Feb 232015
 
Talks with Hollande to run from terror to climate change

French President Francois Hollande FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines–The arrival of French President François Hollande in Manila on Thursday is expected to not only further boost bilateral economic ties between France and the Philippines but also highlight the latter country’s role in the fight against climate change. “This visit has two important aspects. First, it is to highlight the very positive phase in the bilateral relations between France and the Philippines. The French President would like to take this opportunity to reaffirm the friendly ties between our two countries,” French Ambassador Gilles Garachon said in a statement. The state visit of Hollande to the Philippines is also said to come at a “dynamic phase in the bilateral ties between the two countries and at a time when international negotiations on the environment approach a crucial stage.” Earlier, Malacañang said President Aquino and President Hollande would discuss the extreme terrorism that has hit France and the Philippines. According to the French Embassy, Hollande’s visit will see the signing of cooperation agreements in the areas of development, tourism, health and academic exchanges. Business-to-business trade agreements will be concluded during a forum hosted by the Makati Business Club on Feb. 26. Hollande will be accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Development Laurent Fabius, Minister of State for Development and Francophony Annick Girardin, and Minister of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy Ségolène Royal. The delegation will be joined by personalities renowned for their environmental advocacies, such as Marion Cotillard, Mélanie Laurent, Patriarch Read More …

Feb 232015
 
DOH allays bird flu fears after OFW from China dies

MANILA, Philippines–A 52-year-old Filipino musician who returned recently from China died two weeks ago after days of showing symptoms of the bird flu. His death, however, ended the possibility of the virus would spread in the country, according to the Department of Health. At a press briefing on Monday, acting Health Secretary Janette Garin said the overseas Filipino worker’s death was considered a possible case of avian flu due to his travel history, exposure to live poultry, the symptoms he showed and the quick progress of his condition. The OFW developed a cough, fever and diarrhea a day after he arrived on Feb. 9. He died on Feb. 14 after a couple of visits to the hospital for treatment, Garin told reporters. “He had been working in China for six years but he decided to come home and be with his family when he felt he was becoming weak,” she said. “This patient was initially referred to as a possible case of MERS (Middle east respiratory syndrome). However, upon review of his case profile, avian flu was a more proximate consideration,” said Garin. People who had close contact with the patient before his death had already been given prophylaxis treatment for a week using Tamiflu, a frontline drug to treat bird flu. They have also been cleared of the virus after a week-long observation, which ended on Feb. 21. Garin said health experts from Hong Kong closely monitored and guided local specialists in handling the suspected bird flu case. “Initially, Read More …

Feb 232015
 
Sprouts are tops in health benefits

I have a friend, a certified health buff, who sends me a bushel of alfalfa from her garden as often as she can. I’m not really a veggie lover; the one and only vegetable I have an enduring relationship with is chocolate (which comes from cacao beans and is, therefore, legally a veggie). Although green is my favorite color, I cringe at the sight of greens. But well-meaning people, like my alfalfa pusher of a friend, try to get me to get more greens into my colorless, lackluster diet.  Alfalfa can be a good fresh start; after all, alfalfa in Arabic means father of plants. Growing in warmer temperate climates, it is a powerhouse of nutrition as it sends its roots down 20 or so feet into the ground and brings up the minerals that you won’t find on the surface.  See, there’s nothing superficial about this plant. Fact is, alfalfa is considered the richest land source of trace minerals and is rich in vitamins A, C, E, and zinc. The World’s Healthiest Food gives this down-to-earth explanation as to what makes sprouts so nutritious: “[M]any of the foods we eat begin their plant life as sprouts. Sprouting is simply the way that a seed cracks open for the first time and sends a root or a leaf stalk poking upward out of the soil and into the open air. Because the sprouting stage of growth is so unique in the life of a plant, there has been special interest Read More …

