Maniolas

Indonesian presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto, center, talks to journalist after casting his ballot at a polling station at a polling station, Bojong Koneng in Bogor, Indonesia, Wednesday, July 9, 2014. AP JAKARTA — After the most polarizing campaign in Indonesia’s history, millions of people voted to elect a new president Wednesday in a race too tight to predict, hoping for change that will fight corruption and poverty. The world’s third-largest democracy is divided over two very different choices: Joko Widodo, a one-time furniture maker and Prabowo Subianto, a wealthy ex-army general with close links to former dictator Suharto. Just a couple of months ago, the election was considered firmly in favor of Widodo, who rose from humble beginnings to become the governor of Jakarta with a squeaky-clean political record. But a late surge by Subianto has vastly improved his chances after he wooed legions of supporters with calls for nationalism despite allegations of widespread human rights abuses during his military career and his connection with Suharto — his former father-in-law. Widodo’s appeal is that he is seen as a man of the people who wants to advance democratic reforms even though he lacks experience in national politics, and represents a break from the past as the first candidate in direct elections with no connection to the 1966-1998 Suharto-era and its excesses. When the polls opened Wednesday morning to about 190 million people, analysts predicted that undecided voters would determine the winner. The polls closed early in the afternoon, and preliminary Read More …

WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN Calle Crisologo at night is the face of Vigan City, Ilocos Sur province, in its quest to land on the list of the world’s New 7 Wonder Cities. Vigan has made it to the short list of 21 cities. LEONCIO BALBIN JR./INQUIRER NORTHERN LUZON VIGAN, Philippines—Residents and netizens in this Ilocos Sur capital woke up to the news that the country’s only heritage city made it to the list of 21 finalists in the new Seven Wonder Cities of the World race. But they knew that the campaign to push Vigan to the finish line had just started as the fresh round of voting starts on Monday and ends on Oct. 7. “This is not the end of the road. We’ve only just Vigan (a play on the song, ‘We’ve only just begun’),” read a Facebook post on Vigan’s web page. Vigan made it to the penultimate round in the search and needs a further boost over the next three months to advance to the final round of voting. Organizers of the New7Wonders Cities campaign earlier observed that Vigan, a trading port long before the conquering Spaniards arrived in the late 16th century, had been losing steam but got a second wind in the run-up to the July 7 cut-off. Vigan City Mayor Eva Marie Medina, who was out of the country when the list was released, sent a text message to city employees thanking Bigueños and Filipinos around the world for helping Vigan’s bid. Vigan, known for its Spanish-era mansions, cobblestone streets and culture, is the lone Philippine candidate in the global Read More …

• 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 …

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 …