“The Pope is here. Mercy and compassion, not cruelty and hypocrisy should infect us all, especially the high and mighty.”
#DearPope | Lawyers’ group to file case vs ‘heartless’ jail guards
Day: January 16, 2015
Progressive groups barred from welcoming Pope Francis
“Yesterday the crocodiles and leeches in the government welcomed the Pope. Now the ordinary people, the relatives of victims who were disappeared or killed, are being prohibited from welcoming the Pope.”
‘200 women in black’ ask Pope Francis to speak on human rights violations
MANILA — It has been two years since Willem Geertman, a Dutch missionary, was killed. Yet, his fiancee Maria Aurora Santiago said it remains unclear who were behind the brutal killing. If she will have the chance to speak to Pope Francis, she would tell him, “Willem is no criminal and did not deserve such…
Welcome, Pope Francis!
Green groups, Catholic bishops appeal to Pope Francis to stand vs large-scale mining
The following appeal was signed by 23 environmental groups and four Catholic bishops asking Pope Francis to intervene on the ecological destruction and human rights violations resulting from large-scale mining in the country. Most Holy Father, We, the undersigned environmental advocates, grassroots leaders, and faithful servants, urgently write to Your Holiness to underscore our concern…
Uranda of the Lumad for Pope Francis
The Kusog sa Katawhang Lumad sa Mindanao or Kalumaran – an alliance of five subregional indigenous groups representing the 18 Lumad groups – reaches out to the visiting Pontiff through an “uranda.” Uranda is a traditional lyric-poem of the Lumads about their stories and aspirations. In a statement, Kalumaran Secretary General Dulphing Ogan said that…
Pope dares Filipino leaders to end corruption, hear the poor
“The Pope’s valiant move to speak to the almost-inexistent conscience of the top officials of our nation endears us even more to him. President Aquino and his Cabinet should listen and be humbled.” – Student Christian Movement of the Philippines
# DearPope | Artists unveil 30-foot tapestry painting to welcome Pontiff
“Our young Filipino artists want to welcome the Pope with an image that doesn’t gloss over the hardships and the plight of the Filipino people.”
Why some are not Charlie Hebdo
By LUIS V. TEODORO Vantage Point | BusinessWorld Many Filipinos heard it from clerics bristling over tour guide Carlos Celdran’s holding aloft a streamer with the word “Damaso” on it during a mass at the Manila Cathedral. They’ve also heard it from politicians who file libel suits against journalists for supposedly defaming them by exposing…