30 March 2016 - A team from the Philippine Embassy in Ankara conducted the Embassy's monthly mission in Istanbul from March 19 to 20. The Embassy Team provided consular services to more than 110 Filipinos in Istanbul. The consular team processed twenty (20) ePassport applications for renewals, one (1) report of marriage, issued fourteen (14) notarial documents, one (1) travel document, released two (2) ballots for overseas voters, sixteen (16) voter's IDs, thirty-four (34) ePassports, processed two (2) applications for marriage license, and attended to twenty-two (22) ATN cases. The Team also announced that the Embassy shall start receiving mailed ballots and personally-delivered ballots starting on April 09, the start of the overseas voting period.
During the consular services, the Embassy brought the photo exhibit which was successfully held in Ankara on March 06, titled "The Filipina: Trail-blazers, Decision-makers; Leaders; Advocates," to Istanbul in celebration of the 2016 National Women's Month. The said photo exhibit, a continuation of last year's exhibit, aimed to highlight women's key roles and accomplishments in leadership, power and decision-making. Guided by the PCW's theme for this year's celebration “Kapakanan ni Juana, Isama sa Agenda!” (Include Women in the Agenda), 71 prominent and not so well-known Filipinas were highlighted for their contributions to society such as former President Corazon C. Aquino, Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Secretary Teresita Deles, and UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Victoria Tauli-Corpus, among others.
The exhibit was officially opened by the two women Filipino Community leaders in Istanbul, Ms. Carmen Martin and Elma Trinidad, presidents of the Filipino community in Istanbul and Filipino community in Turkey, respectively. Popular songs about women empowerment were played during the viewing of the photo exhibit while the Embassy children and Filipino community leaders led the performance of the street dance "Juana, Ikaw na ang Manguna," which was also performed during last year's National Women's month celebration.
A day before the consular services mission, two members of the Team met with a group of seven (7) Filipino student leaders studying in different colleges and universities in Istanbul. The meeting was co-hosted by Minister and Consul general Robert Ferrer, Jr. and Mr. Robert Bernardo of the United Nations development Programme (UNDP) office in Istanbul. The Team briefed the students on security precautions in light of recent terrorist bombings in Turkey. The Team also discussed with the students their roles in advancing the interests of the Philippines in Turkey. END