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For the past 20 years, The Filipino Express has provided the Filipino American community the best news, arts and entertainment coverage from around the United States and the Philippines.
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This website includes selected articles from this week's edition of the Filipino Express. Not all the stories published in the printed version appear on this site.
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YOUR favorite newspaper, The Filipino Express, is celebrating its 20th anniversary this week.
Every week for the past two decades, The Filipino Express has endeavored to provide news, analyses and commentaries relevant to the Filipino American community. It has also strived to connect our kababayans here to our home country, the Philippines, by keeping them up-to-date with news and issues affecting our motherland.
Through thick and thin, this newspaper has served the Filipino community to the best of its ability. From the downfall of Marcos that led to the dismantling of martial law rule in the Philippines in 1986 to the impending threat of the return of dictatorial regime, The Filipino Express has provided the community with the freshest and most accurate news.
It is noteworthy, too, to point out that the 20 years of this newspaper’s existence is bookended by the 1986 amnesty to undocumented immigrants during the Reagan years in 1986 and the possible dawn of a comprehensive immigration reform bill that could lead to a path to legalization for the more than 10 million illegal aliens.
The fact that this newspaper has reached this milestone is a testament not only to our resilience and commitment to serve. It is as much as a tribute to the loyalty and trust that the Filipino American community has invested in us. We survive because the community reads us. We thrive because the community places advertisements in our pages.
We are what we are today because readers trust that what they read in our issues are accurate and useful to them. Our advertisers are confident that their messages reach their intended audiences who never fail to read the pages of this newspaper.
In this newspaper business, it’s all about trust. Without the reading public and the advertisers trusting you, you have no business publishing a newspaper. Or to be blunt about it, you have no business, period.
For us here at The Filipino Express, we believe that by providing the Filipino American community with accurate and relevant information, we are helping each and every member of the community to come up with informed decisions, which in turn would make them more productive participants in nation-building both here and back home.
For us, the greatest reward on our 20th year is the assurance that we have gained and maintained the community’s trust. And for that, we thank you.
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Where money remittances should go
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CHICAGO, Illinois -- I thought my casual conversation with Dr. Rufino Crisostomo, the soft-spoken vice president of the Filipino American Center for Seniors, a non-profit organization, whose primary objective is to provide programs and services to senior citizens in the Chicagoland area, at the 22nd anniversary ball and induction dinner dance of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce of Greater Chicago last Nov. 4 at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare hotel, would be confined to FACS and PACCGC events.
It went overboard and spilled over to the impact or absence of it of the money being remitted by overseas Filipinos to their relatives in the Philippines. “Sayang, wala ka man lang makitang capital or fixed assets. Puro personal use property asset, (Too, bad. you don’t see any capital or fixed assets from remittance money recipients. You see mostly personal use property asset.)” Doctor Crisostomo observed.
How Remitted Money Are Spent
He is, of course, referring to the way Filipinos spend the billions of dollars remitted to them annually by their relatives abroad. Dr. Crisostomo promised to send me an item published early this November by The Wall Street Journal that featured how the remitted money are being spent by its recipients in various countries such as Mexico and El Salvador.
As I waded through the copy of the newsclip, my follow-up research brought me to the studies of World Bank, which noted that based on its 2003 figures, the Philippines ranked behind India and Mexico as the country receiving the most remittances at US$7.9 billion.
India got US$17.4-B, while Mexico, US$14.6-B. Last month, the Philippine Central Bank is projecting that for all of 2006, the total remittance will rise to 10 percent from last year to $11.8 billion.
These estimates of money remitted to the Philippines are aside from the US$218 million dollars traced by the Philippine Central bank for the same year to have been sent to individual and group recipients, including nongovernmental organizations and communities where the migrants come from. This so-called “Diaspora Philanthropy” that was taken up in one of the conferences of 7th National NaFFAA Empowerment Conference in Honolulu last month is another story.
Money from Global Filipinos
These two kinds of remittances to the Philippines come from the 7.6 million documented land- and sea-based migrant workers and immigrants in 193 countries by overseas Filipinos now also called “Global Filipinos.”
