KAKAMMPI News

The Department of Foreign Affairs has issued the following tips to facilitate applications for passports: 1. Applicants should contact the DFA for the latest passport information. They could visit the DFA website (www.dfa.gov.ph) or call 834-4000. 2. They should apply for passports way ahead of their scheduled trip. Applicants should check the validity of their passports and update their documents accordingly. A passport is valid for five years, but airlines and countries require passports with validity of six months prior to the expiry date. 3. Applicants should prepare their requirements before their appointment date. These include the completely filled-out application form, the old passport and photocopies of its pages for renewals, the National Statistics Office-certified birth certificate, and IDs and their photocopies for new applicants. They do not need to bring ID photos, as their photographs and thumbprints will be taken on the site. 4. Non-OFW and Metro Manila-based applicant...

Passport applicants can now know the status of their applications with the Department of Foreign Affairs Officer of Consular Affairs' Passport Tracking Service (PTS). The DFA said the PTS is an initiative of its consular affairs' office to enable applicants to check on the status of their passport applications, notably the schedule of release. In a news release on its website, the DFA said applicants may visit www.dfa.gov.ph and click the PTS icon found there. Clicking the icon will lead to an online form that requires the following basic information: • Full name (First, Middle, Last) • Date of birth • Cellular phone number and e-mail address • Date of filing • Date of release • Amount paid • For pick-up or courier service (name of courier) "After typing and encoding the information required, applicants will receive a response to their PTS queries through text message or SMS (short messaging system), or an e-mail within two working days upon receipt of such online request,...

United Kingdom (UK) Ambassador to the Philippines Stephen Lillie praised Filipinos in the UK for their significant contributions to their host country. Lillie told a recent roundtable discussion in London that Filipinos have had "a varied and diverse contribution to British society and the British way of life." "(The Filipino community has been) an important part of the bilateral relations, which has been strong and very good," he said, according to a news release on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) website. There are some 250,000 Filipinos living and working in the United Kingdom, with a great majority located in the Greater London Area. Most Filipinos are employed in the health sector, with around 30,000 working as nurses in public and private hospitals and clinics. Meanwhile, some 10,000 Britons live in the Philippines, mostly as expatriates, spouses and retirees. Emerging power Lillie said the new British government recognizes the potential of the Philipp...

At least 54 overseas Filipino workers said to be "overstaying" at the Hajj Terminal in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia arrived home shortly after midnight on Thursday. The 54 OFWs, including four children, arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport aboard a Brunei Airways flight 689 at 12:20 a.m., radio dzBB reported. Before their arrival, at least 110 Filipinos staying at the Hajj Terminal had been brought home. Vice President Jejomar Binay helped facilitate the repatriation of the overstaying OFWs. During his visit to Saudi Arabia earlier this year, Binay asked King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud to repatriate 4,500 Filipinos, including 1,084 who are staying at the Hajj Terminal. However, Binay learned that the Philippine government would need at least P143 million to pay for the plane fare of all the overstaying OFWs. The Philippine Embassy had been paying SR 15 (P172) daily for every OFW housed at the terminal, creating a “serious drain" on the limited resources of the ...

A Filipino woman was acquitted of drug charges in Italy, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Wednesday. The woman, who was not identified by the DFA, was placed under house arrest during her seven-month trial, the DFA said, citing a report from the Philippine Embassy in Rome. The DFA said the Tribunale di Civitavecchia judge ruled in her favor, saying her statements made in courts were consistent. The Filipino woman was arrested on October 4 last year upon her arrival at the Fiumicino Airport in Italy. She was allegedly found to be carrying 49.50 grams of shabu hidden inside a portable DVD player. She alleged that her fellow overseas Filipino worker (OFW) asked her to carry the appliance with her. The DFA said the Filipino woman jailed at the Civitavecchia prison from the day of her arrest until her trial on October 18, 2010. She was later granted house arrest for medical reasons. The DFA said that when the Philippine Embassy in Rome learned of the woman’s case, it immediat...

