Middle East – Page 2

Successful showdown of Kapuso stars in Dubai

Oct 182013

Marian Rivera at the Avenue Hotel After last year’s sold-out anniversary show in Los Angeles, GMA International recently flew to the Middle East to celebrate its 8th year by bringing four of its biggest stars to the blazing deserts of Dubai for the very first time. Held on September 27 at the Sheikh Rashid Auditorium, Indian High School, the Kapusong Pinoy Sa Dubai: A GMA Pinoy TV Concert featured no less than Asia’s romantic balladeer Christian Bautista, GMA’s fierce songstress Rachelle Ann Go, Asia’s pop sweetheart Julie Anne San Jose, and GMA’s primetime queen Marian in a two-part musical extravaganza. My-HD, GMA’s exclusive direct-to-home distribution partner of its international channels in the ME region, partnered with GMA International to make the event possible. The Kapuso stars certainly did not disappoint their fans, who came from different parts of the Middle East, just to see them perform live. Marian had everyone on their feet as she eagerly danced with members of the audience sending everyone immediately in high spirits. Marian happily shares that her excitement for the Dubai event was apparent even before she left the Philippines, “Masaya kaming lahat dahil during rehearsals pa lang sa Manila, excited na kami mag-perform sa ating mga Kapuso sa Dubai.” The Kapuso primetime queen went on to say that she was quite nervous to be performing alongside professional singers, “Sa araw ng show, kabado ako, kasi puro singers ang kasama ko. Because supportive sina Rachelle Ann, Christian and Julie Anne, kinaya ko pong Read More …

DOLE wrapping up investigation of ‘sex-for-flight’ scheme, says Palace

Entertainment

Jul 312013

MANILA, July 30 (Mabuhay) — Malacanang assured that justice will be served and reforms will be carried in handling distressed overseas Filipinos workers allegedly being victimized by Filipino personnel abroad particularly in the Middle East. Some groups have voiced their concerns on the ongoing investigation of the Department and Labor and Employment and the Department […]

Steady growth in remittances eyed this year

Economy

Jul 272013

Steady growth in remittances eyed this year

MANILA, Philippines – First Metro Investment Corp. (FMIC) has retained its growth forecast for full year cash remittances at four to five percent on the back of strong global demand for Filipino workers in other countries. According to the latest issue of The Market Call, a joint monthly publication of FMIC and the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P), the level of remittances continued to be buoyant with dollar and peso values posting above year-to-date level growth rates. The announcement by the US Federal Reserve late May of a possible fourth round of quantitative easing – the practice of buying $85 billion in US Treasury and mortgage bonds a month – later this year spooked portfolio investors and forced many to reduce exposure in emerging markets and risky assets. This translated into the highest trading volatility for the peso for the year as it ranged from 41.91 to 43.89 or a 3.9 percent depreciation of the peso-dollar exchange rate to an average of 42.91 in June. This was a reversal of a 0.4 percent rise of the peso in May that brought it to its highest level since January 2012. FMIC-UAP expressed confidence that remittances would remain robust due to sustained strong demand for skilled and professional Filipino workers. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Market Call cited data from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) that showed the number of Filipinos who got their overseas job orders approved from January to May this year remained Read More …

