Philippine Embassy Reminds Filipino Voters in Germany to Send Their Ballots for the Upcoming Elections

April 1, 2016

First time voters Chona Anisco Dreher (left) and Dioscora Mercano Kappelmayer (right) personally
came to the Philippine Embassy in Berlin to deliver their electoral ballots. It was also an opportunity
for Ms. Chona Dreher to claim her voters’ ID.

There are nine more days to go before the start of the overseas voting for the 2016 Philippine Presidential Elections. From April 9, 2016 to May 9, 2016, some 4,971 certified Filipino overseas absentee voters (not counting seafarers) in Germany are given the opportunity to cast their vote by mail at the Philippine Embassy in Berlin.

Ambassador Melita Sta. Maria-Thomeczek called on all registered voters in Germany who have not yet received their ballots to contact the Philippine Embassy and provide their name, telephone number and complete mailing address.

“it would seem that many of our kababayans have transferred to a new address and they have not contacted the Embassy about this,” Ambassador Thomeczek said. “There is still time for them to call us so that we can send them their undelivered mailing packets if the post office sent it back to the Embassy. I also encourage all registered voters to mail their ballot envelopes or hand-deliver them to the Embassy at the soonest possible time to ensure their votes are counted.”

So far, the Philippine Embassy in Berlin has re-sent two hundred fifty (250) COMELEC mailing packets to Filipino voters residing in Germany after cross-checking and re-verifying voter records, and after receiving information from some voters on the change of their postal addresses.

For those that have not received their mailing packets, they may contact the Embassy by:

Sending a request through email at consular@philippine-embassy.de or info@philippine-embassy.de. (Attention to Consul Catherine Torres)
Sending an SMS to the Embassy duty phone mobile no. +49 173 5215 703, whereby they will be contacted by a consular staff.

(END)

Female policymakers, diplomats, and activists in Berlin tackle women’s issues

March 23, 2016

Power women – Female Ambassadors with Parliamentarians and key resource persons from invited NGOs gathered at the Paul Lobe Haus for a lecture and discussion on “Developing Women´s Potential to Fight Poverty”.

Berlin – ‘Women and Poverty’ was the subject of a forum held among women Members of Parliament, Ambassadors of developing countries, and civil society activists in Germany on 16 February 2016 at the Paul Lobe Haus, Berlin. The idea for the forum was initially broached by Ambassador Melita Sta. Maria-Thomeczek with MP Bärbel Kofler.

The forum was attended by MP Kofler, MP Gabriela Heinrich, parliamentary staff, and the Ambassadors and female officers of the embassies of the Philippines, Botswana, Brazil, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Jamaica, Lesotho, Myanmar, Nicaragua, South Sudan, Thailand, and Zimbabwe.

Presentations about their respective women empowerment initiatives were delivered by Ms. Karin Nordmeyer of UN Women, Professor. Dr. Claudia Warning of Brot für die Welt, Ms. Renate Bähr of Deutsche Stiftung Weltbevölkerung, and Ms. Bärbel Dieckmann of Welthungerhilfe.

The presentations and ensuing discussion recognized the gains that have been made in women’s empowerment, including the contribution of German entities, while noting that a lot more needs to be done to meet the objectives outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals, many of which touch on women’s issues. Some of the organizations, such as Brot für die Welt, acknowledged that while women empowerment is a cross-cutting concern, there is a need for programs geared specifically toward women, aside from simply including, or even prioritizing women, among the beneficiaries of various programs.

There was agreement on the importance of education in women’s empowerment, and on the importance of involving the men in women empowerment initiatives. It was also agreed that more women should be placed in leadership and decision-making roles, not only to serve as role models, but more so, to have a greater input in policymaking. Meanwhile, some of the participants also highlighted the part played by cultural practices, noting that stereotypes in the depiction of women in art, for example, should be challenged.

MP Kofler noted that it might help to have a platform for German women Members of Parliament to meet their foreign counterparts, a suggestion that met with a warm response from the body.

