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CANADA’S FIRST AND ONLY NATIONWIDE FILIPINO-CANADIAN NEWSPAPER
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NOVEMBER 27, 2015
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VOL. 11 NO. 195
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Golden Marcos years a lie — Roxas
PH 11th in terror index
Solons laud organizers, P-Noy for APEC success
Syrian refugee plan to have domino effect across Canada
Dingdong, Marian welcome baby Maria Letizia
Aquino downplays ‘tanimbala’ scam, wants proof BY JANE MORALEDA Philippine Canadian Inquirer
DIGONG’S FANS Admirers take selfies with Davao City Mayor Rodrigo “Digong” Duterte in Greenhills, San Juan City, on Monday. Duterte says he is running for President in next year’s elections.
Duterte: Poe ruling prompted me to run
GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE / PDI
Bring it on, senator tells Davao mayor BY NIÑA P. CALLEJA, DJ YAP AND CHRISTINE O. AVENDAÑO Philippine Daily Inquirer DASMARIÑAS, CAVITE — Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte on Saturday
night said the decision of the Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET) to junk the disqualification case against Sen. Grace Poe pushed him to change his mind and run for President in next year’s general
Fil-Can in Focus: Fr. Ben Ebcas Jr.
MANILA — With the ‘tanim-bala’ (bullet-planting) modus operandi at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) making headlines, President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III asserted that there was a possibility no such extortion scheme actually existed. Just like Transportation Secretary Joseph Abaya who dismissed the small number of passengers’ arrest from the total number of travelers, Aquino also downplayed the controversy. “How many people pass through the NAIA per year? The figure is 34 million. How many of those were involved in a bullet case? What they reported out of the 34 million is 1,200 incidents,” he said in a press conference over the weekend. “Medyo ang liit naman yata (That [number] seems quite small),” he added. The President then disclosed a case
❱❱ PAGE 26 ❱❱ PAGE 12 Duterte: Poe
CALL FOR NOMINATIONS:
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❱❱ PAGE 11 Aquino downplays
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FRIDAY
Philippine News
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
X-ray scanners, too, are paranoid over ‘tanim-bala’ BY JEANNETTE I. ANDRADE Philippine Daily Inquirer PARANOIA OVER the “tanimbala” (bullet planting) extortion scheme at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) apparently cuts both ways, afflicting both passengers and security officers as well. While passengers tightly wrap their luggage in plastic and packing tape, Office for Transportation Security (OTS) personnel refuse to have any form of contact with the bags to avoid being accused of planting bullets. The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) has drafted a measure designed to reduce — if not remove — the anxiety caused by the simple act of running luggage through X-ray scanners at airport security checkpoints.
scrupulous security screening officers will have no opportunity to extort. Another problem that was raised during the security council meeting is the paranoia among the screeners,” he said. The apprehension of OTS screening officers has gotten to the extent of causing disruption and delays because they are compelled to close the terminal gate — triggering long queues at other gates — whenever a suspect item is detected by the X-ray scanner in a passenger’s bag. “They interpret the no-touch policy too literally,” the source said, pointing out the screening officers can’t even carry the bag from the X-ray conveyor over to the inspection table to allow other passengers’ luggage through. “They just stop the X-ray scanner and close the gate,” he said.
‘Golden’ Marcos years a lie – Roxas BY GIL CABACUNGAN Philippine Daily Inquirer
Power revolt. “There are forces in our society waiting for the chance to bring back the immoral, LIBERAL PARTY standard crooked and corrupt past. We bearer Mar Roxas yesterday have to continue with our rebranded as “a big lie” the view forms and be alert,” said Roxas. peddled by some in social meDespite lagging behind in the dia that the Philippines enjoyed recent Pulse Asia survey, Roxas its golden years under Presisaid he was optimistic he and dent Ferdinand Marcos. his running mate, Camarines Roxas was responding to a Sur Rep. Leni Robredo, would comment by one come out on top of the thousands in next year’s of students and polls. graduates who The latest surattended the There are forces in our society waiting vey showed Rox#daangmatuwid for the chance to bring back the as ranking third pa more youth immoral, crooked and corrupt past. in the presidenconference at We have to continue with our reforms tial race behind the Kia Theatre and be alert Sen. Grace Poe at Araneta Gateand Vice Presiway in Quezon dent Jejomar City that echoed Binay. Robredo the view that the economy un- transfer program,” Roxas said. was fourth in the vice presider the Aquino administration In an interview with report- dential race behind Senators paled in comparison to the Mar- ers after the youth event, Roxas Francis Escudero, Ferdinand cos years from 1965 to 1986. said the misleading yarn about “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and “That is not true. During the the “golden” Marcos years only Alan Peter Cayetano. time of Marcos, average eco- showed that they (the Marco“Survey results go up and nomic growth was only 3 per- ses) had not stopped their pro- down. The real judgement on cent. In the past five years, the paganda nearly 30 years after me and Leni is still to come. economy grew by more than they were kicked out of Malaca- We will continue to present our 6 percent every year, or more ñang through the Edsa People platform,” said Roxas. ■
No clogged gate Easing the jitters
A MIAA official, who sought anonymity for lack of authority to speak on the matter, told the INQUIRER the daily rotation of OTS personnel at the terminals may soon be put into effect to ease the tanim- bala jitters of both passengers and screeners. He said the proposal was one of several recommendations made at a MIAA security council meeting on Monday. “It (daily rotation) had long been planned but it is only now its implementation is being seriously considered. This would be similar to the procedure at the [Bureau of ] Immigration where its employees have no idea where they will be assigned for the day,” the source said. Daily screening
Another proposed measure, he said, is the daily “screening” of security officers before they are posted to any of the NAIA terminals and random inspections while they are on duty. “This is to ensure that un-
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A solution the MIAA security council came up with is for the terminal manager, Aviation Security Group personnel, a member of the media and other witnesses to be present when the luggage containing suspected contraband is moved to the inspection table. “This way the gate will not be clogged and other passengers can pass through,” he said. According to the MIAA official, the witnesses will stay put until a representative from the Public Attorney’s Office arrives for the opening of the luggage and its inspection. Early this month, passengers were alarmed over the numerous tanim-bala incidents at the NAIA, forcing them to be overly protective of their baggage to the point of wrapping them in plastic and being paranoid around airport workers. Many of the cases against the passengers were dismissed and some were blamed on wayward screeners who are under investigation. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net
than double,” said Roxas. He said that more important than the actual numbers, the Aquino administration was better than the Marcos dictatorship because nobody plundered the government. “This administration has no record of human rights violations… and the field was leveled for all sectors through the expansion of Philhealth and the conditional cash
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Philippine News
NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
Lawyer questions Comelec’s mall-voting proposal BY JEROME ANING Philippine Daily Inquirer A LAWYER and electoral reform advocate has raised more legal questions against the decision of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to allow people to vote in some shopping malls in 2016. Glenn Chong, a former congressman and convenor of the Citizens for Clean and Credible Elections, accused the Comelec of violating provisions in the Omnibus Election Code, particularly the ban on the possession of deadly weapons near polling precincts. “The underlying thesis of my questions is the willingness of the Comelec to disregard the express provisions of the
law concerning polling places. These express provisions that cannot be disregarded for convenience or for the enhancement of the voting experience. The law must be followed and respected,” Chong told the INQUIRER in an interview. He pointed out that under Section 42 of the election code, the chair of the board of election tellers shall order the use of the public school or any other public building within the barangay as a polling place in case the barangay has one election precinct. For barangays with two or more election precincts, the chair of the board of canvassers shall designate the public school or any other public building as a polling place. In case there are no public schools or public buildings
Commission on Election Chairman Andres “Andy” Bautista cast his votes during the Mock Elections at the Bacoor National High School Annex in Cavite on June 2015. AVITO C.DALAN / PNA
that can be used as polling places, other appropriate private buildings may be used. This is on the condition that such buildings are not owned, occupied or possessed by any incumbent elective public offi-
cial or candidate, or his relative within the fourth civil degree of consanguinity or affinity. The location of the polling place should also take into consideration the convenience and safety of the voters. “How do you reconcile without violating [the code] the use
of privately-owned malls with their own set of private internal security rules when clearly, these malls are [surrounded by] public schools and other public buildings available for use as polling places in accordance with law?” Chong asked. He wondered if the poll body, by using privately-owned malls, intended to take full control and exercise full direct supervision over their operations. Chong also expressed doubts whether Comelec could legally skirt several penal provisions in the code, such as Section 261 (p) which regards as an election offense the bringing in of any deadly weapon within the polling place. “Will the mall administrators allow their security personnel to be disarmed or restricted outside the 100-meter radius minimum distance requirement?” he asked. ■
PH 11th in terror index BY JAYMEE T. GAMIL Philippine Daily Inquirer THE ARMED Forces of the Philippines said it was happy over the country’s improved ranking in the Global Terrorism Index for 2015 but urged the deployment of more security forces for further improvement. In its latest Global Terrorism Index report, the Institute for Economics and Peace ranked the Philippines 11th out of 162 countries affected by terrorist activity, a two-step improvement from ninth place in 2013. The top five countries that accounted for 78 percent of terrorist attacks were Afghanistan, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan and Syria. These were followed by
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India, Yemen, Somalia, Libya, Thailand and the Philippines. Although the country remained in the top 10 percent of countries most ravaged by terrorism, the Sydney-based think tank, in its report released on Tuesday, noted the Philippines was one of the countries with the “biggest improvement” in terrorism effects from 2013 to 2014. “The fifth biggest improvement occurred in the Philippines which saw deaths decrease by 18 percent to 240 fatalities in 2014, down from 291 in 2013,” the report said. In a briefing Thursday, AFP spokesperson Col. Restituto Padilla said “although we are happy with the [improvement] of our ranking among countries affected by terrorism, we need to further improve it.” ■
Philippine News
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
Communique vows to globalize SMMEs, unite vs terrorism BY CHRISTINE O. AVENDAÑO Philippine Daily Inquirer
MMDA to clear 17 Mabuhay Lanes until June BY MAVELLE DURIAN Philippine Canadian Inquirer
percent of the global economy. Urgent
THE STATEMENT was a departure from convention for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), which normally focuses on trade and business issues. APEC leaders yesterday condemned the deadly terrorist attacks on France, Lebanon and on a Russian airliner and called for governments to urgently increase cooperation in the fight against terrorism even as the suspected mastermind of the attacks on the French capital was confirmed to be among those killed in a police raid on Wednesday. The leaders of the 21 member-economies of the APEC forum wrapped up annual talks in Manila haunted by the Paris attacks last Friday that left 129 people dead and 352 wounded. Abaaoud killed
French authorities reported yesterday that Abdelhamid Abaaoud, a 28-yearold Belgian militant who had boasted of mounting attacks in Europe for the Islamic State (IS) group and was suspected of masterminding the Paris attacks, was killed in the police raid in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis on Wednesday. Police originally thought he was in Syria, but their investigations led them to a house in Saint- Denis. Denis and heavily armed officers stormed the building before dawn, triggering a massive firefight and multiple explosions in which a woman blew herself up with an explosive vest and Abaaoud was killed. “Abdelhamid Abaaoud has just been formally identified … as having been killed during the raid,” the Paris prosecutor’s office said. The prosecutor said Abaaoud, whose body was so riddled with bullets, was identified using handprints. A day before the Paris attacks, a pair of suicide bombings killed more than 40 people in Beirut. On Oct. 31, a Russian airliner exploded in midair and crashed on the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt, killing all 224 people on board. IS said it brought down the Russian plane and claimed responsibility for the attacks in Beirut and Paris. “Under the shadow cast by the terrorist attacks in Paris, Beirut and against the Russian aircraft over the Sinai, and elsewhere, we strongly condemn all acts, methods and practices of terrorism,” the Asia-Pacific leaders said in a summit declaration. The bloc groups the United States and China with middle powers such as Australia and developing nations in Asia and South America. It accounts for about 60
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In their declaration, the leaders stressed the “urgent need for increased international cooperation and solidarity in the fight against terrorism.” “We will not allow terrorism to threaten the fundamental values that underpin our free and open economies,” they said. The IS attacks haunted the two days of trade and business discussions hosted by the Philippines under tight security, with the leaders finding themselves expressing condolences to the nations hit by the violence. ‘Crimes against world’
On Wednesday, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev called on the APEC leaders and the international community to help in the fight against terrorism, saying the terror attacks on France and Russia were “crimes against the world.” In their declaration, the leaders said “economic growth, prosperity and opportunity are among the most powerful tools to address the root causes of terrorism and radicalization.” They said they welcomed efforts and activities of fellow APEC members to undertake measures to counter terrorism. These included “capacity-building initiatives to combat terrorist financing, and to prevent foreign terrorist fighter travel through advance passenger risk analysis and other measures.”
MANILA, PHILIPPINES — The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) would go on clearing the 17 Mabuhay Lanes until June next year to decongest EDSA, and will provide alternative routes for motorists even after the holiday season. “Our team will continue to tow vehicles and fine its drivers P200 if they park along the streets from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.,” said MMDA Chairman Emerson Carlos. MMDA set a regulation that Mabuhay Lanes should be free from any form of obstruction from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. However, motorists can park their vehicles along the designated alternative routes beyond these hours. The MMDA added that access roads in the metropolis can be used as Mabuhay Lanes aside from the existing routes. MMDA Chairman Carlos said the local government units (LGUs) in Manila can also suggest roads that can be utilized as Mabuhay Lanes. He said that he have not yet received any recommendations from the LGUs, making it a big help to motorists and commuters.
South China Sea row
“We further encourage economies to implement fully the APEC Consolidated Counter-Terrorism and Secure Trade Strategy and to continue taking collective and individual actions and sharing best practices to secure infrastructure, travel, supply chains and financial systems from terrorist activities,” they said. The leaders’ declaration made no mention of maritime disputes between China and its Southeast Asian neighbors over Beijing’s claim to most of the South China Sea, though tensions over the issue surfaced on the sidelines of the summit. US President Barack Obama, who discussed the dispute with this year’s host, President Aquino, during a meeting on Wednesday, plans to raise the issue, together with other regional leaders, this weekend in the East Asia summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Obama’s main Asia policy adviser, Daniel Kritenbrink, said yesterday. China and its rivals for territory in the South China Sea — Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan — as well as the United States will attend the summit, which is part of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations gatherings. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net
“We want these lanes to serve as a model for other roads in Metro Manila which can be used as alternate routes but are being blocked by cars and equipments used by vulcanizing shops, carwash businesses and even basketball courts,” Carlos added. Carlo hopes that local governments would follow their initiative and also start the road clearing operations in their respective areas, and also hopes that the next administration would adopt the program since obstructionfree lanes would benefit the motorists in avoiding heavy traffic on EDSA. Cabinet Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, head of the EDSA Traffic Technical Working Group, said the government should continue to remove the roadblocks along the alternate routes until the traffic flow eases the Metro. “People in the Metro should be moved so the new bridges across the Pasig River will be built,” Almendras added. Almendras is also asking for more patience from the public in clearing the Mabuhay Lanes since it will also benefit the commuters. However, the clearing operations which began on Nov. 2 was being resisted by some people. ■
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Digong entertains with ‘kill’ jokes BY NIÑA P. CALLEJA Philippine Daily Inquirer
from the guests. Made fun of friends, enemies
DASMARIÑAS, CAVITE — Time magazine did not call him “The Punisher” for nothing. But Davao Mayor Rodrigo “Digong” Duterte could turn it into entertainment, using the birthday party of a classmate in San Beda Law School on Saturday night to show his funny side and give glimpses of what his administration would be should he be elected President next year. It was a night of thuggish humor, with Duterte holding court and sending the guests of birthday celebrator Fred Lim exploding with laughter every time he said “I will kill you.” Those are the signature words of the lawyer-turned-politician who is known for his mailed-fist rule in Davao and is vilified by human rights groups for his alleged links to so-called death squads that cleared the city of thieves and drug addicts — though that has made Davao perhaps the safest place to live in the Philippines. Duterte arrived at the party past 9 p.m. escorted by motorcycle cops. Lim introduced him to his guests as “the next President of the Philippines.”
Davao City Mayor Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte.
