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What Our Readers Say
An
advisory on Cordillera food security Shalom, Your
most important priority is to send a Bulatlat team to this Cordillera
province of yours and start gathering all of the surviving natural
genetic or traditional genetic varieties of rice (and other crops as
well) and try to preserve them in a kind of propagation heritage farm of
several acres in size and whose purpose is to preserve the seeds for
future generations. I know money is hard but remenber this, only natural
varieties of your rice can be used not only as foodgrain and feedgrain but
also as seedgrain. Only natural varieties can be used
indefinitely as a source of seeds after every harvest. But HYVs and GMOs
cannot be used as seeds indefinitely, you have to buy them again and
again because the harvested grain cannot be used as seeds. Of what
use are high yields if they cannot make you economically independent and
assured of food security? What if something happens to the seed
suppliers because of some kind of international disaster or crises that
causes them to stop supplying you with seeds? The result is hunger and
outright death by starvation and famine for most of your people. Shalom! Starfleethighcom@aol.com The
Filipino Mind - Sentimentality & Naivete One
of our strengths as a people is our capacity to emphatize. We Filipinos,
just like other humans, form friendships with people of different
nationalities and cultures as a result of immigration, travel or work or
schooling. However, we unfortunately tend to confuse friendships between
individuals and people, and "friendship or special relations"
between our country and another, specifically as applied to the
so-called "special relations" between the Philippines and the
United States. This confusion is a continuously great and disastrous
mistake for us as a nation or people. Because no truly independent and
self-respecting country defines its socio-economic and political
policies -domestic and foreign- on friendship. Its relations with other
countries is based on its own national interests. To
apply, to hope and to expect a nation-to-nation relationship as one
would expect between personal friends are pure sentimentality and
naivete. We feel "utang na loob" (endless and servile
gratitude) to the Americans for "granting" us an apparent
independence; when all the while the roots and structures of colonialism
or more precisely, of neocolonialism were established and embedded in
the economic and military Agreements imposed on our country as
preconditions to the granting of national independence. Throughout our
"independent" post-WW2 years, these Agreements have greatly
contributed to the deterioration of the national economy and therefrom
continued poverty of the majority of the Filipinos. The first occasion
for national economic bankruptcy almost came about within 5 years of
"independence". These facts are difficult to appreciate
because they are not obvious and overtly blatant [demonstrating the
efficiency of neocolonialism]. However, the adverse effects to the
Filipino people are the same. American and Filipino politicians always talk about "US and Philippine Special Relations" most especially when July 4 approaches. Little that we know and appreciate that we are not that special to the USA as a country. Here are a few facts: After WW2, America completely rehabilitated Japan, its Asian enemy that smacked her hard in Pearl Harbor; while its ever-loving Filipinos, many of whom suffered or died during WW2 for America, were continuously gullible and forced to swallow the Parity Rights and Bases Agreements (among many others) just to get the equivalent of $500 each for war reparations; and the bulk of the reparations money actually went to the local American businesses, the ruling elite and their relatives and friends in the Philippine Congress/Senate. When, during the late1950's, President Carlos Garcia pushed for "Filipino First" and imposed foreign-exchange control to help native industrialization and minimize importation of luxury items, American foreign policy-makers helped Diosdado Macapagal defeat Garcia since Macapagal promised to remove the exchange control. When
Marcos imposed martial law to perpetuate his presidency beyond the
two-term limits of the Philippine Constitution, America disregarded the
"showcase of democracy" in Asia and instead supported Marcos
-because he promised to send Filipino troops to Vietnam and let her use
the miliitary bases in bombing Vietnam. Filipino politicians continue to
practice and show mendicacy by talking brave while having one eye-
awaiting approval -at the United States. No
wonder other Asian countries do not respect the Philippines; no wonder
American policy-makers do not respect us. Any thinking Filipino who has
experienced being in America knows whether a fellow is honest or just
bull____. Sadly, many Filipinos in the United States, the Philippines
and elsewhere still have not learned that all the public relations, in
the Philippine or American media, about the Filipinos/the Philippines as
having "special relations" with the United States, as being
special to America, to put it again in street lingo, is plain bullshit. Truly
independent countries and nationalistic leaderships primarily define
their relationships with other nations only in terms of selfish,
national interests, i.e. the common good and welfare of its own
citizenry. If the national leadership or government does not pursue the
common good of its people, it ought to be removed, either peacefully or
forcibly. The government has to be of the people, by the people and for
the people. We seem to have forgotten this fundamental fact - a
community or society is formed to provide essential needs and welfare to
its constituents. (Oct. 31, 2003) Bert
M. Drona On
Loren Legarda It obviously never occurred to the esteemed senator the huge conflict of interest she placed herself into for being a senator, product endorser and a television presenter. Perhaps a senator's' salary and perks were never enough for the privilege life that she was born into. With a very influential Legarda family on her mother side and the USA education she had after the marriage annulment of her parents, I was never surprise the ambitions of Senator Legarda. It might not occur to her that there are still people who know some details of the sordid family affairs that she and her sisters had. It will surprise a lot of people and it can turn into a real life soap opera. (Oct. 13, 2003) Regards, Eliminate
the middlemen Why
not those asinan owners organize together and sell their salt directly
to the consumers? This way they can compete with import salt and get the
most from their hard work. (Oct.
13, 2003) About
the spoils of war I
think that it is good reporting, but to get people to believe it is
another story. I used to work with Philips Magnavox until
retirement in 1990. A few years later Carlyle bought it up, then
sold it to Hughes and then was sold to Raytheon. Around 26 plants
around Ft. Wayne in the 1980's, now two plants are left with
around 300 people vs. 8000+ in the 80's. Very few people know this
story and I am sure that there are a lot of things that I don't know
either. I
contend that we are headed for a one world government and the end to
world in the not too distant future. I am about 79, not worry
about myself , but have children and grandchildren and
great-grandchildren that I am greatly concerned about. I
am glad that I found this website and hope to hear more from you. Thanks. (Oct. 12, 2003) Sincerely,
Frederick
L. Sprunger Gawad Ka Amado Nais
ko lamang pong malaman kung saan makaka-download ng Entry Form para sa
Gawad Ka Amado 2003 na na-feature sa inyong website kamakailan lamang.
Sayang at walang Entry Form sa inyong artikulo. Nahihirapan
po akong makakuha ng orihinal na sipi nito sa kanilang upisina dahil
narito po ako sa Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Kung makukuha ko po ito sa
alin mang website, labis ko pong ipagpapasalamat kung maituturo ninyo sa
akin ang tamang address. Nalalapit
na po ang deadline (Oct. 24) kung kaya inaasahan ko po ang maaga ninyong
kasagutan. (Oct. 7, 2003) Salamat
pong muli. Eduardo
Carpena Dumagats:
A People's Struggle to be Free How
do I can a hold of the documentary.. Please ask the producer/director to
contact me thanks. (Oct.
6, 2003) Plain
and simple logic It
is a very plain and simple logic. The roots of this high
unemployment rate can be traced from the too much politicking of our
Tongressmen and Senatongs. Instead of focusing to establish true peace
and order thru tougher criminal laws, they are fighting each other in
the Senate Chambers. Two, if 12.7 % is true and accurate, then, the DOLE
secretary needs to be replaced immediately for the lousy job she's
doing. We cannot continue further with this mess. Three, rampant
government corruption in every level is driving investors away! The
government must protect the business first. Without the business, there
is no employee. Reform the labor laws, there's too much confusion and
chaos. During the arbitration in NLRC, ang madalas manalo eh yung
arbiter na nakakuha na ng pera sa businessman, yung mga union leaders na
nalagyan na rin. (Sept.
25, 2003) Jojo
Al Malvar, PhD. Crim Justice. California Request
for reprints I
admire the courage and perspective of your online publication. I read
your mission statement and a few of your stories and already I salute
you people for putting out a website that has the potential of
enlightening millions of overseas Filipinos who thirst not only for news
but for education about important issues that matter to their homeland. Journalist in prison Congratulations
on this excellent piece (Commentary: Unionism
as a Deterrent to Violence vs Media) By
the way, are there writers and journalists in prison today? Please give
me their names and facts about their imprisonment. I can help--I am a
member of the National Writers Union, a big national organization here,
and also other groups. We need to publicize their cases around the
world. (Sept.
23, 2003) Ingat,
Sonny On
media killings Alarming!
But WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT IT? (Sept. 16, 2003) Jackson
Agaldang Alternative reporting Thank
you so much for the news and feature updates. At least, I get
alternative reporting of current events. It complements what I read from
broadsheets mainly the PDI. I hope to be able to find time to share some
views about the important issues in our midst. (Sept. 9, 2003) Salamat
po and more power! Malou
Santigao "Very informative" The
article about Roundup herbicide would
be very informative IF SOME REFERENCES WERE GIVEN. (Sept. 4, 2003) Stephen
Sassman Analytical
Chemist Purdue
University, Department of Agronomy Crop
Soil and Environmental Sciences 915
W. State Street, Lilly Hall West
Lafayette, IN 47907-2054 Phone:
(765) 471-9135 Reproduction Every
now and then, I find some articles that I thought my congregation here
would like to read or should read. Is it possible then to
reproduce these articles for insertion in the Sunday pew sheets that we
distribute in church? Bulatlat will, of course be acknowledged and the
pew sheets are free of charge. (August 30, 2003) Sincerely, Fr.
Dwight Q. dela Torre WTO
and the youth Greetings
from the ASA! We are very much grateful with the articles and continued update you post regarding the WTO and the impacts it has on people's livelihood and lives. On
our part, being one of the biggest sectors in the world, the youth and
students are deeply affected by the continuous trends and schemes of
globalization being implemented by the WTO and local governments. It
is funny how youth organizations are being used by these multilateral
agencies to show the "good side" of imperialist globalization,
stating it (globalization) blurs peoples' culture. And yes it does, from
our perspective, blurring the rights of people to livelihood, to
ownership of lands, rights and social services that are meant to be
provided to them by their respective states. It blurs the rights of
indigenous peoples to ancestral lands, self-determination and freedom.
It redirects many of our social services to privatization and further
corporatization. Education,
particularly higher education (to many post-secondary or tertiary), is
beleaguered by schemes and agreements like the General Agreement on
Trade in Services. Many educational institutions have been devastated by
money-driven policies of the government. The WTO would even have the
gull to call students "consumers" in UNESCO Meetings. In
this regard, we would like to inform you and all our colleagues that the
Asian Students Association, together with national student organizations
under its wing, shall hold a region-wide campaign against imperialist
globalization. We call it Youthrage 2: Asia-Pacific Wide Days of Action
against Imperialist Globalization and War. It is slated to happen
between the 12th and 15th of September to coincide with the days of
action announced by organizations like the International Union of
Students, ANSWER and the International League of Peoples' Struggles. We
are currently on a massive information drive as well as research in
order to keep up with our members and counterparts to make ready the
grounds for a huge protest that we hope to deliver together with other
people's organizations all over Asia and the world. Bulatlat,
like Malaysiakini of Malaysia and other independent media institutions,
is an important avenue for us to deliver our analyses and courses of
action regarding globalization and other issues concerning the students,
the youths and the peoples. We
look forward to having a strong network of media organizations, youth
and people's organizations working towards a more critical,
mass-oriented and just culture and society. Long
live press freedom! Long live the peoples' struggle! Long live
international solidarity! (August 28, 2003) In
the service of the students and the people, I remain Sincerely
yours, Rey
Perez Asis ********* Asian
Students Association (ASA) Room
B, 2/F., Wang Cheong Commercial Bldg., 249-253
Reclamation Street, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR Tel
no.: (852) 23880515; Fax no.: (852) 27825535 E-mail:
asasec@netvigator.com On Danding’s workers Just
wanted to say that the article above was well-done and spot on in
bringing corporate greed to our attention.
Can
you please send this congratulatory note to its writer – Dabet
Castañeda.
Tell her that she has done us proud! (August 27, 2003) Best
regards, Perry
On Cojuanco's SMC I'm
not about to dispute the validity of your claims.
I know nothing of them. This company sounds like capitalism on
steroids to this Yankee. Your article sounds like "venting of
anger". If you want to
sway public opinion, hit your opponent where he has no defense and has
to agree with your claims. Document what he has done and how he has
benefited from the expense of his laborers. I
am going to offer a suggestion as to the style of writing.
If you wish to sway the general populace, especially those with
education (and thus power) you must substantiate your claims.
For example: If SMC is mistreating its employees, then substantiate the
claim with statistics. For example: Total payroll expenses or labor,
year 19xx; versus total payroll for labor 2002, compared to profit 19xx
versus 2002. You need to
show that management is profiting at the expense of labor.
Payroll % to profit year 19xx to 2002, provide your readers with
hard numbers that cannot be disputed.
Voicing your opinion and grievances, without documentation and
substantiation is only minor nuisance to large corporations.
If you want to be a real pain in their @$%<#@ , support your
argument with numbers that they cannot dispute.
Become a stockholder and have all the data you want to fight them
with. I
am only suggesting that you play this game to win!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Choose your audience. Can
the down-trodden help themselves when they are worried about their next
meal? Sway those who can
make a difference socially. Truly bad press destroys companies of any size.
Target their
customers and stockholders. Good
luck with your attack against the greedy $&^^(&#.
I truly wish you well, and admire your will to improve the
position of the down trodden. I have been in their shoes too.
(August 25, 2003) Stumpy 'Institutional
Euthanasia' I
agree with most of the observations, comments and analysis of Capt.
Vizmanos (ret.).
This cancer has been there before I was born inside the camp of
PMA. I saw a small part of the corruption and unfair treatment in the
camp before and I used these as my theme for two winning speeches
delivered by my sister and brother for a regional oratorical contest.
Through these speeches, I spoke of or even exposed
in metaphor, what was happening in the military.
I am a daughter of a retired soldier and I have been a witness to
many corrupt and unfair practices not only in the military but in the
government long before coups became the mode for expressing grievances
and exposing anomalies. Like
the real physiological cancer, this cancer is hard to stop.
It does not have any cure and the country is in pain. So, a
logical solution might be an "institutional euthanasia." (August
23, 2003) "IMB" Least understood sector Indigenous
peoples may be the least understood sector of our society. The trouble
with our Philippine society today is that, if one doesn't make noise,
he/she goes unnoticed, worst, marginalized just like the indigenous
peoples. There's
so much work to do for the rights of the indigenous peoples.