The forum ended with a networking session over a reception featuring food from the Philippines, Thailand, South Sudan and Botswana. END

Zivile Sicherheitsindustrie Philippinen

March 17, 2016

Zivile Sicherheitsindustrie Philippinen
InformatIonsveranstaltUng
28. april 2016, 9.30 – 17.45 Uhr; Handelskammer Hamburg
BmWi-exportinitiative zivile sicherheitstechnologien und -dienstleistungen

Einladung_BMWi_InfoV_Security_Philippinen_2016 (1)

Philippine Embassy Celebrates Women´s Month with a Vernissage of the Prints of Lenore RS Lim

March 16, 2016

The Artist delivering a short lecture on prints

On the occasion of Women´s Month and in celebration of International Women´s Day, the Philippine Embassy in Berlin successfully hosted the opening of “Pieces of Dreams,” an exhibit featuring the works of Philippine Prints Artist Lenore RS Lim.

Lim is an acclaimed Filipina printmaker based in Manila, New York and Vancouver. A self-confessed late-bloomer artist, she is firmly rooted in her Filipino heritage while she mostly developed, practiced and exhibited her art abroad.

Ambassador Melita S. Sta. Maria-Thomeczek with Ms. Lenore RS Lim and the Director for Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific of the Federal Foreign Office, Ms. Birgit Ory, during the ribbon cutting ceremony formally opening the “Pieces of Dreams” exhibition.

Guests at the Vernissage included trailblazing women from the German government and private sector, the diplomatic corps, and the Filipino community in Berlin. The Federal Foreign Office’s Director for Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific, Ms. Birgit Ory was the guest of honor. Ms. Ory joined Ms. Lim and Ambassador Melita S. Sta. Maria-Thomeczek in the ribbon cutting ceremony to formally open the exhibit.

In “Pieces of Dreams,” the viewers were allowed to probe the artist’s dreams, memories and aspirations, and in the process invite them to reflect on their own. The exhibit presented recurring images of nature as well fabrics and heirloom clothing which are wistful, nostalgic, graphic, and grotesque.

When asked about the difference between the art of printmaking and painting, Lim explained that “a painter paints directly on canvas, paper or fabric. As a printmaker, I draw on wood, silk, metal or stone. If I use wood, it’s called woodcut: silk, it’s silk screen; if metal, like copper, it’s etching; and if I use stone it’s called lithography. A printmaker uses a press and chemicals to transfer the design to the paper or another surface. This way, we can do multiples or what we call – an edition.”

Guests at the Vernissage included trailblazing women from the German government and private sector, the diplomatic corps, and the Filipino community in Berlin

On the beginnings of her discipline as an artist, Lim said “I studied at the College of the Holy Spirit, Mendiola. The school was run by German nuns, the Servants of the Holy Spirit. I got the discipline and value of hard work from the German nuns. Our art teacher invited me and some other classmates to come on Saturday mornings for free art lessons. When my father learned about this, he bought a drawing book for me right away. Because of these art lessons, I decided to continue and take Fine Arts at the University of the Philippines.”

After graduating Fine Arts from the University of the Philippines, Lim taught art at the Assumptions Convent and at the International School Manila.

Lim received the Presidential Award (Pamana ng Pilipino Award) for Filipinos overseas, in 2004 and the Outstanding Professional Award for Fine Arts from the University of the Philippines Alumni Association in 2005 for her accomplishments in the arts. She enjoys a growing audience of collectors in the United States, where she was awarded a prestigious Jackson Pollock-Lee Krasner Foundation Grant, among other honors.

Her work is included in the U.S. Library of Congress and the private collection of Agnes Gund, Chairman and President Emerita of The Museum of Modern Art in Manhattan among others. Ms. Gund penned the foreword to her monograph Profound Afterglow: The Prints of Lenore RS Lim, published by Reyes Publishing in 2005. She is represented in New York by Tally Beck Contemporary Art and in the Philippines by Altro Mondo Gallery.

In 2010, she was given a grant to hold a solo exhibit at the Cultural Center of the Philippines Main Gallery. “FULL CIRCLE: A Retrospective” featured 100 of her artworks – etchings, serigraphs and monoprints. Just before her Berlin stint, she opened the exhibit “Layered Life” at the Altro Mondo Gallery in Makati.

“Pieces of Dreams” is available for public viewing at the Philippine Embassy from 9 to 22 March 2016, 0900h to 1600h, Mondays to Fridays. More information on Lim’s works and upcoming events may be accessed through her website, www.lenorelim.com. END