Sarah Geronimo is confident she made the right decision to return for the second season of The Voice of the Philippines.
Mar 172014
Mar 152014
MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines is now allowing the entry of Japanese beef after a decade-long ban due to the outbreak of mad cow disease in Japan. The Philippines banned the entry of Japanese beef in 2001 following the outbreak of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) or mad cow disease. Talks for the resumption for exports commenced in 2004 and were concluded recently. As of last year, the World Organization for Animal Health said Japan has a “negligible risk” of mad cow disease. In a statement, the Japanese embassy in Manila said discussions with the Philippine government on the re-entry of Japanese beef into the Philippine market had been finalized. “Since 2004, both governments of the Philippines and Japan have been discussing animal health conditions to import Japanese beef from Japan to the Philippines. The discussion has recently been finalized and the Philippine government has finally approved the importation of Japanese beef from Japan,” the embassy said. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The Philippines and the Animal Quarantine Service of Japan (AQS) will soon start issuing the foreign meat establishment (FME) certificates to the accredited exporters. These certificates will accompany beef shipments.
Mar 142014
The Philippines and Muslim rebels are to sign a treaty on March 27 to end one of Asia’s longest and deadliest rebellions, a senior aide to President Benigno Aquino said Friday. The terms of the deal, completed in January after drawn-out talks, would see the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) disband its 12,000-member guerrilla force and share power with Manila in the Muslim south of the mainly Catholic nation. “After 17 long years of arduous negotiations, we are finally arriving at a political settlement that will seal enduring peace and progress in Mindanao,” Teresita Deles, Aquino’s chief adviser on the peace process, said in a statement. The decades-old rebellion has claimed 150,000 lives according to official estimates, and condemned large swathes of the south to poverty and violence. The insurgency also gave rise to smaller groups of Islamist militants, some allied to Al-Qaeda. “The signing… is expected to benefit not only the Bangsamoro (Filipino Muslims) but the entire country, and will radiate beyond our borders to the regional community, and perhaps the whole world,” Deles said. The Philippines’ Muslim population of around five million people regard the south as their ancestral homeland, and the MILF has led the armed quest for independence or autonomy since the early 1970s. After the peace deal signing, Aquino is to ask parliament to pass a “basic law” creating a Muslim self-rule area covering 10 percent of the country’s land, with its own police force, parliament and power to levy taxes. The political entity would Read More …
Mar 132014
Photographed through the window of a closed aircraft, an aerial view shows Pagasa Island, part of the disputed Spratly group of islands, in the South China Sea located off the coast of western Philippines Wednesday July 20, 2011. China protested a trip made by Filipino lawmakers to disputed areas in the South China Sea to assert the claim of the Philippines. Ethan Sun, spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Manila, said the trip scheduled was ‘against the spirit’ of a code of conduct signed by claimants to the areas in 2002. The Spratlys, believed to be rich in oil, mineral and marine resources, are also claimed in whole or partly by Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan. (AP Photo/Roley Dela Pena, Pool) MANILA (Mabuhay) — The Philippines is still seeking a peaceful resolution to the territorial dispute in the South China Sea despite the recent incident of harassment involving Chinese vessels. “We believe in the [principle that] what is ours is ours, and so we will continue to push that, and we’re doing that diplomatically,” presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said during a press conference Wednesday. The Philippines has filed another diplomatic protest against China — its second in two weeks — after Chinese vessels allegedly prevented two Filipino vessels carrying supplies and personnel from going to Philippine-controlled Ayungin Shoal off the South China Sea last Sunday. On Feb. 25, the Philippines also accused China of harassing a group of fishermen off the Scarborough Shoal, another Philippine-claimed area in the South China Read More …
Mar 132014
This racing event, supported by celebrity enthusiasts such as Dingdong Dantes, Ryan Agoncillo, and Richard Gomez, aims to boost sports tourism in the country.