Feb 232015
 
Celebrity Sheep: Healthy due to calmness

Keith Urban: The cool American Idol judge works out with wife Nicole Kidman in a gym near their Nashville home.   Sheep are generally calm, serene, and gentle. They are said to be mild-mannered, shy, sympathetic, amicable, good-hearted, and just. The calmness of sheep makes them less stressed, which has positive effects on their health and well-being. It was also observed that sheep love fresh and organic produce. Intrigued, I looked into the health and lifestyle of seven US celebrities born in the Year of the Sheep (2015 is the Year of the Wood Sheep). Fire Sheep (1907, 1967) according to www.chinahighlights.com are “amicable, frank and honest, always making everything clean and tidy, and are seldom disliked by others. They are always ready to help their friends, disregarding their own personal gains or losses, so they are very popular. As far as marriage is concerned, they are not suited to getting married early on.” • Vin Diesel (born July 18, 1967 in New York) is best known for his role as Riddick in The Chronicles of Riddick trilogy from 2001 to 2013 and as Dominic Toretto in The Fast and The Furious film series from 2001 to the present. He also acts as producer in both film franchises. Men’s Health UK wrote “Via his Facebook page — third in popularity behind Michael Jackson’s and Barack Obama’s — Diesel keeps in regular contact with people in every corner of the world, delivering his thoughts on love, peace, and energy. Diesel stresses Read More …

Feb 232015
 
Anjanette: Blast from the past Gov. Joey accepts Xian apology Ser Chief on cancelled concert

Showbiz is burning with explosive issues. So what else is new? Controversy is the lifeblood of the business. I suspect that if all stars behave (they really should, don’t you think?), showbiz will be bereft of excitement. • Issue No. 1: Anjanette Abayari hit by blast from the past. When nobody was looking, Anjanette broke her 15-year absence by breezing back home with her sons Aiden and Ashton. The persona-non-grata status slapped on her by then Pres. Joseph “Erap” Estrada, after she was detained in Guam for a drug case, was reversed by the court. Obviously a changed (read: drug-free) woman now, Anjanette said she’s here (from Jan. 31 until first week of March) to shoot two action B-movies, Showdown in Manila and Blood Raid (with Michael Dudikoff as co-star in one of them) by two US-based companies, and to sort of “feel the water” if she still has space in the local industry. First on her agenda was to pay his father, a stroke patient, a visit in her native Iloilo City, whom she hasn’t seen in 10 years. Anjanette’s flourishing career was rudely cut short by the drug incident, similar to what also happened to Alma Concepcion in Guam. Inevitably, Anjanette was hit by a blast from the past when she guested on Startalk last Saturday. In answer to host Lolit Solis’ question, Anjanette recalled that her then boyfriend David Bunevacz (now married to Jessica Rodriguez and living in California with their family) sold her Rolex watch, her Read More …

Feb 232015
 
In praise of Bo

Showbiz is inarguably fascinating. You may be dying of hunger, fatigue and sleeplessness but once the cameras start to roll, you smile or cry and as an actor you offer no excuses. In the entertainment business, longevity is the name of the game. Only the fittest lasts. You have to make the right moves and decisions equipped with talent and stamina because the way to stardom is filled with lethal landmines that can mercilessly kill dreams or delusions. You are famous today but no one knows your name tomorrow. Fame is so ephemeral, it can be toxic and certainly not for the faint of heart. It was not a walk in the park for me when I started in showbiz. I was besieged by an avalanche of challenges — both external and internal. This is the reason why I continue to work hard because I know that I’m just as good as my last interview. But I am deeply grateful when I receive inspiring comments from friends and viewers. And I listen to meaningful criticisms with humility and courage. I recently received text and e-mail messages for The Bottomline episodes featuring Bo Sanchez and the “Filipino Cinderella of Japan” Abby Watabe which I am printing here en toto: Bo Sanchez episode (Dec. 20, 2014) From Fe Arellano: “Hello Boy. Watching Bottomline last night with Bo Sanchez was indeed an inspiring experience. Your style of interview and strategically worded questions leave every viewer a sense of admiration and satisfaction. I will always Read More …

Feb 232015
 
Anne Curtis to release new album

Anne Curtis (MNS photo) Although she readily admits that she is a “non-singer,” this has not stopped actress-host Anne Curtis from pursuing a career in music, in addition to acting and hosting. In her official Twitter account, Curtis told her more than 7.8 million followers that she is releasing a new album – her third since her debut album “AnneBisyosa,” which reached platinum status when it was released in 2011. Since the release of her debut album, Curtis has mounted two major concerts at the Araneta Coliseum: “Annebisyosa: No Other Concert World Tour” in 2012 and “The Forbidden Concert Annekapal” last year. The “It’s Showtime” host also released the similarly titled CD “The Forbidden” under VIVA Records last year. (MNS)