If many have worked for the rights of the children and women, as
I had, and succeeded, then, at least the same must be accorded to the
indigenous peoples. Bulatlat
may want to regularly input articles or news about this sector. This is
the sector that is often displaced unjustly by large-scale
infrastructure projects like power projects and highways. Many
violations of the IPRA or the indigenous peoples rights act of 1997 have
been made and will still be made if we don't consciously put them in our
priority either in advocacy and programs. (August 23, 2003) "IMB" Exorbitant placement fees Since
the government is also being benefited by the overseas workers
remittances, why then can't the government help in lowering
the exorbitant fees being charged by placement agencies? Isn't it about
time that it does something great for its "modern day
heroes?' How come the government has no "say" on this matter?
it cannot even protect its own. (August 22, 2003) Coi
Dela Torre Payatas boy Jomer Your
article on the 12-year-old Payatas boy Jomer and his dream has touched
me deeply. I would like to
a small part of the realization of his dream. Could you furnish me a way
of getting in touch with him? (August 16, 2003) Edgar P.S.:
Could you have an option where a printer-friendly version is available?
I have an outdated Epson dot matrix and I have to copy-and-paste your
articles onto Word before I can print properly. <idontexistanywhere@yahoo.com> Ang Istorya ni Maryo at Nanay Ising Mawawalan
ng saysay ang balitang 'to kung walang aksyong magaganap bilang isang
tulong sa dalawang ibinalita....Sana'y magawan ng aksyon agad, mabilis
na aksyon!!! Sa mga tulad ng mga anak ni Mang maryo, hindi po ba pwedeng
makarating sa ahensya ng ating pamahalaan, tulad ng DSWD, ang sa tamang
pangangalaga ng kaniyang mga anak? (August 13, 2003) <lowerlip79@yahoo.com> Wondrous world, indeed Nice
Caloy. Am the driver. The car has found its peace already and am
back in my bike. It's a wonderful countryside indeed. Hidden in its
beauty though are poor fisherfolk, hungry children, not so healthy
women and a deteriorating coastal and marine environment. (August 12,
2003) BenCy
Ellorin Fascinating photos I
am fascinated by the photos. If I am from GenSan, would you know how can
I get to those places? Tell your friend if he would consider his vintage
gallant. A can be of help. (August 11, 2003) hamboy
anakpawis Wondrous World WOW!
The pictures are breathtaking! Seeing the pics has
taken a lot of load off my mind. How I wish I can take
a break now and go to those places! It does not matter
whether I have to walk, take a bus or hitch ride
just to get there. You are luckier since you have a
car even though it is two decades old. Hope
you will have more photo essays in this website. (August
11, 2003) Suga
D. On Coup Virus I
must congratulate Johnny Mercado's piece on the coup--it hits the mark,
any which way you look at it. As one black-listed journalist who sought
political asylum in the U.S. immediately before martial law, I am
touched by the piece for indeed it would seem that "democracy grows
from the barrel of a gun" in this country. Most of all, I admire
the data gathered and presented and true "pagbulatlat." Johnny
has done it again but then I have always been his fan from the old
days. Hi
to Johnny from Carol now holed up in Tacloban. (August
10, 2003) Rollie
(Carolina) Montilla Impeach Reyes and Arroyo! The
actions of party list Bayan Muna and Bayan is right! I agree on
the call for resignation of Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes and much
for President Arroyo for being useless and desperate to catch the
attention of the Imperial US. Moreover, they will likely to be impeached
for they are not responding to the revolutionary interests of the
people. (August 9, 2003) Jaber
Akmad CIA terrorism.... its true Ka
Roger's opinion is not an opinion but a truth that CIAs are doing the
bombing here in Southeast Asia. Proof: About
4-5 months ago, an American staying in Evergreen Hotel here in Uyanguren
Street, Davao City accidentally
detonated a bomb intended to bomb Davao City. The news appeared for just
a day in the local media... then nothing was heard of it. The injured
American was brought to the hospital.... but before the news and
investigation could fully take off a group of Americans picked up the
guy at dawn. This group used a private jet to carry the guy directly to
the US or anywhere, without passing Manila. Bombings could have taken
place earlier in Davao City, but it was delayed a little bit because of
this first casualty... So
chaos in Southeast Asia will continue.... because of the CIA!....Peace
will never be achieved by local
effort.... and UN should have to investigate this! (August
8, 2003) A
concerned citizen from Davao City <gildureza@yahoo.com> Putschists I
appreciate your direct opinion expressed in your article.
Wish you continue disseminating your information to us all
Filipinos. I commend you for this.
Honasan and other putschists should air their grievances to the
media, and other avenues and to get the peoples majority to support
them, if it is reasonable. (August
5, 2003) Fernando
P. De Arce Attack on indigenous communities Indigenous life is cheap in the Philippines just like black life was cheap in apartheid South Africa. The president sleeps peacefully with the blood of innocent Aeta children on her hands while the church attacks abortion but together with the rest of the world remains silent on the killing of as yet unborn indigenous children. It is time for the struggle of the indigenous peoples to be screamed at the world - for the rights of children to be able to play peacefully in their homes to be heard and defended - for the rights of those who have come before us and the lessons and values that they continue to teach us to be defended in the spirit of keeping our culture alive. Filipino
journalists have an added challenge to expose these atrocities to the
world at large while the ngo
community continues to build solidarity (not for more reports to be
written on how our ancestors lived and now suffer), but for action to be
taken against a government and a president who has no respect for where
she has come from or where she is taking our people to. (August
5, 2003) Zaide
Harneker On Makati siege Your
article is factual, I believe. Thanks. I
admire Captain Trillanes and the rest of the rebels (maybe, they
are even radicals as "radicals” strike the "roots"
of problems - that is, corruption in the military and the
government.). I wish that there would be more of them, principled
and courageous. How
it was written is simply elegant and easily understood. The key
points were there - the drama in Makati, the soldiers' charges, key
players, etc. (July 30, 2003) Ines
Basaen Phosphate Mines I
am in complete agreement with the article. I live in West Central Florida, where many phosphate mines produce the chemical fertilizers sold worldwide. Having
been involved in archaeology and paleontology and the pursuit of fossils
on these mining sites called "Bone Valley," I have seen the
degradation and read of the adverse effects on the land and animals. One
article, from the Tampa Tribune, Feb. 16, 1984; "Fluoride-tainted
pasture grass may harm cattle", notes the U.S. EPA found;
"When the ore is processed into fertilizer, as much as 85
percent of the fluoride may end up in waste gypsum piles...Those piles
and other cooling ponds, ditches and smoke stacks are the major sources
of the fluoride being detected in grasses." "A mule
breeder had experienced high rates of abortions in mares and deformed
young. A cattle rancher's herd was diagnosed as having fluorosis." "The
Geology of Florida", 1997, University Press of Florida, page 143
notes: "In
addition to uranium, fluorine is an economic byproduct of
phosphoric-acid production. The fluorine from the rock reacts with
silica to form SiF4 gas. During acid production this gas is
recovered as fluorosilicic acid (H2SiF6) in wet scrubbers that are part
of the environmental-protection equipment. Fluorosilicic acid is
widely used in the preparation of chemical compounds and in the
treatment of public drinking water." The
U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services, "Toxicological Profile
for Fluorides, Hydrogen Fluoride and Fluorine (F), 1993, notes that we
are exposed to these chemicals from fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides,
food processing, etc. The
uranium decay series runs from radium, radon, down into three isotopes
of lead, and the U.S. Center for Disease Control received the analysis
of fluorosilicic acid showing uranium at <3 ppm and radium 226-228 at
a lesser level. There
is little wonder so many virus and bacteria are mutating, causing new
diseases, especially since one of the most touted antibiotics is Cipro (Ciprofloxacin)
one of some 30 fluoroquinolones used extensively. (July 30, 2003) Anita
Knight South Korea migrant workers Very
informative. Unfortunately,
this situation does not exist in South Korea alone. It seems more
countries with migrant workers tend to abuse the situation. Emphasis
should be made to improve and correct the migrant issue in the first
place. (I know, easier said than done.) (July 25, 2003) "Nicanor
C. Santos de Dios" Nice work Dear
Bulatlat, Hope
you can still remember me, I’m the avid reader/ visitor of your site.
And I do really appreciate the work of your writers. Just keep up the
good work and more power to Bulatlat. (July 24, 2003) DJ
Mj What is USA's Secret QUESTION:
What has made the USA become a super power in only 227
years? Many of the world's countries are centuries old and yet many of
those century-old countries are third-world, poor and impoverished.
What does the USA have and much of the world does not? Could it be
freedoms and democracy that interest the world's peoples to immigrate to
the USA in cargo ships, rowboats, railroad cars and even by foot?
What
is the USA's secret? Jealous??
(July
22, 2003) MITCH
NIMEY What is a Filipino? You
sound so anti-administration, so anti-American.
So what are the solutions that you could offer to the Filipino
people? It is a fact that
our "government" since it began after World War II was seeded
with corruption and greed. Our
'clanish' nature, 'kababayan muna' attitude leads us to protect and
provide for 'our own' first.
Even to the point of 'arranging' the circumstances. Is
there an upright Filipino left? Is
there an honest one left? Is
there one, upright, honest leader that made it on the political stage
and remained an upright and honest individual?
It is like standing in front of a mighty ocean and confronting
the waves. Bribery and
corruption will not be easily removed in a society like ours. (July 19,
2003) Oliver
Kilayko Oil This
is the first time I have seen this obvious fact stated so plainly.
Somehow the "O" word seems to be verboten in the US. I'm
definitely bookmarking your site. Thanks! (July
8 2003) Fred
Dorn Brilliantly conceived
Re:
History's Memory, Literature's Memory - Including Ourselves in History This
was very helpful to me, I thought it was brilliantly conceived and
written very well. I saw a number of print errors that
I which report if you are interested. I worked as an editor
during my last degree. I think that you have beautiful ideas, but
that some polish would do a lot. Thank you for your reporting. (July
8 2003) In
gratitude, a Canadian, Greg Resourceful and informative
Hi!
It’s my pleasure to have those articles you've sent to me...It was
very resourceful & informative...It really helps me a lot & I'm
hoping to have this regularly. Well,
all I can say is that may all of your staff have more strength to keep
on their job & to continue your public service in helping the
Filipino people to know what is really the truth & to whom they will
believe in. I'm
happy & proud to be part of this business...thanks a lot & more
power to all... Everyone of you is our hero...keep up the good work... (July 4, 2003) ferlei PhilHealth anomalies I
would like to request your good office to investigate the anomalies
hounding the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth),
including the hiring of contractors to perform the jobs that are
supposed to be held by regular employees. Since
its creation 8 years ago, PhilHealth has not yet institutionalized its
hiring of employees. In every region, there are around 130 workers of
Philhealth. But only 20 or so are regular employees and the rest are
contractors. These contractors have no security of tenure. But what is
bad in PhilHealth is that they promise these contractors of continuing
there contract but only to find out, they'll end up working for just 6
months. The notice of termination is sent a week after the actual date
of termination. This is detrimental to those who could not prepare or
look for alternative jobs after the termination of contract at
PhilHealth. Please
investigate this matter so that Philhealth will at least learn and do
something to improve its service. The office is in the five earning
corporations of the country but has no regular employees. In region 8
alone, its service offices are manned by job-order workers! And
the regional office has 20 regular employees and more than 80 JO's. This
is a good story to take up. (July
3, 2003) Gulftown Radio The
first time I heard your web site natawa ako but anyway, I really
appreciate your site. And I wish that you will be able to have a
Tagalog or Bisaya news. I’m a newscaster from our station
Gulftown Radio 105.5 FM Lupon Davao Oriental and we air some news in the
Bisaya or Tagalog languange. And also sana you will be able to have a
daily news. Thank
you and more power to Bulatlat. (July
3, 2003) DJ
Mj Only source of truth I
look forward to receiving relevant mail from the only source that
bothers to show the truth - it will save me all the time spent reading
fickle news items on the websites of the newspapers. (June
21, 2003) "Zaide
Harneker" Unelected President The
Philippine's unelected president flew into Washington and performed the
colonial "suck up and shake down" act on her unelected
Imperial American counterpart last week. (See her interview in Newsweek
Magazine, June 2) Her conflation of Iraq with al Queda with Sept. 11,
2001 and with the kidnapping thugs Abu Sayef in order to hit the Bush
Administration up for more financial and military support exceeded all
her predecessors in shameless toadyism. Despite the horrible deaths and
wounding of thousands of precious Iraqi people and their tragic loss
of national sovereignty, despite the growing threat of unprovoked
US attacks on other sovereign nations in Asia, GMA persists in her lies
and offers no proof to her contentions that Iraq committed any acts of
terror against the United States, against the Philippines or against any
other member of the "Coalition of the Willing" ( the "COW's"
). Even the shameless Phoney-Tony Blair makes a show of embarrassment
over the lack of WMD's. Like Bush, her policies have meant economic and
social instability for the masses of people. Her contempt for the truth
matches her contempt for the brave, principled Filipino people , the
vast majority of whom opposed the US invasion of Iraq. When she has
served her purpose and since she has no mass support and no electoral
mandate -- the US will discard her like a 'used condom' ( to quote a
veteran activist). There are plenty of flunkeys waiting to take her
place in the Philippine neo-colonial ‘Hall of Shame’. Bobby's
article was 'dead on'! (June 19, 2003) Robin
Eastman-Abaya Monsanto Thanks
for the article Monsanto Unmasked. It was yet another crucial piece of
information I knew I needed but hadn't the time to get to in and amidst
all which is going on in this world. You have helped me tremendously
with this succinct overview of Monsanto. I
have posted the article on my website: www.thefourreasons.org
on the news and information page: http://www.thefourreasons.org/news_and_information.htm
(June 18, 2003) Adam
Roufberg Prisoner of war Maganda
sa pandinig at sa mata na makabasa ng ganitong artikulo... na may
sundalo na nakita ang tunay na layunin ng mga NPA... at ang mga kamalian
na nagaganap sa Pilipinas ngayon... maganda rin at nailathala ang
artikulo na ito para makita ng mga tao ang tunay na kulay ng NPA, na
para sa masa talaga... (June
17, 2003) Francis
Verdote SOS for Beng Dear
Editors, Sympathy for fisherfolk The
experiences of the fisherfolk of Tep-peng, Sinait is not far from the
local fisherfolk down here in Southern Mindanao. I live in a coastal
town of Maitum, Sarangani Province, where I have seen the living
conditions of the local fisherfolk down here. Though they live by the
bounty of the sea, they are suffering from the bad waves of the vast sea
of life. Among
the many reasons that contribute to the exploitation of these fisherfolk
are due to micro-capitalists that lingers around town. The
pitied folks burn their skins in the high seas, face the threats of
nature, and sometimes if luck is really hard on them - they are caught
by Indonesian Government for poaching. Amidst
these threats and hard labor, still their family are getting only the
smallest bounty of the sea. It
is not enough to sympathize to what our fisherfolk are doing, but we
must also take a closer look into their plights. They too are laborers
who belong to the economic backbone of our country, yet they are not
getting mush attention and protection from the government. Let
us not only focus to the plights of the workers in the urban industrial
sites but also to the thousands of hardly exploited workers in the
countryside. Hope
that the article about the fisherfolk of Sinait would get attention
from our leaders of all sides, anyway they too are gobbling the bounties
that these fisherfolk are betting from the seas.... (June
15, 2003) John
Marshall Martos Begging for obsolete war gadgets I
pity those kids... The
government should find more access of fund for education instead of
begging for obsolete war gadgets! Instead
that those kids learn how to appreciate the beauty of what our
politicians called "democracy" they learn
how hard the life is under what we call "democracy" where all
people gets a fir share from the services of the government.
