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Rizal-Blumentritt Heritage Trail Established in Litoměřice, Czech Republic to Celebrate Philippine-Czech Friendship
Ambassador Victoriano M. Lecaros reported to the Department that the Philippine Embassy in Prague formally launched the Rizal-Blumentritt Heritage Trail in the city of Litoměřice in North Bohemia, Czech Republic on Sunday, 11 October 2015 with a formal ceremony at the Kava s Parou Café. The Café, coincidentally, is itself located at the old Train Station where, in 1887, Philippine national hero Jose Rizal arrived from Germany and met his pen-friend Prof. Ferdinand Blumentritt face-to-face for the first time.
The Heritage Trail project, spearheaded by First Secretary and Consul Juan E. Dayang, Jr., commissioned local artist Karel Mačas to draw 10-points of interests in the 4-kilometer heart-shaped circular heritage trail in Litoměřice, passing through magnificent views of the picturesque Baroque city of Litoměřice starting from the Bus and Train Station, the Rizal-Blumentritt Bastion (Centro Rizal Museum), Blumentritt’s former home on Dlouha St., Rizal’s Bust at the Salva Guarda Hotel, the Rizal Park, the Labe River, the Bishop’s Palace and Cathedral, the Secondary School where Blumentritt taught and ending at the Peace Square to view the former Krebs Hotel where Rizal stayed during his visit with Dr. Maximo Viola in May 1887.
The Embassy circulated three brochures of the Trail in the Filipino, Czech and English languages. Attending the launch were Litoměřice Mayor Ladislav Chlupáč and his wife, Instituto Cervantes Director Ramiro Villapadierna, artist Karel Mačas and his family, Embassy officers & staff and members of the Filipino community numbering nearly a hundred participants.
The Embassy provided two transport buses for the Filipino community members, friends, and their family members from Prague to Litoměřice and back. The Philippine contingent attended the 10:00 o’ clock morning mass at the Cathedral.
Lunch and the formal launch of the Rizal Trail at the Kava s Parou followed soon after, then hitting the road on foot for 2 hours or so. Consul Dayang and Litoměřice resident and Filcom member Rosa Delma Machackova acted as tour guides. Everyone ended at the Rizal-Blumentritt bastion, where refreshments were served. Filipino community members and their three guitarists, Kyle Cordenete, Vhenz Millares and Jake Ramones, spontaneously broke into patriotic songs there.
The Embassy turned over the brochures and two panels of posters to the Bastion to complement the ongoing work of the City of Litoměřice in promoting Philippine-Czech friendship through the legacy of Rizal and Blumentritt. END.
The Rizal-Blumentritt Heritage Trail brochure in English.
Ambassador Victoriano M. Lecaros and Consul Juan E. Dayang, Jr. with the Philippine contingent attend mass
at the St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Litoměřice.
(l-r) Mr. Karel Macas, Artist; Instituto Cervantes Director Ramiro Villapadierna, Litoměřice Mayor Ladislav Chlupáč; Mrs. Chlupáč;
Ambassador Victoriano M. Lecaros; and Ms. Jana Vácaguá from the Mayor’s Office.
Members of the Filipino community with Embassy officals at the Rizal Park in Litoměřice.
Rizal-Blumentritt bastion where Filipinos had refreshments and sang patriotic songs.
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PH Embassy in Prague Promotes Women’s Rights and Reemphasizes Campaign Against Human Trafficking, in Partnership with NGO’s Migrace and La Strada
11 October 2015, Litoměřice, Czech Republic. — The Philippine Embassy in Prague organized a Forum on Migrant Worker’s Rights, focusing on the rights of women and reemphasized its campaign against Human Trafficking to more than 80 Filipino community members who gathered in the Czech city of Litoměřice, home base of Jose Rizal’s best-known European friend, Prof. Ferdinand Blumentritt, as part of the Embassy’s Gender and Development Program.
Philippine Ambassador Vic Lecaros reported to the Department that a majority or 75% of Filipinos in the Czech Republic consists of women; therefore, any program related to migrant rights must have a special focus on women. Around 80 FilCom members attended the Forum.