Invectives
In a speech laden with invectives and off-color words, Duterte announced that his presidential candidacy was “now on the table.” Why? Because of the Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET) decision junking the disqualification case that a senatorial race loser had brought against Sen. Grace Poe on grounds of uncertain citizenship, he said. And since the SET would impose a President on the Philippines whose
citizenship was merely “presumed,” Duterte said he would rather proclaim the independence of Mindanao. “I’m not ambitious. Roy Señeres is there,” he said, pointing to the OFW party-list representative who is seeking the presidency in next year’s general elections. “Make him president of the Republic of Mindanao for a start. Maybe I can succeed him. If he does not want to vacate the post, that’s easy for me: I’ll have him killed,” Duterte said, drawing laughter
Whether what he said was true or he just made it up, Duterte made fun of his friends and enemies alike. He did not fail to mention his longtime enemy, former House Speaker Prospero Nograles, whom he and his daughter, Sara, had beaten in previous elections in Davao City. “I am not used to soliciting help. With God’s grace, I never had a real opponent in the past elections. The only heavy opponent we, Sara and I, had trounced was Nograles,” he said. “I wanted him killed but pity got the better of me,” he said, again making the guests laugh. “I don’t want my cousin to be left a widow. So I said, ‘Not yet,’” he said then threw the punchline that sent the guests rolling down the aisles, “Pu — that Nograles.” ‘Create vacancy’
He said he told Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, his running mate, to accept the vice presidency. “I told Alan, don’t worry, accept the position of Vice President. I will take care of the President. Let’s kill him,” he said. “We will create a vacancy if necessary.” ■
Liberal Party welcomes Duterte’s bid for presidency BY KATHERINE PADILLA Philippine Canadian Inquirer THE LIBERAL Party (LP) welcomed Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte’s bid for candidacy, said LP’s spokesperson Rep. Miro Quimbo. “We welcome his decision. Like we always say, the more candidates there are is always better for the electorate,” Quimbo was quoted as saying in a Manila Bulletin report. The voting public will also have “clearer choices since uncertainty has been removed,” added Quimbo. The LP also urged Duterte, as well as other candidates to present the programs that they wanted to implement. The party believes that the election campaign should be about tackling issues instead of the personalities behind those issues. Roxas, LP’s frontrunner has been reported of having a feud with Duterte that caused the two presidential candidates’ fallout. Roxas allegedly circulated rumors that Duterte had cancer. Roxas www.canadianinquirer.net
has since denied this allegation. According to the same report, Roxas sent a text message to Duterte to clear his name but the mayor did not reply. Duterte announced his candidacy on Saturday, November 21 during a birthday party in Cavite. The Senate Electoral Tribunal’s (SET) ruling on a disqualification case filed against Sen. Grace Poe that affirmed the senator’s status as a natural-born Filipino citizen has prompted the mayor to run. Duterte believed that SET’s ruling on the case filed against Poe was “totally wrong,” Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, Duterte’s running mate in the 2016 election, told the Inquirer. “I cannot accept an American president,” said Duterte in the same report. It was recalled that Martin Diño of PDP-Laban withdrew his candidacy for president on October 29, this year. He urged Duterte to fill his slot and run for president. On Saturday, Duterte accepted the party’s invitation to run. He said in the same report that he will soon file his certificate of candidacy before the Commission on Elections. ■
Philippine News
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
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Solons laud organizers, P-Noy for APEC success BY LEILA B. SALAVERRIA AND NIKKO DIZON Philippine Daily Inquirer SENATORS YESTERDAY lauded the just-concluded AsiaPacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit for focusing not only on big business but also on micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as the organizers defended the security measures imposed on Manila during the regional leaders’ gathering. Despite the public inconvenience caused by those measures, Sen. JV Ejercito hailed the Philippines’ hosting of the annual talks among the leaders of the 21 Asia-Pacific economies, which he said went off without a hitch. Ejercito, a member of the opposition in the Senate, described the event as a “milestone” for Filipinos, as well as a triumph for President Aquino. “I commend President Benigno Aquino III for managing the event well with no glitch, especially on the security aspects,” Ejercito, chair of Senate economic affairs committee, said in a statement. Inclusive economies
Sen. Loren Legarda praised the APEC leaders’ declaration vowing to build inclusive economies, which would benefit MSMEs. But Legarda also said the true success of the APEC meetings would come when the commitments of the 21 member economies bear fruit. “The APEC meeting is sometimes difficult to relate to [for] ordinary citizens, that is why there are public outcries [over the] shutting down [of ] Metro Manila for an event that is assumed to benefit only big businesses. However, the 2015 APEC leaders’ declaration will hopefully open new doors of opportunity for growth for the MSMEs, small businesses with big dreams,” she said in a statement. That such a large global meeting gave priority to MSMEs is something that deserves praise, she added. In the Philippines, MSMEs form the backbone of the economy, making up 99 percent of businesses in the country, she said.
APEC 2015 family photo.
In order to allow MSMEs to grow, Legarda said the government should also put in place a plan to reduce climate risks and build resilience. This would help prevent substantial losses resulting from natural disasters, she said. According to Ejercito, the Philippines was in the spotlight during the summit, which also served as a direct and effective channel in getting foreign direct investment through the President’s meetings with the leaders of the other APEC economies. He said, however, that he hoped the government’s hosting of the summit also helped it grasp the poor state of the country’s infrastructure, including transportation. “Let us prepare well by investing more on our public infrastructure. This will provide international delegates with a better and lasting impression of the Philippines. By doing so, we will further boost our mark in the international community that will attract more and bigger foreign direct investment,” he said. The government shut down Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), stretches of major roads in Metro Manila and banned sailing on Manila Bay during the summit. The next time the Philippines hosts the APEC summit, the government could consider holding it in other parts of the country with an international airport, Ejercito said. “Metro Manila and NAIA are too congested to handle such huge event,” he said.
APEC 2015 / FACEBOOK
She also said one way of dealing with climate change was switching to clean energy, another topic tackled by the leaders during the summit. “Inclusive growth begins with making basic services available to all. Fostering the participation of micro, small and medium enterprises in the regional and global markets, much less in the domestic supply chain, will not happen unless energy access is guaranteed to everyone. Offgrid and last-mile communities need to enjoy the benefits of APEC as much as everyone else in urban areas,” she said. Sen. Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV viewed APEC’s focus on MSMEs as a “stamp of approval” on the Senate’s push for measures to strengthen entrepreneurship in the Philippines. Aquino, head of the Senate committee on trade, commerce, and entrepreneurship, said the statement of the APEC leaders recognizing the significance of MSMEs in poverty eradication and inclusive growth boosted his long-held belief and advocacy that empowering MSMEs could deal with poverty. Summit expenses review
But Sen. Francis Escudero said he would ask the government to account for the P10 billion it spent to host the APEC summit. Escudero said he would seek a breakdown of the government’s expenses and its arrangements with private sector partners when the Senate resumed hearings on the proposed P3-trillion budget for 2016. www.canadianinquirer.net
“Let’s review what has been done, what was spent, and see the cost benefit, if it’s worth it,” Escudero said in a statement. He said one of the expenses he would look into was the use of vehicles, provided by the different manufacturers, for the APEC delegates. Escudero said the government may have spent more than P10 billion, but the excess amount may not have been charged to the APEC expenditure. Before 2015, there were already APEC-related expenditures, he said, including the building and fixing of infrastructure in Iloilo. Iloilo served as the venue for dialogues between APEC economies held since July. Escudero said it would be difficult to assess if the funds that the government spent to host the summit would result in economic gains. What is obvious is that the event served as a “huge encumbrance” to ordinary Filipinos, who got stuck in traffic or who had their flights canceled, he said. Nevertheless, he said the Philippines should not turn down hosting APEC. The Philippines should start preparing for when the rotating duty of hosting the APEC summit falls on its lap again after 18 years so that it can do away with the hassles that this year’s gathering caused, he said. Only once in 20 years
Marciano Paynor Jr., director general of the APEC national organizing committee, said the inconvenience caused by the
security measures should not be taken out of context. “When we host, we know that we have to sacrifice a bit and we don’t host every year. In fact, the last time we hosted [APEC] was 19 years ago, so a little inconvenience — a little, comparatively speaking — big for some because they had to wait eight hours,” Paynor told reporters Thursday night. “This kind of inconvenience, it’s a little sacrifice compared to the benefits that we will, in the years to come, gain out of [our] membership [in] APEC,” he said. “If our attitude is, we [will be inconvenienced [so] we should not host; if we [don’t] host [then] we should not be [a member] of any multilateral organization,” he said. Paynor said the government had foreseen massive traffic jams, the reason why it declared a two-day holiday. The holiday covered government offices and schools to ease traffic, though rain worsened the situation, he said. As to why Manila was chosen as site for the summit, Paynor said: “It’s because we don’t have a place with facilities that could accommodate 9,000 guests plus 2,000 something journalists — that’s 11,000 people. So where in the Philippines can you put in this concentration of people plus have the facilities like this media center to accommodate them, plus all the other meetings [and the] plenary, the retreat? [I]t’s difficult, really. It was a difficult decision, I am sure, but again we had no choice.” ■
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ARINDAMBANERJEE / SHUTTERSTOCK
Aussie-funded project needs sex offenders’ registry in PH BY DJ YAP Philippine Daily Inquirer
crime, including human trafficking and money laundering.
THE CREATION of a registry of sex offenders known to have preyed on children will be one of the components of an Australia-funded project to combat child trafficking in the Philippines. Australia will request the Philippine Congress to enact a law creating such a registry as part of its P66-million program on child protection against sexual abuse and exploitation, Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop said on Tuesday. Bishop led the launch of the three-year project, which is seen to boost the Philippines’ capability to monitor the activities of foreign pedophiles, and at the same time warn communities that a sexual predator may be within their midst. “Child sexual abuse and exploitation is an aberrant crime. It is a serious social issue that is not confined to the Philippines. All countries are affected by this, including Australia,” Bishop said at the launch of the program in Makati. “The existence of these crimes has intensified by virtue of technology and social media,” she said, adding that the issue was compounded by the fact that some parents in impoverished communities were complicit. The officials who attended the event included Justice Secretary Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa and Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman who both expressed their support for the Australian initiative. Bishop said the program will also ensure that Philippine authorities would have the training to deal with the serious criminal issue, aligned with other Australia initiatives on transnational
3-pronged approach
The program, which will run from July this year to June 2018, adopts a three-pronged approach: protection of children against online sexual abuse and exploitation, prosecution of offenders and delivery of justice to victims, and promotion of children’s rights to a safe and secure online environment. The program components are the following: • Drafting and advocating for the passage of a Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act; • Advocating child-friendly rules in family courts; • Establishment of community-based multi-sector and local task forces in selected pilot areas to serve as Child Protection Quick Reaction Teams; • Legal audit of online child sexual abuse cases in courts through the National Family Courts Summit conducted in September; • Drafting of a communications strategy, public information and education campaign on the rights of children against online sexual abuse and exploitation, and • Multi-sector training of justice system actors. The wiretapping of sexual offenders could be part of this effort to protect children from sexual predators, said Bishop who was in the Philippines to attend the recently concluded Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Ministerial Meeting, and to deliver Australia’s statement addressing “Inclusive Growth Through Sustainable and Resilient Communities.”
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The P66-million program is in coordination with The Asia Foundation and seeks to bring together public and private resources to support efforts of the Philippine government to protect children particularly from online abuse and exploitation. Its private sector partners are Telstra, ANZ Bank and QBE Insurance Group. Innocence lost
“This program is about caring for children whose innocence is lost, children who are victimized because of poverty, children whose own parents bring them into this kind of hideous situation,” Soliman said. She cited instances when children were encouraged by their own parents to perform lewd acts online for money, thinking that no harm was being done, as no physical touching was involved. But little do the parents know that their children’s “souls are being destroyed,” Soliman said. With the sex offender registry mechanism, she said communities could know in advance that they were being “targeted” and thus could take steps to protect their children. “That can help us in ensuring that prosecution will happen,” Soliman said. She said the registry would go a long way in helping the authorities monitor convicted child abusers in the country. Australia, along with European countries, is one of the nations whose citizens are known to visit the Philippines for sex, Soliman said in the interview. Paul Hopkins of the Australian Federal Police cited Australia’s own “Child Offenses Register,” which requires certain sexual offenders to report their whereabouts and activities to the police. ■
Philippine News
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
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DSWD to LGUs: Stop children from caroling BY MAVELLE DURIAN Philippine Canadian Inquirer
PH, Vietnam grow closer vs China BY NIÑA P. CALLEJA Philippine Daily Inquirer VIETNAM BECAME a strategic ally of the Philippines last week with a new partnership agreement between the two countries sealed on the sidelines of the recently concluded Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Manila. But what does it mean for the Philippines amid the rising tensions in the South China Sea? Assistant Secretary Charles Jose, the Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, said the signing of the agreement was “a step further” in the relationship between the Philippines and Vietnam, which are both claimants to territories in the South China Sea and vocal in their opposition to China’s massive reclamation in the area. “The strategic partnership encompasses several areas — economic, political, defense and maritime cooperation,” Jose said. Vietnam became the Philippines’ third strategic partner, after the United States and Japan. President Aquino and his counterpart, Vietnam President Truong Tan Sang, witnessed the signing of the agreement by Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario and Vietnam Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh on Nov. 17. In an earlier interview, maritime law expert Jay Batongbacal said the strategic alliance between the two South China Sea claimants could be a cause for worry for China. Vietnam, he said, is stronger than the Philippines in terms of military strength
and has demonstrated this in previous Chinese incursions into its territorial waters. “They have demonstrated that they are much more willing to use it than us,” Batongbacal said, recounting the incident last year when China’s state-owned China National Offshore Oil Company moved an exploratory oil rig into Vietnam’s waters, which sparked a diplomatic crisis between the two countries. Batongbacal noted that after the strategic partnership with the Philippines, the next logical step was for Vietnam to form alliances with Japan and the US. Vietnam and the Philippines are both challenging China’s nine-dash line claim which encompasses almost the entire South China Sea. The Philippines stands to lose 80 percent of its exclusive economic zone as codified in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The Philippines challenged China before the international arbitration tribunal in The Hague, which Vietnam has supported in a position paper. Under the agreement in the area of political cooperation, the two countries will “increase the frequency and diversify the modes of bilateral exchanges at all levels.” In the area of defense, they agreed to intensify cooperation between their armed forces apart from sustaining regular meetings yearly. A joint commission on maritime and ocean cooperation at the vice ministerial level once every two years will be convened. The agreement also sealed the maritime cooperation of the two countries through joint activities in the South China Sea. ■
MANILA, PHILIPPINES — As the Christmas season is fast approaching, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) appealed to barangay officials and local government units, particularly in Metro Manila, to stop children from caroling and asking Christmas presents on busy streets. Social Welfare Secretary Corazon “Dinky” Soliman asked for the barangay leaders’ cooperation to ensure the safety of street children, and will be their important partners in assuring the safety during Christmas season. Barangay officials can help in ensuring street children’s safety by giving activities that would help them enjoy the spirit of Christmas in their own communities. “Street caroling is risky for children. They are squeezing themselves between vehicles and taps on car windows or jumps from one public utility vehicle to another. They are unmindful of the dangers to their life,” said Soliman.
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Soliman also appealed to the public commuters to stop giving alms, it is the reason why children keep on risking their lives seeking for kindhearted people who would find hard to say no to poor children going up and down to public transportation vehicles asking for Christmas gifts. “We ask the commuters and private vehicle owners not to give. If you will keep on giving them money, they will definitely come back with more company in the crossroads, because they are aware they will get something,” Soliman added. DSWD Chief said they remedy this problem by providing incentives to the barangays and through “Pasko ng Batang Pinoy” where children spend their Christmas with Pres. Benigno S. Aquino III as an alternative way of avoiding the children to beg on the streets. Soliman assured that DSWD will try to boost their initiatives this year by providing cash incentives to barangays and LGUs so that they will be able to conduct a nine-day Christmas activity including the Christmas lantern and “belen” making to stop them from begging. ■
Philippine News
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NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
CA restrains MMDA to its power over billboard ads BY MAVELLE DURIAN Philippine Canadian Inquirer MANILA, PHILIPPINES — The Court of Appeals overturned the rule rendered by Makati City regional trial court in 2013 that restrained the Metro Manila Development Authority from exercising its power to issue clearances and permits for billboards being used as advertising signs along roads in Metro Manila. In a 21-page decision by CA’s Second Division through Assoc. Justice Remedios SalazarFernando dismissed the complaints by Summit Publishing Co. Inc., Bigboard Advertising Corp., and Sygoo Enterprises for questioning legality of the memorandum of agreement between the Department of Public Works and Highways and the MMDA regarding the implement provisions of the National Billing Code that regulates the issuances of clearances of billboard permit applicants. The advertising firms also questioned the validity of the MoA issued by the MMDA regarding the guidelines for the issuances of clearances and billboard permits. In an order issued on October 25, 2013, the Makati Regional Trial Court, Branch 58, Presiding Judge Eugene Paras, issued a writ of preliminary injunction restraining the MMDA from
EDSA is even more riddled with billboards.
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
confiscating, rolling down and board clearances due to failure that Judge Paras committed demolishing their billboards of complying the requirements grave abuse of discretion in and other entities of outdoor such as height, size, and set- ruling against the advertising media advertisfirms, and would ing as non-comwarrant the repliance with the versal of its ormemorandum der. circulars and the [...] the firms’ non-compliance with “Public reMoA between the requirements of the National spondent Judge DPWH and the Building Code and the MMDA MCs Eugene gravely MMDA. can “hardly be disputed.” abused its disThe responcretion when dent advertisit issued the ing firms filed a writ of prelimipetition for the nary injunction issuance of a writ of injunction backs prescribed by the MMDA despite the private responagainst the MMDA after deny- and DPWH. dents’ failure to prove that ing their application for billThe appellate court ruled they have a clear and unmis-
takable right to the relief sought and that they would suffer great and irreparable injury,” the CA said. The appellate court said the advertising firms wrongly filed a petition for declaratory relief because they failed to satisfy on of the six elements of the action, particularly “there must have been no breach of the documents in question.” “While the private respondents argue that their petition for declaratory relief is not about the alleged ‘violation’ — its purpose being to question the validity or constitutionality of the assailed MCs — the issue of violation or breach of said MCs is important in determining whether the private respondents availed of the proper remedy,” the CA ruled according in a report by Rey E. Requejo of The Standard. The CA also said that declaratory relief would no longer be the appropriate remedy if there was already a violation of the questioned MCs. As the appellate court notes, the firms’ non-compliance with the requirements of the National Building Code and the MMDA MCs can “hardly be disputed.” In a report by The Standard, the CA noted that Judge Paras “not merely overlooked, but clearly ignored or disregarded” the advertising firms’ admission that they violated MMDA’s billboard rules. ■
Aquino downplays... where three passengers claimed allegedly falling victims of the modus, and airport personnel trying to extort money from them to dismiss charges after a bullet or two were found in their baggage. Among the alleged victims, one eventually admitted that the bullet found in his bad was his. “If the report that three out of three million is true, how can we say there is an epidemic — that there is a high probability you will get into trouble or that you can say there is a chance you will fall victim to the racket?,” Aquino asked. “I have to balance it. In the end [we need] proof. Is there ❰❰ 1
proof that will confirm or deny the tanim-bala scam?,” he added, noting that the issue was also biased against the innocent airport staff. Not entirely claiming that the airport scheme did not exist, the Malacañang has then been looking into all data and evidences regarding the issue before acknowledging the existence of the modus operandi. “Let’s identify the problem correctly so that we can identify also the solutions correctly... These are assumptions we need to validate. That’s why we need to look at all the assumption that have been put out,” Presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said.
Lacierda also stressed that a thorough investigation on each case and validation on each instance was ongoing as Aquino wanted to ‘cast a wide net’ and ‘look at the entire picture.’ The Presidential spokesperson, however, denied that the government was ‘detached’ from the issue and that the President was ‘not concerned’ over the matter. He clarified that they only wanted to ‘verify and validate all assumptions that have been put out in the media.’ Lacierda then assured the public that the Aquino administration will address the alleged ‘tanim-bala’ scheme and carry out necessary measures. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net
Philippine President Benigno Simeon Aquino III.