Feb 232015
 
PHL rekindles efforts to measure natural resources for policy dev’t, economic planning

Children play on top of one of the floats during a parade coinciding with the National Horticultural Congress in Quezon City on Sunday. The parade featured floats bedecked with ornamental plants and flowers from participating establishments. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) — The Philippines is restarting efforts to do an accounting of its natural resources through a World Bank-backed program that would help to unlock the potential of the sector for economic growth and address environmental issues – particularly in the mining industry. The Philippines is one of the eight countries that are implementing WAVES, or Wealth Accounting and the Valuation of Ecosystem Services, World Bank Phil-WAVES task team leader Stefanie Sieber said in a briefing in Pasig City. Other countries implementing the program are Botswana, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Indonesia, Madagascar and Rwanda. WAVES is a global partnership that aims to promote sustainable development by ensuring that natural resources are mainstreamed in development planning and national economic accounts. Citing a 2006 World Bank Application that looked at produced capital, intangible capital and natural capital, Sieber said natural capital is the most important for low income countries but is not measured. “[WAVES will] help countries adopt and implement accounts that are relevant for policies,” she said. “You can think of many natural capital accounts we could produce, but the main purpose is really to do something that policy issues are suppressing in individual countries.” Nothing new But compiling a natural capital account (NCA) is nothing new to the Philippines since it Read More …

Feb 232015
 
PHL gets P87-M compensation from US over Tubbataha damage

In this Jan. 22, 2013 photo released by the Philippine Coast Guard, coast guard divers approach the USS Guardian, a U.S. Navy minesweeper, to assess the situation after it ran aground last week off Tubbataha Reef, a World Heritage Site in the Sulu Sea, 640 kilometers (400 miles) southwest of Manila, Philippines. A U.S. Navy official said the USS Guardian was punctured and was taking in water and has to be lifted off the rocks. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) — The Philippines has received P87.03 million from the United States for the damage caused to Tubbataha Reef by the minesweeper USS Guardian in 2013, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday. In a statement, the DFA said the Philippine government received P87,033,570.71 compensation from the US last Jan. 20. “The compensation will be utilized for the protection and rehabilitation of Tubbataha Reef Natural Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Portions of the fund will also be used to further enhance capability to monitor the area and prevent similar incidents in the future,” the DFA said. Aside from the compensation, the US government will provide added assistance to the Philippine Coast Guard to upgrade the Coast Guard substation in Tubbataha. On Jan. 17, 2013, USS Guardian ran aground at the South Atoll of the Tubbataha Reef, damaging at least 2,345.67 square meters of the reef area. Salvage crews needed 10 weeks to haul away pieces of the USS Guardian. In October 2014, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario said the US Read More …

Feb 232015
 
Japanese unionist barred from PHL; De Lima to investigate

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima (2nd right) and Rep. Niel Tupas Jr. (right) inspect the maximum security compound of the New Bilibid prison in Muntinlupa City on Tuesday. The inspection is part of efforts to clear the prison of illegal activities. (MN photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – The Department of Justice (DOJ) will investigate the barring of a Japanese trade unionist from the country to determine whether the government’s criteria for blacklisting foreigners need to be reviewed. Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said on Thursday that she would first verify the basis of why Japanese Katsuhiro Sato was included in the Black List Order of the Bureau of Immigration (BI). Last week, Sato was stopped at the Manila International Airport and was immediately deported to Japan for being in the list. Sato is a trade unionist and a member of JICHIRO, the largest umbrella organization of local government unions in Japan. NAGKAKAISA, a coalition of labor groups, said the BI abused its authority and committed gross violation of the basic human right to free movement, assembly and expression when it deported Sato. The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines said Sato was included in the blacklist for participating in an international assembly for solidarity on free expression and free assembly in Manila in 2012. Following the barring of Sato, De Lima was asked whether a tripartite review of the criteria in naming people in the blacklist was needed. “I need to verify that first and check the basis for the black Read More …