WASHINGTON, D.C.—The crippling labor unrest that sent foreign investors packing many years ago is now a thing of the past, Manila’s pointman in the United States said as he urged American companies to invest in the Philippines and take advantage of the unprecedented peace in the country’s labor front. “Now is the best time for […]
By Jerry E. EsplanadaPhilippine Daily Inquirer 7:25 pm | Monday, April 29th, 2013 Tubbataha Reefs. YVETTE LEE/CONTRIBUTOR MANILA, Philippines — The Paris-based United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is sending a team of experts to Tubbataha Reef to assess the damage wrought by the grounding of the USS Guardian, a US Navy minesweeper, in January. This was confirmed to the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Monday by Cecile Guidote-Alvarez, director of the Unesco Dream Center in Manila and wife of Heherson Alvarez, head of the Climate Change Commission, an agency attached to the Office of the President. Guidote-Alvarez said Unesco’s World Heritage Center was also organizing a “five-day meeting of marine experts aimed at strengthening conservation and management practices at Tubbataha Reef National Park.” “The meeting will be held in Puerto Princesa City from May 20 to 24,” she said, quoting Dr. Hubert Gijzen, director of the Unesco Regional Science Board for Asia and the Pacific and Unesco representative to the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Timor Leste and Brunei. Gijzen apparently responded to Heherzon Alvarez’s call for an “independent assessment” by Unesco of the damage caused by the Guardian after it got stuck on the reef for over two months. Tubbataha Reef is located in the Sulu Sea 98 nautical miles southeast of Palawan. Alvarez, a former senator, early this year said Unesco “would be in the best position to estimate the required amount for the total recovery of the damaged reef and the amount of work and time this will Read More …
By Tarra QuismundoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 5:16 am | Friday, April 26th, 2013 Jose Ampeso, the Philippine consul general to Vancouver, as shown in the video posted on YouTube: So sorry. Screen grab from www.youtube.com MANILA, Philippines—He is sorry for behaving the way he did, but said he was unjustly provoked during a very tiring day at work. Jose Ampeso, the Philippine consul general to Vancouver, apologized Thursday for any offense his videotaped rant may have caused but gave the excuse that he was provoked by a Filipino-Canadian offering “to give a measly dollar” to his mission’s fund drive for typhoon victims in the Philippines. “The video alone is not sufficient to draw any reasonable conclusions from, one way or the other. Hence, it is unfair and unjust to use it to malign my character,” said Ampeso, a career diplomat for the past three decades, serving in various overseas posts. In a statement on Thursday, Ampeso claimed the 28-second video “does not tell the whole story” about his run-in with a Filipino who was applying to renew his passport during the Vancouver mission’s passport renewal outreach program in Alberta, Canada, on April 19. Insults and ridicule Ampeso said the passport applicant “insulted me and poked fun at being requested to make a donation to the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC).” “That’s why I became so agitated while explaining to him that if he had to give anything at all, it has to come from the heart for the typhoon victims. It Read More …
By Tarra QuismundoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 4:26 am | Friday, April 26th, 2013 Judge Shunji Yanai, president of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, has appointed the last three members of the panel of five international arbitrators that would hear the Philippines’ case against China’s claims in the West Philippine Sea, the Department of Foreign Affairs said on Thursday, April 25, 2013. PHOTO FROM ITLOS.ORG MANILA, Philippines—The panel of five international arbitrators that would hear the Philippines’ case against China’s claims in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) has been completed, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Thursday. DFA spokesman Raul Hernandez said that Judge Shunji Yanai, president of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (Itlos), had appointed the last three members of the panel. “That means the case is moving and, as expected, we are hoping that this case that we filed in the tribunal will proceed as soon as possible,” said Hernandez in a press briefing. In a letter dated April 24, Yanai informed Solicitor General Francis Jardeleza, head of the Philippine legal team pursuing the case, that the panel had been completed. The newly appointed arbitrators are Judge Chris Pinto (Sri Lanka), who will serve as panel president, and Itlos judges Jean-Pierre Cot (France) and Alfred Soons (The Netherlands). In March, Yanai appointed Polish Itlos Judge Stanislaw Pawlak to join his fellow Judge Rudiger Wolfrum (Germany) in the panel. The Philippines nominated Wolfrum to the panel upon filing its Read More …
MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines has a “neutral” exposure to Japan and the continued monetary easing on the world’s third largest economy would not likely result into excessive capital flows, the Bank of America-Merrill Lynch (BofA-ML) said in a report released yesterday. Quantitative easing (QE) from Japan may impact on Asia through exchange rates, reflation and portfolio inflows or hot money, BofA-ML. “Japan’s QE impact is more neutral for China, India, Indonesia and the Philippines,” the investment bank said. Japan is trying to boost its economy by embarking on a multi-billion yen asset purchase program known as QE to swamp the economy with money and in the process boost consumer spending to achieve inflation and growth. On the flipside though, lower rates tend to shun investors who then flock to other markets for better yields. This results into more capital inflows and, among others, more exchange rate pressures. In the Philippines, the effect is seen “neutral,” with BofA-ML noting that only 2.8 percent of total investments to bonds and equities in the country came from Japan for the past seven years. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Japanese foreign direct investments (FDI) in the Philippines accounted for only 0.3 percent of the total, the bank pointed out. The figures were lower compared with other Asian countries in BofA-ML radar. Singapore, with 30.8 percent of hot money coming from Japan, would likely experience a flood of bond and equity inflows. Vietnam, on the other hand, would likely benefit Read More …
