Do you believe in Rody Duterte? (Part II)

By Jesus "Jess" Dureza, President/Chair Philippine Press Institute

MISHANDLING ----Mayor Rody Duterte had a mouthful about recent events, And he was not mincing words. For example, his readout of the Zamboanga incident was quite to the point. In so many words, he was critical at the way "those officials" mishandled the situation, starting mistakenly tagging MNLF's Nur Misuari as a "spent force". Admitting that Nur Misuari was his friend and with whom he could talk any time, he marveled at how the authorities just got it all wrong. For how could armed men, crossing over in several waves from the nearby island provinces with ammunition and combatants be unnoticed by Zamboanga and then to wake up one morning already in deep shit? "Simple! Utter failure of intelligence!" he boomed.

(Photo: "Yours truly" Klaus Doring & Mayor Rody Duterte)

DON'T MESS UP ----  He had his own thoughts on how he dealt with his own in Davao - something Zamboangagenos ought to have learned from. "I am a mayor of all - Muslims, Christians, rebels or criminals. MNLF or MILF or NPA's. I respect them for what they stand for and I hope they respect mine. I talk to them, I even go see them. But they understand me when I say" You don't just mess up with my city or you are dead!"

MNLF IN DAVAO ---- I recall how Nur Misuari also marshalled several months before the Zamboanga incident his forces in Davao City in a peaceful rally at Sonny Dizon's horse tracks at the Crocodile Park area in Matina, all with MNLF flags hoisted and paraded. After Nur Misuari in his usual fiery and kilometric speech anleashed his angst, they peacefully dispersed and went home. Only a massive traffic jam at the diversion road saw the worst of it.

(TO BE CONTINUED!)

Do you believe in Rody Duterte?

BY JESUS "JESS" DUREZA

Lawyer Jesus G. Dureza was Presidential Adviser for Mindanao for former Presidents Fidel V. Ramos and Gloria M. Arroyo. He was also involved in the peace negotitations in the talks with the MILF and the CPP-NPA-NDF and initiated, while Presidential Adviser, the Tripartite Review of the 1996 MNLF Peace Agreement. He is currently President/Chair of the Philippine Press Institute. This piece is from his syndicated column Advocacy MindaNOW.

It's been a long while since I last listened to Mayor Rody Duterte deliver a speech. Until last Friday when I was invited by Businessman Sonny Dizon, bossman of the Davao American Chamber of Commerce to attend the joint foreign chambers meeting at the Abreeza Mall complex at Bajada. For almost two hours, his was not a speech but a conversation of sorts, down to earth, no frills, nothing bombastic, all times bordering on the unorthodox, interspersed with his trademark expletives. But yes, talking from his heart all throughout. And the fullhouse guests all listened in rapt silence.

DIDONG MY FRIEND? -- When I walked in, they were still waiting for the guest of honor to arrive.

Civic leader Nonoy Villa Abrille, the event's organizer conducted me to the head table and told me: "Sit beside the mayor. You are closed friends, right?"

I did not answer. Well, Nonoy's question was addressed by the mayor himself in his talk when at one portion during his recollections, he mentioned how he was expelled from the Ateneo during his high school times, then transferred to other city schools and still not "good". So he had to be brought to Digos, a small municipality then (now a city) 60 kilometers south of Davao City. But that was where I grew up in my teens. I remembered one day (some 50 years ago?) his late father, Gov. Vicente "Tete" Duterte came to the campus of the boys of the Holy Cross of Digos (now Cor Jesu College) in the south. Tagging along was a young teen-aged boy. I was a working scholar then with the Canadian Brothers of The Sacred Heart when Rody was brought to Digos in "exile". He was frail and mestizo looking but had that naughty, mischievous flash in his eyes. We stayed in the same "dorm". That was a beginning of a friendship that lasted up to this day. (But I'll skip recalling those hig school days together, for the meantime, lest I miss up telling you about Friday's event.

RODY'S "DILEMMA" ---- Fast forward to Friday at Seda Hotel. The consular offices were represented by Koichi Ibara of Japan and Consul General Abdullah Zawawi Tahir of Malaysia. Also present from Manila was Martial G. Beck of the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines. Several foreigners were also around. And I could tell that they could decipher the mayor's intermittent, usual expletives in the local dialect with the way they squirmed and reacted to the mayor's momentary tirades. (His favorite was of course when he talked about his "dilemma", DOJ Sec. Lilia De Lima, but that's more than I could write about, okay? Shhhhh.....).

TO BE CONTINUED!

Philippine Earthquake Creates Miles-long Rocky Wall

READ MORE Phivolcs|Philippine earthquake wall|Philippine earthquake|Negros Island Earthquake|Solidarity

This undated handout photo released on October 24, 2013 by Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology shows a house standing next to a ground rupture creating a rock wall in the village in Bohol province brought about by the quake which hit the province October 15. (Via AFP)

 

The deadly earthquake that struck the Philippines last week created a spectacular rocky wall that stretches for kilometres through farmlands, astounded geologists said on Thursday.

Dramatic pictures of the Earth-altering power of the 7.1-magnitide quake have emerged as the government worked to mend the broken central island of Bohol, ground zero of the destruction.

A "ground rupture" pushed up a stretch of ground by up to three metres creating a wall of rock above the epicentre, Maria Isabel Abigania, a geologist at the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, told AFP.

"Our people have walked five kilometres so far and not found the end of this wall," she said, as experts from the institute surveyed the damage.

"So far we have not gotten any reports of people getting swallowed up in these cracks. The fault runs along a less-populated area."

A photograph on the institute's website showed part of the rock wall grotesquely rising on farmland behind an unscathed bamboo hut.

Another house was shown lodged in a crack of the Earth, while a big hole on the ground opened up at a banana farm.

Renato Solidum, head of the institute, said the ground fissures from the quake, which killed 198 people on Bohol and two nearby islands, were among the largest recorded since the government agency began keeping quake records in 1987.

"Most of our other quake records show a lateral (sideways) tearing of the earth, though we've also had coral reefs rising from the sea," he said, citing a 6.7-magnitude earthquake that hit the central island of Negros last year.

