In the latest development amid the ongoing Strait of Hormuz blockade, 18 Filipino seafarers arrived in Manila on Thursday and Friday after refusing to pass through the high-risk waterway aboard the Liberian-flagged MSC Ishyka. They invoked rights under a DMW advisory, with over 1,300 now safely crossed following earlier diplomatic safe passages.
MANILA, Philippines — Eighteen Filipino seafarers arrived in the country on Thursday and Friday via separate commercial flights after staying in the Persian Gulf aboard the Liberian-flagged vessel MSC Ishyka. They refused to sail to India, which required passage through the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW).
“This is in accordance with Department of Migrant Workers Advisory No. 09 issued on March 1, 2026, reiterating imposition of the seafarer’s right to refuse sailing in high-risk areas in the Gulf region,” the DMW said. Migrant Workers Assistant Secretary Venecio Legaspi and Labor Attaché Solaiman Mutia assisted them at King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, Saudi Arabia. Their manning agency facilitated the repatriation.
Upon arrival, the seafarers received financial and transport assistance from the DMW and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA). Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Cacdac reported that over 1,300 Filipino seafarers have now safely crossed the Strait of Hormuz—building on earlier exits via diplomatic safe passages—with 14 others awaiting traversal. The Strait remains closed after Iran blocked it in response to US-Israeli strikes. Over 8,000 Filipinos from the crisis-torn Middle East have been repatriated, Cacdac noted Saturday, with around 2,000 more expressing intent to return home, per OWWA. “While we continue assisting the repatriates, we are also intensifying the whole of government approach in helping out our kababayans who are now back home,” Cacdac added.
