KAKAMMPI News

HONG KONG - Hundreds of Filipino tourists who go to mainland China on a regular basis appear to be among those hard hit by new entry visa restrictions imposed by Beijing on April 15. A trip to the Chinese Foreign Ministry office in Wan Chai days after the new visa requirements were imposed showed no fewer than 50 Filipino visa applicants being turned away on a single day. They included tourists planning to go on a day-long shopping trip to Shenzhen, regulars who buy and sell goods from the mainland, a group planning to attend a trade fair, and women working in Wan Chai bars who cross the border to get exit stamps on their passports. Despite this, no one has reportedly sought the Philippine Consulate’s help in securing a mainland visa. “We have heard from other Consulates, mostly Europeans, on how the new restrictions are affecting the way they do business with the mainland," said Consul General Alejandrino A. Vicente. “But we have not heard from our own nationals, including busine...

MANILA, Philippines - After being named the Vatican's ambassador to Korea, Filipino Archbishop Osvaldo Padilla received a second diplomatic assignment, that of papal nuncio to Mongolia. The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines announced Monday that Pope Benedict XVI tapped Archbishop Padilla to succeed Archbishop Emil Paul Tscherrig, who was reassigned to northern Europe last January. It noted that after the fall of communism in the early 1990s, the first Catholic missionaries – a Belgian and two Filipinos – arrived in Mongolia where few people had heard of Jesus Christ. According to the CBCP, the Holy See established diplomatic relations with the former communist country in 1992. It said the Church in Mongolia consists of one apostolic prefecture in Ulan Bator. Tibetan Buddhism is the most widely practiced religion in the country. Born on Aug. 5, 1942, in Cebu province, Archbishop Padilla was ordained a priest in 1966 for Cebu archdiocese. He later obtained a doctorate i...

MANILA, Philippines - A woman facing a string of illegal recruitment charges was arrested shortly upon arrival in the Philippines from Hong Kong. Radio dzBB's Denver Trinidad reported Tuesday that aviation police arrested Connie Gomez at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2. The police served Gomez an arrest warrant issued by Manila judge Rustico Panganiban, stemming from charges lodged against her by at least 15 complainants. According to alleged victims, Gomez promised them jobs in the United States and Canada, but the these never materialized. Gomez was turned over to the National Bureau of Investigation after her arrest. - GMANews.TV

MANILA, Philippines - A woman facing a string of illegal recruitment charges was arrested shortly upon arrival in the Philippines from Hong Kong. Radio dzBB's Denver Trinidad reported Tuesday that aviation police arrested Connie Gomez at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2. The police served Gomez an arrest warrant issued by Manila judge Rustico Panganiban, stemming from charges lodged against her by at least 15 complainants. According to alleged victims, Gomez promised them jobs in the United States and Canada, but the these never materialized. Gomez was turned over to the National Bureau of Investigation after her arrest. - GMANews.TV

CHICAGO, Illinois-- A former US Air Force enlisted man who was sentenced to 41 months in prison in connection with a $30-million scheme to defraud a US-based bank, tagged a Filipina as the mastermind of the scheme. Daniel Curran, 53, who was sentenced last April 23 by the US District Court of Columbia said Marilyn Ong “masterminded the whole scheme" to swindle the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank). According to Curran, from October 2000 to June 2005, he acted as a purported “exporter" of approximately $30-million worth of fraudulent loan transactions, falsified documents sent to US banks and to the Ex-Im Bank, and misappropriated about $24-million in loan proceeds. The Irish-American was a former owner of Dankim Trading Corp., an exporting company located in Boynton Beach, and pleaded guilty on June 8, 2007, to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and one count of mail fraud. Curran, admitted keeping approximately $400,000 of those proceeds and transferring appr...

