KAKAMMPI News

The Philippine Embassy in New Delhi confirmed the safety of Filipino mountaineers and trekkers affected by the 7.9-magnitude earthquake in Nepal, adding on Wednesday that most are on their way back to the Philippines. Mendelson dela Cuesta and Edward Sampelo , the two Filipinos stranded atop Mt. Manaslu, were confirmed safe by their Nepalese sherpa and will descend the eighth-tallest mountain in the world using an alternative route, a statement from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said. Meanwhile, trekkers Ma. Teresa Suratos, her travel group, and both Jessica Ann Nicole F. Ramirez and Jose Francisco C. Oracion have also made it to safety, with Suratos and her group making its way to Kathmandu and the latter two heading for Singapore from the capital. Stranded tourist Hygeia Chi was also assisted by the Embassy's Crisis Management Team (CMT) and departed for Kuala Lumpur from Kathmandu on Wednesday afternoon, the DFA said. The CMT also confirmed that there was no Filipinos ...

To prevent overseas Filipino workers like Mary Jane Veloso from falling prey to human traffickers and illegal recruiters, the Department of Labor and Employment is eyeing a TV show about various OFW concerns. DOLE Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz also ordered the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration to draw up an action plan to protect OFWs. A  DOLE news release  said Baldoz ordered POEA head Hans Leo Cacdac and OWWA head Rebecca Calzado to implement a radio or TV show preferably in a government-owned media entity such as PTV-4. “The case of OFW Veloso is an instructive lesson, so were the other cases involving Filipino migrants, workers or not, who had (fallen victim) to drug syndicates, human trafficking gangs, or prostitution networks. Let us, at the POEA and the OWWA, carry out our mandates and do our jobs of helping protect our OFWs,” she said. Veloso was sentenced to death in Indonesia after being caught with heroin. She was...

A permanent reprieve for Mary Jane Veloso is not impossible, a News TV Live report said Wednesay, citing the Indonesian Embassy in Manila. The report quoted the embassy as saying that the  temporary reprieve given by the Indonesian government to Veloso , which spared her from execution early Wednesday, had a positive effect on her case in Indonesia's court. It added that the Indonesian government granted Veloso the reprieve to give the Philippines time to charge Maria Kristina Sergio alias Christine Pasadilla, the recruiter who allegedly duped Veloso into bringing heroin to Indonesia in 2010. Tony Spontana of Indonesia's Attorney General's Office earlier said the reprieve was granted after Sergio turned herself in to authorities in Nueva Ecija. Sergio, her live-in partner Julius Lacadilao, and an African man named "Ike" are facing estafa, illegal recruitment, and human trafficking for allegedly tricking Veloso into carrying 2.6 kilograms of heroin into Yogyakarta ...

The reprieve given to Filipina death row prisoner Mary Jane Veloso by the Indonesian government is only temporary and may only be short-lived, a lawyer said on “Unang Balita” on Wednesday. According to lawyer Gaby Concepcion, she thinks the reprieve might only be short-lived pending Indonesia's re-investigation on her case, although she hopes such action would eventually lead to Veloso being removed from death row. “Sana nga maging permanent ang reprieve kasi this is only in the meantime, siguro para mapag-aralan pa ang kaso niya. Sana nga matuluyan na at maging permanent na,” Concepcion said. Veloso was the only one spared among the nine death-row convicts from various countries scheduled for execution in Indonesia on Wednesday morning. Her lawyer, Edre Olalia, earlier told radio dzBB the reprieve was due to a complaint filed in the Philippines against those responsible for Veloso's plight. Meanwhile, the spokesman for Indonesia's Attorney General's Office Tony Spontan...

The Filipino American Association of Southern Ohio (FASO), with the assistance of several community leaders, is offering Cincinnati residents a chance to see the butterflies of the Philippines at the Krohn Conservatory. Butterflies of the Philippines will run for 11 weeks, or from April 3 to June 21 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., offering the  "Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky a glimpse of Philippine culture." FASO said various Fil-Am community partners have banded together "to actively partner with the Krohn Conservatory and help render authentic 'flavor' as well as provide the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky a glimpse of Philippine culture." A  report on WLWT News  said 2,000 butterflies and artwork representing iconic sites such as the Cagsawa ruins and other natural beauties in the Philippines will be featured in the exhibit. Krohn predicts that16,000 to 20,000 butterflies will breed from their current stock of 2,000 butterflies by the end of t...

Despite a statement from Indonesian authorities that a request from President Benigno Aquino III was a factor in staying the execution of Mary Jane Veloso, militant lawmakers on Wednesday refused to give the Chief Executive credit for the last-minute reprieve. Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Neri Colmenares said that while Aquino should be acknowledged for making a personal appeal on Veloso’s behalf to Indonesian President Joko Widodo, his efforts did not really amount to much since he was the only Philippine official who was in the position to do it. “If only for that (making a personal appeal), i-recognize natin ang ginawa ni PNoy but it doesn’t absolve the government’s neglect of Mary Jane’s case over the years,” he told reporters in a press briefing. Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate said Aquino deserved no credit at all for Veloso’s new lease on life because the Philippine government had earlier resigned itself that she would be killed when the Department of Foreign Affairs said le...