The Philippines lies on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire made up of chains of islands created by volcanic eruption that are also frequently hit by earthquakes.

President Benigno Aquino told reporters today the institute had assured him the worst was over, though Bohol would continue to be hit by aftershocks over the next few weeks.

"There is no immediate danger" either from the aftershocks or from the ground fissures, said Aquino, who slept in an army tent there overnight on Wednesday in solidarity with the survivors.

Photo Impressions from The Philippines

20 Killed, 44 Injured in Philippine Road Accident

Story Highlights

• Truck smashed into the rear of a passenger bus
• Incident set off a succession of crashes
• Bus driver lost control of his vehicle and hit two buses and four vans coming from the opposite direction

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Police in the Philippines say at least 20 people were killed and 44 others injured when a truck smashed into the rear of a passenger bus on a remote downhill provincial road, setting off a succession of crashes.

Atimonan town police chief Jonar Yupio says the bus driver lost control of his vehicle and hit two buses and four vans coming from the opposite direction before toppling over, pinning many of the victims. Four children, the truck driver and his assistant were among those killed.

Yupio says it was raining when the accident occurred early Saturday morning, shortly past midnight.

He says there have been about five other accidents on the narrow downhill road in Quezon province, about 72 miles southeast of Manila.

Strong Earthquake in The Philippines/Starkes Erdbeben auf den Philippinen

M 7.2 Earthquake, 5km E of Balilihan, Philippines

5 hours, 2 minutes agoLocation: 13 miles (21 km) NE of Tagbilaran, ... Show more

Posted 4 hours, 44 minutes ago – U.S. Geological Survey

An earthquake with magnitude 7.2 occurred near Tagbilaran, Bohol, Philippines at 00:12:37.20 UTC on Oct 15, 2013. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)

Recommended actions

• Expect aftershocks. These secondary shockwaves are usually less violent than the main quake but can be strong enough to do additional damage to weakened structures and can occur in the first hours, days, weeks, or even months after the quake.
• Look for and extinguish small fires. Fire is the most common hazard after an earthquake.
• Be aware of possible tsunamis if you live in coastal areas. These are also known as seismic sea waves (mistakenly called "tidal waves"). When local authorities issue a tsunami warning, assume that a series of dangerous waves is on the way. Stay away from the beach.
• Be careful when driving after an earthquake and anticipate traffic light outages.

AFTERSHOCKS ARE BEING REPORTED IN CEBU CITY JUST A COUPLE OF MINUTES AGO!

Schweres Erdbeben erschüttert Philippinen

Ein Erdbeben der Stärke 7,2 hat die Philippinen erschüttert und
mindestens 32 Menschen in den Tod gerissen. Der Erdstoß war im Umkreis von
hunderten Kilometern deutlich zu spüren. Nach Angaben der Behörden gab es
die meisten Todesopfer in der Stadt Cebu, weitere auf den nahe gelegenen
Inseln Bohol und Siquijor. Cebu hat 2,5 Millionen Einwohner und ist das
politische und wirtschaftliche Zentrum in der mittleren Region des
Inselstaates. Gebäude stürzten ein, drei der ältesten katholischen
Kirchen im Land wurden beschädigt, ebenso zwei Flughäfen und der Hafen
von Tacloban. Das Epizentrum lag östlich von Balilihan in der Region
Bohol, die auch bei Touristen beliebt ist. Die Philippinen bestehen aus
mehr als 7000 Inseln. In der Region reiben drei verschiedene Erdplatten
aneinander.

Choosing to Believe

 

Like Many Things in Life, Hope too is a Choice

 

By MIKE MEDLIN, Manila

 

Just weeks after two bombings in Davao City and intense fighting in western Mindanao, 104.3 The Edge is challenging the community to take hope.  Starting Tuesday morning the air team will encourage believers in Davao to accept that the hope they want and desperately need for their city begins with them.

If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.-II Chronicles 7:14

Hope & healing is our prayer for Davao and the nation.  Consider the recent headlines...

• Hundreds of Millions of Pesos Stolen in Political Pork Barrel
• HIV Infection Spread for Asia is the Fastest in the Philippines
• Youngest Confirmed Prostitute in Davao City Age 9

​In times like these, hope and belief are in short supply and that's why the positive message of the Edge Davao is so critical.  

Tomorrow morning, I'll be flying out for the week to join the team in Davao for their next fundraiser.  As a listener supported station, the Edge Davao is blazing a new trail for Christian media ministry in the Philippines.  Raising funds in a developing nation is challenging and a real leap of faith for everyone who sits behind the microphone.  Please join me in prayer for this station.

The financial goal set by the station leadership is a humble P72,000.  That's less than $2000 USD and yet enough to cover for the station's lease for an entire year.  If God moves your heart, it would be a real encouragement to the team if their American brothers and sisters would join them in "Fueling Hope for Davao City."  If you'd like to make a special one time donation to their cause please click the link below.

   We've set up a special PayPal account for this cause.   Click here to give to Edge Davao.  (The account is set up in Philippines Pesos which are currently exchanging at P43=$1.)

Who's racist?

Editorial MINDANAO DAILY MIRROR from Saturday, October 5, 2013 with friendly permission by Marietta F. Siongco, publisher and editor-in-chief

"A lot of Filipinos were incensed at the Facebook post of a certain "Devina Dediva" who had expressed incredulity that a candidate from a coun try where "filthy maids" come from could win the Miss World crown. Racist, Devina Dediva was called, and rightly so: her remarks certainly betrayed a mind that is narrow and uneducated, one that cannot look beyond a few feet from her own nose to see that the world does not in fact revolve around her. Her myopic view is that Filipinas are maids who clean toilets, quite forgetting the fact that cleaning toilets is an honorable job. That such one would win an international beauty title was simply incomprehensible to her.

But as abhorrent as Devina Dediva's comments were, we must as Filipinos take this as an opportunity to look at ourselves and see if we are not guilty of the same kind of racism. If we were to be really honest, we would say that yes, Filipinos can be as cruelly racist as Devina Dediva, and perhaps even more so. We are, after all, a country that values skin color above all oher physical traits: dark skin is considered unattractive, as shown by the numerous skin whitening products being sold and advertised. Dark-skinned people are made fun of, turned into laughing stocks and derided in public. Actors with screen names like Whitney Houston and Mang Tem-i become butts of jokes on television and the movies, and no one thinks there is anything wrong with it.