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Philippine News
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
Canadians urge P-Noy to stop violence against indigenous groups BY KATHERINE PADILLA Philippine Canadian Inquirer HUNDREDS OF Canadians from different walks of lives signed a petition urging President Benigno Aquino III to stop violence against Lumads and other indigenous people in the country. Filipino journalists, politicians, church leaders and lay persons, activists, professors, lawyers, doctors, and artists signed the open letter to the President, the Manila Bulletin reported. “We, the undersigned individuals and organizations in Canada, are writing to express our urgent concerns regarding the violent attacks on Indigenous Peoples (Lu-
mads) in Mindanao allegedly perpetrated by members of the Philippine Armed Forces and by paramilitary groups that are reportedly created and armed by the military and operating under its command. Human Rights Watch (HRW) reports that these forces are committing killings, torture, forced displacement and harassment of residents, students and educators with impunity,” the petitioner wrote. “We are deeply alarmed by the systematic escalation of the campaign of attack on Lumads in recent months. Of the 58 victims of Lumad killings since 2010, a total of 14, including Lumad children, were killed from March to September 2015. Eleven of the victims were killed in three gruesome massacres,” they added. ■
ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman at the Senate hearing on the Mamasapano clash, Feb 12, 2015. SCREENSHOT FROM RAPPLER FOOTAGE
ARMM chiefs want ‘full-scale assault’ against Abu Sayyaf BY JANE MORALEDA Philippine Canadian Inquirer MANILA – Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) chief executive Mujiv Hataman and Maguindanao Governor Esmael Mangudadatu expressed support to government security forces and urged them to apply the full extent of the law against the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG). Hataman and Mangudadatu backed President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III’s order to launch a full-scale assault and intensify sanctions against the extremist militants, reportedly hiding in Sulu and other parts of Southern Mindanao. Both local leaders also stood firm against ISIS and condemned recent violent attacks, including the bombing and shooting in Paris this month. They as-
serted that Islam was a ‘religion of peace’ and the extremist group was ‘actually acting outside the ambits of the religion.’ Mangudadatu further explained that ‘jihad’ (holy war) only allowed armed men to struggle when ‘one’s life, family, country, religion and property is under threat by enemy.’ He noted that this did not translate to terrorism. In the Philippines, Malaysian Bernard Then Ted Fed was beheaded this month after the multi-million peso ransom was not given to ASG; while three foreigners in Samal Island have been abducted and held captive also recently. “No Muslim in any part of the Philippines are being threatened or deprived of his life, family, property, religious freedom or community,” the Maguindanao Governor said in a Manila Bulletin report, reiterating his call for all-out defensives against the extremist group. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net
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Duterte: Poe... elections. Duterte said Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano would be his running mate. Poe welcomed Duterte’s decision, but Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. doubted that Duterte could run because the presidential candidate of his party whom he intended to replace had already withdrawn from the race. Dropping his strategy of ambivalence about a run for Malacañang that had put him high in the polls, Duterte, speaking at the birthday party of a friend here, declared his presidential candidacy was “now on the table.” “I am running for President because I am so disappointed with the ruling of the Senate Electoral Tribunal,” Duterte said, drawing applause from former schoolmates, friends and supporters. Voting 5-4 last week, the SET threw out a petition for Poe’s ouster from the Senate that had been brought by a 2013 senatorial race loser on grounds of citizenship. “I cannot accept an American President,” Duterte said, referring to Poe, who renounced her US citizenship to be able to serve in the government under the Aquino administration in 2010. ❰❰ 1
‘It’s on the table’
Asked by reporters if he would run, Duterte replied: “Yes, I will run. But it is on the table.” He explained that he had to speak with the leaders of his party, Partido Demokratikong Pilipino-Laban ng Bayan (PDPLaban), about it. Duterte’s ambivalence about running for President made PDP-Laban field a former village official from Quezon City, Martin Diño, at the close of candidate registration in June. The party, however, had until Dec. 10 to change candidates and had been expected to announce a switch to Duterte even before Diño pulled out of the race because the Commission on Elections (Comelec) was poised to declare him a nuisance candidate. Uncertainty
Diño’s withdrawal left PDPLaban in limbo, according to Belmonte. As Diño had already with-
drawn, “what’s there to replace?” Belmonte said on Sunday. The Speaker said he doubted the Comelec would allow Duterte to run. But Belmonte praised Duterte for deciding to run for President. “He stands for something,” Belmonte said, citing Duterte’s tough enforcement of the law in Davao City. PDP-Laban goes all-out
Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III, president of PDP-Laban, said the party would now go all-out for Duterte after the Davao mayor had declared his candidacy. “He is a phenomenon. We have a candidate who is strong and a potential winner,” Pimentel said. He said he would sign the party’s certificate of nomination for Duterte today, adding that he hoped Duterte would file his certificate of candidacy before Dec. 10. Comelec study
The Comelec said it would study whether Duterte could run as substitute for Diño. “The Comelec will study the matter if and when an actual substitution takes place,” said Comelec Chair Andres Bautista. “[It’s] best for us to wait for the law department’s action, [as] it will be the one [to deal with] that,” he said. Poe’s camp said it welcomed Duterte’s decision to run even if it did not agree with the Davao mayor’s stand on the question of the senator’s citizenship. “The more choices the people have, the better,” said Valenzuela Mayor Rex Gatchalian, Poe’s spokesperson. “Though we are saddened and do not agree with the position of Mayor Duterte on Senator Poe’s citizenship and the status of [abandoned children], his decision to seek the presidency will make our democracy stronger and more vibrant,” Gatchalian said in a statement. Not as welcoming was Poe’s running mate, Sen. Francis Escudero, who disagreed with Duterte’s view of Poe as not a natural-born Filipino because her biological parents were unknown. Excuse to run
Poe was abandoned in a
IT'S OFFICIAL. Duterte-Cayetano for 2016.
church after birth and was adopted three years later by movie actor Fernando Poe Jr. and his wife, movie actress Susan Roces. “Mayor Duterte does not need to hiss at Senator [Poe] and use the decision of the SET in her favor as an excuse to run,” Escudero said in a statement. “In fact, quite the contrary, an unfavorable decision against Senator [Poe] could have been a putatively better excuse according to analysts,” he said. Escudero reminded Duterte that the SET disagreed with his view and did justice to Poe and all other abandoned children. “As the saying goes, those who have less in life should have more in law,” he said. OK with Binay
Vice President Jejomar Binay, running second to Poe in the presidential surveys, last night welcomed Duterte’s decision to run. “This would give our voters more choices in 2016,” Binay’s spokesperson Rico Quicho said in a text message. Caloocan Rep. Edgar Erice, spokesperson for the ruling Liberal Party (LP), said he believed Duterte decided to run because he expected the Supreme Court to rule against Poe on appeal. “I think Mayor Digong believes that Senator Poe will eventually be disqualified. It’s almost a writing on the wall, and I think that he thinks he [has] a chance of winning without Senator Poe,” Erice said, using Duterte’s nickname. www.canadianinquirer.net
Citizenship
Erice noted that the three Supreme Court justices on the SET — Associate Justices Teresita Leonardo-de Castro, Arturo Brion and Antonio Carpio — voted against Poe and their opinion could help turn the senator’s victory into defeat when the case went up to the high court. Duterte said he thought Poe was “beautiful” and “good, cultured” and “has money.” “But you don’t [stir up] emotion among the Filipinos just because you are a foundling. [That] is not good,” he said. “When she gets disqualified because she is found to be American, what will happen to us?” he said. He said Poe’s Filipino citizenship was based on presumption. “Grace can run for governor or mayor, but not for [President]. Give me an Igorot, a Bagobo, as long as he or she is Filipino,” he said. Loose alliance
Duterte said he had chosen Cayetano as his running mate because the senator had been with him from the start and helped him “put up the propaganda.” “This is a loose alliance,” Duterte said, noting that Cayetano is a member of the Nacionalista Party. Sought for comment, Cayetano said: “I am speechless. Glory to God!” Cayetano said that with Duterte in the race, the election would be easier for voters.
“Your choices are simple. You have a natural-born thief, a natural-born incompetent leader, and a natural-born who has a heart and courage,” he said. Sara for Davao mayor
Duterte said his daughter, Sara, may take his place as candidate for mayor of Davao City. He said Sara also registered as mayoral candidate in June. On his Sunday television program, Duterte challenged Poe to show him her Filipino mother and he would withdraw from the presidential race. “I will no longer run. I’ll be her campaign manager,” Duterte said. Asked by his co-host, Geraldine Tiu, if his decision was final this time, Duterte replied, “Yes.” But he teased his viewers again, saying: “That was just for her, because she wanted me to say it.” Supporters
Duterte’s supporters celebrated his decision, beginning with a gathering on the soccer field on the University of the Philippines campus in Cebu City on Sunday. At least 3,000 people joined the gathering called “Rock for Federalism,” referring to Duterte’s advocacy of a federal system of government. The rally started at 1 p.m. and Paul Melendez, provincial information officer for the Duterte for President Movement, said it would run up to 10 p.m., with more people expected to come. ■
Philippine News
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
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It’s back to BBL after Senate tackles budget, says Drilon BY LEILA B. SALAVERRIA Philippine Daily Inquirer THE SENATE has not forgotten about the draft Basic Bangsamoro law (BBL), according to Senate President Franklin Drilon. In a statement yesterday, Drilon said the Senate will focus on the measure as soon as it finishes deliberations on the 2016 national budget. “We have enough time and political will to ensure that this bill, so crucial to forging peace in Muslim Mindanao, will be passed and see the light of day,” Drilon said amid concerns the bill would stall due to some controversial provisions. According to Drilon, the Senate will tackle the 2016 budget when sessions resume on Monday after a week-long break for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders summit. After the Senate completes deliberations on the budget, it will turn its attention to the Bangsamoro measure, he said. The Bangsamoro bill still remains a priority, he added. The Senate President appealed to his colleagues, especially those running in next year’s elections, to attend plenary sessions and actively participate in deliberations. The draft BBL, which would redraw the Bangsamoro homeland in Mindanao and give it more powers and resources than the current Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, will seal the deal between the government and the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The powerful Middle Eastbased Organization of the Islamic Conference has urged the government to pass the bill in its original or undiluted form. A number of legislators, however, have raised questions about the constitutionality of the bill, particularly with regard to the redrawing of territory and the level of autonomy it may be granted without the so-called Bangsamoro becoming tantamount to a “substate” within a state. The constitutional separation of church and state could also become an issue.
hadist terror groups, have also been which amended 80 percent of the suspected of hiding in rebel-held ter- draft bill. ritories although the MILF has denied this. In August, Sen. Bongbong Marcos, The constitutional separation of church chair of the Senate state could also become an issue. committee on local governments, submitted a revised version of the bill or the Basic Law for It removed controversial provisions the Bangsamoro Autonomous-Region which would allow the Bangsamoro
Mamasapano massacre
Legislative deliberations also hit a snag early this year following the clash between police Special Action Force commandos and MILF members in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, that resulted in the death of 44 commandos and 18 rebels. The incident led to several lawmakers casting doubt on the sincerity of the MILF as peace partners of the government. Extremist Islamist operatives, some identified with global and regional jiwww.canadianinquirer.net
to have a separate Commission on Elections, Commission on Audit, Ombudsman and Commission on Human Rights. It put on hold the allocation of P17 and billion in development funds for the autonomous region and provisions regarding “zones of joint cooperation” in the Sulu Sea and Moro Gulf. ■
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Philippines appraising seized Imelda Marcos jewelry ahead of possible auction BY TERESA CEROJANO The Associated Press MANILA, PHILIPPINES — The Philippine government is appraising millions of dollars’ worth of jewelry seized three decades ago from Imelda Marcos, the former first lady known mainly for her massive stash of shoes, as it decides what to do with the dazzling collection. The jewelry collection, which includes a diamond worth at least $5 million, was seized when Marcos’ family fled to Hawaii in 1986 following a popular revolt that ended her husband’s two decades in power. Late dictator Ferdinand Marcos’ family allegedly amassed billions of dollars’ worth of illgotten wealth. His widow, now 86 and a member of Congress, became known for excesses, symbolized by her huge shoe collection and staggering jewelry. The jewelry collection, comprising three sets seized in various locations, was valued at $5-7 million when it was last appraised in 1988 and 1991. The collection, however, is likely to have significantly risen in value, Andrew de Castro, of the presidential commission tasked to recover the wealth, said Tuesday. The jewelry will be appraised before the government decides whether to auction it off, he said, calling the collection a physical manifestation of excesses during the Marcos re-
gime at a time when many Filipinos were suffering in poverty. There also are suggestions that the jewelry could be put in a museum or an exhibit. David Warren of Christie’s auction house said the collection, which has been stored by the Philippine central bank for nearly 30 years, is comparable to those owned by royalty. ``If I didn’t know where the collection came from, I would probably say it could have come from a royal person,’’ said Warren, who was among a Christie’s team that inspected the jewelry on Tuesday. Among the collection’s pieces is a newly discovered 25-carat Indian pink diamond probably cut in the 18th century and worth at least $5 million. Pink diamonds are exceedingly rare. A 16-carat pink diamond was sold by Christie’s this month in Geneva for $28.5 million, Warren said. The briolette-cut pink diamond in the Marcos collection is from India’s famous Golconda region, which produced rare finds including the Hope Diamond and a 500-carat diamond that is part of the British crown jewels. Diamond pieces held up for photographers Tuesday by customs employees who removed them from plastic wrappings included various necklaces with diamonds ranging from the size of corn kernels to fat almonds, strung together like a lei of chandeliers. ■
Former first lady Imelda Romualdez-Marcos.
STEPHEN BURES / SHUTTERSTOCK
NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
Maguindanao massacre victims’ kin: We’re losing hope BY KATHERINE PADILLA Philippine Canadian Inquirer MANILA — Five years after President Benigno Aquino III has promised resolution to the Maguindanao massacre, the families of the victims of the”deadliest single electionrelated violence in the Philippine history are already losing hope that justice will prevail during Aquino’s term. “We don’t know what’s happening about the cases against the accused,” Justice Now Movement (JNM) Secretary General Grace Morales was quoted as saying in a report by Inquirer.net. Morales’ husband Rossell, and her sister Marites Cabilitas, were victims of the massacre.
Pres. Aquino seemed to have forgotten the promises he made during the 2010 presidential elections, said Morales. The families of the victims are getting legal help from the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) prosecutors but the families were receiving updates from the DOJ regarding the case. GOV. ESMAEL Mangudadatu of Maguindanao, whose wife and relatives were killed in the massacre, said in the same report how that verdict on the case has not been delivered after six years. He said that witnesses to the case have all been presented. “It’s been six long, agonizing years. Where is justice?” asked Mangudadatu in the same report. Mangudadatu told Inquirer.
net that the last time he was in court was when Sajid Ampatuan, main suspect in the Maguindanao Massacre was to take the stand. However, Sajid’s counsel told the court that the suspect was suffering from a liver disease. The families of the victims, including Morales once had Prima Quinsayas as their counsel. At that time, Quinsayas was working for the Freedom Fund for Filipino Journalists (FFFJ). The organization has eventually run out of funds. Today, Quinsayas works for the Office of the Regional State Prosecutor in Central Mindanao. Despite the long years of waiting and scarcity on legal aid, Morales said that she is not giving up on the case. ■
‘Decision on Poe not purely legal’ BY LEILA B. SALAVERRIA Philippine Daily Inquirer IN DECIDING on the disqualification case against Sen. Grace Poe, some of the members Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET) took into account not just purely legal matters, but other considerations such as the rights of children and foundlings and the will of the electorate, according to Sen. Cynthia Villar. Villar was one of the five SET members who voted to junk the petition to unseat Poe from the Senate for not being a naturalborn citizen. Poe is a foundling and the identity of her parents is unknown. There have been comments the SET ruling favoring Poe, who is running for President next year, was a political decision. Six members of the tribunal are senators, while three are Supreme Court justices. “Even justices of the Supreme Court say that if they want the basis [of the decision] to be purely legal, then all the SET members should be justices and there should have been no senators. If there are senators, that means they don’t want to look at just purely legal matters but also at other conwww.canadianinquirer.net
2016 presidential aspirant Sen. Grace Poe poses in front of an FPJ mural with her father Fernando Poe Jr.’s iconic denim jacket. FACEBOOK
siderations,” Villar said in a radio interview. Villar said senators have their advocacies, such as how to treat children who are foundlings. There were also those who considered the fact that Poe was elected by the people. “For politicians like us, the will of the people is very important because we were elected by the people. For us, it’s a big
thing that the people have spoken and elected someone as senator,” she said. But she added that her decision to dismiss the case against Poe also had legal basis. She noted that the framers of the 1935 Constitution talked about foundlings and expressed the view that they should acquire the citizenship of the country where they were found. ■
Philippine News
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
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APEC cops who slept in bodegas feted BY JAYMEE T. GAMIL Philippine Daily Inquirer SILVER INSULATED mats were laid out side by side on the floor, bordered by backpacks that served as pillows. Scattered all around were pails holding toiletries or trash, and cardboard boxes filled with helmets and shields. Crisscrossing the 2000-square-meter space were hastily strung plastic straws used as clotheslines, while the movie “San Andreas” was being projected on a wall. Welcome to HK Sun Plaza warehouse along Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard in Pasay City, the impromptu “hotel” where some 3,000 police personnel pulled out from the Cordillera, Iloilo and Calabarzon regions were billeted during the weeklong Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) event in Manila. The augmentation forces were hauled into the Metro to help secure the 21 APEC leaders and their staff during the leaders’ meeting on Nov. 18 and 19, and had to make do with improvised sleeping quarters at Quirino Grandstand, Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila, and Ayala car park in Makati City, not to mention the HK Sun Plaza warehouse. “For the country,” Police Insp. Roger Kurt Pacificar said with a grin, of his sixth day living off a bag and sleeping in a warehouse miles away from his home in the Cordilleras. “We’re used to this,” he said, adding that he was also part of the augmentation force during the papal visit in January and had to sleep in a sports complex. Out of comfort zone
On Thursday, only Pacificar and a handful of policemen were in the makeshift barracks that easily called to mind an evacuation center. Assigned as
Other supplies at HK Sun Plaza were newly procured, like the mats and electric fans. Portalets and temporary showers were also set up in the compound, while hygiene kits were distributed to the personnel by some police regional offices. The deployed troops were given flu shots last week. “This was planned properly,” Vaño said, “although sometimes, you just have to accept that’s all we can provide (and) there are limitations,” he added. Trip to Manila Zoo
TO SERVE AND PROTECT. Members of the Philippine National Police pose with Interior Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento. PNP-PIO
“quick response teams,” the po- ter needs were being met, the More than 20,000 police perlice were on standby for emer- APEC deployment was hardly sonnel nationwide had been gency situations, while their a vacation for Iloilo Police Offi- tapped to secure APEC in Metcolleagues were deployed along cer 1 Apol Jean Apolinario, who ro Manila, said Police Director Roxas Boulevard and its inter- was also billeted in the ware- Juanito Vaño of the Philippine sections, as the APEC event house that used to stock used National Police Directorate for unfurled on its second day at bottles. Logistics. the nearby Philippine Interna“It’s challenging. We have They were well-provided for tional Convention Center. 18-hour duty here,” she said. to make sure they stay “com“We were fortable,” Vaño trained for this,” said, unlike their the police offihaphazard decer said. “Once ployment during you leave your We are contented with what we have the Zamboanga house, you’re out now. As police, we are trained to siege in 2013 of your comfort accept whatever may come. when the troops zone,” he said, had to sleep on adding, however, sidewalks. that he brought “This is actuwith him one ally much betluxury item: A mobile Internet. “We start our days at 6 a.m. and ter. We’ve done all we could “To update my status [on come back at 10 a.m. or 11 a.m.” and provided all the equipment Facebook],” Pacificar said, she said, adding that they some- (needed) for their tasks and laughing. times had to wake up at 3 a.m. missions,” the official said. “(And) to tell people how to get a head start on the long For food, some 80 caterers many of us had been injured lines for the shower room. were hired to provide fresh and in the rallies!” quipped a felregular meals for the troops. low Cordillera policeman. One Communal facilities The caterers were deployed highland policeman was hosAsked about privacy con- nearby to make sure the meals pitalized on Thursday for heat cerns because of the communal were served fresh and to avoid exhaustion after being detailed facilities, Apolinario laughed. possible spoilage, which hapon Gil Puyat Avenue in Makati. “That’s nothing to us! We’re pened to the packed lunch durThough their food and shel- used to it.” ing the January papal visit.
