PH to press UN case on disputed sea despite China rejection

 News
Feb 202013
 
PH to press UN case on disputed sea despite China rejection

By Tarra Quismundo Philippine Daily Inquirer 5:38 am | Thursday, February 21st, 2013 DFA spokesman Assistant Secretary Raul Hernandez: We’ll proceed. INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—The arbitration proceedings that the Philippines has initiated before the United Nations (UN) against China to nullify the latter’s “excessive” claims in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) will not stop despite Beijing’s rejection of the legal action, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). However, the enforcement of any decision of the UN arbitral tribunal, three or four years down the road, will be “another question,” said DFA spokesman Assistant Secretary Raul Hernandez. “The arbitration will proceed under Annex VII of Unclos (UN Convention on the Law of the Sea) and the five-member arbitration panel will be formed with or without China,” Hernandez said. “Even if one party does not join or participate, the process will continue until a decision is made,” he said. Article 9 of Unclos’ Annex VII, which stipulates the mechanics of arbitration, states that the “absence of a party or failure of a party to defend its case shall not constitute a bar to the proceedings.” On Jan. 22, the Philippines went to the UN to challenge Beijing’s claim to most of the South China Sea (which the Philippines refers to as the West Philippine Sea) and compel it to respect the Philippines’ right to its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and stop Chinese incursions into areas in the disputed waters claimed by the Philippines. The Philippines initiated the Read More …

Trillanes: Make known Sabah policy

 News
Feb 202013
 
Trillanes: Make known Sabah policy

Kirams given till Friday to recall forces By Norman Bordadora Philippine Daily Inquirer 12:02 am | Thursday, February 21st, 2013 Senator Antonio Trillanes IV. INQUIRER.net/Noy Morcoso III CEBU CITY—Reelectionist Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV on Wednesday called on the Aquino administration to make known its policy on the country’s claim to Sabah and on the standoff between Malaysian security forces and a group of armed followers of the sultan of Sulu in the eastern Malaysian territory. The standoff in Tanduao village in Sabah’s Lahad Datu town has entered a second week, with Malaysian authorities saying on Wednesday that the situation is under control and that the Filipinos from Sulu will be deported soon. Emissaries from the Aquino administration are working quietly to convince Sultan Jamalul Kiram to recall his followers from Sabah. According to a highly placed source of the Inquirer in the Cabinet, Jamalul and his other brother, Bantilan Esmail Kiram II, must decide by Friday whether to call their followers home. On Wednesday, Esmail was going to see Jamalul, who is undergoing dialysis in a Manila hospital, to talk to him and make a decision, the source said. It is believed that the Malaysian government has given the sultan’s followers a deadline to leave or be rounded up and deported, but agreed to an extension of the deadline “by a few days” to allow the sultan and his family to reconsider their demand to stay in Sabah. President Aquino’s former backchannel link to Beijing at the height of tensions Read More …

Families look for relief from US immigration bill

 News
Feb 202013
 
Families look for relief from US immigration bill

Associated Press 2:40 pm | Wednesday, February 20th, 2013 Maricris Arce poses for a picture at her home in Anaheim, California Friday. Arce, a native of the Philippines, said she was separated from her husband for five years after coming legally to the US, and he wasn’t present for the birth of their first child. AP WASHINGTON— If America is a nation of immigrants, it’s also a nation of immigrants’ husbands, wives, parents and children — and their brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews too. That could begin to change under legislation being written in the Senate, where the nation’s longstanding emphasis on family-based immigration is coming under scrutiny. Unlike most other industrialized nations, the US awards a much larger proportion of permanent residency status to family members of US citizens and permanent residents than to foreigners with job prospects here. About two-thirds of permanent legal immigration to the US is family-based, compared with about 15 percent that is employment-based, according to the Migration Policy Institute. The remainder is largely humanitarian. It’s a lopsided ratio that may change under a bill being crafted by a Senate bipartisan negotiating group that is aiming to release legislation next month. Several senators involved in the talks said employment-based immigration must increase to help American competitiveness and the US economy. High-tech companies have been pleading for more workers, and some Republicans, in particular, believe the educational backgrounds and employment potential of prospective immigrants should be a bigger part of the calculus in awarding green cards, Read More …