A recent incident also showed how racist we can be. Last August, the Philippines came close to winning the FIBA Asia Championship, beaten only by Iran in the final game. What came after the game was positively embarrassing: Filipinos took to social networking sites to call the Iranian players all sorts of names based on their nationality, how they looked, and even how they supposedly smelled. A country that thinks nothing of doing this does not deserve to protest when a foreigner derides us."

It's Christmas in The Air...

It's known already: The Philippines got the longest Christmas Season worldwide.

It's October, and Christmas is also already in the air. I found a very wonderful album:

Inspirational Diva Jamie Rivera shares her newest composition in her first ever Christmas album with some of the best-selling artists in the country. Her song "Christmas Around The World" features among many others Toni Gonzaga, Bugoy Drilon, Erik Santos and Janella Salvador. Find also a special renditions of classic Christmas songs like "Pasko Na Sinta Ko", "I'll Be Home For Christmas", "Joy To The World", "Gloria in Excelsis Deo" and many more.

The wonderfulo album is avalaible at all record bars in the Philippines or can be downloaded via amazon.com.

LONG LIVE PHILIPPINE CINEMA !

Local Film Development Council for Davao City Eyed

Davao City Councilor and friend Leo Leonardo Avila is proposing through an ordinance the creation of the Film Development Council of Davao City. The resolution was inroduced by first by him during the October 1 City Council Session.

According to the resolution of Councilor Avila,there is already a thriving film industry in Davao City which has become a favourite destination  for location shoots, both for national and international films.

According to Avila, there is a need for the local government to support film industry and harness its potentials. One of the guests yesterday at the Council Session was film director Brillante Mendoza, the only Filipino director to win the best director prize in the prestigious Cannes Film Festival. Mendoza is currently on tour among Davao City schools.

Availa's proposal which was treated as the resolution's first reading was given to the City's Council's Committee on Education, Science and Technology, Culture and Arts chaired by Councilor Maria Belen Acosta for further hearings.

PIA/with RG Alma

It's never too late!

Re-published from Mindanao Daily Mirror, Opinion Section, my column dated September 20, 2013 with friendly permission of my publisher Marietta F. Siongco.

I know a lot of pension expatriates living in the Philippines for good. Many of them get a big problem after staying here for only a couple of months: they get bored.

Having a vacation all day, all week, all month and all year long is really not an egg's yellow. I experienced the same in 1999 after moving to Davao City. At that time I justed turned 46.

I remember my last days in an international publishing house in Berlin (with branch offices in New York and Amsterdam. I packed up my things after signing my resignation letter. Of course, I hadn't reach my final pension age yet, but I got a lot of ideas on how to shape and organize my "new" life in the Philippines. I never forgot some office mates smiling at me: "We can't cross such bridges before we come to them!" Of course guys, you have been right!

Anyway, age doesn't matter - you can enjoy the second half of your life residing in the Philippines. As many of you know already: I stayed in many countries worldwide. I could have migrated to the U.S. I didn't. I choosed the Philippines.

Most important thing: Keep yourself busy... .

Sure, there is always a time, when we should rest and really enjoy life. Sure, we brought our savings and many of us enjoy the monthly pension in Euro or Dollar. Several weeks ago, I read a good idea in an U.S. business weekly: "Partner up with entrepreneurs who have long been in the business, or those who have just retired as well!" Worth to think about it!

Getting bored, means also for some to start grumbling and complaining about everything and everybody in the Philippines. I always keep my distance to such negative people. We are not here to change this country and its people. Why? What for? Filipinos are also not planning to change our home countries or us!

I really don't get more stressed than in my home country before. Critics reproach and accused me of living a life as expatriate while wearing pink tinted glasses. Sorry, but my conscience is very clear.

I keep myself busy, too busy sometimes: Teaching, translating, writing, in the radio, and many more things. It's never too late. It's your life! Take your chance and enjoy life in the Philippines. And stay away from grumblers and grousing people... .

Noli me tangere - Ruehr' mich nicht an... - Don't Touch me...

Ich war schon immer fasziniert von Jose Rizal, dem philippinischen Nationalhelden.

1887 erschien in Berlin ein spanisch geschriebenes Buch mit dem lateinischen Titel NOLI ME TANGERE (Ruehr' mich nicht an!). Autor war der junge philippinische Schriftsteller Jose Rizal. Er hatte nach seinem Studium in Madrid und einem Aufenthalt in Paris 1886 Deutschland bereist und in Heidelberg die Niederschrift seines Romans beendet.

Der Erscheinungsort Berlin ist kein Kuriosum. Wie so viele wache und begeisterungsfaehige Koepfe jener Zeit suchte Rizal die Verbindung von wissenschaftlicher Erklaerung und "deutschem Idealismus". Sein Roman, der von der spanischen Kolonialherrschaft der Philippinen als politisch brisant betrachtet werden musste, war "mit Herzblut geschrieben", wie Rizal's oesterreichischer Freund, der Gelehrte F. Blumentritt, schrieb: Er wollte ebenso aufklaererisch wie aufruettelnd wirken.

Die spanische Kolonialmacht erkannte sofort die subversive Kraft des Romans: nicht in den manchmal karikaturartigen Einzelgestalten, sondern darin, dass die Fremdherrschaft eben als FREMDherrschaft ad absurdum gefuehrt wird. Noch im Erscheinungsjahr 1887 wird der Roman verboten. Am 30.12.1986 wird Rizal als geistiger Urheber der nicht laenger zu unterdrueckenden philippinischen Freiheitsbewegung exekutiert. Zwei Jahre spaeter endet die spanische Herrschaft auf den Philippinen, ebenso auf Kuba, wo Jose Marti eine aehnliche revolutionaer-literarische Rolle gespielt hat.

Noch heute teilt sich die leidenschaftlich politisch-ethische Kraft dieses wirkungsreichen  Romans dem Leser unmittelbar mit.

