Hurry Maguindanao massacre trial, int’l reporters urge

 News
Jun 092013
 
Hurry Maguindanao massacre trial, int’l reporters urge

By Ryan D. Rosauro Inquirer Mindanao 3:50 am | Monday, June 10th, 2013 OZAMIZ CITY, Philippines—More than 300 delegates to the 28th World Congress of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) in Dublin, Ireland, have called on President Aquino to “take steps to expedite the trial” of those accused in the Maguindanao massacre. The call was contained in an urgent resolution adopted by the congress, according to National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) chairperson Rowena Paraan, who attended the Dublin meeting, which ended on Thursday. “Everybody is disappointed that… the justice system in the Philippines has not moved forward. Journalists here from 120 countries are absolutely united in making sure that they will help [promote] the widest campaigns until justice is found,” IFJ president Jim Boumelha was quoted as saying in an NUJP news release. The IFJ is the world’s largest organization of journalists with some 600,000 members in 120 countries. The NUJP is its affiliate in the Philippines. Fifty-eight people died in the Maguindanao massacre, 32 of them media workers. The massacre has been dubbed the world’s single worst attack on the press and the trial has earned the attention of press freedom advocates. Nov. 23, the date of the massacre, has been declared by freedom of expression advocates worldwide as the International Day to End Impunity. It has been three and a half years since the killings and “there has not been a single conviction for the murders,” the IFJ noted. Among the steps the government 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 …

PPA dividends to gov’t hit P1B

 Economy
Jun 092013
 
PPA dividends to gov’t hit P1B

MANILA, Philippines – Dividends remitted by the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) to the national coffers jumped 23.5 percent last year, making it one of the largest contributors among government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs). PPA general manager Juan Sta. Ana said the agency has consistently been among the profitable government agencies sharing its net earnings to the National Government since the law was enacted in 1998. Sta. Ana said PPA’s total dividend payment reached P1.009 billion last year from P817 million in 2011.  “The port agency will always be a strong partner of the government in moving the country forward specifically in the area of providing support to the National Government’s fiscal consolidation efforts,” he stressed. He added that PPA landed seventh in the top 10 list of the biggest contributors for 2012 out of the 38 GOCCs that paid their respective dividends. Other major contributors include Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., Land Bank of the Philippines, Development Bank of the Philippines, Bases Conversion and Development Authority, Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp., Manila International Airport Authority, Philippine Reclamation Authority, Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Philippine National Oil Co. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Republic Act 7656 requires GOCCs to remit at least 50 percent of its annual gross earnings to the National Government. For 2013, the government aims to keep its budget deficit at below P238 billion or two percent of the projected gross domestic product (GDP). The deficit limit for this year is Read More …

Journalists from 120 countries press Aquino to speed up Maguindanao massacre trial

 News
Jun 092013
 
Journalists from 120 countries press Aquino to speed up Maguindanao massacre trial

By Jeannette I. Andrade, Ryan D. RosauroInquirer Mindanao, Philippine Daily Inquirer 7:03 pm | Sunday, June 9th, 2013 The massacre in Maguindanao where over 30 journalists were also killed in 2009 is testament to the danger media men and women face in the Philippines. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO OZAMIZ CITY, Philippines — More than 300 delegates to the 28th World Congress of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) in Dublin, Ireland have called on President Benigno Aquino III to “take steps to expedite the trial” of those accused in the Maguindanao massacre. The call was contained in an urgent resolution adopted by the congress, according to the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) chair Rowena Paraan, who attended the Dublin gathering. “Everybody is disappointed that … the justice system in the Philippines has not moved forward. Journalists here from 120 countries are absolutely united in making sure that they will help [promote] the widest campaigns until justice is found,” IFJ president Jim Boumelha was quoted in an NUJP news release. The IFJ is the world’s largest organization of journalists with some 600,000 members in 120 countries. The NUJP is its affiliate in the Philippines. Fifty-eight people died in the Maguindanao massacre, 32 of whom were media workers. The massacre has been dubbed the world’s single worst attack on the press and the trial of those accused has earned the attention of press freedom advocates. Nov. 23, the date of the massacre, has been declared by advocates of the freedom Read More …

P420M worth of elephant tusks to be crushed, burned by DENR on June 21

 News
Jun 092013
 
P420M worth of elephant tusks to be crushed, burned by DENR on June 21

By Jeannette I. AndradePhilippine Daily Inquirer 5:40 pm | Sunday, June 9th, 2013 AP FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is set to crush and burn some P420 million (US$10 million) worth of seized elephant tusks to show the country’s support for the global campaign to end the illegal trade of wildlife species. The five tons of ivory are part of the total cargo of elephant tusks intercepted by customs officials since 2009 in separate operations nationwide. These are stored in the Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau (PAWB). The ivory will be crushed by a steam roller before they are burned in June 21 rites at the Ninoy Aquino Parks and Wildlife Center, according to Environment secretary Ramon Paje. Foreign experts and anti-ivory trade advocates are anticipated to witness the event, one of the highlights of the environment month celebration. In a statement, Paje said, “Our decision to destroy these ivory tusks that entered the country illegally is to show to the whole world that the Philippines will not tolerate illegal wildlife trade.” The country is a signatory to the 1989 Geneva-based Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) of flora and fauna, which bans the ivory trade as a cause of the massive decline in elephant populations in Africa, according to Paje. PAWB is designated as the management authority under the Wildlife Resource Conservation and Protection Act. Under the CITES, elephants are highly endangered and their international trade declared illegal. The Read More …