Although, the Philippine government has been promoting the idea that these remittance moneys could propel the country towards the “First World “ status, some studies are telling the “third world” countries receiving remittance money, “not so fast.”
“Remittances are a band-aid on fundamental development problems,” says Dean Yang, a public-policy professor at the University of Michigan. “Labor export and remittances won’t turn El Salvador, the Philippines and other poor countries into the next development tigers.” Even the World Bank, which has pushed the development potential of remittances, is having second thoughts. In a report on Latin America, the bank says that remittances are “’neither ‘manna from heaven,’ nor a substitute for sound development policies.”
Labor Intensive Investment
If at all, remittance money reduces poverty; leads to currency appreciations and adverse effects on exports; finance education and health expenditures; and eases credit constraints on small business.
The downside is it may create dependency and remittance channels may be used for money laundering and financing of terrorism or attracts gangs to rob or extort money from recipients.
If only these remittances are invested by the recipients on some industries that create jobs; the cost of remitting is reduced; and there are improvements in policies and relaxation of foreign controls, the remittance money will certainly stimulate domestic economy instead of propping up the import business when recipients mostly buy the personal use property assets such as vehicles, home furniture, a personal library, clothing, and so forth.
(lariosa_jos@sbcglobal.net)
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DAVAO CITY — Something that House Deputy Speaker Raul del Mar told editors earlier resonated when we swapped notes on Mindanao with former United Nation colleagues here.
“Millennium Development Goals are not an antiseptic set of statistical targets,” Del Mar observed. “If achieved, they’d ease the anguish of flesh-and-blood penury. They’d lay the foundation for a humane society, which is the only setting where democracy can take root. In a sea of sickly, ill-fed semi-literates, the vote can be meaningless.”
Indeed, “a child’s death is as tragic in China or Zimbabwe,” says the 2006 progress report on MDGs by Asian Development Bank and UN. “(That’s) irrespective of either country’s progress towards targets of child mortality.”
Or in Mindanao for that matter. MDG shortfalls are writ large in Muslim or lumad (indigenous people) areas here. Countries are to “halve the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water” by 2015 in an MDG target. But 66 out of every 100 in Basilan drink from unsafe wells. That’s on a par with Africa’s Chad. In Bataan, 98 have potable water, better than Malaysia’s 95.
“Gaps within countries can be as stark as the gaps between countries,” the study notes. “Gains of progress are not shared by all.”
But the poor will pay in spades, yet again, as the Philippines – and seven other countries – “fall further behind” in achieving MDG goals, the ADB notes. Today, “countries of greatest concern” are Bangladesh, Indonesia, Laos, Mongolia, Myanmar Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines.
Countries like Kazahkstan and Fiji were “losing momentum,” the report notes. In the “catching up” category were Nepal and India. “Moving ahead” were 12 countries. “No country scores as high as Vietnam,”
“Prevalence and death rates associated with TB have started to fall” in this region. There’s been progress to halve poverty and hunger. More are being enrolled in school. And “child mortality overall is falling fast enough, to expect a two third reduction from the 1990 level.”
But don’t loll on those laurels just yet. Whittling down infant mortality remains intractably slow. (Philippine infant deaths are 27 for every 1000 births, almost quadruple Malaysia’s 7.) HIV prevalence is rising. In urban areas, upgrading of basic sanitation lags. And the proportion of city residents with safe water is shrinking. Cebu is an example.
Children suffer more here. The prevalence of underweight children in the region is four times higher than in Latin America. Under-5 mortality rate here is more than double Caribbean rates. And poverty incidence is twice as high.
Similar fault lines slice through Mindanao, from life expectancy to health and education, says the latest Philippine Human Development Report.
“With the exception of Maguindanao, estimates of life expectancy went up in all provinces.... But at the bottom of the list are the five provinces of the Autonomous Provinces of Muslim Mindanao.” If stacked against other countries, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi and Maguindanao rank alongside Guinea and Haiti.
Education remains the escape hatch from grinding poverty. Sulu and Sarangani posted the largest gains in primary school enrollment since 2000. But their previous backlogs strap them, along with Basilan, Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur, to the bottom ten.
