Unifil raises $27k, sets up more online accounts for PHL typhoon relief

By Daisy CL Mandap 

Unifil adds more ways to donate to their fund drive for the typhoon victims

United Filipinos – Migrante Hong Kong has added more online money transfer accounts for donors, as it continues its relief effort for the victims of two devastating typhoons that hit the Philippines within a week of each other.

So far, the group has raised $27,523 from two Sundays of solicitations. As in the past Sunday, the money was sent to Migrante International and Balsa Philippines, which are in charge of ascertaining the stricken places where the donations should go.

In addition, seven extra boxes of relief goods – 2 super jumbo, 4 jumbo and 1 midi box courtesy of AFreight and GenEx cargo companies – were sent to Migrante’s office in Quezon City for sorting and distribution. They sent one box of goods the previous Sunday.

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 According to Unifil chair Dolores Balladares, they decided to add accounts in AliPay, WeChat and TNG in their appeal for donations to allow easy cash transfer even of small amounts.

She said they were also setting up a crowd funding drive to make it easier for donors, especially during the time of the pandemic, to send in their money. 

The group’s earlier call for donations only listed the bank account of the Mission for Migrant Workers, which as a registered charity, could issue receipts for donations of $100 and above.

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Cheque donations were also welcomed, but should be sent by mail to the Mission’s office at St John’s Cathedral in Central.

Balladares said they realized that the traditional methods of taking in donations did not work as well during this time, when many people, especially migrant workers, are not allowed to go out, or are given only a few hours to stay outside for their day-off.

On Sunday, Nov 15, Unifil expanded its relief drive in Central to cover four collection points – one near the General Post Office, another outside City Hall, the third on Ice House Street, and lastly, their permanent space on Chater Road.

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All these places were swamped with goods donations, but also of cash, that by the end of the day, they were able to accumulate $13,000.

Unifil-Migrante's donation post on Chater Road

“Thank you very much to all the organizations and individuals who give their donations and help us pack and deliver some of the boxes,” said Balladares.

 Also busy raising donations for the typhoon victims in stricken areas of Cagayan, Isabela and Rizal provinces, was Social Justice for Migrant Workers.

But instead of packing boxes, the group appealed for cash donations, which they sent to contacts in the Philippines, who in turn bought basic food supplies for the victims.

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A report posted online by the group said they managed to raise a total of $8,086.87 last Sunday, part of which they sent to the Philippines to buy rice, food packs and grocery items for the victims.

The donated items were used to help 100 families in barangay San Antonio, Lau Lal-lo Cagayan; 25 families in Linao East, Tuguegarao City, 13 families in Sinsayon, Santiago City, Isabela; and 50 families in Sitio Laoag Bukid, Kasiglahan Village, San Jose, Rodriguez, Rizal.

The group still has about $2,000 left from the solicited funds, which they intend to use to help residents of other stricken places.

Palma's daughter Levi posts pictures of the water bottles they sent to stricken areas

Aside from these, Social Justice founder Marites Palma got her family in Isabela to use their water refilling business to help their stricken neighbors.

Photos on her Facebook account show thousands of water bottles being loaded onto vehicles to be dispatched to areas severely affected by floods from typhoon Ulysses.

Another group that solicited donations was Federation of Luzon Active Group or Flag, whose leader, Alann Cayosa Mas, hails from the hard-hit province of Cagayan.

Mas said that despite the short notice, his group managed to solicit enough goods donations that were packed into six boxes sent to Tuguegarao ang Buguey in Cagayan, and another to Baao, Camarines Sur.

The boxes came from AFreight and GenEx Cargo, while one was paid for by Kathy Travel.

Flag's collection station beside World-Wide House

He said his group will continue its relief effort this coming Sunday, Nov 22, and he’s hoping more donors will step forward to lend them a hand.

Also busy packing relief goods last Sunday in Central was Isabela Federation, which managed to send two jumbo boxes to their province, which along with Cagayan, was also badly hit by the typhoon.

In a Facebook post, the group said they have one more box to fill next Sunday.

They thanked AFreight’s managing director Rosabelle Woolf for donating the boxes and freight, as well as their donors who gave cash and goods.

 

IsaFed members show the contents of one of their boxes during their packing session 

Also busy packing a jumbo box in one corner of Connaught Road on Sunday were members of Mindanao Federation, who did their bit to help some of the victims.

