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Arrests over media murder

MANILA (UCAN): The governor of Catanduanes, Joseph Cua, an aide, Prince Lim Subion, and police officer, Vincent Tacorda, were charged with murder in The Philippines on the eve of International Press Freedom Day of a journalist, Larry Que, on December 19 last year.
The publisher of Catanduanes News Now is the first murdered media person to officially have their death directly linked with their work, as he was killed two weeks after he published an article linking government officials to the illegal drug trade in his province.
 
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More heat than light at drug conference

HONG KONG (UCAN): While an international gathering held in Manila in the first week of May on different perspectives of the illegal drug trade generated a lot of heat, not much light emanated from the sometimes caustic accusations that were slung at each other by the delegates.
 
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Self-interest the big winner over the common good

MANILA (SE): Even in a country where honesty in government requires the commitment of a saint, the gutsy determination of a boxer, the courage of an explorer and a skin as thick as a rhinoceros, the decision to reject the appointment of Gina Lopez as secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources by the Commission on Appointments stands out as one of the more outlandish victories of self-interest over the common good.
 
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Bomb blasts in Quaipo

MANILA (UCAN): A call to look out for suspicious looking packages and people went out from Bishop Broderick Pabillo after two bombs went off in the Quiapo district of the Philippine capital city on May 6.
 
The explosions occurred near a church and a mosque, killing two people and injuring six others.
 
A statement from the Islamic State says, “Five Shi’ites have been killed and six others injured by detonating an explosive device by the Islamic State fighters in central Manila.”
 
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A day honouring defenders of the land

HONG KONG (SE): Cordillera Day was marked in Hong Kong with a one-day programme on Chater Road on April 23. The day highlighted the determination of the people from the Cordilleras in The Philippines to be united against the injustices being committed against the indigenous communities of the region.

The day began with a colourful parade along the streets of Central with people from Apayao, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga and the Mountain Province in traditional dress carrying banners condemning the mining that destroys the beauty and value of nature.
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Duterte’s Dirty Dozen named in International Criminal Court

MANILA (SE): Fear seems to be the name of the game in the hapless country of The Philippines, with the president, Rodrigo Duterte, running a relentless terror campaign in the guise of a war on drugs and Bishop Arturo Bastes hoping that the filing of a case against Duterte and 11 top government officials in the International Criminal Court in The Hague will inject sufficient fear in their hearts to quit their murderous campaign.

All up, 12 people have been named as constituting the Dirty Dozen of the Pearl of the Orient Seas.
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The last of a Catholic nation in Asia?

HONG KONG (SE): “Some of my friends in other countries say that they are worried about the government in The Philippines,” Archbishop Socrates Villegas, the president of the Philippine bishops’ conference, says in his message for Easter, but while he admits he is not worried about the government, he confesses he is worried about the Filipino people.
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Priest-turned-rebel leader praised