Aquino leaves today for China visit 艾奎諾今日啟程前往中國訪問

PRESIDENT BENIGNO S. C. Aquino III leaves today for a five-day visit to China even as the Palace has yet to disclose the complete details of the trip a day before his departure.

Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail D. Valte yesterday only confirmed the time of the departure but left hanging other details such as the business delegation who will tag along, exact schedule and budget for the trip.

"The President is leaving at six in the evening [today]," Ms. Valte told reporters via phone, but admitted, "I’m still waiting for the documents from OES (Office of the Executive Secretary) on the China trip."

As advised earlier by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Aquino will stay for three nights and two days in Beijing, and spend one day each in Shanghai and Xiamen. He departs for Manila on Sept. 3.

Ms. Valte gave a partial list of the presidential entourage, including spokesperson Edwin Lacierda, Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Undersecretary Manuel L. Quezon III, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert F. del Rosario, Transportation and Communications Secretary Manuel "Mar" A. Roxas II, Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo, and Energy Secretary Rene D. Almendras.

The Palace aide, however, said she did not have "the final number" nor could she cite any names, of the accompanying business delegation.

The business delegation will be participating in three fora that the President will keynote: the Philippines-China Economic and Trade Forum in Beijing, a high-level forum in Shanghai to be attended by Yangtze River Delta government officials and business enterprises, and the Philippine-Fujian Business Conference in Xiamen, which will be attended by businessmen based in Fujian and Xiamen.

In an interview at the weekend, Mr. Lacierda described the business delegation to China as being the largest to date, about 250- to 300-strong to include prominent Filipino-Chinese individuals.

Meanwhile, the arrival of Mr. Aquino is expected to renew ties with the Chinese government, including issues on security, a Chinese official said.

The visit comes at a period of friction between Manila and Beijing over a dispute in the South China Sea, renamed by the Philippine government as West Philippine Sea.

Foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said in a statement China is ready to work with the Philippines to promote strategic cooperation.

"Facts proved that the sound and stable development of China-Philippines relations is in the long-term and fundamental interest of the two countries and peoples, and is conducive to regional peace, stability and prosperity," Mr. Ma said.

He said the two sides will sign several deals covering cooperation in trade, culture and media.

"The Chinese government always attaches importance to the good-neighborly relationship of cooperation with the Philippines, our neighbor and a member country of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)," Mr. Ma said.

Earlier, Philippine officials and their Chinese counterparts held a meeting in Beijing that discussed bilateral economic cooperation preparatory to Mr. Aquino’s visit.

Typhoon Nanmadol kills at least seven in the Philippines 南瑪都颱風襲菲 至少7人死亡

At least seven people were killed whenTyphoon Nanmadol struck the northern Philippines, before the storm moved on toward Taiwan.

Among those killed were two small children buried in a landslide in the northern mountain city of Baguio.

According to CNN, the Philippines' National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council released a statement saying that the children and five other people were killed in separate incidents,10 people were injured and six remain missing. More than 57,000 people were forced to leave their homes.

A civil defense official told the BBC that winds and rain had caused flooding and landslides, and that 20 major roads were blocked and several bridges were collapsing.

Another official, Emilia Tadeo, told AFP that Nanmadol was the strongest storm to hit the country this year. Tadeo predicted that the casualty numbers will rise.

"After the rains have subsided, that is only when we find the additional casualties and damages, when the local responders submit them to us," he said.

According to AFP, an average of 20 storms and typhoons hit the Philippines annually. This past July, storms left at least 70 people dead.

2011 TAIPEI CITY MODEL MIGRANT WORKERS AND EMPLOYERS REGISTER AND BE RECOGNIZED!!!

OBJECTIVE: To affirm the value and contribution of the migrant workers to the society and encourage employers in enhancing their relationship with the workers.  To select the model employees and employers to be a pattern for other employers.

THIS YEAR THE TAIPEI CITY GOVERNMENT WILL AWARD RECOGNITION FOR 5 MODEL MIGRANT WORKERS AND 5 EMPLOYERS IN THE FOLLOWING CATEGORIES:

QUALIFICATIONS:

(1)Migrant Workers and Employers working/residing in TAIPEI CITY

(2)Must have arrived and worked in Taipei City before October 1st, 2010

The Migrant workers and Employers good performance and relationship are well recognized by the workers themselves and the community.