(June 15, 2003) John
Marshall Martos Too short Your
article (on Davao terrorism) is very interesting but I find it too
short. I would like to know where I could find more information
about it. Actually,
I'm a French student on Philippines studies and I would like to do my
first year PhD on the socio-ecenomic problems of Mindanao. I did my
MA on EDSA DOS and I would like to THANK YOU VERY MUCH for all the
informations and analysis you provide in your website. (June
15, 2003) Jean
Philippe Busson Progressive scientists Thanks
for the article on progressive activists scientists at UP. Advances
in science and technology are monopolized by the imperialist powers for
very significant reasons - that is why the first targets for destruction
in Iraq after the fall of Baghdad were the research institutes and the
universities followed by the mad scramble to capture and 'neutralize'
Iraqi scientists. One of the first pronouncements of the
colonial/occupation administrators was to forbid academics and
scientists with Baath Party ties from ever being able to work.
That has effectively crippled the universities, agricultural and
petroleum research centers and medical schools. And
other countries with scientific research capacity are at risk:
Cuba's fine biomedical research centers have been cited by the
Bush administration as 'proof' that the Cuban has capacity to develop
biological weapons. Imagine
- Cuba with the finest educational system and health system in Latin
America and the Caribbean and which serves not only all the Cuban people
but also trains thousands of health workers and scientists from poor
countries in Africa and Latin America is a target for US preemptive
destruction precisely because of its scientific advances serving the
needs of humanity. Iran,
which now has the largest, best educated generation in its history is
being targeted. Computers
and high tech gadgets are merely fluff that a scientifically ignorant
and corrupt client like GMA would claim proves the Philippines has any
capacity in science and technology.
Without major government support for the sciences and for
research - the Philippines will never achieve real independence and will
never be able to use its wealth and human resources to serve the real
needs of its people. (June 14, 2003)
reabaya Interesting and well documented article on Davao Terorrism I'm
just providing feedback on the article on Davao City's Descent into
Madness: Davao Children Terrorized in Gov't Raid. It's
well written, informative and well documented. It's very useful for our
organisation, Save the Children, which is trying to highlight the plight
of street children in Davao and lobby again abuses by the
authorities. Keep
up the good work! (June 10, 2003) Best
wishes Kate
O'Malley Agrarian reform doomed Thank
you very much for giving us space to air issues of farmers through Bulatlat.com.
This is a very much valued help, as the government uses all means to
block farmers' issues in the mainstream media. Obet
Pagdanganan, we believe has already done deals with the Negros political
figures and landlords, whom would oil his campaign machinery in 2004 and
that of the ruling party. He is just buying time because in December, he
would resign to resume his electoral campaign. To
date, 5 hunger strikers have been rushed to hospital for extreme
vomiting and headaches. Again,
thank you. We would keep you posted. (June 8, 2003) In
behalf of farmers, Rorie
R. Fajardo Wonderful
article about mothers We have placed a link to your web page on the article 'Mothers of Courage.' Thank you for such a wonderful article on the strong Filipino women. (June 6, 2003) Perla
Paredes Daly Liar Bush
lied. It
seems amazing that more Americans have not gotten the wake up call on
this. OUR GOVERNMENT HAS CONSISENTLY LIED TO US ABOUT IRAQ, TAXES,
EDUCATION and I could probably list 100 other things they have lied to
us about. I know all politicians lie. I'm not naive.
What's important to me is what are they lying about? Did he fib
about having guests stay in the Lincoln bedroom or did he lie about the
reasons we must go to war when we haven't been attacked? Our
current government is going to drive away all of our allies and bankrupt
the country. It's nice to be allies with smaller countries, but
they don't have what we need, which is a strong military and money.
It seems ridiculous to be treating France, Germany, and others like we
are because they disagreed about the war. It actually looks like
they thought about the consequences first and then decided against it.
The Bush administration shoots first and asks questions and thinks of
consequences later. I am very interested in politics and have
followed various news and internet sites closely, especially during the
war. It's amazing that most of the truth in the media seems to be
on the internet, not the mass media. Now that the war is over, the
mass media is not getting good ratings. Now they are willing to
look at the war as a possible scandal and question how it all happened.
Where in the hell were they before? The mass media is interested
now because scandals get ratings, just like wars get ratings. You
cannot trust mass media to educate the public on such important matters.
I read much of the lies you mentioned on your site and on other sites as
well. Thank goodness someone has the courage to address these
issues. On a side note, I thought it was funny that people
from Eric Rudolph's (alleged Olympic Park bomber, abortion clinic
bomber, etc.) area in North Carolina said they would have helped him
when he was on the run from police for five years. Some
stated that, "He was doing what he thought was right." and
they supported him. Aren't these the same people willing to send
our military into harm's way to get rid of a supposed terroristic
dictator in another country? Yet, they would support a domestic
terrorist killing their own people. This is why my husband and I
want to move to Canada. We just don't understand how people can
think this way. That doesn't count all the personal attacks on
those who disagreed with the war in Iraq. These insults continue
even after its been shown the U.S. government lied and misrepresented
facts at every turn. I'm not sure there's any hope for America
anymore. (June 3, 2003) "Nancy
Imlay" IRRI response Thank
you for the opportunity to respond to the recent article on BB rice,
Golden Rice and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI),
especially as the author Mr Alexander Martin Remollino made no effort to
contact IRRI to seek comments on his article in the interests of
accuracy and balance. If
Mr. Remollino had attempted to contact IRRI he would have found that we
have acknowledge (sic) already that the initial benefits and
achievements of the Green Revolution were mitigated to an extent by the
overuse of pesticides. But as he points out himself this was more
than 30 years ago in the 1970s and since then rice farmers in central
Luzon - for whatever reasons - have been using less pesticides.
This is a fact confirmed by a detailed survey of farmer practices
conducted by PhilRice and IRRI. In response the article mentions
only the opinions of two KMP officials that seemingly agree with the
survey's results while - at the same time - appear to suggest that such
a reduction trend should still be considered bad. Finally,
the article trys (sic) to once again revive the hackneyed claim that
IRRI actively promotes genetically modified rice, completely ignoring
the fact that some of the Institute's most important and influential
donors are the same European nations that have expressed concerns over
this technology. Once again for the record, IRRI's role in this
area is as an objective evaluator and it has never claimed that
biotechnology could solve world hunger. On the contrary, it has
joined with other groups to publicly express concern over such claims,
especially in relation to Golden Rice and its alleged potential to be a
silver bullet for the problem of Vitamin A deficiency in the developing
world. IRRI does not believe this and has said so repeatedly.
However, the Institute does believe that Golden Rice could provide a
promising new strategy in the war on Vitamin A deficiency once it has
been proved to be comprehensively safe for humans and the environment.
Thank
you for the opportunity to clarify these points. (June 3, 2003) Duncan
Macintosh On Lino Brocka Lino
Brocka was a good friend and artistic inspiration in the 1980s. Your
short essay on his life is both well written and moving, but way on
earth do you leave out the fact that he was GAY. This is 2003 and young
Filipino gay people need as many serious minded, positive role models as
they can find. Shouldn't this be a primary concern for all concerned artists ? (June 3, 2003) Regards
Jonathan
Best Comparative charts of minimum wages Your
writings are very enlightening and informative. However, your charts
comparatively showing the yearly minimum wages only indicate your source
as the "DOLE." This is not very reassuring. I hope you can be
more specific by citing the applicable wage orders of the Regional
Tripartite Wage and Productivity Boards. I
am in need of the source of your minimum wages for the years 1998 to
2002. (May 21, 2003) Thank
you very much in advance. Teodorico
N. Pangilinan Comment from Embassy of Cuba After
reading the paper of Paul Quintos which I found very enlightening I am
sending you a recent declaration of the The National Council of
the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba. (May 19, 2003) With
best regards, Ramon
A. Medina Real thugs I
have just finished reading Gracia Burnham's book and there are many
things that point out to plain incompetent leadership in the AFP and
evidence of collusion.... However, to term Israeli as a fascist state
and Ariel Sharon a thug is way out of line. Israel remains the only true
democracy in the Middle East, alone among a sea of Arab-Muslim
autocrats. True, Ariel
Sharon's policies are oppressive toward the Palestinians but you or I
would do the same if we were in the shoes of the Jews...The real thugs
are the Abu Sayyaf. What freedom in Mindanao are they fighting for?
A so-called "freedom" of a fundamentalist-based
religion that would give them good reason to oppress non-muslims?
Theocracy went out after the medieval ages and there you are trying to
justify it.... Wake up!
(May 18, 2003) Gerardo
B. Reynaldo Thought-provoking Paul
Quintos' articles are certainly thought provoking and informative.
I have saved the 2nd and 3rd parts of the series on my hard
drive, but can't access the 1st part. The following URL is where it's
supposed to be. Please
advise how I can get the "Pax Americana" article. (May
16, 2003) Thank
you, --Jim
Fox Very Proud Warmest
greetings! A
million thanks from the bottom of my heart! I'm very proud of all
of you in continuing this kind of job! It was really very helpful
to everyone who needs to know what the truth really is... Once
again thank you & more power! (May 13, 2003) With
great appreciation, Ferlei Lesson from Ka Eden and Ka Eddie
Okay. Eden Marcellana and Eddie Gumanoy were killed. But that's not the end of my story. Tears were offered by my eyes. I mourn their unexpected heinous death. Grief clouded my visions. But that's only for a while. I
will miss them. Their militant voice over the megaphone.
Their unsurpassed love for the oppressed and disheartened. The
unequalled times I happily shared with them. But that also will not give
any space for a feeling of uncertainty in my mind. I
will continue the fight. Even if I know that my life is at stake.
Their life taught me a lesson. A lesson that I will treasure as I
take the path to the hills and mountains. (April
25, 2003) (Name
withheld upon request) Spoils
of War This
is one of the most concise articles I have read and what the media would
never touch or put in perspective. I am active on the IRC in
political discussions (coolchat #news_garden) and many of these points
are brought up, but the public doesn't see, care, or understand.
I enjoyed it greatly. (April 19, 2003) "ed" Dangerous
assumption on pesticides THANK
YOU VERY MUCH for writing this and informing about this ever present
evil. THIS IS A SIGNIFICANT ARTICLE AND I HAVE ASKED ALL MY FRIENDS
TO PHOTOCOPY IT AND GIVE IT TO EVERYONE THEY KNOW. I have been disabled through exposure to pesticides. That was back in 1979 but also back in 1960 I was exposed to toxic pesticides that were more than likely the ones later taken off the market. I know what you are saying is true and vital information. How can we stop its use? People assume safety because it is marketed or it would not be marketed if it was dangerous. Dangerous assumption. The
bugs are much safer in terms of illness and just killing them with soap
and water and stepping on them than all the pesticide use we have now.
We have ants two weeks to three weeks a year... soap and water and wait
until next year. Others use heavy pesticides and there is no need
for that for ants. DEEPLY
GRATEFUL FOR YOUR ARTICLE! (April 14, 2003) Pattie
Sullivan pattiesullivan@worldnet.att.net Brave and bold
There
are so few news reports that focus on the real problem of the health of
society - blind acceptance of chemicals and pesticides pushed on us
by powerful industries. Thanks for your brave and bold article and
I look forward to reading more like this! (April 14, 2003) Norie
Fukuda nfukuda@mbi.nifty.com Chemicals
and Pesticides in the Food Supply I
want to know why someone doesn't do something about it. (April 13, 2003) Eileen Orr Chemicals
do not cause SARS I
am just calling the attention to the people at bulatlat.com for
this minor mistake. I was quite disturbed when I read the title of that
article by Karl G. Ombion and Edgar A. Cadagat which read
"Pesticides and Chemicals cause SARS, Asia-Pacific Experts
say". It is a minor error but I think it is worth calling your attention. SARS is not caused by any ingestion of any chemical or pesticides for that matter, but in fact is an infection of a new strain of corona virus previously thought to cause pneumonia and pneumonia-like symptoms in humans. The role that chemicals have in this picture is their alleged influence in the mutation of this new strain, and the consequential weakening of the host's resistance and immunity toward these agents, as mentioned in the article. It would be wise therefore to attribute the role of these chemicals (agricultural and industrial) as not the cause of SARS but a factor that had the possibility of widening the spread of the ailment. I
applaud the site for its timely reports on issues that really matter;
issues that we ourselves as Filipinos are experiencing first hand. I am
even more delighted that this new scare has not been offset by the
overcoverage of the war in Iraq, when in fact, we are in a position to
be directly affected by this new epidemic if ever this is not controlled
and information is not disseminated well. Daghang
salamat. Serve the people! (April 9, 2003) "justin
jaason bourne" Archaeologists’
warning I
found Sandy English's article about the destruction and thievery of
Ancient Iraqi material very interesting and very disturbing. I had been
wondering how the war might affect the sites etc. The article sure puts
the USA's concern about those giant destroyed buddhas in Afghanistan
into some sort of perspective. During
the Crusades, the Western Christians who came to save
Byzantium from the Muslims might provide another example such as
mentioned in the article. Many of the treasures of Byzantium ended
up in the West. Similarly for Iraq, if one has allies or
"liberators" like this, who needs enemies? (April 8, 2003) Keep
it up, Jan van
Dalfsen Understanding
the U.S. War State This
article by John McMurtry seems to say things about the USA pretty much
the way I had been thinking. If we put his suggestions into practice we
may make some sort of mark. (April 8, 2003) Jan Thanks for free articles
Thanks
for adding me to your bulatlat group for e-mail discussions, sharing of
stories and photos and coordinating events. We are also participating in
the efforts for people’s discussion of situations and events happening
in our country - and how we can all participate in the change process. We would be happy, as before, to receive news, news analysis and opinions on events, policies, decisions in government and private sectors that affect the lives of our people and the world. And thanks for allowing us to use FOR FREE articles and giving proper credit to Bulatlat.com. Your news, analysis and opinions are very helpful and serve as alternative to what we get from traditional news sources. Thanks
for free articles. (April 3, 2003) Sincerely, Rudy Bernal Thumbs up for Bayan Muna
Greetings
of peace base on justice! Why not charge President Bush a criminal case?