Ich besitze die spanische, englische und deutsche Ausgabe (aus dem philippinisch Spanisch uebersetzt von Annemarie del Cueto-Moerth, 1. Auflage 1987, Insel Verlag, Frankfurt/Main).

More Rain and Landslides in The Philippines

Luzon has been drenched by monsoon rains enhanced by Typhoon Usagi. Photograph: Francis R. Malasig/EPA
 
Torrential monsoon rains have hit the north-west Philippines triggering landslides and killing 20 people in areas already weakened by a powerful typhoon, and raising the death toll to 47 from storms across Asia.

Philippine officials said soldiers and villagers were also searching for at least seven people missing in mountainside villages hit by the landslides on Monday in the province of Zambales.

In China, where typhoon Usagi struck after passing by the Philippines, officials said the storm killed 25 people in the southern province of Guangdong, 13 of them in the city of Shanwei where it struck the coast late on Sunday.

Two people drowned when a passenger boat capsized in north-east Aurora Province in the Philippines.

Jeffrey Khonghun, mayor of Subic, Zambales, said 15 bodies were dug out in two landslide-hit villages in his town. Five people also died in landslides in two other towns in Zambales, according to army officials and police.

Rescuers used their hands, pots and shovels to dig through the muck that buried a cluster of houses, while relatives of two other missing residents waited in the rain in the village of Wawandue.

"This is the first after a long time that we were hit by this kind of deluge," Khonghun told Manila's DZBB radio network. He had to stop the interview when another body was pulled out from the mud near him.

Typhoon Usagi enhanced the torrential monsoon rains that drenched the main northern Philippine region of Luzon over the weekend. The powerful typhoon blew away late on Saturday and a new tropical storm off southern Japan was continuing to intensify the downpours in Luzon, government forecaster Samuel Duran said.

Many low-lying areas of the Philippine capital, Manila, and outlying regions were swamped on Monday, prompting authorities to close schools and offices.
In Hong Kong flight schedules were returning to normal on Monday after major disruptions caused by Usagi, which was the season's strongest storm. At its peak it forced about 250 flight cancellations in Hong Kong, before weakening to a tropical depression over the southern Chinese province of Guangdong.

Train and airline services around Guangdong had returned to normal after the storm, China's state broadcaster CCTV said.

China's national weather centre said the storm would continue to weaken as it moves north-west.

Philippine Church "Right" despite Pope Francis Comments

 

Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma: Be involved. Photo from http://www.cbcponline.net/

Philippine Catholic leaders are standing firm against contraception, abortion and homosexual marriage despite Pope Francis’ comments urging a change of tone on those issues, the national Church said Tuesday. 

 

About 80 percent of the Philippines’ 100 million population are Catholics, making the country the bastion of the faith in Asia, and Church leaders insisted that its dogma would remain in place.

“He is not saying that what the Church deemed before as wrong is now right. He is merely telling us to be more compassionate,” Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines president Jose Palma said in reaction to the recent papal statement.
“He won’t be saying contraceptives, and even abortion, are now okay. No! Do not expect that to happen,” Archbishop Palma said in comments made Monday.
In an interview published last week, the Argentine pontiff urged a break with the Church’s harsh “obsession” with divorce, gays, contraception and abortion.
Philippine Church leaders have led a decade-long campaign against a birth control law that required the state to hand out free condoms and birth control pills, and provide post-abortion medical care.

The Supreme Court suspended the law in March so that judges could hear formal petitions from a range of Church-backed groups arguing that it was unconstitutional.
Archbishop Socrates Villegas, the vice president of the bishops’ group, said: “He (the pope) did not rebuff the strong opposition to contraception, abortion or homosexual marriage. He just set it on proper grounding.”

The transcripts of Palma’s and Villegas’ comments were made available by the bishops’ organisation to AFP on Tuesday.

Edcel Lagman, a former legislator who wrote the birth control law, told AFP the pope’s comments had put the Filipino Church leaders on the defensive, saying they belonged to its “ultra-conservative wing”.

“I think they will have to reconcile their doctrines and make themselves attuned to the liberal thinking of the new pope. There is no way to go but to follow the pope,” he said.

Lagman said the Filipino Church’s conservative activism was rooted in its key role converting locals to Christianity as part of the Asian islands’ 17th-century colonisation by Spain.

“The Church feels it should meddle in the affairs of the State,” he added.

Read more: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/494061/philippine-church-right-despite-pope-francis-comments#ixzz2fnRr9wWZ

Typhoon Usagi Moves Towards Philippines and Taiwan

 
Typhoon Usagi has wind speeds of up to 175 km/h (109 mph).
 

The Philippines and Taiwan are braced for Typhoon Usagi, which meteorologists say could become the most powerful typhoon of 2013.

The typhoon was 560km (350 miles) east-southeast of Taiwan and 360km (225 miles) from the northern Philippines on Friday morning, weather officials said.

Both Taiwan and the Philippines have issued alerts and warned boats to exercise caution.

Typhoon Usagi had wind speeds of up to 175 km/h (110 mph) and gained strength early on Friday, Pagasa, the Philippine government's weather agency, said.

Philippine officials have issued storm warnings for flash flooding, landslides and storm surges for several northern provinces.

Emergency and health personnel in some provinces have also been placed on standby, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said.

Meanwhile, Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau issued a land warning on Friday morning, and forecast heavy rainfall for northern and eastern Taiwan.

China's State Oceanic Administration has issued a class I emergency response for the typhoon, its highest maritime disaster response level, state media report.

China's National Meteorological Centre has also issued a yellow alert in its weather warning system.

In August, at least two people died and thousands lost their homes after Typhoon Utor hit the northern Philippines. 

Davao City - my Second Home

 

More fun in Davao City(Official)

Good Evening Davaoeños!

98 days to go and it's Christmas!

Let's not allow anyone to destroy our beautiful, progressive and peaceful city, but please be safe guys! ...


