New envoy to Italy to push for RP's removal from business blacklist, easier OFW entry

The new Philippine ambassador to Italy will seek, as his top priority, the removal of the Philippines from the Italian government’s business blacklist and the easier entry of Filipino workers to that country. Philippine Ambassador to Italy Romeo Manalo made the request as he presented his credentials to Italian President Giorgio Napolitano. "In his audience with the Italian President, the Ambassador stressed the need for envigored trade relations between the two countries and expressed the hope that the Philippines will soon be removed from Italy's Blacklist of Fiscal Paradise and be moved into the new White List," the Department of Foreign Affairs said on its website Thursday. The “Blacklist of Fiscal Paradise" refers to Lista Nera del Paradisi Fiscali, a blacklist of tax havens or preferential tax regimes based on criteria drawn up by the European Community. Manalo also expressed hopes that further cooperation with the Italian government could be undertaken to ease the entry of Filipino professional workers into the mainstream Italian labor market. Italy's Blacklist is a deterrent to trade and investment relations between the two countries, the DFA said. The presence of more than 100,000 Filipinos in Italy was also discussed, the DFA added. Manalo presented his credentials to President Napolitano at the Palazzo del Quirinale in Rome Monday, according to the DFA. For his part, President Napolitano expressed his gratitude for the contribution that the Filipino community has given to Italian families. He said the Filipinos are most welcome in Italy, which he described as a caring and hardworking community.—JMA/JV, GMANews.TV