Canada ready to help Philippines in Marawi crisis

  • Page Views 2480
  • Canada stands ready to assist the Philippines deal with the crisis in Marawi City.

    This comes as more civilians and troops are affected by the lingering armed conflict in the southern city between security forces and Islamist rebels.

    “We stand ready to help… Normally, we would respond to a request from the government of the Philippines,” Canadian Ambassador to Philippines John Holmes told reporters.

    Holmes said his country is already providing assistance to the Philippines through the Canadian Red Cross and the International Committee of the Red Cross Philippines.

    “In terms of our aid program, Mindanao has been our focus the last few years and continues to be our focus,” the ambassador said.

    “We have different programs that are already operating. We continue to support Mindanao Trust Fund, this will continue in terms of tragic events,” the Canadian envoy also said.

    Holmes expressed sympathy to the Philippines amid Marawi fighting.

    “Government of Canada extends its heartfelt condolences to the government and the people of Marawi who have been affected by this horrible tragedy,” he added.

    Canada’s assistance to Mindanao will continue amid the war in Marawi and the declaration of martial law in the region, he said.

    Members of local extremist groups Abu Sayyaf and Maute attacked Marawi last May 23.

    The attack prompted President Rodrigo Duterte to put the entire island of Mindanao under military rule.

    The clashes, which are still going on, have left thousands displaced and hundreds killed.

    Holmes also said Canada is ready to work with the Philippines and offer assistance in fighting terrorism in terms of capacity building and information exchange.

    “We stand ready to work with the Philippines in that regard. We don’t normally… we wouldn’t be sending troops or anything like that but we do capacity building, exchanges of information, things like that. That’s been ongoing,” he said.

    Share

    New Posts Recently publish post More

    • 16 May 2024
      5 days ago No comment

      Plans drawn for Canada visit of Bongbong Marcos

      Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly hosted her Philippine counterpart Enrique Manalo in Ottawa on May 8, 2024. In a media release that day, Joly related that she and Manalo held wide-ranging discussions on several shared concerns between their two nations, from defence cooperation to climate action. The ...

    • 16 May 2024
      5 days ago No comment

      OVERSEAS WELFARE OFFICE (OWWA) SIGNED AN AGREEMENT WITH A SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH

      A historic event happened on April 11, 2024 at the Dosa Restaurant on Kingsway, Vancouver. when the Seventh-day Adventist Church, the Vancouver Filipino in particular, has signed The Memorandum of Understanding between the church and Allan A. Ignacio, Philippine Consulate Officer, and Olive Macawili, OIC Assistant Labor Attache, MIGRANT ...

    • 25 April 2024
      4 weeks ago No comment

      It’s official: April 27 is Lapu-Lapu Day in Vancouver and B.C.

      The Province of British Columbia and the City of Vancouver are proclaiming April 27, 2024 as Lapu-Lapu Day. In addition, the City of Vancouver is illuminating city hall on Cambie Street and the Burrard Street Bridge with Philippine colours in honour of Lapu-Lapu, the first national hero of the ...

    • 04 April 2024
      2 months ago No comment

      Filipinos report racism in Canadian community sports

      Filipinos are likely to experience or witness racism during community sports in Canada. This finding was part of the data released by Statistics Canada following its latest survey of participation and experiences in community sports. The national statistical agency defines “community sports” as “organized sports, including those played in ...

    • 21 March 2024
      2 months ago No comment

      Canada eyes space cooperation with Philippines

      The Philippines held its first space cooperation conference on March 19, 2024 as the country seeks to explore opportunities presented by the heavens. The conference was organized by the Stratbase Albert del Rosario Institute for Strategic and International Studies, a Metro Manila-based think-tank; the fledgling Philippine Space Agency; and ...

    %d bloggers like this: