AFP coordinating with Malaysia, Vietnam to find missing plane

 News
Mar 092014
 
AFP coordinating with Malaysia, Vietnam to find missing plane

Grief seizes kin of passenger on missing Malaysian plane. Journalists attempt to interview a woman who is the relative of a passenger on Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, as she crouches on the floor crying, at the Beijing Capital International Airport in Beijing March 8, 2014. Reuters The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) continues to coordinate with defense officials from Malaysia and Vietnam in the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight bound for Beijing, Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma said Sunday. Coloma said in an interview over the government-run dzRB that President Aquino is constantly being updated about the AFP’s efforts in the search operations for the missing plane. Since Friday, the AFP has mobilized its surveillance plane and naval assets, including the BRP Gregorio del Pilar, to conduct search operations in the West Philippine Sea and the sea lanes of Palawan. The Boeing 777 jet, which had 239 people on board, took off from Kuala Lumpur at 12:30 a.m. Friday. It lost contact with ground controllers at around 2:40 a.m. and is believed to have crashed somewhere between Vietnam and the West Philippine Sea. A massive international search has been launched to locate the missing plane. — Xianne Arcangel/BM, GMA News

Malaysia on lookout for ‘leader from Sulu’

 News
Mar 022014
 
Malaysia on lookout for ‘leader from Sulu’

6:02 am | Monday, March 3rd, 2014 KOTA KINABALU—Malaysia’s security forces are closely monitoring information that another leader from Sulu in the Philippines plans to enter Sabah in order to meet with local political figures. Sabah police commissioner Hamza Taib said that should the Sulu leader—whom he did not name—follow the proper channels of entry into Sabah, this would not be a problem. “But if he threatens the security of the state, the police will act accordingly. “At the moment, we are keeping an eye on the individual (a senior leader of a Sulu group), who is planning to come to Malaysia to meet with a political leader. “As far as I am concerned, this individual can enter Malaysia legally as we are a free country and we do not stop people from coming here,” he said. “However, if anyone tries to cause chaos or threaten us, we will not hesitate to take stern action,” he told reporters after launching the second phase of a motorcycle patrolling unit at Taman Suria near Penampang here yesterday. Hamza was commenting on a statement by the inspector general of the  police, Khalid Abu Bakar, that a senior leader of a Sulu group was planning to enter Sabah. The Sulu leader reportedly claimed his group was not related to the one led by Agbimuddin Kiram, the brother of the late self-proclaimed Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram, which entered Lahad Datu’s coastal village of Tanduo on Feb. 12 last year, demanding the return of Sabah to Read More …

Thousands join INC walk for typhoon aid

 Entertainment
Feb 182014
 
Thousands join INC walk for typhoon aid

Hundreds of thousands members of Iglesia Ni Kristo (Church of Christ) participate in a worldwide charity walk for the victims of super Typhoon Haiyan in Manila February 15, 2014. The event also aims to set a Guinness world record for the most number of participants in a charity walk, according to local media. (MNS photo) MANILA (AFP) – Tens of thousands of members of a Philippine sect took to the streets in Manila on Saturday in a charity walk to raise funds for survivors of the country’s deadliest typhoon. Members of the Iglesia ni Cristo (Church of Christ) poured into the capital’s seaside avenue in response to the politically influential sect’s appeal to help compatriots caught up by Super Typhoon Haiyan’s onslaught. All those taking part bought special white t-shirts, costing 250 pesos ($5.60)to wear during the march, with all proceed from sales of the garment being donated to help those in need, pensioner Laodiseo Santos, 78, told AFP. “I paid for this T-shirt to help our countrymen rebuild their homes…Some of our wealthier members purchased in bulk,” he said. The retired cashier, his five grown-up sons and daughters as well as several grandchildren completed a three-kilometre (1.8-mile) walk on Roxas Boulevard in late morning. Police estimated the crowd at about 200,000, though the figure could not be independently confirmed. Haiyan tore across 171 towns and cities in the central islands on November 8 last year, killing at least 6,200 people and leaving nearly 2,000 others missing according to an Read More …

