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• Measure seeks renewal of San Francisco’s Children & Youth Fund, Public Education Enrichment Funds • Would reorganize the City’s Rainy Day Fund COLEMAN ADVOCATES PHOTO SAN FRANCISCO, California— City Hall on July 8 presented a proposed Charter Amendment to extend the Children’s Fund and the Public Education Enrichment Fund for 25 and 26 years, respectively, for the November 2014 ballot. Mayor Edwin M. Lee and all 11 members of the Board of Supervisors said the proposed Charter Amendment also creates the “Our Children, Our Families Council” to plan for the improvement of city services for youth and families and reform Rainy Day Reserves that fund youth, family and education programs. “This November, we will ask San Francisco voters to renew the Children’s Fund and the Public Education Enrichment Fund – all without raising property tax rates,” said Mayor Lee. “We know we must invest in our schools and our families so we can do even more to prepare our young people for their future. “After many months of discussion, we are excited to bring together one unified measure that we can all support,” said Supervisor Norman Yee, primary sponsor of the proposed Charter Amendment. “This measure is a way for us to come together as a city and collectively prioritize children and families’ needs. We hope that this cultural shift – putting families first – will entice others to choose San Francisco as a place to raise their children.” Supervisor John Avalos said, “With San Francisco’s affordability crisis we Read More …
A scene from ‘Noli’ the opera. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO WASHINGTON, DC – The opera based on Philippine national hero Dr. Jose Rizal’s novel, Noli Me Tangere, will be presented ” on August 8 and 9, at the Eisenhower Tower, John F. Kennedy Center here. “Noli Me Tangere: The Opera,” the first Filipino opera, will be sung in Tagalog with English supertitles and full orchestration. Music and libretto were composed by Philippine National Artists, Felipe de Leon and Guillermo Tolentino respectively. The opera is being produced the by Mid-Atlantic Foundation for Asian Artists, Inc. in cooperation with major sponsor the Migrant Heritage Commission. The novel Noli Me Tangere, published in 1887, exposed the inequities of the Spanish friars and the colonial government, indirectly inspiring the Philippine Revolution. It lampooned and caricatured various social ills during the colonial history of the Philippines. The work also paved the way for a national consciousness and identity and projected the personification of the ideal Filipina woman. Noli Me Tangere in Latin, means “Touch Me Not” and refers to John 20:17 in the Bible as Mary Magdalene tried to touch the newly risen Jesus and he replied, “Touch me not, for I am not yet ascended to my Father. El Filibusterismo is its equally provocative sequel. The novel has been translated into several languages adapted for theater, television and film throughout the last hundred years. The opera is set against the intriguing backdrop of 1890 Spanish colonial Philippines with period costumes and sets. It is being staged Read More …
INQUIRER.net US Bureau 6:17 am | Wednesday, July 9th, 2014 Participants at the First Cultural Exchange Summit at SMX Convention Center. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO More than a hundred guests attended the Philippines’ First Cultural Exchange Summit on June 27 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City. Guests at the summit hosted by First Place Inc. included officials of the US embassy in the Philippines, visa sponsors visiting from the US, school presidents, academic partners from all over the country and alumni participants of overseas programs. Representatives from both the US and Philippine academe exchanged ideas, observations regarding the current state of student travel and experiences, and heard feedback from cultural exchange program alumni. Open dialogues established a list of best practices in the field of student cultural exchange programs. Additionally, the student alumni participants led the founding of the Philippines’ Cultural Exchange Alumni Association, the first of its kind in Southeast Asia. Former J1 students, Work and Travel participants,Internship and Career Training participants and veterans of the U.S. State Department’s other overseas programs all met during the summit. The alumni association was formed to work with First Place Inc.’s embassy partners for the continuous improvement of program procedures and enrichment of future participants. First Place Inc. is a fully Filipino-owned cultural exchange and career training organization. Founded in 1997, it aims to promote cultural exchange with the USA, Australia, UK and other developed countries through official channels, such as the US State Department’s Work and Travel program and the Internship Read More …
