Maniolas

Commanders of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) are aggressively recruiting members in several provinces in Mindanao in an attempt to bolster their clout once the proposed Bangsamoro region is established, a former soldier turned lawmaker has claimed. In an interview over dzBB Sunday, Magdalo party-list Rep. Gary Alejano said several governors from the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) have testified in recent congressional hearings that the MILF is conducting recruitment activities in their areas. Among the provinces where the MILF is recruiting new members according to Alejano are Maguindanao, Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Sarangani, Sultan Kudarat, North Cotabato, Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga, Sibugay, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-tawi. Based on reports he gathered from sources on the ground, Alejano said MILF commanders are competing among themselves in building up their forces in anticipation of the positions they will secure in the envisioned Bangsamoro parliamentary government. “Mas maraming tao, mas maganda. Nagpaparami sila ng kani-kanilang puwersa para maging mas malawak ang kanilang clout in the future,” he said.  Alarming recruitment The lawmaker, a former Marine captain, said the Moro group is recruiting members under the guise of preparing for the creation of the Bangsamoro police force even though Congress has yet to approve the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL). He described the MILF’s recruitment activities as “very alarming.” “Once na ang BBL ay pumasa, may dahilan na sila (MILF) to conduct training in coordination with the government. But at this point in time, very alarming Read More …

DOH, WHO give update on MERS-CoV. Acting Health Secretary Janette Garin (left) gives an update on the first confirmed MERS-CoV case in the Philippines during a press conference at the DOH building in Sta. Cruz, Manila on Friday, February 13. She said at least three tests should be done to determine if the patient is positive of the dreaded virus. Also in photo are Dr. Julie Hall, country representative of the World Health Organization, and Lourdes Cataquis, mayor of San Pedro, Laguna, where the patient resides. Danny Pata At least two more people are being monitored for showing symptoms of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus, the Department of Health said Sunday. GMA News reported the DOH indicated the two are co-passengers of the Filipino nurse who tested positive for MERS-CoV. It did not immediately provide further details on the two co-passengers. A separate report on dzBB radio said 11 people the nurse came into contact with tested negative for symptoms of the disease in the second round of tests. The MERS-CoV case had caused a scare last Friday in a Laguna hospital where the nurse was initially brought. It also caused alarm in a nearby school.   Also, last Friday the DOH asked the remaining 128 passengers abroad the Saudi Airlines flight 860 to come forward and agreed to be tested for precaution.   Moreover, it said 96 of the 220 passengers on the flight that the Filipina nurse was in had been located and all agreed to undergo Read More …

NEW YORK—More global journalism organizations on Friday signed on to protections for freelance and local correspondents who face increasingly deadly dangers in the field. The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, the Guardian News and Media group and Newsweek were the latest to agree to a set of “principles and practices” that was launched on Thursday evening at the Columbia University School of Journalism. Media and advocacy groups including The Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, Bloomberg, the BBC and the Committee to Protect Journalists all say “news organizations have a moral responsibility to support journalists to whom they give assignments in dangerous areas.” The recent beheadings of Japanese journalist Kenji Goto and American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff by Islamic State extremists are some of the most visible examples of the risks to correspondents on the ground. Creators of the principles said the list of organizations signing on, now numbering about 30, should grow steadily as word of their global campaign spreads. “Everyone who signed understands what we see day in and day out, that dangers to freelancers on assignment is actually a danger to the press to do its job,” said Bruce Shapiro, executive director of the New York-based Dart Center for Journalism & Trauma. Of the 61 journalists killed around the world last year because of their work, 13 were freelancers, the Committee to Protect Journalists said. Reporters without Borders, which signed on to the new guidelines, listed at least seven freelancers among its count of Read More …

MANILA, Philippines–Despite significant advancements in recent years, many countries in Southeast Asia still face the triple burden of malnutrition—undernourishment, micronutrient deficiencies and obesity. To address malnutrition, the Philippines’ National Nutrition Council will host the 2nd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Nutrition Surveillance Workshop-Conference to pursue the establishment of the Asean Nutrition Surveillance System, where delegates from the 10 Asean member-states will meet on Feb. 24 to 28, in Makati City. The project under the program, “Asean Collaborative Project on Nutrition,” aims to promote the sharing of information on challenges and good practices in improving nutrition, measuring progress using key indicators, and harmonized methodology toward attainment of regional and global goals through an Asean Nutrition Surveillance System Strategic Plan. Its key activities from 2015-2020 include capacity-building on data analysis, interpretation and dissemination, data standardization and nutrition data dictionary, resource generation, among other things. This process of nutritional surveillance can facilitate decision-making in relation to current and future policies, and direct targeting for health, nutrition and general development programs. Surveillance information can be utilized to promote actions that will alleviate or prevent malnutrition in the Asean region. Participants include delegates from the Asean member states: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Burma (Myanmar), Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines. Disclaimer: The comments uploaded on this site do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of management and owner of INQUIRER.net. We reserve the right to exclude comments that we deem to be inconsistent with our editorial standards. To subscribe to the Philippine Read More …

Bill Hayton. SCREENGRAB from YouTube video/BBC MANILA, Philippines–A British journalist and author of a book on the South China Sea territorial disputes gave an official of the Chinese Embassy in Manila a dressing down at a forum organized by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Friday. “These countries (in Southeast Asia) are petrified of what you are doing. Stop doing it and make some friends,” Bill Hayton, a reporter of the British Broadcasting Corp., told Shan Ao, secretary to the ambassador of China to the Philippines. Hayton’s statement drew applause from the audience, composed mostly of diplomats and government officers, at the DFA headquarters. Shan earlier approached the microphone during the open forum to point out that China has no intention of waging a war to defend its nine-dash-line claim in the South China Sea. “China is not going to start a war. It is not true. [What it aims] is peace and stability in the region,” Shan said shortly after Hayton gave his lecture on “The South China Sea and China’s Geopolitical Interests.” China, Philippines, sea row, territorial dispute, BBC journalist, South China Sea, Bill Hayton, diplomacy, Shan Ao ‘Collective hallucination’ Hayton and former National Security Adviser and West Philippine Sea coconvenor Roilo Golez were speakers in the conference, which is part of the Foreign Service Institute Mangrove Forum on International Relations. Hayton is the author of the book “The South China Sea: The Struggle for Power in Asia,” published last year by the Yale University Press. Hayton Read More …