China rejects Philippine UN mediation bid

 News
Feb 202013
 
China rejects Philippine UN mediation bid

Associated Press 2:38 pm | Wednesday, February 20th, 2013 AP FILE PHOTO BEIJING—China said Tuesday it has rejected the Philippines’ attempt to seek international arbitration over conflicting claims to territory in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said that China’s ambassador to Manila, Ma Keqing, had returned Manila’s formal notification of the move to a Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) official. Hong said the proposal was historically and legally incorrect and contained unacceptable accusations against China. The Philippines informed China last month of its plans to take the countries’ conflicting claims to a tribunal operating under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. It wants the panel to declare Beijing’s moves in the potentially oil-rich waters unlawful. The DFA said in a statement Tuesday that China’s rejection will not interfere with the arbitration process that the Philippines has started. “The Philippines remains committed to arbitration, which is a friendly, peaceful and durable form of dispute settlement that should be welcomed by all,” the statement said. Even if a tribunal ruled against China, Beijing could choose to ignore the ruling. Six governments have overlapping claims in the West Philippine Sea. China claims sovereignty over virtually all of it. Chinese paramilitary ships confronted Philippine vessels last year in a monthslong standoff over a disputed shoal. China has effectively controlled the shoal since June, when Manila withdrew its ships as a typhoon approached. There are fears that territorial conflicts in the region, Read More …

Govt urged to drop charges vs. Mancao

 News
Feb 202013
 
Govt urged to drop charges vs. Mancao

A former lawyer of erstwhile Senior Superintendent Cezar Mancao II on Wednesday appealed to the government to finally discharge Mancao as an accused in the Dacer-Corbito double murder case. Ferdinand Topacio noted how all the principal accused in the case, except Mancao, had already been cleared from charges and are now living normal lives. “It is becoming exceedingly ironic that many of the principal accused in the Dacer-Corbito Double Murder Case have been able to assume normal lives, while a person who has risked his all for the government to be able to pursue the prosecution of the case – former Colonel Cezar Mancao —  remains detained and jobless,” said Topacio. Sen. Panfilo Lacson, allegedly one of the masterminds in the killing of publicist Salvador “Bubby” Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito in November 2000, has already been cleared by the Court of Appeals in a ruling that was later on upheld by the Supreme Court. The SC said the Dacer family can no longer appeal the CA’s decision because the government, represented by the Office of the Solicitor General, has decided to forego its opportunity to file an appeal. Another suspect, former Superintendent Glenn Dumlao, has already been reinstated in the Philippine National Police and has recently been embroiled in a controversial encounter between security forces and suspected criminals in Atimonan, Quezon. Meanwhile, former police intelligence officer Michael Ray Aquino has recently been ordered released by a Manila court and is reportedly seeking reinstatement as a police officer, according Read More …

3 Chinese nationals on way to court hearing for drug case ‘abducted’ in Cavite

 News
Feb 192013
 
3 Chinese nationals on way to court hearing for drug case ‘abducted’ in Cavite

By Jamie Marie Elona INQUIRER.net 1:27 pm | Wednesday, February 20th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines–Three Chinese nationals who were being brought by police to court for a hearing on a drug case were allegedly abducted by armed men in Cavite Wednesday morning, police said. Chief Superintendent Benito Estipona, Calabarzon police director, said the three – Li Tian Hua, Wang Li Na and Li Lan Yan – were seized by roughly 20 armed men around 10 a.m. in Trece Martires. The victims’ four security escorts were disarmed, Estipona said, adding that the gunmen escaped with the detainees on a white van with license plate WTT 544, which was later found abandoned in Barangay (village) Aguado in Trece Martires. Police had launched a hot pursuit operation for the possible recovery of the Chinese nationals.

Brillantes: Stopping contest won't spare Jamby from probe

 News
Feb 192013
 
Brillantes: Stopping contest won't spare Jamby from probe

Taking down the announcement and stopping her online contest will not spare senatorial candidate Jamby Madrigal from the investigation of the Commission on Elections (Comelec), poll chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. said Wednesday. “Kahit tanggalin niya, naumpisahan na. Ultimately, pag makita na may violation tutuluyan namin, disqualification at possible criminal election offense,” Brillantes told reporters as he confirmed that it was Madrigal whom they were investigating. Brillantes on Tuesday bared that they were investigating an administration senatorial candidate for alleged illegal campaigning for launching an online contest with an iPad as prize. He, however, did not identify the candidate. Madrigal, in an interview later Tuesday, admitted that she launched the contest but refused to comment on the issue until she and her lawyers receive the formal complaint from the Comelec. The Facebook page of the contest has since been taken down. Brillantes welcomed Madrigal’s decision to stop the contest as it will “mitigate the action” of the Comelec. He noted that since the candidate has yet to give an iPad as prize, the act is not consummated yet. “Tingin ko hindi pa naman nagbibigay ng premyo so hindi pa consummated ‘yung act. Pero hindi pa tapos ang checking,  [we’re] verifying pa kung may case to file,” he said.   Asked if there are other candidates being investigated for a similar alleged offense, Brillantes said Madrigal’s was the only case he knew. “So far isa pa lang. Ewan ko kung may nakitang bago.”   He noted that most of the senatorial candidates Read More …