MANILA, Philippines – The Bureau of Customs (BOC) has signed an agreement with its counterpart agency in the Netherlands to boost trade, border control and protection between the two countries. Customs Commissioner Ruffy Biazon said the agreement is intended to strengthen the application of customs laws and enhance information sharing between the two countries as part of their fight against smuggling. The accord opens up the communication line between the Customs agencies of the Philippines and the Netherlands in terms of addressing the problems on cross-frontier trafficking of illicit goods ranging from narcotic drugs, hazardous goods, endangered species and other contraband commodities that could pose danger to society. The most salient feature of the agreement is the establishment of a working co-operation between the two countries in putting-up the parameters for the accurate valuation and assessment of customs duties and taxes on all goods shipped between the Philippines and the Netherlands. The agreement has practically tightened the customs operational procedures between the Philippines and the Netherlands, eventually translating in more revenue collection for all trade between the two countries. Apart from border protection, Biazon said the mutual cooperation is part of the BOC’s overall plan to enhance the country’s trade facilitation with the global economy and regain public’s trust in the agency. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Just recently, the Philippines and Russia signed an agreement on mutual administrative assistance in customs matters. The landmark agreement would establish the connectivity of the two customs administrations in Read More …
Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle on Thursday joined calls to surface political activist Jonas Burgos, who has been missing since 2007. In his homily at a Mass in Manila, Tagle warned the perpetrators that if they are afraid to face a civil court, they should be more afraid of God’s judgment. “I’m calling on those holding Jonas and many others who are being searched by their mothers, fathers and siblings, you will face God. You must face God now,” he said in his homily, excerpts of which were posted Thursday night on the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines news site. Tagle led a Mass in Manila’s Quiapo district to mark the sixth year of Burgos’ disappearance. Among those who attended the Mass were Burgos’ relatives, friends and colleagues. “Now in this gathering we continue to pray for our brother Jonas Burgos [because] we are one with his family, his mother and his friends,” the prelate said. Burgos was forcibly taken by armed men near a mall in Quezon City in broad daylight on April 28, 2007. His mother Edita still believes Jonas is alive. She welcomed Tagle’s support, which she said is a boost to their campaign against enforced disappearances and human rights abuses. “He’s really a big help because he took time out because I know how busy he is. He is a friend from the past but I know he will do everything just to be with us, the families of desaparecidos,” she said. — BM, Read More …
By Tarra QuismundoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 6:08 pm | Thursday, April 25th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines — One seafarer had not voted in nearly 18 years. Another thought the Binay on the ballot was Vice President Jejomar Binay suddenly seeking a Senate seat. Still, another has been out of the show biz loop and thought reelectionist Juan Miguel Zubiri was still dating singer-actress Vina Morales. But they were only too happy to vote, finally able to exercise their right to choose their leaders even while thousands of miles away from home, perhaps for too long. If only to reach a sector mostly excluded in the polls, the Philippine Embassy in Portugal has devised a way to reach the Filipino seafarers and let them vote. “We call it “akyat-barko,” Philippine Ambassador to Portugal Philippe Lhuiller told reporters of the unique system he designed. “It was just one of the crazy ideas I had. Because why would they come to the Embassy to vote? They have no time. Their ship arrives at 7 a.m., they leave at 6 p.m. And of course they want to go out there [to see the city],” said Lhuiller in an interview in Manila. Under the scheme proposed by the envoy and approved by the Commission on Elections, Lhuiller himself and two other staff personally boarded ships at the Lisbon port to look for Filipinos who would like to register in the Overseas Absentee Voting system. The Embassy team then went back to port this week to see if Read More …
Agence France-Presse 4:38 pm | Thursday, April 25th, 2013 Leaders of the Association of South-East Asian Nations pose for a group photo section during the 22nd ASEAN Summit in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei, Thursday, April 25, 2013. They are, from left, Philippines President Benigno Aquino III, Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Myanmar’s President Thein Sein, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Laotian Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong and Malaysia’s Senate President Abu Zahar Ujang. AP BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN—Southeast Asian leaders on Thursday called for urgent talks with China to ensure that increasingly tense territorial disputes over the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) did not escalate into violence. The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) wrapped up a two-day summit in Brunei with a chairman’s statement in which they emphasized the importance of “peace, stability and maritime security in the region”. Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, the host of the talks, told reporters after the summit that the leaders wanted to “urgently work on a code of conduct” with China aimed at defusing tensions in the strategically vital body of water. The other key focus at the summit was pushing forward plans to create a single market for Southeast Asia and its 600 million people — known as the Asean Economic Community — by 2015. However the flashpoint South China Sea issue dominated the meeting, amid growing concern among some Southeast Read More …
MANILA, Apr 19 (Mabuhay) – Five cities and municipalities across the Philippines were named “child-friendly” by the government, recognizing efforts to protect, promote, and preserve the rights of children. The five cities and municipalities awarded are: Tubigon, Bohol for the 1st-3rd class municipalities category; Villaverde, Nueva Vizcaya for the 4th–6th class municipalities category; Tagaytay City for […]