happy passengers of Philippine Airlines flight PR 659, which took off from DXB Terminal 1 on Wednesday night, are Joseph and Dondon who both overstayed in Dubai for three years.

"The first thing that we are going to do is to kiss and hug our respective wives," the cheerful duo reported Khaleej Times.

"We came to Dubai on visit visa to look for jobs but we were unlucky so we just worked part time jobs illegally. It was a life full of uncertainties but it was a sacrifice that we had to do to make both ends meet," they said.

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Source: khaleejtimes

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