Yet, the vulnerable need not be perpetually locked into short lives and even shorter hopes. MDGs are government’s pledge to end this treadmill of misery. Now, chances of keeping that pledge to the wretched are wobbling.
Institutions are organizations and “rules of the game.” And it is urgent to “create conditions” for them so they can funnel social services massively and fairly. Resources matter. But “the role of government does not stop at money,” ADB points out. Equally vital is “the efficiency with which they are applied.”
Finance Secretary Margarito Teves, therefore, wisely lobbed a warning shot across the bow of an administration, titillated to dip into a treasury, padded by VAT cash, for the 2007 elections. The seduction quotient for poll spending has grown since the Supreme Court trounced people’s initiative as a means for clinging to power up to 2010 – and beyond. “There are terrible temptations that require strength and courage to yield to,” Oscar Wilde once said.
This country cannot stand further Joc-Joc Bolante-style raids on the treasury. That’d wipe out economic gains that President Gloria Macapagal loves to flaunt. They’d also flush MDG “antiseptic targets” further down the tube.
If that comes to pass, the “anguish of flesh-and-blood penury” would again betray the poor: Muslim, Christian or lumad. Nowhere would that impact more than in Mindanao, where peace talks between government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front are currently stalled. The remaining issues, notably on ancestral domain – concept, resources, governance and territory – are sticky.
Nobody here wants war again. The only exception are Abu Sayyaf bandits and hardcore terrorists fleeing from the crackdown in Indonesia and Malaysia. All parties engaged in the Mindanao peace talks grope for further areas of agreement to reduce conflict trigger points.
They’ll find that in the humane goals of MDGs. Improving the lot of the marginalized is a confidence-building measure. It is also an end befitting civilized communities. Reinvigorating our shaky drive for MDG goals is critical. Indeed, “the other name for peace is development,” Pope Paul VI said.
“Dialogue, however long and tedious, is the only human and humane way of resolving human issues and problems,” the respected Bishops-Ulama Conference says. About 80 percent of issues have been resolved in earlier meetings. The All Mindanao Leaders Peace Consultation has been called, hoping to jumpstart the process. And “he who would go a hundred miles should consider 99 as halfway,” a Japanese proverb says.
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Bright prospects for immigration reform
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By Reuben S. Seguritan, Esq.
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Editor’s Note: REUBEN S. SEGURITAN has been practicing law for over 30 years. For further information, you may call him at 212 695 5281 or log on to his website at “http://www.seguritan.com
WHILE we still hope that the lame duck session of the sitting members of Congress would take up the issue of H-1B and EB-3 visa relief, we are optimistic that things will look better for immigration reform by next year.
Last spring, a reasonable solution was put on the table but anti-immigrant forces in the House of Representatives railroaded the efforts to draw up comprehensive reform by holding unnecessary public hearings all over the country.
The conference committee did not get the chance to work out the differences between S. 2611 and H.R. 4437 in September because everyone’s attention was already focused on the mid-term election. Immigration reform was a major casualty in the political maneuverings that drove the 109th Congress. Our country’s immigration system falls short of our real needs.
US businesses, particularly the healthcare sector, are severely understaffed. H-1B visas for professional workers, for instance, are exhausted even before the fiscal year begins. The labor situation for technology-based industries has reached a critical point where no less than Microsoft chief, Bill Gates, went to Washington at the height of the immigration debate to vouch for reform.
The December 2006 Visa Bulletin reports that there are no more visa numbers available for Schedule A workers like registered nurses and physical therapists. The employment-based third preference (EB-3) is under retrogression. This means only visa applications with priority dates earlier than August 2002 will be processed.
In the meantime, the backlog especially in family immigration visa cases has kept families apart for decades. The family preferences for the Philippines actually suffer from the worst backlog with a wait time of four to 22 years. Fixing the severe backlog takes on a greater urgency for Filipino World War II veterans who wish to be reunited with the families soon considering they are in their twilight years.
