The Filcom Outreach Team -- which included several Filipino community members, some staff from the Caritas Lebanon Migrants Center, Vice Consul Rona Goce and Labor Attaché Salome Mendoza -- visited migrant prisoners in Tripoli, Lebanon, about 2 hours north of Beirut.

 

Similar to their prison visit in Adlieh, Beirut last October, the group once again cheered the migrant women with Christmas carols. A handful of the 60 migrant prisoners shared their native songs and dances and enthusiastically joined in a few group games.

 

The outreach team did not leave without distributing Christmas gifts. The team donated food and personal items, such as dried noodles, fresh fruits, rice, sugar, cooking oil, detergent, toiletries, clothes and baby articles.

 

“The mother of the baby was very happy, because we brought some baby stuff. You know, these combs and personal things for the baby,” said Lea Al Alam, a Filcom Outreach Team member.

 

The team brought something even more special for the 12 Filipino detainees — a home-cooked meal comprising of Filipino favorites such as sopas, ginataang laing, kaldereta and leche flan.

 

After enjoying an early “Noche Buena”, the team inquired about the detainees’ welfare. 

 

According to Caritas social worker Mira Nassif, the migrants have been detained at the Tripoli prison from anywhere between 6 months to 2 years. Most of the cases involve insufficient work papers and minor crimes, such as theft.

 

But on that day, the Filipino detainees managed to forget their troubles, even for a while.

 

“The feedback was that they were so happy,” said Malou Taleb, a Filcom Outreach Team resident of Tripoli. “We really felt so welcome and felt that they truly enjoyed what we did for them.”

 

John Paul Manchakian,  the team’s musician, said, “Seeing them being happy, eating their foods, singing their songs, dancing … well, it makes me happy, you know. They had a good day”.