MANILA, Philippines- Two Filipinas who both gave birth inside a Jeddah deportation cell, along with six other Filipinos left Saudi Arabia Monday night and are bound to the Philippines, an official said. According to Romeo Pablo, Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration (OWWA) Welfare Officer, six unnamed Filipinos left Dammam last night upon the consul's endorsement. Two Filipina mothers, Shahani Odin at Zubaida Insiang were also returned home along with their new-born babies Ahmad Odin and Abdulaziz Insiang. “They are the last stranded Filipinas endorsed to leave Saudi, “Pablo said. The Filipinos were on board an Ittihad (EY-428) flight that left Saudi Arabia on the night of April 28. The runaway Filipinas were endorsed by Consul General Ezzedin Tago for deportation last February. Pablo explained that Odin and Insiang’s repatriation to the Philippines was earlier moved from early April to last night after the two unexpectedly gave birth inside the deportation cell. Based on their ...

More than 60 Filipinos were deported from the Los Angeles, California last week, ABS-CBN North America News Bureau reported. The Filipinos, mostly permanent residents with criminal offenses were all flown back from the Unite States on a chartered flight. Meanwhile, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) arrested more than 200 undocumented workers in various states also last week. Most of those arrested were Mexicans working in chicken farms in Mount Pleasant, Texas, Batesville, Arkansas, Live Oak, Florida, Chattanooga, Tennessee and Moorefield, Virginia. However, ABS-CBN North America News Bureau said there could have been some Filipinos included. Arrests were also made in Buffalo, New York, Bradford, Pennsylvania, Mentor, Ohio, West Virginia and Georgia.ABSCBN News

MIA standards at par with all global airports Good News Pilipinas The International Civil Aviation Organization gives the Manila International Airport the thumbs up. ICAO says it is now at par with all airports in the world after it complied with international standards and hurdled the required security measures. "The ICAO officials were impressed with the consistent high standard screening procedures of persons and luggage at various screening points," said Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) General Manager Alfonso Cusi. Cusi said that ICAO representatives Ken Robinson and Graham Lockwood remarked that "the pat down process was not only efficient but also non-intrusive." He assured ICAO officials that the MIAA would continue to sustain its security grip of the premier airport, consistent with international standards set by the world body. "The MIAA is exerting all efforts geared towards further improving not only the security process, but also takin...

Non-governmental organizations has cleared up the reported additional tax on overseas remittances saying this documentary stamp tax is nothing new. Center for Migrant Advocacy Executive Director Ellene Sana told abs-cbnNEWS.com she verified the matter with the Bureau of Internal Revenue who said it was an old provision in the law. "I spoke with Atty. Elenita Quimosin, chief of staff of the BIR deputy commissioner and she said even long ago, the documentary stamp tax (DST) has always been part of the taxes on remittances," Sana said. Sana said overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) were probably unaware of Section 181 of RA 8424 (the Comprehensive Tax Reform Act) which says "Upon any acceptance or payment of any bill of exchange or order for the payment of money purporting to be drawn in a foreign country but payable in the Philippines, there shall be collected a documentary stamp tax of Thirty centavos (P0.30) on each Two hundred pesos (P200), or fractional part thereof, of th...

MANILA, Philippines-A Middle East-based migrant workers’ organization urged Philippine embassy officials to reveal the conditions of distressed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) instead of sugar-coating the situation. Migrante-Middle East issued the statement on Friday after the Philippine Consulate in Jeddah confirmed that an OFW died in a deportation cell earlier this month. John Leonard Monterona, Migrante-ME’s regional coordinator said that Philippine officials in the oil-rich states do nothing else but deny or confirm reports. "Then a lot of excuses will follow," Monterona added. On Tuesday, Migrante International, the group’s umbrella organization, broke the news that a certain Ryan Castillo, 30, from Batangas City , died under harsh conditions in a Jeddah deportation cell. Arman Navarro, a dump truck driver in Jeddah who was among the first batch of Filipinos repatriated to Manila this week, said that a friend of Castillo told him that the OFW had long been sick while i...