AS PHILIPPINES BOOMS, OVERSEAS WORKERS EYE RETURN HOME

 News
Jun 092013
 
AS PHILIPPINES BOOMS, OVERSEAS WORKERS EYE RETURN HOME

Mateo Ragonjan took a leap of faith in August last year. The executive sous-chef of a seven-star luxury hotel in Abu Dhabi packed his bags to take up a similar job back home in the Philippines. He is one of a small group of like-minded Filipinos returning to jobs back home, a sign of confidence in an economy that for decades has seen millions leave in search of better prospects overseas. Ragonjan now helps run a 300-man kitchen that caters to guests and high-rollers flocking to Manila’s newest and most luxurious casino resort, one of 400 overseas Filipinos who came home to work at the hotel. “The Philippines is booming at the moment, so I thought it was the right time to go back,” Ragonjan, 41, said on a break from his 10-hour shift at the Solaire Resort & Casino in Manila Bay, developed at a cost of $1.2 billion. The Philippines economy is leaving behind its reputation as a regional laggard. It reported annual GDP growth of 7.8 percent in the first three months of the year, outstripping China to make it Asia’s fastest-growing economy. Earlier this year, the government secured an investment grade credit rating, reducing its borrowing costs, while the stock market has reached a series of record highs this year. Returnees like Ragonjan are just a trickle compared to those still leaving the country, but the hope is that the more the country can draw the diaspora back to the Philippines the more that the entrepreneurial Read More …

Aquino ‘deeply touched’ on meeting Aung San Suu Kyi

 News
Jun 082013
 
Aquino ‘deeply touched’ on meeting Aung San Suu Kyi

By Cynthia D. BalanaPhilippine Daily Inquirer 4:01 am | Sunday, June 9th, 2013 Aung San Suu Kyi. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO NAYPYITAW, BURMA—President Benigno Aquino III said his brief encounter with Burma’s opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi struck in him a deep personal cord. “Nakakamanghang kausap iyung isang person na very historical, iyong sa akin may pagka-personal (It’s awe-inspiring to talk to someone who is part of history, which for me in also quite personal),” the President said at a press conference here Friday night. “The struggle that my father underwent, my mother underwent … and you can see, that she (Suu Kyi) underwent the same thing (too),” he said. It was the first face-to-face meeting between Mr. Aquino and the Burmese leader on the sidelines of the three-day World Economic Forum on East Asia in this second largest Southeast Asian country. Mr. Aquino admitted he was overwhelmed upon seeing and talking to Suu Kyi, whose struggle against the Burmese military junta resulted in her detention for 20 years. The President’s father, the late Sen. Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino was also incarcerated by a dictatorship and his crusade to restore democracy in the Philippines culminated in his assassination in 1983.  A people power revolt in 1986 brought his widow, Cory, to power. During her time, the late president Cory Aquino campaigned for the release of Suu Kyi and the restoration of democracy in Burma. During their meeting, the President reiterated his long standing invitation to Suu Kyi to visit the Philippines Read More …

Philippines recovers war prize Tokyo property – DFA

 Entertainment
Jun 082013
 

MANILA  (Mabuhay) -– The Philippine flag is once again hoisted and flying high in its recovered war prize from Japan, the Nampedai property in Tokyo, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday. The property in Shibuya, the shopping and entertainment district in Tokyo, was one of four properties in Japan acquired by the Philippine government […]

Palace: Cebu Pacific mishap should not affect PHL bid for aviation upgrade

 News
Jun 082013
 
Palace: Cebu Pacific mishap should not affect PHL bid for aviation upgrade

Saying similar accidents also happen even in first-world countries, Malacañang on Saturday insisted the faulty landing of a Cebu Pacific plane at the Davao International Airport should not be a cause to hold the upgrade of the Philippine aviation industry. Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda contested claims that the country’s aviation industry is not ready for an upgrade following the Davao airpoprt mishap. “Ang nangyari diyan, nangyayari rin sa mga first world countries, hindi lang ‘yan sa mga third world countries. Alam natin na may mga aksidenteng ganito na nangyayari rin sa mga ibang bansa,” he said on government-run dzRB radio. Excerpts of the interview were posted Saturday afternoon on the Presidential Communication and Operations website. Last Sunday, a Cebu Pacific plane skidded off a Davao International Airport runway and got grounded. The incident forced the airport to halt operations until Tuesday night. Yet, Lacierda downplayed arguments that what happened showed the Philippines is not ready for an upgrade in its assessment. “I don’t think that is a one-to-one correspondence. And I don’t think that is proper. The premise would justify the conclusion,” he said. Also, he said the government has been focusing on different approaches in improving the country’s aviation industry and making a conclusion based on the Davao incident would be irresponsible. Besides, he said the Philippines is getting commendations for its initiatives in modernizing the aviation sector. “We are taking the proper steps to ensure that we are going to be out of that category and to ensure Read More …

JUNE 28 AT ALEX THEATER & JUNE 29 AT PALA CASINO ‘For Da Laffs’ features standup standouts Pokwang, Pooh, Chokoleit, K Brosas

 Entertainment
Jun 082013
 

V ENTERTAINMENT, GF Bayona Productions and Stargaze Productions proudly present “4 Da Laffs,” a full-tilt comedy blow-out starring the Philippines’ top comedians – Pokwang, Pooh, Chokoleit and K Brosas – and showing on June 28 at Alex Theater in Glendale and June 29 at Pala Casino in San Diego. In cooperation with Berce Enterprises. The […]

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