Well honestly speaking GMA does not deserve to be in the position. I
wonder if she could finish her term. She cannot answer the needs or
calls of the majority of the people. Well if she'll be charged together
with Bush, that would be okey. That's the crisis of an imperialist
country. Kapal ng mukha! Mga mamamatay tao! I’m referring to Bush and
GMA. Thumbs up for Bayan Muna!!!(April 2, 2003) "huh-pee
neri" Filipino
educators against the war Your "ANTI-WAR STATEMENT BY 65 FILIPINO EDUCATORS" is compelling and admirable. My wife is a Filipina who came to the U.S. as a nanny. Last year I took her to see the documentary film, "America's Forgotten War", by Camilla Benolirao Griggers and Sari Lluch Delena. It documents the Filipino-American War. It prompted her to learn more about the injustices that lead so many like her to work in subservient positions outside the Philippines to help their families. Anyone at your end who has not seen this film, really should! (April 1, 2003) Jim
Fox Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania Pax Americana
I
would like to express my point of view on this particular issue,
regarding the world domination of Pax Americana. I definitely agree on
this particular report about the economic and military activities of the
U.S. around the world. Your subject is very enlightening and gives even
more concrete analysis on the role of the U.S. on the fate of other
countries. I do believe that the Balikatan exercises in the Philippine
is one concrete example of how the U.S. government would not and will
not respect any territory as far as their foreign policy and supremacy
is concerned. I would like to extend my support to your website of
informing the people about the true meaning of investigative journalism. More
power and your site may continue to go on with their fearless expose,
about the true evil of the world: "U.S. IMPERIALISM." (March
14, 2003) "Rajesh
Kumar" Martial
Law: Back in the Philippines? This
is your Jewish friend.
Baguio Flyover
I
praise your article regarding the construction of the new flyover near
Baguio General Hospital. As a native of Baguio City and a survivor of
the July 16 earthquake, I strongly support the cause against the construction of that money-wasting, death-causing project. Thanks
and more power! Cuidao! (March 10, 2003) Kaloi
Garcia Graphic
Artist AQ
Foundation Inc. Aquinas
University Rawis, Legazpi City 4500 Martial Law in Mindnao
Your
feature regarding a faction of the Abu-Sayyaf led by Rajisali being
coddled by the military is snowballing slowly as true. Why
I said that to be true? I am a Mindanaon. I am a Christian.
For one, I work in the government. I
have noticed this kind of scenario happening nowadays in Mindanao.
I have heard from accounts of lowly farmers that there were instances
that the military will stage mock gunbattles in the rural areas. After
these battles(?), they will point at the MILF as the ones that they
encountered. Although, these firefights were clearly done without
even a single shot coming from the other side. Even at the burst
of guns, you will hear and feel from what direction these guns were
positioned from. People were forced to evacuate from their places
with the warning of the military about the presence of bad elements.
I have seen the exodus of innocent people who were dragged into such
situations - that is- perpetrated out of something very cleverly, subtlety
and step-by-step plans. I
can now smell clearly what the opportunists and megalomaniacs in the
government and military are cooking. MARTIAL LAW - as clear as the
sun rises in the east! (March 6, 2003) What's
Ramos Doing in Carlyle? Hindi
lingid sa kaalaman natin na pinagbubuhusan na naman ng pamahalaan ng
buong pwersa nito ang pagtugis sa tinatawag nilang mga "rebelde"
sa buong kapuluan, at dahil sa hindi nila makayanan ang paglipol ay may
lakas ng loob pang maghatak ng mga kanluraning pwersa upang magawa ang
hindi nila kayang ipatupad na pagkatay ng kapwa nila Pilipino. Hindi
rin kaila sa atin na matagal nang inilalatag ng rehimeng Ramos-Reyes ang
mga kaukulang dokumento at iba't-ibang uri ng "agreements"
para mabigyang saysay ang patuloy na pagdating at pananatili ng mga
pwersang Amerikano sa iba't-ibang bahagi ng bansa natin. At kung
mananaliksik pa'y makikita nating pwedeng maging basehan ang isang
kautusan ng pangulo na pinirmahan noong October 2002 na may titulong
"Fifth Investment Negative List" (kung saan pinapayagan ang
isang banyagang gumawa ng mga kasangkapang pangdigma sa Pilipinas na may
kaukulang basbas ng Secretary of National Defense, ito'y may batayang
batas sa RA 8179 o Foreign Investments Act na napirmahan noong panahon
ni Ramos) bilang patunay na nais manatili ng Amerikano sa
Pilipinas nang mas matagal pa sa gusto natin dahil may balak silang
magpasok sa mga "Industrial at Economic zones" natin ng mga
makinarya at "investors" na kapitalistang nais gumawa ng mga
naturang kasangkapan nang malaya at walang restriksyon! At maaaring doon
din idestino ang mga sundalo ng Amerika upang hindi na mangailangan ng
isang base na maaaring makasagabal sa kanilang mga plano dahil aalma ang
mga tuta nilang senador at kongresista. Sana'y
bigyang pansin nyo ang liham na ito at ipabasa sa lahat ng kilala nyong
nagmamalasakit sa kahihinatnan ng ating inang bayan. Maraming
salamat! (March 6, 2003) Aaron
Narciso Outstanding,
insightful, honest coverage To
the Bulatlat Group: On
Talledo’s ‘Evacuation’ Congratulations
to Tomas Talledo for a succinct and poignant articulation of the
Filipino predicament under the shadow of US imperialism!
(Feb. 28, 2003) Sonny
San Juan Helpful
site I’ve
been researching for hours but I can’t find what I'm looking for until
I found this site! It’s really helpful. Thanks! (Feb.
27, 2003) "Ginelle Rose Dy" ginelle_s@hotmail.com Ruthless Bushites Well
written and supported. I agree with its situation assessments but
caution against underestimating the Bushies. They are clever,
calculating and of course ruthless. They've been planning this for
years. Exposing their belly by over extension will be there but not
before some surprises are yet to be hatched. (Feb. 27, 2003) Sakjbwk@aol.com Unmasking Greetings. Thank
you for highlighting the book on "Unmasking the War on Terror: US
Hegemony and Crisis". It
is so important that as much unmasking as possible must take place,
given the glaring impunity of the U.S. Administration, in the
Philippines and Iraq, and indeed all over the world. Now Powell
wants to meddle in the India-Pakistan issue over Kashmir. There is no
place safe from their devious plans. (Feb. 26, 2003) Sincerely, Jack
Lakavich For free speech Thank
you so much for letting me see this article. I think free speech is so
important in our society today, and I am so glad to hear the feelings of
those celebrities that I have enjoyed over the years. I would also like
to exercise my right of free speech to inform "other
celebrities" that I will no longer watch their performances or buy
a ticket of any project they are involved in. If I could put them on a
plane to Iraq, I would send them today. I hope that all my "fellow
Americans" do the same thing. (Feb.
26, 2003) West1215@aol.com Good
article on Mindanao situation Greetings. Thank
you for this great article outlining the situation in Central Mindanao.
It is so gut-wrenching to see the pain on the peoples' faces, and to
hear what is happening to them. If
only the Philippine Government would smarten up and distance itself from
the U.S. foreign policy, then peace could begin. The biggest
threat to peace anywhere in the world is the U.S., and this present
war-minded Bush administration is one of the worst ever. It
carries on with impunity, and it must be stopped. I
always refer to the Filipino experience (I lived in the Philippines from
1978 to 1988), in the context of what is happening to Iraq today.
The U.S. with its deep roots of domination, is doing it again with
impunity, what it exactly did in 1898, when it usurped Filipino victory
against the Spaniards. The hypocrisy is so glaring, giving the
impression that the U.S. is for democracy, that it believes in the
international community, etc. None of this is true, for the real name of
the U.S. game is domination, full stop. The sooner the countries
of the world learn this stark reality, then will real change begin for
peace. It was bad enough when we had two super powers, but now
with only one, it is infinitely more terrible for the globe.
Your
website is absolutely super. Keep up the good work. (Feb. 24,
2003) Sincerely, The
Liguasan Marsh The
Liguasan Marsh must stay as a national park free from any economic or
political or human encroachment. The eco-system in such place is so
fragile that one mistake made by man can offset the balance and will
affect the existence of so many plant and animal species that future
generation of Filipinos may never see or enjoy. There must be no dam to
be constructed in that river. Again, it will be more of problem than a
blessing to the environment and to the people at large. However,
eco-tourism can be established around the Liguasan Marsh in such a way
that it will disturb resident species of plants and animals. This can be
done with responsible environmental management system . Should there be
a possibility of natural gas or oil in that area, then try to initiate
an exploratory work not within the national park itself but outside it.
Other countries have done a "side-winding" exploratory work
and extraction where the drilling is done outside the perimeter of the
park, but pin-pointed sidewards and downwards into the lower portion of
the park. Once oil or gas is confirmed, they then extract these two
items on a "side-winder" basis never encroaching the park
itself on its upper ground level. In this case, we have a win-win
scenario. The people and environment win, and the government and private
investors also win . The
second most important thing, if exploration must be done, is for the
government to talk to all the tribes that will be affected. There is
nothing like a good line of communication between the people and the
government wherein questions and problems are resolved for the benefit
of all parties. If there is no communication, there will only be
problems. (Feb. 21, 2003) Manny
Manguera Amnesty
International on Bayan Muna killings We
are a local Amnesty International group in Aix en Provence (southern
France). We are starting an action in favour of justice for the "disapearrance"
of Johny Orcinio and
Honorio Ayrosio, two Bayan Muna activists abducted in Nueva Ecija in
February 2002 and reported in your March 3-9, 2002 issue. Our
action includes letter writing to Philippine authorities and media as
well as information to the local public. It should last for three
months. We believe that impunity must stop to prevent further abuses. Also the families of these two disapearred must get proper reparations. (Feb. 18, 2003) Christophe
JOURNEAU Lacson,
a God-fearing man Based
on facts, people who accused Sen. Panfilo Lacson of crimes that were
lodged against him that have never been proven in court. I have heard of
witnesses who when under oath cannot pinpoint the guilt of Sen. Lacson.
Lacson is a man of principle, has morals and more so a man of integrity,
honest and fair. He is a true public servant and a God-fearing man. This
is the man we need to lead the Filipino people. He is a great
person. I believe that Sen. Lacson can lead our nation to its greatness
if he is given that chance. (Feb.
14, 2003) "shin" Filipino
should remain the country's medium of instruction Sorry,
my English is very bad. First of all, I am against the imposition of
English as the main medium of instruction in the Filipino schools. It
would be better to teach Filipino children in their own native
languages, and promote a common and national language as Filipino is in
fact. Spanish
should also be taught because it is part of Filipinos history and
culture. A lot of Filipino had Spanish as their language in the past.
José Rizal himself wrote his novels in Spanish and it is a shame
that nowadays Filipino youth cannot understand him without
translations. (Philippines is actually the only Hispanic country in
Asia.) Summarizing
my point: Filipino should be the unique medium of instruction in all
educational levels and English just a subject. Spanish should be also
promoted as Filipino Constitution proclaims. (Feb.
14, 2003) "Julio
Martin Cano" Pardon moi?Dear
editor, No,
I don't think Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo qualifies to be Bush's
spokesperson. Being reputed as the "economist" president
that sunk the Philippine economy is more than enough reason the
Americans would be so scared of her. They already have enough of
the idiotic Bush who spent trillions of dollars of surplus spent in less
than two years that now they are having problems to get rid of. Maybe,
like most Pinoys are known for, (sorry, but this is our reputation
as a people and I for one am not spared of) she can apply as the
notorious and drunken Bush's daughters as their nanny. She adores
Bush so much that for sure she would be greatly honored to take care of
her alcoholic children, just like the father. I
apologize if I sound desperate but this is never funny and that
this little president of the Philippines should be silenced sooner
than later, I hope. (Feb. 12, 2003) "L.
Tagalog" Accidental
reader from Canada
Hoo-ray! This
is the first time I accidentally opened your site and I just love it.
Keep up the work and the updates... you will surely have more readers in
Canada for I'm going to forward your site to friends. (That is if
they haven't known about this yet...) (Feb. 12, 2003) :-)
"L. Tagalog" U.S.
a barbaric country
Dear
editor, In
the Gulf War of 1991, the US subjected Iraq to three extremely punishing
blows: first, the aerial bombardment that dropped advanced depleted
uranium shells, rockets, missiles and smart bombs, cluster bombs with
deadly rain of armor piercing bomblets, leaving tons of radio active and
toxic rubble on the hapless people, that gave rise to genetic defects
among them, and wrecked their vital infrastructures, including crippling
the electrical system that disabled the industries, agricultural
production, water purifying system, sewage treatment, and operation of
hospitals, clinics and laboratories, aside from hitting at buildings such as a baby food factory
and air raid shelter for children, women, and the elderly, crowded
places such as markets, crowded homes, bridges. According to a reporter
of The Guardian of London, "There was incredible carnage all
around." While
firing at fleeing Iraqi citizens, the pilots of these killer planes were
heard to have shouted, to the accompaniment of the Lone Ranger and
William Tell Overture, "They (the Iraqis) are like sitting
ducks!" "It is like the biggest Fourth of July!"
"They're white hot!" "It's wonderful!" Yet,
White House spokesman then, Martin Fitzwater would have the gall to
state, "Saddam does not share our value in the sanctity of
life." After
the aerial bombardment, followed the ground war. Iraqi soldiers who were
surrendering to the US troops were applied ferocious weaponry.
And to cover their evil actions, US troops were told to pile the
dead bodies of and dying Iraqi soldiers into trenches with the use of
tanks and tractors, and to bury them so that there is no evidence of the
carnage that the US troops dealt. It
was said that photographers who bravely took shots of these had their
cameras seized from them by US soldiers.
Thus, we have no existing photographs of these cruelties, not
like during the Vietnam War which photographers covered extensively.