JEREMAIAH M. OPINIANO, OFW Journalism Consortium 05/18/2011 | 06:07 PM Domestic workers may need to work harder to secure a $400-minimum salary as a Filipino community leader in Kuala Lumpur cites the Philippine government’s impotence in enforcing such wage policy. Make Kuala Lumpur a test case, says Pilar Sangaran, adviser of the Samahang Impok Bayan (SIB) in Malaysia, reacting to a clamor for government to review the Philippines’ household service workers (HSWs) reform package. The suggestion to review the package comes from the Scalabrini Migration Center (SMC) and the government’s Philippine Institute of Development Studies (PIDS). Both research institutes think the HSW reform package’s minimum pay policy “is not working" after five years since the Philippine government unilaterally imposed it on labor-hosting countries in 2006. The SMC and PIDS found that 47 percent of 224 departing domestic workers the groups surveyed expected to earn less than $400. Nearly half of the r...

Applicants scheduled for a passport appointment on June 20 will be accommodated from June 13 to 17, the Department of Foreign Affairs-Office of Consular Affairs said Saturday. The DFA said this is in compliance with Proclamation 154 declaring June 20 as a special non-working holiday. It was referring to President Benigno Aquino III’s declaration that June 20 is a non-working day to mark the 150th birth anniversary of national hero Dr. Jose Rizal. Rizal’s birth anniversary this year, June 19, falls on a Sunday. The DFA said those with questions can contact (632) 556-0000, (632) 737-1000 or e-mail epassport@dfa.gov.ph or passport.oca@yahoo.com. — JE, GMA News

At least 151 Filipinos repatriated from Saudi Arabia are due to arrive home in five batches within this week, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Tuesday. The DFA cited a report from the Philippine Consulate General in Jeddah that the 151 Filipinos were cleared for repatriation by the Jawazat (Saudi Directorate General for Passports). “The consulate arranged for the flight bookings of these Filipinos, consisting of 93 men, 32 women, and 26 children," the DFA said in a news release on the government portal. It also reported that Filipinos who had camped out next to the consulate have voluntarily returned to the Seaport Hajj Terminal facility last May 12. Earlier, the consulate said it has assisted in the repatriation of 972 Filipinos out of the 1,160 staying at the consulate-operated Hajj Terminal facility since Jan. 24. The consulate has also readied the next batch of women and children for admission into the deportation center. Meanwhile, Philippine Embassy in Riyadh Cha...

Pinoys find happiness in world's 'happiest country' JEREMAIAH M. OPINIANO, OFW Journalism Consortium 05/17/2011 | 05:30 PM CHIA, Colombia — She found happiness in a region clutched in a drug trade. But Filipino Maricel Piniero discovered it not in acid-laden joys but in finding Filipinos, a rarity in this Latin American country. She blurted into Tagalog “dahil sa tuwa" (out of joy) when she saw the Filipinos who traveled 19,000 miles from Manila for a global conference at the posh Universidad de los Andes in Bogota, Colombia’s capital. They were the first Filipinos who Piniero met after leaving the Philippine capital ten months ago. They were also the first she traded dance steps with at the lively Andres Carne de Res bar. Piniero’s disposition proves studies on overseas migration and happiness that says people from “unhappy" countries may be motivated to migrate to a “happier" country. Vice versa, people from happy countries are said to be less motivated...

The number of Filipino nursing graduates aspiring to practice their profession in the United States plummeted by almost 52% in the first quarter of 2011, according to a lawmaker. Only 1,454 Filipino nursing graduates took the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) from January-March this year compared to 3,024 graduates in the same period last year, said Rep. Arnel Ty of party-list Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers Association (LPGMA). According to Ty, the number of Filipino nursing graduates taking the NCLEX for the first time indicates how many are trying to enter the profession in the US. NCLEX is a licensure exams administered by the US National Council of State Boards of Nursing (USNCSBN). Citing USNCSBN statistics, Ty said that in 2010, the number of Filipino nursing graduates who took the NCLEX for the first time dropped by 37 percent to 9,789 compared to 15,382 in 2009. The statistics has prompted Ty to file a bill seeking to establish a special jobs plan for the countr...

