The Philippines said Friday that many of the thousands of its workers who fled Libya due to unrest this year would likely return now that former leader Moamer Kadhafi has been killed.
"The Philippines congratulates the Libyan people for their latest victory and the total liberation of Libya," the foreign affairs department said in a statement.
Thousands of Filipinos consider Libya their second home, it added.
"Many hope to return, work, and contribute to the reconstruction and rebuilding of the new Libya," it said.
Most of the roughly 30,000 Filipinos working in Libya fled the North African nation this year after unrest broke out. About 1,600 remained in the country, according to the Philippine government.
About nine million Filipinos work around the world, earning more money in a wide range of skilled and unskilled sectors than they could in their impoverished homeland.