Davao City - Fun is Here

^Angelknigh†^


(c) Owner of the PhotosSee More

Herzlich Willkommen Dietmar Prinz/Heartily Welcome Dietmar Prinz

Dietmar Prinz aus San Fabian, Pangasinan

Zu meiner Person: Ich bin am 10 .09.1948 geboren,  habe 37 Jahre ein Fliesenfachgeschäft   Verlegung   Beratung  Verkauf in Deutschland gehabt.Ich bin seit 16 Jahren in zweiter Ehe glücklich  verheiratet und habe die beste Frau und kann eigentlich,  und ich bin es auch,  sehr zufrieden sein  mit meinem Leben.

Meine Frau ist eine  Pinay. Ich  liebe  auch meinen grossen  Familienkreis. Klaus, ich kann manchmal nicht alle Kommentare ueber die Pinoys gutheissen. Sie sind nicht besser und  nicht schlechter als  alle anderen Menschen auf der Welt, SIGURO ...etwas anders für uns aus  Europa. Es gibt keine guten  Deutschen und schlechten Moslems. Es gibt überall auf der Welt gute und weniger gute Menschen - unabhänig  von Religion  und /oder Nationalität.  Manchmal fehlt nur ein wenig Verständniss für den anderen.   

Additional Requirements for Foreigners Before Marrying Filipinas?

A lawmaker on Friday urgend the government to impose an additional requirement to male foreign nationals desiring to marry a Filipina before a marriage license can be granted to prevent exploitation of Filipino women.

"We are all aware of incidents that some foreigners who come to the Philippines to marry Filipino women are vagabonds or social or moral derelicts, whose real motive is only to take advantage and exploit our women, "Rep. Gwendolyn Garcia (3rd District, Cebu City) said.

Garcia is author of House Bill 2387 or "An Act amending Article 66 of the Civil Code of the Philippines in order to prescribe additional requirements for male citizens or subjects of a foreign country to marry a Filipino woman."

"Not a few of these male foreigners' real motive for marriage is to exploit our women by making them work and worse, by sending them to prostitution, and other degrading and dehumanizing occupations,"Garcia said.

At present, Garcia said, "when either or both the contracting parties are citizens or subjects of a foreign country, it shall be necessary, before a marriage license can be obtained, to provide themselves with a certificate of legal capacity to contract marriage, to be issued by their respective diplomatic or consular officials."

The bill provides that when one of the contracting parties is a male citizen or subject of a foreign country desiring to marry a female citizen of the Philippines, in addition to this certificate of legal capacity, the foreigner shall provide himself with a certificate of good moral character and a certificate that he has gainful trade, business or employment, to be issued by his diplomatic or consular official, before a marriage license can be obtained.

Garcia said the exploitation of Filipino women, thru the so-called mail-order or penpal, Facebook, website mail, and other internet instigated marriages, has not only caused miseries and sufferings to Filipino momen but also brought dishonor and disgrace to Filipino womanhood.

"The proposed requirements, in addition to the usual certificate of legal capacity, are intended to protect our women from these undesirable foreigners," Garcia said.

The Garcia bill has been referred to the Committee on Revision of Laws chaired by Rep. Marlyn Primicias-Agabas (6th District, Pangasinan).

By: PNA

MNLF Rebels Hold Philippine Forces at Bay

Filipino rebels have held scores of hostages as human shields in a two-day standoff with government forces. Since Monday, fighting has virtually shut down a southern port city. 

Troops have surrounded 200 Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) guerrillas and their roughly 180 hostages in four coastal villages near Zamboanga since the fighting began Monday. The conflict has displaced about 1,500 residents of the mainly Muslim districts near the city, including women and children forced to spend the night sleeping on the floor of crowded gyms after fleeing. At least eight combatants have been killed and 24 wounded.

"The primary mission of the government now is clear: do everything possible to convince the armed MNLF group to free all the captive residents they are using as a 'human shield' against military and police operations," Interior Secretary Mar Roxas said. He added that government forces would now focus on "saving as many lives as possible."

The MNLF's 42-year rebellion has claimed 150,000 lives. The group signed an accord with the government in 1996, but retained its weapons and has accused officials of reneging on promises of an autonomous region for Muslims in the Mindanao region of the largely Catholic nation. Last month, the MNLF issued new threats to secede by establishing its own republic.

Military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Ramon Zagala said government forces discovered in advance a planned attack in Zamboanga - a city of around 800,000 - and positioned themselves offensively to deter that. Navy spokesman Lieutenant-Commander Gregory Fabic said commandos had killed seven rebels as they marched into the city, though the sea battle also led to the death of one soldier.

President Benigno Aquino III said his government would make hostage safety a top priority. He has deployed top Cabinet officials and his military chief of staff to oversee the situation.

MNLF vs. MILF
 
MNLF rebels have felt excluded after the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which split in 1978, successfully engaged the government in talks brokered by Malaysia. Monday's attack came as the government prepared to resume negotiations Tuesday.

"We condemn acts of violence perpetrated by spoilers out to derail the people's journey to a just and lasting peace," said presidential adviser Teresita Deles, who has helped to oversee negotiations with the MILF. "How can you demand to hoist your flag in the name of peace while brazenly bearing arms and hurting innocent civilians?" Deles added.

The MNLF rebels have given no indication as to whether they would engage in talks or what they intend to do next.

"Our forces will stay where they are," MNLF spokesman Emmanuel Fontanilla told DZMM radio "They are on a defensive posture."

The 11,000-strong MILF has made substantial progress toward a new autonomy deal for Muslims in the peace talks with the government. The latest round of those talks resumed Tuesday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

mkg/ph (Reuters, AFP, AP)

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Philippines: Muslim rebels in Zamboanga conflict

By: Deutsche Welle TV, Germany

Protect The Media

Re-published Editorial from Mindanao Daily Mirror, September 6, 2013, with friendly permission of my publisher and editor-in-chief Marietta Songco.

"The attacks on the media in the Philippines continue unabated, with a radio broadcaster getting shot dead in Iligan City last week and two Davao City media executives getting convicted of libel also last week. These two may seem to be very different cases, and in many ways they are: one was a violent crime, while the other was a long drawn-out case. But the net effect is the same: media practitioners know they live under a sword that could fall on their heads any time, in one way or another.

