Maniolas

Passengers walk past a thermal scanner at the medical quarantine area at the arrival section of Manila’s International Airport in Paranaque, south of Manila, Philippines on Wednesday, April 16, 2014. AP FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—Only four passengers from the Etihad Airlines flight carrying the Filipino nurse initially diagnosed with the deadly Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Corona Virus (MERS-CoV) have yet to be contacted by the government, according to the Department of Health (DOH). “We’re now locating only four passengers,” Dr. Lyndon Lee Suy, manager of the DOH emerging infectious diseases program told a news briefing yesterday. The effort to keep the country free from MERS-CoV has so far cost the government more than P2 million, Suy said. But the amount is small considering the economic costs that would be incurred if a positive MERS-CoV case enters the country, he said. “We have thousands of OFWs coming home every day. We have to be vigilant always,” he said. The DOH and Task Force MERS-COV have been conducting contact tracing of all the 414 passengers on board the Etihad Airlines flight that carried the Filipino nurse initially diagnosed with MERS-CoV. Negative for virus The nurse tested positive for MERS-CoV while still in the United Arab Emirates. But two further tests done by the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) here later found him negative for the virus. According to Lee Suy, the government has so far spent P2.07 million to test all the passengers of Etihad Flight 424, which arrived in Manila Read More …

US religious leaders pledge to work for peace during Long Beach conference hosted by Heavenly Culture, World Peace and Restoration of Light (HWPL) and its chairman Man H. Lee. CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS LONG BEACH, California – More than 100 religious leaders across North America and hundreds of university students gathered Monday, April 14 at the Grand Event Center in Long Beach, pledging to work for peace. The 2014 Religious Leaders Peace Conference was hosted by international non-profit organization Heavenly Culture, World Peace and Restoration of Light (HWPL). Guest panelists included Dr. Uma Mysorekar, president of the Hindu Temple Society of North America and  Matthew Ball, director of northwest public affairs for the Church of Latter-Day Saints. The gathering is a part of HWPL’s Chairman Man H. Lee’s 9th World Tour to meet with religious and political leaders, according to the organization’s press release. Lee, 84, has traveled to 58 countries to promote his message of peace, and has met with presidents, religious leaders and youth organizations around the world. Last January, Lee organized the signing of the HWPL Peace Treaty with top representatives of Catholicism and Islam in Mindanao, Philippines, a region stricken by a long 40-year history of religious conflict between Catholics and Muslims. Attendees at HWPL conference The treaty is a pledge to cease conflict among religious groups and establish a relationship to work together for peace. Fernando Capalla, Roman Catholic archbishop-emeritus of the Archdiocese of Davao, and Esmael Mangudadatu, governor of Maguindanao (an Islamic autonomous district in Mindanao), signed the Read More …