They said there were sending their lone box to an inundated barangay in Makati City,  for which a member sent an appeal.

MinFed members make sure their AFreight box is packed

Overall, the Domestic Workers Corner, a Facebook group that has about 50,000 members, has raised the biggest amount in Hong Kong for the flood victims. In just four days of an online fund drive, the group managed to raise more than $57,000.

This is apart from the 27 boxes that they, along with the Bicol Migrants Association Hong Kong, had filled, and sent on to various recipients in the Philippines.

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Filipinas in another public brawl as police nowhere in sight

By Vir B. Lumicao 

The two women on the ground kept fighting even after security officers tried to intervene

Workers spending their day off at Tamar Park on Sunday were treated to a fierce fight between two Filipinas, the third such incident in more than a month that took pacifiers some time to break due to the absence of police.

A video of the latest fight went viral after the incident. It showed the two women in physical contact for some minutes with one of them not ready to stop despite several hands, including two park security staff, intervening.

The cause of the fight was not immediately known. The protagonists were Ilocanas, judging by the expletives the underdog was spewing after the two were separated.

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Police have yet to respond to an inquiry on whether the incident was reported to them by any of the parties involved or the park security. In two previous fights involving Filipinas that also went viral on social media, no reports had also been made.

 

The woman in black kept cursing the other in shorts even after they were pulled apart 

Fighting in public and common assault, assault causing injury and wounding, are all criminal offenses in Hong Kong, but in the recent street fights involving Filipina domestic helpers, strangely, no police were seen. 

Video footage of the Tamar tussle showed the long-haired taller fighter, wearing a pair of skimpy blue denim shorts and peach long-sleeved shirt, had the upperhand.

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She would not let go of the hair of her protagonist, a shorter, long-haired woman wearing a black and white striped long-sleeved shirt, who was awkwardly on her knees and her face on the ground. 

At one point, a male security officer shouted, “Stop! Stop! Call the police ah!” But the duel continued with the woman in shorts still not releasing her clutch of the other’s hair.

When the underdog’s wisp of hair finally gave, the taller fighter lost her grip, giving pacifiers the opportunity to pull her away from the vanquished.

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She wanted to resume the attack, but the male guard and other Filipinas blocked her while the female security and other women led the crying loser a few steps away.

The Admiralty skirmish was over squatting space on a bridge

An earlier brawl between two groups of Filipinas which was also caught on video had so alarmed Consul General Raly Tejada that he appealed for the footage to be taken down, saying such incidents tarnish the community's image.

The one he was commenting on happened on Aug 16, also a Sunday, when two groups of women migrant workers fought viciously over the right to squat on a bridge leading to United Centre, where the Consulate has its offices.

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What made the incident more embarrassing was a retired senior Hong Kong government official happened to pass by while the Filipinas were exchanging blows.

Congen asked the protagonists to see him in his office so they could settle their dispute amicably.

The Chater Road brawl which was witnessed by the big Sunday crowd 

In another incident on Oct 18, also a Sunday, a group of reportedly Filipino lesbians ganged up one of their kind on Chater Road, apparently over a relationship dispute.

In a video of the incident that has since been taken off the internet, six or more women wrestled their quarry to the ground as others tried to either break them up the fight or join in.

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One Filipina was shouting “Awatin nyo na kasi!” (Come on, stop them!) while another replied, “Hindi, hayaan nyo para matuto!” (Don’t, let them teach her a lesson).

A woman who was taking a video of the fight was heard being stopped by another who said, “Huwag na, huwag nang pag-picture-picture diyan! Filipino yan.” (Don’t take pictures! They’re Filipinos.)

When the attackers relented, the target of ire, a chubby lesbian in printed white shirt and peach knee-length shorts got up groggily, supported by other kibitzers.

A short video of the fighting continues to be shared on Facebook.

The second incident caused Congen Tejada to remark that Filipinos were becoming known in the community “for the wrong reason.”

The woman on the ground in this Wanchai brawl was left bloody, but no one called the police

Earlier in the same month, perhaps the most savage fight between two women, one of them apparently a Filipina, took place at daytime outside Amazonia Bar on Luard Road, Wanchai.

For several minutes, the Filipina was held to the ground by another woman who pulled her hair and would not let go even after about five burly men had tried to break them up. 

