Using his unmatched political savvy, Mayor Rodrigo Duterte has kept the City Council under his thumb. By Germelina Lacorte Davaotoday.com Posted by Bulatlat.com DAVAO CITY – A few months ago, war erupted at the City Council. It was between a large group of people identified with Mayor Rodrigo Duterte against a smaller group of people…
At least 15 OFW ‘mysterious deaths’ since 2002 remain unsolved – Migrante
Migrante International said Nov. 10 there have been at least 15 cases of “mysterious deaths” of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) since 2002, all of which remain unsolved. Ivy Bautista, a 27-year-old domestic helper, was slain Sept. 27 in Santander, Spain. Her body was discovered on the third floor of her employer’s home with a kitchen…
Police Ask Military To Leave Hacienda Luisita
The Philippine National Police (PNP) has joined residents in calling for the military to leave Hacienda Luisita. By Abner Bolos The Task Force Ramos of the Philippine National Police (PNP) has called for the withdrawal of soldiers of the Northern Luzon Command from the barangays (villages) in Hacienda Luisita in the wake of the killing…
A Year of Triumphs and Tragedy
Like a typical Filipino village at dusk, men chop firewood, women tend the kitchen and children play around in this clump of 10 huts. This is the Hacienda Luisita Gate 1 in Tarlac City, where the main picket line of striking workers has evolved into a community, as the strike turns one year on Nov.…
Ibalois Face Eviction from Ancestral Lands in Camp John Hay
“I pleaded before her, saying ‘God gave this land for people to stay’ but she answered in English which I didn’t understand,” related Martha Dayog. Dayog is an Ibaloi, one of the residents of Happy Hollow and Liwanag, villages in Camp John Hay whose residents are being evicted. “Her” was Lyssa GS Pagano-Calde, legal counsel…
Crisis Under Arroyo Rages On; People Bear the Brunt *
2004 was rough for the ordinary Filipino. While economists and politicians debated endlessly on the intensity of the country’s problems and wavered on their solutions, the masa was bearing the worst of the Philippine crisis. BY ROSARIO BELLA GUZMAN Executive Director, Ibon Foundation Posted by Bulatlat.com Introduction 2004 was rough for the ordinary Filipino. While…
Medical Schools Rake in Profits – but Health System is in Crisis
There are dire signs that if the exodus of Filipino health professionals continue over the next three years, the Philippine health care system will be in crisis. By Charles Raiñer C. Marquez Contributed to Bulatlat.com In the past two years, there have been half-a-million students enrolled in about 30 medical schools, 140 nursing schools, 113…
Power Rates Up by Almost 30% Since Unbundling
For most consumers, power rates have increased by an average of almost 30 percent from December 2003 to December 2004. In July 2003, the country had seen the unbundling of power rates. BY ALEXANDER MARTIN REMOLLINO Bulatlat.com For most consumers, power rates have increased by an average of almost 30 percent from December 2003 to…
Akbayan Rep’s Bill Hit: Discriminatory and Anti-Human Rights
Akbayan Rep. Loreta Ann Rosales has found herself in a hot seat for pushing a consolidated bill in the House that, according to the leading human rights alliance Selda, will end all expectations by human rights victims of justice and indemnification. BY AUBREY SC MAKILAN Bulatlat.com The Society of Ex-Detainees Against Detention and for Amnesty…
Culture of Corruption: The Corruption of Culture*
Corruption benefits the political and economic elites as it facilitates their sell-out and exploitation of our country’s human and natural resources. The victims of corruption are the Filipino masses. By the Concerned Artists of the Philippines Posted by Bulatlat.com The government pinpoints “culture of corruption” as the one that “breeds the vicious cycles of poverty…
Arroyo Risking Social Upheaval for Mining Policy
President Macapagal-Arroyo may be dreaming of peddling the idea of sustainable mining as a savior of the fiscal crisis. She is basically courting disaster by opening up almost all mining sites and making people pay for whatever bad would come out of it. By John Paul E. Andaquig IBON Features Vol XI No. 1 Posted…