What confounds the media community is how indifferent government has been  to its plights. Almost three decades have passed since the 1986 People Power revolution that supposedly brought democracy back to the country, and yet here we are, a media industry constantly under threat of being killed, arrested, jailed, imprisoned. 

Of the roughly 200 journalists killed since 1986, more than 130 were murdered in the time of their duty. Most of the killers have gone scot-free, and practically all masterminds have never been arrested. Five presidents have taken residence in Malacanang, but none of them have taken concrete steps to protect the media.

As for libel, government has shown no inclination to decriminalize it, making the Philippines one of a very countries where one can go to prison for expressing oneself. Freedom of expression is enshrined in our Constitution, but as long as libel is a criminal offense, we will be merely paying lip services to it. Every single journalist lives with the thought that he or she could go to prison  for something he or she wrote or said on air, and that can have profound effects on how the truth is reported. Under threat of libel, explosive stories can have a way of disappearing from view, neer to be seen to the public.

The Aquino adminstration styles itself as the one that is walking the straight and narrow path, but it has a ling way to go to prove its commitment by way of protecting the media. Without free media, good government is nothing but fiction."

Philippine Newspaper Editor Killed

Vergel Bico, 41, who edited weekly paper, is second journalist to be killed in a week in Philippines.

Nearly 160 journalists have been killed since 1986, according to the National Union of Journalists. Photograph: Pat Roque/AP
 
A Philippine newspaper editor who recently wrote about illegal gambling has been killed – the second journalist to be murdered in the country in a week, police say.

Vergel Bico was shot twice in the head on Wednesday as he rode his motorcycle in Calapan City in Mindoro Oriental province. The gunman fled on a motorcycle, which was driven by another man.

The police chief D'Artagnan Katalbas said the motive was not yet known but investigators were not ruling out the possibility that the killing was related to Bico's work as a journalist. "We are looking at suspected guns for hire here," Katalbas said.

Bico, 41, was editor of the weekly Kalahi newspaper in Calapan, about 75 miles south of Manila.

Ronald Bula, publisher of the Bandera Pilipino weekly, where Bico worked as a columnist for two years before leaving last October, said Bico had recently written about illegal gambling in another Mindoro town.

Last week, the radio commentator Fernando Solijon was shot dead by a motorcycle-riding assailant in southern Iligan City.

The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines said Solijon had criticised local politicians on his programme and linked a village chief to illegal drugs.

Nearly 160 journalists have been killed in the Philippines since the fall of the dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986, the union said.

By:

Associated Press Manila

Woman Tied to Philippine Graft Scandal Surrenders

A wealthy businesswoman at the center of a corruption scandal has surrendered to Philippine President Benigno Aquino III three days after a large protest in Manila to condemn large-scale graft allegations in a country long mired in poverty.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said he fetched Janet Lim-Napoles, accompanied by her lawyer, late Wednesday in a cemetery. She was then brought to the Malacanang presidential palace to briefly meet Aquino before she was turned over to police. Her lawyer said she had received death threats and wanted to be assured of her safety.

Napoles has been accused of illegally detaining a former aide who accused her of stealing huge amounts of government development funds, derisively called pork-barrel funds, in conspiracy with powerful lawmakers. She has denied any wrongdoing but was ordered arrested by authorities, with Aquino announcing a 10 million peso ($227,000) bounty for her capture.

Philippine media reports of her lavish lifestyle, including the alleged ownership of an array of elegant houses and condominiums, have angered many Filipinos in a country where nearly a third of the 97 million people live on a little over a dollar a day and about a tenth have left the country in search of jobs and better opportunities abroad.

Amid an outrage expressed on social media, tens of thousands of Filipinos massed up at Manila's Rizal Park Monday to demand the scrapping of the corruption-tainted development fund and called on Aquino to crack down harder on corruption. Aquino, son of revered pro-democracy champions, rose to power in 2010 with a landslide victory on a promise to fight corruption and poverty.

It was one of the largest rallies seen in the Philippines since the huge protests that hounded Aquino's predecessor Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who faced allegations of massive corruption. Arroyo has denied any wrongdoing but has been detained in a hospital on corruption and election fraud charges.

Davao City Wins National Literacy Award 2013 Hall of Fame

Davao City bagged the National Literacy Awards 2013 Hall of Fame under the Highly Urbanized Cit Category.

In a letter to Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, Department of Education Undersecretary Rizalino Rivero said Davao City will be given recognition for its inspiring efforts in sustaining the City's exemplary programs in literacy and for the impact the programs have created on the community.

"We extend our heartfelt congratulations for winning the Hall of Fame award," Rivera stated in the letter.

In the report for the bid to the said national awards, then Mayor Sara Duterte said Davao's vision is one where all sectors have access to basic services, where all citiziens live in a progressive socviety, able to realize their potentials and live their live to the fullest.

"Literacy programs do not fall under peace and order, disaster managament, the invironment, health rural development and socio-economic improvement," former Mayor Sara Duterte, said.

Davao City's programs are known to have been institutiionalized to ensure generations of Davaoenos empowerment in governance and further develop their skills and becvome self reliant, proactive and dynamic members of society.

The Department of Education will be holding its annual National Literacy Conference on September 3 to 5 in Bagiuo City.

One of the ightlights of the conference is the presentation of the Hall of Fame Award to Davao City for being the three-time first place winner in the Outstanding Local Government Unit Category.

Mayor Rody Duterte has been invited to the said conference and is expected to receive the Hall of Fame Award.

With City Information Office, Davao City.

Davao City - My Second Home in The Philippines

DAVAO CITY - The Most Peaceful City in East and Southeast Asia for seven years and is home to the “Best Police Office in the Country” for six consecutive years. 

For four consecutive years, Davao City has also been recognized by Asiaweek as one of the 20 Best Cities in Asia. Davao City was nominated as New 7 Wonders Cities. 

I am proud to live here - in my second (at last!) home in the Philippines.

(Photo Courtesy: BIYAHENG DAVAO)

Aufraeumarbeiten nach Dauerregen auf den Philippinen

Am Donnerstag haben die Aufräumarbeiten begonnen.

 

Schweres Gerät für Aufräumarbeiten.