The deployment of household service workers (HSW) to Saudi Arabia will remain suspended as the Philippines still refuses to give in to the request of the Middle Eastern country to slash workers' salaries by nearly half. Carlos Cao Jr., Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) chief, said both countries have failed to come up with an agreement that will lead to the possible lifting of the deployment suspension. “The suspension stays because they wanted the $400 salary requirement that we set [to be] reduced to $210. Of course, we did not find that acceptable. We will not agree to anything lower than $400," he said. Cao also said Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz is set to meet with the Saudi labor minister on the sidelines of the upcoming International Labor Organization meeting in June, to talk about the lifting of deployment suspension. Last March, Saudi Arabia started banning the Philippines from deploying HSW there. The ban stemmed from the fact that the Departme...

Philippine officials in Saudi Arabia have sought a clarification from Saudi officials on the six-month extension of a royal pardon to expatriates who violated residency rules there. The Philippine Embassy in Riyadh referred to the Saudi Interior Ministry’s announcement last April 27 that the royal pardon was extended up to September 14, 2011. “The Philippine Embassy immediately sent on 02 May 2011 a Note to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs to clarify the parameters of the Royal Pardon as news reports regarding the extension differed on the coverage," the embassy said in a news release posted Monday on its website. It cited a report from news site Arab News last April 27 that the royal pardon “includes visa overstayers and people who are currently residing in the Kingdom in violation of the terms of their iqamas (work/residency permits), such as those who have absconded from their legal employment." But an Alriyadh newspaper report on April 28 said the royal pardon will c...

The relatives of Filipino sailors of a South Korean ship released recently by pirates but stranded off the United Arab Emirates have sought assistance from Philippine labor officials. The relatives brought the sailors’ plight to the attention of the Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration, news site Khaleej Times reported Tuesday. “We are still waiting for the result of their meeting since our local agency [in the Philippines] was given an ultimatum to take action to end our plight or our government will step in, in order for them to take us home. We are now hoping that we will have the result in a day or two," the relatives said in a statement. Earlier this month, a Khaleej Times report said at least one Filipino sailor of the “Samho Dream" is suffering from severe stomach pain. The “Samho Dream" lies stricken off the Dubai coast with 26 crewmembers on board as its owners, Samho Shipping, reportedly filed for court protection to help tide over its sinking financial con...

Authorities have allowed a Filipina entry to Hong Kong to live with her jobless Chinese husband. Hong Kong immigration officials earlier denied entry to the Filipina, Elvira Fung, saying her husband Fung Chi-man was jobless and could not support her. Fung had been living on social assistance, according to a report on Radio-Television Hong Kong. However, Fung filed a judicial review against the immigration department. He argued that the refusal was discriminatory and the reason given by the immigration department did not apply to family reunifications involving mainland brides. Fung eventually withdrew the judicial review after the immigration department agreed to grant his wife Elvira residency. - JE/VVP, GMA News

Vice president Jejomar C. Binay believes that the decline in the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in conflict-stricken countries in the Middle East and North African (MENA) will soon pick up, adding that outbound OFWs can likewise seek more stable countries in the region like Qatar. Citing Philippine Overseas Employment Administration reports, Binay said Filipino migrant workers to the MENA region declined by 15,000 in the first three months of 2011 (380,188) as compared to the same period last year (395,189) “Patapos na ang kaguluhan sa Middle East at sa North Africa kaya naman sa tingin ko, hindi na magtatagal ang pagbaba ng deployment ng ating mga OFW," said Binay, who is also the presidential adviser on OFWs. The series of unrest in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Syria, Yemen, and Bahrain spurred the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Labor and Employment to temporarily suspend the deployment of OFWs to these countries. Qatar to hire thousands Binay said...

