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PHL EMBASSY IN THE HAGUE HOLDS BRIEFING FOR TILBURG LAW STUDENTS

10 November 2015 - Philippine Ambassador to the Netherlands Jaime Victor B. Ledda conducted a briefing on October 29 for 15 law students from Tilburg University on Philippines-Netherlands Bilateral Relations, and the functions of the Philippine Embassy in The Hague.

Highlighted in the briefing were the enduring and robust economic, cultural, and political relations between the Philippines and the Netherlands, and the South China Sea/West Philippine Sea arbitration case at the Permanent Court of Arbitration.  Ambassador Ledda had an interactive session with the students as they fielded questions on the work of the Embassy and shared their perceptions about the Philippines.

The visit of the students to the Philippine Embassy is part of their trip, “A Day in The Hague.” The trip aims to expose Tilburg University students to diplomatic missions and to understand how they function and relate with the host country, the Netherlands, and international organizations based in The Hague.

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PHL CONSULATE GENERAL IN MILAN STRENGTHENS AND UPGRADES SKILLS OF PERSONNEL

05 November 2015 – The Philippine Consulate General in Milan, in cooperation with Philippine Overseas Labor Office and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (POLO-OWWA) Milan, conducted a workshop on Basic Counseling and Training Course in Handling Assistance-to-Nationals (ATN) Cases for its personnel, at Hotel Moderno in Pavia, Italy on October 31. This is part of the Consulate General’s Gender and Development project, mandated by Section 4.2 of the PCW-NEDA-DBM Joint Circular 2012-01 and Section 37 of MCW-Gender Focal Point Officer in Philippine Embassies and Consulates.

Philippine Consul General Marichu Mauro, in her opening remarks, underscored the importance of knowledge in handling clients in distress and emphasized the need to upgrade the skills of the personnel in order to provide a better service to the Filipino community.

The resource speaker, ATN Officer Gail Atangan, explained Basic Counseling and Handling ATN Cases, its concepts, terminologies and approaches to clients, with the primary aim to deepen the knowledge and upgrade the skills of the Consulate General personnel.

The workshop concluded with role playing, where attendees were divided into four groups and were given different cases to act out and apply the concepts of counseling that they have learned from the seminar.

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PHL AMBASSADOR MEETS WITH FILIPINO COMMUNITY LEADERS IN THESSALONIKI

10 September 2015 - Philippine Ambassador to Greece Nestor Z. Ochoa met with the leaders of the Filipino community in Thessaloniki on September 06 at the Porto Palace Hotel, Thessaloniki. Also present during the meeting were Consul Sheila Marie C. Tario, Philippine Honorary Consul Nikolaos Margaropoulos, Welfare Officer Rosalia Susana Bahia-Catapang and Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) Administrative Assistant Liwayway Ferrer.

In his opening remarks, Ambassador Ochoa mentioned the effects of the recent bank crisis and capital controls imposed by the Greek Government. He stated that he is glad that banks and remittance centers have now reopened. Although remittances are limited to 500 euros per month, Ambassador Ochoa said that this is still a positive sign. Ambassador Ochoa also stressed that the Filipinos living in Greece should observe the laws and regulations of the host country and to avoid engaging in illicit activities. The Ambassador also encouraged members of the community to register as overseas voters vote in order to vote in the National Elections next year.

Consul Tario then made several announcements relating to consular matters, overseas voting, and other concerns. Welfare Officer Catapang and Ms. Ferrer briefed the members of the Filipino community on the services provided by POLO and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration. The panel also entertained questions from the Filipino community leaders

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