Filipinos visiting the United States were urged to exercise caution after an incident where a 74-year-old Filipino was assaulted in Manhattan on Wednesday morning, the Philippine Consulate General in New York said.
In an advisory released on Friday, the Consulate said the victim was walking along Madison Avenue near East 52nd Street when she was punched without provocation by another woman, who immediately fled afterward.
Consul General Elmer Cato said most of the unprovoked assaults against Filipinos in New York have been reported or monitored by the Consulate.
“In view of this incident, the Consulate reminds members of the Filipino community as well as our kababayans visiting New York to exercise the necessary precaution at all times while on the streets or in the subways,” it said.
The Department of Foreign Affairs said the issue of hate crime has been raised to US officials by the government.
DFA on its toes
DFA spokesperson Teresita Daza said that the Philippine Consulate General in New York is taking the matter seriously and had taken steps to address it.
“We assure our fellow Filipinos that our Consulate General in New York will continue monitoring these incidents accordingly and is ready to assist hate crime victims and other distressed Filipinos in the area,” she said.