Maniolas

Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III has sought an inquiry on the alleged increasing number of torture and ill-treatment in the country particularly during police investigation, as reported by Amnesty International. In Senate Resolution 1049 filed on December 4, Pimentel asked the Senate Committee on Justice to conduct an inquiry and help enact laws which would further prevent torturous activities, provide mechanisms for the effective investigation and restitution of legitimate claims of torture and end impunity. “Sadly, we are faced with a situation where those who are primarily entrusted to enforce the law, serve the people, and protect their welfare may have been the ones who may have violated the laws that they are bound to execute,” the senator said.  Based on the AI report, the Commission on Human Rights in 2013 recorded 75 cases of alleged torture, the highest number of incidents reported in any year so far. In 60 of the cases, police officers were implicated as perpetrators. Of the 28 cases recorded from January to July in 2014, 22 involved police officers. Most victims were from disadvantaged and marginalized backgrounds and those most at risk to be tortured are women, children, repeat offenders, and suspects whose alleged crimes have personally affected police officers. Also at risk are those so-called police assets who have fallen out of favor with local police officers, political activitists and suspected members or sympathizers of armed groups. Pimentel said what was more saddening was that the present number of victims of torture and ill-treatment Read More …

popular Kiefer Ravena emerge as top collegiate baller of 2014 Church: Pope banners with biz firms’ logos fund-raisers Aquino urged to name new PNP chief PH child actor wins in France Manila back in the black, says Mayor Estrada Binay: UNA in talks with LP’s Recto, Osmeña to join 2016 senatorial slate Holiday Cheer: John Arcilla A heartening letter from an animal lover videos Hundreds of passengers stranded at Matnog port due to Ruby Time-warped with Lemonheads at Whitespace Filipino peacekeepers granted holiday break, exempted from ‘Ruby’ red alert Tablet shopping: ‘More cores aren’t always better’ Ombudsman suspends PNP officials In this photo taken on October 3, 2011 freed US woman Gerfa Yeatts Lunsmann (C) and Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat (L) give a press conference in the southern city of Zamboanga after she was freed by armed men in nearby Basilan island. AFP / HO / Office of Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat FILE PHOTO WASHINGTON — A US jury has indicted four Philippine nationals sought in the 2011 kidnapping of an American woman and her teenage son during a family vacation in the Philippines. Gerfa Lunsmann was held hostage for 82 days and her son Kevin for 151 days in the abduction, in which the family was forced to pay ransom. After the mother was released, her son escaped his captors. Federal prosecutors said the two were taken hostage from an island beach cottage off the mainland of Zamboanga City. None of the four defendants, who were not Read More …

Department of Foreign Affairs building. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—The government still has no solid quarantine policy that it should implement for returning Filipinos from the three West African countries stricken with the deadly Ebola virus. The government interagency body tasked to come up with such a policy failed to reach an agreement at a meeting in Malacañang last Wednesday, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs, which is a member of the group. “There was no decision reached in Malacañang so I think this needs to be studied,” said the DFA spokesperson, Assistant Secretary Charles Jose. Jose said the government will have to defer its plan to raise alert level 3 in the West African nations of Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, which would have called for the voluntary repatriation of Filipinos there. The government agencies met last Wednesday to come up with a policy on whether or not it should implement quarantine regulations for Filipinos returning from the three afflicted West African states, and if it does, the length of the quarantine period. The government has been observing a 21-day quarantine period for returning Filipinos, imposing it on the Filipino soldiers returning from United Nations peacekeeping duties in Liberia and who just last weekend completed the quarantine period. There are 14 Filipino workers just arrived from the Ebola-stricken countries who are now being held at the Bureau of Quarantine office at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. Jose told reporters that pending the Palace approval of a quarantine protocol, Read More …