LP, NPC spokespersons: No rift within coalition

 News
Feb 192013
 
LP, NPC spokespersons: No rift within coalition

Spokespersons for the Liberal Party and the Nationalist People’s Coalition on Wednesday denied any rift in their coalition, following a newspaper report saying that the NPC cannot assure its support to all senatorial bets of the administration coalition. Valenzuela Rep. Rex Gatchalian, NPC spokesperson, said his party is not dissolving its partnership agreement with the LP. “The party is steadfast in working towards the electoral success of the coalition candidates. The NPC will continue to support the President and his reform agenda till his last day in office,” Gatchalian said in a text message. He added that none of the party’s officials have made a statement that the NPC will not endorse all of the ruling party’s senatorial candidates for the 2013 polls.  A report published on The Manila Bulletin, however, quoted former Pangasinan Rep. Mark Cojuangco, son of NPC founder Eduardo Cojuangco, as saying that the party can guarantee its support to only three of the 12 senatorial bets of the LP-lead coalition. “Only two NPC senatorial bets, three including Chiz (Senator Francis Escudero), have a guarantee of our support,” the Manila Bulletin report quoted Cojuangco as saying.  But the NPC has only one candidate in the administration coalition, re-electionist Senator Loren Legarda. Another re-electionist, Senator Francis Escudero, was formerly aligned with the NPC, but decided to bolt the party in 2009. The administration coalition also includes candidates from the Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (LDP), the Nacionalista Party (NP), the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) and the Akbayan Read More …

Big waves, poor visibility hamper crane ship's work to salvage USS Guardian

 News
Feb 192013
 
Big waves, poor visibility hamper crane ship's work to salvage USS Guardian

Big waves and poor visibility are hounding the crew of a crane ship tasked to help in the salvage operation for the grounded US minesweeper USS Guardian, the Philippine Coast Guard said. Coast Guard spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Armand Balilo said the JASCON 25 is still near Tubbataha Reef but is encountering big waves and strong winds, radio dzBB’s Carlo Mateo reported. The report quoted Balilo as saying the continued bad weather conditions have so far prevented the ship’s crew from pushing through with salvage work. Earlier Wednesday, Task Force Tubbataha head and Coast Guard Palawan commander Commodore Enrico Evangelista said they may have to postpone salvage work due to bad weather. However, Evangelista said there is still no change so far in their timetable to remove the USS Guardian from the reef by March 23. On the other hand, the dzBB report quoted Balilo as saying that despite the bad weather conditions, JASCON 25 is not returning to Puerto Princesa City. Balilo said they are hoping that when Tropical Depression Crising leaves the Philippine area of responsibility on Thursday, the Coast Guard and the salvage team can finally get salvage work going. For now, he said the safety of those involved in the salvage work is their main concern. — LBG, GMA News

TD Crising slows down, but storm signals still hoisted

 News
Feb 192013
 
TD Crising slows down, but storm signals still hoisted

Predicted track for TD Crising as of 20Feb2013. TD Crising is expected to leave the Philippine Area of Responsibility by early morning tomorrow, Thursday, 21Feb2013. Weather Central Tropical Depression (TD) Crising slowed down as it crossed the Sulu Sea before noon Wednesday, even as two areas were placed under Storm Signal No. 1, state weather forecasters said. PAGASA, in its 11 a.m. advisory, said Tropical Depression Crising was estimated at 220 km northwest of Zamboanga City as of 10 a.m. It said Crising packed maximum winds of 45 kph near the center and is moving west-northwest at 19 kph. By Thursday morning, PAGASA said Crising is expected to be 280 km southwest of Puerto Princesa City. By Thursday evening, it estimated Crising to be 480 km southwest of Puerto Princesa City. Under Storm Signal No. 1 are Southern Palawan and Zamboanga del Norte. Storm warning signals in other areas had been lowered, PAGASA said. It said Crising may bring rainfall of 5 to 15 mm per hour (moderate to heavy) within its 300-km diameter. “Residents living in low-lying and mountainous areas under Storm Signal No. 1 are alerted against possible flash floods and landslides,” PAGASA said.  PAGASA also reminded fishing boats and other small seacraft against going out into the northern, eastern and southern seaboards of Luzon, the central and eastern seaboards of Visayas and eastern seaboard of Mindanao. LPA off Puerto Princesa  Meanwhile, PAGASA said a low-pressure area northwest of Puerto Princesa City has dissipated. — TJD, GMA News

 Older Entries  Newer Entries