US Secretary of State John Kerry: China claim problematic. AP FILE PHOTO BEIJING—China’s claim to almost the whole of the South China Sea is “problematic” and the Asian giant’s actions have raised tensions, a senior US official said on Tuesday on the eve of high-stakes talks. China also disputes islands with Japan, a US security ally that Washington is treaty-bound to defend if attacked. Officials traveling with US Secretary of State John Kerry said they had “heightened concerns” about “the readiness of claimants to utilize military, paramilitary, coast guard forces in furtherance of their claims.” Kerry arrived in Beijing on Tuesday for the sixth Strategic and Economic Dialogue, billed as the main annual meeting between the world’s two largest economies. The two days of tough discussions will seek to chart a path ahead in turbulent China-US ties roiled by differences over Asia-Pacific maritime tensions, Internet hacking and trade issues. China’s claim to the strategic South China Sea also claimed in part by the Philippines and Vietnam, among other Asian countries, is based on a line drawn on 20th century maps. “The ambiguity associated with the nine-dash line is problematic,” said a US official traveling with Kerry. The Philippines, a US treaty ally, has questioned China’s claim in the United Nations International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, and the court has ordered Beijing to comment on Manila’s case by Dec. 15. New Chinese law Beijing has refused to take part in the arbitration proceedings and instead passed a law Read More …
Senate Minority Floor Leader Juan Ponce Enrile is set to undergo a cardiovascular examination on Tuesday morning due to fluctuating blood pressure, Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesperson Chief Supt. Reuben Theodore Sindac said. Sindac said Enrile is set to undergo a two-dimensional echocardiogram (2D Echo) with doppler at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, following a recommendation from his physicians at the PNP General Hospital in Camp Crame where he is confined. On Friday, Enrile’s blood pressure shot up to 200/90 as he surrendered to the PNP after the Sandiganbayan Third Division issued an arrest warrant for plunder charges in connection with his alleged involvement in the multibillion-peso pork barrel fund scam. Sindac said that based on the latest medical examination on Monday, Enrile’s blood pressure went down to 140/70 with a pulse rate of 63 beats per minute.Sindac however said that the PNP doctors still recommended that Enrile undergo the 2D Echo exam to get a clear picture of his heart and assess the flow of blood through and out of his arteries. Earlier in the day, Enrile’s camp asked the Sandiganbayan to temporarily place the 90-year-old senator under hospital arrest at the PNP General Hospital pending the resolution of his motion for bail. In his petition, Enrile cited his advanced age and frail medical condition in his request for hospital detention. A medical certificate issued by Dr. Claver Ramos of Makati Medical Center dated May 6, 2014 stated that Enrile has diabetes mellitus, dyslipiddemia, hypertension, extensive coronary artery calcification in Read More …
CBCP confirms Pope Francis’ visit in 2015. At the CBCP office in Manila on Monday, July 7, Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas (left), Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle (center) and Pasig Bishop Mylo Vergara brief members of the press on the planned visit of Pope Francis to the Philippines in January 2015. Pope Francis will visit the victims of Typhoon Yolanda in the Visayas. AFP/Jay Directo The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines on Monday called on the Filipino faithful to make one act of mercy each day to prepare for the visit of Pope Francis in early 2015. CBCP president and Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas also encouraged priests to make themselves more available for the Sacrament of Reconciliation or Confession. “We encourage you our dear people to resolve to make an act of mercy every day,” Villegas said in a pastoral letter. “When the Pope comes, he will bring with him the message of the mercy and compassion of God. When he meets us, may he see in us a people touched by the mercy of God, living out the compassion of God, a people truly rich in mercy and compassion and grateful to those who have shown mercy to us especially after various calamities hit our country,” Villegas added. He said people can reach out to a lonely stranger, tell the story of Jesus to a child eager to understand and feel the love of God, advise a confused co-worker or “forgive someone who has wronged you.” Villegas Read More …
