Maguindanao massacre forum, 3 March 2010

On 3 March 2010 at 6:00 pm, four international and UK-based organisations will be holding a free event at the Human Rights Action Centre of Amnesty International UK, to commemorate the 100 days anniversary of the Philippines’ Maguindanao massacre.

The incident demonstrates the impunity with which government officials and their private armies commit human rights violations in the Philippines, particularly in the run-up to the election season. The 23 November 2009 massacre was also the world’s largest ever single attack on working journalists. It is not a Philippine issue alone, but something that resonates both with the Filipino diaspora worldwide and the international community.

Amnesty International, the International Federation of Journalists, the National Union of Journalists in the UK and the Campaign for Human Rights in the Philippines, will gather to collectively call on President Arroyo to disarm and disband private armies and revoke Executive Order 546. Speakers at the joint event will include Amnesty International’s Asia Pacific director Sam Zarifi, who visited Mindanao shortly after the Maguindanao massacre, and Jim Boumelha, president of the International Federation of Journalists, which has produced a report on the mass killing. A short video on a survivor’s personal account of the massacre will be premiered in the event, followed by a tribute to the journalists who have been killed.

Amensty Internation event poster

Billy Zane stars in a new film set in the Philippines: Surviving Evil

This message just reached my inbox and I thought I’d share it with you. The film looks like it’s worth watching. Trailer below…

Dear Phil-UK,

I’m a UK-based Filipina writer/journalist and just wanted to alert you to an exciting new movie which may be of interest to the Filipino community. It’s called Surviving Evil and was written & directed by my husband Terence Daw.

There are two lead Filipino characters among the cast and the story revolves around a TV crew who land a remote island in the Philippines to film a survival special, but are soon fighting for their lives against creatures from Philippine folklore – the Aswang! The film has a strong storyline with believable characters, and among the cast is Hollywood actor Billy Zane, plus our very own Joel Torre from the Philippines! The film also stars beautiful UK actress Natalie Mendoza, who is herself half-Filipina.

There is a facebook fan page with pics and information at:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Surviving-Evil-movie/45274215846 people can
sign uphere to be a Fan.

There is also a Youtube Trailer at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GFegPlFBso

It’s very unusual to have an international movie set in the Phils, with strong Filipino characters, so I hope you’ll tell your Pinoy readers to rush out and get their copy of the DVD – which is out now in stores across the UK (WHSmith, HMV, etc) and can be ordered online via Amazon, HMV or Play.com. The DVD also has a ‘making of’ documentary which tells you how the project came about!

Salamat!

Best regards,

Rowena

Charity Gig For Typhoon Victims in the Philipiines

Guanabana Restaurant Charity Gig For Typhoon Victims in the Philipiines
brought to you by Philippine Generations. Featuring Mark Villarosa, The Shaydz and other special guests including
Trucolorz.

Live Music! Buffet dinner!

Tickets from £15

6pm – 11pm Tuesday 10th November 2009

85 Kentist Town Road, Camden, London NW1

Contact:
[email protected]
Malcolm 07862006175
Guanabana 02074851166

Pianist wants help organising a concert in the UK

Tom Tañada, who says he’s the resident pianist at the Walt Disney World, would like help organising a fund-raising concert. Please see his message below and contact him directly if you’re interested.

My name is Tom Tañada, the resident pianist at the Walt Disney World
Dolphin Hotel, a Starwood Resorts and Hotel in Orlando, Florida for more
than 20 years. I do concerts around the USA and Canada and have performed
around the world. Last year, I did a concert in Vienna, Austria, before
that was at the Hilton Hotel on the Nile River in Cairo, Egypt.

I would like to do a fund-raising concert for the Filipino Community in
Uk. I play selections from the broadway musical, popular classic, movie
themes, old and new songs, hometown favorites in a pop-musical approach,
music for the people.

Please visit my website for further info. at : www.tominconcert.com

Regards to our kababayan,
Tom Tañada
[email protected]
Tel. 407-361-5573

Note: Phil-UK is in not associated with Tom Tañada in any way. I’m just re-posting his message by request.

Filipino-British Society Summer Festival

The Filipino-British Society wants to let you all know about their Summer Festival, 15th & 16th August 2009, 8am to 6pm. It will be held in Campbell Park, Milton Keynes.

[Filipino-British Society poster removed due to copyright claim]

Simple Little Pleasures – Finding ways to save money

Most people think that students spend huge amounts of money on going out. Honestly, partying is the furthest thing from my mind after a long day at university and part-time job. When I get home, all I want to do is wrap my hands around a calming mug of tea and read through my favourite websites.

In these difficult times people are starting to enjoy staying in rather than going out. And why not? It’s fun doing things in the comfort of home. I’ve invited friends over for movie nights with popcorn and games, or for quiet dinners with home-cooked food. The other night it was a pot-luck dinner party, so everyone bragged about each of the dishes they brought, whether it was a fudgy chocolate cake or creamy macaroni salad.

Another great thing about staying in is the online shopping, simply because it’s extremely convenient and oftentimes cheaper. No more braving crowds on grey drizzly streets. While looking for films on sale to add to my collection, I stumbled upon VoucherCodes.co.uk (http://www.vouchercodes.co.uk). It’s a website that features discounts from high street retailers, and provides extra benefits on top of the usual NUS student discount. Basically, they do tie-ups with online shops to give you discounts. When you have your discount code, all you need to do is use it at the checkout when buying books, clothes, CDs, and DVDs online.

It feels great when I can save a little on the things I really enjoy. Even with minor purchases, every little saving counts. Maybe I’ll have enough put away for that well-deserved holiday.

Katerina has a blog at http://the-raincloud-project.blogspot.com/

Advice needed for disabled Filipina moving to the UK

I recently received an email from a Filipina living in Madrid. She would like advice for her disabled sister who’s thinking about moving to London. Please read the message below, and if you have any helpful information, please post a comment.

Thanks!

Dear Filipino Comunity in UK,

I’m 32 years and I’ve been living in Madrid for almost 17 years now. I am a spanish citizens as I feel comfortable in Spain. However my sister have never had adjusted with the spanish way of living and am thinking of going to London for her as I believe it is a more cosmopolitan city and there were more filipinos there to get together. Well its what Ive heard around. When I saw your website today, I am delighted to hear how you guys manage to help people in a crucial situation. I admire your concern with the filipino comunity in UK. Frankly, I dont use of going to any filipino events in Madrid but Im sure there such no helpful organisation as yours.

I need your advices if how disabled person could live in the UK. Does anyone of you knows more about this. My sister have recently applied for a double cetizenship (Filipino-Spanish) but until to date we have no
resolutions.

My elder brother is planning to visit London on the first week of August with his family. If you could inform me where to seek advice so that I could tell him to stopped by, I would greatly appreciate it.

Maraming salamat and more power to you!

Eskrima Demo Team (London)

World Champion Ermar Alexander is looking to form a demo team to help him in the promotion of the Filipino martial arts.

If you’re interested, try-outs are on August 2, 10am in Stratford.
Please visit http://www.eadocepares.co.uk/sugbo for more info.

Doce Pares classes:
London: Leyton, Covent Garden, Shepherd’s Bush
Kent: Chatham (Medway)

Please visit http://www.eadocepares.co.uk for more details about the classes.

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