Canadian Union of Labour Employees’ (CULE) Solidarity Campaign with the Philippines
A Year of Solidarity and a Commitment to Continue the Struggle! May 29th will mark the one year anniversary of the Canadian Union of Labour Employees’ (CULE) Solidarity Campaign with the Philippines. In partnership with the National Alliance of Philippine Women in Canada (NAPWC), CULE joined the Filipino community and its supporters across the country last May 2007 to demonstrate solidarity with women and workers in the Philippines. “We have learned that the Philippines is the second most dangerous country for trade unionists,” explains CULE President Lisa Garnier. “We needed to act on the situation in solidarity with the Filipino people, especially amongst some of its hardest hit – urban poor women,” Garnier added. Members of CULE and NAPWC have contributed to and sent ten balikbayan boxes to date filled with basic medical supplies and school supplies for children through SAMAKANA in the Philippines. SAMAKANA, (United Urban Poor Women), is a nationwide federation of women from urban poor communities struggling against the adverse consequences of national economic policies on women, focusing on poverty, inflation, homelessness, unemployment and the [...]
Fil-Canadian groups slam ‘racist’ treatment of stabbing victim’s kin
MANILA, Philippines - Filipino-Canadian groups condemned the unwarranted handcuffing of the family of a stabbing victim Charle Dalde by British Columbian police who inspected their apartment last week. On the night of April 14, the Richmond police ordered Dalde's parents and younger brother come out of their Lansdowne Road apartment, lie down on the ground, and put their arms behind their heads. The police allegedly did not present any search warrant. "The disgusting abuse of authority from the police and harassment of the Dalde family is just another example of the systemic racism faced by the Filipino community in Canada," said the umbrella-organization Kalayaan Centre in a statement. "Instead of being treated as victims, the Dalde family was treated like criminals by the police." Charle Dalde, 24, was on his way home from a date with his girlfriend on April 14 when a man stabbed him to death. At the time of the incident, Dalde's mother, Harlyn, heard a ruckus in the fire lane that divides several apartment buildings south of Lansdowne Road. Not long after, the victim's [...]
Overseas Filipinos and Member of Parliament hold press conference to oppose immigration changes from Bill C-50
Montreal, QC - On Wednesday, April 23rd at 10:00 AM, the Filipino community in Montreal and a representative from MP Thomas Mulcair's office will hold a press conference to speak against the passing of Bill C-50, a budget bill that proposes unprecedented and dangerous changes to the immigration system. Under Bill C-50, the Citizenship and Immigration Minister will be given the right to select applications and determine if applications should be fast-tracked, frozen, or even denied, despite already fulfilling the strict requirements. The Conservative government justifies these policy changes as an effort to reduce a backlog of 800,000 applications, and further reduce the small amount of funding allocated for immigrant application processing. The government funding set aside for immigration processing is currently 1% of the overall immigration budget. In reality, this is a move to increase the arbitrary power of the government to approve permanent residency applications. "Bill C-50 will certainly leave the Filipino community more vulnerable to human rights violations as temporary workers," states Roderick Carreon, National Chairperson of SIKLAB-Canada (Advance and Uphold the Rights and Welfare [...]
Overseas Filipinos in Canada join global call to oust
As progressive overseas Filipino migrant workers, youth and women we join our voices to the thousands of Filipinos in the Philippines and around the world who rallied today to mark the anniversary of EDSA 1 People Power uprising by calling for the ouster of the fake, corrupt and fascist Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. We congratulate the broad united front lead by Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) along with other patriotic and progressive groups who rallied throughout the nation today and in Manila for reaching Mendiola Bridge near Malacanang Palace for the first time in two years. As overseas Filipinos in Canada, we are also outraged by the latest revelations regarding the controversial billion dollar Zhong Xing Telecommunications Equipment Limited (ZTE) National Broadband Network (NBN) deal. The testimonies of Joey de Venecia III and Jun Lozada implicate top government officials in profiting from hundreds of millions of dollars in kickbacks and overpricing of the NBN deal. The government has tried desperately to cover-up this scandal and silence the whistleblowers and its opposition through coercion, kidnapping and intimidation tactics. First Gentleman [...]
