‘Fishing talks between PH, Taiwan may violate ‘one-China’ policy’

 News
Jun 172013
 
‘Fishing talks between PH, Taiwan may violate ‘one-China’ policy’

SAYS LAW EXPERT: By Tarra QuismundoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 6:44 pm | Monday, June 17th, 2013 Harry Roque, chairman of the Center for International Law MANILA, Philippines — The start of fisheries talks between the Philippines and Taiwan might violate the country’s one-China policy and Manila should instead craft any future pact with Taipei as a local government of China, an international law expert said. Harry Roque, chairman of the Center for International Law, however, welcomed the decision of the two sides to avoid the use of force in fishing disputes — a positive step in what has been rough relations between the Philippines and what it considers a province of China. “Talks may violate the one-China policy. All talks with Taiwan should be because it is part of China. The alternative is to craft as an agreement with a local government of China,” Roque said on Monday. As part of the government’s one-China policy, the Philippines handles its ties with Taiwan not through the Department of Foreign Affairs but through the Manila Economic and Cultural Office under the Office of the President, with the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office as its counterpart. Roque, however, has a positive view of the agreement against the use of force in fishing issues, saying the right to life is above the right to use natural resources. “But I welcome the agreement not to resort to use of force against illegal poachers. The right to life is preeminent and superior specially to mere ecological rights Read More …

UN voices concern over child warriors in PH

 News
Jun 172013
 
UN voices concern over child warriors in PH

By Tarra QuismundoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 6:28 pm | Monday, June 17th, 2013 UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. AP FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines — Some 26 children were recruited as soldiers, messengers and informants in conflict zones while dozens of other minors were slain and maimed in militant attacks and gunfights in the Philippines last year, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has said in a report. In the report “Grave violations committed against children in 22 situations of concern” released on June 12, Ban expressed concern over the use of children as operatives, informants and messengers in conflict areas, recruited by terror groups, militant organizations and even state agents. The report specified the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) and its armed wing, the New People’s Army (NPA), the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) and the Philippine military as those involved in using children in their operations. “During the reporting period, the country task force recorded 11 incidents of recruitment and use of children, involving 23 boys and 3 girls between 12 and 17 years of age,” read Ban’s report, which the UN publicly released last week but was first reported to the UN Security Council on May 15. Culled by a UN country task force, the confirmed cases represent a decrease in child involvement in conflict but the world body remained concerned that minors are at all involved. “That figure represents a decrease in 2012, given that there were 26 incidents affecting 33 Read More …

PH, Taiwan shun force

 News
Jun 162013
 
PH, Taiwan shun force

Talks to resolve fishing disputes start By Christine O. AvendañoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 12:09 am | Monday, June 17th, 2013 The Philippines and Taiwan have “agreed in principle” to avoid the use of force in fishing disputes, as they begin to resolve a row over the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman in overlapping waters last month. Officials of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (Meco) and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (Teco) reached the agreement during their preparatory meeting on fishery cooperation held in Manila on Friday, Meco Chairman Amadeo Perez said on Sunday. The meeting came as both Manila and Taipei concluded their cooperative investigation of the fatal shooting of Taiwanese fisherman Hung Shih-chen, 65, by Filipino coast guards. The National Bureau of Investigation, after examining evidence and witnesses here and in Taiwan, resolved the case last week, with a recommendation to bring criminal and administrative charges against coast guards who fired on the Taiwanese fishing boat Guan Ta Hsin 28 off Balintang Island on May 9. Taiwanese investigators who also looked at evidence and examined witnesses here and in their country have not yet announced their conclusions, but Justice Secretary Leila de Lima on Thursday said she expected the Taiwanese findings not to be too far from the results of the NBI probe. De Lima submitted the NBI investigative report to President Aquino on Tuesday. The shooting death of Hung sparked public anger in Taiwan. Taipei demanded an apology from the Philippine government, compensation for Hung’s family, Read More …

PH hails diplomatic ties with China despite row

 News
Jun 092013
 

By TJ Burgonio Philippine Daily Inquirer 3:28 am | Monday, June 10th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—Their territorial dispute in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) should not stop the Philippines and China from celebrating the 38th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations, Malacañang said Sunday. Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said relations between the two countries were multifaceted and the territorial dispute over parts of the West Philippine Sea was just one facet. After all, there were other facets of this relationship that “we continue to develop and that we continue to move forward on,” Valte said on state-run radio dzRB. “So let’s let the maritime disputes not be the whole of our relationship but, rather, just a part of it. And, again, given the close ties that we have, then that’s worth something to look at all the other facets and check and see if we can move forward on those fronts,” she said. Starting 1975 The Philippines and China opened diplomatic relations on June 9, 1975. Since then, the relations have reached “unprecedented levels” in security and regional cooperation, trade, investment, agriculture, tourism and cultural exchanges, according to the Philippine Embassy in China. In April 2005, then Chinese President Hu Jintao, on a state visit to Manila, and then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo described the relations between the two countries as the “golden age of partnership.” The relations hit a low when Philippine and Chinese ships faced off at Panatag Shoal (Scarborough Shoal) in April last year. Read More …