Authorities have cleared at least 150 Filipino overstayers and runaway workers to leave the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), Philippine officials said. Philippine Ambassador-designate Ezzedin Tago, the consul general in Jeddah, said around 100 Filipinos have been booked for a flight to Manila on Monday. In an interview posted on Saudi news site Arab News on Monday, Tago said another batch of 50 men and women will leave on May 19. Those who were cleared to leave were among those who were transferred last week to the deportation center at the King Abdulaziz International Airport from the Haj Terminal at the Jeddah Islamic Seaport, the Arab News report said. Under a special arrangement between the Philippine Consulate and the Saudi government, Filipino overstayers may seek admission at the Haj Terminal while waiting for their exit papers to be processed. Hundreds of Filipinos have also listed up with the consulate to avail themselves of the amnesty for overstayers and runaway workers, which...

Some 300 Filipinos camping outside the Philippine Consulate in Jeddah in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) for the last three weeks have agreed to return the Haj Terminal, following appeals by Philippine authorities. Most had already returned but around 50 stayed on as of Friday, news site Arab News reported Saturday. “The consulate and the government's unfulfilled promises led us to decide to set up a camp outside the consulate building as a manifestation of our disgust and peaceful collective action," some of the stranded Filipinos said, according to a report on news site Arab News. Figures from the Philippine consulate showed there are 1,160 stranded overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) at the Haj Terminal admitted since January 2011. In 2009, 815 OFWs were repatriated through the Haj Terminal operations, while 1,429 in 2010, according to a statement issued by the consulate. The Filipinos camped outside the consulate had hoped to force Philippine officials into speeding up proc...

JEREMAIAH M. OPINIANO, OFW Journalism Consortium BARCELONA, Spain — Paperless Filipino workers here each got pieces of paper hoping that these help them regularize their immigration status in Spain and in the country’s Catalan region. “Good thing the passport number [in my diploma] is correct," said irregular migrant Julia (not her real name) after shaking hands with her teachers and with officials of the Church-run Centro Filipino Tuluyan San Benito that has been running thrice-a-year idioma (language) classes for 20 years. Her diploma, printed in a white, ordinary A4 bond paper, certified that Julia finished a certain level of Spanish language instruction. There had been increasing demands for slots in Centro Filipino’s idioma classes, says Centro president Paulita Astillero, given new regulations that a migrant cannot renew one’s residency permit without knowledge of Spanish — and, in the case of the Calatunya region where Barcelona is, Catalan. Filipino workers receiving their...

RUBEN JEFFREY G. ASUNCION, OFW Journalism The image of Filipino women over the Internet as “good wives" may have inspired many Japanese to marry Filipinas and caused the further spike in the number of interracial marriages despite restrictive visa rules in Japan. “There are no concrete [pieces of] evidence pointing to why there are more Filipinas marrying foreigners than Filipino males. However, we believe at CFO that the way Filipinas are portrayed as ‘good wives’ over the internet also encourage foreigners to look for Filipinas as brides," Regina Galias of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas told the OFW Journalism Consortium in an email. This may also explain the counter-cyclical trend of Filipino-Japanese marriages as government data shows a dip in foreign marriages involving Philippine citizens: about 0.8 percent less from the 8,365 official records in 2006. Figures from the document titled Foreign Marriages of Filipinos: 2007 and released by the National Statistics...

MALU CADELIÑA MANAR, GMA News KIDAPAWAN CITY — An overseas Filipino worker jailed in China for drug trafficking has expressed the hope that his death sentence would be commuted to a 15-year jail term. In a letter to Cotabato Rep. Nancy Catamco, Richard Bianan — who has been incarcerated since 2008 — said the Chinese court might commute his death sentence and lower his years in detention for “showing good behavior." Bianan also said he was glad upon learning that the Cotabato government is making inquiries into his case. “Upon hearing the news, I and other Filipinos [here] rejoiced, for we see a glittering hope to our hopeless situation here." Bianan’s letter reached the congresswoman’s office on May 12. Attached in Bianan’s letter were some documents from Pu Tian City Men’s Prison Administration Foreign Group Unit, including the criminal order from the Higher Peoples’ Court of Fujian Province of the Peoples’ Republic of China. The Fujian Province court found Bianan guilty of ...