Active content:

(1)To select 5 model worker: Performance of foreign workers(40%)、Active learning(20%)、Character integrity(20%)、Optimistic to help others(20%)

(2)To select 5 model employers: Kindly tolerance(40%)、Respect for human rights(20%)、Education instruction(20%)、Harmony between labor-capital relations (20%)

(3)The report of outstanding achievements of migrant workers and employers: Interview the awarded migrant workers, employers, agents and other related parties and present it as a story to the public with the cooperation of mass media.

WHO CAN NOMINATE:

1.)     The Company

2.)     The Employer And Employee

3.)     The Church

4.)     Friends

5.)     Community Group

6.)     Migrant Workers Organizations

7.)     Industrial Unions

8.)     Country Representative Offices

9.)     Recruitment Agencies

Their nomination must state clearly and briefly what made their candidates MODEL MIGRANT WORKERS and EMPLOYERS.（If possible please use mandarin.）

DEADLINE OF SUBMISSION FOR NOMINATION: 30 September, 2011

The award will be presented by: Taipei City government (18 December , 2011)

PRIZES: NT$3,500 Cash for each Model Migrant Worker Winner

NT$3,500 Cash for each Model Employer Winner.

YOU MAY SEND YOUR NOMINATION TO:

Taipei City Foreign Laborers’ Cultural Center

5F, NO 21, SECTION 1, DI-HUA STREET, TAIPEI CITY 10343

FOR MORE DETAILS AND APPLICATION FORMS, PLEASE CONTACT :

PHONE:02-25551271  FAX:02-25551342       http://www.bola.taipei.gov.tw  、  http://www.mwcc.org.tw

報名表：報名表可來電索取或由臺北市政府勞工局網站下載。信封請註明參加「優秀外勞暨優秀雇主選拔活動」)。收件地址：103    臺北市大同區迪化街1段21號5樓       臺北市政府外籍勞工文化中心 收

Philippine Airlines lays off ground staff 不堪虧損 菲航大裁員

MANILA - Loss making national carrier Philippine Airlines said on Thursday it had sent termination notices to about 2,600 ground staff whose jobs will be outsourced.

Airline president Jaime Bautista said the workers were told their jobs would officially cease on September 30, but promised severance pay.

"The spinoff/outsourcing is a painful but necessary decision to ensure PAL's viability and long-term survival," Bautista said in a statement.

"We assure affected workers that they will all receive their separation pay and other benefits that are at par, if not better, than industry standards." The outsourcing plan, which is being contested in court by the workers' union, was backed by President Benigno Aquino in March.

It gave PAL a free hand to contract out its in-flight catering, airport services and call centre reservations to other companies, to cut its long-terms costs.

The flag carrier said early this month it suffered a net loss of $10.6 million (S$12.8) for the three months to June.

The airline had posted a $31.6 million profit in the same period last year, on the way to $72.5 million profit in the 12 months to March, which was a turnaround from a $14.4 million loss in its previous fiscal year.

Police now better equipped vs hostage situations — Palace 對抗綁架事件 菲警方添購裝備

Three days before the first anniversary of the Manila hostage tragedy that left eight foreign tourists dead and put to question the Philippine police’s capability to handle hostage situations, Malacañang ensured that something like that will never happen again.

On Sunday, deputy presidential spokeswoman Abigail Valte said the police, especially the Special Action Force (SAF), are now better prepared and equipped to handle crisis situations.

“Last week, we saw the training and simulation of the SAF. It would be hard for that (Aug. 23 hostage crisis) to happen again. We have taken steps to ensure that their capability and equipment are enough to avoid such things happening again," she said.

She added that additional policemen have been fielded in special areas to handle the security and complaints of tourists.

Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr., for his part, said government has formed the Crisis Action Force (CAF) in the aftermath of the hostage incident and has invested P169.9 million to provide the special police unit with new weapons, equipment and vehicles to help it deal with similar situations in the future.

Ochoa said the CAF personnel are graduates of specialized training courses. He said SWAT personnel have received additional training courses, while a pool of negotiators that have undergone training here and overseas on hostage and crisis management has been formed.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) has also produced three handbooks on hostage crisis management – the Hostage Negotiation Handbook, PNP Critical Incident Management Action Flow Chart and Checklist Handbook, and PNP-National Operations Center Incident Management and Monitoring Handbook – to guide all members of the police force.