Mar 122014
WASHINGTON – The United States on Wednesday accused China of raising tensions by blocking two Philippines vessels as it urged freedom of navigation in the tense South China Sea. The United States, a treaty-bound ally of Manila, said it was “troubled” by Sunday’s incident in which China prevented movement of two ships contracted by the Philippine navy to deliver supplies and troops to the disputed Second Thomas Shoal. “This is a provocative move that raises tensions. Pending resolution of competing claims in the South China Sea, there should be no interference with the efforts of claimants to maintain the status quo,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. The Philippines on Tuesday summoned China’s charge d’affaires, accusing Beijing of a “clear and urgent threat” to Manila’s interests. Beijing countered that the ships “infringed China’s territorial sovereignty” and violated a 2002 declaration of conduct in the South China Sea. The United States rejected China’s stance, saying that countries had the right to “regular resupply and rotation of personnel” to locations before the 2002 declaration. The Second Thomas Shoal, which sits around 200 kilometers (125 miles) from the western Philippine island of Palawan, is claimed by the Philippines, China and Taiwan. Beijing calls it Ren’ai Reef. Malaysia, Brunei and Vietnam claim other parts of the Spratly islands, which lie near vital sea lanes and rich fishing grounds and are also believe to sit on vast mineral resources. The United States, while saying it takes no position on the sovereignty of disputed territories, has Read More …
Mar 122014
THE PLACE of the principal office of a corporation is part of the vital information that must be specified in its Articles of Incorporation (AOI). Section 14 of the Corporation Code mandates that the AOI state the “place where the principal office of the corporation is to be established or located, which place must be within the Philippines.”
Mar 122014
Former President and Philippine Constabulary chief, Fidel V. Ramos, pays tribute to Philippine soldiers during a wreath-laying ceremony Monday (Feb. 24, 2014) at Libingan ng mga Bayani in Taguig City in commemoration of the 28th anniversary of the 1986 EDSA People Power revolution. This year’s celebration is anchored on the theme ‘Kapig-Bisig Tungo sa Pagbangon.’ (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – Philippine traders and prospective overseas Filipino workers may benefit from a visa waiver deal reportedly being worked out between the Philippines and Taiwan. The deal is said to be among the issues to be tackled during former President Fidel Ramos’ visit there, Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported. Ramos arrived in Taiwan on March 5 for a five-day “friendship visit” aimed at bolstering ties between the Philippines and Taiwan. He led a 60-member delegation, the CNA report said. The CNA report quoted Philippines-based trader Chen Wen-ju, president of the Taiwanese Chamber of the South Philippines, as saying the mutual visa-waiver agreement was one of the goals of the visit. (MNS)
Mar 112014
By Matikas SantosINQUIRER.net 5:01 pm | Tuesday, March 11th, 2014 INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines – The expulsion by Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) of two Filipino civilian vessels in Ayungin Shoal constitutes a “clear and urgent threat to the rights and interests of the Philippines,” the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Tuesday. The two Philippines ships were civilian contractors of the Philippine Navy and were only conducting resupply and troop rotation operations at the BRP Sierra Madre outpost on Ayungin shoal, also known as Second Thomas Shoal, where marines are defending the shoal. This was the first time in 15 years that China has interfered with the Navy’s operation on the shoal, DFA spokesman Raul Hernandez told reporters in a press conference. The DFA has submitted a protest to the Charge d’Affaires of the Chinese Embassy Tuesday but the protest was immediately rejected, Hernandez said. 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: Ayungin Shoal , China , Features , Global Nation 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: c/o Philippine Daily Inquirer Chino Roces Avenue corner Yague and Mascardo Streets, Makati City, Metro Manila, Philippines Or fax nos. +63 2 8974793 to Read More …
Mar 092014
MANILA – The Philippines also has the right to defend every inch of its territory, President Benigno Aquino’s spokesman said on Sunday, after China made a similar warning. Spokesman Herminio Coloma’s remarks came after China’s foreign minister Wang Yi said on Saturday said his country would vigorously defend its sovereignty against “unreasonable demands from smaller countries”. Although he was referring to Japan, which has its own territorial dispute with China, his remarks could also cover China’s other territorial dispute with the Philippines and other countries over parts of the South China Sea. “It is the right of every country to defend its national territory. That is also the principle we are following,” Coloma told reporters, commenting on the Chinese minister’s remarks. Coloma added that the Philippines was basing its position on the principles of international law like the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or UNCLOS. The Philippines and China, along with Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam are all claimants to parts of the South China Sea, a major sea lane and rich fishing ground which is believed to sit on vast mineral deposits. The Philippines has also expressed growing concern at the increased aggressiveness of the Chinese in pressing their claim to almost all of the waters, even up to the coasts of its neighbors. The Philippine government has sought UN arbitration under UNCLOS to settle the dispute but China has rejected the move. Last month the Philippines lodged a protest after the Chinese coast guard Read More …