MANILA, Philippines - A 50-year-old Filipino was arrested by Saudi police last week after being accused of repeatedly forcing a 10-year-old girl to have sex with him at their compound at the Al-Ruwais district in Jeddah. The suspect, identified only as Armando from Nueva Ecija, worked as a restaurant chef and lived in the same compound with the victim’s family. According to the girl, Armando would call her to his home and force her to watch pornographic films before having sex with her. "Pinapanood nya po ako nang mga sex video tapos pinapagaya nya po sa akin ang mga inaano ang mga nasa video na yun tapos sabi nya na huwag ko daw sabihin kahit kanino kahit sa magulang ko," the fourth-grader narrated, adding that that she was raped twice in a week. (Translation: "He would force me to watch sex videos before asking me to imitate what I saw. He ordered me not to tell anyone – not even my parents – what we were doing.") Armando also told her he wanted to have their chil...

MANILA, Philippines - A Filipino allegedly operating a movie house showing obscene films in the Al-Sinaiyah district in Jeddah was arrested by Saudi authorities in a raid last month. Saudi Arabia's Committee for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice discovered, after a concerned citizen's tip, the establishment showing pornographic movies, mostly to Filipino patrons. Consul General Ezzedin Tago said that a "liquor factory" was also found in the area, allegedly also owned by the Filipino. The equipments were confiscated following the unidentified Filipino's arrest. Tago warned Filipinos in Saudi Arabia to avoid engaging in illegal activities so that they may not end up in jail. He also assured that the consulate will do its best to assist the arrested Filipino in Jeddah. - Ronaldo Concha, GMANews.TV

MANILA, Philippines - The Filipino who died in a Jeddah deportation cell earlier this month was not endorsed by the consulate after using a different name in preparation for a 'backdoor exit.' This was the clarification of Philippine Consul General Ezzedin Tago after several militant groups blamed the officials there for the death of 30-year-old Ryan Castillo inside the Jeddah deportation center on April 6. According to Tago, Castillo used a false name when he went to the deportation facility on his own volition, making it difficult for them to find out his condition. "When we received a call, we immediately sent our people to check up on him. He was rushed to the hospital but he already lost his vital signs there," Tago said. An umbrella organization of Filipinos in Jeddah came to the defense of Tago in the incident. Kapulungan ng Samahang Pilipino (KASAPI) Congress asserted that Tago was unaware of Castilo’s plight inside the deportation cell especially since the OF...

MANILA, Philippines - The number of Filipino nurses who applied for work in the United States have declined during the first three months of 2008, compared to the same period last year. Data provided by Catanduanes Representative Joseph Santiago indicated that only 4,686 Filipino nurses took a US-administered exam from January to March 2008, lower than the 5,076 who also took the test the previous year. The number decreased by 390, or seven percent. In 2007, a total of 21,499 Filipinos took the said test—the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX)—for the first time, excluding repeaters. This was an increase of 42 percent compared to the 15,171 Filipino nurses who took the exam in 2006. The NCLEX is administered by the US National Council of State Boards of Nursing Inc. (NCSBSN). Santiago, who has been pushing for reforms to build up Philippine nursing education, said the 2007 figures “translate to a daily average of around 60 Filipino nurses seeking to practice in the US alone....

MANILA, Philippines- Hong Kong-based brokerage and investment group CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets has painted depressing scenario for the Philippine economy, which it sees growing by only 3.9 percent this year from 7.3 percent last year due to weak export earnings and remittances from overseas Filipinos. In a weekly economic commentary entitled “Manila Oblivion," CLSA also blamed galloping inflation for their bleak forecast. “We are less sanguine, forecasting 3.9 percent growth this year and 3.4 percent in 2009, after 7.3 percent growth last year," the investment bank said. The 2007 GDP growth was the fastest achieved in 31 years. CLSA's GDP growth forecast is way below the government target of between 6.3 percent and 7 percent expansion for 2008. “We expect economic growth to moderate this year on the back of slowing remittance inflows, weakening export demand and as rising inflation bites in to real spending," it added. Robust economic growth last year, CLSA said, coul...