Filipino Youth across Canada commemorate Deeward, call for scrapping the LCP
Filipino youth in three major cities across Canada will hold vigils, masses and marches over the next two days to commemorate the recent death of 15-year old Deeward Ponte and to call for the “scrapping of the Live-in Caregiver Program (LCP) and towards genuine social justice for Filipno youth and their families.” Local Filipino youth in Ugnayan ng Kabataang Pilipino sa Canada/ Filipino-Canadian Youth Alliance - Vancouver (UKPC/FCYA - BC) will lead a vigil and march tomorrow, Friday, February 8, 2008 in Vancouver. The vigil will start at 4 pm at Sir Charles Tupper (419 East 24th Ave.) to mark the site of the 2003 death of Mao Jomar Lanot and march to Gray’s Park (Fraser and 33rd Ave.) where Ponte was killed. The two Filipino teens were children of former live-in caregivers. In Montreal, Kabataang Montreal – Filipino-Canadian Youth Alliance will offer a mass at St. Kevin’s Parish, 5600 Chemin de la Cote-des-Neiges this evening on Thursday, February 7, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. In Toronto, UKPC/FCYA – Ontario will hold a vigil on Friday, February 8, 2008 [...]
Film Series and Discussion: “Filipina Transnational Domesticity and Feminist Activism”
Toronto, ON – The Philippine Women Centre of Ontario (PWC-ON) and the Women and Gender Studies Institute of the University of Toronto will launch a documentary film series on "Filipina Transnational Domesticity and Feminist Activism." The series will explore the experiences of Filipino women on the areas of migration and domestic work; U.S. militarization and sex trafficking in the Philippines; impacts of globalization on Filipino women; and Filipino women's organizing in Canada and the Philippines. Discussants from community organizations and the academia will follow to highlight the various organizing work and research being done on these topics. All events run from 7-9 pm, Wilson Hall Boardroom, Wilson Hall (40 Willcocks Street), New College, University of Toronto. This film series is also co-sponsored by: the Southeast Asia Studies Group at the Asia Institute, the Chu Community Network at the Asia Institute, The Department for Sociology and Equity Studies in Education at OISE, and the Centre for Diaspora and Transnational Studies. ------------------- Feb. 7. Domestic Work and the Filipino People's Experience Paper Dolls (Documentary film by Tomar Heymann). Israel, 2006. [...]
Province Wide Filipino Youth “PALAKASIN” Conference in Toronto: PALAKASIN! Ang Tunay na Ugnayan/Strengthen our Youth, Unite for Freedom
Ugnayan ng Kabataang Pilipino Sa Canada/Filipino Canadian Youth Alliance-Ontario in partnership with The Philippine Women Centre of Ontario (PWC-ON) and SIKLAB-Ontario is conducting a two-day province-wide consultation and conference entitled: "PALAKASIN! Ang Tunay na Ugnayan/Strengthen our Youth, Unite for Freedom" on November 30 - December 1, 2007 (Venue to be announced). Significantly, we have chosen to come together on November 30th to commemorate Filipino revolutionary, Andres Bonifacio, and to celebrate the Filipino peoples' rich history of youth activism and resistance. PALAKASIN! will allow us to come together and strengthen our links with other Filipino youth, the Filipino Canadian community, and our fellow sisters and brothers in the Philippines. By strengthening these links we strengthen our unity towards collectively fighting for our rights and welfare and our future. This province-wide youth conference and consultation is part of our ongoing project to establish full integration, settlement and participation of Filipinos in a multicultural, multi-ethnic Canada. Because we recognize that the issues of Filipino youth in Canada continue to be of major concern to the community, this project includes a component [...]