Philippines gets 2 Billion Pesos Climate Projects from Germany

By Janvic Mateo (The Philippine Star) 

STAR/File photo

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines is getting 41 million euros or around P2 billion from the International Climate Initiative (ICI) of Germany that will fund 10 bilateral projects to address the impact of climate change.

Climate Change Commission (CCC) vice chairman Lucille Sering yesterday met with Norbert Gorissen – head of the International Climate Finance of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety – to discuss the projects, some of which will be implemented until 2017.

“These projects are designed to build resilience of local communities, attain sustainable development, increase awareness, skills and capacity development for climate protection and adaptation, enhance employment opportunities and investments in renewable energies,” said Sering.

“All projects are aligned with our priorities and are consistent with the Philippine Climate Change Act, the National Framework Strategy on Climate Change and the National Climate Change Action Plan,” she added.

Among the projects funded by the ICI is support for the implementation of the framework and action plan on climate change adaptation and mitigation, amounting to over 3 million euros.

Sering said the grant has enabled the CCC to push forward with various programs, including studies on renewable energy and the mainstreaming of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction in land use plan.

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The other bilateral projects on climate change in the country are biodiversity, ecosystem-based land use systems and protection of climate-relevant biodiversity with focus on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.

Gorissen, who visited areas affected by Super Typhoon Yolanda on Saturday, cited the importance of the partnership between Germany and the Philippines.

Aside from the bilateral projects, he said 28 other regional and global projects funded by his government have a component in the Philippines.

The German official said they are looking into funding more projects in the country.

“Prevention of disasters and resilience and adaptation activities will be part of that. It will also include activities on the area of emission reduction,” he said during a press conference in Pasig City yesterday.

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New Typhoon to Enter the Philippines

By Helen Flores (The Philippine Star)

A typhoon with international name Maysak is expected to enter the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) on Wednesday and bring rains over Northern Luzon by weekend, the state weather bureau said yesterday.

Aldczar Aurelio, weather forecaster of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), said the typhoon was 2,810 kilometers east of Mindanao as of 10 a.m. yesterday.

Maysak packed winds of 130 kilometers per hour near center and gustiness of up to 160 kph. It was forecast to move west at 20 kph.

“This typhoon is still too far to affect any part of the country,” the weather bureau said in an advisory.

The typhoon would be locally named Chedeng once inside the PAR.

Aurelio said Maysak could still gain more strength before it enters the country.

“If it maintains its speed and course it is likely to cross or pass near Northern Luzon by Friday or Saturday,” Aurelio said in a phone interview.

“If it maintains its strength (typhoon intensity) we expect it to bring strong winds and heavy rains over Northern Luzon,” he said.

Aurelio could not say yet the areas that would likely be hit by the typhoon “as it still too far from the country.”

He said the northeast monsoon that could cause the weakening of the typhoon has already dissipated.

Aurelio said zero or one cyclone usually enters the Philippines in April.

Aurelio said the whole country could expect generally good weather until Maundy Thursday aside from isolated thunderstorms.

In Metro Manila, temperature will range from 24 to 33 degrees Celsius this week, he said.

Aurelio said the weather bureau might officially announce the start of the dry or summer season in areas under Type 1 climate this week.

Areas under the Type 1 climate include the National Capital Region, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Bulacan, Bataan, Pampanga, Zambales, Tarlac, Palawan, Mindoro, Cavite and Batangas.

The agency declares the onset of summer season once the easterlies or warm winds from the Pacific Ocean become the dominant weather system in the country.

Philippines Poised for Even More Success

By Louis Bacani (philstar.com)

President Benigno Aquino III addresses the 4th Euromoney Philippine Investment Forum at the Rigodon Ballroom of The Peninsula Manila in Makati City on Tuesday (March 24). The Forum was host to a by-invitation-only audience of over 500 business leaders, investors and policy makers. Gil Nartea / Malacañang Photo Bureau

"You ain't seen nothing yet."

This was President Benigno Aquino III's message to investors on Tuesday as he boasted the country's economic growth under his watch, claiming that the best is yet to come.

Speaking at the Euromoney Philippines Investment Forum in Makati, Aquino cited the economic achievements during his term including the country's new all-time record in foreign direct investments, improved global competitiveness rankings and the credit rating upgrades.

"The tremendous amount of confidence the global community has developed for the Philippines is incredibly gratifying, especially considering that, not too long ago, we were known as the 'Sick Man of Asia'," Aquino said.

"However, our administration remains hard at work so that we can maximize every opportunity available to us, and I think many of you will agree with me when I say: You ain't seen nothing yet," he added.