The Philippine Embassy partnered with two leading non-governmental organizations (NGO’s) in the Czech Republic, namely the Association for Integration and Migration (MIGRACE) and the La Strada International (LSI), a European NGO network against trafficking in human beings with eight member organizations in countries, among them Belarus, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Moldova, The Netherlands, Poland and Ukraine.
Ambassador Lecaros encouraged the Filipino community to learn from the two experts namely, Ms. Magda Faltová, Director of MIGRACE, who gave a presentation on the rights of migrant (particularly women) workers and ending violence against women in the Czech Republic and Ms. Marketa Hronkova, Director of LSI-Czech Republic, who expounded on trafficking in persons, its elements, and providing advice on how to spot “red flags” that may lead to trafficking.
In its campaign against human trafficking, the Philippine Embassy, represented by Consul Juan E. Dayang, Jr. will work with LSI in promoting awareness about trafficking in persons among Filipino women, particularly household workers and massage therapists in the Czech Republic, to ensure their awareness of their rights and their welfare. The Embassy also gives special focus on Household Workers of resident diplomats and looking after them in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic.
The Embassy’s Assistance-to-Nationals and GAD (Gender and Development) Focal Person is Attaché Milette Socorro-Olimpo.
Ambassador Vic Lecaros speaks about Prague PE’s services on ATN
About 80 Filipino community members attend the forum on workers’ rights and anti-human trafficking.
(top) Ms. Magda Faltova, Director, Association for Integration and Migration talks to Filipinos about the laws on work permits. Ms. Marketa Hronkova, Director, La Strada Czech Republic explains red flag signs of human-trafficking
END
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PH Best Practice in Migration and Development Highligthed at IOM Summer School on Migration Studies in České Budějovice, Czech Republic
Participants of the IOM Summer School 2015
České Budějovice—The Philippine case was highlighted in the Summer School on Migration Studies 2015 organized by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), whcich was held from 17 to 22 August 2015 in cooperation with the University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice.
First Secretary and Consul Juan E. Dayang, Jr. of the Philippine Embassy in Prague was invited to present the Philippine Case on Migration and Development where he chose to highlight PH government policies and operation in protecting the rights of migrant workers and in promoting migrants’ welfare from pre-departure, on-site, and return and reintegration. He also facilitated the group discussions for the 5-day program, which was attended by 70 participants from 40 countries.
Consul Dayang, whose doctoral thesis at the Australian National University focused on “Consular Diplomacy”, also showed the documentary film titled “Tale of a Journey: Migrant Health Workers’ Voice through images”, a film made by the International Labor Organization’s Decent Work across Borders (DWAB) project and funded by the European Union in partnership with the Asia Pacific Film Institute. The film narrates stories of Filipino nurses in their journey to work in Europe including their education and preparation, recruitment, pre-departure orientation, and adjustment to the living conditions in the foreign country.
After the presentation, there was a lively Q&A session where participants asked questions about the government’s role in the recruitment process, the bilateral agreements, and how Filipino health workers prepare for the language requirements of their host countries.
The speakers included Prof. J.C. Mutchler of University of Arizona, Anna Platonova from IOM Brussels, Salim Murad from the European Master in Migration and Intercultural Relations (EMMIR) , Prof. Dusan Drbohlav of Charles University Prague, Prof. Michal Vašečka from Masaryk University in Brno, and Jiří Pehe from University of New York in Prague, among others.
The program is designed for students and professionals in the field of migration from 40 countries. The multidisciplinary approach of the Summer School combined both theoretical and empirical examples of good practice presented by Czech and international academics, activists, and representatives of governments, international organizations, and NGOs.
END
Consul Dayang with African partipant Erik Opuke Ware and organizers Prof. Salim Murad of EMMIR, University of South Bohemia and Jan Schroth of IOM Czech Republic.
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PH Embassy in Prague Launches Rizal-Blumetritt Walking Trail in Litoměřice Town as its Flagship Project to Highlight Historical Links in Philippine-Czech Friendship
Prague - The Philippine Embassy in this Czech capital launched the Rizal-Bluentritt heritage trail in neighboring Litoměřice, hometown of Prof. Ferdinand Blumentritt, as its flagship project to promote general awareness of the historical links between the Philippines and the Czech Republic through the close friendship of Philippine national hero Jose Rizal and Prof. Blumentritt.
