296 Filipino crewmen in Italy sea mishap safe

The 296 Filipino crew members of M/V Costa Concordia, which capsized off the coast of Grosetto, Tuscany, Italy last Friday, are safe and will be repatriated beginning Tuesday, January 17, according to a Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) story.

Earlier, it was reported that three crew members were injured in the incident and hospitalized in Grosetto. Read more

OFW in Saudi death row to be freed in 3 months

The Overseas Filipino worker (OFW) who is facing the death penalty for killing a fellow Filipino in Saudi Arabia is expected to be released within three months after the victim’s family signed the tanazul or affidavit of forgiveness.

The affidavit of forgiveness is a gesture of peace and goodwill under Shari’a law that waives all private or civil rights against the accused, according to a press release from the Office of the Vice President. Read more

521 passengers “offloaded” at NAIA in 2011

A total of 521 passengers were offloaded or not allowed to leave the country in 2011 because of falsified travel documents, according to a report from the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT)-NAIA Task Force Against Trafficking in Persons.

Vice President Jejomar C Binay, who is also presidential adviser on OFW affairs and IACAT chairman emeritus, again reminded Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) “to go through the required process in seeking employment abroad.” Read more

Airport terminal fee back to P550

Passengers on international flights will only be charged PhP550 for the terminal fee beginning February 1, according to a Philippine Daily Inquirer report.

The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) is decreasing the fee by P200 (from P750). Read more

PH stops OFW deployment to South Sudan

Government has stopped the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to South Sudan while OFWs already in the country can avail of voluntary repatriation.

Early this week, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) released a public advisory
stating that it has raised the crisis alert level in South Sudan to Alert Level 3 (voluntary repatriation) in light of the deteriorating security situation caused by inter-ethnic violence in the country, as well as for the protection of Filipinos in the area. Read more

1.1 million workers hired in 2011 thru PESO network

The country’s network of Public Employment Service Offices (PESOs) helped 1,108,908 workers find jobs in the country in 2011–most of them in wage employment, according to a Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) press release.

“We credit the effective work of our 1,069 PESOs in all 16 regions of the country in elevating to positive the employment performance of the economy in 2011,” labor chief Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz said. A report from the Bureau of Local Employment showed that the number of PESO-placed job seekers constitute 76% of the 1,456,926 referred for job placement from January-December 2011. Read more

On top of the world

Mountaineer Romi Garduce made history as the first Filipino to reach the seven summits in the seven continents–Pito para sa Pilipino–after he planted the Philippine flag on the peak of Vinson Massif in Antartica on January 5 (January 6, Philippine time).

Accompanied by five other climbers, Garduce was able to complete his journey in six days thanks to favorable conditions, according to a Manila Bulletin report. Read more

1st Canada Parent, Grandparent Super Visa issued in Manila

Filipinos were the first to benefit from Canada’s Parent and Grandparent Super Visa as the Canadian mission in Manila issued the very first Super Visa last month, according to a Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) news release.

“We pledged to process the Parent and Grandparent Super Visa in less than eight weeks,” noted Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism. “We’ve issued the first of the Super Visas in just two weeks and we remain committed to reuniting families through the Super Visa in a timely manner.” Read more

DFA intensifies efforts to bring home OFWs in Syria

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is intensifying its mandatory repatriation program in Syria as a total of 56 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) arrived in Manila on January 8, according to a Philippine Daily Inquirer report.

Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Esteban B Conejos Jr accompanied the OFWs who arrived via a Qatar Airways flight. Read more

Baldoz appeals anew for OFWs to shun Syria

Labor chief Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz again called on prospective overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to avoid Syria due to the civil unrest engulfing that country, according to a Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) press release.

She issued her appeal this week after labor attache Angel Borja of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in Damascus reported that illegally recruited and trafficked Filipinas continue to arrive in the strife-torn country despite the deployment ban, in effect replacing those being mandatorily repatriated by the Philippine government. Read more

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