Forever entrenched in our minds are photos of Vietnamese children
screaming in pain upon being hit by deadly bombs. As
victors who had already reduced Iraq to a rubble and killed 1.6 million
people, the US was not satisfied. It
had to satiate itself by imposing a most cruel embargo that continues to
this day. Even humanitarian
aid for the weak and dying Iraqi babies was denied of them. With
the above accounts culled from different stories of war correspondents
and UN teams that visited Iraq after the Gulf War, we could daresay that
the US is a barbaric country that does not deserve to the international
community. (Feb. 11, 2003) "Rita
Baua" Plight
of foreign workers
Dear
Editor, The Philippine government is totally helpless in protecting its own citizens working in foreign countries from the abuses of their foreign employers. Indirectly, the Philippine government is a consenting partner to all these abuses by being a signatory on all trade agreements with Middle East governments. From the viewpoint of the Philippine government, the value of money is more important than the value of human lives. The country would rather export people than agriculture products because people grow better and faster in the womb than in the land. (Feb. 11, 2003) Dr.
Nestor P. Baylan Sorsogon
killings
Dear
editor, Greetings
and I wish it were of Peace. I
read with great sadness but little surprise your article about the
increase in killings in Sorsogon. About 11 years ago I served as a
government physician and an adviser to an NGO in Irosin, Sorsogon. I was
one of the few doctors that served the area at that time. I
frequented Monbon, Irosin, where one of the suspected NPA sympathizers
was killed. There is this
wonderful hot spring resort at the base of Mount Bulusan located there.
This was where we would teach our barangay health workers. Fortunately,
the time that I spent in Irosin was relatively quiet for both the
insurgency and natural calamities. We all know that Sorsogon has long
been a neglected province. It does not surprise me then that the
insurgents are back especially with the failing economy. I guess, this
ebbs and rises based on the fortunes of the people. But obviously, a lot
of things do not change. During
my stint in Irosin, I met the military commander at a party. It was
after an encounter that they had with some insurgents. The necropy of
one of the alleged slain insurgents was done at our hospital. I, to this
day, vividly remember what the major said. "Alam n’yo doc, we
always have these barangay meeting where we try to convince people to
lay down their arms and come back to the fold of the government. Alam
niyo naman that the government has all these programs that help these
people restart their lives," he said. "We tell them that we
will train them to farm and give them money to start their farms,"
he added. Then he went on to say.."but you know doc, like that
encounter yesterday...I love the thrill of the hunt! Besides, I also
save the government money." I
believe that the value of life in the country continues to cheapen. It
will do so as long as crimes committed by both criminals and law
enforcement personel remain unsolved and the underlying apathy and
malaise in trying to solve them continue. We have all heard the phrase,
money begets more money. How about value for life begets more value for
life and respect begets more respect. The alternative is what we have
now. (Feb. 10,
2003) Francis
M. Dayrit Ang wika ay kulturaDear
editor, Isa
lang ang ibig sabihin ng pagkakaroon ng panibagong interes na buhayin
ang isyu tungkol sa paggamit o di paggamit ng wikang Ingles/Filipino
bilang wikang panturo: mahalaga ito upang higit na magkaintindihan ang
nagtuturo at tinuturuan. Maganda
ring suriin nang malalim kung paano ginagamit ang wikang panturo. Sang-ayon
ako na gamitin ang wikang magsisilbing tulay para mapagtibay ang anumang
kaalamang natutunan ng estudyante o sinumang gustong matuto (maging ito
man ay Filipino o Ingles). Higit pa rito, upang masuri ang kaugnayan ng
konseptong pinag-aaralan sa lipunang ginagalawan ng nag-aaral at sa
kabuuan ng kanyang pinag-ugatan bilang mamamayan, sa madaling sabi, ng
kanyang pagkakakilanlan. Kaya
lang, kahit sa anumang lipunan o sitwasyon, kung sa halip na gamitin ang
wika (Filipino man o Ingles) upang matamo ang mga layuning binanggit ko
sa itaas, ito ay ginagamit upang makondisyon ang isipan ng mag-aaral sa
mga konseptong walang pakinabang sa kanyang lipunan at pagkatao at
lalong palalimin at palakasin ang anumang kaisipan at diwang pang-alipin,
ito sa palagay ko ay dapat tuligsain. Walang
indibidwal na di magnanais magkaroon ng isang wikang gagamitin niya
upang maunawaan ang kanyang mga ideya at mithiin sa buhay. Subalit ang
pagkakaroon ng isang wikang panlahat na ginagamit lamang upang lalong
maging busabos ang gumagamit nito ay wala ring buting maidudulot. Ang
wika ay kultura. Bahagi ito ng kultura. Kung paano ito ginagamit ay
maaaring magbuo o sumira ng anumang maganda sa kultura ng anumang bansa.
(Feb. 10, 2003) Jhun
Elloso 4
Million Iraqis will die if U.S. attacks Iraq Dear
Editor, The
possibility is there if the war becomes nasty, if the war will be turned
from conventional to nuclear. I
worked in Iraq from March 1983 to August 1984 and the situation at that
time is already bad because of the Iraq-Iran war. The situation there
was compounded due to the 1991 post-war sanctions against Iraq. But
why did the international community through the U.N. impose the
sanctions? If
war will break out, untold calamities and sufferings will befall on the
Iraqi people. However, if the present regime will continue, gradual
sufferings, repressions, and death will remain in the country. (Feb. 9,
2003) "Benny
Cenzon" SM
workers I
completely agree with you. SM should share its profits to their
workers by way of bonuses, profit sharing, commissions, etc. Or
why not just make their union stronger and lobby Congress to pass laws
that benefit the workers more than the employers?
(Feb. 18, 2003) "Gaudencio
R. Pacot, Sr." Informative Very
interesting. Informative. Makes me feel better about upcoming war. I
knew George Robert Kelly, father of Rear Admiral John M. Kelly,when we
were in high school. (Feb. 5, 2003) "Norman
Sutton" Brain
Drain Mabuhay! I'd
like to make an opinion with regards this growing "craze" of
exporting our kababayans into this depressing kind of work. Does
anybody out there know what caregiver/ health care provider means over
here in the US? In our language it means "tsimay"or "atchay".
I"ll not say "katulong" coz it is more decent compared to
the others. The work involves a lot of time (24/7) as a matter of
fact and depending on your prospective employers' needs and wants. And
some also require you to clean their house, and some will also restrict
you from using their stuffs - like phones, tv, or even opening the
fridge. You
could ask, how then can our professionals stay and not leave? The answer
is, "I don't know!". Their dreams and aspirations will always
motivate them in achieving their goals, but, they need to be weary and
suspicious at all times with their undertakings. And maybe, with the
help of our local media, they can do an investigative report on
both employees and employers over this regard. Our kababayans need to be
informed about everything that will eventually be a huge, huge decision
of their future life. My
apologies for being a little bit negative, I'm just being REALISTIC.
(Feb. 4, 2003) Nagmamalasakit, Instrument of cultural hegemony When
I was teaching in a university here in Cagayan de Oro, I did not require my students to answer or write their essays, term papers in
English. My attention was
called by the administration. Thus some call me "Bisaya nga Maestro," which I took as a complement and not
derogatory. (In our vernacular,
we call those naive "bisaya.") I quit. The
bad thing about English as the medium of instruction is that many
brilliant ideas by students, especially those who had their basic
education in the
countryside and do not have a command of the English language cannot be
expressed. Now,
as a community organizer, I appreciate no end at the ideas, the
understanding and wisdom of the poor "uneducated" farmer,
fisherfolk. Ideas which are far more brilliant than those that society
considers educated. The
measure of education should not be proficiency in the FOREIGN English
language but with the ideas of students, their grasp and understanding
of realities, in the case of our backward country, in understanding the
social relations that pushes majority of Filipinos (who do not know how
to speak English) to poverty, to the bottom of the social triangle. Requiring
English as a medium of instruction just aggravates the already
aggravated colonial and elitist Phil. Educational System. Well, anyway
in the first place the Phil. Educational System has never been designed
and intended to educate the Filipinos, the "Indios." It has
always been an instrument of cultural hegemony. (Feb. 3, 2003) (sorry,
in english ako nagsulat, 'di rin ako fluent sa Tagalog eh :) BenCyrus
Ellorin Not humanitarian Bush's
way of declaring war against Iraq is not a humanitarian, since many
lives of innocent children and people
will be wasted. Baka madamay tayo kasi ang bansa natin ay alyado ng
America at may mga base ng mga kano sa ating bansa.
(Feb. 1,
2003) "Marilen
Canda" What
alternatives are offered? It
is heartening to see that the masses have not been blinded by Arroyo's
manufactured image and speeches. But what alternatives do
they offer, in the unlikely event of Arroyo's resignation?
Without a feasible plan or program of action, these demonstrations would
go nowhere, as they can't hope for significant logistical support in
toppling the corrupt regime.
(Jan.
24, 2003)
Hope
of the Nation? Thank
you for reminding readers of the "Last Quarter
Storm". In the 70s, the enemy was clearly
defined. Not today. The enemy hides behind the shield
of EDSA. A usurper occupies Malacañang, applauded
by Santa Cory and her patron the Cardinal. When are the
youth going to make a united front to protest the violations of the
Constitution that had cheated the Filipinos of the president they
elected? (Jan.
24, 2003) Not,
anti-labor; class enemy Mr.
Remollino, Sometimes,
objective reporting in journalism has to give way to militant reporting
of abuse of power by government officials. The
question "Is Sto. Tomas anti-labor" is merely
rhetorical. She has practically sold the OFWs, developing
selective amnesia when she conveniently forgets that the OFWs are hailed
as "the new economic heroes" through their remittances.
(Jan.
24, 2003)
President
Arroyo? Or The Usurper? To:
Alexander Martin Remollino Your
profile of Gloria Arroyo is quite objective. Interestingly, you
sound a warning in the last paragraph but your phrase "assumed the
presidency in a manner beyond the electoral process" is vague,
almost misleading. The Daily Tribune (online) had actually
dubbed her a usurper in a couple of articles, as President Estrada had
never resigned his office nor have the courts found him guilty.
That Arroyo was sworn as President does not change the fact that Joseph
Ejercito Estrada is legally still the President of the republic as the
Constitution provides. Online
newspapers are my only source of information on the Philippines as I
have been living in Norway since almost three years ago. So far,
The Daily Tribune appears to be the only metro broadsheet that continues
to remind Filipinos that Arroyo is only acting president and had usurped the
presidency by violating the Constitution, in league with her
supporters. Attached
is an article (October 30, 2000), downloaded from the Daily
Tribune archives. Dare I hope that you would distribute this
through your website? (Jan.
24, 2003) Rosalinda
N. Olsen Kintanar
slay article Your
article on the Kintanar murder is no different from how the mainstream
reported the event, i.e., a story based on a press release, and on
simply the cpp's at that.
How do you define bulatlat again in your masthead? (Jan. 26, 2003) Joey
Flora Correction We
in Bayan-Mindoro congratulate you for your undying effort for an
alternative media. It’s very helpful in bringing up the news and
occurrences here in our country. My concern is about the issue entitled
"The Other War on Terror" written by Bobby Tuazon. He
mistakenly (or maybe a typographical error) wrote the name of the
butcher of Oriental Mindoro as Col. Jovencio Palparan. It should be Col.
Jovito Palparan, Jr. The name of Palparan
should be written accurately to isolate him from the people because he is really a
criminal. We
hope that you would look on this matter. We'll
try also sending more information regarding events here in our province. Thank
you and more power. Eman
delos Reyes Bayan
Muna-Oriental Mindoro <bayan_mor@yahoo.com> Arroyonomics I strongly agree with the article "The Economy in 2002: From Bad to Worse (Really)." All this is in line with GMA's servility to the U.S. government. She has been completely out of touch with the progressive forces in society and is thus anachronistic as president. (Dec. 22, 2002) Alice
Guillermo Anti-American Why
so much anti-American verbage? What’s your agenda? Do you not
believe 3,000 plus (people of many countries) died in the terrorist
attack on the World Trade Center Towers on Sept. 11? What, if anything,
has the U.S. done to the
Philippines? Why the socialist/liberal ideas? Just my thoughts, but I
still think Philippines has always bitten the hands that have fed them. (Dec.
19, 2002) Rocky
Golleher Thank you Dear
Friends, Warmest
Greetings. May the spirit of the Advent Season continue to provide us
with the sustaining faith as we work for equality, justice and peace by
bringing alternative information and exposing the evils and machinations
the powers in our society. We
are writing to thank you for the articles sent to us - many of which
were helpful in our studies of Philippine current
situations in our churches and communities - and
some we of which we publish in our forthnigly Newsletter, The
Iloilo People's Forum. Your articles and features really provide
alternative information from those that usually comes to us through the
newspapers and international news agencies. Thank
you so much. (Dec. 19, 2002) Sincerely, Rudy
Bernal U.S.
Violence Across the Globe Gentle
people: Thank
you for your timely and comprehensive list of Washington's war crimes.
I will share it with my friends and family. (Dec. 18, 2002) The
Poor Churchmouse More poems Dear Editor, First
time, I visited your web and I really like it, especially poets/poem. Do
you have any historical events/Philippines that I could share with my
kids? Christmas cheers Dear Editor, Christmas
Greetings (photo of the week) brings tears into my grieving soul,
reminds me back from the days. Touching
the hearts Dear Editor, I
have been using your website a lot, especially as resource for my
presentations here in Canada regarding global justice issues. I did one
last month about Women and War, and will be doing another one tonight in
celebration of the International Day of Human Rights. Your stories about
how people's lives are being affected touch the hearts of many here, and
further strengthen their resolve to help in many ways. Maraming
salamat sa inyong mahuhusay na artikulo! (Dec. 10, 2002) Chuchi Military money for the poor Hi
friends! I
like your articles in the Bulatlat. I
wonder if the money the Philipines government allocates for its armed
forces can be used instead for the poor. Will not this preference be
humane and productive in the long run? (Dec. 8, 2002) Gerrit
Olthof <gerolthof@rogers.com> Painful,
marvelous Dear Editor, The
Emmanuel Ortiz poem in the latest edition of Bulatlat is marvelous:
painful to read, yet necessary. Thank you for making it available. I
would like to use it in public settings here, so would appreciate some
information on Mr. Ortiz to help set the context when I use it.
Any information you can send would be appreciated. Thank
you. (Dec. 2, 2002) Glen
Herrington-Hall Ortiz's
moment of silence Dear Editor, Emmanuel
Ortiz's material could become powerful poetry; the rhythm and technique
do not approximate the huge dimension of his message. The form does not
achieve its content. The breadth of violent remembrances is worthy of an
epic poem. As
a plea for silence, it was noisy. (Dec.
