Biden ‘briefly raised’ request for Philippines to house Afghan refugees to Marcos during US state visit -Manalo By HANA BORDEY, GMA Integrated News

United States President Joe Biden “briefly raised” their government’s request to temporarily house Afghan refugees in the Philippines with President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. during the latter’s state visit to the US last May, according to Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo. Manalo disclosed the information during a Senate inquiry on the matter on Friday. “The secretary of state directly raised this to me on a few occasions verbally and also in a letter…and in fact, President Biden also briefly raised the issue with President Marcos during the visit last May,” Manalo said. GMA News Online has reached out to the US Embassy to confirm Manalo’s statement but they have yet to respond as of posting time. During the Senate inquiry, Manalo said the Department of Foreign Affairs received a concept note from the US government last October 22, 2022 which indicated a “request” for the Philippine government to allow Afghans formally employed by the US government and their qualified dependents to temporarily stay in the Philippines to process their Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applications with the US Embassy in Manila. After receiving the request, Manalo said they launched informal consultations with the relevant Philippine agencies in order to study the concept note and assess the request. The Senate foreign relations committee launched an investigation into the matter after its chairperson, Senator Imee Marcos, questioned why the US opted to house the Afghans in another country and not in their own country even though these individuals are “supporters of the US and possibly, even former employees of the US government or US companies.” Senator Marcos, the Philippine president’s older sister, said “there is a substantial risk that individuals who pose a threat to national security and public safety may be admitted into and housed in the country.” Earlier, US Embassy spokesperson Kanishka Gangopadhyay told GMA News Online that the “Biden administration remains committed to the thousands of brave Afghans who stood side-by-side with the United States over the course of the past two decades” amid the Senate resolution seeking to inquire on the US request for Philippines to temporarily house Afghans while they process their SIVs. “We do not comment on ongoing diplomatic discussions. We refer you to the Government of the Philippines for further comment,” Gangopadhyay said. —VAL, GMA Integrated News

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