Aquino told investors that the country is "poised for even more success" and that "there is indeed much reason for optimism."

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Despite the country's economic gains, Aquino said that the "limitless potential" of Filipinos has yet to be "sufficiently measured."

"I know that we have only scratched the surface.. To those who are here to take a closer look at the Philippines," Aquino said.

"I invite you: Bet on the Filipino people, and discover for yourself how it’s more fun and more profitable to do business in the Philippines," he continued.

In his speech, Aquino did not fail to take a swipe at the Philippine media for not trumpeting the country's economic achievements.

"There has been so much good news these past few years, and yet, this good news has often been relegated to the back pages of our broadsheets. I must admit: our campaign to change the mindset that negativism sells is still a work in progress," Aquino lamented.

Salute to Valor: Palawan - 70 Years of Freedom

Enlarge Photo Palawan to host event honoring Filipino-American WWII veterans 70 years after Palawan is not the first to come to mind when it comes to Philippine World War II history. But for Dr Ricardo Jose of the UP Third World Center Studies, Palawan was one of the most strategic spots in the region. “It covers the western flank of the Philippines, it covers the West Philippine Sea, and before WWII broke out, the Americans didn’t realize this. There were no significant fortifications in the area,” he said. Palawan is actually one of the many places in the country with a grim past. On December 14, 1944, American prisoners of war numbering 139 were massacred by Japanese forces in Plaza Cuartel. By jumping off a cliff, 11 soldiers survived and were kept from harm by Palaweños. As part of the campaign to liberate the Philippines, the US liberation forces invaded Palawan from February 28 to April 22, 1945. A Palawan special battalion composed of 1,000 Filipino guerillas joined in on the action and helped liberate the island. To help commemorate the island’s historical significance, a public-private partnership will try to stimulate tourism growth by developing places associated with the liberation. The program dubbed “A Salute to Valor: Palawan – 70 Years of Freedom” will be held on April 21-23, 2015 in commemoration of the 70th year of liberation of the province of Palawan. Activities are lined up to be held at the Plaza Cuartel and Mendoza Park. Developed by Rajah Travel Corporation, the Salute to Valor commemorates the World War II invasion of Palawan and the fight between the US and the Japanese in 1945. The Palawan Liberation Task Force is composed of the Department of Tourism, the provincial government of Palawan, the Puerto Princesa City local government, the United States Agency for International Development, the Palawan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, FAME, the Palawan Tourism Council, and the Rajah Travel Corp. The program aims to further nurture into the minds of the people the history of Palawan and Puerto Princesa which is aimed to boost the historical and cultural aspect of tourism in the province. The event will be attended by relatives of war veterans from the province as well as those from the United States of America who were part of World War II. Heroes to be honored include Palawan’s own Dr. Higinio Mendoza and the prisoners who died in the Plaza Cuartel. Aileen Clemente of Rajah Travel Corporation said organizers have been doing several researches about history of Palawan’s liberation and have reached out to several relatives of war veterans to make the event more meaningful. The historic event is really meant to honor the war heroes of Palawan.

Philippine Financial Capital in Chaos

... as 2 mayors stand off

By: Agenec France-Presse

MANILA -- The Philippines' financial capital Makati has been plunged into chaos with two politicians claiming to be mayor, forcing courts to close and delaying government business during a bitter stand-off triggered by graft claims.

Surrounded by hundreds of supporters, Makati mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay has been holed up in city hall since the ombudsman suspended him last week because of an investigation into alleged corrupt practices.

Insisting the graft accusations are trumped up, Binay has refused to cede power to his deputy and rival, Romulo Pena, who insists he is now "acting mayor".

The power struggle is widely seen as a battle between the nation's ruling Liberal Party and main opposition.

Binay is the son of opposition leader, Vice President Jejomar Binay, while Pena is a member of President Benigno Aquino's Liberal Party.

It also threatens to delay the salaries of 8,000 government workers and payments for utilities and services.

Makati's courts closed on the first day of the stand-off last week, and some judges have continued to postpone hearings to avoid the crush of Binay supporters outside the building, family spokesman Joey Salgado told AFP.

He said welfare recipients had also been unable to collect benefits, and warned there was a looming crisis over who had the authority to sign the city's cheques.

If banks do not honour cheques signed by Binay, street lamps and traffic lights will be shut down, taps in government buildings will run dry and garbage collection will stop, according to Salgado.

"This is a very dangerous situation, if their (national government's) actions result in delays in salaries, utilities," he said.

"Any perception of instability would have an effect on the country. They are sending the wrong signal to investors. Makati is the financial centre of the country."