Die Bewohner der überschwemmten Region um die Hauptstadt Manila reinigten ihre Häuser. Nach drei Tagen Dauerregen - die heftigsten Güsse seit vier Jahren - normalisierte sich die Lage langsam.

Nach Angaben des philippinischen Roten Kreuzes zog sich das Hochwasser aus dem Großteil des Stadtgebiets zurück. Nur noch zehn Prozent des Gebietes stünden unter Wasser, sagte Rotkreuz-Chefin Gwendolyn Pang. Es werde weiter Nothilfe geleistet, das Rote Kreuz konzentriere sich aber verstärkt auf die langfristigen Bedürfnisse der Flutopfer.

Nach Angaben des Sprechers der nationalen Katastrophenhilfe, Reynaldo Balido, kamen durch das Unwetter 17 Menschen ums Leben. Mehr als 500.000 Menschen seien aus ihren Häusern geflohen. 217.000 von ihnen seien in staatlichen Notunterkünften untergebracht, 346.000 weitere seien bei Freunden oder Verwandten untergekommen.

Nördlich von Manila standen 500 Dörfer weiterhin unter Wasser. In Manila gingen die Menschen wieder an ihre Arbeitsplätze in den Büros, der Börsenhandel wurde wieder aufgenommen. Die Schulen sollten dagegen noch für den Rest der Woche geschlossen bleiben. Sie mussten gereinigt werden oder wurden als Notunterkünfte gebraucht.

New Potential Storm Enters The Philippines

A potential tropical cyclone entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Friday morning, the state weather bureau reported.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astrological Services Administration (PAGASA) said that a low pressure area (LPA) was estimated at 580 kilometers Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur.

PAGASA said that new weather system will bring moderate to occasionally heavy rains over the eastern areas of Mindanao and may trigger flashfloods and landslides.

It added that eastern Visayas will also experience rainshowers and thunderstorms.

The weather bureau said that the LPA may intensify into a tropical cyclone in three days or by Monday.

The new cyclone will be named "Nando," the fourth this month and 14th to enter the country this year.

Thousands Still Homeless after Philippine Floods

An estimated 600,000 people in the Philippines remained at temporary shelters or with relatives on Friday after days of heavy rain that killed 20, officials said.

A day after floods ebbed in the capital Manila, stagnant pools of water and high tides in coastal areas prolonged the misery in the central Luzon plains to the north, civil defence official Josefina Timoteo told AFP.

"These are mainly farmers and fisher folk who still cannot return to their homes or resume work. We are still supplying their needs," said Timoteo, the civil defence chief for the region.

"These are low-lying regions and this happens every year. It is a way of life for many of them and the local governments are well-organised to provide relief."

Seasonal monsoons dumped more than a month's rain in Manila and surrounding provinces between Sunday and Wednesday, the state weather service said, submerging about half the capital in floodwaters.

The rains were worsened by Tropical Storm Trami, which hit China on Thursday after hovering off the northern Philippines earlier in the week.

The government's National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said 200,000 people were still in government-run shelters Friday, with 400,000 others staying with friends or relatives and likewise receiving food rations and other emergency aid.

The council raised the death toll to 20 as receding floodwaters led to the discovery of two bodies in Cavite province, south of Manila.

Most of those who have yet to return home are from the central Luzon region, where 481 villages remain under floodwaters up to a metre (3.3 feet) deep, Timoteo said
.
The weather is improving but the evacuation centres, mostly schoolbuildings, are expected to start emptying only next week, she added.

As a result, classes are still suspended in those areas, she said.

The health department has stocked up medicines at evacuation camps to prevent the spread of epidemics, she said, adding there had been no reports of widespread diseases.

The floods wreaked 97.3 billion pesos' ($2.2 billion) worth of damage to infrastructure and crops, the government says.

The Philippines endures about 20 major storms or typhoons annually, generally in the second half of the year and many of them deadly.

Disaster-weary Philippines

Disaster-weary Philippine residents mopped up Thursday after four days of torrential rain that officials said had killed 16 people and forced nearly 400,000 others from flooded homes.

Residents swept out their muddy floors as floods receded, having covered half the metropolis on Tuesday, rescue officials said.

"It's all mud and garbage, and our television set and electric fan were destroyed," shoemaker's wife Flordeliza Miranda told AFP as she returned to the family's shanty beside the San Mateo river that went under water on Tuesday.

"We have not eaten anything since last night," said the mother-of-two, who had slept in a makeshift tent atop a nearby bridge amid the deluge.
Philippine National Red Cross secretary-general Gwendolyn Pang said floods have receded in all but about 10 percent of the metropolis of 12 million people.

"We continue to give support to victims of the monsoon (rains)," she told AFP, adding the focus of the relief effort was shifting from emergency food aid to longer-term needs for the displaced.

The bad weather killed 16 people, said Reynaldo Balido, spokesman for the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, which raised the death toll by one with the body of a drowned man found east of Manila.
More than 186,000 people remained at government-run shelters early Thursday, while nearly 200,000 others are staying with friends and relatives, he added.

Low-level floods however persisted in several nearby provinces.

"The floods are not that deep, mostly knee-high or thigh-high. There is no need for more rescues. However, the waters are stagnant," Balido added.
In Manila, trading resumed at the Philippine Stock Exchange and offices were getting back to work, but most schools have declared emergency holidays for the rest of the week as buildings are cleaned up or used as evacuation centres.

Since Sunday, Manila and neighbouring provinces have experienced the most intense rains in four years.

Rampaging floodwaters swept through low-lying communities, forcing thousands to crowded evacuation centres like gyms, where people were forced to sleep in close quarters on the floor with cardboard boxes for beddings.

In Cavite province near Manila, the floods dislodged concrete tombs at one cemetery, depositing them on the side of a highway, an AFP photographer saw.

State weather forecaster Bernie de Leon said 671.6 millimetres (26.4 inches) of rain fell on Manila between Sunday and Wednesday -- more than the monthly average of 504.2 millimetres for August.

The seasonal monsoon had been worsened by Tropical Storm Trami, which went on to hit Fujian province in China on Thursday.