MANILA, Philippines - In a bid to ensure an “adequate and continuing supply of trained and qualified professionals for domestic and overseas requirements," the Development Bank of the Philippines is providing a special scholarship program for indigent but qualified students who wish to work as nurses and seamen, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said Sunday. Bunye in his column “View from the Palace" said the DBP Endowment for Education Program (DEEP) will initially focus on training of nurses who are in demand in the Philippines and abroad. Under DEEP, nursing scholars would be provided a scholarship grant that covers all expenses from first year up to graduation. “What is unique about this program is that funds will be released in advance to participating schools, relieving scholars of the burden of having to re-apply every semester," he said. Bunye revealed that an initial 545 “indigent but deserving applicants" have already taken the nursing scholarship entrance exa...

QUEZON CITY, Philippines - Beware of recruiters who offer jobs in Romania but say that you would have to enter the country first as tourists, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) warned on Saturday. According to a POEA advisory, the recruiters will promise the potential overseas Filipino workers that a work permit will be when they arrive in Romania. "Working in Romania using tourist visa (that is, a short-stay visa) is not possible because it is issued only through invitation and cannot be used for a longer stay," the advisory said. "Filipino workers who wish to legally stay and work in Romania should acquire the appropriate visa." Employers there need to file with the Romanian immigration office a labor permit (that is, long-stay visa for labor purposes) on behalf of foreign workera. Employers have justify the necessity of hiring the foreign workers. - GMANews.TV

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DAVAO CITY, Philippines - If he can have it his way, Senate President Manuel Villar will impose an outright ban on the deployment of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) to countries that have track record of abusive employers. In an interview Friday, Villar said what is more important is for the government to protect the welfare of its people than keep good diplomatic relations with countries that have a long list of abuses inflicted on the OFWs. "It is okay to strain relations. You have to protect your people first," Villar said when asked if a ban would affect the diplomatic relations of the Philippines with other countries. Villar was in Davao City Friday to bring home an OFW who escaped from her employer in Abu Dhabi after her employer refused to pay her monthly salary. He added that the countries, with a long list of abuses to OFWs, are relatively small in number. "Europe and Asia are okay...

MANILA, Philippines - If Senate President Manny Villar managed to repatriate 14 distressed overseas Filipino workers from Middle East in a short period of time, why can’t President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo do the same? This was the query made by John Leonard Monterona, coordinator of militant Migrante International in the Middle East, as he appealed to the Arroyo government to repatriate an estimated 2,000 distressed and runaway OFWs in the oil rich region. “If Senator Villar could bring stranded OFWs to their home in just a short time, the Arroyo administration, having all the machinery and resources of the government, could surely bring home the almost 2,000 OFWs," he said. Monterona said the distressed OFWs are in different deportation and resource centers in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar waiting their chance to go back home. “We could clearly distinguish the difference between a leader who has a compassion and sincere recognition on OFWs rights and we...

COMPTON, Calif - A Filipino man convicted of stabbing to death his wife and smothering their 8-year-old son in a Paramount apartment before setting their bodies on fire has been sentenced to life in prison. Deputy District Attorney Ann Park tells The Associated Press a Superior Court judge sentenced 36-year-old Ernesto Acedo on Thursday to 35 years in prison plus two life terms for the August 2005 killings. A jury convicted Acedo in February. Park says Acedo has a tourist visa and will be serving his prison time in the United States. Messages left for Acedo's attorney Frederick Lacey were not immediately returned. Prosecutors say Acedo believed his 30-year-old wife Maila, a Filipino immigrant and registered nurse, was having an affair. - AP

CHICAGO, Illinois - The United States Senate has approved a veterans’ benefits law, helping the cause of Filipino war veterans looking to receive pensions from both Manila and Washington. The Veterans’ Benefits Enhancement Act (S. 1315) was passed by an overwhelming 96-1 votes in the US chamber which has 100 senators. The bill now moves to the US Congress for debate and a floor vote. If the proposed law passes muster, it will then go to President George W. Bush for his signature. Once approved, it will allow some 13,000 Filipino war veterans to receive $300 as monthly pension and other benefits from the US government. It will also allow them to receive benefits from the Philippines. The Veterans Benefits Enhancement Act of 2007 would provide a veterans’ pension to Filipino veterans of World War II residing in the US and in the Philippines. Under the proposed bill, veterans residing in the Philippines would receive a smaller pension than those residing in the US, to account for differen...