When the other woman eventually let go, the Filipina could be seen bleeding profusely from a wound on her head, apparently, a torn scalp.

Some watchers were shouting “tumawag kayo ng pulis, tumawag kayo ng pulis! (call the police, call the police!)” But no one did.

The police, whose headquarters on Arsenal were just three streets away, said they had not received a report on the tussle.

Some of the fights reportedly were due to rivalry over men.

Recently, another fierce fight between two Filipinas took place on a sidewalk in Central outside Armani Exchange. Nobody tried to break them up while South Asian men watched like referees.

On the Facebook page of an African group, a video of the fight was posted recently with the title, “Filipinas fight over African men in Hong Kong”. 

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Domestic Workers Corner raises $56k for Philippine flood victims

By Daisy CL Mandap 

DWC and BMA pack boxes for typhoon relief on Chater Road Sunday

It started with an appeal four days ago for just a $10 donation by each of their members for the victims of typhoons Rolly and Ulysses in the Philippines.

To their pleasant surprise, administrators of the online group, Domestic Workers Corner saw their call being taken up so quickly that as of last count, the total cash raised was already past  $56,000 mark.

This was apart from the many donations in kind that they received that allowed them to pack and send a total of 21 door-to-door boxes to various rcipients in the Philippines for the past two Sundays. 

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“Handa na ba kayo tumulong? Ten dollars tayo para sa mga nasalanta ng bagyong Rolly,” (Are you ready? Let’s give ten dollars for the victims of typhoon Rolly) said DWC administrator Rain Tuando in her Facebook post last Thursday.

To her amazement, the call became so popular that the donations kept flooding in, either in cash, or directly to the three accounts that they listed down under online money transfer portals alipay, WeChat and TNG.

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“Ten dollars lang ang hiningi namin umabot ng mahigit $50,000” (We just asked for ten dollars each, but we got more than $50,000) a surprised Tuando said.

That was because many people gave much more that was asked of them. Some gave $100, others, 200; with the highest single cash transfer amounting to $500.

Tuando's appeal for donations that started the ball rolling

DWC Hikers also pitched in, raising more than $3,000 from the charity walk they held recently.

A report posted by DWC founder Rodelia P Villar earlier today showed that a total of $56,039.63 had already been raised for the past four days.

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Of this amount, nearly $20,000 had already been sent to various flood-stricken areas in the Philippines, identified through direct appeals made to them by members. A further $3,000 was used to pay for sending boxes of relief goods to beneficiaries in the Philippines.

"To all DWC member, salamat sa lahat lahat na nagbigay ng donation. Di ko man maisa isa pero maraming salamat," said Villar.

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Most of the boxes went to recipients in the Bicol region, which was the worst hit by typhoon Rolly, and suffered a second blow with Ulysses’ passage.

De Leon and Leonardo took charge of the whole-day packing for DWC and BMA

But the latter batch, packed throughout the day on Chater Road last Sunday, Nov 15, included donations to Cagayan Valley and Isabela province, which bore the brunt of Ulysses’ wrath when it swept across northern Luzon.

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Two DWC administrators, Bebs Leonardo and Baby Jean de Leon, who are both Bicolanas and members of Bicol Migrant Alliance in HK, took care of monitoring the donations, and ensuring the boxes were properly packed and dispatched to their intended beneficiaries.

But their fund-raising continues, as donations continue to trickle in, along with requests for help from members who were hard-hit by the two strong typhoons that came within days of each other.

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Filipina DH admits stealing $20k, says it’s for husband’s cancer surgery

 By Vir B. Lumicao 

The magistrate postponed sentencing to check if defendant's husband really has cancer

A 43-year-old Filipina helper claiming she was driven by her husband’s brain cancer to steal $20,000 from her employer in Kowloon City pleaded guilty to the offense today, Nov 16.

D. Alejandro entered her plea when she appeared before Magistrate Ada Yim, who postponed her sentencing to Dec 28, so her husband’s medical certificate could be presented in court. Yim also asked for a background report.

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The prosecution report said the Filipina was arrested on Oct 25 after she was seen on CCTV taking the money from the denim pants of her female employer Wong Siu-ping.