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“But this time, with the support we are getting and the kind of security that we have, the welfare of our people had been taken care of. This will be an evolving standard of PNP. In coming activities, we will come up with improved [setups],” the PNP official said. Pacificar, a public safety battalion officer, had no complaints. “We are contented with what we have now. As police, we are trained to accept whatever may come.” Asked what he would consider an appropriate reward, he expressed hope that they be given time for rest and recreation, “so we can spend time with our families,” he said. Earlier, Interior Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento authorized one extra day in Metro Manila for the regional police officers to allow them some recreation as some of the troops were in the nation’s capital for the first time. PNP Director General Ricardo Marquez also told the media that he was serious in offering to treat the troops to a trip to the Manila Zoo. ■
Opinion
16
NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
AT LARGE
Sore feet, sunburn and other grievances By Rina Jimenez-David Philippine Daily Inquirer DO ACHING feet after treading the cobblestones of Intramuros in fiveinch heels equal walking kilometers to get to and from work at the height of the Apec traffic? Does getting a sunburn make up for the inconvenience of traffic, lost daily income and missed flights? That seems to be the equation suggested by President Aquino’s youngest sister Kris Aquino in a social media post, saying those inconvenienced by the security and logistic arrangements for the Apec meeting were now “quits” with those responsible, foremost of them her brother, for the people’s hardships in the last few days. It leaves a rather rancid taste in the mouth, I must say, although I also think a little perspective is needed here. I feel Kris meant to be funny with the post, although I detect a trace of sarcasm in it, too. But despite the attempt at humor, it could only have rubbed salt on the wounds— physical or psychological—of all those who had to endure the slings and arrows of outrageous Apec fortune. But then, if commuters and workers have a long list of complaints and grievances, doubtless so do the hundreds of volunteers, police, officials and even dignitaries involved
in the events of the past week. PerEven before the Apec got off the *** haps what we need to do is weigh the ground, Sen. Grace Poe, for one, had ROXAS could very well have capitalcomparative costs and benefits—the already released TV and radio ads ized on the Apec situation by crafting expenses incurred by the govern- capitalizing on the woes of the “little ads directly addressing the public’s ment, and by extension us taxpayers, people,” from the traffic to the lack of grievances, perhaps by expressing and the future and potential gains to medical care, and asking why people understanding of the hard times evbe made from the negotiations and had to suffer for the incompetence— eryone was going through but promagreements arrived at in the course and uncaring attitude—of public of- ising better times ahead because of of the meetings. Not to mention the ficials. what was accomplished at the Apec goodwill the Philippines gained by Such ads hit home, and target vot- sessions. hosting the event, which, after all, ers where it matters most: in the At the very least these would have doesn’t happen every day, or every heart and in the gut. shown the administration candidate year. Mar Roxas theorizing on what as not entirely indifferent to the A failure then is the inability of good and effective governance con- plight of the “little people,” while the organizers to create a sense sists of—with a peaceful, sunny gar- holding out hope for the good times of ownership, of to come because national commitwe as a people had I also cannot see why organizers could not have taken more ment, over the sucbeen willing to sacproactive measures to ease the public’s plight during the Apec cessful hosting of rifice in the short meetings. If local governments and even the military could field the Apec. Perhaps term for bigger retrucks and personnel carriers during typhoons and floods, why the elaborate secuwards in the long rity measures, and term. couldn’t these have been mobilized to assist commuters trapped in the the fulsome praise I also cannot see traffic gridlock? for the creative why organizers minds behind the many Apec fests, den as a backdrop—feels so far re- could not have taken more proaconly served to alienate the ordinary moved from reality compared to the tive measures to ease the public’s Filipino from the event. Maybe to stark brutal photos of long queues at plight during the Apec meetings. many, it was just another one of the the LRT station, trafficclogged Edsa, If local governments and even many instances where the elite par- and patients in government hospi- the military could field trucks tied while the rest of the populace tals that the Poe campaign airs with and personnel carriers during tystewed in traffic. regularity. True, Poe offers little by phoons and floods, why couldn’t *** way of solutions, but her promise these have been mobilized to asAN unfortunate side effect has also of equalizing opportunities for the sist commuters trapped in the been the impact on the elections next humble folk and of establishing a traffic gridlock? year. I don’t know if any of our polling more “caring” administration reA Facebook user wrote of her exfirms can measure the effect of the sponds directly to the public’s sense perience with the kindly driver of inconveniences caused by the Apec of abandonment by its current offi- a pick-up who gallantly gave free on the minds and choices of voters. cials. rides to commuters stranded on
SLEx, noting that many other vehicles stopped and gave free rides to many other strangers. Couldn’t such communal efforts have been planned and encouraged and publicized before the closing of roads and the rerouting of traffic? TRUE, carping and complaining even in the face of an international event closely watched by the rest of the world seems to be a distinctly Filipino practice. We do tend to see the few blemishes and ignore the rest of the flawless complexion. But many of the complaints were themselves valid and reasonable, and not at all the ranting of spoiled children insisting on their sense of entitlement. P-Noy says Filipinos made his heart “swell with pride” by the successful hosting of the Apec meetings. But he could very well have said the same about the thousands of other Pinoys who endured the hardships brought about by efforts to secure our honored guests and ensure the smooth running of this complicated event. Would it be too late now to expect our fearless leader to address the grievances of the inconvenienced and explain that precautions had to be taken to protect our guests? Maybe then we could really call it “quits,” our sacrifices worth all the aggravation—sore feet and sunburn included. ■
ANALYSIS
US-China rivalry takes Apec center stage By Amando Doronila Philippine Daily Inquirer CANBERRA—On the official agenda, global free trade was the headline of the summit of the leaders of 21 member-economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in Manila this week. But the rivalry of the region’s superpowers—the United States and China—grabbed the focus of the tense discussions behind the scenes of the conference, which was ringed by a steel cordon of security measures designed to ensure the safety of the leaders and delegates in the wake of the slaughter of defenseless civilians in Paris last Nov. 13 by the Islamic State (IS). The Apec summit participants issued a draft joint statement on the last day of the forum, on Thursday, declaring: “We strongly condemn these atrocities that demand a united voice from the global community. We, therefore, reaffirm our strong collective resolve to counter terrorism.” But according to press reports from Manila, the Apec leaders, be-
fore arriving in Manila, were divided ture generation”—an outlook that Minister Wang Yi visited Manila over whether to issue a statement on deludes the Asia-Pacific nations into last week to meet with Del Rosario, the terror attacks in Paris or to let a false sense of security from terror- according to officials of the Departeach make his or her own statement. ist attacks mounted in any part of the ment of Foreign Affairs. The officials After discussing the matter behind globe, whether in Europe or in the justified the meeting on the margins closed doors over the weekend, they Americas. of the Apec forum, saying that Manila initially forged a compromise: a The Apec is strictly focused on has “no control” over what the other paragraph on terrorism to be added trade; as pointed out by its secretari- economic leaders would be raising to the statement released at the end at, the Apec is “about economic mat- during the “Leaders’ Retreat”—a refof the summit. There was a shared ters and only economic matters.” erence to the freewheeling discusdesire to call for bringing “to justice However, security and geopolitical sions of the Apec leaders where they those who perpetrated the horrific concerns—such as the territorial can raise issues. developments in Days before the Paris last Friday,” summit, the United The officials justified the meeting on the margins of the Foreign Secretary States challenged Apec forum, saying that Manila has “no control” over what the Albert del Rosario China’s claim over other economic leaders would be raising during the “Leaders’ told a press briefthe South China Retreat”—a reference to the freewheeling discussions of the Apec ing. Sea, where China leaders where they can raise issues. The compromise has built seven arparagraph came as tificial islands, by a watered-down version of the draft disputes in the South China Sea and sending a US warship for a freedomjoint statement. In the end, the joint the terrorist attacks in Paris—can- of-navigation patrol. The move anstatement turned out to be an eco- not be completely ignored or swept gered Beijing but was welcomed by nomic document, not an expression under the rug as these threaten to America’s allies, particularly the of concern over the global security overshadow trade and economic is- Philippines and Japan—two Apec threat posed by the rampaging IS. sues. members embroiled in separate marThe joint statement detailed innocuAlthough the Philippines and itime disputes with China. ous “new actions for advancing an China agreed not to raise the territoLast week, before the Apec leadAsiaPacific economic growth agenda rial disputes in the South China Sea ers converged in Manila, the United that benefits everyone and the fu- during the summit, China’s Foreign States defied China’s warnings and
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US B-52 bombers flew over the South China Sea, through which cargoes worth trillions of dollars are borne on ships each year. The Philippines agreed not to raise the territorial disputes at the Apec conference despite its disagreement with Beijing, but US President Barack Obama may yet choose do so, according to the US State Department. This would certainly infuriate China, which has proclaimed territorial sovereignty over much of the sea through which the United States is pushing for freedom of navigation. The other countries exercising claims over portions of the sea are Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam. The Philippines has been the boldest of these countries in challenging China, particularly through international legal action. China was certain to dominate the stage at the Apec summit given its attempts to push a business partnership agreement as well as the possibility that disputes over territorial claims could emerge on the Apec agenda. ■
Opinion
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
17
PUBLIC LIVES
General Education in the modern age By Randy David Philippine Daily Inquirer ONE IMPORTANT outcome of modernity is the increasing differentiation of knowledge along functional lines. Nowhere is this more visible, and destabilizing in its effects, than in the organization of higher education. We see this primarily in the rise of new narrow specialties in every field or discipline. But we see it, too, in the growing intolerance for areas of knowledge and types of skills that have no immediate relevance to one’s chosen profession. Current discussions on the General Education (GE) program at the University of the Philippines reflect this disturbing trend. On one side, there are those who, in staunch defense of the university’s nationalist and liberal traditions, wish to preserve the existing number of units for GE, together with most of the required GE courses that have helped mold the consciousness of successive generations of UP graduates. On the other side, there are those who seek to rationalize the curriculum by cutting down the number of GE courses, and allotting more time to core courses, with a view to producing world-class professionals. These are not intrinsically contra-
dictory goals. What pits one against ized GE Program, a major revamp of literature and the arts, nationalism the other is the limited number of the program undertaken during the and civic duty, philosophy and moral units that a student may be required presidency of Francisco Nemenzo education, etc.—along with classical to take to complete a bachelor’s de- Jr., were of this nature. They were notions of what constitutes a learned gree. In general, the trend in higher interdisciplinary, innovative and, human being—gradually lose their education is toward reducing the above all, interesting. foothold in the modern university amount of time needed for a first It seems to me that what is really at curriculum. Their place—equivalent degree, in order to speed up the tran- issue here is the wisdom of devoting to the number of units allotted to subsition to gainful employment or to half of the time one needs for an un- jects outside the core curriculum of further graduate work. This is why dergraduate degree to general cours- every college—has shrunk over time. the number of units to be allotted to es, particularly in the humanities and Mercifully, GE has not been comGE courses has become the major the liberal arts. The specialists want pletely excised from the curriculum battleground in the ongoing curricu- to pare down the program to the bar- of Philippine universities. It is, howlar debate. est minimum, seeing it as basically a ever, being neutered. It is uncertain When I entered how long the FiliUP as a student in pino university can It seems to me that what is really at issue here is the wisdom of resist the tide of the early 1960s, the devoting half of the time one needs for an undergraduate degree to pragmatic specialGE program was general courses, particularly in the humanities and the liberal arts. the centerpiece of ization and the gloa UP education. It balization of knowltook up the first two years of any uni- waste of time, and use the freed units edge. One thing is sure, though: What versity baccalaureate program. The to beef up the core majors’ programs. happens to university education at current proposal is to shorten the This institutional rationalization UP will basically set the tone for all GE program so it can be completed is happening everywhere. In some other institutions of higher learning in less than a year. The reason given countries, the old liberal arts colleges in the country. is that many of the subjects in the GE have either shrunk or completely This threat is not new. When curriculum will now be taught in se- vanished under its sway. Entire de- Dodong Nemenzo became president nior high school under the new K-to- partments have been dismantled in of UP in 1999, his top priority was the 12 program. many of the big universities abroad, reinvention of the GE program. He I can’t see why that is a justifica- their offices and faculty items taken sensed that the biggest threat to it tion. It is not difficult to design new over by new programs. was the growing instrumental ratioGE courses that are not a repetition The functional specialization of nalization to which the whole univerof the senior high school curriculum. learning displaces value orientations sity organization was being subjected Most of the thematic courses that that have been entrenched by previ- by the forces of modern science and found their way into the UP Revital- ous academic traditions. As a result, technology. Rather than resist moder-
nity, Nemenzo rode on its sensibility, and sought to inject a new vitality to the GE curriculum. Amid controversy, he opened up the old curriculum, and challenged the departments to design new GE subjects. The result of Nemenzo’s radical outlook was an astonishing amalgamation of thematic courses that transcended national boundaries: gender and sexuality, self-awareness, identity politics, multiculturalism, ethics, climate change, religious fundamentalism, sustainable development, just to name a few. Some professors saw these courses as a capitulation to globalization and postmodernism, and fiercely fought for the retention of the protected status of courses that had served as the bread and butter of a few departments. What they could not see was that most of the new courses were in fact a reinsertion into the modern curriculum of the familiar values of nationalism, social justice, public service, creativity and imagination. Their benign neglect in professional education was passing unnoticed and Nemenzo sought to rescue them. Hewas convinced that the so-called “Tatak UP” that every graduate of the university is supposed to carry is not a set of sacrosanct courses but a quality of mind. ■
LOOKING BACK
Marcos’ ‘anting-anting’ By Ambeth R. Ocampo Philippine Daily Inquirer LAST MONDAY the City of Vigan in Ilocos Sur rolled out a series of celebrations to mark the 125th birthday of Elpidio Quirino aka “Apo Lakay,” the first Ilocano president of the Philippines. It started with the laying of wreaths at the statue of the late president in Salcedo Park and the delivery of speeches, followed by a Mass in Vigan Cathedral officiated by the bishop who cited my page-one article on Quirino last Sunday to begin his homily. There was also a flash mob on Calle Crisologo as well as a musical on the late president’s life in the Convention Center. As a historian, I was interested in the formal opening of a Quirino research center where digital copies of primary-source material may be viewed, and in the opening of the town jail that had been donated to the National Museum. Up until a few years ago, this branch of the National Museum, which also houses the 14 paintings of Esteban Villanueva that depict the Basi Revolt, was a real jail. Its inmates have since been moved to a new facility. Quirino was born in a room on the second floor of the
building, where his father worked as ago. It is now air-conditioned, inter- maybe some thought these were authe jail warden; the room now houses active, and has just enough to keep thentic or actually owned by Marcos. some presidential memorabilia that visitors interested. For example, the While the Marcos Museum natuinclude a number of barong Tagalog section on the whirlwind courtship rally excludes the events of Edsa in vivid colors, two-toned shoes, and that led to the marriage of Ferdi- 1986, the interest in the Marcos amuequally rowdy neckties. nand Marcos and Imelda Romualdez lets made me recall one of the endurFrom Ilocos Sur I traveled to Ilocos opens with a bag of Chinese butong ing images of the people power reNorte to revisit Badoc, the birthplace pakwan (salted watermelon seeds) volt—ordinary citizens trying to stop of Juan Luna, only to find the Juan and a pair of beaded slippers that a tank with their hands, armed with Luna Shrine closed for renovation. marked their awkward first meet- nothing but rosaries and an image of From there I proceeded to Batac to ing. I observed the visitors, many of the Virgin Mary. This must have been revisit the museum dedicated to Ar- whom were born after Edsa 1986, and a puzzling image to people in secutemio Ricarte aka “Vibora” (Viper), noted their interest in the series of lar countries, but such a display of which houses arfaith in the modern chival photographs, world cannot but All these are worth further study and are capable of producing be inspiring. Those manuscripts, clothat least a dozen doctoral dissertations. ing, and even pieces rosaries and holy of a table service images at Edsa were from his stay in Yokohama that are one-digit car plates with which Mar- used very much as anting-anting in adorned with Japanese scenes and cos marked his rise from congress- an earlier time, and the image does personalized with his signature. An- man to senator to president. The resonate with the legend of the Marother set is personalized with the Plexiglas display case was broken in cos amulet. signature of his wife Agueda Esteban one part because someone had tried During the Philippine Revolution, de Ricarte. It’s a pity that I was the to steal one of the plates. Andres Bonifacio was said to have only visitor in the Ricarte museum Then there was a glass case con- distributed pieces of black cloth that on Tuesday afternoon. All the tour- taining amulets or anting-anting were allegedly cut from the cassocks ists were crowding around the near- bought from vendors in Quiapo—a worn by the priests Gomez, Burgos and by Ferdinand Marcos Museum and reference to the urban legend about Zamora when they were executed by mausoleum. Marcos being given an amulet by garrote in Bagumbayan in 1872. These The Marcos Museum has been the revolutionary bishop Gregorio bits of cloth were supposed to protect renovated and is a far cry from the Aglipay. This case was broken on the Katipuneros in the fiercest of batsorry exhibition of dusty shirts and both sides because visitors had tried tles. Emilio Aguinaldo was said to have yellowed documents that I saw years to steal the displays as souvenirs, or outlived all his enemies because of an
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amulet that was given to him by the friendly kapre that lived on a mango tree near his bedroom window. Hundreds of Filipino amulets are to be found in many museum stockrooms in Spain and in the United States. These were anting-anting looted by the enemy during the Philippine Revolution and the FilipinoAmerican War from the corpses of Filipinos who fought superior arms, thinking they would be protected by these amulets of wood, stone, metal, or cloth. One of the most important of these is an elaborate anting-anting vest or shirt once worn by Macario Sacay—that is, according to photographs I have seen, preserved in the US National Archives. All these are worth further study and are capable of producing at least a dozen doctoral dissertations. Different types of anting-anting are readily available in Quiapo. most are forged in metal and covered with a merry mix of pig Latin and Filipino, with a mix of images from Christian iconography to elements of lower Philippine mythology. One would think that in these anting-anting we see a connection between pre-Spanish beliefs and Christianity that has yet to be fully studied. ■
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NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
Canada News
Reveal of Syrian refugee plan to have domino effect across Canada BY STEPHANIE LEVITZ The Canadian Press OTTAWA — The planned announcement Tuesday of how Canada will take in thousands of Syrian refugees will drive ongoing local, national and international efforts into high gear, a program that will extend far beyond the Liberals’ self-imposed end-of-year deadline. Syrians have been steadily arriving in Canada for months and some of them will count against the Liberal promise to resettle 25,000 people by Dec. 31, a milestone the government is expected to say Tuesday it is unlikely to meet. But what many are watching for alongside that is how the mass influx will be handled and who is going to pay for it. On top of the logistical costs of getting that many people into Canada are the millions more it is going to require to look after their housing, health, education and integration requirements. “Canadians are going to want to help and cost might not be at the top of their list of considerations but it should be on the list,” said Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall, in town Monday to meet the other premiers and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “We’ll have to do some planning for that and we hope the federal government will be generous.” The costs are not entirely unknown; the Immigration department tells private sponsors, for example, that it would cost a minimum of about $20,000 just to cover basic needs for one person for 12 months. Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard said his government has already set aside funds for 3,600 people and said if the province is expected to take in a larger number, more money will be required. “The federal government has indicated the money is there,”
Syrian refugees in Kos, Greece in October 2015.
