21 November 2014 – In line with the continuing priority of the Philippine Embassy in Wellington and the office of the Philippine Honorary Consul General in Auckland to engage with the Filipino community throughout New Zealand, Philippine Honorary Consul General Paulo Garcia and Atty. Gene Bagsic organized a Legal Orientation Seminar on November 09 at the Three Kings School in Auckland to promote greater understanding and knowledge of New Zealand’s laws, procedures and requirements among Filipinos. The members of the Day by Day Christian Ministry, led by Pastor Mervyn Abulencia, benefited from the Legal Orientation Seminar.
Similar to the previous Legal Orientation Seminars, this provided Filipinos with useful, relevant and up-to-date information on New Zealand law, including immigration, wills, enduring powers of attorney, trusts, relationship property, dealing with the police and courts, settlement support services and program for keeping ethnic communities and other areas that impact on their lives as migrants, workers or students. It was also a good opportunity to interact with the speakers to address concerns and issues for more effective settlement and better integration in New Zealand.
Consul General Garcia and Atty. Bagsic discussed legal matters of interest to Filipino migrants and conducted a scenario exercise to provide a clearer picture of common cases encountered by Filipinos in New Zealand.
An enlightening open forum and interactive session between participants and the resource speakers followed.
Consul General Garcia thanked the organizers and the participants for their invaluable assistance, support and cooperation in mounting the seminar and other programs that aim to upgrade the knowledge and skills of the Filipino community on matters of concern and bring the services of the Embassy and the office of the Honorary Consul General closer to the more than 40,350 Filipinos in New Zealand.
Participants to the Legal Orientation Seminars in Auckland reiterated their deep appreciation for the highly successful and very informative event. With the increasing requests from the participants and other Filipinos to hold a similar event, the Philippine Embassy and the Philippine Consulate General will organize another seminar for the benefit of Filipinos in other parts in the North and South Islands, in cooperation with the respective Filipino organizations and groups in those areas.
To date, the Philippine Embassy in Wellington and the office of the Philippine Honorary Consul General in Auckland have conducted eight Legal Orientation Seminars for the benefit and well-being of the members of the Filipino community in the North and South Islands. END