Editor's Note |
20 years of service to the community
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Time flies.
Exactly 20 years ago this month, The SUN shone for the Filipinos in Hong Kong. It was
the fulfillment of a dream that took shape years earlier, or shortly after I arrived here in 1987 and
realized there was no reliable information channel serving the community.
But turning that dream into reality proved to be difficult. Several people offered to fund
the publication of a news-paper, but everyone wanted a business model different from what we had
in mind.
Details...
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Anak Araw |
Pagpapabaya
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Nitong nakaraang buwan ay naging saksi tayo sa nangyari kay Manang Gloria Ortinez,
ang OFW na biktima ng tanim-bala sa Manila airport. Halos buong araw kasi ay naglagi siya sa
opisina ng The SUN, kasama ang mga naghatid sa kanya na sina Susan "Toots" Ople na tagataguyod ng
mga OFW, at ang abogado niyang si Atty Spocky Farolan, kaya nasaksihan namin siya nang malapitan.
Details...
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Migrant's Forum |
Nanay Gloria's journey to HK
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President Benigno Simeon Aquino III recently told the media that cases of tanim-bala
were sensationalized, citing figures to prove his point. As an OFW advocate, I respectfully
disagree. Looking at this from a purely numbers perspective could lead one to overlook the deep trauma
that such incidents have caused its innocent victims.
Had he met and spoken to 56-year old OFW Gloria Ortinez, our President would have
learned the following:
Details...
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Know Your Rights |
The Mission
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This was the speech delivered by the Mission for Migrant Workers' general manager,
Cynthia Tellez, at the launch of the 10-year Impact Evaluation Report of the Mission's work held on
December 5, 2015 at the Li Hall of St. John's Cathedral.
Details...
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With at least one -- and possibly two disqualification cases in the presidential race --
the Supreme Court has assured the nation politics will not dictate its decisions.
See this month's stories...
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Staff and volunteers at the Mission for Migrant Workers had reason to celebrate when
they launched the non-government organization's 10-year Impact Evaluation Report at Li Hall of St
John's Cathedral on Dec. 4. Nearly all, or 97% of migrants who sought assistance said that they were
helped by the Mission, and more than half of them (57%) said they would recommend the NGO to others.
See this month's stories...
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March 2015
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Features Gallery
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Heavy transaction volumes rather than faulty systems
are what new welfare officer
Lorna Obedoza believes she and her team will have to deal
with at the Overseas Workers Welfare
Administration office in Hong Kong.
Obedoza made the assessment in an interview with
The SUN on Feb. 15, as she entered her third week of
service at her new post.
The OWWA welfare officer arrived on Jan. 26 and
started reporting the next day when
her predecessor, Daisy "Kris" Furaque, ended her three-year
tour of duty in Hong Kong and flew back
to Manila.
"Compared sa ibang post ay volume
lang talaga ang idi-deal namin dito, pero pagdating
sa sistema, we look forward to further improving the
system, kung meron pa ring ii-improve,
given yung support ng aming central office," Obedoza said.
Obedoza noted that it is only on Sundays when
there is a heavy demand for services
from OFWs "pero pag daily ay manageable
naman".
On any given Sunday, there are over 200 requests for
computation of claims and benefits
from those whose contracts have been cut, either by the
workers themselves or their employers, which
are the usual cases that they encounter at OWWA, she said.
"Sana madagdagan din kami ng staff dahil sa
ngayon umaasa ay lang kami sa tulong ng
mga volunteers. Malaki ang naitutulong nila, lalo na sa crowd
control, sa pag-awat sa mga
tao," Obedoza said.
Asked how she would deal with the varying moods
of her clients in Hong Kong, the
new welfare officer said: "Hindi natin
ma-please ang lahat ng tao. Kailangan ang malaking
pasensiya. Basta we will try out best na maibigay ang dapat
itulong at yung advice na dapat ibigay."
She said the usual problem of overcrowding at the
OWWA section of the Consulate should
be reduced when the office moves to its new address on the
11th and 16th floors of Admiralty
Centre Tower One.
Obedoza sounded positive about the improvements
that the move would bring.
"Siguro papunta na roon kasi ang nakikita namin
ay medyo masikip dito, kapag medyo
marami ay crowded na kami, masikip kasi," she said.
She said OWWA should have settled down in its
new offices by the last week of March,
with OFW transactions to be held on the
11th floor initially while work on the
16th floor was finished.
She said she had been used to dealing with people in
the Manila office because she was at
the frontline service.
"Kami kasi regional office po
kami, so mas varied ang nature
ng trabaho namin doon as compared dito na
magke-cater ka lang sa isang parang single file
na mga kliente. Doon ay iba-iba ang stakeholders,
medyo merong mga jobseekers, employers,
mga partners natin na iba, then we
also have to deal with other government agencies," Obedoza
said.
Obedoza was a welfare officer at the OWWA
National Capital Region office, where she got
to pore over reports coming from all OFW destinations.
She said that based on reports she had received from
OWWA posts in the Middle East,
she could see that it was more difficult to repatriate distressed
workers from that region than from
Hong Kong because of less-efficient systems and tougher labor
laws there.
"Nakita ko, kumpara sa Middle East ay mas
maganda ang batas nila rito pagdating
sa paggawa... batay sa reports na natatangap namin mula sa
kanila ay mas madalas ang
pagpapauwi ng mga kababayan dito kaysa doon sa
kanila," Obedoza said.
"At saka ang mga police yata medyo prompt ang
response dito at saka nagre-respond kahit
na sino ang mag-report, employer man o worker,"
she added.
Obedoza started her career with DOLE after
graduating from the Polytechnic University of
the Philippines 23 years ago with a degree in BS Office
Administration. She went on to get a
master's degree in business administration from the
Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila.
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