More importantly, there is no going around the sensitive issue involving the 12 million undocumented immigrants who have become part of American society today. It must be noted that undocumented immigrants are a result of an immigration system that does not reflect reality—the economic reality that there are jobs in the US which Americans are not willing to fill, and people across the border who are more than willing to take these jobs, despite the risk of losing life or limb.
With a Democrat-led Congress and President Bush assuring the public that their future actions will be guided by bipartisanship, there is reason to be optimistic about immigration reform. President Bush himself said there is a “good chance” for immigration reform, describing it as “an issue where (he) believe(s) (we) can find common ground with the Democrats.”
Immigration reform is a domestic priority that needs the full undivided attention of Congress right away. The American public must remind Congress anew that what we need now is a comprehensive approach to changing our immigration policy.
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Avoiding problems with your case - Part 3
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IN previous articles, I discussed some items which could be viewed by the Embassy or USCIS as being suspicious, triggering delays, and possibly resulting in investigation, administrative review, or denials. Here are more items:
Midwife births
While some children in the Philippines are born at home with the assistance of a “hilot”, most children are born in hospitals. If a child’s birth certificate shows that he or she was delivered by a midwife, this could create suspicion by the Embassy or USCIS that the birth certificate was “manufactured” to conceal the real circumstances of the child’s birth, or the parents’ marital status, the child’s age, and/or who the real parents are.
Age of mother when she gave birth
If a mother gave birth at a very late age, this could create the suspicion that she is not the biological mother, but, instead, the grandmother, a childless relative trying to avoid adoption proceedings, etc. For example, if a birth certificate indicates that a mother was 55 years old at the time of delivery of the child, the Embassy or USCIS will undoubtedly question whether she truly is the mother, and may ask the mother and child to undergo DNA `blood tests to establish the parent-child relationship.
The Embassy or USCIS wants to make sure the child is not a grandchild or niece or nephew. Claiming a child that is not really yours could constitute alien smuggling, resulting in the entire family being banned for life.
Tremendous age difference among siblings
Sometimes, a couple will have several children and then wait for 15 to 20 years before they have another child. This tremendous gap in their children’s ages could create suspicions that the last child may not be their biological child (i.e. the child may be their grandchild or the child of another family member). In such a case, DNA blood tests may also be requested.
Conclusion
If you are not entitled to an immigration benefit and hope to “get away with it”, you should be aware that the Embassy and USCIS are very wise to the above circumstances, and many more. You would not be the first person to be involved in any of the above situations. These schemes have become so common in the Philippines, that they are now routinely investigated.
This is why, even if you are legitimately entitled to immigration benefits, but your case looks suspicious, you should consider the assistance of an attorney who can analyze your case, gather the necessary documents, and prove your visa eligibility to the Embassy or USCIS, satisfying any questions, concerns, or suspicions. This way, you may be able to avoid delays, investigations, or possible denials of your case.
Michael J. Gurfinkel has been an attorney for over 25 years, and is an active member of the State Bar of California and New York, as well as the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the Immigration Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association. He has always excelled in school:Valedictorian in High School; Cum Laude at UCLA; and Law Degree Honors and academic scholar at Loyola Law School, which is one of the top law schools in California.
WEBSITE: www.gurfinkel.com
Four offices to serve you:
LOS ANGELES:
219 North Brand Boulevard, Glendale, California, 91203 Telephone: (818) 543-5800
SAN FRANCISCO:
966 Mission Street, San Francisco, California, 94080 Telephone: (415) 538-7800
NEW YORK:
60 East 42nd Street, Suite 2101, New York, NY 10165 Telephone: (212) 808-0300
PHILIPPINES:
Heart Tower, Unit 701, 108 Valero Street, Salcedo Village, Makati, Philippines 1227 Telephone: 894-0258 or 894-0239
(This is for informational purposes only, and reflects the firm’s opinions and views on general issues. Each case is different and results may depend on the facts of a particular case. All immigration services are provided by an active member of the State Bar of California and/or by a person under the supervision of an active member of the State Bar. No prediction, warranty or guarantee can be made about the results of any case. Should you need or want legal advice, you should consult with and retain counsel of your own choice.)
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