MANILA, Philippines – Immigration Commissioner Siegfred B. Mison on Wednesday reaffirmed that persons especially listed as prohibited from leaving the country will be prevented from doing so, even as he assured that each individual’s legal rights will be respected.
Mison said in a statement that the Bureau of Immigration (BI) will continue to strictly enforce derogatory orders against persons such as hold departure order (HDO), blacklist order (BLO), and alert list order (ALO) pursuant to its mandate under the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940.
Mison’s assertion came in the wake of outcry from groups that a number of high-profile individuals implicated in major criminal cases have been allowed to leave the country.
Any person whose name is in the hold departure list shall be denied departure.
If the person is a subject of a warrant of arrest, he or she shall be turned-over to the Philippine National Police (PNP) or the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
If the person is a subject of a pending deportation case, his or her passport shall be confiscated and turned over to the legal division.
A foreign national whose name is in the blacklist shall not be denied departure provided that there is no other derogatory record against him. Otherwise, the foreign national and his passport shall be referred to the Intelligence Division who shall eventually turn over the subject and his or her passport to the legal division for implementation of the deportation.
Mison also said he requires immigration officers to prepare within 24 hours a detailed incident report on any failed attempt to depart as a result of an enforcement of a hold order, blacklist or alert order.