MANILA, Philippines - Philippine authorities in Iraq are verifying reports that seven Filipino workers in Dubai left their work site two months ago and slipped into Iraq. Online news site Khaleej Times reported Thursday that the news prompted the Philippine consulate general to caution Filipinos against going to Iraq. Consul Vicente Bandillo has warned Filipinos in the United Arab Emirates about violating the travel ban to the troubled country. Bandillo cited reports Wednesday that seven Filipino workers in Dubai left their work site slipped into Iraq using their old passports. He said that the Philippine government's travel ban to Iraq has been in force since 2004. But since Philippine passports are good for two years, some Filipinos whose passports are due to expire next year without the notice "Not Valid For Travel To Iraq" are taking the risk by using their expiring passports to slip into the war-torn country, he said. Back to Iraq? Following the US State Department’s...

MARK MERUEñAS, GMANews.TV Email this | Email the Editor | Print | Digg this | Add to del.icio.us (Updated) MANILA, Philippines - Seven overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) stranded in the United Arab Emirates were flown back to the Philippines on Thursday, telling stories of abuse from their employers. A radio report said that the all-female group of repatriates arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) from Abu Dhabi on Thursday afternoon via Etihad Airways at about 2:40 p.m. The seven OFWs who returned home in the country were Lea Malunes, 27, of Camarines Sur; Salama Bakal, 28, of Cotabato City; Bernadette Romero, 38, of Cavite; Luciana Lunar, 44, of Batangas; Fennie Tiletile, 48, of Tagum City; Mesa Palares; and Loyda Adlawa, from Pangasinan whose age is unknown. The radio report quoted the repatriated women as saying their employers subjected them under harsh working conditions – including being overworked, maltreated, and deprived of regular meals. “Pinalo ako sa liko...

MANILA, Philippines - After helping in the repatriation of 15 distressed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from the Middle East, Senate President Manny Villar is now seeking heavier penalties against syndicates involved in human trafficking and illegal recruitment. Villar on Thursday filed Senate Resolution No. 366 which urges the Senate to conduct a comprehensive review of the implementation of labor recruitment, anti-human smuggling, and immigration laws of the country. He presented his resolution to the media during the Senate visit of five allegedly maltreated OFWs from Abu Dhabi who had returned to the country. Villar, who shouldered the airfares of the five OFWs as well as those of the 10 others who returned from Jordan last Monday, said illegal recruitment is considered as an offense involving economic sabotage when committed against three or more persons as defined in the Labor Code. According to the Senate president, there is a need for comprehensive review of immigration laws ...

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines - Migrante, an alliance of overseas Filipino workers’ organizations, said the impending documentary stamp tax (DST) imposition on all international transfers, including OFW remittance, is but another scheme of state exaction burdening OFWs and families. Migrante spokesperson John Monterona told Sun.Star Bacolod in a phone interview that they “deplore the Congress for formulating tax legislation, courtesy of pro-Arroyo senators and congressmen, devoid of consultation and public hearing imposing the DST. “This impending tax imposition on OFWs remittance is but another scheme of state exaction burdening and exploiting OFWs and families in time of soaring prices of food and relatively weak dollar exchange," said Monterona. Monterona said Migrante and other OFWs got the information that the Arroyo administration would soon be imposing the DST on all international transfers from a branch of Western Union based in the United Arab Emirates. “Our sources have conf...

MANILA, Philippines - A migrant workers' organization on Thursday appealed to the government for an “economic relief" by removing unnecessary taxes imposed on dollar remittances of overseas Filipino workers. Maita Santiago, secretary general of the militant group Migrante International, told GMA News that many OFWs and their families are not aware how much taxes the government collects from their remittances. “Many OFWs have no idea that the government is deducting a hefty percentage from every dollar they are sending home," Santiago said. The report said banks and remittance centers abroad collect an average $15 to $26 service for every transaction of dollar remittances. This is on top of the bank service charges and documentary stamp tax collected from the remittance once it reaches the Philippines. The Bureau of Internal Revenue said that in every $1,000 remittance the government collects P61 documentary stamp tax. Labor Sec. Marianito Roque, also the concurrent admini...

