Ang kontrobersyal na Human Security Act (Republic Act No. 9372) o aking tatawaging “Terror Act” ay madadagdag sa mahabang listahan ng mga batas o dekreto ng estado ng Pilipinas na pagsalakay at pag-atake sa karapatan ng taumbayan na magpahayag, maglathala, mag-organisa at lumahok na mapayapa sa pangkabuhayan at pampulitikang pamamalakad sa bansa. NI ROLAND G.…
Month: August 2007
Resistance to Killings as Arroyo Falters
Clearly the Arroyo bloc has been unwilling to try to end the abuses. There are two main reasons for this. First, she fears a coup. A leader of a recent attempt was placed in detention, but still got 11.5 million votes in the May Senate election. Second, her disastrous neo-liberal policies are deeply unpopular. BY…
Pursuit Operations in Sulu Trigger AFP-MNLF Clash
BY ALEXANDER MARTIN REMOLLINO Bulatlat Vol. VII, No. 28, August 19-25, 2007 The plot seems to be getting thicker. While pursuing Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) bandits and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) fighters allegedly responsible for the beheading of 10 Marines, soldiers clashed, this time, with fighters of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), sources…
The Bursting of the Bubble
The declines in the stock market and values of currencies may aptly be described as a bursting of the bubble because it reveals a lot of things: the real state of the world economy and the dominance of international mobile capital; the fundamental weakness and vulnerability of the Philippine economy; and the empty boasts of…
Luisita Farmers Go Back to Basics
After the strike ended more than two years ago, the HLI farm workers have been planting rice and vegetables providing them with income and food. But more than the earnings, they find fulfillment in cultivating the land that is rightfully theirs. BY DABET CASTAÑEDA Bulatlat Vol. VII, No. 28, August 19-25, 2007 Hacienda Luisita, Tarlac…
Peasant Group Calls for Review of Biofuels Law; Fears Possible Land Grabbing, Displacement
The militant peasant group Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP or Philippine Peasant Movement) called for the review of the Biofuels Law fearing that jathropa planting would intensify land grabbing and peasant displacement. BY AUBREY MAKILAN Bulatlat Vol. VII, No. 28, August 19-25, 2007 The militant peasant group Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP or Philippine Peasant…
The Crux of the Moro Problem*
It is clear why the Philippine government is not about to give up Mindanao or even only the acknowledged Moro ancestral domains to the Moro people. All talk about national sovereignty and the indivisibility of Philippine territory is just a convenient cover for the real reasons: ownership of land by big non-Moro landowners, including multinationals…
Fisherfolk Group Says Petron Should Fund Guimaras Rehab Plan
Groups supporting the plight of victims of Guimaras oil spill tragedy last year have asked lawmakers to pass a law that would focus on the rehabilitation of Guimaras and other affected areas over the next three years, adding that the proposed fund of P10 billion for rehabilitation should come from Petron Corp. BY GERRY ALBERT…
Free Trade Pacts with China, Japan to Further Weaken RP Economy
Philippine trade deals with Japan and China, which President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo recently urged Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members to act on, will further weaken the country’s already damaged domestic economy. BY IBON FOUNDATION Posted by Bulatlat Vol. VII, No. 28, August 19-25, 2007 Philippine trade deals with Japan and China, which President Gloria…
JPEPA Ushers in Era of Unparalleled Defeatist Policy Making
The JPEPA deprives the Philippines of vital economic policy tools it would need in its future development.. BY IBON FOUNDATION Posted by Bulatlat Vol. VII, No. 28, August 19-25 As the Senate prepares to conduct hearings on the ratification of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA), an independent think-tank called for the junking of the…
Strict Requirements in JPEPA Belie Gov’t Claim of Huge Labor Market for RP Nurses in Japan
BY IBON FOUNDATION Posted by Bulatlat Vol. VII, No. 28, August 19-25, 2007 Philippine Ambassador to Japan Domingo Siazon recently made a pitch for the Senate ratification of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA), saying that Japan’s aging population represents a large labor market for local nurses and caregivers. But according to independent think-tank IBON…