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he said. own efforts on the resettle- the same time military planners Later Monday, following ment front, increasing staff got to work surveying available a working dinner meeting and streamlining regulatory re- space on bases for housing, with Prime Minister Justin quirements to get more people planes for transport and other Trudeau, Couillard said con- into the country faster. potential support. cerns raised by premiers about Some of the people who’ve arTuesday’s unveiling of the funding for refugee settlement rived in Canada in recent days plan will mean switching the and the thoroughness of secu- are the legacy of those commit- military to operational mode rity screening to be done for all ments, many sponsored by pri- through a series of official orrefugees had been allayed. vate groups. ders expected to be issued in “There will be the coming days. no compromises As part of made about the their campaign safety of Canapledge, the Condians,” he said. Initially, the plan had been to give servatives had “In terms of fitemporary residency permits to costed out a nancing, fundSyrians coming to Canada and then massive resettleing, we’re very grant permanent residency after ment program pleased with the further screening in Canada. in line with what way things are the Liberals are panning out.” now proposing Unveiling of and jettisoned it, the plan will be the latest step But the Liberal promise that in part due to the cost, The Cain weeks of nearly around-the- the government would resettle nadian Press has learned. clock work by Canadian offi- 25,000 people on its own saw The price tag on the Liberal cials that began even before the government agencies pick up program has been pegged at as Liberals took office earlier this the pace even further, including much as $1.2 billion over the month. the military. next six years, according to a During the election camA dozen Canadian Forces document obtained last week paign, the previous Conser- personnel have already been by The Canadian Press. The vative government had an- deployed to Jordan, Lebanon Liberal platform only booked nounced a ramping up of its and Turkey to assist, while at $250 million for the program. www.canadianinquirer.net
“Premiers and mayors are justifiably wondering how the federal government is going to pay for it,” said NDP Leader Tom Mulcair. Security screening is another element in the mix. It was always a factor and even before the Nov. 13 terrorist attacks in France, planners had been looking at ways to mitigate concerns, including a focus on women, children and those who might already have ties to Canada. Initially, the plan had been to give temporary residency permits to Syrians coming to Canada and then grant permanent residency after further screening in Canada. To lessen the security risk attached to that, officials explored the idea of bulk processing cases that were clearly earmarked by the UNHCR — the agency largely responsible for referring cases to Canada for resettlement — as being of low risk. But after Islamic militants claimed responsibility for the Paris attacks, the political pressure for airtight security screening of refugees took on new impetus and was one of the reasons a planned rollout of the program last week was delayed, sources said. The plan is now likely to require all screening to be conducted overseas, which will set back efforts to reach the Dec. 31 milestone. From Wall’s perspective, that would be the right choice. “No one has ever doubted the first principle that this country is compassionate, this country’s initial reaction is to welcome refugees from wherever they are being persecuted in the world, from wherever they are fleeing,” he said. “But we also need to make sure that we’re getting it right in terms of settlement and security and ... a looming deadline that was part of a political campaign promise ... should not drive the process.” ■
Canada News
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
19
Trudeau, premiers aim to rebrand Canada, shed image as environmental pariah BY JOAN BRYDEN The Canadian Press MICHAL LUDWICZAK / SHUTTERSTOCK
YouTube murder threats against Arabs: Quebecer granted bail BY SIDHARTHA BANERJEE The Canadian Press MONTREAL — A Quebec man charged in connection with a YouTube video in which someone wearing a Joker mask said one Arab would be murdered in the province every week was granted bail Monday. The Crown agreed to release Jesse Pelletier, 24, on strict conditions after being satisfied he wasn’t part of a larger group, his lawyer said. Pelletier had been detained since last Wednesday on charges of uttering threats, possession of a false weapon, public incitement of hatred and hoax regarding terrorist activities. “In the video, he had mentioned a lot of ‘we, we, we’ as in (Pelletier) being part of a group,” lawyer Audrey Amzalleg said. “There was nothing (to suggest) that he was part of any type of group.” Pelletier had to pay a $3,500 deposit and must respect a curfew, reside at an undisclosed address, not use any devices with Internet capabilities and refrain from using social media and any video-sharing activity. The person in the three-minute video was wearing a Joker
mask and could be seen brandishing what looked like a pistol as he made the threats and spoke about the Nov. 13 terrorist attacks in Paris that left 130 people dead. “So in the wake of the attacks in Paris, it’s really time to stop messing about and to intervene,” the voice said. “So I and a group of people will intervene. Beginning next week, there will be murders all over Quebec... We have decided to take things into our own hands and to eliminate one Arab a week.” Amzalleg, who reiterated her comment from last week that the video was a “bad joke,” said her client was happy to be freed. “It’s very premature in this file, but for now we’ll see what we can do to help him out in order to defend him properly with the accusations he has against him,” she said. A judge agreed to seal the address where Pelletier will reside in order to protect his safety and that of his family, Amzalleg said. The accused, who has a bone defect from birth and suffered an accident about a year ago, appeared in court again in a wheelchair. Pelletier returns to court Jan. 18. ■
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the country’s premiers launched a rebranding campaign Monday aimed at transforming Canada’s image on the world stage from environmental pariah to climate change champion. The first ministers ended their first formal meeting in nearly seven years professing a united front as they prepare for next week’s opening of a United Nations climate summit in Paris. “We’ll demonstrate that we are serious about climate change,” Trudeau said following a fourhour working dinner with provincial and territorial leaders. “This means making decisions based on science, it means reducing carbon emissions, including through carbon pricing towards a climate resilient economy. It means collaborating with our provincial and territorial partners, supporting climate change efforts in developing countries and investing in sustainable economic prosperity.” As expected, the meeting did not produce a new national target for reducing emissions or policies for achieving it. The gathering was aimed more at demonstrating a new tone in the run-up to the Paris summit. The premiers also sought — and received — Trudeau’s reassurances that the influx of 25,000 refugees from Syria would be handled with Canadians’ security top of mind. Within 90 days of the summit, Trudeau has promised to hold another first ministers conference to hammer out a national climate strategy. He’ll undoubtedly find it hard-
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PM Justin Trudeau: “Welcoming the Premiers to Ottawa for the first First Ministers’ conference since 2009.” FACEBOOK
er to maintain a united front as he gets into the nitty gritty of setting a national emission reduction target and mediating conflicting provincial demands over how to disperse the billions he’s promised in funding to help reduce their carbon footprint. Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall, who was noticeably less enthusiastic than his fellow first ministers about tackling climate change, signalled that he’ll fight to ensure the eventual plan doesn’t unduly hurt the energy industry on which his province’s economy depends. “As we are meeting, there are literally tens of thousands of Canadians who have been laid off of their jobs in (the oil and gas) sector,” Wall said. “So, as we prepare for Paris and to present a constructive and national front to the world, we need to be mindful of that fact, we need to work hard to ensure that we’re doing no further harm to an industry that’s facing great difficulty.” He added: “I don’t think those things are necessarily mutually exclusive.” Earlier Monday as they arrived for the meeting, premiers expressed optimism that the ad-
vent of new leadership in Ottawa and Alberta will allow Canada to shed its international reputation as an environmental laggard. They applauded Alberta Premier Rachel Notley for unveiling Sunday a climate strategy that includes a hard cap on greenhouse gas emissions from the oilsands, which have become a symbol of Canada’s alleged environmental neglect. Notley’s plan also includes imposition of a carbon tax and phasing out coal-fired power plants. British Columbia Premier Christy Clark said the international focus on the oilsands has obscured measures provinces have been taking to combat climate change, including B.C.’s carbon tax which she labelled the best in the world. “We have had a black eye for a long time on environmental issues and we have not deserved it,” she said. “But now we’re getting a chance to show the world really what we’ve been doing all these years and I think they’ll be a little bit surprised.” Under former prime minister Stephen Harper, Clark said ❱❱ PAGE 21 Trudeau, premiers
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Apparent provincial climate unity gives Trudeau tailwind en route to Paris BY BRUCE CHEADLE The Canadian Press OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau jets off for his second international foray in as many weeks this evening but this time he’s got a little wind at his back. A meeting of Canada’s first ministers Monday in Ottawa — the first in almost seven years — ended with 11 provinces and territories humming from the same environmental hymn book as Trudeau’s newly elected Liberals. “It is clear that the way forward for Canada will be in a solution that resembles Canada; that is shared values and shared desires for outcomes and different approaches to achieve those outcomes right across
this great country,” Trudeau said at a late evening news conference on the eve of his departure for London, Malta and Paris. Yukon Premier Darrell Pasloski, the chairman of the provincial Council of the Federation, said Canada will have a “co-ordinated” voice when it speaks at the UN-sponsored COP21 climate conference in the French capital — “and certainly a different voice going out to the world, starting at COP21.” Only the leaders of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Northwest Territories missed the meeting, due to election campaigns. The federal-provincial show of unity on climate change, helped immeasurably by Alberta’s new climate plan an-
nounced on the weekend, provides Trudeau with muchneeded momentum to go with his earnest environmental rhetoric. The prime minister has been pushed into a whirlwind tour of international summitry after barely a month on the job, the result of a series of international leaders’ meetings that have taken him from the G20 in Turkey to an APEC summit in the Philippines and, this week, on to a Commonwealth meeting in Malta and the Paris climate talks, with a side trip to Buckingham Palace to meet Queen Elizabeth, for good measure. Trudeau’s first international foray got off to a grim start as the deadly terrorist attacks in Paris rocked the world while his ❱❱ PAGE 25 Apparent provincial
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Trudeau, premiers... Canada tended to “talk about economic growth more than the environment on the international stage.” She predicted Trudeau will do a good job in Paris of emphasizing the country’s environmental stewardship. Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard said Paris presents an opportunity to “rebrand” Canada. “Our country needs a serious effort in rebranding on this theme of climate change and energy,” he said. “Not only are we an important producer of oil ... but we’re also the third largest producer of hydroelectricity in the world.” With Alberta’s new plan added to measures already taken to curb carbon emissions in B.C., Ontario and Quebec, Couillard added that almost 80 per cent of Canadians are now living in jurisdictions that have imposed a price on carbon. “Nobody knows that in the world,” he said. “It has to be known, it has to be said, it has to be repeated.” While Trudeau has not yet of❰❰ 19
fered a national emission reduction target, his government has said it hopes to set a more ambitious target than that proposed last spring by the Harper government: a 30 per cent reduction below 2005 levels by 2030. In the meantime, Alberta’s new plan gives the Canadian delegation something concrete to trumpet at the Paris summit. At the opening of Monday’s meeting, Trudeau quickly ceded the stage to Notley, giving her a national podium from which to tout what he called Alberta’s “historic” climate plan. “I’m hopeful that these policies will help us send an important message to the world next week in Paris — Canada is back,” Alberta’s NDP premier said. “We are going to work together boldly, imaginatively and wisely to build a national economy that has room in it for a national energy industry that helps drive prosperity (and) for an effective approach to climate change that Canadians can finally put before the world proudly.” ■
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Who were the Paris attackers? Many crossed officials’ radar THE ASSOCIATED PRESS PARIS — French police and prosecutors, friends and families, and journalists have unveiled details about the men accused of carrying out the attacks in Paris. Altogether, authorities say that three teams participated in the bloody assault. At least one suspected participant remains at large. Here’s what’s known about the suspects: Suspected mastermind
ABDELHAMID ABAAOUD, 28 French investigators identified Belgian-born Abaaoud of Moroccan descent as the architect of the Paris attacks. A U.S. official briefed on intelligence matters said Abaaoud was a key figure in an Islamic State external operations cell that U.S. intelligence agencies have been tracking for months. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss intelligence matters publicly. Officials initially believed he had coordinated the assaults against a soccer stadium, cafes and a rock concert from Syria, but he died during a police raid Wednesday on a Paris apartment that was a 15-minute walk from the Stade de France. Abaaoud was also suspected of involvement in several thwarted attacks this year, including on a church in the Parisian suburb of Villejuif, and possibly an attempted attack on a high-speed train when three Americans tackled a heavily armed man. Abaaoud is believed to have gotten to know some of the attackers responsible for the Paris massacre in the Moleenbeek neighborhood of Brussels where he grew up. How and when Abaaoud entered France before his death remained unclear. He had bragged in the Islamic State group’s English-language magazine that he was able to slip in and out of Europe undetected. Abaaoud was wanted in Belgium, where he was sentenced in absentia this year to 20 years’ imprisonment for serving as an IS recruiter and kidnapping his younger brother, Younes. Bel-
gian authorities say Abaaoud brought the boy, then 13, to Syria last year to join him in IScontrolled territory. Bataclan killers
Three suicide bombers — two who blew themselves up and one shot by police — have been identified as targeting concertgoers at the Bataclan music venue: ISMAEL OMAR MOSTEFAI, 29 Police say Mostefai blew himself up at the theater. Tall, quiet and conservatively dressed, Mostefai appears to have aroused little suspicion at the housing block he shared with his family in the French cathedral city of Chartres or at the nearby Anoussra Mosque. Arnauld Froissart, a 34-year-old bank employee who lives in the area, said Mostefai was “very discreet” and his family was “very nice.” French police believe Mostefai traveled to Syria in the past few years, although it’s not clear what he did there. At the Anoussra Mosque, Islamic association leader Ben Bammou confirmed that Mostefai was a regular mosquegoer until about two years ago. He said he saw no sign of fanaticism. “He was a reserved young man who played soccer with his colleagues; he was a baker who was coming to pray daily,” he told The Associated Press. SAMY AMIMOUR, 28 The Frenchman was charged in a terrorism investigation in 2012. He had been placed under judicial supervision but dropped off the radar and was the subject of an international arrest warrant. Amimour, who had a short career as a bus driver, had already run into trouble with the law. French officials quizzed him on Oct. 19, 2012, over links to a network of terror sympathizers and an abortive trip to Yemen. Amimour’s father traveled to Islamic State-held territory in June 2014 in an effort to convince his son to leave Syria but was rebuffed, according to Le Monde newspaper. “He was with another guy, who never left us alone,” the father said.
