President Gloria Arroyo today assured the Philippines that she would seek justice for the alleged abuse of Filipinos being deported from Malaysia.

Arroyo also urged the public in a weekly radio address to unite to help the thousands of Filipinos returning from Malaysia after a crackdown on illegal immigrants.

She assured she had acted quickly on reports that a 13-year-old Filipina had been sexually abused at one of the Malaysian detention centers.

But she refrained from blaming the Malaysian government for the situation and praised Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad for calling a moratorium on the deportations.

"It is important that the whole nation unites on this issue," Arroyo said, recalling that she and congress leaders on Friday outlined a strategy to help the deportees.