Maniolas

Devotees in Kidapawan City flock to Blessed John Paul II statue. Catholic devotees on Sunday, April 27, 2014, flock to a statue of Blessed John Paul II at the Jesus the Good Shepherd Parish in Barangay Amas, Kidapawan City in Cotabato, hours before the canonization rites in Vatican City for the late pontiff. Williamor A. Magbanua Thousands of Filipinos joined in the celebration of the canonization of Saints John Paul II and John XXIII on Sunday. According to GMA reporter Sandra Aguinaldo, who covered the celebration of the canonization at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao on Sunday afternoon, Quezon City might as well have been Vatican City. People from all walks of life packed the coliseum, “24 Oras” reported. Multiple big screens were set up in the coliseum so the audience could witness the historic event. After watching the live feed of the canonization rites in the Vatican, a procession of the relics of Saints John Paul II and John XXII followed. Manila Archbishop Cardinal Luis Tagle then celebrated a Holy Mass. In his homily, the cardinal opined that everyone could be as holy as the two new saints. “I have to convince myself, these faces are faces of people that can be holy…called by God,” he said. “Kahit ganyan ang mga mukha natin,” he quipped. Tagle turned emotional as he recalled how he, who used to sleep in class in his younger years, was called by God and now serves as a cardinal. Apart from the canonizations, the Catholic Read More …

President Barack Obama AP FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines — Will the United States, the Philippines’ only defense treaty ally, come to its rescue if the row over portions of the South China Sea escalates into an armed conflict with Beijing? Washington has expressed support for Manila amid its raging territorial dispute with China. But the question still begs to be answered more categorically when US President Barack Obama wraps up his four-nation Asian trip in Manila where he’s expected to seal a deal allowing more American troops on Philippine soil. Obama is set to arrive at 1:30 p.m. on Monday (April 28) in Manila, the last stop of a seven-day Asian swing that also brought him to Japan, South Korea and Malaysia. Hounding him throughout the trip were questions on how he would reassure allies of Washington’s support amid China’s expansionism and growing military and economic influence in the region. It’s the same question that will confront him when he and President Benigno Aquino face the media in a joint press conference in Malacanang at 3:25 p.m. The Philippine and US panels have reportedly completed the Agreement on Enhanced Defense Cooperation, which would provide American troops greater access to military bases around the country. But on the eve of Obama’s arrival, Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma said the Palace was still awaiting word from the Philippine panel on whether both sides had reached an agreement. As of 12:30 p.m. when he held his regular Sunday briefing on radio, he said both Read More …

By Germelina LacorteInquirer Mindanao 5:41 pm | Sunday, April 27th, 2014 President Barack Obama. AP FILE PHOTO DAVAO CITY, Philippines – The international rights watchdog Human Rights Watch (HRW) urged US President Barack Obama to use his Manila visit to press the Philippine government to fulfill pledges to improve respect for human rights and accountability for serious abuses. “President Benigno Aquino III’s administration has undertaken reform efforts in some areas but failed to match rhetoric with meaningful action to end impunity for extrajudicial killings, torture, and enforced disappearances,” Human Rights Watch said in a statement. “While abuses overall have decreased since the previous Arroyo administration, killings of political activists, environmental advocates, and local politicians continue with alarming frequency and have begun to rise again, in many cases with apparent involvement by local authorities and the security forces,” the HRW said. “The Philippines remains a risky place to be an outspoken activist or muckraking journalist,” said John Sifton, HRW Asia advocacy director. “People taking on powerful local interests all too frequently make the news as victims, and those responsible for killings are almost never prosecuted,” Sifton added. The rights watchdog also wrote a letter to Obama the previous month, urging the US president to raise human rights issues during his visit to Manila. “The last year featured a major surge in killings of journalists in the Philippines: 12 were killed in 2013, bringing to 26 the total number of media workers killed since Aquino took office in 2010,” the HRW statement Read More …