—A third theater attacker remains unidentified. Stadium killers
Authorities say three suicide bombers were set to attack the Stade de France, though they were unable to get into the stadium and they killed only one bystander: AHMAD AL-MOHAMMAD, 25 That’s the name written on a Syrian passport found near one of the suicide bombers. The document describes AlMohammad as a 25-year-old from the rebel-held Syrian city Idlib. French officials said in a statement that the bomber’s fingerprints match a set taken in Greece in October. A Greek official says the person holding Al-Mohammad’s passport went through administrative processing on the Greek island of Leros after setting out from Turkey, staying there for five days before arriving by ship in Athens. He later entered Serbia, where authorities took fingerprints that match those given in Greece, and he then crossed into Croatia the next day, according to a Serbian security official who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the press. It’s not known whether Al-Mohammad is the man’s real name. BILAL HADFI, age unclear. A police official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to speak publicly identified Hadfi, a French citizen, as one of the three stadium bombers. Belgian police said they were keeping in custody a person linked to Hadfi in an investigation not directly related to the Paris attacks. An official in the Belgian federal prosecutor’s office said raids related to Hadfi targeted people in his “entourage.” The third stadium bomber hasn’t been named, but French officials said he entered Greece at the same time as Al-Mohammed. More than a week after the attacks, authorities posted a photo of the man on Twitter as part of a new public appeal for help in identifying him. www.canadianinquirer.net
Syrian refugees in Kos, Greece in October 2015.
Cafe attackers
Authorities have not publicly said how many attackers were involved in shooting attacks on a string of cafes in eastern Paris around the time of the Bataclan attack nearby. They have identified one attacker on the cafe Comptoir Voltaire: BRAHIM ABDESLAM, 30 or 31 Abdeslam, elder brother of fugitive Salah Abdeslam, blew himself up outside the cafe. A person in Belgium familiar with the investigation told The Associated Press that Brahim Abdeslam became “close” with Abaaoud while living in the Molenbeek neighborhood. His former lawyer, Olivier Martins, said Abdeslam had done a short prison term in Belgium for stealing official identity cards. “They sell for a lot of money to people who want to remain on Belgian territory,” Martins told the AP. Abdeslam, a French citizen, was arrested in 2003, admitted to stealing and reselling 10 or so of the cards from Belgian government offices, and spent a month in prison. Martins said he got him released, and that by the time the case came to court, in 2010, his client had sufficiently turned his life around that the judge let him go. Abdeslam had opened a small restaurant, and “appeared to be on the right road.” But Martins said he sensed problems. “He was a kind, courteous, polite person,” the lawyer said. “But in my opinion, he was someone who was very, very fragile and very easily influenced.” After a police investigation that lasted several weeks, officers determined this fall that drug dealing was taking place at Abdeslam’s cafe, said Mustafa Er, spokesman for Molenbeek’s mayor. On Nov. 4, Er said, Mayor Francoise Schepmans signed an order closing down the business.
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Female accomplice
HASNA AITBOULAHCEN, 26 Authorities say Aitboulahcen died in the police raid on the apartment where Abaaoud was holed up. On Friday, prosecutors said she didn’t kill herself by detonating a suicide vest as previously thought. She had lived a secular life, drinking alcohol and rarely visiting a mosque. The lawyer for Abaaoud’s father said Friday that Aitboulahcen was his niece, and therefore Abaaoud’s cousin. Born in the Paris suburb of Clichy-la-Garenne, Aitboulahcen moved to the eastern French town of Creutzwald with her parents and four siblings when she was 16. Some years later Aitboulahcen apparently left Creutzwald and settled in the Paris suburb of Clichy-sous-Bois. Her father, who was born in Marrakech, and her older sister moved to Morocco. Aitboulahcen is listed on company registration documents two years ago as manager of a construction company based in the Paris suburb of Epinay-surSeine that went bankrupt less than 10 months later. Because her name came up in a drug-trafficking case, Aitboulahcen was under surveillance, and her movements may have led authorities to the Saint-Denis flat. She, Abaaoud and one other as-yet-identified person were killed in the apartment raid. Authorities are investigating whether she had a role in the Paris attacks. On the loose
SALAH ABDESLAM, 26 Abdeslam, a Brussels-born man, is the brother of Brahim, who blew himself up outside the cafe Comptoir Voltaire. ❱❱ PAGE 24 Who were
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Hollande to press Obama on Russia cooperation in IS fight BY JULIE PACE AND KATHLEEN HENNESSEY The Associated Press WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama will stand in solidarity with French President Francois Hollande at the White House on Tuesday, 11 days after the Islamic State group launched a series of deadly attacks in Paris. But Hollande is likely to leave Washington without firm backing for his call to bring Russia into a new coalition to fight the extremists. Hollande’s visit to Washington is part of a diplomatic offensive to get the international community to bolster the campaign against the Islamic State militants. The group is believed to have been behind the Nov. 13 attacks that killed 130 people in Paris, as well as separate attacks in Lebanon and Turkey
and the downing of a Russian airliner in Egypt. As the Islamic State group expands its reach outside its bases in Syria and Iraq, Obama is facing increased pressure at home and abroad to ramp up U.S. efforts to destroy the militants. So far, Obama is resisting calls to either change or significantly ramp up his approach, and instead is focused on getting other countries to offer more counterintelligence, humanitarian and military assistance. “The United States is certainly pulling more than our own weight,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said. “And we believe that there is more that can be done if countries are willing to contribute additional resources.” The U.S. campaign has centered largely on launching airstrikes, while training and assisting security forces on
the ground in Iraq. Efforts to train and equip moderate rebel groups in Syria have struggled, though Obama has authorized the deployment of 50 special operations forces to the country to jumpstart the program. France has stepped up its airstrikes following the Paris attacks, relying in part on U.S. intelligence to hit targets in Raqqa, the Islamic State group’s stronghold in Syria. British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Monday he would seek parliamentary approval this week for Britain to begin airstrikes as well. Hollande wants the U.S.-led coalition to start cooperating with Russia, which is also launching airstrikes in Syria. While Russian President Vladimir Putin says his country is targeting the Islamic State militants, the U.S. contends Moscow is going after rebels fighting Syrian President Bashar
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French President Francois Hollande.
Assad, a Kremlin ally. Last week, Hollande called for the U.S. and Russia to set aside their policy divisions over Syria and “fight this terrorist army in
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a broad, single coalition.” But his office acknowledges that “coordination” sounds like a far ❱❱ PAGE 25 Hollande to
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Turkey shoots down Thailand indicts 2 warplane over for deadly Bangkok bombing airspace intrusion BY LINDSEY BAHR The Associated Press ANKARA, TURKEY — Turkish media reports said Tuesday that Turkish jets shot down a warplane that violated national airspace at the border with Syria. Video footage of the incident showed a warplane crashing onto a hill and two crew members apparently parachuting safely. The Dogan news agency, quoting unnamed military officials, said the plane crashed into Syrian territory close to the border with Turkey. The agency did not say what nation the plane was from. A Turkish government official could not confirm the report but a statement from Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu’s office said the Turkish leader spoke with Turkey’s military chief and foreign ministry about the incident. It said
Davutoglu would start “initiatives” within NATO and the United Nations. Video footage of the incident showed the plane on fire before crashing on a hill, and two parachutes were seen. Rami Abdurrahman who heads the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the warplane crashed in the Turkmen Mountains region in the coastal province of Latakia. He said it is not yet clear if the warplane was Russian or Syrian. He added that the fate of the pilot and co-pilot is not known yet. The Turkomen Mountains region has been subjected to a government offensive over the past days under the cover of Russian airstrikes. Last month, Turkish jets shot down an unidentified drone that had also violated Turkey’s airspace.
BY NATTASUDA ANUSONADISAI The Associated Press
BANGKOK — A Thai military court on Tuesday indicted two foreigners accused of carrying out a deadly bombing at a shrine in Bangkok but questions hang over the case because of the attackers’ unclear motive and an opaque investigation. Both men have been described by officials as ethnic Uighurs (pronounced “weeghurs”) from western China’s Xinjiang region. Officials say the blast was carried out by a people-smuggling gang seeking revenge on Thai authorities for cracking down on their operation. The Aug. 17 blast at the Erawan Shrine — a popular tourist destination — was one of the most deadly acts of violence in Bangkok in decades, and left 20 people dead and more than 120 injured. Of the dead, 14 were tourists. The attack shocked the residents of the capital because of the apparent randomness, which drove home the point that no place is immune to acts of terror. Authorities, however, have declined to call it an act of terrorism out of apparent fear that it would hurt the country’s huge tourism industry. Police initially appeared at first to be at a loss, but soon claimed success with a series
Lt.Gen.Dr.Prawut Thavornsiri Assistant Commission, General of Thailand, holds a police sketch of one of the bombing suspects at the Erawan Shrine in Bangkok, Thailand in August 2015. NATTAPAN72 / SHUTTERSTOCK
of raids and two arrests. Arrest warrants have been issued for 15 others. The two suspects were brought to the court in handcuffs wearing brown prison garb. Members of the media were not allowed to enter the court and the indictments took place before the two suspects arrived, said defense lawyer Chuchart Kanpai. The two, identified as Bilal Mohammad and Mieraili Yusufu, were indicted on 10 counts — none of them terrorism charges. They include conspiracy to explode bombs and commit premeditated murder,
Chuchart said. Early speculation about the bombing had suggested it might be the work of Uighur separatists who were angry that Thailand in July forcibly repatriated more than 100 Uighurs to China, where it is feared they face persecution. The theory was bolstered by the fact that the Erawan Shrine is popular among Chinese tourists, who figured prominently among the victims of the bombing. But Thai officials reject any political or religious motive, sticking to the theory that it
pected of being in contact with the Paris attackers. The official, who cannot be named because of Turkish government rules that bar officials from speaking to reporters without prior authorization, said in an emailed message: “We believe that Dahmani was in contact with the terrorists who perpetrated the Paris attacks.” The private Dogan news agency reported that he is suspected of having explored areas in Paris that were targeted in the attacks. Dahmani had arrived in Turkey from Amsterdam on Nov. 14, the day after the Paris at-
tacks, the official said. He and two other men who were also detained — all three suspected of being Islamic State militants — were preparing to cross the Turkish-Syrian border, according to the official. They remained in custody following a court appearance. ■
❱❱ PAGE 28 Thailand indicts
Who were... Salah Abdeslam is sought as a suspected accomplice in the attacks and is described by French police as highly dangerous. He is the suspected driver of a group of gunmen during the attacks. Authorities identified him as the renter of a Volkswagen Polo that carried hostagetakers to the Paris theater. Officials said Abdeslam entered Austria from Germany Nov. 9 with two unidentified companions and they were stopped for a routine traffic check. They said they were planning a vacation in Vienna. The Abdeslam brothers ❰❰ 22
booked a hotel in the southeastern Paris suburb of Alfortville and rented a house in the northeastern suburb of Bobigny several days before the attacks. Hours after he was linked to the attacks, Abdeslam and two travelers were stopped in their car near the Belgian border. Four French officials acknowledged that police had Abdeslam in their grasp, but officials let him go after checking his ID. Two men arrested in Belgium admitted driving to France to pick up Salah Abdeslam the morning after the attacks: Mohammed Amri, 27, and Hamza
Attou, 21, are being held on charges of terrorist murder and conspiracy. Salah’s other brother, Mohamed Abdeslam, said all three siblings grew up in Belgium and seemingly were content with life in the West. “We are an open-minded family. We never had any problem with justice,” he said. Detained in Turkey
AHMAD DAHMANI A senior Turkish government official said Saturday that Ahmad Dahmani, a 26-year-old Belgian of Moroccan origin, was detained in Turkey, suswww.canadianinquirer.net
Associated Press writers across Europe and in the United States contributed to this report, including Raf Casert and JohnThor Dahlburg in Brussels, Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey, Dusan Stojanovic in Belgrade, Serbia, and Ken Dilanian in Washington.
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Hollande to... more realistic goal. “We are not talking about a command center. We are talking about coordination of methods and exchange of intelligence,” a French diplomat said on Monday. The diplomat wasn’t authorized to publicly discuss the subject and spoke on condition of anonymity. Earnest said the U.S. would “continue the conversation” with Putin but suggested Obama would make no promises to Hollande during Tuesday’s visit. From Washington, Hollande will travel to Moscow for meetings with Putin. Beyond their discussions on military cooperation, Obama and Hollande are expected to discuss diplomatic efforts to achieve a political transition in Syria. The U.S. and France support a transition that would lead to the departure of Assad, who has overseen a civil war in ❰❰ 23
his country that created a vacuum for the Islamic State group to thrive. While Russia is backing a new diplomatic effort in Syria, Moscow still refuses to support steps that explicitly call for removing Assad from power. The quagmire in Syria has dragged on for nearly five years, and criticism of Obama’s strategy appears only to grow louder. On Sunday, both Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Leon Panetta, Obama’s former defense secretary, said the U.S. effort wasn’t measuring up. Feinstein called for more aggressive action and additional special operations forces in Syria. “I don’t think the approach is sufficient to the job,” Feinstein said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” ■ Associated Press writer Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed to this report.
Apparent provincial... military Airbus jet was still on the tarmac in Ottawa preparing for departure. The attacks immediately raised questions about Liberal policy planks on Syrian refugee acceptance and withdrawing Canadian fighter jets from bombing the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in Syria and Iraq. Those questions continue to tail Trudeau, but his immediate focus is on rebranding Canada as a helpful partner in the global push to combat climate change. Trudeau said in his meetings at the G20 and APEC last week he was encouraged to use Canada’s clout within the Commonwealth to encourage some of its members to join the climate fight. “We’ll be able to push some of the countries that have been less enthusiastic about an ambitious resolution coming to Paris and actually be an active player and proponent on that stage,” said the prime minister. His first stop is Buckingham Palace, where Trudeau has been granted an audience with the Queen on Wednesday. Canadian prime ministers tend to meet the monarch at their first opportunity, but Trudeau will get the chance twice in the same week. The Queen, who turns 90 in April, leaves Thursday for the Commonwealth heads of government meeting in Malta, which could be the last such Commonwealth CHOGM (as they are known) she attends. The elderly monarch is now restricting her international travel, and with the next two biennial CHOGMs scheduled to be held outside Europe, royal watchers in the United Kingdom are discussing Malta as a swan song of sorts. Canada under prime minister Stephen ❰❰ 21
Harper skipped the last Commonwealth leaders’ meeting in 2013 in Colombo, Sri Lanka, over concerns about that country’s human rights record. The Conservative government also cut off millions in Canadian funding for the grouping of 54 countries formerly under British rule, waiting out Sri Lanka’s two-year chairmanship. Trudeau said he’ll be continuing to raise the issues of human rights and good governance among the fractious, 66-year-old Commonwealth organization. From Malta, Trudeau will arrive in Paris for the opening day of the twoweek COP21 climate conference, where more than 160 countries hope to hammer out an international framework for addressing climate change in the post2020 period. Canada gained a reputation as a climate laggard during the decade of Conservative rule. Trudeau’s been getting a warm international welcome simply for repeatedly stating that his government is prepared to play a constructive role and do its part. “In previous years at the COP conferences, Canada has spoken with different voices that sometimes were contradictory,” Trudeau said Monday night. “Some provinces said one thing, the federal government said another. The NGOs said something else altogether. Canada wasn’t presenting a cohesive front.” The hard decisions on a detailed Canadian plan to actually start reversing emissions trends must wait for another first ministers’ conference, to be scheduled within 90 days. In the meantime, Trudeau will ride Canada’s unity tailwind to Paris. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net
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FILIPINO-CANADIAN IN FOCUS:
Bloom Where You Are Planted: Fr. Ben Ebcas Jr. BY CHING DEE Philippine Canadian Inquirer Raised by hardworking parents who instilled the value of earnest work and honest deeds, Father (Fr.) Ben Ebcas Jr.—together with his nine siblings— grew up believing each life is a gift from God and therefore should be cherished. So when Typhoon ‘Uring’ devastated the City of Ormoc, Leyte in November 1991, Fr. Ben knew he had to do something to help his city. This longing to help out continued even when he moved to Canada in 1996. “I moved to Canada in July 1996 after I have finished my [masters] Pastoral Ministry in Manila in order to take some courses in Crisis Intervention and Strategies. I wanted to continue helping my townmates who were devastated by Typhoon Uring,” Fr. Ben shared, adding that over 7,000 locals were affected by the typhoon. While he was studying, he was given the opportunity to serve as an associated pastor in the Diocese of Peterborough and Archdiocese of Toronto. Fr. Ben was ordained as a priest in July 3, 1983, but in 2000, he became a pastor with several pastorates. Today, he serves at Our Lady of Assumption Church. Fr. Ben admits he also encountered challenges when he first moved to Canada, just like any immigrant in a new land. “I have met interesting challenges in the areas of enculturation and pastoral ministry. I had to make adjustments to the varied cultural groups that I was serving and try to speak English that will be understood by my parishioners,” Fr. Ben recalls. “Even at school in Durham College and Schulich in York University, I had to adjust to the methodology… However, knowing that I was not doing these things for myself but for my flock and my family and friends back in the Philippines, I was determined to finish what I have started,” Fr. Ben tells the Philippine Canadian Inquirer.