We Deserve Better! The Regional Wage Board’s decision of giving NCR workers a 22 pesos non-wage benefit is unacceptable and considered an insult to all non-agricultural workers. The additional Php 22 was too little to make any economic impact for the workers because it was given way too late when prices of basic commodities and transportation fares were already increased. We can say that the adjustment is really not an adjustment to help but a mere pampalubag loob (consolation). Pnoy made an announcement before May 1, International Labor Day, that he has good news for the workers. But instead of making good of his promise to help alleviate a little the economic condition of the workers, he failed the expectations of the Filipino working class for the nth time. This decision and the inability of Pnoy to act in favor of the majority, made it clear that Pnoy’s bosses are not the ordinary people but the elites. The Php 22 is not a wage increase which the workers are asking. It is wa...

by Mynardo Macaraig, Agence France-Presse MANILA, Philippines - Six women dressed as nuns stood anxiously in a queue at Manila's chaotic international airport, unaware their shoes were about to end their dreams of an illegal job abroad. At the immigration counter, an official looked up after stamping a genuine traveller's passport and surveyed the women. "People were wondering, if they were nuns then why was one nun in rubber shoes and another in red shoes," said airport immigration chief Lina Andaman Pelia. "And all six just had one bag. You could tell they weren't real." Under questioning, the "nuns" admitted they were not heading to a religious seminar in Hong Kong as claimed, rather to Lebanon to work illegally as maids. And so -- just like thousands of desperate Filipinos before them who have tried to use a dizzying array of tricks in an effort to head overseas for a higher paying job -- their journey was over before it had begun. Deep po...

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the repatriation of overstaying overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia is in "full swing" but is "endangered" because of the Filipinos camping out at a lot near the Philippine Consulate. In a statement, the DFA said the special arrangement for the repatriation of OFWs may be endangered because of the Filipinos camping out near the consulate. About 200 Filipinos had camped in the vacant lot beside the Consulate on April 25 but the number eventually decreased to about 50 as of May 5. "The presence of this group is delaying the transfer of the Filipinos at the Hajj Terminal to the Deportation Center, and may lead to the rebooking or cancellation of their flight and the expiry of their travel documents," the DFA said. The Consulate has urged the Filipinos camped at the vacant lot to return to the Hajj Terminal to avoid hampering the terminal operations. Special arrangement The DFA said the Hajj Ter...

KARLITOS BRIAN DECENA, GMA News The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the Philippine government is assisting the three Filipinos who were detained in Dubai in the United Arba Emirates (UAE) last year for possession of illegal drugs. In a statement released by the DFA, Philippine Consul General Benito Valeriano said they hired a competent Bahraini lawyer to represent Rhoda Guisinga, Jackie Lou Jabate and Crizelda Empleo in their second court hearing on Tuesday. Dubai police arrested Guisinga in a mall on November last year after she was found holding a plastic bag that allegedly contained illegal drugs. Guisinga claimed that the drugs came from an Egyptian whom she met. Jabate and Empleo, who were then waiting for Guisinga, were also apprehended by the police. The consulate said they are providing all the help they can give to the three Filipinos, who are holding only visitor visas. - VVP, GMA News

Saying his arrival has an air of "destiny," Japan's new ambassador to the Philippines reassured Filipinos of his commitment to boost the peace process in Mindanao. In his arrival statement last Wednesday, new Japanese envoy Toshinao Urabe said it is both his duty and his joy to further develop closer ties between the Philippines and Japan. "My mission is to develop this strategic partnership. Indeed, I consider myself extremely lucky to be the Japanese ambassador to the Philippines because it is a joy as well as my duty to develop this win-win relationship between my two home countries," he said. The new envoy said Japan's commitment to assist economic and social development of the Philippines is constant. Japan and the Philippines are geographically close island countries and share similar values such as democracy and free market principles, he said. Apart from being the largest donor of official development assistance to the Philippines, Japan is now obser...

