The Philippine Embassy fully supports the actions being taken by the Filipino Community in Montreal, Quebec, who were outraged by the case of a Filipino student reportedly punished at a local school for his eating habits of using spoon and fork. The Embassy considers the alleged incident an affront to Filipino culture.

The Embassy is now actively and closely coordinating with the members of the Filipino Community in Montreal on the complaint filed before the school board by the Center for Research Action on Race Relations (CRARR) on behalf of the Filipino student, through its Director General, Mr. Fo Nemie, to protect the Filipino student's rights and to assert his cultural heritage.

To assert one's accepted eating practices, which after all are most proper and which have become part of one's cultural identity is, in fact, encouraged under the Canadian immigration policy on creating a Canadian mosaic rather than a melting pot.

The Embassy continues to monitor and coordinate with the Filipino Community in Montreal and the family of the Filipino student on developments on the case.

3 May 2006