Filipino Kidnapped in Iraq

The recent news about a Filipino kidnapped by Iraqi gunmen is affecting life in the Philippines. I've been following the story more closely since we got back from a church in Chino Hills. We were there last night presenting our mission, which includes equipping Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who are believers for strategic underground ministry in the Middle East.

I checked out the usual CNN, MSNBC, and BBC news sites and went over to INQ7.net, a Filipino news service. You can even watch a Tagalog news program called "24 Oras" online to understand more about how the people feel and how this is affecting them.

So I watched the news and found out the Philippine government prevented over 100 OFWs from traveling to Iraq for work at the international airport. OFWs are understandably distraught since many cannot find work at home. I even heard some say they would rather die in Iraq then be jobless at home. Then I saw footage of the general manager of the airport stressing to angry crowds that overseas jobs are not as important as "...ang kaligtasan nyo, yung buhay nyo" (your safety and your lives).

The Philippines has around 50 troops and thousands of OFWs in Iraq. I'll be watching this situation as it develops.