No sign of panic among Pinoy students in SKorea

Some Filipino students in South Korea do not seem to mind the tension in the Korean peninsula caused by last week’s artillery attack by North Korea on a small South Korean island, Sen. Edgardo Angara, who is in Seoul, said on Monday.

“I was surprised that when I arrived here there was no sign of panic, contrary to what is being reported in the Philippines," said Angara in a statement.

Angara, chairman of the Senate education committee, met with 82 Filipino scholars in Seoul last Saturday to assure them that the Philippine government is closely monitoring the situation there.

Angara was in South Korea as a keynote speaker at the Korea-Philippines Multi-Industry Cluster (MIC) Development Cooperation Forum held last Sunday. He and Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri went there on Wednesday, a day after North Korea’s attack.

Four South Koreans, two of them civilians, died after Pyongyang rained artillery on the small Yellow Sea island of Yeonpyeong, which is home to both fishing communities and military bases.

Despite the increasing tension, Angara told the Filipino scholars to continue with their studies. “Learn as much as you can and bring that knowledge home so that you can help raise the living standards of our people," he said.

“Your scholarship is a rare opportunity and a concrete result of our friendship with South Korea. It’s a chance to be part of something that can help improve your home country and build a better society," he added.

Angara said that there are currently more than 400 Filipino students in Korea, mostly majoring in Science and Technology, Wireless and Information Technology, International Relations, Business Administration, and Policy Development at Seoul National University, Korea National University, Catholic University of Korea, EHWA, Hannam, Kyungpook, Korea Aero Space University, Sogang University, MJU, Trinity Graduate School, HUFS, Myongji, KFRI, ITCC, Sungkyungkwan, Kongku, and Dengguk University.

On the other hand, labor officials said there are around 50,000 to 60,000 Filipino workers in Korea. Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said this aside from the 11,000 illegal or undocumented Filipinos there.

The Philippine government has for the meantime suspended the deployment of Filipino workers to Korea while awaiting the assessment of the inter-agency committee studying the situation in the region.

Baldoz clarified that the suspension would only be in effect until December 7. She said they have readied P25 million for overseas Filipino workers based in South Korea in case of any contingency.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Esteban Conejos Jr. said labor records indicate some 1,000 Filipino workers were due to be deployed to Korea up to December. - KBK, GMANews.TV

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PCG: China’s bullying in West Philippine Sea undermines international law --- Ghio Ong - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — Letting China sustain its aggression in the West Philippine Sea would make other countries doubt the strength of international law currently being asserted by the Philippines, Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. “Allowing China to blatantly disregard the established rules-based order threatens the very foundation that we all depend on,” he wrote in a post on X last Tuesday. He added, “If we permit this, countries worldwide may forget why this order was created in the first place. Nations could begin to doubt the significance of adhering to international law if powerful bullies can easily violate it.” Tarriela also said defiance of other countries to a rules-based order would result in the prevalence of cruelty. He wrote, “This could lead us back to a time when might makes right, undermining the global structures that keep human greed, savagery and barbarism in check. Such a scenario would not only invite challenges from aggressive ...
Read more

China ships maintain presence in key West Philippine Sea areas --- Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

STAR / Michael Varcas MANILA, Philippines — While Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) have decreased in number, they have maintained a presence in three key land features where naval and coast guard ships have intensified operations in the past seven days, according to the Philippine Navy. Latest monitoring by the Philippine Navy showed armed ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) maintaining a menacing presence around the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, Panatag Shoal and Escoda Shoal. According to the Philippine Navy, there are 17 Chinese military vessels and 28 China Coast Guard (CCG) boats spotted inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between Sept. 23 and 30, or one vessel more than in the previous week Sept.17-23. Five of the warships were seen roaming around the vicinity of Escoda Shoal, along with 10 CCG vessels and 12 maritime militia vessels (MMVs). There are also two PLAN ships in Ayungin Shoal as well as 10 CCG boats and 12...
Read more

Social media seen as cause of rising intermarriages --- Helen Flores - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) sees social media as the main reason for the rising number of Filipinos marrying or becoming partners of foreign nationals. In 2022, the CFO recorded 6,854 marriages or partnerships with foreign nationals, a 40.1 percent increase from the 4,891 “intermarriages” recorded in 2021. “First of all, what we see in the increase in the marriage rate of Filipinos or Filipinos with foreign partners is because of social media, (that) is number one; matchings; letters, introduction of their friends,” CFO chairperson Romulo Arugay said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing yesterday. Arugay said the agency has been registering a high number of intermarriages since 2007, but the figures went down during the COVID-19 pandemic. From over 6,500 Filipinos who married foreign nationals, only 600 are men, he said. Most of them are married to Americans, Japanese, Germans, Canadians and Australians, Arugay said. Arugay warned Fi...
Read more