Atty. Sajor (standing in front of the audience) giving a short overview of Philippine property and inheritance laws at the Parish Hall of the Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Bayernallee in Berlin.
The Filipino communities in Cologne and Berlin received free legal advice from lawyers from the International Pro Bono Alliance (IPBA) during back-to-back seminars on 21 – 22 August 2016. The lawyers gave lectures on the family code as well as pertinent laws on inheritance and property. The Philippines’ anti-trafficking law was also covered. Interested attendees further benefited from private one-on-one consultations after each forum.
Consul Adrian Cruz (bottom left) with the lawyers and members of the Philippine Catholic Community in Cologne.
The Philippine Embassy and the Philippine Catholic Communities in Berlin and Cologne co-organized the seminars that brought IPBA members Atty. Purificacion B. Bernabe, Atty. Michael Tito R. Sajor and Atty. Joseph M. Inocencio to Germany. In Cologne, Atty. Francine Faith Longid-Dalumpines joined the three lawyers in their pro bono work.
The Department of Foreign Affairs’ Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (OUMWA) coordinated with various Philippine Embassies and Consulates for the group’s first legal mission to Europe.
The Filipino community at the Parish hall of St. Michael Church in Cologne where the seminar was held.
In Cologne, the lawyers met with more than twenty Filipinos on 21 August where there was particular interest on registration of properties in the Philippines, taxation and inheritance laws, real estate investing by former Filipinos and dual citizenship. Consul Adrian Cruz, who heads the Embassy’s Consular and ATN Sections represented the Embassy.
The following day in Berlin, more than fifty Filipinos and Germans attended the legal seminar which was held as part of the continuing celebration of the “30th Jubilee Year of the Philippine Community in Berlin.” The open forum was dominated by questions concerning Philippine property and inheritance laws.
Atty. Bernabe (leftmost) and Atty.Sajor (center) during the open forum.
Ambassador Melita Sta. Maria-Thomeczek attended the Sunday lecture along with all four of the Philippine Embassy’s officers, namely Consul General Donna Rodriguez, Consul Adrian Cruz, Consul Catherine Rose Torres and Consul Rona Beth Goce. The Embassy’s Assistance-to-Nationals Officer Jovencio Catbagan and Legal Officer Amor del Mundo were also in attendance.
“We laud OUMWA and IPBA for this initiative. Our kababayans do need to get updated on property and relationship laws in the Philippines. We hope that this will be done again so we can bring our lawyers to other cities in Germany with big concentrations of Filipinos,” Ambassador Sta. Maria – Thomeczek stated in her opening remarks.
The International Pro Bono Alliance (IPBA) is a non-profit group of lawyers with members and affiliates from the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Japan, Hong Kong, Macau, Indonesia and the United States. The group gives free legal services to migrant workers and other vulnerable groups. In the Philippines, it serves foreigners in distress who cannot afford adequate legal service. It operates based on reciprocity. The IPBA also assists in the prosecution of human traffickers and actively promotes human trafficking awareness through the lectures that they carry out during their missions in the Philippines and abroad.
Atty. Bernabe noted that “many Filipinos in Germany are well-established and yet they remain compassionate to those who are just starting out or those who have encountered difficulties.” She added that she was impressed with the Filipinos’ strong sense of community and deep faith.
The group of lawyers arrived in Germany after holding legal seminars in Vienna. After completing their pro bono work in Cologne and Berlin, they left for Italy to offer legal assistance to Filipinos in Milan. END.
The three lawyers with Ambassador Sta. Maria-Thomeczek (third from left) and Embassy officers after successfully completing their pro bono legal work in Berlin.