Global air traffic rises in May amid Asia Pacific slowdown

Economy

Jul 072013

Global air traffic rises in May amid Asia Pacific slowdown

MANILA, Philippines – Global passenger traffic grew at a faster rate of 5.6 percent in May amid the slowdown in the Asia Pacific region including the Philippines, data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) showed. IATA director general and chief executive officer Tony Tyler said air travel continued to expand at a healthy rate as overall demand rose 5.6 percent while capacity climbed 5.2 percent, pushing the load factor up to 78.1 percent. “Global economic performance remains a concern, however, demand for air travel continues to expand. The primary driver is growing demand for connectivity to emerging markets,” Tyler stressed. Data showed that May international traffic passenger demand rose 5.7 percent compared to the year-ago period amid a 5.6- percent rise in capacity resulting to a load factor of 77 percent. International traffic of Asia-Pacific airlines rose at a slower pace of 3.7 percent in May compared to the year-ago period but this was more than offset by a 5.5-percent rise in capacity resulting to a 1.3-percent decline in load factor to 74.1 percent. “The softness in demand is consistent with falls in business confidence in major Asian economies as well as a slowdown in trade growth momentum. In particular gross domestic product (GDP) growth in China did not meet expectations in the first quarter and business confidence has slipped to levels indicating contraction in manufacturing activity,” Tyler explained. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 He added that the strongest growth occurred in the emerging markets Read More …

Oil above $101 on US supply drop, Egypt

Economy

Jul 042013

Trader Peter Iocolano works in the oil options pit at the New York Mercantile Exchange. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) NEW YORK — The price of oil rose to its highest level in 14 months on concerns about possible disruptions to Middle East supplies and signs of an increase in U.S. demand for fuel. U.S. benchmark oil gained $1.64 to $101.24, its highest close since May 3, 2012. Brent crude, which is used to price oil used by many U.S. refineries to make gasoline, rose $1.76 to finish at $105.76. Two events propelled the price of oil above $100 a barrel for the first time since the middle of September: unrest in Egypt, and a big drop in U.S. oil supplies. Traders were worried that political upheaval in Egypt could slow the flow of oil from the Middle East to world markets. Embattled Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi vowed not to give in to protesters’ demands for his resignation. But the head of Egypt’s military announced late Wednesday night local time that Morsi will be replaced and new elections will be held. Egypt is not an oil producer but it control of one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes gives it a crucial role in maintaining global energy supplies. The Middle East accounts for about a quarter of the world’s crude oil output, or 23 million barrels per day. About 2 million barrels of that, or 2.2 percent of world demand, are transported daily through the Suez Canal, which links the Mediterranean with Read More …

DOLE expands probe of sex-for-flight scandal

News

Jun 272013

DOLE expands probe of sex-for-flight scandal

By Tarra Quismundo, Tina G. SantosPhilippine Daily Inquirer 5:17 am | Friday, June 28th, 2013 Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz: Probe beyond sex-for-repatriation allegations. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—The fact-finding team created by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to look into the alleged sex-for-flight scheme at several Philippine diplomatic outposts in the Middle East is expanding its investigation to cover other irregularities reported in Philippine Overseas Labor Offices (Polo) in the region. Lawyer Leah Fortuna, probe team leader, said they had a big job ahead of them after Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz instructed them not to limit their investigation to the sex-for-repatriation allegations. “We will look into several other issues reported to us, including irregularities in operational policy matters,” Fortuna told reporters. Bottom line: Reforms “The bottom line is, at the end of the process, whether somebody will be charged or not, whether the allegations are true or not, there should be reforms,” she said. Reports had surfaced that some distressed OFWs staying at the welfare centers or halfway houses awaiting repatriation were being made to do part-time jobs, like working as waiters in hotels, apparently by some labor officers. But other labor officials explained that OFWs at the centers were not allowed to take part-time jobs because this exposed them to risks and they were not covered by employment contracts. As of Thursday, the DOLE fact-finding team was preparing to depart for the Middle East on Saturday to gather more testimonial and documentary evidence. The three-member team would Read More …

