KAKAMMPI News

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) warned Filipino workers against using falsified documents for their job applications in New Zealand.   Administrator Hans Leo J. Cacdac said that according to the Philippine Embassy in Wellington, a substantial number of Filipino dairy farm workers entered the country using falsified employment certificates.   The report said unscrupulous individuals in the Philippines issued fake documents in exchange of NZ$15,000.   Cacdac added there were reports that Immigration New Zealand (INZ) is now implementing stricter measures on applications for dairy farm workers from the Philippines.   “The alleged irregularities may have been the cause of delays in the issuance of work visas for Filipino dairy farm workers,” Cacdac said.   Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz has ordered Cacdac to conduct an investigation on the alleged use of fraudulent documents.   Baldoz also said she is worried ...

HONG KONG—Filipino migrant workers in the territory held a rally at the Philippine Consulate General on Sept. 21 to commemorate the 43rd anniversary of the proclamation of Martial Law in the Philippines. Members of the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan-Hong Kong and Macau, and the HK Campaign for the Advancement of Human Rights and Peace in the Philippines belied social media posts claiming that the country was more prosperous under Martial Law than it was under succeeding democratic regimes. OFWs in HK mark 43rd Martial Law anniversary with protest action. A statement read by Eman Villanueva, Bayan-HKM chairperson, said there was no truth to claims there was no unemployment then, and that the peso-dollar exchange rate was one to one. "Sa panahon din pong iyon ang halaga ng piso ay bumagsak laban sa dolyar. Hindi totoo na one dollar is to one peso. Pagkaupo pa lamang ni Marcos ito ay higit tatlong piso kada isang dolyar. Sa kanyang panunungkulan, lumampas ang palitan sa anim na piso kada...

Malacañang on Saturday assured that the family of the Filipino who died in the hajj stampede will receive assistance from the government, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said Saturday.   "Rest assured that our Philippine Consulate in Jeddah is already in contact with the family, and the President has also been apprised of the situation, and ang instructions po ng Pangulo diyan is ibigay po natin ‘yung necessary assistance doon po sa pamilya ‘nung biktima," Valte said over state-run dzRB.   Valte, meanwhile, said that the Department of Foreign Affairs have not yet received any reports of other Filipino casualties in the hajj stampede, which left more than 700 people dead and hundreds more hurt.   "We have no other reports of any other citizen that was involved in the tragic incident," she said.   Saudi King Salman said he had ordered a review of haj plans after the disaster, in which two large groups of pilgrims arrived together at a c...

Six of the reported seven deaths of Filipino pilgrims during this week's hajj to Mecca in Saudi Arabia were due to various types of diseases, a Philippine health official said Saturday. Dr. Abdulnasser P. Masorong Jr. of the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) said the six reported deaths were due to heart problem, liver cirrhosis, liver cancer, and severe pneumonia, and that the ages of the victims ranged from 49  and above. He said that one of the victims succumbed to heart attack while on a plane heading for Saudi Arabia. Earlier, the  Dapartment of Foreign Affairs confirmed  that one Filipino pilgrim died in the stampede that left hundreds of people dead. In an earlier text message to GMA Nes Online, Foreign Affairs spokesperson Charles Jose said, "The Philippine Consulate General in Jeddah has confirmed that one local Filipino pilgrim died in the stampede in Mecca. The personal circumstances of the victim are being withheld on the request of the family." A...

HONG KONG—Like young people anywhere in the world, Filipino youths in Hong Kong would rather seek their peers' help in difficult school assignments. A study of HK-based "Section Juan" group conducted from April to July 2015, reveals that young Filipinos in Hong Kong ask their friends for help instead of looking for other learning support systems. "Upon tabulating the results, it appears that many students would turn to their friends for help. [Assistance] from peers seemed to take precedence over other forms of learning support,” reads a part of the study result that was released this September. The study of Section Juan—a pioneer support group for Filipino youths in the territory—was entitled, "Supporting Filipino Youth in Hong Kong: Towards Understanding Educational Issues and Developing Cultural Awareness." Also, the study indicated that Filipinos in the territory have poor skills in the Chinese language, but are more fluent in the English language. ...

A team from the Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Luzon Chapter will conduct free legal consultations for Filipinos in Hong Kong in November this year. According to the Philippine Consulate General in the territory, free legal consultations will be held on November 14, from 1 to 5 p.m. and November 15, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.—both events will be held in the PCG's conference room. A legal forum will follow shortly after the legal consultations on Nov. 15—also at the PCG. Vice Consul Fatima Guzman Quintin said that between 30 and 40 members of the IBP are expected to arrive in Hong Kong for the two-day event. Consultations are to be done on appointment basis, and that those who want to avail of the service may contact Ninni at 2823-8511 or Cholo at 2823-8537 of the Civil Registry and Legal Section. In 2014, IBP members from Pampanga also conducted free legal consultations in HK. Among the top issues for which Filipinos had sought legal advice involved marriage, separation, annulment, ...

September 24, 2015 4:37pm Tags: hajj, hajjpilgrimage, saudiarabia (Updated 5:25 p.m.)  MINA - At least 220 pilgrims were killed on Thursday in a crush at Mina, outside the Muslim holy city of Mecca, where some two million people are performing the annual haj pilgrimage, Saudi Arabia's civil defence authority said.   At least 450 others were injured in the crush, which took place on Street 204 of the camp city at Mina, a few kilometres east of Mecca, where pilgrims stay for several days during the climax of the haj.   The pilgrimage, the world's largest annual gathering of people, has been the scene of deadly disasters in the past, including stampedes, tent fires and riots.   The last major incident in haj took place in 2006, when at least 346 pilgrims were killed as they attempted to perform the stoning of the devil at Jamarat.   However, massive infrastructure upgrades and extensive spending on crowd control technology over the past ...