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| 06 SEPTEMBER 2007 | ||
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| 06 SEPTEMBER 2007 | ||
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PGMA's Departure
Statement on Her Visit to Australia to Attend the 15th APEC Leaders' Meeting 06 Sept 2007 |
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I leave today for Sydney, Australia to join other heads of economies in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders’ Meeting on September 8-9. Pero bago ako umalis, ibig nating ipanatag ang loob ng mga pamilyang naapektuhan ng pagka-antala ng ani ng palay dahil sa tagtuyot sa Luzon.
Kumikilos na ang pamahalaan upang pigilan ang pagtaas ng presyo ng bigas, at
ang kakulangan sa mga palengke ng bigas sa pangmasang halaga na
Sa pulong ng Gabinete noong Martes, inatasan na natin ang Kagawaran ng
Pagsasaka at ang National Food Authority na bilisan ang pagdadala ng bigas
sa mga pamilihan kung saan tumataas ang presyo at walang mabiling bigas ng
NFA sa halagang Inutusan natin si Secretary Arthur Yap na dagliang hakutin ang bigas na sagana sa Bisaya at Mindanao, at dalhin ito sa Metro Manila. Bukod dito, kukuha ang NFA sa kanilang mga bodega upang makapagbigay ng mahigit sa 30% ng bigas sa Kamaynilaan. Titiyakin nating sapat at abot-kaya ang bigas para sa taong-bayan, at tututukan natin ito kahit na nasa APEC meeting ako. At a time of uncertainty in the world, APEC remains a central pillar of global engagement and dialogue. We believe in strong global engagement for our country and our people to grow our economy, ensure peace and security and lift our nation out of poverty. APEC presents another opportunity to engage allies in economic, political and security issues at a time when the world needs closer cooperation. We hope to see greater regional economic integration made possible with all twenty-one APEC economies agreeing to pursue the path of trade liberalization and a discussion on how the APEC can work together to address the global challenges of climate change through a renewed framework for cooperation as a follow up to the Kyoto Protocol. Figuratively speaking, the more bridges we build, the more people can cross to new lands and new ideas. We must be open to the world and peoples and places other than our own. That is what the 21st century will be about. That is why APEC plays such a large role for the Philippines – it is one of the most important bridges we can build and cross together. We want the Philippines actively engaged in local, regional and global affairs because that is the future. We believe in the power of the global trading system to alleviate poverty and modernize nations through market forces. That does not mean we believe that countries like the Philippines are ready to compete head-to-head today in every sector, but it does mean we cannot afford to be afraid of globalization. Poverty alleviation is the number one most important part of our agenda and our vision to lift the Philippines into modernized country status in 20 years. And the APEC, along with the ASEAN and other trading agreements, provides the opportunity for nations to work together to lift up our poor, not just in the Philippines but all over the world. We will also be meeting with business leaders as well as our countrymen in Australia and we will bring to them the good news about our country. We have been focused like a laser beam on the economy. Our plan is bearing results: lower inflation, higher revenues, spectacular growth, robust stock market, fiscal discipline and so much more. Job creation is significant – six million jobs since I have been President. APEC is part of our economic vision and thus is central to our strategic plan for the nation. Sumusulong ang bayan, salamat sa ating sikap, reporma at pagkakaisa. Mabuhay ang Pilipinas! |
| PGMA to meet Bush, Badawi on the sidelines of APEC leaders' meeting in Sydney |
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SYDNEY -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is
scheduled to hold separate talks with United States President George W. Bush
and Malaysian Prime Minister Datu Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on the
sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Leaders’ Meeting (AELM) here on Sept.