CHICAGO, Illinois - The United States Senate has approved a veterans’ benefits law, helping the cause of Filipino war veterans looking to receive pensions from both Manila and Washington. The Veterans’ Benefits Enhancement Act (S. 1315) was passed by an overwhelming 96-1 votes in the US chamber which has 100 senators. The bill now moves to the US Congress for debate and a floor vote. If the proposed law passes muster, it will then go to President George W. Bush for his signature. Once approved, it will allow some 13,000 Filipino war veterans to receive $300 as monthly pension and other benefits from the US government. It will also allow them to receive benefits from the Philippines. The Veterans Benefits Enhancement Act of 2007 would provide a veterans’ pension to Filipino veterans of World War II residing in the US and in the Philippines. Under the proposed bill, veterans residing in the Philippines would receive a smaller pension than those residing in the US, to account for differen...

MANILA, Philippines - After months of calling on Philippine officials to facilitate their repatriation from Jordan, nine overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), five of them minors, breathed a collective sigh of relief on Monday afternoon following their arrival in Manila. Now that they have returned home, the OFWs begin to tell their tragic experiences in the hands of their employers. “My male employer punched me then dragged me to the living room. Fearing that neighbors might hear me cry, he dragged me again behind the door, where I was made to sit," an underage female OFW told GMANews' reporter Lei Alviz in Filipino. A 13-year-old girl meanwhile said that she was not paid by her abusive employers so she decided to run away. The OFW repatriates were emotional as they were greeted by their relatives at the airport. Senate President Manuel "Manny" Villar financed the repatriation of the OFWs after he personally witnessed in October last year the conditions of around 200 Fi...

NEW YORK - Jocelyn was a trainee nurse in a Queens hospital when a doctor yelled at her for asking a question: the spelling of the patient’s name. "I wanted to be sure I got it right," she recalled, adding that the incident left her very upset and made her contemplate leaving the profession. Grateful for the support of fellow Filipino nurses who rallied around her, Jocelyn is now a supervisor in another New York hospital. However she admits to still witness yelling directed toward young nurses. What she sees as a “rite of passage" is actually bullying at its crudest form. “It’s quite common in the ICU or ER, where the pressure is so high," she said. Bullying is a festering problem in the health care profession, and among its quietly suffering victims are the nurses, according to the Center for American Nurses that called for a “zero tolerance policy to disruptive behavior" in a position paper. The Center described bullying as “an offensive, abusive, intimidatin...

MANILA, Philippines - Senate President Manuel Villar on Monday said corrupt immigration officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and illegal recruiters were behind the smuggling of minors and undocumented workers outside the country. This was after nine of the 10 overseas Filipino workers from Jordan, whom Villar helped return to the country, arrived Monday and narrated how they were able to go abroad without the proper documents. Five of the OFWs were minors. One of the young workers, whose identity was withheld, said they were able to go out of the country with a tourist visa. She said their recruiter was able to convince them to work abroad despite the absence of some of the requirements and they were able to get out of the country with the help of immigration officers conniving with their recruiter. Villar said although it is indicated in the passport that the holder is of age, one can easily determine that it is not true as the holder looks young. On the other hand, the ...

MANILA, Philippines - A Filipina beautician in Macau was sentenced to death by firing squad after being caught with illegal drugs while on vacation in China. Marissa Collado was arrested in China’s Guangzhou province last year for the possession of about two kilos of heroine, Jiggy Manicad said in a GMANews exclusive report on Monday. Collado told her relatives in a letter last December that she was on a vacation to China when authorities seized the prohibited drug inside her luggage. She denied owning the substance. The report also said that Collado had already entrusted the care of her three children to her siblings in the Philippines. “Hindi namin kayang tanggapin na ganun-ganoon na lang 'yun (We just can’t accept that my sister’s fate would just be that)," Leonila Cruz, Collado’s sister told Manicad in an interview. Collado’s relatives are asking President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to save their loved one from the death sentence. Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Wo...