Over 100 Filipinos who are stranded in Misrata, Libya are awaiting repatriation, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said. The IOM, in a news release posted on its website on Thursday (Manila time), said the batch stuck in Misrata includes women and children. "IOM has been made aware of 109 Filipinos in Misrata, including women and children who also need to be evacuated but the Organization has not been able to establish contact with the group," it said. No other details on the Filipinos were mentioned. Stranded migrants According to IOM, it transferred some 800 people, including stranded migrants and up to 50 wounded civilians, from Misrata despite shelling and shooting in the port vicinity. IOM chartered a boat, the "Red Star One," to transport the people, over 20 journalists and some doctors, out of Misrata. "Heavy shelling of Misrata in addition to mines having been laid had prevented the IOM boat from docking for five days. The fighting had ...

Applicants will get a confirmation email with the application number and date and time of their personal appearance, the Embassy said. "Only those with Application Numbers and confirmed schedules for Personal Appearance will be processed ... Applicants who fail to appear on their appointed schedules will have to file a new application," it said in an announcement on its website. It also said the online ePassport request and appointment system is not applicable to lost and mutilated passport applications. A separate information page said the service is offered only to Filipinos living in Japan whose area of domicile falls under the jurisdiction of the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo, "seeking to apply a passport for the first time (i.e. babies born in Japan), or intending to renew a regular passport with no discrepancies." Requirements Applicants will need a working computer with Internet access, with Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 or higher; or Mozilla Firefox 3.5 or hig...

abs-cbnNEWS.com MANILA, Philippines – A Filipino convicted by an Iranian court for drug possession is getting assistance from the Philippine embassy in Tehran, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Monday. The DFA said contrary to reports, the embassy has been helping Aquino before and during his trial. Aquino was represented by a legal counsel, while embassy officials attended the court proceedings, the department added. “The embassy also made representations and coordination with Iranian authorities in assisting Mr. Aquino in his case,” the DFA said in a press statement. Aquino, 26, was arrested in September 2009 at the Shiraz Airport on his way out of Iran and was found to have in his possession 5 kilos of compressed heroin, which is punishable by the death penalty. He denied having knowledge of the content of the bag and claimed that a Nigerian friend of his asked him to pick up the bag at Toos Hotel in Mashad to be brought to the Philippines. Aquino was convicted by ...

abs-cbnNEWS.com MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said syndicates are now grooming foreign exchange students to become their drug mules. In a statement, PDEA Director General Undersecretary Jose Gutierrez Jr. said this indicates a shifting trend in the recruitment process for drug couriers. He said syndicates are luring more Asians, notably exchange students coming from Korea, as prospective drug couriers. He added that these syndicates prey on young people, because they are inexperienced and naive. This came on the back of the arrest of 2 members of the African Drug Syndicate last week. Samuel Egbo y Chukwueloka, a Nigerian, and his Korean girlfriend named Yunji Choi were arrested after selling half a kilogram of cocaine worth P2.5 million to an undercover PDEA agent. Choi said she met Egbo at a university in Manila last year. She said she has since traveled frequently in and out of the country. Three Filipinos were executed in China last March, afte...

abs-cbnNEWS.com MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Embassy in Damascus said there are no Filipinos caught in the crossfire during protest actions there. “The Embassy contacted its area coordinators, its volunteers from the Filipino community and other sources in Syria to verify the report. These sources all informed the Embassy that no such incident happened,” Philippine Ambassador to Syria Wifredo Cuyugan said. He is referring to news reports that 2 Filipino household service workers supposedly died during a protest action last April 29. The 2 were supposedly hit by a stray bullet. “In addition, there are inconsistencies in the alleged report. There were no demonstrations in Damascus on April 29. Damascus and its neighboring governorates suffered its worst hailstorms that day—therefore, no significant protests took place in the capital or anywhere near it,” he stated. He also said employers immediately inform embassies in case of any untoward incidents. Last April 26, the Departmen...