1, 2002) ALBERT
B. CASUGA Depressing
statistics Dear Editor, Politicians themselves perpetuate the dismal situation of education in the Philippines. Non-high school graduates are easily exploited to vote for "unworthy" candidates. The Philippines should consider adding a new requirement for voters, that they be not only underage, or in jail or mentally incapacitated, but voters should at least be high school graduates! This
would in turn provide incentives by the government to turn the dismal
situation around. More worthy politicians will be voted into office who
in turn will promote for better education to have more productive
citizens. (Dec.1 2002) EXZUR12@aol.com Better
Critics Dear
Editor, Kudos to Bulatlat.com Dear Editor, Kudos to
Bulatlat.com for giving us the chance to read well written and analyzed
articles. Among your writers, I have high praises for Danilo Arao ( for
his analytical and scholastic presentation of issues), Bobby Tuazon (for
his political analysis on issues of national importance), Alex Remollino
(for his feel-good articles) and Gerry Albert Corpuz (for his standout
news feature articles and flexibility in writing). "jiggy
santos" Hybrid
rice varieties Dear Editor, Your
article about IRRI and Genetic Engineering is an eye-opener. I
agree with Masipag farmers that the only way to go is to disregard the
hybrid varities and plant traditional rice varieties. The
Tribal Filipinos of the Philippines, especially in Mindanao were able to
protect these precious genes (traditional varieties) by hiding them
inside bamboo tubes for hundreds of years. In
North America and eleswhere, the public and consumers are wary of these
Genetically Engineered farm produce. So the Multinational Corporations
are dumping these seeds in Third World countries. At the same time they
are using the Filipinos as guinea pigs for their GE research and reap
huge profits while Filpinos are dying from the effects of toxic
pesticides and eating these altered crops. More
Power to Masipag Farmers and the nationalist farmers and scientists of
the Philippines. (
Nov. 19, 2002) Edwin
Mercurio Washington's war crimes Dear Editor, I
think this article is great. thanks for telling it like it is.
(Nov.
17, 2002)
thurman
c morgan History
of U.S. Violence Across the Globe: Washington's War Crimes Dear Editor, Greetings... I found this one rense.com (Jeff Rense's site)... Wish that he had posted it as a link directly to your site (as he sometimes does). Otherwise,
wholly excellent and almost fully inclusive.. As a Canadian,
however, I notice your timeline begins AFTER the War of 1812-14, for
what that's worth, and omits actions in Indonesia (which may have some
bearing on recent events)... Do
you intend to add to it as further instances are drawn to your
attention? If so, I will put on my thinking cap...(Nov.
17, 2002) Your
local Global Village Terra-ist, "Mr. Ding" spaceding@yahoo.com Worth reading Dear Editor, I have only now discovered your site and found it very much worth
reading--which I have done for the past hour. There are many
interesting articles, and I read most. You
have a solicitation announcement on your site asking readers to submit
items for posting links on your site. Here is a suggestion for
you, an essay entitled : UNDERSTANDING THE NEW IMPERIAL EMPIRE: Will America’s past become America’s future? The essay can be obtained from this site: http://www.americaheldhostile.com/ed110302.shtml See you. (Nov 16, 2002) Bush:
A dangerous man As
an American, I heartedly agree with your stance on the subject of civil
freedoms being trampled. There are many Americans who do not agree
with Bush. Hopefully, many will see the light and oust him from
Washington come the next election. Bush
is a dangerous man to those who enjoy freedom of speech and the many
freedoms we have in America. "judy
quigley" judyqq@spitfire.net Center
of activism Just
because mahina ang nat dems (national democrats)
sa FEU and UST it does not mean that it is not a center of
activism, now or before. I hope that this letter will help force you to
review your student activism history. And maybe you should review you
data, if you have any. The
reason for this reaction is that your article is opening a dangerous
crack for authorities to further clamp down on FEU and UST all the more
by making people believe that the two institutions can be pawns to
sacrifice in favor of the more militant schools you seem so hard pressed
to defend. Now
if you argue that your intention to exclude FEU and UST among the more
militant school will help ease the pressure on the two institutions,
then that is not objective and is also biased, whether for good
intention or bad. Anyway,
since I doubt if you will have the opportunity to undo the message of
your article, it might help your groups' impact assessment session. (12
Nov 2002) John Reply to Cinco Dear
Mr. Cinco, For
a computer professional to imply that there exist some perfectly-built
systems, is simply unthinkable. Your negative outlook towards
computerized application systems, on the other hand, does not seem to
match the profession that you are in. Yes, sometimes technology alone
will not work. But talking about systems, I do remember that technology
is only one aspect of an application system. Well, at least an IT
practitioner has come up with a stand on this ID system issue, unlike
the rest of the industry which has kept silent or rather has remained
un-involved in the issue leaving other people who are without the proper
know-how to speak up and suggest that even bank records and sexual preferences
will be included in the ID. How sad indeed. (Nov.
5, 2002) jerry
borja Very
enriching Dear
Editor, It's
been very enriching reading from your site's published articles. I would
like to request to be updated with articles on the democratic space
particularly issues on democratic space. Thanks
and more power. (Nov. 1, 2002) Deo Thank
you Dear
Editor, I
am Mordz Visitacion of Dumaguete. I was also the chairman of ANAKBAYAN
Camanjac National High school chapter. I would like to thank you for
publishing the reported harassment in our school. I
am currently here in Dipolog City, trying to finish my studies despite
the harassment I had experienced in my previous school. Have
you heard about the kidnap case of Edmund Sestoso, a DYSR reporter and
also the bureau cheif of Visayan daily courier at Dumaguete? I hope you
could have a report on him, sir. I am also very grateful to him, because
he was the first one who reported our case to the media. (Oct. 27, 2002) Thank
you very much. mordz Diwalwal gold rush Attached
is our position paper on the proposed Mineral Reservation over the
Diwalwal Gold Rush. I
read with interest your articles on Diwalwal. Thanks for the
coverage. I
disagree, however, with Brgy Capt. Franco Tito, expressing his hopes
that they would eventually "own" Diwalwal. The State
owns all natural resources. (Oct
18, 2002) Sincerely, Martin
T. Lu Reader wants Bulatlat dead Your
site is obviously a communist forum of the Communist Party of the
Philippines-National Democratic Front who are hiding in the guise of
human rights and peace- your (sic) nothing but a bunch of opportunists
and liars!!! commies drop dead!! Your
(sic)
all terrorists who desrved (sic) to be executed!!!! Your (sic) a plague
in Asia and in Europe!!!! To Danilo Arao First of all, thank you for including me in your
mass mailing list. The experience you narrated ("Trip to Bicol: A
Snapshot of Poverty and Teachers' Resolve to Organize") was not an
isolated case and should not be taken as a ridicule or anything of that
kind. It should rather be analyzed in a constructive and positive
manner. This is also a very good copy for government officials and those
who still love our people to read, read, read, read and reread.....and
see what can be done! Snapshot
from Bicol reader My
comment about the Philtranco Bus that was taken during the trip from Manila to Sorsogon City was just an unfortunate case. I'm a
native of Iriga City and
usually took Philtranco in my way to Manila and vice versa. Many times I encountered those kind of problems too, but most of
my travels were fine. In
this world there is no perfect for everything so if you don't want to risk and you're in a hurry, next time take your own car
for your travel. There is
no such assurances on any bus companies that you'll have a good or bad
trips. It is also the same case as in any college whether it private or
public. As per my knowledge not only in Bikol are there institutions
that have very poor facilities. But not all the institutions in Bikol
are bad though. Indeed there are a lot of colleges and universities
in Bikol that are performing much better than in any other
regions and some of them
are much better than those in Metro Manila. I
felt deeply sad that you guys never visit some of Bikol schools,
colleges or universities so that you can compare it to your places. It
is unfair that what you saw
was the one side of a coin. (Oct 16, 2002) "Ariel
Ensano" (Editor’s Note: The article was precisely based on a trip to Bicol where the writer meet state college professors who, among others, told him about the state of public education in the region. The conference where the writer spoke in a symposium was held right inside one of these schools.) Slavery Hi,
I was one of the workers of SM Shoemart way back the 80's .You are right
the way the employer treats them is not fair. When they built SM in
Cubao around 1979 or 1980 I was only 17 years old and I applied as a
salesclerk and got hired the same day. But before that ,I went to a very
difficult screening at first. I and 9 other applicants were told to line up
while screeners checked our elbows, skin and lifted our skirts or dress
to make sure you have a nice pair of legs which is very discriminating.
As I went through all of that screening I felt like we were going
to work as a display or a slave for all the customers. Try
to think about it. These Chinese employers should learn how to help the
Filipino people instead treating us like slaves. (Oct.
14, 2002) Dioscora
Baja Rockwell’s Che Dear
Editor, Ang
galing ng artikulo ninyo tungkol kay Che Guevarra. Ganyan din ang
sentimiyento ko simula nang biglang magsulputan ang mukha ni Che Guevarra
kung saan-saan. Hindi lang siya, pati si Bob Marley. May narinig nga akong
hirit na silang dalawa ang bagong “hello kitty” ng lipunan ngayon.
Nakakapanlumong isipin, lalo pa't may isang 'cafe' diyan sa Rockwell
na pinangalanang, CHE. Mabuti sana kung sa pagkauso ng isang
rebolusyonaryo, kasabay din nito ang pagkamulat ng tao, lalo na ng mga
kabataang naaastigan sa pagrarampang suot-suot ang mukha ni Che Guevarra.
Pero hindi. Lalo lang tuloy bumabaon sa utak ng kabataan ang
pagka-apatetiko at "sunod sa uso"-ng kulturang pinalalaganap ng
mga sakim na negosyanteng walang inisip kundi kumita. (Oct. 14, 2002)
"kuwan
pante" Martial Law Anniversary It's
superb and excellent…coming up with editorials like this and others
like sacrifices of those before us to attain where we are right now
would be an excellent one. See,
what happened to those in the streets, during the Marcos era…trying to
build their own empire except for Joker Arroyo and Jovito Salonga I
can't think of anybody whose sacrifices were put in vain but to their
vested interest in life. More Power to this website the good work and God Bless. (Oct. 11, 2002) Josh
of Santa Barbara, California Che and the young generation I first heard the name Che Guevarra in the motion picture "Evita." I have never really read any serious article about him. It was only after reading your article that I discovered his pivotal role in South American history if not in the history of the world. I don’t really mind teenagers wearing shirts bearing the face of this hero-turned pop icon Guevarra. I even thought he is one cool guy because so many people have been idolizing him in their shirts, car stickers, mugs and more. If they find him cool, then I think they should at least try to read more about him. The
life lived by Che was no joke. Making money out of his popularity is not
really a big issue. Those opportunist manufacturers have been doing it
to almost everyone who could deliver them the bucks they need. It’s a
democratic country after all. But I think what is being sacrificed here
is the real essence of what and who Che Guevarra really is to the
younger generation. (Oct. 11, 2002) vanessa
lacuesta Only Fools will believe the Marcoses Only
fools will believe the Marcoses. Ang bawat buhay ng pamilya na kanilang
sinira ay lamat na nananalaytay sa bawat anak ng mga nawalan ng buhay.
Maaring
magpaloko ang mga nasa poder at kapangyarihan. But, the martial law real
victims are not crazy to buy such craft. What
Imee is doing right now is the same thing what Gloria is doing. Gusto
nilang linisin ang pangalan ng kanilang mga pamilya sa pamamagitan ng
pagbabaluktot ng kasaysayan. Ilublob
nila ang sarili nila sa kangkungan! (Oct. 9,
2002) rommel
linatoc
Destruction
of Negros forest prelude to natural calamities Toronto,
Canada - The mindless destruction of Negros Island's only remaining
forest reserve by local politicians and forest poachers must not go
unpunished. The
massacre of these old giant trees and the unmitigated balding of Negros'
forests will not only bring future misery to the Negrenses but will
surely destroy the fragile ecological balance of the province. It will
lead to more serious natural calamities such as flash floods which will
ravage the lowland towns and cities, cause dry spells and lower water tables
(dry well effect). The destruction will increase soil erosion and choke
and destroy coral reefs and mangrove swamps (breeding grounds of
fish and marine resources). I
have seen all of these happening in Southern Mindanao while living
with seven indigenous tribal communities for almost a decade. When
old forests are gone, then comes the extinction of rare flora and
fauna and other wild life resources. Fr.
Frank Fernandez, the alleged head of the revolutionary movement in
Negros Island is justified in his fight to save these last forest
resources and must be supported. There is
wisdom in the words of a tribal chieftain when he said," We do
not inherit the Earth. We borrow it from our children." (Oct.
6, 2002) Edwin
C. Mercurio A
hungry soul Hello to my Kabayan, I was surfing the net and having found any no interesting stories in inq7.net and other Manila news online... I found this story (Ex-Cafgu Finds A New Cause). It suited my hungry soul and loved reading it. I really do appreciate this
site and from now on it is now my early morning MUST read news and
before bedtime. Please kindly put into it more explicit info if you
can.. and please write more of this kind and I will spread it around to
my friends. How lucky we are to get away and
to live here. But we continue fighting injustices from afar with our
own ways. Mabuhay
tayong mga Pilipino. Mabuhay
sa malayang pamamahayag! (Oct. 1, 2002) Ronnie On Che Guevarra I
think you’re right about saying that the face of Che Guevara has been
used by capitalists as a propaganda and I am a bit sad about this
phenomonenon (which I think it is) and am sadder that these persons wear
garments with Che's face never knowing who he is and his cause. I hope
somehow they'll be educated. They should stop using Che's name and
face for that matter. "We
stay because we believe, we leave because we are disillusioned, we come
back because we are lost, WE DIE BECAUSE WE ARE COMMITTED." –Che
(Oct., 2002) "Desiree
Joy Galila" We're getting screwed too! Military
budgets are getting out of hand, here in the U.S. also. I
wonder if this so-called "war on terrorism," is just an excuse
to gain greater control over civilian population and many individuals
are getting rich, by claiming we need to increase military budgets, i.e.
the Carlyle Group, once headed by that thug Cheney. You
article was very detailed and informative. Your
people I know need serious increases in social programs, as well as
improvements of the infrastructure. However, the HAWKS see no profit in
that, what a shame! P.S.
I was looking for the story of the recent bomb blast and couldn't find
anything, why is that? (Oct. 2, 2002) White
Guy from Seattle, Against
imperialist globalization People
of the Philippines must know of what foreign businesses are doing
to their country. They were not there to create jobs for the
people, they were not there to help us, but to exploit us. What
they’re doing is privatization
of the land and destroying the environment. With the help of the corrupt
government of the Philippines, this kind of system remains.
People of the Philippines must unite and fight the oppression of
the imperialist globalization. (September 29,
2002) e.M. Robert
Fisk article "Titanic War" Thank
you for posting Fisk's work. He is a fantastic journalist, and one of
the few who really understand the extent of the hypocrisy and mendacity
of U.S. policy in the Middle East. Keep up the good work!