CHR chief wants to inspect military facilities for possible torture chambers

 News
Jan 302014
 
CHR chief wants to inspect military facilities for possible torture chambers

Following the discovery of a “torture cell” allegedly ran by local police in Laguna, Commission on Human Rights (CHR) Etta Rosales said Friday that military facilities should also be inspected for possible torture chambers. At a press conference, Rosales said she has already directed government officials who are part of the national monitoring mechanism against human rights violations to also check on camps and other facilities ran by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) all over the country.  “Hindi ba karumal-dumal iyon? Hindi ba kahayupan iyon? Kung nakita natin as late as ngayon, mayroon din siguro sa mga militar,” the CHR chairperson told reporters. Rosales added that her commission will also be inspecting provincial intelligence branches and regional offices of the Philippine National Police (PNP) across the country. “Gusto talaga natin na no stones left unturned. Puntahan lahat ito… We will go all over the Philippines and do intensive work in trying to monitor, expose, oppose, and dismantle these facilities of torture,” she said. The CHR chief also warned military and police officials against dismantling torture chambers ahead of the inspection, saying they may be charged for tampering with evidence. “Chances are they might dismantle, pero malalaman din natin iyan. Ang hahanapin natin kung may torture victims,” she said. She added that she is coordinating with the AFP’s and the PNP’s leadership to be able to put in place “systemic solutions” to stop incidents of torture by security officers. Earlier this week, the CHR exposed a secret prison in Read More …

Green groups welcome ban on lead in toys, other products

 News
Jan 102014
 
Green groups welcome ban on lead in toys, other products

MANILA, Philippines—Environmental groups on Friday welcomed the ban on the use of lead in a wide range of consumer products including toys and cosmetics, even as it urged the government to ensure its strict enforcement. “We are kind of late here. Many of our neighbors have already banned it,” Abigail Aguilar, toxic substances campaigner for Greenpeace Southeast Asia, told AFP. “The reason why it was banned is because of the noise that the civil society has created on the impact of lead,” she said. The metal is used to make batteries, matches, metal alloys, paint, putty, ceramics, insecticides and explosives, among many others. It is also used extensively in plumbing. The widespread use of lead has caused extensive environmental contamination and health problems in many parts of the world, according to the World Health Organization. The poison affects multiple organs and the health burden is borne mostly by developing countries, even as other countries have reduced its use in petrol, paint, plumbing and solder. The Philippines earlier banned the use of lead in fuel in 2001. But Aguilar said the government has been unable to enforce a ban on other hazardous chemicals. Between 1997 and 2004, the environment department issued similar chemical control orders on cyanide, asbestos and mercury, she said. “The tricky part now is how to monitor this (lead ban) to make sure it will really be enforced,” Aguilar added. The ban, which covers a wide range of consumer products from toys and cosmetics to water pipes, school Read More …

AFP gradually boosting territorial defense

 News
Jan 062014
 
AFP gradually boosting territorial defense

By Frances MangosingPhilippine Daily Inquirer 9:06 pm | Monday, January 6th, 2014 Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Gen. Emmanuel Bautista. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines – The military is in “gradual transition” of its operations to territorial defense this 2014. Armed Forces of the Philippines chief of staff General Emmanuel Bautista, however, emphasized that they will continue to address internal security threats even it starts its transition to territorial defense. “We will continue to address- it’s part of our mandate- internal security issues until appropriate agencies of government are capable,” he told reporters on Monday. By 2016, the military targets the completion of its anti-insurgency Internal Peace Security Plan Bayanihan. This campaign is a multi-sectoral approach in ending insurgency problem in the country that is anchored on “winning the peace.” “We will sustain Bayanihan, [but also we] appeal to our people that internal conflicts be put to an end because there are more pressing concerns, urgent concerns that we need to address. We are witness to Yolanda, climate change. We are witness to our problems in the West Philippine Sea and many more,” he added. Communist rebels are estimated to be around 4,000. As for the military’s territorial defense, where the Philippines faces external conflict with China, Bautista also highlighted its “peaceful” approach but is also prepared for other scenarios. “We would like to resolve conflicts in the most peaceful manner, it applies internally and also externally. We will continue to pursue that national policy, without Read More …

Defiant typhoon survivors welcome Christmas

 Entertainment
Dec 272013
 
Defiant typhoon survivors welcome Christmas

By Cecil Morella Children in Leyte (MNS photo) TACLOBAN, December 24, 2013 (AFP) – Philippine survivors of deadly typhoon Haiyan defiantly prepared to celebrate Christmas in their ruined communities Tuesday where hogs were being roasted, festive trees adorned streets and churches were filled to overflowing. “Nothing can stop us from welcoming Christmas even though we have lost our home,” 63-year-old butcher’s wife Ellen Miano told AFP from a tiny shanty rising from a field of debris in the central city of Tacloban. Haiyan’s ferocious 315 kilometers (195 miles) an hour winds flattened the gritty Magallanes neighborhood on Tacloban’s coast, then swept up everything else with giant waves in a day of terror on November 8. Tacloban and nearby districts accounted for more than 5,000 of the 6,000-plus confirmed deaths, with nearly 2,000 others missing, making it the country’s deadliest storm and one of its worst natural disasters. The storm made 4.4 million homeless and caused $12.9 billion in damage, according to the government, which estimates it will take the affected central region, an area the size of Portugal, four years to recover. Miano, who lives with her husband and four young nephews and nieces in the 2×3-metre (6×10-feet) home put together from salvaged wood and sheet metal, said the family would eat a traditional Christmas dinner at midnight, with fried noodles and sliced bread given to them by a relief agency. Their 20-year-old neighbor Ronfrey Magdua built a giant, 4-metre-tall star-shaped lantern using salvaged wood and wrapped in the Philippine Read More …

