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Overseas absentee
voter
registration starts
To help ensure that more Filipinos abroad will be able to
cast their votes in 2007, the Comelec Committee on Overseas Absentee Voting has announced an extended overseas absentee voter
registration period from October 3, 2005 to August 31, 2006.
Who may register as overseas absentee voters? Registration
is open to citizens of the Philippines abroad who are at least 18 years of age on May 24, 2007 and are not otherwise disqualified
by the law.
It is also open to those who have reacquired or retained
their Philippine citizenship under Republic Act 9225 and other Filipino citizens with dual citizenship.
The overseas absentee voter registration is also open to
immigrants or permanent residents of other countries who are recognized as such in their home countries.
Those who registered as an overseas absentee voter in 2003
but who were unable to vote in the 2004 national elections will not need to register, according to the primer on the Comelec
site, which is available for download in PDF format at http://www.comelec.gov.ph/oav/booklet-pri.pdf. This is because their names are still on the certified list of overseas absentee
voters. If they fail to vote in the 2007 polls, however, their names will be deleted from the certified list in their respective
consulate or embassy.
Japan not open for Pinoy nurses till next year |
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Filipino nurses and caregivers can expect jobs
in Japan starting next year.
Labor Undersecretary for Employment Danilo Cruz said minor issues are being "ironed out"
in negotiations for the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership agreement.
"Deployment of nurses and caregivers to
Japan can start next year if we could forge an agreement in August," he said.
"The only issue that remains unsettled
is the number of health workers to be hired because the Japanese government wants to have a quota, but we want the market
to dictate the number."
Cruz said the government is hopeful that Japan would allow the entry of an unlimited number
of Filipino nurses and caregivers despite a lobby by Japanese nursing associations against the hiring of foreign medical workers.
Japan has offered to train Filipino nurses and caregivers hired in that country
for free until the Philippines has set up its own training center, he added. PS |
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OFWs called
on to invest in trust funds
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has
encouraged banks to tap overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) as a market for unit investment trust funds (UITFs), a new product
promoted by the banking regulator to replace common trust funds.
BSP Officer-in-Charge Amando Tetangco Jr. said: "We would like to encourage the creativity of the banks to provide
avenues for smaller investments."
The BSP has ordered the phaseout of CTFs and the introduction of the UITFs, which it believes is a better product
as it better reflects market value.
The UITFs would be handled separately by the trust departments of banks.
Under the new rules, UITFs can only be invested in assets that are either easily convertible to cash or readily
traded.
As such, funds pooled into UITFs could not be used by the banks for relending to other customers, but could
be placed in equities, bonds and high-grade commercial papers, which are traded in the market.
Tetangco said he wanted banks attract overseas Filipino workers and help them put their remittances into good
use.
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US seen to
resume hiring Filipino nurses
The approval by US Pres.George Bush of a congressional
amendment to the American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act of 2000 is expected to allow US hospitals to resume
hiring Filipino nurses.
The signing has provided for the recall of employment immigrant visas which were unused
from 2001 to 2004. Reports from Washington said that under the measure, some 50,000 unused employment-based immigrant visas
(EB-3) earlier allocated to other countries will be reassigned to the Philippines, China and India. EB-3 visas are used mainly
by US hospitals for hiring foreign-trained nurses.
According to the reports, the amendment was incorporated into "The
Emergency Supplemental Appropriations for Defense, the Global War on Terror and Tsunami Relief Act" which President Bush signed
on May 11.
"We welcome President Bush’s action, which is a renewed opportunity for our nurses to show the world
the competence and excellence of the Filipino work force," Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesman Ignacio R. Bunye said
in a statement.
"Our work force here and abroad have been steadfast in fueling the pace of our economy. Nonetheless,
we look forward to the day when enough well-paying Philippine jobs can be had so that our qualified workers need not try their
luck abroad," Bunye added.
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Three
Filipino-Americans Recieve Awards from Illinois
Consul General Blesila C. Cabrera of the Philippine Consulate General in Chicago, USA, reported to Secretary
of Foreign Affairs Alberto G. Romulo that three Filipino-Americans received awards from Illinois Secretary of State Jesse
White on 3 May 2005 for their professional and entrepreneurial excellence.
At a reception to celebrate Asian Pacific
American Heritage Month, Consul General Cabrera announced that :
1. Manuel P. A. Claudio, M.D., a well-known physician
in the Chicago area, and who currently serves as president of the board for the American Lung Association of Metropolitan
Chicago; was honored with the Professional Excellence Award;
2. Mr. Fred Navarro, a successful agent of the State Farm
Insurance Company and president of his own company since 1973, was also honored with the Entrepreneurial Excellence Award;
and
3. Mr. Bernard Eric Runo, owner of a successful and innovative Parisian bakery in downtown Chicago, was likewise
honored with the Entrepreneurial Excellence Award.
Consul General Cabrera led Consulate officers and staff in congratulating
the awardees for their accomplishments, and described them as role models, especially for second-generation Filipino-Americans.
Secretary Romulo conveyed through Consul General Cabrera his congratulations to the awardees, saying “I am pleased
that the communities in Chicago have recognized through the three awardees the Filipino expertise, innovation and excellence.”
