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More than 70 members and supporters of PINAY - Filipino Women's Organization of Quebec show their support for the Manitoba 3 by posing for a photo while holding up posters with the picture of the three migrant workers and with the words , "LET THE THREE FATHERS STAY IN CANADA".

The three were arrested on June 24, 2010 after being duped into working at a gas station in Thompson, Manitoba without work permits which their employer had promised. The three migrant workers have been gaining popular support for their cause throughout many parts of the country largely due to the work to raise awareness around their situation by the newly formed Migrante Canada chapter, an alliance of 16 organizations from coast to coast advocating for the rights and welfare of Filipino migrants. The three fathers, known to the media and the community as the ‘Three Amigos’, came to Canada in 2007 under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.

Sid De Guzman, Deputy Secretary-General of Migrante Canada first explained to the crowd the plight of the Filipino migrant workers before asking them to pose for the photo to show their support. The three are currently in limbo in Winnipeg awaiting their court hearing regarding their appeal to stay in Canada on humanitarian and compassionate grounds. "Their only crime was to want to work in Canada to provide for their families back home," says Sid De Guzman.

The symbolic gesture in support of the Manitoba 3 was done during the year-end gathering of PINAY, a member organization of the Migrante alliance. The PINAY event also happens to coincides with International Migrant's Day this year, which was perfect timing, according to PINAY president, Evelyn Calugay.

"Every year, around the Holiday season, we gather to celebrate our victories and renew our commitment to go forward with our struggles for justice for migrants," explains Evelyn. "Our members are absolutely committed to supporting the call to let the three fathers stay and have access to jobs to support their families back home; something that the Philippine government is incapable of providing them and thousands of our compatriots who are forced to leave our country each day."