From an adjacent old building, with hallways that reek of leaking toilets, Pena issued a memorandum on Friday to all city hall employees asserting his authority.

"All ordinances, official documents and official actions must be submitted and referred to the undersigned for approval and/or appropriate action," Pena said, referring to himself.

Binay's family has said the mayor's suspension is politically motivated as his father continues to dominate presidential polls, ahead of the presumptive nominee of Aquino's party for the 2016 elections, Interior Secretary Mar Roxas.

Makati is the country's largest city in terms of revenue, with 11.9 billion pesos ($265 million) in earnings from taxes and fees in 2013, according to government data.

The city hosts the country's stock exchange, 82 embassies and consulates, 506 bank offices and 246 business process outsourcing and technology companies.

Mindanao Conflict Uproots Tens of Thousands

More than 120,000 people have fled their homes in the southern Philippine region of Mindanao, as fighting between government troops and Muslim rebels intensifies. Food and shelter are urgently needed.

Government sources indicate that more that 123,000 people, or 24,700 families, have been forced to flee their homes due to the fighting as of March 17, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said in a statement.

The clashes have affected people from 13 municipalities and as a result, a state of calamity has been declared in Maguindanao, a province located in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) - the country's second biggest and southernmost major island - which has been the scene of a Muslim separatist conflict over the past 40 years.

Where to go?

Families are now living in evacuation centers, schools, madrasahs (Islamic educational centers), covered courts, tents and with host relatives and friends, says the IOM, adding that more than 2,200 pregnant women in evacuation centers are in need of medical support, while classes in 42 public elementary and high schools have been affected.

The fighting in the area follows a bloody anti-terror operation on January 25

The intergovernmental organization also indicate that the displaced families are constantly exposed to a number of hazards and risks, as many of them have installed tents under trees, along the roads and nearby military sites with artillery installations.

Moreover, there seem to be other organizational challenges. For instance, Besim Ajeti, IOM Head of the Cotabato Office, explains that it has become increasingly difficult for those in charge to track some of families as they transfer from one evacuation site to another.

Mindanao is home to the biggest and most relevant Muslim minority in the archipelago, the indigenous Moro people. Created in 1989, the ARMM is composed of five predominantly Muslim provinces and is the only region that has its own government.

Supplies may soon run out

The ARMM government has begun distributing food packs and a few plastic sheets (tarpaulins) to those affected. But as Ajeti pointed out, "Food supplies from government agencies may run out in less than 20 days, considering the limited funds available."

Aquino facing 'biggest crisis' as Philippine president

Dozens of police officers were killed in an anti-terror raid that has dented the popularity of Philippine President Benigno Aquino, rendering major reforms unlikely during the rest of his term, says analyst Alecia Quah. (19.02.2015)

Is the Philippines peace process in jeopardy?

Philippine government and Muslim rebels complete peace deal talks

Philippines attacks: A rebel group's last stand

Currently, the ARMM is spending approximately PHP 13 million (USD 290,000) per week to support the displaced families, mainly on food assistance, according to IOM. But an IOM assessment reveals the need is much larger: Food, non-food items, emergency shelter support, latrines, tarpaulins, hygiene kits, kitchen utensils, mosquito nets, jerry cans, clothing and safe water (drinking, cooking and general use), are urgently needed.

In addition, evacuation center support, displacement tracking, medical personnel and supplies, psychosocial support as well as mechanisms for addressing protection were recognized as key priorities to continue assisting the affected populations in Maguindanao.

The fighting continues

In the meantime, more than 50 militants have reportedly been killed in attacks launched by the Philippine military last month against the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), a Muslim rebel group seeking independence.

The fighting in the area follows a bloody anti-terror operation on January 25 aimed at capturing or killing a top Islamist militant. But the raid took a turn for the worse, ending in the killing of 44 police commandos. The police were killed by members of the country's biggest Muslim rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), and its breakaway group, the BIFF, when they entered rebel-controlled territory.

It was the government's biggest single-day combat loss in recent memory, prompting calls for retribution which could potentially threaten a peace deal, which entails the establishment of a more powerful autonomous region for minority Muslims in the south of the Catholic-majority nation.

But the botched raid, which took place in Mamasapano, Maguindanao Province, has also triggered a wave of outrage in the Southeast Asian nation. Public opposition to the granting of further concessions to the MILF has stiffened and the administration of President Benigno Aquino has been shaken, with opposition lawmakers calling for the president's impeachment.