3 OFWs confirm sex abuses

News

Jun 242013

By Tarra QuismundoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 3:16 am | Tuesday, June 25th, 2013 Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario: Institutionalized sexual exploitation. AP FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—The testimonies of three women who claimed they were abused by a Filipino labor officer in Saudi Arabia bolstered allegations of “institutionalized” sexual exploitation of distressed migrant workers in Philippine embassies in the Middle East, Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario said Monday. Speaking to reporters after two days of consultations with heads of Philippine diplomatic missions in the Middle East and North Africa, Del Rosario said he had widened the investigation of the allegations to include missions in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong that also have shelters for distressed migrant workers. Del Rosario said he had ordered home the Philippine ambassadors to Singapore and Malaysia and consul general in Hong Kong for consultations. The three women and a witness met with Del Rosario and other officials of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and officials of the Department of Labor and Employment last Friday and told them that they were sexually abused by a labor officer in the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, who handled their requests for repatriation. “Certain allegations were confirmed by the three alleged victims who spoke with me on June 21. For the most part, however, until other victims and witnesses come forward, all other allegations, including sex rings, remain as allegations requiring further investigation,” Del Rosario said. Help for victims Malacañang on Sunday promised a thorough investigation of the sex-for-repatriation Read More …

DFA creates body to probe sexual exploitation in PH foreign missions

News

Jun 202013

DFA creates body to probe sexual exploitation in PH foreign missions

By Tarra QuismundoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 7:07 pm | Thursday, June 20th, 2013 Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario. AP FILE PHOTO MANILA—The Department of Foreign Affairs set up Thursday a fact-finding body to investigate alleged sexual exploitation of distressed Filipino workers in at least three Philippine diplomatic posts in the Middle East as it asked eight more of the country’s ambassadors in the region to come home “for consultations.” Foreign Secretary Albert Del Rosario ordered the ambassadors home to discuss the alleged cases and draw up measures to prevent such offenses from occurring in Philippine foreign missions. The Philippine envoys to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Egypt, Libya and Lebanon were summoned a day after Del Rosario called on the ambassadors to Jordan, Syria and Kuwait and officials linked to the alleged prostitution rings to take the next flight home to give their side of the issue. “To be as thorough as possible in addressing the issue on the alleged sex-related offenses, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario has instructed the ambassadors of 11 of our embassies in the Middle East (including the three earlier called home) to come home immediately for consultations and to discuss related issues,” Hernandez said at a news briefing. “We need to have our ambassadors participate in the fact-finding initiatives that the DFA has started, We need to find ways to collectively encourage victims and witnesses to come forward and submit formal complaints and testimonies,” he added. Hernandez said the envoys in the Read More …

Legislator bares sexual exploitation of Filipinas by PH embassy personnel

News

Jun 182013

Legislator bares sexual exploitation of Filipinas by PH embassy personnel

By Leila B. SalaverriaPhilippine Daily Inquirer 1:32 pm | Tuesday, June 18th, 2013 Akbayan Rep. Walden Bello PHOTO TAKEN FROM FACEBOOK.COM MANILA, Philippines—Akbayan Rep. Walden Bello claimed Tuesday that three Philippine embassy officials have been sexually exploiting distressed Filipino female workers in the Middle East, a practice that higher-ups had allegedly ignored. Bello said at a news conference that two of the embassy personnel, whom he identified as officers of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office in the Jordanian capital Amman and in Kuwait, were involved in running sex rings in those two places that send Filipinas to service wealthy clients. The third official, he claimed, was a member of the augmentation team of the Department of Foreign Affairs at the embassy in Damascus, Syria, who allegedly engaged in sexual acts with OFWs staying at the embassy’s shelter for distressed workers. Bello said he was making a public disclosure of the information, which he claimed had come from “unimpeachable sources” within the DFA and the DOLE, after they asked him to expose the unsavory deeds perpetrated in their offices. “Indeed, our sources have asked us to expose the criminals in their ranks because their acts are giving the agencies a bad name, and they can no longer tolerate the inaction of their superiors,” he said. Follow Us Recent Stories: Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to step out? Get breaking alerts on your mobile.phone. Text ON INQ BREAKING to 4467, Read More …

Filipino Global Runner Cesar Guarin completes Middle East leg of his solo run around the world

Entertainment

Jun 162013

The first Filipino global runner and the “Father of Ultramarathon” in the Philippines Cesar Guarin is back from his successful Middle East run, which lasted 30 days from April 15 to May 17, and covered a total distance of 932 kilometers. After running in six countries in the Middle East, Guarin continues to bring pride to his […]

Older Entries Newer Entries