25 March 2014- Representatives of the Kreuzlingen Foreigners Board in Canton Thurgau visited the Philippine Embassy on March 21. The visit, which was timed with the Board’s observation tour of the Federal Parliament in Berne, also served as an educational tour for its members on the work of an embassy and an ambassador.

Ambassador Leslie Baja briefed the board members on the Filipino migrant community in Switzerland, and provided an overview of the Philippine-Swiss relations, including the presence of Swiss companies and the Swiss migrant community in the Philippines.

The lively and open exchange of views covered a wide range of topics from the concerns of the migrant community in Switzerland and the profile of Filipino migrants, to political issues such as the West Philippine Sea and the role of Switzerland in helping keep peace in the region, religion, updates on the ongoing rehabilitation and reconstruction efforts to help the victims of typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) and Swiss assistance to the victims, as well as the general political and economic situations in the Philippines and President Benigno Aquino III’s flagship programs.

The Kreuzlingen Foreigners Board represents the non-Swiss residents of Kreuzlingen, a town bordering Germany, and serves as an advisory body to the City Council. It connects foreigners in the city to the Swiss population on one hand, and serves as a bridge between foreigners, on the other. It discusses problems of the migrant community directly with the City Council.

Membership in the Board is selected from among the foreigners in Kreuzlingen, which comprise about 52 percent of the total population of the area. Current members include individuals from Germany, Spain, Slovakia, Iran and the Philippines. At the moment, only the Philippines among the countries in Southeast Asia has representation in the Board.

The visit was welcomed by the Philippine Embassy, as networking with various expatriate communities and foreigners’ board is part of its activities to promote the interests of the Filipino community in Switzerland and uses such as a platform to discuss the concerns of Filipino migrants. END