CBCP confirms Pope Francis’ visit in 2015. At the CBCP office in Manila on Monday, July 7, Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas (left), Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle (center) and Pasig Bishop Mylo Vergara brief members of the press on the planned visit of Pope Francis to the Philippines in January 2015. Pope Francis will visit the victims of Typhoon Yolanda in the Visayas. AFP/Jay Directo The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines won’t issue a statement as regards the impeachment proceedings against President Benigno Aquino III over the Disbursement Acceleration Program, parts of which have been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas, the president of the CBCP, instead called on lawmakers to discern how to deal with the impeachment complaints filed against the Chief Executive. “With regards to the impeachment, let us return to our roles as bishops. As bishops, we are not social and political troublemakers. We are conscience trouble makers. So it is for us to form consciences so that political and social decisions will be made from the point of view of ethics and morality,” Villegas said on Monday. Villegas said it would be good for politicians to base their decisions on ethics and morality. “To answer the question, I will ask you: Will an impeachment process be helpful for the Philippines right now? Will an impeachment process be helpful in alleviating the situation of the poor right now? Will it contribute to reaching out to the children and to the youth Read More …
CBCP confirms Pope Francis’ visit in 2015. At the CBCP office in Manila on Monday, July 7, Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas (left), Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle (center) and Pasig Bishop Mylo Vergara brief members of the press on the planned visit of Pope Francis to the Philippines in January 2015. Pope Francis will visit the victims of Typhoon Yolanda in the Visayas. AFP/Jay Directo Alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim Napoles wants the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines to take her into custody, GMA News’ Balita Pilipinas said on Monday. According to the newscast, Napoles wrote a letter to the CBCP to make her appeal but the latter has yet to respond. Napoles’ lawyer Stephen David said his client believed that she would be safer with the clergy. Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas, the president of the CBCP visited Napoles when she was confined at the Ospital ng Makati. He did so upon the invitation of Napoles’ relatives. Villegas asked Napoles to tell the whole truth as regards the scam. “The family of Mrs. Janet Napoles requested for prayers and blessings for fast recovery. As a priest I went there,” Villegas said. But the prelate said he reminded her that “the blessing [would] only give healing if she [told] the whole truth without being selective.” The businesswoman was known to be close to religious people as she held masses at her office in Discovery Suites and during special occassions at the mausoleum of her mother Magdalena Luy Read More …
By Tetch Torres-Tupas |INQUIRER.net 6:20 pm | Monday, July 7th, 2014 AFP FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—A commanding officer of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Monday pleaded not guilty to the crime of homicide for the death of a Taiwanese fisherman in Balintang Channel in May last year. PCG Commanding Officer Arnold Enriquez dela Cruz pleaded not guilty to the killing of fisherman Hung Shih-cheng at the Batanes Regional Trial Court Branch 13. The court has set the preliminary conference of De la Cruz’s case on September 1 and 2 while his pre-trial has been scheduled to October 6 and 7, according to Asst. State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera. The court, however, deferred the arraignment of Cruz’ co-accused Seamen 1st Class (SN1) Edrando Aguila, Mhelvin Bendo II, Andy Golfo, Sunny Masangcay and Henry Solomon; SN2 Nicky Aurello; and Petty Officer 2 Richard Fernandez Corpuz due to their pending petition for review at the Department of Justice (DOJ) and a petition for a change of venue before the Supreme Court. Atty. Rodrigo Moreno said under the rules, there is an automatic suspension of the proceedings for 60 days if there is a pending motion. Last year, the PCG personnel were on board a vessel of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, patrolling off the coast of Balintang island when they intercepted the Taiwanese fishing vessel allegedly poaching. After a brief sea chase, they fired at the fishing vessel, killing the Taiwanese fisherman. The incident sparked tension between the Philippines and Taiwan. RELATED STORIES Read More …