AFP chief: Reds should declare ceasefire ‘forever’  

 News
Dec 192013
 
AFP chief: Reds should declare ceasefire ‘forever’  

A six-day truce announced by the Communist Party of the Philippines is too short, the chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines said Thursday, adding the communist rebels should declare a ceasefire “forever.” “Napakaiksi naman ng dineclare nila, nag-declare pa sila. (Kung) gusto nila, forever wala nang putukan e, di ba yun ang gusto natin,” AFP Chief of Staff Lieutanant General Emmanuel Bautista told reporters Thursday. The CCP on Wednesday declared two three-day ceasefires to mark the holidays as well as its founding anniversary. The truce will be from 12:00 a.m. on December 24 to 11:59 p.m. on December 26, and another from 12:00 a.m. on December 31 to 11:59 p.m. on January 2, 2014. The CPP will celebrate its 45th founding anniversary on December 26. “Bakit hindi sila mag-declare ng mahaba, forever. Sana, kung magde-declare sila, pang-matagalan na, para yung ating mga kababayan hindi na magdusa sa armed struggle, masyadong matagal na tayong nagdurusa dyan,” Bautista said. The government has yet to announce a ceasefire of its own but Bautista said the AFP will comply with whatever truce the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process will set. “Depende sa OPAPP, wala kaming problema. Depende sa OPAPP kung gaano kahaba yung ide-declare na SOMO (suspension of military operations). Whatever is the order, we will follow,” he said. Peace talks between the government and the CPP-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front have been stalled since April this year. — Amita Legaspi/JDS, GMA News

Zambo siege was carried out by ‘misguided’ factions in MNLF – AFP official

 News
Dec 102013
 
Zambo siege was carried out by ‘misguided’ factions in MNLF – AFP official

A military spokesman said that the Armed Forces of the Philippines is “not against” the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in general since the attack on Zamboanga City in September was carried out not by the whole group but by “misguided” factions led by the group’s founding chairman Nur Misuari. “We have a final peace agreement already with the MNLF and we are not against the MNLF… What happened in Zamboanga [was done by] factions of the MNLF, that they used violence to advance their goals which, to us, is unacceptable,” said AFP information chief Lt. Col. Ramon Zagala on Tuesday. “We believe that the MNLF still abides by the final peace agreement and that what happened in Zamboanga [was done] only [by] those misguided by Nur Misuari,” he added. Misuari and some of his men are wanted for the attack, which left over 200 people dead, most of them MNLF fighters. Although not physically present during the attack, Misuari allegedly ordered the siege as he accused the government of disregarding them in the peace negotiations it is conducting with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The rebels claimed last year’s signing of a Bangsamoro Framework Agreement between the government and the MILF sidelined the peace agreement the government signed with the MNLF in 1996. — Marc Jayson Cayabyab/BM, GMA News

New Customs chief possibly by Friday, says Biazon; Dellosa may be on shortlist

 News
Dec 042013
 
New Customs chief possibly by Friday, says Biazon; Dellosa may be on shortlist

The new Commissioner of the Bureau of Customs may be named as early as Friday, the exiting Customs chief Ruffy Biazon said Wednesday. His recently-appointed deputy, Jessie Dellosa, may be on the short list of possible appointees, GMA News’ 24 Oras newscast reported. Dellosa, is a former chief of staff the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and was appointed last September as the Customs Deputy Commissioner for Intelligence, replacing Danilo Lim, another retired military officer. Biazon said Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima revealed during their most recent meeting that President Benigno Aquino III has received a list containing the names of individuals eyed to replace him as the chief of the Bureau of Customs (BOC). “Sa discussion namin (ni Purisima), nakapagbigay na ng mga pangalan sa Presidente para siya na ang mamili kung sino ang magiging either OIC (Officer in Charge) or permanent successor ko,” he said. Biazon announced his irrevocable resignation from the BOC Monday after having been named by the Department of Justice as a respondent together with 33 others in a malversation case connected to the P10 billion pork barrel scam. Biazon said he aims to settle by Friday all immediate concerns at the BOC that needed to be addressed since his request to stay at his post until the end of December has been turned down by Malacanang. He said he had requested the President for an extension of his term to facilitate a smooth period of transition at the bureau. “Hinahabol na within this week [na Read More …

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