As a human rights worker – more specifically, as spokesperson of the Kawagib Moro Human Rights Alliance – 21-year-old Bai Ali Indayla has had her “fair share” of brushes with government agents. These usually occurred during rallies, where she would see men without press IDs taking pictures of protesters. Still, she was alarmed when she…
Month: February 2009
Political Detainee Being Denied Urgent Medical Treatment
The Department of Justice (DOJ) prosecution panel continues to block the petition filed by detained peasant leader Randall Echanis to allow him to undergo medical treatment for his gallstones. BY RONALYN V. OLEA HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH Bulatlat The Department of Justice (DOJ) prosecution panel continues to block the petition filed by detained peasant leader Randall…
Journalists, Lawmakers Debate ‘Right of Reply’ Bill
Media insists that the proposed law is “anathema to democracy” while lawmakers contend that it is a measure to counter the tendency among journalists to resort to “trial by publicity.” BY AYI MUALLAM Pinoy Press Posted by Bulatlat The debate over the Right of Reply Bill (RORB) pending in the Senate and the House of…
Military Operations Disrupt Economic Activities in Abra
Ongoing military operations by government troops against communist rebels have greatly disrupted production and further impoverished the communities in Abra. BY KATHLEEN T. OKUBO Northern Dispatch Posted by Bulatlat BAGUIO CITY (246 kms. North of Manila) – Ongoing military operations by government troops against communist rebels have greatly disrupted production and further impoverished the communities…
Reforestation Useless amid Large-Scale Mining Projects, Cordi Elders Say
Community elders and environmental groups in the Cordillera Region branded the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-funded reforestation of the Agno and Chico Rivers’ watersheds as exercises in futility, since the government has also allowed mining applications that threaten destruction of these watersheds. BY ARTHUR L. ALLAD-IW Northern Dispatch Posted by Bulatlat BAGUIO CITY (246 kms north…
24 hours of service
24 hours of service. The four workers here risk lives and limbs working at dusk, yet are paid so little. (Photo by Raymund Villanueva)
Reference Book for Workers
Husgahan Natin: Mga Isyu at Kasong Manggagawa by Atty. Remigio D. Saladero, Jr. Published by Prometheus Publishing Corporation 156 pages Husgahan Natin: Mga Isyu at Kasong Manggagawa is a must-read for workers, especially in these times when workers’ rights are being violated left and right. BY ALEXANDER MARTIN REMOLLINO BOOK REVIEW Bulatlat Three months of…
South Korea Bullies Philippines over Shipyard Deaths
The South Korean Ambassador has written to the President of the Philippine Senate, Juan Ponce Enrile, threatening dire consequences if the Senate proceeds with its investigation into the atrocious death and injury record of South Korean ship-building giant Hanjin Heavy Construction Industries Inc. In it he stated that any investigation into Hanjin, which of course…
‘Resiliency Plan for OFWs a Grand Hoax’ – Migrant Group
A global alliance of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) branded the Arroyo administration’s economic resiliency plan for OFWs as a grand hoax. BY ANGIE DE LARA AND RONALYN OLEA MIGRANT WATCH Bulatlat Evanessa Valmadrid is one of the retrenched OFWs from Taiwan who trooped to the National Reintegration Center for OFWs (NCRO), February 27, hoping to…
Arroyo’s Generals: Militarization and Patronage
The number of Generals surrounding the President of the Philippines raises questions about the nature of the regime. What is the relationship between President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and the military, which includes all branches of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and the Philippine National Police (PNP), the leadership of which consists mainly of graduates…
Filipino Migrant Groups Condemn ‘Brutal’ Anti-VFA Rally Dispersal; Call for More EDSAs to Gain Genuine Freedom
Filipino migrant organizations in the United States and Canada condemned what they called the “brutal” treatment of activists marching to the US Embassy in Manila on Feb. 25. BY AUBREY MAKILAN-DELA CRUZ MIGRANT WATCH Bulatlat Filipino migrant organizations in the United States and Canada condemned what they called the “brutal” treatment of activists marching to…