(Sept. 22, 2002) "kkk"
Great Opportunity Thank
you for the great opportunity to read the news from bulatlat. (September
21, 2002) Diony Marinduque
Experience an Eye-opener What
happened to Marinduque should never happen again in other mining areas
in the Philippines. Let Marinduque's experience be an
"eye-opener." Big foreign corporations will use their dollars
to gain access to our mineral resources. It is a shame if the Philippine
government grabs a "fake opportunity" to let these
irresponsible mining corporations ruin our environment and leave
their mess to the people. The
Philippine government should revise our Mining Laws to benefit the local
government and the people, as well as to make mining corporations
responsible for their mess. There should be a bond to cover such
dreadful event to make sure the province or town and its people are
covered from toxic waste spillage and other unforeseen events.
(September 18, 2002) Rey
Muhi Appreciation
for Bulatlat Articles To the editors, I appreciate a lot your online reports. Each of your issues helps a lot in my future career. I like the way your writers do their reports. Hope you'll continue sending me every issues you have. Thanks! (September 17, 2002) bhimz
baut On
Martial Law Article (Issue 32) Your
article is short but incisive–enjoyed reading it as I was once a UP
activist before the Martial Law. The
article brings me memories of my UP days in the 60's when the campus was
shut down and DZUP, the campus radio, was taken over by activists.
Those were the best and memorable years of my life. I was very
idealistic and still am as a social and labor activist.
Contrary to the popular notion that one's idealism wanes as one
matures and raises a family - I have matured and now have
grandchildren–I still am fighting for causes as an expatriate.
Our battlecry in the labor union movement here in Toronto is
"No Justice, No Peace!" which other groups have also adapted.
(September 16, 2002) DING
SANTOS On young martyrs I
just want to say that the article was a very good piece, and if only it
could be published where a lot of people could read and get an easy
access to it, especially the young ones. I may be naive but I was
wondering why there were no cases filed for the abuses and death caused
by Enrile and the Marcos' "genocide" during Martial Law? The
fact of the matter is that Enrile and the Marcos' still hold power in
our country. Thanks
and I really hope articles like this could go out and be published in
the mainstream. (September 16, 2002) Mike
D. Good
Articles And Very Good Website! Good
to see there are some smart progressives in the Philippines. If Bush
declares Martial Law here in the United States, I'll be looking for a
new homeland. Then again, if that fascist Bush has his way, there will
be no safe place in the world. Check
out JINSA.org, which shows more proof that US elites
& zionists plan to take over the Middle East. I
play Bingo, with a lot of Filipino brothers & sisters, and many of
them say the same things you do! Good
Luck. (September 16, 2002) Fred Shining
evidence of a raped natural resources It
seems the government is doing nothing to monitor mining activities in
our country. They would just react if things are getting worse or
the damage is just too enormous to solve. Some of our kababayans
doesn't even bother to know the effect of continued mining even if it
cuse their life. Yes, gold is everywhere, but still it entails
crime, prostitution, environmental destruction and the worse death to
the place. (September 10, 2002) Rizaldy
Rodriguez Brave
People Like Bulatlat.com My
name is Bandar (aka Rene) Arcilla and I'm a programmer currently working
here in Saudi. Having stayed here for quite a while only strengthened my
nationalistic if not radical views of our society owing to the fact that
the continuous plunder of our native land has gone unabated and is
becoming more blatant than ever. I
am not speaking for myself alone but for the other countless OFW's that
we see no real hope to live a comfortable and decent life once we get
home. I fear for my kids and my kids' kids. What is the legacy that we
could give them knowing full well that our situation as of the moment is
a big question mark. I
have been following your site every now and then and sad to say, yours
is a depressing exposition. Well, at least I'm luckier here when I am
just depressed but thinking about the others there right now who are
directly suffering the sickle of oppression makes me want to shout -
"HEY PHILIPPINES, WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO YOURSELF?" Think
about it: we still have no genuine land reform where people can call
their ancestral lands their own especially in Mindanao where large
tracts of land are untitled. The production that we quote on the
business front are just products of the multinationals. They're not our
own. We import even rice?! In other words, we have no real produce. And
the little produce that we make competes against the cheaper
alternatives coming from abroad (globalization). The
electronic products we make are under the dictates of the foreign
businessman. They dictate the profit margins which is divided unbalanced
between the local capitalist and the poor laborers. And the local
capitalists almost always get guarantees from the government against
financial loss?! Do
we have a solution? I am not a very violent person but I think the
masses wouldn't have any option left once 30% of the people (I think
it's about 15% now) can 't afford anything to eat but dried noodles. (Buti
pa non may Nutri-ban, di ba?) It's not a solution but rather the bleak
outcome of things to come. I hope I could be more optimistic. I
believe that the Philippines is not that poor. No. It is just the wise
use of our resources that is lacking. First and foremost is the land
reform issue. People cannot stand up for themselves thinking they
wouldn't have anywhere to stay once the employers stop giving salaries.
They have no leverage. Large tracts of land are still being gobbled up
by 'them people' at the expense of 'development' while 'them people'
does not even cringe at how even the bridges down their very noses are
housing poor people underneath the noise and grumble of the buses over
them. I was wholly depressed one time I went on vacation when I saw
people coming out of one of the bridges in EDSA apprently going off to
work. How do they live there? What's in their future with that kind of
address? No
amount of OFW’s will elevate the poor status of our country if things
stay as they are. The government is pro-capital because they're the
capitalists themselves if not cronies. These people control the people
who would rule. And these same people are the ones being sponsored by
the great last superpower. They're the real cronies. Ergo, going against
them is like going against the superpower. Deja vu. Like it was in the
time of Aguinaldo. Nothing had changed. We
had a real chance then. Lands were already planned for subdivision to
the revolutionaries after they were confiscated from the hacienderos and
the catholic church. And then came Uncle Sam. They did not want to touch
the status quo. They bought Aguinaldo and restored the lands to their
previous owners. Who won the revolution then? I think Bonifacio is
weeping in his grave. Ditto with Aguinaldo, maybe. Now
tell me, is the situation hopeless? No.
Not really. As long as there are brave people out there bringing out
expositions like yours. We should not stop. I want land for my children
as well not mere hourly salaries! If I could give some more than this,
please let me know. There's no peace in a land where a few people
splurge and many are dying to get out if not stay in hunger. Thanks
for your time and more power. (September
6, 2002) Bandar
aka rene Photo
of the Week: Ifugao protester It is one of the best photos published by Bulatlat.com. in recent memory. Very candid, smart but politically engaging. Keep
up the good work! (September 3, 2002) Cecille “To
have or not to have” I
have to admit I am not at all familiar with all the complexities of the
medical profession but I think, the connotation of simply hearing the
word 'malpractice' triggers much of the emotions placed regarding this
issue. It is not a bill to serve as an umbrella caution of sorts that
will cover a patient once he approached a doctor. I agree with some of
the supporters of this bill that the present law addressing this is not
enough, it has to have more teeth because there are indeed many
negligent, arrogant doctors. It will not create, I believe, more tension
between the patient and the doctor because there will be more confidence
that your 'health handler' is less likely to make gross errors with, in
you because of the law. On the other hand, since suing takes a great
deal of time and money, isn't it also safe to assume that unscrupulous
people won't be encouraged to sue if they really believe that there was
no malpractice, in the first place?
I just hope that both parties will meet somewhere which will
empower not only the doctors, not only the congressmen, not only the
rich and moneyed lobbyists, but the majority of the people. It is not an
issue of having this law nor not having this law. I believe it has a
great room for compromise and half-way sentiments. Thank
you. (September 2, 2002) Judith
D. Octavo
Concern from a campus journalist I
just wonder at how Ms. Arroyo formulates her branding of the militant
and progressive groups like BAYAN-MUNA and other mass organizations as
'reds' and definitely, cases of human rights violation and
militarization has alarmingly increased in the country.'terrorists'. We
can already feel that the critical student publications and the College
Editors Guild of the Philippines will the next target for this 'red'
gimmick of hers. Violating human rights as well as militarizing the
countryside is another lame excuse in building her 'strong republic',
whereas, we are just slowly turning into a 'strongly militarized
republic'. (August 31, 2002) Jason
Valenzuela No difference It
wouldn't make the Philippines better or worse if Sison were dead or alive
or to be assassinated or extradited anywhere… (August
27, 2002) Climaco,
Rafael On
oil deregulation article Very
informative article, well-written and exhaustively researched. Are you the
same Danilo A. Arao of the late 80's Philippine Collegian? Just asking.
(August 22, 2002) Randy
Cruz de las alas juan Is
there a Kaibigan 1? And
did I just miss it? Thanks
- not just for this poem but also for the lively, thought-provoking,
courageous and interesting articles week after week. (August
18, 2002) cheers, Bulatlat.com
is indeed what exactly Filipinos need I
am writing you to congratulate you on a well-made website: Bulatlat.com
is indeed exactly what the Filipino public needs. I'd like to suggest an
addition to your list of "Media Criticism/Media Education" links:
http://www.fair.org/
is the address for Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting, well regarded by
media critics from a progressive perspective.
Keep up the good
work! (August 17, 2002) Ed
Y A
great job I
would like to thank you and your staff for the great job you all do
there. It is extremely hard these days to find news coverage that has
not been bought out by government or by industry. In fact I do not know
of any site that carries as much up to date information in an unbiased
manner as your site does. We
have come to depend on Bulatlat.com and it has in fact become one of our
number one sources of current news on the Philippines. Living
here in Canada prevents us from seeing first hand what is happening to a
country that should be on the world map as being one of the last
remaining paradise on earth. Sad to say, it is clear that exploitation
of the Philippines makes it impossible for its very citizens to be able
to enjoy it due to the poverty created by it. (August 17, 2002) Reinier
Kanis P.S Principal Reference Unang-una,
binabati ko kayo sa napakahusay na reporting online (First, I would like
to congratulate you for an excellent online reporting).
It has been my principal reference for current issues in the
Philippines for my radio program in Australia.
There are stuff I cannot get from any online Philippine
newspapers or magazines. Thank you. (July 31, 2002) Malou Enraged
at Ricciardone I would like to commend Mr. Carlos Conde's commentary "Ricciardone's Disingenuous Indictment." Indeed it was simple but hit the nail right on the head. I am so enraged at him (Ricciardone)! Bwisit ba! Anyway, I would just like to ask you guys there in Bulatlat if ever you have any links (to web sites) or even a soft copy of the full statement. If you have, is there any means of accessing that (i.e. email)? (July 24, 2002) Thank
you very much! Jay
de Quiros Bloody
SONA courtesy of General Aglipay and GMA Eight
thousand policemen in full battle gear against a peaceful but militant
mobilization who desperately want to
bring their pleas within hearing distance of a President gone deaf with
only one and half years in Malacanang…that is just the initial
paranoia. So what if the
leaders prodded the crowd to get near the Batasan, that is just voicing
the true sentiments of the people gathered there. Stones were hurled
from a distance and certainly not from the crowd, the leaders were even
the first to quell suspected provocateurs. But the mad dog hysteria
foisted by the now thick phalanx of the police, mercilessly aiming their
truncheons and shields at helpless protesters is nothing but an act of
war they most have probably long conditioned to unleash. We,
at Health Alliance for Democracy, have estimated more than 100
casualties. We brought 30 seriously injured at the East Avenue Medical
Center, and have rendered first aid treatment to 20 more. At the moment,
victims of the SONA violence still trek to our clinics. Of the 30
brought at EAMC, 14 suffered head injuries. While the police had tough
head gears, it seems they have the penchant to hit the heads of their
perceived enemies. The victims suffer an average 3 to 4 blows, some
still exhibiting the hematoma imprints of the truncheons. Most of them
were hit when they skid or have fallen on the ground. So much for
gentlemanliness, not even teenage girls were spared the blows, one
police even walked over a hapless victim. While
the alleged injured policemen were sent to the plush St. Lukes and
Medical Center Manila, the victim protesters mainly workers, farmers and
even government employees had to fall in line at the already crowded
East Avenue Medical Center. The President has given P20,000 financial
assistance to Corpuz who was hurt in a separate rally (but if viewers
were undiscerning, may have mistaken him for a SONA victim as well.) The
victim protesters on the other hand are still soliciting medicines for
their other companions…and can’t even locate where they can buy the
50% cut-off medicines reported in GMA’s SONA. Yes,
we were there with the people. We wanted to raise the issue of chronic
neglect in our health care system…uncared government health workers,
low budget, lack of medicines, privatization of hospitals etc. And yet
we emerged more educated with what militants predict will be a renewed
plague of FASCISM. So, this is the preview of the “strong republic”
of GMA! (July 24, 2002) Joseph
M. Carabeo M.D. Heartfelt Thanks from Canada In solidarity in this dangerous post-9/11 world, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks for your web site, your courageous investigative journalism and dead-on analysis of what is really going on between Manila and Washington. Your
web site, particularly the series by Bobby Tuazon, served as a primary
and extensively quoted source for my six-part series "The United
States in the Philippines: post-9/11 imperatives" that is now
posted at my publication, the Online Journal <www.onlinejournal.com>.
My colleagues at the Center for Global Research <www.globalresearch.ca>
may also carry this series (Online and CRG have a collaborative
relationship). (July 18, 2002) Larry
Chin Lewd
Sexual Poses in FHM We
are utterly appalled at the video clips and photos of women in various
lewd sexual poses taken during the so-called Victory Party of the
Gokongwei-owned For Him Magazine that was held last July 9 at the
NBC Tent at The Fort. We could easily dismiss the event as nothing
but a cheap publicity stunt by the magazine to attract its target
audience. Unfortunately, it was done at the expense of women’s
dignity. We
also take exception to the tabloid that published the photo for using
the photo itself (in front page, no less) to sell the newspaper.