Spotlight on PH in Burma forum

 News
Jun 062013
 
Spotlight on PH in Burma forum

By Cynthia D. Balana, Doris C. DumlaoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 12:18 am | Friday, June 7th, 2013 President Benigno Aquino III AP FILE PHOTO NAYPYITAW, Burma—Two Southeast Asian countries are thrust into the limelight at this year’s World Economic Forum (WEF) East Asia—the host country Burma (Myanmar) for coming out of decades of economic and political isolation and the Philippines, once a laggard but now an investment-grade country and Asia’s fastest-growing economy. President Aquino will speak Friday in a plenary session at Myanmar International Convention Centre, sharing the spotlight with Burmese President U Thein Sein during the closing ceremonies of the three-day WEF East Asia Summit, which gathered 900 delegates from 55 countries. The two heads of state will be interviewed by WEF founder and executive chairman Klaus Schwab about their perspectives on regional transformation. This year’s summit has put a lot of focus on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) ahead of its targeted integration into a single market by 2015. Prior to the plenary session, Aquino will speak in an informal interactive luncheon hosted by Ayala Corp. before a more intimate gathering of 200-300 people. “The East Asia Summit serves as an excellent regional follow-up to Davos,” Ayala chairman and CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala said, referring to Aquino’s WEF debut in Switzerland last January. Despite the gains in Davos, Zobel de Ayala said more work was needed to encourage foreign investment in the country. “President Aquino’s participation in Myanmar keeps the momentum going with the global Read More …

De Lima maintains boat shooting happened in PH territory

 News
Jun 032013
 
De Lima maintains boat shooting happened in PH territory

By Tetch Torres-TupasINQUIRER.net 3:27 pm | Monday, June 3rd, 2013 Justice Secretary Leila De Lima. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—Justice Secretary Leila De Lima on Monday maintained that the shooting of the Taiwanese fisherman last May 9 happened inside Philippine jurisdiction. “Our jurisdiction is clear—the incident happened inside our territory which is why we are conducting an investigation,” De Lima told reporters in an interview Monday. Based on the global positioning system record of the Philippine Coast Guard and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, De Lima said the incident occurred within the Balintang Channel, 43 nautical miles east of Balintang Island which is well within the Philippine territory. “Probably you should ask the Taiwanese government why they are conducting their own investigation. They probably have extra-territorial jurisdiction like if the victim is a Taiwanese or the vessel is registered under the Taiwanese name,” she said. The NBI investigators already arrived from Taiwan and are already wrapping up their investigation. On the other hand, Taiwanese probers also finished their probe after inspecting the Philippine vessel, watching the video of the incident and interviewing the Coast Guard officers who were present during the incident. The question of jurisdiction will be crucial to where the criminally liable parties in the case will be tried. The fisherman’s daughter, Hung Tzu Chien, has already filed a murder complaint against Filipino Coast Guard personnel involved in the fatal shooting. She did not name the respondents in the charges filed with the Pingtung prosecutor’s office Read More …

China’s cabbage strategy to recover Chinese islands, reefs illegally occupied by PH

 News
Jun 032013
 
China’s cabbage strategy to recover Chinese islands, reefs illegally occupied by PH

Global Networking By Rodel Rodis 3:14 pm | Monday, June 3rd, 2013 While the attention of the Philippines has been focused on its conflict with Taiwan over the killing of a Taiwanese fisherman by the Philippine Coast Guard on May 9, little notice has been given to the arrival, just the day before, of three Chinese naval ships at the Ayungin Reef (Second Thomas Shoal), the gateway to the oil and mineral rich Reed Bank, just 105 nautical miles from Palawan Island, within the 200 mile exclusive economic zone of the Philippines. This undated handout photo released by the Philippine Government on May 23, 2013 shows an aerial view of BRP Sierra Madre, a 100-metre (328 foot) amphibious vessel built for the US in 1944 and acquired by the Filipino navy in 1976, grounded at Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands. A handful of marines living on a World War II-era ship that is grounded on a remote, tiny reef is the Philippines’ last line of defence against China’s efforts to control most of the South China Sea. The soldiers are stationed on Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands aboard a former US tank-landing vessel that was deliberately abandoned there to serve as a base, according to their former commander, Juancho Sabban. AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE PHOTO / Philippine Government Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei confirmed the presence of the Chinese government vessels – two marine surveillance ships and one naval frigate – in the Ren’ai Reef (Ayungin Read More …