Consul General Cabrera said Mayor Richard M. Daley of the City of Chicago has proclaimed May 2005 as Asian Pacific
American Heritage Month in Chicago in celebration of their diverse cultures and to “encourage all Chicagoans to be aware
of the many contributions that Asian Pacific Americans have made to our country” especially in “the development
of the arts, commerce, education, government, military and sciences in the United States.
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Gov't protests Israel segregation of
Pinoys
The Philippines has lodged a formal protest with Israel for allegedly
segregating Filipino travelers at the back of aircraft on flights to Tel Aviv, the foreign affairs department said Wednesday
in Manila.
Filipinos boarding flights to Israel's main Ben Gurion International Airport
are made to undergo "overly strict scrutiny and assigned seats at the rear of the aircraft," the department said in a statement,
citing a report by Manila's envoy to Israel, Antonio Modena.
Cellular phones of Filipino workers are also confiscated, preventing them
from seeking help with the Philippine consulate, it alleged.
Modena has lodged a complaint with Israel's Interior Minister Ophir Paz-Pines,
who promised he would meet with airport operatives to improve the treatment of Filipinos, the statement said.
"The Philippine ambassador took exception to the segregation of incoming
Filipinos from other passengers by personnel of the interior ministry posted at Israeli airports," it added.
The practice was in violation of an international convention on consular
relations, the statement said.
The Philippine embassy in Israel estimates there are some 30,000 Filipino
workers in Israel, most of them maids and caregivers based in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Haifa. (AFP)
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Taiwan, Israel, Canada, UK are 2004 top markets for Filipino caregivers |
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The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Friday reported an
increase in the number of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) deployed as caregivers overseas in 2004.
A report reaching
Labor and Employment Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas indicated that some 20,266 Filipino caregivers were deployed in 24 host
countries globally last year, or a growth of 7.35 percent from 18,878 in 2003.
The DOLE's Philippine Overseas Employment
Administration (POEA) said the top overseas labor markets for Filipino caregivers were Taiwan, Israel, Canada, and the United
Kingdom (UK).
Taiwan, the POEA said, remained the top overseas market of Filipino caregivers as the country hired/rehired
some 13,855 caregivers last year comprising 68.3 percent of total global deployment.
In Israel, caregiver deployment
posted an increase of 83.3 percent to 3,184 last year from 1,737 in 2003; in Canada, by 38.5 percent to 2,509 from 1,811;
and in the UK, by 35.5 percent to 652 from 481.
Other alternative and/or emerging host destinations last year, which
accommodated Filipino caregivers, were the following: Albania, Australia, the Bahamas, Bahrain, Bermuda, the Cayman Island,
Cyprus, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Italy, Kuwait, Mexico, Saipan, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Tajikistan, Tinian, the United Arab
Emirates (UAE), and the United States (US).
Nonetheless, Sto. Tomas cited an earlier report of the DOLE's Technical
Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) which cautioned the industry from giving false hopes to would-be overseas
Filipino caregivers.
This is because of non-existent job openings in still inactive overseas markets notwithstanding
the growth in caregiver deployment.
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Local testing for US-bound nurses sought
A campaign was launched yesterday to convince the US National Council of State
Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) to hold a licensure examination for nurses in the Philippines this year.
The campaign is
a joint project of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO), the Philippine Nurses Association (PNA) and the Philippine
Nurses Association of America.
CFO chairman Dante Ang said holding the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX)
in country will mean considerable savings for nurses who intend to work in the US.
He said most takers of the test
have to go to Guam or Saipan.
Ang said the examination fee is only $200, but the cost rises when air fare and accommodations
are included.
Last yeae, when the NCSBN approved the holding of licensure tests in three pilot sites - Hong Kong, London
and South Korea - 10,350 Filipino nurses took the examinations.
This number was way above the 2,135 examinees from
Canada, India's 2,053, South Korea's 1,288 and China's 433.
The three pilot sites were chosen by NCSBN based on national
security, examination security, similarity of local laws with the US intellectual property and copyright laws, number and
location of internationally educated nurses, regional accessibility, number of US military personnel and dependents, and similarity
of local nursing education system with the US nursing education.
Ang said Pearson VUE, an electronic testing company
that administers the NCLEX, already has several testing centers in the country for information technology certifications.
(Ruelle Albert D. Castro, Malaya)
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OFW hirings drop 5% |
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Even as many Filipinos still look abroad
for greener pastures, fewer of them are making it these days, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) said
in a report.
Records from the POEA showed a five percent drop in the number of Filipino workers deployed in the first
two months of the year compared with the same period a year ago.
POEA chief Rosalinda Baldoz said that as of March
2, a total of 184,413 overseas Filipino workers left for various countries, or 3,986 less than the 188,379 OFWs hired abroad
in 2004.
Based on the POEA daily OFW deployment report, the number of hired land-based workers from January to February
this year declined by 2.5 percent to 143,910 from the 2004 figure of 149,960.
While no specific reason was cited for
the slump, the labor department expressed confidence that it is only temporary and OFW deployment would increase in the coming
months.
Labor officials maintained that despite strong competition from other labor sending countries, foreign employers
still prefer Filipino workers for their skills.
Labor Undersecretary Manuel Imson also said the ongoing crackdown
against illegal immigrant workers in countries like Malaysia and Japan would not affect the deployment of Filipinos. "Let
it be clear that we are not in any way losing the Malaysia and Japan markets for Filipino workers, as they are even set to
accept skilled and documented OFWs needed by their economies," Imson said. (Mayen Jaymalin, PS) | |
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