PHILIPPINE CONSULATE GENERAL

Press Release EGC-012-202225 February 2022 PCG NEW YORK WELCOMES ADDED PROTECTION FOR DOMESTIC WORKERS NEW YORK - The Philippine Consulate General in New York has welcomed the expanded protection that Filipinos and other domestic workers who live or work in New York City will now enjoy as a result of recent initiatives by local and state authorities. “The Philippine Consulate General welcomes these positive developments that will improve employment security and enhance work benefits of kababayan employed in the household service industry,” Consul General Elmer G. Cato said in a statement. The Consul General was referring to two recent legislations signed into law by New York Governor Kathleen Hochul and then New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio last year. The landmark law signed by Governor Hochul on 31 December 2021 legally considers domestic workers as “employees” for all intents and purposes under the New York State Human Rights Law while Intro 39 signed by then Mayor Bill de Blasio on 25 August 2021, extends anti-discrimination protections to domestic workers of New York City. Domestic workers are individuals employed at a home or residence as housekeepers, nannies, home healthcare aides, or similar positions. A person does not need to live with their employer to…

Press Release EGC-011-202225 February 2022 NEW YORK CITY’S TRAILBLAZING DEPUTY MAYOR WANTS TO RECONNECT WITH HER FILIPINO ROOTS FIL-AM DEPUTY MAYOR TORRES-SPRINGER MEETS CONGEN CATO. New York City Deputy Mayor for Economic and Workforce Development, Maria Torres-Springer, listens to Consul General Elmer G. Cato speak about the Philippine Consulate’s initiatives towards strengthening Filipino community empowerment during the latter’s courtesy call on Monday, 07 February 2022 at the City Hall. (Photo by Beverly Pellosis) NEW YORK - Maria Torres-Springer, the Filipina-American deputy mayor of New York who was put in charge of ensuring the economic recovery of the city in the wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, is looking forward to reconnecting with her roots. As Deputy Mayor for Economic and Workforce Development, Torres-Springer is considered to be one of the most powerful Filipino-Americans in the United States Northeast. She was among the first officials to be appointed by New York City Mayor Eric Adams after he won his election bid in December. Saying she has been away for a long time, the 44-year-old daughter of Filipino immigrants expressed her desire to visit the Philippines again soon with her husband and their two daughters. Born in Los Angeles, Deputy Mayor Torres-Springer’s father was from…

Press Release EGC-010-2022 6 February 2022 FILIPINOS COUNTING ON NEW YORK CITY MAYOR IN MAKING STREETS SAFE AGAIN COURTESY CALL. New York City Commissioner for International Affairs, Edward A. Mermelstein pays a courtesy call on Consul General Elmer G. Cato at the Philippine Consulate General in New York on Thursday, 03 February 2022 to give assurance that addressing anti-Asian hate is a top priority of Mayor Eric Adams. (Photo by Marianne Olfindo) NEW YORK—Filipinos are counting on New York City Mayor Eric Adams in making the streets safe again by addressing homelessness and mental health issues that have contributed to the surge in anti-Asian hate violence against Filipinos and other members of the Asian-American Community in the past year.   This was personally conveyed to New York City Commissioner for International Affairs Edward A. Mermelstein during a courtesy call on Consul General Elmer G. Cato at the Philippine Consulate General on Thursday, 03 February 2022. “We welcome the plans of Mayor Adams to address homelessness and mental health as these concerns are inextricably linked to the rise in anti-Asian hate incidents in New York City,” Consul General Cato said. During the meeting, Consul General Cato said he is hoping to…

Press Release EGC-009-2022 3 February 2022 NEW YORK PCG CONSTITUTES OVERSEAS ELECTION TEAMS Consul General Elmer G. Cato (far left) swear in members of of the Special Ballot Reception and Custody Group (SBRCG) led by Consul Ricarte Abejuela III (2nd from left). New York, 3 February 2022 - The Philippine Consulate General in New York has constituted and sworn in the members of the various teams that will oversee the participation of kababayan in the United States northeast in the national elections in the Philippines scheduled on 9 May 2022.  Consul General Elmer G. Cato swore in the various members of the Special Board of Election Inspectors (SBEI) and the Special Ballot Reception and Custody Group (SBRCG) who will ensure the successful conduct of overseas voting that will begin on 9 April 2022.  Consul General Cato said approximately 39,000 registered overseas voters within the jurisdiction of the Philippine Consulate General in New York are expected to participate in this year’s elections. Registered overseas voters will select the President, Vice President, Senators, and Party-List Representatives for the next term via postal voting. Consul General Cato said ballots will be mailed to registered voters before 9 April 2022 and should be received…

Press Release EGC-008-2022 25 January 2022 PCG NEW YORK WELCOMES ESTABLISHMENT OF HIRAYA FOUNDATION Consul General Elmer G. Cato (far left) swears in the Hiraya Foundation's Board of Directors (L-R) Dr. Romulo Aromin, Jr., Dr. Dely Go, Atty. Lawrence Ira Safran, Ms. Nora Galleros, and Mr. Jovito Rabelas. (Photo by Marianne Olfindo) New York, 25 January 2022 - The Philippine Consulate General in New York has welcomed the establishment of the Hiraya Foundation for Filipino-American Heritage Preservation, a non-profit organization that aims to promote and preserve Filipino heritage in the United States and in the Philippines.  “We are truly heartened see kababayan mobilizing themselves in support of our call for more efforts to preserve our identity and culture in the United States,” Consul General Elmer G. Cato said after inducting the five pioneering board members of the Hiraya Foundation at the Philippine Center on Monday.  “We look forward to working with the Hiraya Foundation in promoting and preserving our heritage through the establishment of the first Filipino cultural center in our part of the United States,” Consul General Cato said.  Inducted were Dr. Romulo Alcalde Aromin, Jr., Chairman of the Board and President; Dr. Dely Po Go, President-Elect; Atty. Lawrence…