8-9. President Arroyo, who left Manila for Sydney this morning, is scheduled to meet with Bush at Intercontinental Sydney Hotel on Friday immediately after a lunch hosted by Bush for the seven heads of state from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) attending the 15th APEC Leaders’s meeting. Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Edsel Custodio said on Wednesday he has no definite knowledge of the two leaders’ talking points. “Leaders when they meet, there is no agenda…you could probably guess …it’s an open thing,” he said. Last year, also at the APEC meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, Bush and President Arroyo also held one-on-one talks and discussed the global fight against terrorism and the peace process in Mindanao. Custodio said one could only surmise that these topics would also dominate the two leaders’ meeting on Friday. On the other hand, President Arroyo and Badawi are scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting on Saturday, probably to discuss the scheduled resumption of the postponed peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). Malaysia is brokering the peace negotiations. The President is also scheduled to meet on Friday with the delegates to the Global Filipino Network Conference; Dr. Stan Shih, Chairman Emeritus of the Acer Group; Chip Goodyear, Chief Executive Officer of BHP Biliton and the CEO of the US Chamber of Commerce and the US APEC Business Council. On Saturday, the President would join the 20 other APEC leaders for the 15th AELM where they would discuss common concerns that include the stalled World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations, energy sustainability, climate change, security and terrorism. The informal discussions among the 21 leaders of member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum would be a “retreat style” at the Sydney Opera House. At the culmination of the two-day leaders’ meeting, the 21 leaders are expected to issue an APEC 2007 Declaration at the Government House here. |
| PGMA, 20 other heads of state secured tightly at APEC Leaders' Meeting |
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SYDNEY -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and
the 20 other heads of state attending the 15th Asia-Pacific Economic
Leaders’ Meeting (AELM) here would be tightly secured as the Australian
government has put in place a comprehensive security plan for this week’s
gathering of Pacific rim leaders. “Security is tremendous,” Philippines Consul-General in Australia Ma. Theresa Lazaro said, adding that security tightens as the leaders start arriving in Sydney. United States President George Bush arrived here Tuesday while Chinese President Hu Jintao arrived Wednesday. President Arroyo is due to arrive Thursday night while the other APEC leaders are scheduled to arrive Friday. Security is being coordinated by the Protective Security Coordination Center. It involves the full range of the Australian government security agencies, working together with the relevant state and territory governments, police services and local governments. Concrete barriers have been set up in the periphery of the areas where the leaders would meet on Saturday and Sunday to discuss common concerns vital to achieving sustainable future for the region. Helicopters hover around the city. Australia has proven its expertise in maintaining security at major international events such as the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, the 2000 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, and the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games. |
| Filipino migrants enjoy growing, glowing reputation in Australia |
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SYDNEY – Unlike countries teeming with overseas
Filipino workers (OFWs), Australia is not a typical OFW country. Most of the
OFWs in Australia are white collar professionals who are highly respected in
their fields of endeavor. There have been none of the heart-tearing, tragic cases of abuse suffered by many Filipino migrant workers in the hands of their employers in other parts of the world. Not in Australia. The good news should gladden the heart of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo who will grace the Global Filipino Networking Conference here tomorrow (Friday) on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting being hosted by Australia. “Filipinos in Australia are gainfully employed. They have families and children raised with good education. Very satisfactory ang kanilang relations with their adopted country, mainly because of the passing of the dual citizenship law,” Philippine Consul General Ma. Theresa Lazaro said. Lazaro is now on the third year of her diplomatic posting here. She said that unlike in other countries, once Filipinos start working Down Under, they are already processed as immigrants. “You can always apply for permanent residency status and bring your family here. If you’re a university student, you can already work for your permanent status after two years,” she said. There are 165,000 Filipinos in Australia, 75,000 of whom are in New South Wales. Ninety percent of the Filipino migrants live in the Greater Sydney area. The delegates to the Global Filipino Networking Conference are coming from Blacktown in Western Australia which has the biggest concentration of Fil-Aussies. The Filipino community leaders in Australia who met with President Arroyo during her state visit here last May, decided to hold their convention to coincide with the APEC Conference, Lazaro said. This is the first time that the international conference of overseas Filipinos is being held outside of the US and the Philippines. Aside from Filipinos living in Australia, Filipino expatriates in other countries are also attending the convention. “It will have international participation,” beamed Lazaro. She said the President’s state visit last May led to a new focus on employment opportunities here for Filipinos, primarily in the agriculture and business sectors. “Australia needs 200,000 skilled workers until 2015. These include welders for mining companies, IT (information technology) people and many more ground-related jobs because of the mining industry,” she said. Her “visit created a lot of impact,” Lazaro added, referring to the President’s Australian trip last May. A testimony to the Filipino’s growing and glowing reputation in this part of the world is the fact that a Filipina, Irene Broad, has won a seat in Australia’s last federal elections. The election victory of Broad, who is married to an Australian, sets a precedent in this country’s electoral history. “Irene’s victory is big considering that she ran in a place where there is a Filipino population of only five. That’s unique. That’s mainstream victory. She broke the theory that you have to have a wide base of Pinoys in order to win” an election here, Lazaro said. |