Fr. Ben preaching.
fiesta celebrations year-round,” he shared. Fr. Ben Ebcas Jr. To relive and celebrate his Filipino heritage anywhere he But more than cultural dif- says, expounding on the impor- goes, Fr. Ben shared that he ferences, Fr. Ben battled with tance of faith. imparts Filipino values to the one of the biggest hurdles for “Things will not come out people he meets. anyone who had to leave their good if we work and work with“No matter where I go— family behind: Homesickness. out maintaining our focus and whether in Europe for pilgrim“I have to accept the fact that purpose,” Fr. Ben continues. ages, around Canada or our I couldn’t visit my parents and “There are lots of temptations neigbours down South—I bring my siblings weekly as I used to around not only in terms of with me the treasury of my because they're thousands of material but also emotional al- unique cultural and religious miles away and it's way too ex- lurements due to distance from values as a Filpino,” he started. pensive to go home,” he said. families and longing for close “Utang na loob, pag-galang sa “Faith in God's providence and relationships. Hence, I stress mga matatanda, hiya (in a posigenerosity is the central source the importance of faith, focus, tive way), malalim na pananalig of my strength. Magtiwala at and future of the whole family sa Diyos, at pag-alaga sa mga manalig sa Diyos dahil hindi when making decisions in life.” paboritong devotional practices ka Niya pababayaan (trust and Despite being in Canada for (Debt of gratitude, respect for rely on the Lord because He almost a decade now, Fr. Ben the elderly, shyness (in a posiwill not forsake you).” still can’t help but look back at tive way), strong faith in God, Despite being thousands of his life in the Philippines—rel- and taking care of our beloved miles away from his family, Fr. ishing in the nostalgia of his devotional practices.)” Ben made the most of his stay in family, friends, and the overall After 32 years of faithful serCanada. He soon realized that warmth of Filipino culture and vice to the Lord and His minhe is in a land istry, Fr. Ben brimming with hasn’t grown opportunity—esweary or tired pecially for hard of his God-given workers, like There is an exigency to adapt to your tasks. In fact, he many Filipinos. new environment but at the same wish he could do “Canada oftime not losing your unique Filipino more of it. fers a lot of opheritage and values. Above all, have “This is my voportunities in Faith in God who sees our needs. cation and life. many facets of I love my minislife, [like] educatry because it's tion, work, selfmy personal readvancement, sponse to God's health coverage,” he explained. life. call to serve His people,” he “But the most common denom“I miss the country life, the said. “It is my big ‘Thank You’ inator to succeed in Canada is simplicity of the joys of the ru- for His goodness and bountiful not just accepting what comes, ral folks, the smiles and conviv- blessings to me, my love ones, but affecting the outcome of ial treatment of the lolas, chil- and my parish.” one's future. In other words, dren, and of course, our gulay, “The continuous challenge is you have to do your own share isda, tuba (vegetables, fish, fer- my health,” he opens up. “How of hard work, focus, and more mented coconut liquor)… The I wish I am healthier so I can importantly, trust in God,” he inspiring and joyful devotional serve more and do more for my www.canadianinquirer.net
ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF FR. BEN EBCAS, JR.
parish family, but I am not discouraged because I remember what Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta told me when we were together in Tondo, Manila doing apostolate: ‘No matter how small is your task, do it the best you can and do it with love.’” “I am happy when I hear news that the kababayans we've tried our best to help are now permanent residents or have found a job, reunited with their families... These are some of my little sources of joy and inspiration,” he said with a smile. Fr. Ben believes that it is the grace of God that enabled him to bloom where he was planted—whether it was in his hometown of Ormoc or in this foreign land. “Moving to Canada has broadened my perspective in life in terms of the hard realities of immigration, adjustments in terms of work, emotional needs, and my pastoral ministry,” he shared. “There is an exigency to adapt to your new environment but at the same time not losing your unique Filipino heritage and values. Above all, have Faith in God who sees our needs.” For fellow Filipinos who are still thinking of moving to Canada—or have already decided to take that leap of faith—Fr. Ben has a few words of encouragement and wisdom. “To my kababayans, magsikap, magtiyaga, magdasal at huwag makalimot sa pinanggalingan (To my countrymen, work hard, persevere, pray, and never forget where you came from).” ■
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
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Travel
The Halifax Seaport Farmers’ Market perfect mosaic of the city for visitors BY BEN COUSINS The Canadian Press HALIFAX — A walk through the aisles of the Halifax Seaport Farmers’ Market is an experience that’s quintessentially Nova Scotian. As thousands of the port city’s residents and visitors stroll slowly through the rows of stalls on a Saturday morning, they pass piles of fresh produce, locallymade cheeses, glistening seafood and hand-made crafts, savouring the rich smells and bright colours before winding up the morning with some live music outside. Mary Ann LaPierre of Hillcrest Farm, whose family has been selling produce at the market every Saturday since the late 1800s, says it’s a perfect introduction to the province. “(You get to) see the people of Nova Scotia, see what’s growing here and how we live.” Established in 1750, a year after Halifax itself was founded, the market is the oldest continuously operating farmers’ market in North America. “It’s still basically the same, selling one-on-one to customers, but it’s changed quite a bit,” said LaPierre. Over the years, the market’s location has changed a few times, but it finally found a permanent home in a vast and airy new building in the Seaport on the city’s waterfront in 2010. The 46,672 square-foot facility now hosts more than 250 vendors from 50 countries. Julie Chaisson, executive director of the market, says it reflects the diversity of Halifax and Canada as a whole. “When you walk through a market, you see the true character of the city,” she says. “It’s a really great mosaic for the heart of that city.” On any given weekend, Chaisson says 15,000 people come through the market, which has grown from its origins as a meat market to a bustling showcase of everything from locally-made sushi to polish perogies to custom-made handbags. “Anything you can make, bake, grow or catch,” says Chaisson. In the early years, heading down to the market became a way of life for many farmers. As well as a place of business, the market offered an opportunity to reconnect with friends and catch up on the
SHUTTERSTOCK
news of the week. People would travel up to 65 kilometres each way, often by horse and wagon, to sell their goods. LaPierre remembers her 90-minute long rides fondly. “I was small,” she says. “We used to drive the old truck. If we got 30 miles an hour out of it, we were lucky.” “That’s what took us so long.”
Back then, whichever farmer arrived first got the best spot, which meant LaPierre and her family had to leave early. Some of LaPierre’s favourite memories from the market are the people she’s met, from her weekly regulars to some big-time celebrities. “I met Prince Charles here and I met Roberta Bondar, the first Canadian lady
in space.” The market is part of the Halifax Seaport, which is where the cruise ships dock and is also home to the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21. “A lot of the cruise ship people come in and they’re quite surprised to see all the things we have here in Nova Scotia,” says
Vancouver
❱❱ PAGE 35 The Halifax
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Community News
NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
Canadian embassy holds roadshow to showcase infrastructure opportunities in Southeast Asia Business opportunities in the infrastructure and public-private-partnership (PPP) sectors in the 10 countries of Southeast Asia will be presented to Canadian companies in a free roadshow seminar series to be conducted in Vancouver, Montreal, and Toronto from Nov. 30 to Dec. 4, 2015.
The roadshow will be spearheaded by the Southeast Asia Infrastructure Sectoral Team of the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service (www.tradecommissioner.gc.ca/) and conducted by its leader, Dodjie Fabian, from the Canadian Embassy in Manila, Philippines. The roadshow seminar will
Nominations now open for immigrants awards DO YOU know an immigrant who has made amazing contributions to Calgary’s community in the areas of arts and culture, professional achievement, entrepreneurship and innovation, or community service? What about an organization with a record of embracing diversity, or an immigrant or refugee youth whose accomplishments truly make him or her shine? Nominations for the 20th Annual Immigrants of Distinction Awards (IDA) are officially open and will be accepted until 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 30. “Fostering a Legacy of Excellence” is the chosen theme for the 20th Anniversary of the IDA Gala, which commemorate the success of newcomers in their professional and business endeavors, as well as recognizes the new and innovative ideas immigrants bring to the Calgary community. Through their skills, passion and vision; the achievements of newcomers have enhanced the cultural, social and economic richness of Calgary allowing us to truly foster a legacy of excellence as a city. Immigrant Services Calgary is eager to celebrate the accomplishments
that will emerge from the nominations for our 2016 Immigrants of Distinction Awards. ISC is currently accepting nominations in the following categories: * Achievement Under 35 * Arts and Culture * Community Service * Entrepreneurship and Innovation * Hadassah Ksienski Lifetime Achievement * Science, Technology, Engineering and Math * Organizational Diversity * Youth Scholarships Individuals and organizations who are nominated must reside in Calgary or the surrounding area. All entries will be reviewed by an anonymous selection committee comprised of community members. Award recipients will be announced at the 20th Annual IDA Gala on Mar. 11, 2016, at the Westin Calgary Hotel. Candidates must be nominated by someone other than themselves with the exception of the Youth Scholarship Category. ■ Nominations can be made by visiting IDA website at immigrants ofdistinction.com
focus on the results of the report commissioned by the Department of Foreign Affairs Trade and Development (DFATD) earlier this year, on available business opportunities across Southeast Asia that Canadian companies may pursue. The Top five Southeast Asian
business opportunities will also be presented together with the coordinates of local contacts for easy reference of interested Canadian companies. Seminars will be followed by targeted one-on-one meetings to explore opportunities and how these may be pursued. Fabian will be joined by Paul Short-
house of Delphi, the company that prepared the commissioned report, and Madeleine Varkay of the Asian Development Bank (www.adb.org). To register for free, please contact Dodjie R. Fabian at Dodjie.Fabian@international. gc.ca. For more details, visit: http://goo.gl/KoJptg ■
Thailand indicts... was a revenge for tion to their confessions. He was arrested at one of two disrupting a humanSecurity camera footage from apartments police raided on smuggling gang. Still, the Erawan Shrine showed a the outskirts of Bangkok. skepticism about the police ex- man wearing a yellow T-shirt Yusufu was arrested Sept. 1 planation on the shrine attack who sat down on a bench at the near the Thai-Cambodia borhas abounded because of leaks, outdoor shrine, took off a black der, carrying a Chinese passcontradictions, misstatements backpack and then left it behind port indicating he was from and secrecy surrounding the as he stood up and walked away. Xinjiang. Police said his DNA investigation. Time stamps on closed circuit and fingerprints were found The two men have been held TV footage showed he left the in both raided apartments, inat an army base since their ar- shrine just minutes before the cluding on a container of gunrests in late August and early blast occurred, during evening powder. September. No details of their rush hour as the area in central Police said they have confesinterrogation have been re- Bangkok was filled with people. sions from the two, and Bilal’s vealed. Even lawyer says his their nationaliclient admitties remain unted planting the clear. deadly bomb They are being Former National Police Chief Somyot at the behest of tried at a military Poomphanmuang said before his another suspect court on an army retirement in September that the who remains a base in Bangkok case against the two suspects was fugitive. He says because cases of supported by closed-circuit television Bilal was in“national secufootage, witnesses, DNA matching duced to carry rity” have been and physical evidence, in addition to out the action by handled by the their confessions. a promise that military since his emigration to last May, when Turkey would be the army seized expedited. power in a coup from an elected Police believe that Bilal is Some of the 15 other suspects government. the yellow-shirted man who are Turks, with whom Uighurs Former National Police Chief planted the bomb and Yusufu is share ethnic bonds, and Turkey Somyot Poomphanmuang said believed to have detonated the is home to a large Uighur combefore his retirement in Sep- bomb. munity. Beijing charges that tember that the case against the Bilal, was initially identi- some Uighurs are Islamist tertwo suspects was supported by fied as Adem Karadag, which rorists and that some have been closed-circuit television foot- was the name on a fake Turk- smuggled out of China to join age, witnesses, DNA matching ish passport in his possession Islamic State fighters in Syria, and physical evidence, in addi- when he was arrested Aug. 29. via Turkey. ■ ❰❰ 24
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FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
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Community News
NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
Enverga lauds PH-Taiwan agreement
Senator Enverga and members of Canada-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship group during an audience with President Ma Ying-jeou in Taipei.
TAIWAN’S MINISTRY of Foreign Affairs announced the signing of a fisheries law enforcement agreement between the Philippines and Taiwan, which took place in Taipei on Nov. 5. The agreement is expected to reduce disputes in the two parties’ overlapping exclusive economic zones (EEZs) and protect the rights and in-
terests of fishermen that operate legally in the area. “I am encouraged by this agreement being signed, and I am hopeful that this will be one of many steps taken by all the parties who have made various claims in the West Philippine Sea. Such an agreement is a positive step towards orderly and peaceful resource
extraction in the region, and it will contribute to easing tensions and reduce incidents which could potentially lead to heightened conflict,” said Senator Enverga in a statement. The Agreement Concerning the Facilitation of Cooperation on Law Enforcement in Fisheries Matters allows for clear processes when a fishing vessel is
President Ma Ying-jeou and Senator Enverga (2nd from L) exchange gifts during an audience in Taipei.
suspected of conducting illegal operations in the overlapping EEZs, and formalizes the procedures that either party has to follow. “This is a good starting point for the ongoing consultations that are necessary between the
Philippines and Taiwan in order to maintain good relationships which are of such importance to the two neighbours,” Senator Enverga, who is an executive committee member of the Canada-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group, added. ■
Consular services Migrante advocate dies in crash in Winnipeg suspended ALL REGULAR consular services at the Honorary Consulate General Office in Winnipeg are temporarily suspended until further notice. This order took effect on Nov. 12, and covers the suspension of all notarization and consular services, as well as the issuance of visas. The Philippine Embassy in Ottawa said the order exempts those needing emergency assistance to Filipino nationals. During the period of temporary suspension, the Philippine Consulate General in Toronto
Filipino community in Winnipeg.
will accept all applications and transactions by mail. Applicants and clients from the city of Winnipeg and the province of Manitoba may transact business by mail following the guidelines and requirements published at http://www.philcongen-toronto.com The general public may also avail themselves of consular services during times of consular outreach missions in Manitoba jointly conducted by the Philippine Consulates General of both Toronto and Winnipeg. ■
THE FILIPINO community recently lost a workers’ advocate and sports enthusiast when Ronald “Nonoy” Ordinario, 37, died after his bicycle collided with a dump truck in Richmond, B.C. on Nov. 5. He was on his way home from work. Ordinario left behind his wife, Nie-Ann Amante; sons Rainier, 9 and Rhyan, 6; and newborn daughter Reanna. Ordinario was a founding member of Migrante B.C., a community-based organization committed to the rights and welfare of Filipino immigrants and migrant workers in British Columbia. Through Migrante, Ordinario spearheaded local basketball and volleyball leagues. “Basketball is so popular that it became an annual event with Migrante,” said Erie Maestro, Ordinario’s friend. Ordinario was born on Dec. 8, 1977, in Kiyaab, Cotabato, Philippines. At the time of his death, he worked three part-time jobs, and was the sole breadwinner of his family. A crowdfunding campaign has raised over $12,000 to help www.canadianinquirer.net
With his family during happier times.
defray the family’s expenses. On the Go Fund Me website, friends Manjeet Chana and Adrianna Teoh wrote that NieAnn had serious complications following the birth of her baby. According to them, “We are friends and part of the school community of Nie-Ann and the Ordinario family and ask that you please help support them by making a donation and shar-
ing this page with others so that they may donate if they can as well,” Chana and Teoho wrote. “Any amount would really be greatly appreciated. All monies donated will go directly to Nie-Ann to enable her to pay for daily, family living expenses, to take care of and raise her children, and to provide for the children’s education as they grow up.” ■
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Entertainment
Dingdong Dantes, Marian KathNiel supports Rivera welcome Maria Letizia Mar’s presidential bid in 2016 polls BY JANE MORALEDA Philippine Canadian Inquirer
MANILA — Kapuso Primetime Queen Marian Rivera is now a mom. She and husband Dingdong Dantes welcomed their first child, baby Maria Letizia Gracia Dantes today, November 23. Marian’s talent manager Rams David shared the good news in his Instagram post. According to him, the actress gave birth to around 5 a.m. at the Makati Medical Center. “I just received the best news from Dong and the best Christmas gift from God. Lolola nako! (I’m going to be a grandmother!) Congrats @dongdantes & @therealmarian. God bless Maria Letizia,” Rams wrote. Rams also thanked the Kapuso royal couple’s family and friends who prayed for a safe and normal delivery for Mar-
BY JANE MORALEDA Philippine Canadian Inquirer
“Friends, say hello to our Maria Letizia.” CAPTION AND PHOTO COURTESY OF @DONGDANTES / INSTAGRAM
ian. “Salamat sa lahat ng nag-pray for Yan and Zia. Mahal po namin kayo. Ito na ang magandang balita sa araw na ito (Thank you to all those who prayed for Yan and Zia. We love you. This is the good news for today),” he
added, with the hashtag #salamatama (thank you, father). It can be recalled that Marian pulled out from GMA’s teleserye “The Rich Man’s Daughter,” where she was supposed to take on the lead role, when she found out that she was pregnant. ■
Kris Aquino hits back at comment on her being ‘Imeldific’ BY JANE MORALEDA Philippine Canadian Inquirer
about her’ and being ‘Imeldific’ despite being a critic of the Marcoses. “APEC is good for Filipinos. We are thankful… If Kris messed it up a bit due to her KSP (kulang sa pansin) behav-
relevant impact on APEC except the selfies and attentions KSP stuff just made it cheaper… Classy na sana… Until she does MANILA — With presidenthat thing she always does… Tatial sister Kris Aquino earlier pos ‘pag tinira mo, iiyak-iyak sa slammed for calling it quits TV… San ka ba nagmana, hija? with commutNakakahiya sa ers who expemagulang mo,” rienced heavy his comment traffic during continued. the APEC week, Then when you criticize her, she’ll (Kris Aquino, the actress-host cry on TV… Whom have you gotten you have no relhas again been those traits, dear? It’s embarrassing to evant impact on criticized this your parents. APEC except time for being the selfies and ‘Imeldific.’ attentions KSP In her post stuff just made on Instagram over the week- ior and attitude… Well, let’s it cheaper… It should’ve been end, Kris shared an exchange not give Kris too much credit classy… Until she does that of comments between her and when she behaves like APEC is thing she always does… Then user @justpeteclyde. In the all about her,” @justpeteclyde when you criticize her, she’ll conversation, she was accused wrote. of behaving like ‘APEC is all “Kris Aquino, you have no ❱❱ PAGE 35 Kris Aquino www.canadianinquirer.net
MANILA — In her Instagram post, television broadcaster Korina Sanchez-Roxas officially announced popular love team Daniel Padilla and Kathryn Bernardo’s support for her husband and administration standard-bearer Manuel “Mar” Roxas II in the coming national elections. In her post, Korina shared a photo of her and her husband with the popular on-screen couple. The photo was taken during the making of the ruling Liberal Party’s music video at the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig. The 51-year-old broadcaster captioned it, “KathNiel is for Mar! Teen King and Queen Daniel Padilla and Kathryn Bernardo go for Mar Roxas for President in 2016!.” She also placed the hashtag #DaangMatuwidPaMore. To this, Korina’s follower and the love team’s supporters had mixed reactions on the endorsement. Some expressed support while others frowned on the move.