The recruiter who allegedly tricked Mary Jane Veloso into bringing 2.6 kilos of heroin in Indonesia will be brought to Camp Crame in Quezon City, after she turned herself in to authorities in Nueva Ecija. A tweet by radio dzBB on Wednesday afternoon said Christine Pasadilla, who also uses the name Kristina Sergio, will be brought to Camp Olivas in Pampanga province first and later to Camp Crame. Reached by GMA News Online by phone, Police Supt. Ronald Joseph Ocaya, officer-in-charge of the Nueva Ecija Provincial Police Office, said Pasadilla was already en route to Pampanga but refused to confirm that she will be brought to Camp Crame, citing security reasons. Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) chief Director Benjamin Magalong said he has no information on the transfer. "We are not involved," he said. Pasadilla presented herself to authorities Tuesday together with her live-in partner and fellow suspect Julius Lacanilao due to sup...

Filipina migrant worker Mary Jane Veloso has been taken away from the execution island in Indonesia after being granted reprieve by the Indonesian government, The Department of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday. The 30-year-old  Veloso was spared from execution by a firing squad  early Wednesday, after President Benigno Aquino III made a last-minute appeal to the Indonesian government to turn the Filipina convicted on drug charges into a witness.  Indonesian and Philippine officials struggled to deal with the emotion-laden situation up to the final hours, prompting Aquino to take up the matter to Indonesian leader Jokowi Widodo at the sidelines of a Southeast Asian summit in Malaysia where they took up much bigger regional concerns like the South China Sea territorial disputes. “The President has undertaken all avenues including diplomatic and legal means to do what he can for Mary Jane as it is the President’s belief that every human life is invaluable,” Foreign Affairs S...

A Filipina was among six witnesses who testified in the murder case against an Emirati woman accused of fatally stabbing an American kindergarten teacher in a mall in the United Arab Emirates last December. The witnesses who testified Monday before the Federal Supreme Court also included an Egyptian-American doctor whose house was allegedly the target of a homemade bomb, Gulf News reported Tuesday. Emirati woman Ala’a Al Hashemi  had been charged with stabbing Ibolya Ryan, a kindergarten teacher and mother of three, in the women’s bathroom of Reem Island Boutik Mall. Al Hashemi was also the suspect in the planting of a homemade bomb outside the home of an Egyptian-American family in Khalidiya. Presiding judge Falah Al Hajeri postponed the session until May 18 to hear a medical team’s report on the defendant’s mental condition. The medical team had decided not to admit the accused to a hospital but to periodically check on her while she is in prison. Mall killing A Filipina and a Uk...

A Filipina was killed in a hit-and-run incident in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, but police there have arrested the suspect, a UAE news site reported Wednesday. The Filipina, described as in her 20s, was heading home after work when she was hit by a vehicle driven by a Syrian, Khaleej Times reported. Dubai Police cited initial information showing the motorist ran over the  Filipina in the Al Maktoum  area. The police said they were notified about the incident Monday. While there were no witnesses, a police team found a car with traces of blood and a dent on its fender in Al Quoz. Police summoned the driver, who admitted to speeding but claimed he was not aware that he hit the Filipina.  —  Joel Locsin /LBG, GMA News

Vice President Jejomar Binay on Wednesday acknowledged the stay of execution of Mary Jane Veloso, facing death due to drug trafficking in Indonesia, was a result of prayers. "This is the power of prayer at work. Huwag po natin itigil ang pagdarasal para kay Mary Jane. Dagdagan pa po natin ang ating panalangin na maisalba natin siya sa kamatayan," Binay said in a press statement. To avoid an incident similar to Veloso, he also asked Filipinos abroad to be mindful of their belongings and refrain from carrying luggage other than their own. "Buhay po ang nakataya rito at kailanman ay hindi matutumbasan ng kahit anong halaga ang inyong buhay. Sana ay huwag po kayong magpabiktima sa mga sindikato o magtiwala sa mga pakiusap na magdala ng bagaheng hindi sa inyo," he said. Binay, presidential adviser on OFW affairs, also reminded those seeking jobs abroad to go through the proper channels. "Sana po ay dumaan tayo sa tama at legal na proseso. Para rin po ito sa inyong p...