(C) 2015 Deutsche Welle

Amadis Ma. Guerro: Erotic Productions, Anniversary Dances and a Major Recital

REPORT CARD ON THE PERFORMING ARTS

By: Amadis Ma. Guerro, Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines—As part of its Drama-in-Education Program, St. Scholastica’s College Manila (SSC) has been staging since 1990 Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” with its magical atmosphere, mortals, immortals, fairies, love potions and quarreling quartet of lovers.

This year it restaged the popular play to celebrate 25 years of presenting it. And what a major production it was! There was a large cast of children and young adults, felt performances, lavish sets and costumes, and special effects.

What also made the production special was the fact that many who appeared in the play ten years ago as students now acted in the play as young adults.

Kudos to the school’s Grade School Unit and the SSC Children and Teachers Theater; Divine David, head of the directorial team; and director emeritus Naty Crame Rogers, PhilStage Gawad Buhay! awardee and a high school alumna of St. Scholastica.

It was ingenious to bring opera—well, opera arias and duets—to audiences in the form of a storyline stringing together works by Mozart and Verdi (“Seasons of Desire” at Abelardo Hall, University of the Philippines Diliman). The performers were soprano Elaine Lee, tenor Ivan Nery and baritone Lawrence Jatayma, with Dingdong Fiel at the piano. The narrators (Jacqui Amper and Ruth Alferez) were even bilingual. The Valentine show was directed by multitalented Nazer Salcedo.

For adults only

Rody Vera’s “Bilanggo ng Pagibig” was a powerful for-adults-only play (Dulaang UP, Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero Theater), directed with vivid imagery by Jose Estrella. It was inspired by “Prisoner of Love,” the memoirs of Jean Genet: inmate, thief, male prostitute, homosexual and celebrated French novelist-playwright.

The play highlighted events in Genet’s life, notably his support of the Palestinian struggle against Israel. Ensemble acting was compelling, with a clutch of hunky, handsome young actors playing Genet’s lovers, including a circus acrobat (Paul Cedrick Juan), a race car driver (JC Santos) and Palestinian revolutionaries (Ybes Bagadiong and Io Balanon).

Vera and director Loy Arcenas are at it again.

After having transplanted Anton Chekhov’s “Three Sisters” (“Tres Marias”) to the Ilocos, they have now adapted Chekhov’s “Cherry Orchard” to the Visayas (“Arbol de Fuego” at the Peta Theater Center, Quezon City).

Agrarian Russia in the late 19th century became semifeudal Negros in the l970s, during martial law, when the price of sugar fell and the sugar barons faced ruin. The production was riveting, the cast headed by the luminous Cherie Gil as the Señora. It was like watching an original Filipino play, with class-war overtones.

Hacienda Carmen at the end was sold, and the flame trees (los arboles de fuego), Chekhov’s cherry orchard, were destroyed.

It’s the season for adapting foreign classics to Filipino settings. This time, Elmer Gatchalian set the French novel “Les Liaisons Dangereuses” in Manila on the eve of the 1896 revolution, with references to “insurectos” (“Juego de Peligro,” directed by Tuxqs Rutaquio with his flair for eroticism).

They may not always have been convincing as snooty Spaniards, but the cast was outstanding, with knockout performances by Shamaine Centenera as the evil Señora (Glenn Close in the film version) and Arnold Reyes as the seducer Vicente.

It was another for-adults-only play.

Ballet Manila celebrated its 20th anniversary with a heady mélange of classical and contemporary works (Aliw Theater, Pasay City). Soloists Abigail Oliveiro and Brian Williamson stood out in Marius Petia’s “Paquita.” Striking was “Bloom” by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Belgian-Colombian choreographer, which focused on Asian rituals of prayer approximating the formation of petals.

“Ecole,” by Osias Barroso, a tribute to the demands of classical ballet, started with the dancers limbering up as if in rehearsal. Then the pace became faster, the performers increased in number until they filled the stage, the music by Czerny rose to a crescendo, and the audience during the matinee—mostly students—erupted in applause.

New music

Composer-conductor Chino Toledo, the apostle of modern music, strikes again.

In a recent concert at the Unilab Compound in Pasig City, in celebration of the Metro Manila Concert Orchestra (MMCO), Toledo presented works by four new composers: Jimuel Dave Dagta, Jourdann Petalver, Timothy Kyle Siaton and Jem Robert Talaroc.

This brought to 33 the original works produced by the MMCO under its pioneering program Music UnderKonstruction.

The evening was capped by the premiere of a major work by composer Alfredo Buenaventura, “Maharlika,” commissioned by the MMCO through the heirs of Vicente Rufino and dedicated to the late cultural organizer Conchita Sunico.

