News Rundown: October 23-27, 2017
Filipinos win international awards, the country beats terrorism, and more good news from this week’s headlines! Get to know the Philippines more through these stories that are relevant and good for expats to know.
Filipino artists win at the 33rd Warsaw Film Festival in Poland
IMAGE Warsaw Film Festival Facebook page
Filipino actor Allen Dizon and actress Angelie Nicole Sanoy bagged the Special Jury Award Best Actor and Best Actress at the 33rd Warsaw Film Festival Awards Ceremony held October 21 in Poland. Dizon and Sanoy stood out among other actors in films from Poland, Germany, Sweden, France, and other European and Asian countries.
The two artists played the roles of a middle-aged deaf-mute man and a teenage girl in a taboo love affair in the film Bomba (The Bomb) directed by Ralston Gonzales Jover.
Issuance of 10-year passports to start in January 2018
IMAGE DFA Passport Appointment Online Facebook page
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) issued October 26 the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act No. 10928 or “An Act Extending the Validity of Philippine Passports.”
Under the IRR, besides the extension of the Philippine passport’s validity period to 10 years, no other changes will be made on the current passport. The cost (Php 950) will also remain the same.
Filipinos under the age of 18, however, will still be issued passports with a 5-year validity.
Students can soon avail of fare discounts on weekends, holidays
Effective October 28, students (except post-graduate students) are already eligible for fare discounts on weekends, summer breaks, and holidays.
The memorandum was released by the Land Transportation Franchising & Regulatory Board (LTFRB) last October 23.
Combat operations end, rehabilitation starts in Marawi
IMAGE Armed Forces of the Philippines Facebook page
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana announced October 23 the termination of all combat operations in Marawi, indicating the country’s victory against terrorism. The announcement came after President Rodrigo Duterte declared the liberation of Marawi on October 17.
The siege of Marawi by the Maute ISIS group lasted for 5 months, holding thousands of civilians captive. The government now shifts its focus to the rehabilitation of the city.
Singaporean passport is the world’s most powerful
After Paraguay’s removal of visa requirements for Singaporean passport holders, Singapore now rules the world in terms of global passport power. This is based on the ranking by the Arton Capital’s Passport Index, an online interactive tool that ranks the passports of the world based on visa-free and visa-on-arrival score.
The decision of Paraguay was crucial to the rank that Singapore now solely holds. The country previously shared the top spot with Germany, with a passport score of 158.
Sources: Rappler, The Philippine Star, ABS-CBN News, CNN Philippines
Images grabbed from: Warsaw Film Festival Facebook page, DFA Passport Application Online Facebook page, Armed Forces of the Philippines Facebook page