On Aug. 23 last year, a dismissed policeman, Rolando Mendoza, took a busload of Hong Kong tourists hostage near the historic Quirino Grandstand in Manila. Failed negotiations between Mendoza and the police resulted in the deaths of eight hostages, all at the hands of Mendoza, who was killed by responding policemen. The standoff lasted for 11 hours.

The Manila hostage tragedy was considered as the first major crisis that rocked the then barely two-month-old administration of President Benigno Aquino III.

On Sunday, Valte said it is not known if President Aquino will have any schedule related to the first anniversary of the tragedy, although Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, who headed the fact-finding committee that investigated the incident, is supposed to meet the families of the victims to update them on what the Philippine government has done following the tragedy. This include filing administrative charges against personalities involved in the negotiations. - KBK, GMA News

Pinoy Binugbog, Ninakawan Sa Riot Sa London 倫敦暴動 1菲律賓人受傷

Nasugatan ang isang Pinoy na pinagnakawan din ng mga rioters sa Birmingham, United Kingdom, ayon sa Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) kahapon.

  Ayon kay DFA Spokesman Raul Hernandez, nagtamo ng sugat sa mukha ang hindi na pinangalanang Pinoy.

“Nabugbog siya ng grupo ng rioters...ito naman ay ok na siya, he is recovering, he is an outpatient case. Hindi naman malala. Ang nangyari ay ninakawan siya ng kanyang cellphone at relo at dinala rin sa ospital para sa check-up. He was able to come out after some treatment,” pahayag pa ng tagapagsalita ng DFA.

Naipagbigay-alam na rin sa mga kamag-anak sa Pilipinas ng nasaktang Pinoy ang insidente.

  “Ang abiso natin para sa ating mga mamamayan sa Filipino community sa London ay dapat na ma­ging maingat sila at iwasang magpunta sa mga lugar na nangyayari ang riot at umiwas din sa mga business at shopping center, ‘yung tinatawag na high streets, kasi doon nangyayari ang mga looting at nakawan. Ang ating embahada ay mayroon na ring contingency plan at nakahanda ang ating embassy na tumulong sa mga pangangailangan ng ating mga kababayan,” giit pa ng DFA official.

Sa mga kamag-anakan naman sa Pilipinas na nais mabatid ang kondisyon ng kanilang mga mahal sa buhay na nasa London ay maaaring tumawag sa PHL embassy hotline sa 00447802790695.

Japanese-Filipino woman to meet Japanese father after 66 years 日裔菲女尋父66年終團聚

MANILA (Kyodo) -- A Japanese-Filipino woman said Wednesday she will meet her Japanese father in Okinawa on Friday for the first time in 66 years.

"I am immensely happy that I will see my father again," Pacita Okuma, 69, told reporters at a news conference one day before flying to Japan.

Okuma will be reunited with her 95-year-old father, Manzo Okuma, at Izena Island near Okinawa, according to the Philippine Nikkei-Jin Legal Support Center, a nonprofit group that is organizing the reunion.

Okuma, who lives in Negros Occidental province in the central Philippines, was separated from her father when she was almost 3 years old because he was repatriated to Japan at the end of World War II along with other members of the Imperial Japanese Army, said Norihiro Inomata of the center.

The older Okuma was among many Japanese immigrants in the Philippines before the war. He was engaged in the fisheries sector in Negros Occidental until he married Pacita's mother. The couple had two children. During the war, he joined the Japanese Army.

"I really want to see my father because I miss him so much. It has been many years already. I could not even recall his face any more," an emotional, teary-eyed Okuma told Kyodo News in an interview.

Okuma will be flying to Japan along with six other Filipinos of Japanese descent who will be meeting their Japanese relatives.

While in Japan, all seven will make personal appearances at the Tokyo Family Court as part of their petition to acquire Japanese citizenship.

The center, together with the Nippon Foundation, has been supporting second-generation Japanese left in the Philippines whose Japanese fathers are not identified.

It has successfully helped 63 individuals gain Japanese citizenship.

"Even if they wanted to live with their fathers, they had no choice because it was wartime, the circumstances did not permit it. And, aside from being stateless, they grew up being discriminated against, they have to hide their identities," Inomata said.

Economically, getting recognized as Japanese citizens will also benefit them because it will allow their children to work in Japan, said Inomata.