A United Arab Emirates court has handed down jail terms for two clerks at the Dubai Health Authority who altered a Filipina's fitness test results to make it appear she is fit for work, a UAE news site reported late Monday.   The Dubai Court of First Instance sentenced the two to six months in jail for changing the test result from medically unfit to medically fit supposedly for a Dh3,000 bribe last August, Gulf News reported.   Both clerks, aged 27 and 25, were found  guilty of abusing their offices  at the DHA and for forging the 22-year-old Filipina's test results, but were sentenced in absentia.   On the other hand, the court acquitted the Filipina and her 49-year-old mother for lack of corroborative evidence.   Prosecutors accused one of the two clerks of accessing the DHA's e-system despite lacking the needed permissions.   The other clerk, the Filipina and her 49-year-old mother were accused of aiding and abetting the suspec...

Days before his megafight against Floyd Mayweather Jr., boxer and lawmaker Manny Pacquiao on Monday made a televised personal appeal to Indonesian President Joko Widodo to save the life of Filipina Mary Jane Veloso who is on death row for drug trafficking.  “On behalf of my countryman, Mary Jane Veloso, and the entire Filipino people, I am begging and knocking on your kind heart that your excellency will grant executive clemency to her by sparing her life and saving her from execution,” Pacquiao said in a live report aired over GMA News TV’s Balitanghali.    The Pacquiao-Mayweather fight will be on May 2 (May 3, PHL time), in Las Vegas, Nevada.   Veloso has been  scheduled to be executed Tuesday , over drug charges. Veloso was arrested after authorities found 2.6 kilograms of heroin sewn into her suitcase at the Yogyakarta Airport in 2010. She has maintained that she did not know that there were drugs in her luggage.    Earlier Sunday, Pre...

Aside from Mary Jane Veloso, the 30-year-old Filipina facing execution in Indonesia for drug smuggling, over 70 other Filipinos are on death row in other countries for various crimes, most of them involving illegal drugs. According to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), there are 77 Filipinos on death row abroad, most of them in Saudi Arabia. In a text message to GMA News Online, DFA spokesperson Charles Jose enumerated the Filipinos facing executions abroad as follows: Saudi Arabia: 27 (26 for murder and one for drugs) Malasyia: 24 (18 for drugs, four for murder, and two for murder with rape) China: 19 (all for drugs) USA: 2 (both for murder) Vietnam: 2 (both for drugs) Kuwait: 1 (for murder) Indonesia: 1 (for drugs) Thailand: 1 (for murder, rape, and theft) Executed Pinoys Since 2010, seven Filipinos were executed, most of them in China. In 2011,  Sally Ordinario-Villanueva, Ramon Credo, Elizabeth Batain were executed by lethal injection in China for drug smuggling . Ordinar...

The sister of Mary Jane Veloso, the Filipina facing execution in Indonesia for a drug-related case, went to the Indonesian embassy Sunday night to show support for her.   Darling Veloso went to the embassy all the way from Nueva Ecija, radio dzBB's James Agustin reported.     "Mahal na mahal kita. Magkikita tayo ng buhay ka," she said when asked for her message to Mary Jane.   But as for her sister 's recruiter, whom the family claims tricked Mary Jane into using a suitcase that had drugs hidden inside, Darling said: Nakakatulog ka pa ba? Makonsensiya ka naman."    At the embassy, activists led by OFW rights group Migrante lit candles and called on Indonesia to spare Veloso's life.   However, Makati police asked the activists to end their vigil as they had no permit to gather there.   —  Joel Locsin /JDS, GMA News

Two days before the date set for her execution, the family of overseas Filipino worker Mary Jane Veloso appealed anew to President Benigno Aquino III to personally talk to Indonesian president Joko Widodo to convince him to spare her life. Veloso has been sentenced to death in Indonesia over a drug case and is  set to face a firing squad on Tuesday, April 28 . According to a "24 Oras" report aired Sunday, the Filipina personally called her family to give them the news about the date of her execution. Her immediate family is in Mainland Central Java Province and has already visited her twice since last week.  “Nagmamakaawa po ako sa ating pangulo na sana po ay pumunta siya rito at kausapin niya ng personal ang pangulo dito (sa Indonesia). Sana tulungan niyo po kami,” said Michael, Mary Jane's husband. Earlier Sunday,  President Aquino said he will talk to Widodo about Veloso's case  when they meet in Malaysia, where an Association of Southeast Nations...

Mary Jane Veloso, the Filipina who is set to be executed in Indonesia on April 28 over drug charges, urged the youth in a handwritten letter to stay away from drugs. The letter was one of four letters written by Veloso on note paper and disseminated to the media by the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs on Sunday. Photos of the letters  were also posted on the DFA Facebook page . Veloso is one of the eight foreign drug convicts set to be executed in Indonesia on Tuesday despite a wave of global criticism led by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Aside from Veloso, those set to be executed by firing squad along with one convict from Indonesia are from Australia, Brazil, and Nigeria. A reprieve was granted to a convict from France after French officials put pressure on Jakarta. Veloso was visited by her family on Saturday and Sunday at the prison island of Nusa Kambangan, where Indonesia puts condemned prisoners to death. The Veloso family was accompanied by DFA pers...