The recital of Romanian soprano Nelly Miricioiu at the Meralco Theater was a triumph. The audience was impressed by her still-powerful voice and her emoting, as she interpreted art songs and arias by Verdi, Rossini, Respighi, Chausson, Puccini and Bellini, with gestures and expressions suited to each composition. But they were simply bowled over by her heartfelt rendition of three iconic Filipino songs: Velez’s “Sa Kabukiran,” Abelardo’s “Mutya ng Pasig” and the Visayan folk melody “Ay, Kalisud.”

Miricioiu was accompanied by the always excellent collaborating artist Najib Ismail. Translations into English of the lyrics on the screen helped in appreciating the repertoire.

Philippine Supreme Court Relaxes Rules on Marriage Annulment

The Supreme Court (SC) has taken a liberal stand in allowing the annulment of marriage on the ground of psychological incapacity. The court reversed itself and nullified a marriage of private individuals, saying that a strict implementation of the rules would allow diagnosed sociopaths, schizophrenics, narcissists and the like to stay married.

In a 25-page ruling, the FC's First Division through Associate Justice Lucas P. Bermasin, reversed its September 2011 ruling "after taking a second hard look" at the facts of the case. The SC said that the lower court failed to make factual findings which can serve as legal bases for concluding that one of parties is suffering from psychological incapacity.

In its recent ruling, the SC said that Article 36 of the Family Code should not be so strictly and too literally applied. This article provides "that a marriage contracted by any party who, at the time of celebration, was psychologically incapacitated to comply with the essential marital obligations of marriage, shall likewise be void even if such incapacity becomes manifest only after its solemnization".

In 1997, the SC set specific guidelines before a marriage can be nullified on the ground of psychological incapacity. These guidelines have turned out to be rigid, such that their application to every instance practically condemned the petition for declaration of nullity to the fate of certain rejection - so the SC in its recent ruling.

"Instead, every court should approach the issue of nullity 'not on the basis of a priori assumptions, predilections or generalization, but according to its own facts' in recognition of the verity that no case would be on "all fours" with the next one in the field of psychological incapacity as a ground of the nullity of marriage; hence, every 'every trial must take pains in examining the factual', the SC said.

In this case, the SC granted the motion for reconsideration filed by the husband against who loves to play mahjong and frequents the beauty parlor, displaying narcissistic behavior.

Aside from medical experts, the SC also gave credence to the testimony of Fr. Gerald Healy, S.J., a canon law expert and a consultant of the Family Code Revision Committee, who testified that the wife's duties to her husband and children bad become secondary to hear beauty, being a former model, her going-out, going to beauty parlor and mahjong.

The SC added that taking her children with her while playing mahjong is exposing them to a culture of gambling which was 'a very grave and serious act of subordinating their needs of parenting to the gratification of her own personal and escapist desires.

In relaxing the rules in determining psychological incapacity for nullification of marriages, the SC said that they are not 'demolishing the foundation of families but is actually protecting the sanctity of marriage, because it refuses to allow a person afflicted with a psychological disorder, who cannot comply with or assume the essential marital obligations from remaining in that scared blood'.

The SC added that the courts may be flooded by petitions for nullity of marriage but there is no reason to be worried because of ample saveguards such as intervention of the government.

"The court should rather be alarmed by the rising of cases involving marital abuse, child abuse, domestic violence and incestuous rape", the SC said.

Four Soldiers, 40 Rebels Killed in Maguindanao Fighting

MAGUINDANAO, Philippines (Xinhua) - Some 40 Islamist rebels from the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and four army soldiers, including a captain, were killed in intense fighting as the Philippine Army continued its all-out-offensive in Maguindanao, a military official said today.

Philippine Army Captain Joan Petinglay, spokesman for the Philippine Army's 6th Division, said the latest casualties from both the Philippine Army and the BIFF began occurring on Saturday as a law enforcement operation against the rebels continued around the borders of Mamasapano, Datu Piang and Shariff Saydona Mustapha towns.

Four Philippine Army soldiers, including Elite Scout Ranger Captain Gromel Auman of the 33rd Infantry Battalion, were killed.   

"Four of the enemy bodies were recovered by our troops in the village of Pusao in Mamasapano. One of them was clad in uniform of Philippine Police Special Action Force (SAF)," Petinglay said.   

"We believed there were also wounded on the side of the rebels because we have used howitzers against them,"she added.

Troops have recovered one M-60 machinegun; two M14 rifles, a grenade; two pairs of binoculars and assorted ammunition.

The BIFF is the armed wing of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Movement which broke away from the The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the largest Muslim rebel force in the southern Philippines, in 2010 because of disagreements over the peace talks with the government.

(C) 2015 by Philippine Star