The Embassy has produced a brochure with a description and a map of 10 significant places that retrace the steps of Rizal and traveling companion Maximo Viola at the heart of Litoměřice during his May 1887 visit with his friend.
To set the project in motion Philippine Ambassador Victoriano M. Lecaros first introduced the Rizal-Blumentritt trail at the 2nd Regional Conference of the European Network of Filipino Diaspora (ENFiD) in Malta in August 2015. There he presented a copy to the Commission of Filipinos Overseas Chairperson (CFO) Secretary Imelda M. Nicolas and ENFiD regional conference organizers and participants represented by ENFiD Executive Director Rohlee de Guzman.
On 31 August, Mr. Lecaros presented the Rizal-Blumentritt trail to the diplomatic corps, government officials, members of the academe, business groups and Filipino community members who attended the launch of the “Literatura ng Pilipinas” edition of PLAV literary Magazine at the Czech Center in Prague. The occasion was graced by Jr. Deputy Foreign Miniser Jaroslav Ludva, former Area Commander of the Knights of Rizal in the Czech Republic and former Czech Ambassador to the Philippines.
First Secretary and Consul Juan E. Dayang, Jr., representing the Embassy, commissioned Litoměřice artist Karel Macas to create the drawings and the map. The heart-shaped walking trail begins from the Litomeřice Bus Station, on to the Blumetritt and Rizal Bastion (Czech-Philippine Museum), the former house of Blumentritt, the Salva Guarda Hotel (Bust of Rizal), the Rizal Park and its own Bust of Rizal, the Old Railway Station (now Káva s párou Café), the Elbe River, the Bishop’s Residence and Cathedral, the German School where Prof. Blumentritt taught and Blumentritt’s Bust. It ends at the former Hotel Krebs where Rizal stayed during his visit.
Well-known graphic designer Pavel Botka worked on the lay-out for the leaflets in three languages: English, Filipino and Czech. He did the same with the corresponding posters. The Philippine Embassy in Prague worked hand-in-hand with the Czech Embassy in Manila under Czech Ambassador Jaroslav Olsa and his Deputy Mr. Jan Vytopil, who both gave additional inputs to the historical description of the trail.
The Philippine Embassy in Prague will make available the printed brochures at its premises as well as at the Info Centrum in Litoměřice and also online. The Embassy will organize a trip to Litoměřice town in October this year for the Filipino community members in Prague and environs to do the trail for a first-hand feel this little known facet of shared Filipino-Czech history.
For more details on the project, Consul Dayang may be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. END
Philippine Ambassador Vic Lecaros introduced the Rizal-Blumentritt Trail on 31 August on the occasion of the launch of Plav Literary Magazine’s edition on “Literatura ng Pilipinas”. Photo shows (L-R) Amb. Lecaros, former Czech Ambassadors Stanislav Slavicky, Junior Deputy Minister Jaroslav Ludva, Josef Rychtar, who all served in Manila, current Ambassador Jaroslav Olša, Jr., and First Secretary & Consul Juan E. Dayang, Jr.
The Rizal-Blumentritt Heritage Trail map was first introduced at the 2nd Regional Conference of the European Network of Filipino Diaspora (ENFiD) in Malta to Filipinos in Europe. Amb. Vic Lecaros presented the brochure to Secretary Imelda Nicolas of the Commission of Filipinos Overseas (CFO) on 2 August. Photo shows (L-R) ENFiD Executive Director Rohlee de Guzman, Amb. Lecaros, Secretary Nicolas, and First Secretary and Consul Juan E. Dayang, Jr
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Poster of Philippine-Czech Friendship designed by Pavel Botka with drawings by Karel Macas
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Poster of Map designed by Pavel Botka with drawings by Karel Macas
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Sample of the Rizal-Blumetritt Heritage Trail leaflets in the English language. These brochures are also available in the Filipino and Czech languages.
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