A group of 15 travellers from Malaysia are reportedly stranded at the Manila Ninoy Aquino International Airport after they were denied entry into the Philippines as local authorities did not recognise the MySejahtera vaccine certification.
The 15 passengers had arrived in the Philippines from Kuala Lumpur on an 8.30am flight on Sunday (Feb 13) but upon arrival, their passports were confiscated, and they were told they would be deported on Tuesday (Feb 15).
"Passengers that were on the flight from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) but were vaccinated in Singapore or the United Kingdom were granted access to the country, but those vaccinated in Malaysia have been denied entry.
"Our passports have been confiscated, and we were told that we would be deported.
"As there are no hotels available, we are being made to sleep on benches or on the floor," said a passenger on condition of anonymity, as reported by The Star.
The Philippines immigration authorities had told the passengers that the MySejahtera digital vaccine certificate was not acceptable proof of vaccination.
The passengers – which consisted of 13 Malaysians and two foreigners – were informed that they needed to have proof of vaccination from another country such as Singapore or the World Health Organisation's (WHO) International Certificate of Vaccination.
Worry about being deported
The Malaysian ambassador to the Philippines has since visited the stranded travellers personally and told them that the embassy sent an appeal for "vaccine reciprocity" on Thursday (Feb 10).
However, there have been no updates from the Philippines Foreign Affairs Agency.
Philippines immigration authorities also told the embassy that it must wait until Feb 14 to liaise with the Foreign Affairs Ministry regarding the vaccine reciprocity, leaving all travellers stranded overnight.
"They tried their best to negotiate with immigration, together with the Malaysia Airlines team, but have been unsuccessful, and now all the Malaysians are stranded.
"We are feeling frustrated at not being allowed into the country. We worry most about being deported. We feel that if we are deported, it would be a huge disappointment and a major setback having travelled this far.
"We pray that the Malaysian government can support us in gaining entry into the Philippines," said the passenger.
The Philippines had reopened its international borders to fully-vaccinated travellers starting Feb 10.
Wisma Putra has since confirmed that the Malaysian embassy in the Philippines is on the ground to assist the stranded travellers from Malaysia.
"Wisma Putra is liaising with relevant agencies to facilitate the process smoothly," it said in a posting on Twitter today. - Mkini
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