MANILA (Mabuhay) — Malacanang said Libyan authorities were able to rescue the three Filipino nurses abducted in Libya last Wednesday and the Philippine government is working with the Libyan government on how to secure Filipinos in that country. In a press briefing in Malacanang on Friday, Deputy Presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said the Department of […]
MANILA (Mabuhay) -– More than a year after breaking up with actress Angelica Panganiban, actor Derek Ramsay revealed he has found love again. Ramsay admitted that he is currently in a relationship but refused to divulge her identity. “I have a girlfriend but she’s not from showbiz. I guess I have learned my lesson,” he […]
MANILA (Mabuhay) — YOUNG stars Enchong Dee and Julia Montes are starting to build their friendship again after their supposed failed romance. Last year, Enchong was vocal in saying that he’s ready to court Julia when she finally turns 18, but things started to falter between the two even before the actress celebrated her debut. […]
MANILA (Mabuhay) — The Department of Health-National Capital Region (DOH-NCR) and the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) conducted early Friday their regular misting (space spraying), disinfecting and clean-up drive of bus terminals along EDSA. The activities started at 6:30 a.m. with simultaneous clean-up operation by the MMDA and distribution of flyers and posters on preventive […]
MANILA (Mabuhay) — President Benigno S. Aquino III will not resort to propaganda as a form of communication and continues to uphold the people’s right of access to information, Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio “Sonny” B. Coloma Jr. said on Friday. “The President does not equate good news for propaganda,” Coloma told representatives […]
MANILA (Mabuhay) — The Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) on Friday said it plans to move the Philippine Air Force (PAF) out of Clark so more land could be made available for development inside the Freeport. “The BCDA is eyeing the transfer of the Philippine Air Force in Clark to enable us to utilize […]
By Tarra QuismundoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 4:09 pm | Monday, July 15th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines–Hoping to bring its services closer to more Filipinos, the Canadian government has opened new visa centers in two key cities here to ease the application process for Philippine citizens. The Canadian Embassy in Manila announced on Monday its new visa application centers (VACs) in Makati City and Cebu City, facilities that aim “to make the process of applying for a visa to enter Canada easier and more convenient.” Those planning a trip to Canada may now apply at Canada’s VACs at the Ecoplaza Building on Chino Roces Avenue Extension in Makati City and the Keppel Center at the Cebu Business Park, Cebu City. Previously, visa processing was centralized at the Canadian Embassy at the RCBC Plaza on Ayala Avenue in Makati City. The opening of the two Canadian VACs is part of Citizenship and Immigration Canada’s (CIC) efforts to widen its presence around the world, the Embassy said in a statement yesterday. “CIC is expanding its VAC network around the world to provide valuable administrative support to applicants before, during and after their temporary resident application is assessed by a CIC immigration officer,” the Embassy said in a statement. The visa services expansion is part of Canada’s plans to encourage more people to visit and work there to bolster the Canadian economy. “The Government of Canada plans to create new jobs and stimulate economic growth by attracting an increasing number of visitors as well as the Read More …
By Matikas SantosINQUIRER.net 3:39 pm | Monday, July 15th, 2013 DFA spokesman Raul Hernandez INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines – Accept that we own the entire South China Sea (West Philippine Sea) before we talk. That was gist of “the Chinese unequivocal message” on the territorial dispute with the Philippines over the West Philippine Sea (WPS) despite several attempts at negotiations, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) spokesman Assistant Secretary Raul Hernandez told reporters Monday. “It has, therefore, become impossible to continue bilateral discussion on disputes in the WPS with China on the basis of this rigid position,” Hernandez said. “This led us to finally resort to arbitration under Annex VII of the United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Seas (UNCLOS),” he said. The DFA’s statement was in response to another statement by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs that said “the Philippine’s claim that it had exhausted almost all political and diplomatic avenues for a peaceful settlement of dispute is completely not true.” Hernandez said that their statement was baseless and he enumerated the many attempts of the Philippines to settle the dispute. “Since intrusions in the Bajo de Masinloc (Panatag Shoal or Scarborough Shoal) started in April 2012 alone, we have had nearly fifty consultations with China,” he said. The DFA had officially asked China to bring the issue “to a dispute settlement mechanism to resolve the issue on a long-term basis” through a note verbale dated April 26, 2012. Hernandez said that China replied that it Read More …
Associated Press 1:12 pm | Monday, July 15th, 2013 BANGKOK — Asian stock markets posted modest gains Monday, registering relief that a slowdown in China’s economic growth wasn’t as sharp as feared. The world’s second-largest economy grew 7.5 percent from a year earlier in the second quarter, slowing from the previous quarter’s 7.7 percent, as weak trade and a clampdown on lending took their toll. It was the second consecutive quarter of slowing growth but still strong enough to suggest China will meet Beijing’s 7.5 percent growth target for this year. A clampdown on overly fast growth in lending had contributed to jitters that China’s growth might fall below 7 percent. That would hurt companies around the world that have become increasingly reliant on breakneck Chinese growth to boost earnings. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 0.4 percent at 21,369.00 and Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.3 percent to 4,985.90. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.3 percent 1,875.70. Japan’s financial markets were closed for a public holiday. Elsewhere, benchmarks in Singapore, Thailand and New Zealand rose while Indonesia and India fell. The gains in Asia came after Wall Street eked out new highs. After spending most of Friday flat or down, U.S. stocks rallied at the last minute and closed slightly higher, just enough to post record highs for the Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor’s 500. The gains were tiny. And the record doesn’t mean much for investors, who hardly have any more money now than they did Read More …
By Norman BordadoraPhilippine Daily Inquirer 6:55 am | Monday, July 15th, 2013 The Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC) has dismissed Priscilla Mijares et al.’s petition to enforce in the Philippines an 18-year-old United States District Court decision awarding some $2 billion from the Marcos estate to victims of human rights violations during the late dictator’s administration. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—The Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC) has dismissed Priscilla Mijares et al.’s petition to enforce in the Philippines an 18-year-old United States District Court decision awarding some $2 billion from the Marcos estate to victims of human rights violations during the late dictator’s administration. A PDF copy of the 11-page decision rendered by Judge Bonifacio Pascua of Makati RTC Branch 56 was furnished the Inquirer by the staff of Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who expressed the family’s feeling of vindication on the heels of the June 25 ruling. “Even if we were to espouse fear or threat as reasons for plaintiffs not to file the same in the Philippines, MDL No. 840 was filed in 1991, or five years after Ferdinand E. Marcos was deposed,” the Makati court said in dismissing the plaintiffs’ petition for enforcing the Hawaii court’s award of billions of dollars in damages. “Moreover, the case was filed on foreign soil nearly two years after the death of Ferdinand E. Marcos. A thought along the line of fear or threat on the plaintiffs that could have precluded their filing of a case in the Philippines is obviously imaginary,” Read More …