MANILA, Philippines-A 24-year-old Filipino who was on his way home from a date was stabbed to death in British Columbia, Canada last week. Charle Dalde died an hour after he was rushed to a nearby hospital on April 14, the Richmond Review reported. The suspect, Umut Ari, 24, was arrested by the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) two days after the incident. Ari was turned in by his own brother. The report quoted IHIT spokesperson Cpl. Dale Carr as saying that what happened to Dalde was a "vicious unprovoked attack" and that there is nothing to suggest that the victim and suspect knew one another. Investigators have not yet determined the motive for the killing. Dalde's father Cezar said that while he welcomes the arrest of the suspect, he still feels sad that his son was gone. Ari is charged with second-degree murder. Walking home According to the report, Dalde had taken the bus from his girlfriend's home in Surrey and was on his way to his apartment on Lan...

MANILA, Philippines - Nine overseas Filipino workers, including at least three minors, are back in the Philippines after being stranded in Jordan for almost one year. The nine arrived Monday after Senate President Manuel "Manny" Villar financed their repatriation. Villar offered to take up the cudgels for the distressed repatriates after he personally witnessed in October last year the conditions of around 200 OFWs stuck in Jordan, the dzBB report said. The Senate president, who welcomed the OFWs at the airport's Dignitary's Lounge at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), lamented the fact that three of the OFWs were allowed to work abroad despite being minors. Villar said Immigration officials could have possibly colluded to allow the minors to work and leave the country despite their age. When asked in a radio dzBB interview how she got herself to work abroad despite being underage, all a 13-year-old repatriate could say was, "Ewan ko po. Hindi ko po a...

SINGAPORE - A Singapore official said Monday that the city-state's supply of rice was adequate despite growing concerns of tightness in domestic stocks of the staple food. The government is monitoring the rice market closely, S. Iswaran, minister of state for trade and industry, told Parliament. "Our rice importers have been conducting their business responsibly and maintaining normal supplies to consumers, despite the volatility in global markets," Iswaran said. Iswaran added that there was no evidence of hoarding by rice importers and said authorities would punish such behavior. "We have no reports of any profiteering or any anticompetitive behavior by our rice importers ... they have been very responsible," Iswaran said in response to questions from lawmakers. "As a condition of their license, rice importers are not allowed to engage, directly or indirectly, in price fixing or other unfair trade practices relating to the import or sale of rice," he ...

MANILA, Philippines-Filipinos planning to travel to Singapore should leave their collection of porno magazines, gun-shaped lighters, and chewing tobacco behind because they are part of a long list of items prohibited in the Lion City. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) issued the warning in a travel advisory released on Thursday, noting that the Philippine Embassy in Singapore reported the recent arrest of a Filipino traveler for the unlawful possession of a knuckle duster. Under the Arms Offences Act of Singapore, anyone caught with any of the prohibited items will be imprisoned and caned. To avoid encountering problems with the police or customs authorities, the DFA issued a list of prohibited items: firearms or firearms parts, including magazines live bullets, including blanks, of small or large caliber for revolver, pistol, or rifle air pistol or air rifle or parts spear guns or cross bows explosive blasting caps, dynamite, detonators, detonating cords fireworks spent or empty...

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Foreign Affairs on Monday declared that the new machine-readable passports (MRPs) being issued by the department are tamper-resistant and complies with international standards. In a press statement, the DFA said the MRPs are fully compliant with the standards and requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The DFA said that the MRP's features are specifically designed to discourage tampering and improve the integrity of the passport system. The agency also said that tampered or forged passports will be rejected at airports, ports of entries of foreign countries. The MRPs' security features include the following: o watermarked paper and colored fibers, o ultraviolet (UV) - reactive inks, o a combination of security prints, such as fine lines with modulation, guilloche design, art screen and dash effects and microtext, o laser-perforated alpha-numeric serial numbers, o security laminates that are ultra thin with st...