Three months after a deportation row posed a threat to their jobs, Filipino workers in Taiwan joined rallies on Labor Day to air their woes against the Taiwanese government, a news report said Monday night. In a report by Taiwan’s Central News Agency, Filipino and Filipino-Taiwanese workers lamented that Taipei’s labor laws do not protect them at all. “Despite some improvements, those who work as home caretakers, many of whom are from the Philippines, are still being exploited and receive unfair treatment," said Migrante-Taiwan chairperson David Chang in the news report. Earlier this year, Taiwan created stricter application rules for migrant workers after the Philippines deported 14 of their nationals to mainland China. The issue had since been resolved after the Philippine government replaced key immigration officials who were deemed responsible for mishandling the deportation. Chang said migrant caretakers in Taiwan have to go through a broker system that collects most of their...

Filipinos who leave the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to come home to the Philippines may be barred from taking their flights back to UAE if they lack the proper employment documents. The Filipino workers who went to UAE using a visit visa and later found employment have the burden to show employment papers, Gulf News XPress reported. The report quoted a Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) official in Dubai as saying “It is the (Philippine Overseas Employment Administration) that requires the documents to those applicants/OFWs who left the Philippines with undocumented status - meaning departed the Philippines on visit visa and after sometime found employment in the UAE." The POLO official said the stricter rules will apply to those who went home without obtaining an overseas employment certificate (OEC) in Dubai. An OEC costs Dh10 (P116.83) and exempts Filipino overseas workers from paying travel tax of Dh160 (P1,869). It is also used by Manila to ensure their workers abroad are...

A Filipina sentenced to life imprisonment in Thailand is not eligible to seek royal pardon from the King of Thailand, as she has appealed her case before the Thai appellate court. The Philippine Embassy in Thailand relayed this to the Bacolod City council, adding Filipina Flory May Talaban, 28, cannot avail of a Philippine-Thailand agreement allowing the transfer of prisoners at this time. Talaban, 28, of Bacolod City, is now imprisoned in the Ngam Wong Wan Central Women's Institution for alleged illegal drug possession, news site Visayan Daily Star reported Friday. Edgar Badajos, Consul General of the Philippine Embassy in Thailand, said Talaban is ineligible to apply for royal pardon because the guidelines issued by the Thai Department of Corrections states that “a prisoner may submit a petition for royal pardon only after he or she finished all court proceedings [including appeal]." Bajados addressed the letter to City Council secretary Nilo Alejandrino, in response to a re...

A month after three Filipinos were executed in China for drug trafficking, the Department of Justice (DOJ) in the Philippines has issued an advisory opinion on illegal drug couriers. In a six-page advisory opinion issued last Friday, April 29, Justice Sec. Leila de Lima said the advisory opinion “seeks to explain to the public the issues surrounding the recruitment, arrest, detention and conviction in foreign countries of Filipinos who are caught transporting illegal drugs." The opinion outlined 10 advisory points: •Carry at your own risk. •Knowledge is immaterial and intent is not a requirement in drug trafficking. •Be vigilant of the modus operandi of drug courier syndicates. •In the unfortunate event of arrest or detention for drug trafficking, have presence of mind and do not resist arrest. •Assert your legal rights, inquire on the legal remedies and request for consular assistance. •Presumption of innocence will always apply. •The laws of country of arrest apply. •If sentence...