OFWs seek PH help on coping with new virus

 News
Jun 012013
 
OFWs seek PH help on coping with new virus

Philippine Daily Inquirer 6:51 am | Sunday, June 2nd, 2013 AP FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—An overseas Filipino workers group has called on the Philippine government to send medical attachés to Saudi Arabia which has been hit by an outbreak of the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV). Migrante-Middle East regional coordinator John Leonard Monterona said OFWs in Saudi Arabia and neighboring countries had many questions about the ailment and the Philippine government should do something to educate them and prepare them for any contingencies. “There are lots of medical concerns of our OFWs not only in Saudi Arabia but also in other Mideast countries. Giving them the right information, education and guidance would be of help to prevent work-related diseases,” said Monterona in a statement. Citing latest reports, Monterona said three more persons had died from MERS-CoV, on top of the 17 previous fatalities in the kingdom. “It is in the best interest of the Filipino workers in Saudi Arabia to be properly informed, educated and guided about taking care of their health amid the spread of MERS-CoV,” he added. He said the Philippine government should also launch a massive information and education campaign about MERS-CoV and other illnesses such as avian flu and swine flu at all entry and exit points of the country like airports and at various diplomatic outposts in the Middle East. On Friday, Italy became the ninth country to report a MERS-CoV infection, which struck a 45-year-old man who had traveled to Jordan. Deployment of Read More …

US: Corruption abets terror in PH

 News
Jun 012013
 
US: Corruption abets terror in PH

By Tarra QuismundoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 2:08 am | Sunday, June 2nd, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—While citing its “strong counterterrorism cooperation” with the Philippines, the United States noted that “official corruption” and resource and personnel constraints had stymied the country’s antiterror campaign. In its latest Country Reports on Terrorism released this week, the US Department of State, however, lauded the Philippines continuing pressure on known terror groups, saying that its efforts in the last decade “have been successful at isolating and constraining the activities of domestic and transnational terrorists.” Mindanao remains classified as a “terrorist haven” due to the presence of the al-Qaida linked Abu Sayyaf which the US had tagged  as a foreign terrorist organization. The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed wing, the New People’s Army (NPA), also remain on the terror list. “The Philippines has coordinated with US law enforcement authorities, especially regarding US  fugitives and suspected terrorists. An under-resourced and understaffed law enforcement and justice system coupled with widespread official corruption, however, resulted in limited domestic investigations, unexecuted arrest warrants, few prosecutions, and lengthy trials of cases,” said the report released on May 30. The report noted, for instance, that the proscription case the Philippine Department of Justice (DOJ) brought against the Abu Sayyaf, the first of its kind that sought to officially tag the group as a terrorist organization under the 2007 Human Security Act, had remained pending by the end of last year. The US also cited a Manila court’s dismissal of an Read More …

Relief group to run marathon for PH out-of-school kids

 News
May 312013
 
Relief group to run marathon for PH out-of-school kids

INQUIRER.net US Bureau 2:45 am | Saturday, June 1st, 2013 SAN FRANCISCO—Christian relief organization World Vision Philippines will participate in the San Francisco Marathon (26.2 miles) on June 16 to raise funds for out-of-school kids in the Philippines. The group’s “We Run So They Can Go to School” project is seeking sponsors and donations to help send ten children to school as its initial goal. It cites a Philippine Department of Education and National Statistical Coordination Board that one in every six Filipino children is not in schooling because of poverty. Many families in the marginalized sectors cannot afford to send kids to school, and many children can be seen selling newspapers, street foods and even cigarettes to help their families and are at risk of criminal activity. World Vision Philippines   “We Run So They Can Go to School” project was “conceptualized to address the increasing statistics of out of school youth in the Philippines,” said the group’s statement. http://werunsotheycangotoschool.com/ Follow Us Recent Stories: Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to step out? Get breaking alerts on your mobile.phone. Text ON INQ BREAKING to 4467, for Globe, Smart and Sun subscribers in the Philippines. Tags: education , Fundraising , marathon , street children Factual errors? Contact the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s day desk. Believe this article violates journalistic ethics? Contact the Inquirer’s Reader’s Advocate. Or write The Readers’ Advocate:

 Older Entries  Newer Entries