MANILA, Philippines-A Middle East-based migrant workers’ organization urged Philippine embassy officials to reveal the conditions of distressed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) instead of sugar-coating the situation. Migrante-Middle East issued the statement on Friday after the Philippine Consulate in Jeddah confirmed that an OFW died in a deportation cell earlier this month. John Leonard Monterona, Migrante-ME’s regional coordinator said that Philippine officials in the oil-rich states do nothing else but deny or confirm reports. "Then a lot of excuses will follow," Monterona added. On Tuesday, Migrante International, the group’s umbrella organization, broke the news that a certain Ryan Castillo, 30, from Batangas City , died under harsh conditions in a Jeddah deportation cell. Arman Navarro, a dump truck driver in Jeddah who was among the first batch of Filipinos repatriated to Manila this week, said that a friend of Castillo told him that the OFW had long been sick while i...

MANILA, Philippines - Philippine officials in Korea stressed the value of saving before spending to overseas Filipino workers(OFWs) there as they launched a financial literacy program. A statement on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) website on Friday said Philippine ambassador Luis Cruz stressed "Savings before expenses" as the battle cry of the financial literacy campaign. "Our effort is to build the financial capacity of Filipinos in Korea to be used for their livelihood projects upon their return to the Philippines. It will also be used as a hedge against the volatile exchange rate of the strengthening peso against other currencies,"said Cruz, who noted the Philippine peso has gained 28 percent against the Korean currency since 2006. The DFA said the campaign was launched on March 30 and aimed at promoting savings consciousness for 50,000 Filipino workers in Korea. Cruz led the launching of the reintegration program, which includes financial planning, at t...

MARIA KRISTINA C. CONTI, BusinessWorld MANILA, Philippines - Canadian renewable energy firm Green Corp. is riding on the global biofuel rush by investing $25 million (about P1 billion) in the local coco-biodiesel industry over the next two years. The investment will be coursed through a third party that handles socioeconomic projects, and should benefit 100 coconut farmers’ organizations and cooperatives, and more than 5,000 families, the government said on Friday. Countries all over are relying on fuel from crops as an alternative to traditional fossil fuels, which are dirtier and limited in supply. But critics say using crops for fuel has led to rising food prices and massive deforestation as farmers convert rainforests to croplands. Green Corp. said on its Web site it would deploy 100 mid-sized biodiesel processing units in coconut-producing areas of Luzon, based on a deal it had signed with an agency of the Agriculture department. The company did not detail the financial deal, sayi...

MANILA, Philippines - Another Canadian province, Nova Scotia is suffering from a labor shortage and is looking at the Philippines to solve their employment problems. However, just like with Manitoba, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan, appropriate legal arrangements—including a memorandum of understanding between both countries—must first be enacted before overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) can be recruited. Besides ensuring fair labor rights to Filipino workers, a memorandum of understanding between Manila and several Canadian provinces also sets provisions for salary, housing, and medical benefits. The agreement also establishes formal processes for worker recruitment and protection and provide requirements for training and certification. Dante Ang, Chairman of the Commission of Filipinos Overseas, said that the country has “an abundance of well-educated and well-trained professionals in the Philippines and Nova Scotia has a shortage. More Filipinos will come to Nova Scotia, but there ...

MANILA, Philippines-Praising their admirable work ethics, the mayor of Kingston town in Ontario, Canada hopes to lure in more Filipino migrants to work there. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a statement on Friday that Kingston Mayor Harvey Rosen aspires to make his town a major destination for migrant workers, particularly Filipinos. The Philippine embassy officials in Canada led by Ambassador Jose Brillantes visited Kingston as part of the Embassy’s outreach and information-dissemination program. “[During the courtesy visit] Mayor Rosen said that, since Kingston is the hub of eastern Ontario, with immediate and easy access to the major population centers of Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and even Syracuse, New York, the city needs hardworking immigrants such as Filipinos who could competently fill the jobs generated by businesses choosing to locate or expand in Kingston," the DFA statement read. The DFA also said that according to Rosen and Bill Gray of the Kingston Ec...