Category: Dateline Philippines

Video goes viral A VIDEO of a priest in the Philippines riding a hoverboard and singing at a Christmas Eve Mass went viral, with millions of shares on Facebook and Buzzfeed, and over 200,000 views on YouTube. The unnamed priest was reportedly suspended by the Diocese of San Pablo, Laguna on Tuesday, Dec. 29 for…

WITH the new year less than a week away, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is reminding the public that beginning Jan. 1, old Philippine peso bills will no longer be accepted when paying for goods and services. The old banknotes, however, can still be exchanged in banks and BSP offices through the end of…

THE Philippines on Tuesday, Dec. 22, approved the sale of the world’s first dengue vaccine, marking the first Asian country to do so. In clinical tests conducted on 40,000 people from 15 countries, the vaccine, Dengvaxia, was found to immunize 66 percent of people aged 9 and older, and reduce the risk of hospitalization by…

MISS INFORMATION MIX-UP FOLLOWING the heated controversy surrounding this year’s Miss Universe pageant competition, many people are taking sides as to who they really support for the prestigious crown. After show host Steve Harvey mistakenly announced on live television that Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez Arévalo was the winner, only to backtrack moments later to proclaim Miss…

Faces up to 12 years in prison JOSEPH Scott Pemberton, the US Marine Private First Class charged with murder for the death of Filipina transgender Jeffrey “Jennifer” Laude in October 2014, was found guilty on Tuesday, Dec. 1 in the Philippines, where he will remain in prison. Pfc. Pemberton, who was on a break after…

A MALAYSIAN woman held captive for nearly six months by Muslim militant group Abu Sayyaf was released by captors, authorities said Monday, Nov. 9. Militants freed Thien Nyuk Fun, 50, late Sunday, Nov. 8, from the island of Jolo in Sulu province. However, her compatriot remains in the custody of Abu Sayyaf. Two Filipino security…

TWO years after super typhoon Haiyan devastated the Philippines, killing thousands and leaving destroyed homes and separated families in its wake, the country is still left picking up the pieces. Though rebuilding programs and global relief efforts have made real, lasting impacts, it is estimated that at least one million survivors are still left homeless,…

PHILIPPINE militants from US-listed terrorist group Abu Sayyaf are demanding more than $60 million for the release of three foreigners who were kidnapped in the southern region of the country in September, according to a new video of the hostages. The video, released Tuesday, Nov. 3, by US-based jihadist monitor SITE, is the first time…

As tensions over the South China Sea escalate, United States Defense Secretary Ash Carter said he would visit an American aircraft carrier in the Sea on Thursday, Nov. 5. Speaking after a regional summit on Wednesday, Nov. 4, Carter said he would fly out to the nuclear-powered USS Theodore Roosevelt, which “is conducting routine operations…

Amid an ongoing alleged “laglag-bala (dropping bullets)” scheme targeting passengers at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), the Department of Justice has directed the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to create a special task force to investigate reported incidents, according to Philstar. In a growing list of cases, Filipinos and foreigners alike have fallen victim to…

A 77-year-old Filipino-American bound for Los Angeles was the latest victim in an alleged “laglag-bala (bullet planting)” scheme targeting passengers at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Santiago Peñaflorida was stopped after Department of Transportation and Communications-Office for Transportation Security personnel saw a bullet inside his backpack on the x-ray scanner, Inquirer…

THE Philippines is not the easiest country to pay taxes in, according to a study conducted by international audit firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). Out of 189 economies reviewed in the report called “Paying Taxes 2015” for ease of paying business taxes, the Philippines ranked 127. In the country, it takes 193 hours for a business to…

Rising number of deaths, over 100,000 families affected Typhoon Koppu is sweeping slowly across the northern part of the Philippines, destroying provinces and forcing thousands to flee from their homes. At least 100,000 families have been affected. The tropical cyclone, known as typhoon Lando in the Philippines, is over 500-kilometers in diameter. As of Wednesday evening, Oct….