Press Release EGC-007-2022 12 January 2022 AMERICAN JEWISH COMMITTEE CITED FOR 'ODETTE' RELIEF AID The American Jewish Committee (AJC) supports relief mission in Philippines affected by Typhoon Odette. (Photo via www.ajc.org) New York, 12 January 2022 - The Philippine Consulate General in New York has expressed its appreciation to the American Jewish Committee (AJC) for the assistance extended to the victims of Typhoon Odette, which devastated parts of Central and Southern Philippines last month. Typhoon Odette, which is considered the third costliest typhoon in the Philippines, left more than 400 dead, displaced thousands and caused more than P39.3 billion in damage in various parts of the Visayas and Mindanao.   “On behalf of a grateful people, we thank the American Jewish Committee and IsraAID for again coming to the assistance of the Philippines,” Consul General Elmer G. Cato said in his letter to Director Shira Loewenberg of the AJC Asia Pacific Institute.  “Your continued assistance to the Filipino people during natural disasters is indeed a reflection of the Jewish value of tikkun olam – that whoever saves a life is considered by scripture to have saved the whole world,” Consul General Cato added. This was the fourth time in recent memory that…

Press Release EGC-006-202210 January 2022 PCG NEW YORK HOPES TO SEE DECLINE IN HATE INCIDENTS IN 2022 Consul General Elmer G. Cato joined Sen. Chuck Schumer and other officials in an emergency press conference organized by the Asian-American Federation on 19 August 2021 in response to the latest anti-Asian hate incidents involving two leaders of the Filipino Community in New York. (Photo by Beverly Pellosis) New York, 10 January 2022 - The Philippine Consulate General in New York is hoping to see a downtrend in hate crimes and other incidents that have targeted members of the Asian-American Community with the assumption of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a former police officer who promised to make the streets safe again.“We are one with the Asian-American Community in expressing hope that under the leadership of Mayor Adams, the streets of New York City will once again be safe for everyone,” Consul General Elmer G. Cato said.“We fully support the plans of Mayor Adams to not only ensure that every District Attorney’s Office would have a robust hate crime unit but to also increase the resources of the Asian Hate Crimes Task Force of the New York City Police Department (NYPD),” Consul…

Photo Release EGC-010-2022 7 January 2022 PCG NEW YORK AND KNIGHTS OF RIZAL COMMEMORATE RIZAL DAY Consul General Elmer G. Cato, and officers of the Knights of Rizal Eastern Region, led by Atty. Ferdinand Suba, take part in a rose ceremony to mark the 125th anniversary of the martyrdom of national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal at the Philippine Center on Thursday, 06 January 2022 (Photo by Margarita Ermita-Manubay) Photo Release EGC-011-20227 January 2022 Atty. Ferdinand Suba, Trustee of the Supreme Council of the Knights of Rizal, lead other members of the Knights of Rizal Eastern Region in offering long stem white roses at the bust of Dr. Jose P. Rizal at the Philippine Center on Thursday, 06 January 2022 to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the martyrdom of the national hero. (Photo by Margarita Ermita-Manubay) Photo Release EGC-012-20227 January 2022 Consul General Elmer G. Cato (6th from left), Atty. Ferdinand Suba, Trustee of the Supreme Council of the Knights of Rizal (4th from left), and Chairman Arsenio J. Lizaso of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (5th from left), and other members of the Knights of Rizal Eastern Region gather before the Sentro Rizal marker following the inauguration…

Press Release EGC-005-2022 6 January 2022  SENTRO RIZAL IN NEW YORK INAUGURATED Consul General Elmer G. Cato (second from right), and Chairperson Arsenio J. Lizaso of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (second from left) unveil the Sentro Rizal marker at the Philippine Center on Thursday, 06 January 2022. Witnessing the event are Ms. Maria Luisa Tinio Bayot, a descendant of Dr. Jose P. Rizal, and Deputy Consul General Arman R. Talbo. The Sentro Rizal New York is the 36th such center in the world, and the 7th in the United States. It will be at the forefront of cultural diplomacy efforts of the Consulate at the United States northeast. (Photo by Federico A. Silao, Jr.) New York, 06 January 2022 - The Philippine Consulate General in New York received a big boost in its cultural diplomacy efforts with the inauguration of the Sentro Rizal at the Philippine Center in Manhattan on Thursday, 6 January 2021.The Sentro Rizal New York was launched in simple ceremonies led by Consul General Elmer G. Cato and Chairperson Arsenio J. Lizaso of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and attended by members of the Filipino Community. “Sentro Rizal serves as a…

Press Release EGC-004-20225 January 2022 FILIPINA-AMERICAN NAMED DEPUTY MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY Filipino-American Maria Torres-Springer, third from right, was among five deputy mayors appointed by New York City Mayor Eric Adams to help him govern the largest city in the United States. New York, 05 January 2022 - A 44-year-old daughter of immigrants from the Philippines is one of two Asian-Americans who took their seats as deputy mayor of the largest city in the United States.  Maria Torres-Springer officially assumed her position as Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and Rebuilding of New York City on Monday. She is the first Filipino-American to occupy such an important position.Torres-Springer took office two weeks after she was appointed by Mayor Eric Adams who gave her the task of overseeing New York City’s recovery from the economic fallout brought about by the coranavirus pandemic. Torres-Springer was among five deputy mayors appointed by Adams following his election victory last month. Also appointed was  Meera Joshi, a civil servant of South Asian descent, who was named Deputy Mayor for Operations. “We join the Filipino Community in New York in congratulating one of our own on her assumption as deputy mayor of one of the more important cities…