The Southeast Asian archipelago endures about 20 major storms or typhoons annually, generally in the second half of the year and many of them deadly.

"This is the worst since (Ketsana)," de Leon told AFP, referring to a 2009 storm that killed more than 460 people and left 80 percent of Manila submerged.

"We expect the weather to gradually improve over the coming days," he added.

No Disease Outbreak in South Cotabato

With Allen V. Estabillo, MindaNews

I must confess, I feel better. Most all places in South Cotabato belong to my favourite destinations, since I am living in Mindanao for good.

Efforts to free this province of major animals diseases have continued to gain ground after the area sustained its clean record during the first six months of the year in terms of animal disease outbreaks.

Dr. Lorna Lamorena, South Cotabato provincial veterinarian , said last week they have not recorded a single animal disease outbreak from January to June this year in any part of the province's ten towns and lone city. The area was spared of disease outbreaks in the entire 2012.

Surra disease, for example, which is a parasitic disease that affects various farm animals, emerged within areas bordering South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat provinces, is a hemorrhagic disease transmitted by a bloodsucking fly and caused by a protozoan parasite. This terrible disease affects horses, dogs, cattle, caraboes and swine.

In terms of deadly rabies virus, Lamorena said they recorded just three cases of confirmed dog infections but none of them involved humans... .

Happy Kadayawan Festival in Davao City

Tight security and the last day of this great festival in Davao City.

World Tourism Day Run Highlights Tourism and Water

The Philippines Department of Tourism – Centraluzon, together with the Alliance of Travel and Tour Agencies of Pampanga (ATTAP) and the Pampanga Agents Travel Society (PATS), will lead the celebration of WORLD TOURISM DAY on September 29, 2013, Sunday, with a massive FUN RUN at the Clark Parade Grounds starting at 5:00 in the morning. This was the announcement made by Regional Director, Ronaldo Tiotuico in a press statement issued recently. The two agencies are represented by their presidents, Marcia Hernandez and Roelson Ferry, respectively. The forthcoming event will usher in the coming of age of the travel and tourism industry of Central Luzon as it now begins to evolve to greater stature due to the forging of a stronger partnership between the government and the private sector. It symbolizes the achievements of the private sector in bringing about a good number of foreign and local tourists and travelers into the region as it begins to hit the 2M mark in visitor arrivals since 2012. Central Luzon has joined the ranks of millionaires’ row in the realm of attracting visitors to the various regions all over the country. More importantly, the event represents the industry’s collaboration and adherence with the UN General Assembly’s declaration of the year 2013 as the United Nations International Year of Water Cooperation focusing on tourism’s significant role and contribution to worldwide water conservation efforts. As a trillion-dollar economic sector, tourism is a powerful force capable of tackling this challenge by offering effective solutions geared towards a more sustainable water future. With over one billion people traveling all over the world each year, tourism can also be an important vehicle of raising awareness and changing behaviors. (source: untwo.org) With this year’s World Tourism Day theme focused on “Tourism and Water: Protecting our Common future”, the tourism department hopes to gather some 1,000 local and foreign runners in a single event with each one being reminded of the need to underline one’s responsibility and commitment to preserving the world’s vital water resources. This year’s WTD Run will have four (4) distance categories, namely 21K, 10K, 5K and 3K with their corresponding registration fees: P850, P650, P450 and P300, respectively. More than P80,000 worth of cash prizes, medals and certificates are at stake. Each participant will receive free jersey, race kit, race bib and race map. Part of the proceeds from the event will be donated to the Special Education Center of the Department of Education in Angeles City where some 200 children and adults with special needs are cared for throughout the year. The donation will be utilized to convert part of their facilities into barrier-free environment for the persons with disabilities. For further details and registration for the event, please contact any of the member travel agencies of either ATTAP or PATS. Or call the Department of Tourism – Central Luzon Office at Marlim Mansions Hotel Bldg., Diamond Subd., Balibago, Angeles City, Tel. No. (045) 625-8525 or Mobile 0917-506-2221 / 0939-904-5231. Emailcast by: Department of Tourism - Region III (Central Luzon) Paskuhan Village, City of San Fernando, Pampanga, Philippines Ronaldo P. Tiotuico - Regional Director Phone: (63 45) 961-2612 / 5617 / 625-8525 Email: tourismregion3@gmail.com / support@visitmyphilippines.com Recipient (Best Ecotourism Project - Mt. Pinatubo): PATA Gold Intl Award 2001, Kalakbay Natl Award 2001, ASEANTA Intl Award 2002 Log on: www.visitmyphilippines.com MORE THAN 13 MILLION ONLINE GUESTS HAVE VISITED THIS SITE SINCE 2007. FIND OUT WHY!

Lumad yes; Foreigners NO!

Lumad yes; foreigners no!

HAVE MY SAY

By Klaus Doring

I AM BACK. 11 days time out. Relax, unwind. I stay on my veranda, just had a glass of wine, check all old newspapers. And suddenly this headline caught my attention: Lumad yes; foreigners, no! Foreigners?

I am an expatriate living in the Philippines since 1999 for good. Foreigner’s, no?

But after checking the first paragraphs, I got happy. Mining is the topic. And our good vice Paolo Duterte voiced out: “Never!” Never on the applications of foreign groups to mine in the hinterland of Paquibato. Paquibato is one of Davao’s remote mountainous districts. From the nearby Panabo City, one can reach Barangay Mapula after a little less than two hours.

Vice Paolo made it very clear, and I must confess, I strongly agree with him. Don’t allow any foreign mining in Paquibato. The land rightfully belongs to the Lumad. And they will say they will themselves undertake mining there – fine! Yes, Vice Palo is so very right in saying, that he doesn’t want the landlords, the rich AND the foreigners to dip their fingers in the ancestral lands and make the people their laborers, ostensibly provide them houses to pretend that they are people and supportive of the people.

Kudos Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte. And, it’s known: Mayor Rody Duterte, his father also has been consistent about his anti-mining stance for the city.

*****

Email: doringklaus@gmail.com. The author is Professor for German Language at the University of Southeastern Philippines.

Also published today in  Mindanao Daily News/Mindanao Business Week.