Locsin orders immediate repatriation of Filipinos in cruise ship

February 19, 2020

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr. has ordered the immediate repatriation of Filipinos aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship under quarantine off Yokohama due to the 2019 coronavirus disease ( COVID-19).

Locsin said Wednesday he has directed the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo to  work for the return of the Filipinos on board the cruise ship. There are 538 Filipinos in the vessel, but 41 have tested positive for COVID-19.

''I have ordered our Tokyo Embassy to immediately repatriate our people in the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Yokohoma Japan. It’s our duty to take care our Overseas Filipinos wherever they are. I want them home now!” Locsin said in his Twitter account.

The Department of Health said it is coordinating with the Japanese government and hospitals where the infected Filipinos are confined.

The government repatriated 30 Filipinos from the Chinese province of Hubei, the epicenter of the COVID-19.

They, along with two consulate staffers, have been in quarantine at the New Clark City Athletes’ Village in Capas, Tarlac. DMS