BY KILUSANG MAGBUBUKID NG PILIPINAS ALTERNATIVE READER Posted by Bulatlat Vol. VII, no. 40, November 11-17, 2007 *(An article written in the “Handbook on the impact of IRRI in Asia: The Great Rice Robbery”. The book is part of a continuing campaign of the Week of...

Before Malacañang through Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye announced President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s granting of executive clemency to ousted President Joseph Estrada – who was recently convicted of plunder – the President appeared to be facing a brewing political...

What does Governors Ben Evardone and Joel Reyes of Eastern Samar and Palawan respectively, Francis Ver, Benjamin “the Broker” Abalos Sr., Lintang Bedol, Virgilio Garcillano, and Iggy Arroyo have in common? They all tried to absorb the blame for issues which could...

BY + MOST REV. ARTURO M. BASTES, SVD, DD Bishop of Sorsogon DEMOCRATIC SPACE Posted by Bulatlat Vol. VII, No. 38, October 28-November 3, 2007 The recent pronouncement of Malaca?ang on Erap Pardon is highly suspicious and full of self-vested interests. It is indeed...

While the use of anthropologists and other social scientists has made headlines, the utilization of "big-game hunters" as troop trainers for the "urban jungles" of Iraq has been essentially ignored. Programs stressing cultural sensitivity may be covered, but...

The oil legislation now pending in the Iraqi parliament awards foreign oil companies coveted, long-term, 20-35 year contracts of just the sort that neighboring oil-producers have rejected for decades. It also places the Iraqi oil industry under the control of an...

Michiel Pestman of the well-known and controversial law firm Bohler Franken Wijngaarden Koppe Law Office based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, referring to the case against Jose Maria Sison, said, “This case is the most political trial I’ve handled. This cannot be...

Advocates for the protection of the environment in the country are among those endangered. Records showed that they are among those listed in the more than 860 victims of extra-judicial killings, an international peoples’ anti-mining network revealed recently. BY...

The share of the poorest 30 percent of the country's families in 2006 accounted for only 8.6 percent of the total country's total income, while the top 10 percent account for almost 36 percent. This was almost the same as the 8.5 percent and 36.3 percent recorded...

In today’s world dominated by ‘fast food’, ‘fast money’, and ‘fast habits’, people have obviously taken for granted the quality and safety of the food they eat. What seemingly matters most is not the acceptable safety standards of the food we eat, but just to be...

Datu Guibang Apoga, the chieftain of the Ata-Manobo tribe in the hinterlands of Talaingod, Davao del Norte, has been in hiding for a decade now. In the lowlands of Mindanao, his face is prominently displayed on posters in bus terminals and police stations as one of...

A group of government planners and decision-makers agreed to get their act together to address the indigenous peoples’ (IP) agenda in all major programs involved in IP rights advocacy. This happened in a recent seminar on indigenous peoples’ rights and issues in...

The workers and their families held a silent picket in front of the Panabo City Council to solicit support. They were retrenched after DITFI-Dole Stanfilco arbitrarily announced “closure” on Oct. 8. But no help came from any of the councilors, prompting the workers...

The National Federation of Labor Unions-Kilusang Mayo Uno (NAFLU-KMU) criticized the Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company (LCMCo) for delaying the release of mineworkers' wages. BY ALDWIN QUITASOL Northern Dispatch Posted by Bulatlat Vol. VII, No. 38, October...

Thousands of people in northern Negros have been forced to flee their homes as fighting rages between the military and the NPA in the area. The area is gripped by a reign of terror as military operations there have caused violations of human rights. BY KARL G....

Over 200 farmers in the municipality of Baggao, Cagayan Valley, are crying foul over what they call “fake surrenders” while others have been forced to join the CAFGU. BY DABET CASTAÑEDA HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH Bulatlat Vol. VII, No. 38, October 29-November 3, 2007...

The worldwide media watchdog -- the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ)-- is outraged at the continued detention of six Burmese journalists. BY ACE ALEGRE Contributed to Bulatlat Vol. VII, No. 38, October 29-Nov. 3, 2007 BAGUIO CITY (246 kms. north of...

Nagkataon man o hindi, ang trahedya sa Makati ay nagbigay ng pagkakataong makapaghanda ng mas epektibong estratehiya ang mga nasa kapangyarihan para mabawasan o tuluyang mawala ang negatibong epekto ng mga kontrobersiyang kinasasangkutan nito. Ni Danilo Araña Arao...

The Joint Statement of Sen. Maria Ana Consuelo “Jamby” Madrigal and the NDFP negotiating panel on the peace negotiations between the Philippine government and the NDFP opens up a new channel for the stalled talks to move forward at a time when all avenues seemed to...

BY THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF CHURCHES IN THE PHILIPPINES Posted by Bulatlat DEMOCRATIC SPACE Vol. VII, No. 37, October 21-27, 2007 We express utter incredulity over Malacañang’s order for the investigation of an incident where members of the Congress and some other...