Alejandro was hired by Wong as a helper in May 2019. Wong, her husband and their two grown-up daughters live in a flat at Lee’s Mansion on Boundary St., Kowloon City.

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She had instructions not to enter Wong’s bedroom without permission, the report said.

Early on, the family noticed cash had been disappearing from the flat starting September. As a result, Wong’s daughter installed a CCTV in the flat on Oct 11 and told the family about it. Since then, the family would take photos of money they brought home for record.

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 At 1:45pm on Oct 25, Wong put 40 pieces of $500 banknotes in the pockets of her denim pants as she would usually do, and left the garment in the bedroom unattended.

At 2:06pm on the same day, the elder daughter checked the CCTV with her mobile phone and saw the defendant taking the 40 pieces of $500 bills from the pockets of her mother’s denim pants.

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Alejandro folded the denim pants after taking the cash, which she put in the upper part of her t-shirt, then left the bedroom, the prosecution said.

The daughter informed Wong, who was in the flat, and called the police. The officers arrived at 2:20pm and searched the house. They found the money under the kitchen sink.

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They arrested Alejandro and charged her in Fanling Court on Oct 26.

In mitigation, the defense counsel said his client admitted the offense because on Sept 1, she got a call from her sister-in-law saying her husband, a farmer, was diagnosed with brain cancer and needed surgery urgently.

He asked for leniency, citing the maid’s guilty plea and clear record, so she could go home as early as possible.

Magistrate Yim told the defendant to present a medical certificate of her husband and asked the prosecution for a background report before the sentencing.

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Filipina DH, Nepali baby among 8 new Covid-19 cases

By The SUN 

Newly arrived passengers wait for the result of their Covid-19 test at the airport

A newly arrived Filipina domestic worker and a one-year-old boy who flew in from Nepal were among eight new Covid-19 cases reported today, Nov 16, all of them imported. They brought to 5,467 the total number of infections in Hong Kong since January.

According to an information officer from the Centre for Health Protection, the 27-year-old Filipina flew in from Manila via Cathay Pacific flight CX 906 on Nov 14, and tested positive yesterday.

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The other cases included a year-old infant who tested positive on his second test while under quarantine in a hotel in Jordan, a 75-year-old male returnee from India, a 34-year-old male from Bangladesh, a 52-year-old man from the United States, a 34-year-old female from Spain, and two returnees from Pakistan - one 60-year-old female and a 43-year-old male.

Meanwhile a total of 2,380 reportedly availed of the Covid-19 test provided at four government-run community testing centres in Kowloon and Hong Kong island which began operating yesterday.

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The tests can be availed of at any of the centres for the reduced price of $240.

The testing centres provide specimen collection (using combined nasal and throat swabs) and Covid-19 testing services for all asymptomatic individuals (excluding children under 6 years old and people not suitable for testing) holding valid Hong Kong identity cards, Hong Kong birth certificates or other valid identity documents (including Hong Kong residents and non-Hong Kong residents).

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The four community testing centres are located at Quarry Bay Community Hall in Eastern District, Henry G Leong Yaumatei Community Centre, Lek Yuen Community Hall in Sha Tin, and Yuen Long Town East Community Hall.

They open daily from 8am to 1:30pm, and from 2:30pm to 8pm. They are thoroughly cleaned and disinfected when they close in the afternoon and at night.

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Members of the public are encouraged to make use of the 24-hour booking system (www.communitytest.gov.hk).  All they need to provide are simple personal information like their name, HK ID card of HK birth certificate number, plus phone number.   

For enquiries, please call the following hotlines of the community testing centres:
 

Quarry Bay Community Hall, Eastern District (Prenetics)	3008 8325
Henry G Leong Yaumatei Community Centre (Kingmed Diagnostics (Hong Kong) Limited)	9869 3603
Lek Yuen Community Hall, Sha Tin (Hong Kong Molecular Pathology Diagnostic Centre Limited)	2986 1272 2986 1270
Yuen Long Town East Community Hall (BGI)	2818 9690

 
The government also issued a reminder that those who have undergone Covid-19 testing in Hong Kong with negative result would still be subject to the mandatory 14-day quarantine when they enter the Mainland or Guangdong Province, and Macau, unless they obtained an exemption beforehad.

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They are advised to check directly with their destinations for the latest quarantine arrangement that are in place for incoming travelers, and make necessary preparations.

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