A RECENTLY posted video purportedly showing four hostages who were kidnapped in September by armed militants in the southern Philippines is still being verified but appears to be authentic, a Philippine military spokesman said Wednesday, Oct. 14. “A technical team is validating it,” Col. Restituto Padilla Jr. said of the clip that was posted Twitter,…

MANNY Pacquiao is set on proving he’s more than just a king in the boxing ring. The 36-year-old Philippine boxing hero announced his plans to run for the Philippine Senate on Monday, October 5. “Yes, I’m going to run for a Senate post this coming 2016 election,” said the fighter, who was elected congressman in…

FERDINAND “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr., the son of late former president Ferdinand Marcos, and Camarines Sur Rep. Leni Robredo, have joined the pool of Philippine vice presidential contenders for the 2016 presidential election. Marcos, Jr., on Monday, Oct. 5, declared his bid for the position without attaching himself to a presidential candidate. Robredo, on Monday, formally…

THE Philippines on Thursday, Oct. 1, conditionally pledged to slash its carbon emissions by 70 percent by 2030, contingent on assistance it receives from the international community. In the Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) it submitted Thursday to the United Nations (UN), the Philippines said it would also commit to adaptation measures to help citizens…

A PHOTO of a young Filipina doing homework on the street has garnered much attention in the online community. The image, taken by a local resident, shows a barefoot girl believed to be Cielo Gonzales sitting on a canister while writing on a piece of paper placed on top of a thin paperback book, Mirror…

WITH decreases in exports and agricultural production, the Philippine economy is headed for its slowest economic growth in four years, according to the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Along with lackluster public spending, the Manila-based ADB has trimmed its 2015 growth projection for the Philippines from 6.4 percent to 6 percent, according to CNN. ADB moved…

A FILIPINO nurse working in Singapore was sentenced on Monday, Sept. 21, to four months in jail for insulting Singaporeans on Facebook and lying to police investigators afterward. Ello Ed Mundsel Bello, 28, a former employee of government-run Tan Tock Seng Hospital, pleaded guilty to a three charges: one count of violating Singapore’s sedition act…

AMID ongoing territorial quarrels about the South China Sea, the Aquino administration requested $300 million in military aid from the United States, according to a report by the New York Times. However, Philippine Presidential Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr. repudiated the report, citing a lack of explicit information on the claim. “Wala tayong tuwirang information…

MUSLIM extremist group Abu Sayyaf abducted seven construction workers early Monday, Sept. 14, on a government road project on the island of Basilan, the military said, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP). Nine workers were initially abducted, but two managed to escape, said Capt. Sally Magno of the Joint Task Force Basilan, according to GMA News….

THE Philippines and South Korea on Monday, Sept. 14, signed a five-year accord that regulates and safeguard exchanges of classified military data regarding regional security. The accord, signed by Philippine Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and South Korean Defense Minister Han Minkoo, would allow the Philippine government to be more informed about what happens on the…

FILIPINO-American Los Angeles Laker guard Jordan Clarkson is “very disappointed” that he will not be playing for the Philippines in the upcoming FIBA Asia Championship. The final roster for Gilas Pilipinas, announced Tuesday, Sept. 8, by Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP), did not include Clarkson due to a conflict in schedule due to his commitment…

IN 2014, a report by the Association of Southeast Nations ranked the Philippines the second shortest race in the region: the average Filipino male stood at 5 feet and 3.7 inches, and the average Filipino female was at 4 feet and 11 inches. While Filipinos’ shorter stature has typically been assumed to be attributed to…

A new plan from the Philippine government would offer free wireless Internet access to people across the country, but would limit annual data revenue prospects of the nation’s largest telecoms. According to Bloomberg Business, the government plans to roll-out its free Wi-Fi services roughly half the country’s municipalities over the next few months, and has…

A FILIPINA choreographer and dance historian was honored Monday, Aug. 31, for “her single-minded crusade in preserving the endangered artistic heritage of the Southern Philippines.” Ligaya Fernando-Amilbangsa, 71, was among five recipients of the Ramon Magsaysay Award, Asia’s version of the Nobel Prize, for documenting and teaching a pre-Islamic dance tradition called pangalay. Amilbangsa told…

FOLLOWING the death of another Filipino journalist on Thursday, Aug. 28, the Committee to Protect Journalists called on Philippine President Benigno Aquino III on Tuesday, Sept. 1, to work toward eliminating attacks against press in the country. Radio broadcaster Cosme Maestrado, 46, the most recent victim, was shot to death by four unidentified gunman, according…

The US marine charged with the murder of Philippine transgender Jennifer Laude admitted in court to choking Laude in self-defense but denied killing her. Defense lawyer Rowena Flores said her client, Lance Corporal Joseph Scott Pemberton, told the court in Olongapo City on Monday, Aug. 24 that Laude was unconscious but still breathing when he…