Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez —Gabriel P. Lalu/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — US President Donald Trump’s mass deportation policy is now taking effect, with 24 Filipinos deported for alleged involvement in illegal activities in the United States, according to Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez.

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“We have monitored around 24 Filipinos who have been deported from the United States due to their involvement in certain criminal activities, although these were not classified as very serious offenses,” Romualdez said in an interview with dzBB on Sunday.

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The ambassador reassured the public regarding the situation of undocumented Filipino immigrants, noting that some employers are committed to retaining their Filipino workers and are assisting them in securing their legal status.

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Romualdez had previously said that the US government would prioritize the deportation of individuals with criminal records, along with the 1.3 million immigrants who have already been processed.

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The Department of Foreign Affairs, for its part, advised Filipino immigrants to “keep a low profile” and actively pursue regularizing their legal status in the United States.

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Foreign Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega, speaking at a news forum over the weekend, recalled Trump’s comments about working with Democrats on addressing illegal aliens who do not fall under the categories of those targeted for deportation, particularly “criminals and terrorists.”

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“That means they will create legal avenues to encourage productive overstaying aliens to become fully legalized. So, take advantage of that,” De Vega said.

He also emphasized that immigrants who are targeted for deportation still have legal options to contest the decision and remain in the United States for at least several months.

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“Let’s seeau777 how good [their] immigration lawyers [are] because they would argue that you are doing something productive in the United States, so you can stay. And sometimes, success can prevent your deportation,” he said.

De Vega further noted that the majority of Filipinos who entered the country did so with valid documentation, even if their visas have since expired, which differs from individuals who entered without any papers.

“It is almost impossible,” De Vega said, “that the estimated 300,000 Filipinos without legal status in the United States will be deported by the end of the Trump administration.”

During Trump’s first term, De Vega said that the United States deported “only a few hundred or less” undocumented Filipinos each month, which was fewer than during the Obama administration.

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“Let’s see, for example, if in six months, 20,000 or 10,000 get deported, then the number really increased. Let’s not conclude anything until we see the data in six to eight months to determine if the number of deportations rises,” he said.

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