Filipinos urged to leave Sudan

 News
Dec 232013
 

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9:18 am | Tuesday, December 24th, 2013

In this handout image provided by the United Nations Mission South Sudan, taken on Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2013, civilians arrive at the UNMISS compound adjacent to Juba International Airport to take refuge.  AP

MANILA, Philippines—The Philippines on Monday initiated the voluntary evacuation of Filipinos in South Sudan and barred all travel and deployment of workers amid the worsening civil strife in the central African state.

This, after Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario raised Crisis Alert Level 3 for the 95 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) there and sent a Rapid Response Team to help in the repatriation process. The level is the third highest in the country’s four-tier emergency alert system for Filipinos abroad.

“Under Alert Level 3 (voluntary repatriation), Filipinos in South Sudan are enjoined to seek repatriation assistance from the personnel of our embassy in Kenya, or the Rapid Response Team which will depart tonight,” Assistant Secretary Raul Hernandez, spokesperson of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), said in a statement yesterday.

“Our citizens are also advised to defer travel to South Sudan regardless of purpose,” Hernandez said, adding that the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration will also initiate a total ban on OFW deployment under the alert level.

The DFA spokesperson said 23 of the 95 Filipinos in South Sudan have travelled to Kenya, while 15 have fled to Uganda as the South Sudanese government had lost control of its oil-producing capital of Bentiu to rebels intent on seizing control of the state.

“We have already requested the Ugandan government to allow our citizens to stay in its territory in the meantime. An embassy team and our honorary consul in Uganda are also on hand to assist them,” said Hernandez in a statement sent via text yesterday.

He said eight OFWs are set to fly home courtesy of their employers, while the government is “trying to book” a flight for five others who want to come home.

RELATED STORY:

Crisis alert level 3 up in South Sudan, OFWs told to leave

Hundreds killed as rival troops battle in South Sudan—UN

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Tags: Crisis Alert Level 3 , Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario , Overseas Filipino workers , South Sudan , sudan

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Snub by Chinese foreign minister no big deal–Del Rosario

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May 052013
 
Snub by Chinese foreign minister no big deal–Del Rosario

By TJ A. Burgonio Philippine Daily Inquirer 3:52 am | Monday, May 6th, 2013 Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, left, shakes hands with Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra at Government House in Bangkok, Thailand Wednesday, May 1, 2013. AP PHOTO/SAKCHAI LALIT MANILA, Philippines—Filipinos shouldn’t make a big deal over the failure of new Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to visit the country even as he called at four other Southeast Asian nations, Malacañang said on Sunday. “We have not given a second thought to the visits to four Southeast Asian countries by the new Chinese foreign minister. The visits are his prerogative,” said Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario in a statement released by the Palace. Undersecretary Abigail Valte, deputy presidential spokesperson, agreed. “We recognize perfectly the prerogative of the Chinese foreign minister to set his own agenda for his trips outside his country,” she said in a radio interview. Wang made his first official visits to Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore and Brunei between April 30 and May 5. Manila and Beijing are locked in a long-running dispute over islands in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). The Philippines has brought the matter to the United Nations. Portions of the South China Sea are being claimed in whole or in part by China, and the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan. Still, Del Rosario said, he looked forward to meeting Wang and working closely with him “at the appropriate time.” “We reiterate our congratulations and wish him great success,” he added.

Timor-Leste foreign minister arrives Thursday for official visit

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Feb 192013
 
Timor-Leste foreign minister arrives Thursday for official visit

By Tarra Quismundo Philippine Daily Inquirer 10:31 am | Wednesday, February 20th, 2013 Foreign Minister Jose Luis Guterres PHOTO FROM TIMOR-LESTE.GOV.TL MANILA, Philippines—Timor-Leste Foreign Minister Jose Luis Guterres will arrive Thursday for a two-day official visit in the Philippines, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday. Guterres will hold bilateral talks with Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario and meet with President Aquino during his stay in Manila, the DFA said. “Foreign Minister Guterres’ official visit is a strong indication of the interest of both the Philippines and Timor-Leste to expand and enhance bilateral relations specifically in the areas of technical cooperation, human resource development and education,” said the DFA in a statement. Guterres returns six years since last visiting the Philippines as the then deputy prime minister of Timor-Leste. The Philippines has maintained strong ties with the young sovereign state, sending peacekeepers to the country since 1999 amid its struggle for independence from Indonesia. As the East Timor transitions to self-governance, the Philippines is tapering off the presence of its peacekeepers there.