DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — For Dolly Bordones, a 34-year-old single mom from Capiz, life in hiding was like a nightmare. With no work visa, she spent three long months dodging authorities and worrying about her kids back home.
“Every night, I felt like I was in jail,” Dolly shared. “I couldn’t sleep well. I kept wondering, what would happen tomorrow?”
Dolly’s thoughts were always with her kids. “I couldn’t send them money like before,” she said tearfully.
Her ordeal ended thanks to the UAE’s amnesty program, which helped bring nearly 600 overstaying Filipinos back to the Philippines without paying penalties. Dolly, who overstayed from May to August, had racked up about AED4,500 in fines, but the amnesty program canceled her debt, allowing her a fresh start.
Finally, on October 30, she boarded a flight to Manila, thrilled to soon see her daughters again. “I don’t have gifts, but just being alive and home is all that matters.”
Dolly worked odd jobs to survive in hiding, earning as little as AED50 for a 12-hour shift. She kept her situation a secret from her family, telling only a cousin in Dubai. “I didn’t want them to worry,” she explained. “I knew I could handle it.”
Now, as Dolly heads back to her hometown, she’s thankful to the UAE government and fellow Filipino Shauna Lirio Chaer, who helped her with the amnesty process. She dreams of starting over and maybe one day returning to the UAE legally.
“Thanks to the amnesty, I can go back to my family with a clean slate,” Dolly said.