| PGMA leaves for APEC Leader's Meeting in Australia |
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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo departed this
morning for Sydney, Australia where she will meet with the heads of state of
the 20 other members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) at the
two-day APEC Leaders’ Meeting on Sept. 8-9. In a departure statement, the President said she is joining the “other heads of economies” as “we believe in the power of the global trading system to alleviate poverty and modernize nations through market forces.” “That does not mean we believe that countries like the Philippines are ready to compete head-to-head today in every sector, but it does mean we cannot afford to be afraid of globalization.” The Chief Executive, who was about an hour early for her 10:50 a.m. flight to the Land Down Under, stressed that “poverty alleviation is the number one most important part of our agenda and our vision to lift the Philippines into modernized-country status in 20 years.” She was accompanied by her husband, First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo, who is joining her on a foreign trip for the first time since he underwent a delicate heart operation last summer. The President said the APEC “remains a central pillar of global engagement and dialogue,” and that the Sydney meeting of APEC leaders “presents another opportunity to engage allies in economic, political and security issues at a time when the world needs closer cooperation.” “The APEC, along with the ASEAN and other trading agreements, provides the opportunity for nations to work together to lift up our poor, not just in the Philippines but all over the world,” she said. The Chief Executive said she hoped to “see greater regional economic integration made possible with all 21 APEC economies agreeing to pursue the path of trade liberalization.” “We believe in strong global engagement for our country and our people to grow our economy, ensure peace and security and lift our nation out of poverty,” she said. “Figuratively speaking, the more bridges we build, the more people can cross to new lands and new ideas. We must be open to the world and peoples and places other than our own,” the President added. According to her, “that is what the 21st century will be about. That is why APEC plays such a large role for the Philippines – it is one of the most important bridges we can build and cross together.” Saying she wants the Philippines “engaged in local, regional and global affairs because that is the future,” the President added that she is also looking forward to a “discussion on how the APEC can work together to address the global challenges of climate change through a renewed framework for cooperation as a follow-up to the Kyoto Protocol.” While in Sydney, the President said that she will also be meeting with business leaders, “as well as our countrymen in Australia and we will bring to them the good news about our country.” The good news is that because “we have been focused like a laser beam on the economy, our plan is bearing results -- lower inflation, higher revenues, spectacular growth, robust stock market, fiscal discipline and so much more,” she said. Also among the good news is the six million jobs created since she assumed the presidency, she pointed out. An economist, the President stressed that “APEC is part of our economic vision and thus is central to our strategic plan for the nation. Sumusulong ang bayan, salamat sa ating sikap, reporma at pagkakaisa. Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!” She was seen off at the NAIA Centennial Terminal II by Vice President Noli de Castro, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Hermogenes Esperon, Police Director General Oscar Calderon, Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chair Bayani Fernando, and Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Tony Hely. |
| PGMA assures nation of sufficient rice supply despite Luzon dry spell |
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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo assured the
nation of a steady supply of rice as she flew to Sydney, Australia today to
meet with other “heads of economies” in this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC) Leaders’ Meeting on Sept. 8-9. In her departure statement, President Arroyo bid the nation farewell, “pero bago ako umalis, ibig nating ipanatag ang loob ng mga pamilyang naapektuhan ng pagka-antala ng ani ng palay dahil sa tagtuyot sa Luzon.” The President assured the affected population that her administration has acted to stem the increase in rice prices, and also to alleviate the shortage in the markets of the P18-per kilo rice variety distributed by the National Food Authority (NFA). “Kumikilos na ang pamahalaan upang pigilan ang pagtaas ng presyo ng bigas, at ang kakulangan sa mga palengke ng bigas sa pangmasang halaga na P18 kada kilo,” she said. The President revealed that in last Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting, she ordered the Department of Agriculture and the NFA to immediately source rice from the Visayas and Mindanao and bring these to Metro Manila, and to hasten the delivery of NFA rice to markets where rice prices have been reportedly increasing, and where the supply of NFA rice is dwindling. “Sa pulong ng Gabinete noong Martes, inatasan na natin ang Kagawaran ng Pagsasaka at ang National Food Authority na bilisan ang pagpapadala ng bigas sa mga pamilihan kung saan tumataas ang presyo at walang mabiling bigas ng NFA sa halagang P18 isang kilo. “Inutusan natin si Secretary Arthur Yap na dagliang hakutin ang bigas na sagana sa Bisaya at Mindanao, at dalhin ito sa Metro Manila. ”Bukod dito, kukuha ang NFA sa kanilang mga bodega upang makapagbigay ng mahigit sa 30 percent na bigas sa Kamaynilaan.” President Arroyo further assured, thus: ”Titiyakin nating sapat at abot-kaya ang bigas para sa taong-bayan, at tututukan natin ito kahit na nasa APEC meeting ako.” |
