The Wutz Up in the Philippines!

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is sending Vice President Noli De Castro to Kuwait to appeal for the life of a Filipina domestic worker whose death sentence was recently affirmed by the country’s highest court, the Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement Sunday.

De Castro will carry a letter from the President addressed to the Emir of Kuwait interceding for the life of Jakatia Pawa, who was convicted for stabbing to death Dala Al-Naqi, the 22-year old daughter of her Kuwaiti employer, on May 14, 2007.

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MANILA, Philippines—The remains of a Filipino United Nations staff member have been recovered, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday.

The DFA identified the fatality as Jerome Yap, who was from Pampanga, served as executive Assistant to Luis Carlos da Costa, the deputy special representative of the UN Secretary General, who was also killed in the collapsed building. They both served with the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (Minustah).

The department expressed “regrets to inform the public that the Philippines lost one of its own in last week’s earthquake that struck Haiti with the recovery of the remains of Mr. Jerome Yap at 5:15 a.m. (Haiti time).”

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MANILA, Nov. 12 (Xinhua) — Visiting U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday suggested that Washington is not in favor of terminating the Philippines-U.S. Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), stressing that the accord is an “important expression of partnership” between the two countries.

Clinton, who is on a two-day visit to Manila, maintained that the 10-year-old treaty is beneficial to both countries, particularly to the Philippines, by providing disaster relief assistance in times of calamities and helping its cash-strapped military eradicate terrorism.

“Let me say that the U.S. is committed to strong partnership and alliance with the Philippines and I’m here today to reaffirm that commitment. The Visiting Forces Agreement is an important expression of that partnership based on mutual respect and mutual interest,” Clinton told a press conference.

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Unidentified armed men abducted a 78-year-old Irish Catholic missionary in Pagadian City Sunday night, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and the Philippine military said Monday.

Armed Forces Western Mindanao Command Maj. David Hontiveros identified the latest kidnap victim in southern Philippines as Michael Sinnott, 78, of the Columban Missionaries.

About 7:20 p.m. Sunday, six armed men barged into the Columban House in Gates District in Pagadian City and took the foreign missionary with them, Hontiveros said.

“The suspects forced the priest onto a mini-van and headed towards Sta. Lucia (district), where they burned the mini-van and transferred to a boat then fled,” Hontiveros said, adding that “intelligence operatives are hot on the heels of the six kidnappers.”

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SACRAMENTO – The California State Senate has unanimously approved legislation to officially recognize the accomplishments of Filipino Americans. Senate Concurrent Resolution 48, authored by Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco/San Mateo), will declare October as Filipino American History Month.

“It is imperative that we continue efforts to promote the accomplishments of Filipino Americans,” said Yee, whose district includes one of the largest Filipino communities outside of the Philippines. “For far too long the role of Filipinos in our national history has been ignored. Through SCR 48, we help ensure that our children learn about this important history.”

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MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines will be sending 133 policemen to serve as peacekeepers in East Timor.

East Timor, officially known as the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a Southeast Asian country that torn by internal conflict since it gained full independence from Indonesia in 2002.

The United Nations has asked the Philippine National Police (PNP) to send additional personnel to help keep order in the fledgling state.

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MANILA, Philippines - Fifty more Filipino workers who were laid off in Taiwan due to the global financial crisis are set to return to the Philippines.

In an e-mail to media, Migrante International on Thursday said that the workers were formerly employed by Sintek Corporation, a semi-conductor company in Taiwan.

It added that the 31 will arrive late Thursday while the other 19 are set to return on Friday.

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MANILA, Philippines, April 2 (UPI) — The International Committee of the Red Cross confirmed Thursday the release of one hostage by the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group in the Philippines.

ICRC officials said Filipino Mary Jean Lacaba, who along with two other Red Cross workers had been held by Abu Sayyaf since January 15, was released Thursday. Abu Sayyaf, an al-Qaida-linked extremist group, is still holding Swiss citizen Andreas Notter and Italian Eugenio Vagni on Jolo, an island in the southwest of the country, the ICRC reported.

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MANILA, Philippines—The Bureau of Immigration banned Chip Tsao from entering the country after the Hong Kong journalist called the Philippines a “nation of servants.”

“This is our manifestation of disgust against the racial slur and insult committed by Mr. Chip against us as a people,” Immigration Commissioner Marcelino Libanan said Tuesday.

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MANILA, MARCH 27, 2009 (STAR) By Mayen Jaymalin - Nearly 90 million jobs are needed to absorb the new entrants in the labor market and cut short the ongoing global financial and job crisis, the International Labor Organization (ILO) reported yesterday.

In a report titled the “Financial and Economic Crisis: A Decent Work Response,” the ILO said close to 90 million new jobs are needed up to 2010 to avoid a prolonged jobs gap.

ILO Director-General Juan Somavia said governments also need to implement a “global jobs pact” to prevent the severe job crisis that could lead to a massive increase in unemployment and poverty.

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