We deplore the continuing penchant of businesses to use women’s bodies
to sell products and services. Such affront to the dignity of
women is already a form of violence against women. Women are not
seen as persons who deserve respect but as commodities that these
businesses can pay to make the women do whatever they want them to just
to sell their business, whether that business is a magazine, a tabloid,
a car wash joint or even a SIM card feature (as advertised by ZED in a
tabloid using what looks like a photo of a raid in a bar with
scantily-clad women covering their faces). Allow
us to stress, however, that the women are not the objects of our
condemnation because we believe that they are merely forced by
circumstances. In a society like ours that is chronically in
crisis, whatever job is available for women is something that they are
thankful for. That is when businesses take advantage and
exploitation of women comes in. That is when the government’s
anti-women stance is most apparent. (July 17,
2002) Emmi
de Jesus Message of Thanks Thank you for posting my press release on Bulatlat.com. I wasn't able to thank you personally when we met at the IBON forum because I still haven't checked your site then and didn't know that it was already published. Again, thank you for supporting our campaign. We are hoping that other media outlets will follow suit. (July 15, 2002) Ilang-Ilang
Quijano PCPR
reaction to NAD paid ad We
in the Promotion of Church People’s Response cry foul over the July 11
paid ad of the National Alliance for Democracy (NAD) in the Philippine
Daily Inquirer. While human rights activists risk their lives in defense
of the violated and sinned against, the military and para-military
apparatus of the government such as NAD are out to discredit KARAPATAN,
BAYAN MUNA and other cause-oriented groups that expose human rights
abuses committed by military and paramilitary troops in the course of
their counter-insurgency operations. NAD
is certainly far from being nationalist and democratic. We know very
well that like many other vigilante and paramilitary groups, NAD is a
creation of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). As the passage in
the Bible in 2 Timothy 3:12 warns, “Everyone who wants to live a godly
life in union with Jesus Christ will be persecuted; and evil persons and
impostors will keep on going from bad to worse, deceiving others and
being deceived themselves,” impostors like NAD are tools of the
repressive state to spread black propaganda against grassroots
people’s organizations that oppose large-scale militarization, human
rights abuses and systematic political repression. We
hold the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo administration accountable to the
worsening human rights situation and fascist attacks against the people.
Contrary to her vow of bringing ‘all-out
peace,’ GMA even ordered the deployment of more army battalions in
Mindoro and we have heard nothing from her when series of killings,
abduction and harassment against Bayan Muna, Bayan and other
cause-oriented groups have occurred in the island province. Moreover,
church people in the human rights advocacy work are not exempted from
military harassment and intimidation, as in the following cases:
These
cases prove that state persecution, imprisonment, torture, forced
disappearance and brutal death are great risks faced by those who defend
the rights of the poor. As promoters of justice and peace, we will never
be cowed by NAD and all instruments of the state that actually betrays
its avowed duty of promoting the people’s rights. And we will rally on
July 22 to protest the worsening state of human rights under GMA. (15
July 2002) Bishop
Alan Ray Sarte, OFM Fr.
Allan Jose Arcebuche Amie
Dural On
Doreen Fernandez as Revolutionary I
did not know that she is a member of the movement, well I'm always
reading her article in the Inquirer. I assumed that she is just an
ordinary woman, ordinary as she is but at the inside a fighter. I like
the way she handles subject about food. I'm gonna miss her and her
zest for Filipino cuisine , I wish her family peace even though its a
bit late. (July 14, 2002) Rizaldy
Rodriguez "Fearless website"
I'm a filipino student residing in Los Angeles here in the United States and I would like to commend the contributors, writers, staff and webmasters of your very informative and fearless website for a job well done.
With many online news providers like INQ7 and Philstar, it is Bulatlat.com which I found enlightening, fearless and most important, news reporting with a pro-people and nationalist viewpoint
I always look to Bulatlat.com for the real "stories" behind the issues facing our nation. Please keep up the excellent work!
Kindly inform me of any events that you may have here in the US or any assistance I could extend to your staff or writters whenever they are here in the US.
More power to you at Bulatlat.com! (07 June 2002)
"Nikko Buenaseda" <nikko_b@hotmail.com>
On Hidden War in Sulu (Vol. 2, No. 15)
It is totally disturbing, reminiscent of US atrocities in Vietnam. (31 May 2002)
Tigwigirl@aol.com Eye-opener
Peace and all good. I am a native of Jolo, Sulu and works as Executive Assistant of CO Multiversity. I am very much interested with what you have documented about my place, but quite disheartened not to access those information from my e-mail. Can you please send me attachments of the result of your fact-finding team? Hoping this will help me in my future works in Sulu as peace advocate. Such information for sure will help some NGOs in Sulu specifically Peace Center in the town of Jolo. This will challenge them and empower them to realize that there is so much more to do in Jolo. Suluhanons should consider those documents you gathered as an eye-opener--that they are human beings with dignity and rights. (20 May 2002) Elle
Fernandez <elle@comultiversity.org.ph>
On U.S. Plane Shot at by Angry Residents (Vol. 2, No. 14) Dapat
pinabagsak ng tuluyan. (21 May 2002) "cresandre"
On Attack vs. Migrants Group (Vol. 2, No. 15) If
this animals in uniform under the coddling of Arroyo can do such things
blatantly and without due respect to the process of law, then we're
sliding back to the era of the 70's under the Marcos dynasty. On
Rally vs Placer Dome (Vol. 2, No. 11) Thanks
for the article. It is good to know that Filipinos abroad receive coverage
from your publication! (30 April 2002) Ted
Alcuitas Very
interesting and worth sharing with other Filipinos especially Igorots who
never dared understand this portion of our history, to be able to carry on
the heroic and sensible response of our elders in defense of our being as
a people. (30 April 2002) Against
`Holiday Economics’ (Vol. 2, No. 11), But… Thank
you for the article. Your figures are true. I am also against the policy
when it comes to holiday expenses. But in all policies, there will always
be beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries. When you look at the
non-expenditure side, there are valuable benefits to people from all walks
of life. One of them is gathering all the family members together in the
home, for a group cleaning, playing, praying, and all sorts of small or
big activities that families could do together without spending. Nowadays,
both parents work to augment the family income. That leaves the children
to their yayas or relatives. Holidays like this are much needed to somehow
fill in the long lost time that parents should have with their children.
(23 April 2002) Martino
C. Dominguez Photo Contribution and Letter of Appreciation I read with great interest your article on the death anniversary of Flor Contemplacion (Vol. 2, Issue 6). Attached is a photo of Japanese-Filipino children who performed a dance rendition of Bayan Ko that ends in reading the children statement saying Out with US Troops in the Philippines Now! The photo was taken last March 17, 2002 at the Special Assembly of Kalipunan ng Filipino na Nagkakaisa (KAFIN) held at Aoki Kaikan, Kawaguchi City, Saitama. This KAFIN activity is part of the news you have written.
For more information, or in case you need additional source of news about the sentiments of the Filipinos here in Japan, just send us an email. Thank you very much and we appreciate very much your support. Cesar V. Santoyo Reaction to Coco Farmers' Plight (Vol. 2, Issue 4) I totally agree that whatever was taken from the farmers should be returned to them instead of going to a "plunderer." It is about time that the Supreme Court step into this so that the people's faith and trust in the government and the courts will be regained. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo should stop campaigning for the 2004 elections and just concentrate on working for the betterment of the people. (March 5, 2002) Raoul Ruiz Seeing the Bigger Picture September 11 has been a memorable and tragic day for all of us, even if we live far away from New York. We not only think of the economic crisis it caused us, but also felt the pain of those who lost their loved ones in the bombing, we felt they were a big loss in our economic development. We all cried, we mourned with the whole world. We are not aware that while mourning for those who died in the bombing, there are thousands of other people dying on that same day, not for the same reason, but for the old same problem, poverty and sickness. Because this is so common already, we pay so little attention to this big problem of the whole world, where in fact we should think of this as a major tragic. But again, who are these people dying of poverty or of illnesses? They are the people who do not contribute much, as they say, to our economy. Life is so unfair. Let us not only remember the day Sept. 11 for those who lost their lives in the bombing of the World Trade Center, but I hope that we would not also forget those who lost their lives as victims of this crucial, unequal world, the poor and the outcasts. (March 3, 2002) Anna
Marie Tiamzon Erap
Camp on a PR Blitz Last
night's (i.e., February 28) late show in the two major TV networks of the
country (ABS-CBN and GMA 7) were on Erap. Isyu had an exclusive interview
of Erap while Debate had Erap’s current woes as the topic. In
the Debate show, all pro-Erap panel slots were filled (Atty. Cleofe
Verzola, Atty. Felix Carao and “Liar” Ferdie Ramos). On the other side
were Rey Malonzo and a virtual nobody in the TV circuit (i.e., the vice
president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines or IBP). It
occurred to me that the Erap camp is using media to the hilt to propagate
their lies to the people. The Debate show was practically tilted towards
Erap. The pro-Erap panel had the credibility at least to talk about the
issue despite their lies. Their opponents were not directly involved nor
courtroom observers of the trial. Thus, Malonzo could only parry the
allegations of the other side. I
was wondering where on earth were the Plunder Watch and E-just people?
Atty. Marichu Lambino, Atty. Leonard de Vera, Carol Araullo, Fr. Joe Dizon,
COPA, etc. Where were they? I
think in the PR game, issuing press statements is not enough as Plunder
Watch is wont to do. They have to be more visible on TV --- more on the TV
shows please since their statements in the news are often cut short while
Erap is given all the airtime to poison the public with his lies. The
so-called EDSA 3 was clearly well planned perhaps months before the
incident and we were caught with our pants down. I think the anti-Erap
(for want of a better term) group should at least be proactive rather than
be left behind reacting and fixing the damage being done by the Erap
publicists. (February 28, 2002) JS,
Cebu City Good
Analysis, Unlike Inquirer I look forward to reading more Bulatlat articles. They have full grasp and analysis of current events, unlike some columnists in PDI (Philippine Daily Inquirer) who couldn't "rub" and too stupid to be anything but mediocre. (21 February 2002) Giovanni Reyes Congrats
on Bulatlat.com’s First Anniversary (Vol. 2, No. 1) As
a compatriot who has been away for more than 12 years, the presence of
Bulatlat.com in cyberspace is a great endeavor. You have provided
compatriots like me valuable information that helped in understanding the
present issues of our times. The format is very excellent, easy to
navigate, and links are very helpful. Once again from the very cold land
of Canada, you have kept our hearts warm and rekindle our desire to
support the struggle of our kababayan.
Mabuhay
and happy surfing to all. (February
10, 2002) Perry Hello
there. I am an avid reader (and endorser) of Bulatlat.com. Providing the
masses and the people of the world with analyses of the Philippines'
social, political and economic issues from a different perspective is a
great task. You deserve praise and congratulations on your first
anniversary. It
is very appropriate to remember your anniversary, even in a very simple
way. Remembering our past is part of our definition of who we are at
present. It is part of the making of our future. The failure of the past
and present dispensations in the Philippines lies in their forgetting its
past. The GMA administration, whose foundation is anchored on the power of
the masses, forgets its past by accommodating and prioritizing the
interests of the US and the local elite. Remembering your first
anniversary, I hope, will continue your fervent desire to face and
scrutinize the current burning realities in our country and challenge
these for a better future. Our future. Happy
1st anniversary again! (February 10, 2002) Rei
Aldaba Reaction
to "Shame in Victory" (Issue No. 50) Have
the Filipino domestic workers in Hong Kong really won a victory by
successfully persuading the HK government not to implement wage cuts?
Perhaps the 'victory' will backfire as the poor economy in HK will lead to
many HK people not being able to afford to employ them anymore. (February
6, 2002) Jonathan
Perez On
Probable Downfall of Arroyo I
agree with what Joma Sison (Democratic Space, Issue 45) said. GMA has
showed off her true loyalty --- the US government as her big boss. Being a
traitor to national sovereignty and not properly addressing the problems
of the people, the time will come that her presidency will end. Thanks for
the space. (February 4, 2002) Louise
Vincent Amante Article
Good Enough, But... On
the article about American involvement in the Philippines (Learning
Lessons from the Past, Issue 49), it's good as far as it goes.
Unfortunately, it does not adequately convey the full horror of the
American imperialist and racist intervention in that country. Please read
Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States, pages 305 - 313 for
a more thorough and straight ahead look. Thank you. (February 3, 2002) Tarak
Kauff No
Mock Battle in 1899 I
just can't buy this portion of the story (Learning Lessons from the Past,
Issue 49). A mock battle! The Spaniards under Adm. Montojo were really
badly defeated in Manila Bay. All
the Spanish vessels were destroyed, and the Americans did not lose a
single man. This is the reason too why Commodore Dewey (who later was
promoted to admiral) is known in US history as the hero of the Battle of
Manila Bay. I wonder what Sonia Zaide would say about this
"opinion." (February 2, 2002) Ernie
Turla Greetings from Okinawa This is my first time to open your news on-line through a friend's recommendation and actually I find your articles interesting and different than the usual news I get online from Philippines. Thanks! I'm hoping to interact with you more online. (February 1, 2002) Luisa Kobayashi Reactions to Fil-Am War article (Issue 49) I cry for the past and current actions of my country. (January 31, 2002) Elena Barnes I just read the article entitled "Learning Lessons from the Past." It presents an interesting, and I think, accurately drawn parallel between our history and what is happening now. I am always filled with anger every time I read accounts of our close but brutal history with America. I hate it that hundreds of thousands of our ancestors were ruthlessly killed by American marauders who, while they were engaged in wholesale slaughter and rapine, were pretending to every American back home, who was fool enough to believe them, that what was being done was part of their "Manifest Destiny." (This offers another interesting parallel to the current (pseudo)war against terrorism: i.e., that it was America's duty as the "brightest beacon of democracy" to rid the whole world of the scourge of terrorism. Which it attempted to do by bombing the poorest country in the world--killing thousands--while leaving Osama unscathed and, most probably, gloating in his cave.) I hate it that America still continues to wreak sorrow and degradation all over the world and we can do virtually nothing about it. And with hundreds of U.S. troops in our country, it sinks in again that we never really had a government that took an active stand against imperial America and its policy of violence and greed. And we have many Pinoys who either don't know our history, or don't care. From freedom fighters to mendicants! Thanks for this article and the rage it evoked. I think we should feel enough rage (against subjugators) and compassion (for victims anywhere and everywhere) to keep us from living smug, complacent lives and spur us into doing our share for a genuinely just world. (January 31, 2002) Divine Love Astor Salvador Looking up to Satur Ocampo I'm quite grateful that every time I surf the internet, I am able to read news that are true and not sugarcoated. Sheryl
Fuentes Kudos
to Bulatlat.com A
friend introduced me to your online magazine. I read about your news
reports and it's quite amazing that you have the courage to publish such
reports. Just as what my friend did, I will also recommend your online
magazine to my friends. Serve the People! (January 23, 2002) Sheryl
Fuentes Poor must practice family planning I
am just wondering if you have population management as one of your
advocacy. I am not really impressed by your group in the way you deal with
the poor. We
are a poor country and yet the poor do not even practice family planning.
The corrupt government may have a fault. But if the poor have at the most
two children, they could easily afford to send them to school. The
children do not even have time to read your website. May
I suggest that there would be forced castration on the poor family who
have already two children. (19 January 2002) Dante
Almazan
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