Two Filipino helpers were injured in a car accident over the weekend in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) where two Emirate children were killed, the news site Gulf News reported. Those injured were two Filipina housemaids aged 23 and 26, a five-year-old girl, a six-year-old boy, and a 29-year-old Emirati mother whose son, 1, and daughter, 4, were killed. Gulf News said the incident that occurred at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday when a 29-year-old Emirati mother lost control of her vehicle and rammed into another car. The investigation showed the mother lost control of the vehicle she was driving and hit a sports utility vehicle driven by a 60-year-old Emirati man. The woman's vehicle overturned twice and landed on the roadside, Gulf News said. Traffic prosecutors have recorded 44 deaths, including nine Emiratis, in the first four months of this year, Gulf News reported. - VVP, GMA News

One of the Filipino sailors of a South Korean ship released recently by pirates is suffering from severe stomach pain as their vessel remains stranded off the United Arab Emirates (UAE). “He has severe stomach pain… may be due to kidney stone. We have requested through the captain for his hospitalization. But it doesn’t seem to be happening. His mother is also hospitalized in the Philippines. They are struggling to pay her hospital bills," one of the ship's sailors said in an interview posted on the news site Khaleej Times. The ship "Samho Dream" lies stricken off the Dubai coast with 26 crew members on board. Its owner, Samho Shipping, reportedly filed for court protection to help them tide over their financial situation. Nineteen of some 26 sailors aboard the ship are Filipinos. The "Samho Dream" was attacked by pirates in 2010 and its owners had to put up $9 million as ransom. - VVP, GMA News

The Department of Foreign Affairs' (DFA) Office of Consular Affairs (DFA-OCA) released to the public its fax numbers for passport- and consular-related inquiries. In an announcement on its website on Wednesday, the DFA said inquiries can be sent via fax to 836-7746, 836-7749, and 836-7759, attention to Passport Division. "A return call from the DFA-OCA is expected within 24 hours of receipt of the faxed inquiry," the DFA said (http://dfa.gov.ph/main/index.php/newsroom/dfa-releases/2934-office-of-consular-affairs-announces-fax-numbers-for-consular-inquiries). Earlier, the DFA announced its new trunkline number 556-0000 for all passport and consular-related inquiries. It said this trunkline number is open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. from Monday to Friday. - VVP, GMA News

After visiting the strife-torn country, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Albert del Rosario ordered that the voluntary repatriation efforts in Syria be focused on three areas: Daraa, Latakia, and Homs. A news article posted on the DFA website said Alberto "ordered the Philippine Embassy in Damascus to further check on and ask some 110 Filipinos in Daraa, 2,400 Filipinos in Latakia, and 1,600 Filipinos in Homs if they wish to be repatriated." On Friday, when Del Rosario visited Syria, protests in certain areas in Syria ended in violence, particularly in Daraa, Latakia and Homs. However, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al Muallem told Del Rosario that the Syrian government will do its best to restore political security and stability in the country. On the other hand, Del Rosario thanked the Syrian government for assuring the safety of some 17,000 Filipinos there. Muallem also told Del Rosario that the current political realities in Syria is "different from the o...

Saan ko na kukunin ang panghulog ko sa nautang no’ng magkasakit ang isang anak ko. Paano ko pa matitiyak na matutuloy ang pag-aaral ng tatlo ko pang anak? Nagtitiyaga na nga lang ako sa mababang pasahod dito sa Libya, tapos nanganganib pa ang buhay namin ngayon… Ito ang ilang hinanakit ni Mirriam, isang domestic worker sa Libya na napilitang umuwi ng Pilipinas laban man sa kanyang kalooban. Marami pang kakilala si Mirriam na matagal nang nagtatrabaho sa Libya, at katulad niya, napilitan na rin na umuwi ng Pilipinas dahil na rin sa kaguluhang nangyayari sa naturang bansa. At kahit noon pa mang regular pang nakakapagpadala ng pera si Mirriam sa kanyang naiwang pamilya dito sa Pilipinas, matagal nang kapos ang kanyang ipinapadala dahil sa walang puknat na pagtaas ng presyo ng mga bilihin sa Pilipinas. Malaganap ang paniniwalang nakakariwasa ag pamumuhay ng pamilya ng OFWs dito sa Pilipinas. Ngunit hindi ito totoo sa kaso ni Mirriam, at sa marami pang katulad niya. Katulad din ng maram...