A trip in the town of Liliw would give flip-flop lovers a fresh view about this new craze. The homegrown, native slippers are hand-made, piece-by-piece, by the town’s oldest and finest-skilled shoemakers. BY DABET CASTANEDA Bulatlat PHOTOS BY DABET CASTAÑEDA LILIW, Laguna – Even old-fashioned grandmothers would agree that flip-flops are the latest things in…
Month: January 2007
The War with No End
By Andrew Marshall Time.com A fighter in the New People’s Army, which has waged war in the Philippines for over 30 years Comrade Giegie is getting married. Her wedding will be held in a jungle clearing, which she will enter through an archway of raised assault rifles. The bride and groom will make their vows…
‘Questionable Deaths’ Mar Campaign Vs Sayyaf
According to the military, 10 Abu Sayyaf terrorists were killed in Patikul, Sulu, on Jan. 18. But an official disclosed that five of the dead were actually MNLF members and that the other fatalities include a 12-year-old boy and a 90-year-old man who angrily stormed a Marine camp after the killing of two relatives, but…
Dutch Lawyers Ask Arroyo to Form New Probe Body
A group of Dutch lawyers is urging President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to form another investigative body that would look into the extra-judicial killings of activists, including lawyers and judges in the Philippines. The Melo Commission, they said, “lacks the powers, independence and credibility necessary to do its work effectively.” BY BULATLAT A group of Dutch lawyers…
Local Media’s Economic Woes
Although the press is looked up to as the Fourth Estate and serves as a powerful instrument in advancing social justice, its members are victims of the exploitation that the press discusses and exposes daily. By Karl G. Ombion and Ryan Lachica Bulatlat Building Unity Second of two parts The Department of Labor and Employment…
Local Media’s Economic Woes
Although the press is looked up to as the Fourth Estate and serves as a powerful instrument in advancing social justice, its members are victims of the exploitation that the press discusses and exposes daily. By Karl G. Ombion and Ryan Lachica Bulatlat From Media’s Grassroots First of two parts BACOLOD CITY – Although the…
ASEAN Convention on Counter Terrorism
Member Countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) – Brunei Darussalam, the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Republic of Indonesia, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, the Union of Myanmar, the Republic of the Philippines, the Republic of Singapore, the Kingdom of Thailand, and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, hereinafter referred to as…
ASEAN Anti-Terror Pact Seen to Curtail Rights on Regional Scale
The Convention on Counter-Terrorism is being paraded about as one of the achievements of the 12th ASEAN Summit, held Jan. 12-15 in Cebu. The Arroyo government presents it as a big leap for Southeast Asia in what is described as a “global war” on terrorism. However, it is feared that the pact could only cause…
China vs Japan: FTAs, Oil and Taiwan
The growing competition for oil particularly in East Asia between China and Japan is dragging Taiwan leading to saber-rattling by both countries. The role of Taiwan in this equation adds heat into this growing rivalry that also has military implications. By Bobby Tuazon Bulatlat China and Japan account for nearly three-quarters of the region’s economic…
The Korean Peninsula: U.S. Military Aggression and Pyongyang’s Response
The presence of a socialist country in East Asia has been a threat to U.S. economic hegemony in the region although it has also served as a magnet that would justify U.S. military supremacy in the guise of “preserving democracy and free market.” By Bobby Tuazon Bulatlat A peninsula in East Asia, the Korean Peninsula…
U.S. and China: Harmony Today, Confrontation Tomorrow?
On several issues and concerns, both China and U.S. imperialism today share some common interests and to some degree are interdependent. Whatever fractious issues separate the two countries, these appear to be manageable or are simple irritants and at the moment do not jeopardize the major common and strategic interests they both share. By BOBBY…