The Filipinos who boarded the ill-fated Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 were apparently ''chance passengers'', one of their relatives said, reports ABS-CBN News. MH17 fatality Irene Pabellon-Gunawan and family were chance passengers of the Malaysian plane, which was shot down over the Ukraine July 17, according to Gunawan's sister-in-law.
A Filipino construction worker in Libya was beheaded by militants in Benghazi, the Department of Foreign Affairs said.. He is the first Filipino casualty in Libya since first civil war that toppled the regime of Libyan strongman Moammar Ghadafi in 2011, reports Inquirer.net.
The Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur warned Filipinos against unscrupulous individuals or groups who are asking for money on the pretext of love, reports GMA News. The embassy received reports of Filipinas who were scammed by supposed lovers they met through chatrooms and Facebook. One Filipina based in Hong Kong reportedly lost “huge sums of money” to her fiancé, a Malaysia-based Briton she met on social media.
Three Filipino singers made it to the audition phase of Australia's “X-Factor,” earning standing ovations not only from the audience but also from the four judges as well, reports GMA News.
The three were self-described shy girl Marlisa Punzalan; Tiny Justin Vasquez, who has won a singing competition in Manila; and pop-rock fan Mary Ann Van Der Horst.
Singapore has warned maid employment agencies in the city-state against “undignified” advertising following complaints by rights groups that domestic workers are being marketed as commodities, reports Inquirer.net/AFP.
Two Filipinos—social worker Alberto Rodil of Toronto, Ontario, and doctor Anna Wolak of Vancouver, British Columbia—were named among the Top 25 Canadian Immigrants for 2014, a prestigious contest organized by Canadian Immigrant magazine and sponsored by the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), reports Inquirer.net.
A Filipino student, Dr. Nassef Manabilang Adiong, was named one of 10 outstanding PhD students this year in Turkey, reports Journal.com.ph. The award was conferred by Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Emrullah Iþler during the recent International Students Graduation Ceremony in Ankara.
President Aquino received profuse praise from visiting World Bank president Jim Yong Kim, who declared that the Philippines would be the next Asian “miracle,” reports Inquirer.net. Kim, who was in Manila for a two-day visit, also announced that the World Bank was providing $119 million for the construction of new roads, bridges and irrigation systems in Muslim Mindanao.
POSITIVELY FILIPINO is the premier digital native magazine celebrating the story of Filipinos in the diaspora. POSITIVELY FILIPINO online magazine chronicles the experiences of the global Filipino in all its complexity, covering the arts, culture, politics, media, sports, economics, history and social justice. Based in San Francisco, California, POSITIVELY FILIPINO magazine is your window on the Filipino diaspora.
©2014 All rights reserved. Positively Filipino LLC • 5226 Diamond Heights Blvd • San Francisco, CA 94131 • awesomeness@positivelyfilipino.com • (415) 894-5350