“Glad to have the same candidate with Kathniel. Ipagpatuloy po natin ang tuwid na daan (Let’s continue with the straight path),” Instagram user @iammeea commented on the post. “Good choice Kathniel, we are for Mar too,” user @tesscoronado also commented. Netizen user @chaaa_vi, along with other Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC) members, on the other hand, asked why Kathryn expressed her support for Mar this early when it is not yet the campaign period and their church have not yet announced which candidate to support. “Can anyone tell me tiwalag na ba si Kathryn from INC? I don’t think na gagawin niya to kung INC pa sya (Can anyone tell me if Kathryn’s no longer with INC? I don’t think she’ll do this if she’s still a member),” she said. “Diba bawal ang isang kaanib ng INC na makisali sa mga ganyang pagtitipon? (INC members are not allowed to join gatherings like that, right?)” @ iancomeque also asked. Other Instagram users, however, called on the actress’s supporters to respect her decision on whom to support. ■
“#KathNiel is for Mar! Teen King and Queen Daniel Padilla and Kathryn Bernardo go for Mar Roxas for President in 2016! #DaangMatuwidPaMore” CAPTION AND PHOTO COURTESY OF @THISISKORINASANCHEZROXAS / INSTAGRAM
Entertainment
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FRIDAY
‘Pix-Noys’ are the most sensible artists, says Pixar president BY MARINEL R. CRUZ Philippine Daily Inquirer SINGAPORE — “Absolutely!” This was the quick response of Pixar Animation Studios president Jim Morris when asked if the American computer animation production studio was open to hiring more Filipino artists. Morris was here to promote “The Good Dinosaur,” which opens in theaters globally on Nov. 25. The 3D computer-animated comedy-drama project came on the heels of the successful release of Disney-Pixar’s “Inside Out,” which was codirected by Pete Docter and Ronnie del Carmen, a Filipino. Although the exact number of Filipino artists at Pixar remains uncertain, Morris said he was aware of this group that calls itself “Pix-Noys.” He claimed to have a high regard for these artists, especially Del Carmen, whom he described as someone who “has this unique sensibility that we’ve never seen in anyone before.” “I would say that his ability to translate an idea into a visual and emotion on the screen is unsurpassed. He’s probably the most talented person alive who is capable of doing it,” Morris told the INQUIRER in an interview at the Four Seasons Hotel on Orchard boulevard here. “Ronnie has made special moments not just in ‘Inside Out,’ but in many other films. In
“Up,” the most heart-wrenching moments are his.” Morris noted that Del Carmen was responsible for a montage in “Up” that is now called “married life.” Morris explained: “It’s when the two characters, Carl and his wouldbe wife, get married and go through their lives together until she passes away. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t find that to be one of the most touching moments in cinema.” There were other equally touching moments in “Up,” too, courtesy of Del Carmen, Morris added. “It’s when Carl, the old man, goes through their picture book while feeling guilty because he thought he didn’t do that one thing that his wife had always wanted to do— to travel the world. Carl then finds notes from her saying everything she had wanted in life had actually happened,” Morris recalled. “Ronnie created that moment, too. He has this uncanny ability to go right through your heart.” “The Good Dinosaur” is helmed by another Asian director, Peter Sohn, who is halfKorean. Morris said Pixar was also keen on creating something that would cater primarily to the Asian market. “Our business and creative model at Pixar is to select people whom we think are good storytellers to be directors. We ask them to develop three ideas that they pitch to us,” Morris pointed out. “So if we had a director that had
a brilliant idea that was Asiabased, we would certainly do it. “The Good Dinosaur” tells the journey of an Apatosaurus named Arlo, who makes an unlikely human friend named Spot. While traveling through a harsh and mysterious landscape, Arlo learns the power of confronting his fears and discovers what he is truly capable of. Raymond Ochoa (NBC’s “The Night Shift,” TNT’s “Rizzoli & Isles,” “Disney’s A Christmas Carol”) is the voice of Arlo, while Jack Bright (“Monsters University”) is Spot. The voice cast includes, among others, Jeffrey Wright (“The Hunger Games: Mockingjay”) as Arlo’s wise Poppa; Frances McDormand (“Fargo”) as Arlo’s strong Momma; and Marcus Scribner (ABC’s “Blackish”) as Arlo’s brother Buck. What is your favorite scene in the movie? One of my two favorite scenes is when both characters realized that they’re orphans. They sort of share that with their pantomime. That’s a pivotal moment in the film because it bonds them in a certain way. There’s a more emotional scene at the end of the film when they reached the end of their journey and Arlo has grown from being a scared kid to a young dino—that’s really a tearjerker! How does the movie compare to other Pixar films in terms of emotional connection? I think it compares favorably. It’s different in the sense that
Pixar’s new movie “The Good Dinosaur”
it’s between a dinosaur and a little boy character, who is kind of an equivalent to a dinosaur’s pet dog. It’s very emotional. What concept was the most difficult to translate to visuals? One of the difficulties in making the film was to create a world that is beautiful but at the same time a challenge for our two key characters to get through. Another thing that was difficult was the fact that we wanted the character design to be a certain way— there’s a stylized animation kind of look to the characters but at the same time they’re pitted against this dramatic landscape that looks very real. To find ways to make them feel like they’re part of that world and landscape was a difficult visual challenge. Will the 2D style of anima-
YOUTUBE TRAILER SCREENSHOT
tion be widely used again? 2D animation is a great art form. Very recently, the films of Hayao Miyazaki were all done in 2D. He is a great master of Japanese animation. In the United States, Disney released an animation called “The Princess and the Frog” and it seems that, though there’s an audience for it, viewers tend to gravitate a little more now toward the modern look of computer graphics. I could say the same thing about stop-motion animation, which is when you make films using puppets. It seems that the audiences are only so large for that kind of look now. There’s something about the freshness of computer-generated imagery and the variety of it that seems to capture the audience’s imagination. ■
Sofia Vergara, Joe Manganiello wed in Palm Beach ceremony THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Congratulations and best wishes to the lovely couple! PHOTO COURTESY OF @SOFIAVERGARA / INSTAGRAM
LOS ANGELES — Actors Sofia Vergara and Joe Manganiello tied the knot on Sunday in a Palm Beach, Florida ceremony, according to a posting on Vergara’s official Facebook page. The two have been a couple for about a year and a half, and www.canadianinquirer.net
were engaged last December on a vacation in Hawaii. “Modern Family” star Vergara, 43, wore a custom Zuhair Murad gown for the ceremony. Attending guests enjoyed a weekend full of activities at The Breakers Resort. At the rehearsal festivities on Saturday, Manganiello, 38, serenaded Vergara with the Guns N’ Roses
song “Sweet Child O’ Mine.” Guests included Manganiello’s “Magic Mike” co-star Channing Tatum and Reese Witherspoon, who starred alongside Vergara in this year’s comedy “Hot Pursuit.” The newlyweds shared photos of the lavish proceedings on their social media accounts throughout the weekend. ■
Entertainment
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Justin Bieber, One Direction, Last ‘Hunger Paris get spotlight at AMAs Games’ opens to franchise low of $101 million BY MESFIN FEKADU The Associated Press
THE 2015 American Music Awards, hosted by Jennifer Lopez at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, featured memorable performances from the Weeknd and Carrie Underwood, a sneak peak at the upcoming “Star Wars” film and a moving tribute to Paris. Here is a look at the top moments from Sunday night.
BY LINDSEY BAHR The Associated Press
Bieber is back
Justin Bieber officially marked a comeback and he celebrated at the AMAs: His new album, “Purpose,” debuted on top of the Billboard charts on Monday, beating One Direction. Bieber also won the AMA for best collaboration with Skrillex and Diplo for “Where Are U Now,” which he performed when he closed the three-hour awards show. He also sang the hits “Sorry” and “What Do You Mean” from “Purpose,” which sold an impressive 649,000 equivalent albums in its first week. But Bieber’s position at No. 1 won’t last long — Adele just released her new album. Hello! Another 1 for 1D
Being down a band member didn’t stop One Direction’s fans from helping them win artist of the year for a second year in a row. The group beat Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj and Luke Bryan for the top honor at the fan-voted awards show. One Direction downsized from five to four members when Zayn Malik left the group earlier this year. They also performed the song “Perfect” — a perfect description of the boy band’s night. Praying for Paris
Celine Dion was in top form as she beautifully sang “Hymne à L’Amour” in French — even driving some audience members to tears. Others watched closely as Dion belted high notes. Jared Leto introduced Dion and told the audience that his band, 30 Seconds to Mars, re-
Pop sensation Justin Bieber.
cently performed at the Bataclan, the Paris concert hall where 89 people were killed in the Nov. 13 attack. Let’s get it on
Charlie Puth and Meghan Trainor brought the lyrics of their song, “Marvin Gaye,” to life when they had a full-blown make-out session onstage after performing the tune. The duo locked lips as the audience cheered them on. Lips are movin’, indeed! Singing sisters
During performances from Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato and Selena Gomez, there was a sense of sisterhood among the young female performers at the Microsoft Theater. Girl group Fifth Harmony was the most supportive, singing along as the other pop stars performed their latest hits onstage. Oscar nominee and singer Hailee Steinfield, who has a hit with “Love Myself,” sang and danced along.
Scheduling woes
Some of the big winners at the AMAs didn’t attend Sunday — a growing trend at music awards show. Swift, who won three awards, was out of the country filming a new music video. Ed Sheeran, who was behind Swift as the second-most nominated act along with the Weeknd, didn’t attend the show. He won favorite male artist — pop/rock. Surprise wins
Because the AMAs are based off of fan votes, some of the winners shouldn’t be too surprising. For instance, Nicki Minaj beat both Drake and J. Cole for favorite album — rap/hip-hop. In reality, that is a little ludicrous, so much thanks has to go to her feverish, die-hard fans. The surprises weren’t just with the awards: Jennifer Lopez opened the show with a performance that highlighted her strong vocals when she sang a toned down version of her past hit, “Waiting for Tonight.” ■ www.canadianinquirer.net
LOS ANGELES — “Mockingjay — Part 2,” the final “Hunger Games” film, soared to a $101 million opening in its first weekend in theaters, according to Rentrak estimates Sunday. For most films, the figure would be a coup, but the latest chapter of “The Hunger Games” collected the lowest opening take among the four films in the series. The series starring Jennifer Lawrence kicked off with a bang in March 2012 with a massive $152.5 million weekend — one of the highest openings of all time. “Catching Fire,” the second film in the franchise, oneupped that with a $158.1 million debut in November 2013. Lionsgate split the final book in Suzanne Collins’ trilogy into two films, following the precedent of “Twilight” and “Harry Potter.” “Mockingjay — Part 1” opened on this weekend last year to $121.9 million, considered at the time to be a necessary and expected dip while fans awaited the final installment, which, if it had mimicked “Twilight” or “Harry Potter,” would have snared at least the second-highest (if not highest) opening in the series. The franchise low for the final “Hunger Games” film, which cost a reported $160 million to make, was a bit of a surprise. Lionsgate, however, was not disappointed. “It’s a great accomplishment. The overall franchise has grossed over $2 billion worldwide and counting,” said David Spitz, co-president of theatrical distribution for Lionsgate. “It’s a pretty phenomenal result.” Expectations run high when films become so popular and successful in such a short a time, said Paul Dergarabedian,
a senior media analyst for Rentrak. “If we live in a world where a $100 million opening is a disappointment, that’s pretty crazy,” he said Only 34 movies in history have opened at over $100 million, including all four in “The Hunger Games” series. Dergarabedian attributes the showing to a down marketplace. Just two weekends ago, “Spectre,” which fell to second place this week with $14.6 million, failed to live up to the domestic opening of “Skyfall,” the previous James Bond film. “Thanksgiving represents a good opportunity for a really strong second weekend,” Dergarabedian said of “Mockingjay — Part 2.” With $12.8 million, “The Peanuts Movie” finished behind “Spectre” and ahead of the Seth Rogen holiday comedy “The Night Before,” which earned an expected $10.1 million. The Rrated film cost about $25 million to produce. “This is a movie that people love. Opening early seemed like a really good prelude to the Thanksgiving weekend where it will expand beautifully,” said Rory Bruer, Sony’s president of worldwide distribution. “It’s a good start for us.” The Julia Roberts thriller “The Secret in Their Eyes,” a remake of the Oscar-winning Argentinian film, debuted wide this weekend to $6.6 million from 2,392 locations — slightly under expectations. With the weekend box office down 11 percent from last year, it remains to be seen whether 2015 will indeed become a record-breaking $11 billion year as many predicted at the outset. Box office is up 4.2 percent from last year, but 2013 is the year to beat — and this year is tracking less than 1 percent ahead of that. “We’re in the home stretch,” Dergarabedian said. “But remember, we have a little secret weapon in ‘Star Wars.’” ■
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NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
Lifestyle
Study: Light therapy eases symptoms of non seasonal depression, not just SAD BY SHERYL UBELACKER The Canadian Press TORONTO — Light-box therapy typically used to treat people with seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, during the winter months can also ease symptoms of depression that occur throughout the rest of the year, a study suggests. Researchers found that patients with non-seasonal major depressive disorder (MDD) who received both light therapy and an antidepressant improved more than those given just one therapy. “Light therapy is a low-cost treatment option with few sideeffects, and our findings show it could benefit many patients,” said study co-author Dr. Anthony Levitt, a psychiatrist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. He added that researchers were surprised by just how effective the combination treatment proved to be. The clinical trial involved 122
patients who were randomly apy and a placebo pill experi- antidepressant treatment also assigned in roughly equal num- enced similar improvement, reduced patients’ symptoms bers to receive one of four treat- while only about 30 per cent of much more quickly, he said. ments: light therapy and an an- those given the active antide“In the combination group tidepressant; light therapy and pressant with a sham light, or what we saw was continued ima placebo pill; an antidepres- the sham light and dummy pill, provement each week across sant with exposure to a sham got better, he said. the eight weeks. The greatest light box; and both access to a That 30 per cent response for reduction is in the first one sham light box and a dummy the latter — called the placebo to two weeks — that’s true of pill. all antidepresPatients who sant trials — but received an antiimprovement depressant were continued even treated with It’s important to find new treatments up until eight fluoxetine (sold because our current therapies don’t weeks.” under the brand work for everyone. Our findings Light therapy name Prozac), should help to improve the lives of has long been and those given people with depression. used to treat light-box therapy SAD, but its efwere exposed for fects in patients 30 minutes each with non-seaday during the eight-week study. effect — is typical in any clinical sonal depression were not wellLevitt said 75 per cent of the trial testing a drug or another known. patients given the combination therapy. “What we’re showing here is of light and drug therapy saw an “We don’t usually get re- that light works in non-seasoneasing of symptoms, which can sponse rates in the range of 75 al depression and it works at include persistent and consis- per cent in any depression tri- any time of the year,” said Levtent low mood, poor concentra- als,” said Levitt, chief of Sunny- itt. “The season in which (pation, and changes in sleep and brook’s brain sciences program. tients) were treated made no appetite. “So the magnitude of the differ- difference to the outcome.” About half of the patients ence was surprising to us.” While medications are effectreated with active light therAdding light therapy to the tive in treating depression, they www.canadianinquirer.net
work in only about 60 per cent of cases, said study co-author Dr. Raymond Lam, a psychiatrist at the University of British Columbia. “It’s important to find new treatments because our current therapies don’t work for everyone,” Lam said in a statement. “Our findings should help to improve the lives of people with depression.” However, the researchers stopped short of recommending that people with depression self-treat with light boxes, saying their findings need to be replicated by other scientists in trials involving more patients. As well, some people should not use light therapy, said Levitt. Those with retinal and certain other eye disorders should not sit in front of a light box, nor should those with bipolar disorder, as exposure could set off an episode of mania. “It still should be prescribed by a physician,” Levitt said. The study was published Wednesday in the journal JAMA Psychiatry. ■
Lifestyle
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
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Sales of adult colouring books surge as grownups indulge in creative child’s play BY LAUREN LA ROSE The Canadian Press TORONTO — After learning about the rising popularity of adult colouring books, Crystal Salamon saw an opportunity to share her longtime love of drawing with others. Little did she know her doodling would be appreciated around the world. “You can make one single painting and then a few people can enjoy (it). But to create drawings that you can put in a book and send all over the world, people can not only enjoy it but also use that to explore their own creativity,” said the Alberta-based illustrator and art instructor, who sold 2,000 copies of her debut selfpublished adult colouring book within two weeks. Salamon’s success is not an isolated case. So far this year, four of the top 10 Canadian bestsellers across all categories are colouring books — a phenomenon unseen in a decade of charting sales, said Noah Genner, president and CEO of BookNet Canada. “It’s the kind of thing that will be given a lot as gifts, which
is maybe why it’s being pushed up into the bestseller list now, too,” said Genner, adding that works from Scottish illustrator Johanna Basford — including “Secret Garden” and “Enchanted Forest” — are examples of surprise runaway hits. “I imagine we’re going to see more for a little while.” Salamon’s “Awakening: Artful Colouring,” first released in September, found an almost immediate audience at home and in the U.S., U.K., Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, Mexico, Norway, Switzerland and South Korea. “I never in my wildest dreams imagined that would happen,” said Salamon of the first-run sellout. “I was thinking maybe in my biggest dreams I would sell (the first 2,000 copies) within a year. “I’ve already had to other another run — this time 5,000 — and that just came in last week, and I’m already getting quotes for another run. It’s nuts.” Salamon, a mother of two, was also unprepared for just how deeply her colouring book project would resonate as she documented her journey on her Facebook page. Among those following Sal-
SHUTTERSTOCK
amon’s progress was a terminally ill woman from north Calgary, whose doctor had recommended that she try colouring to help manage her stress and anxiety. “Her husband was saying when my book was published,
his gift to her was to drive her out to my house so that she could meet me in person,” recalled Salamon, 34, who lives in Turner Valley, Alta., about 30 minutes southwest of Calgary. “It was just so sweet because you could tell she was quite
Kris Aquino...
The Halifax...
cry on TV… Whom have you gotten those traits, dear? It’s embarrassing to your parents.) “Plus you criticize the Marcoses for their lifestyle, ikaw din pala Imeldific… Sa nakikita ko, hindi sila naiiba. Mala-Marcos din pati ‘yung pagtago ng mahihirap. Wearing an evening gown in broad daylight and that body-hugging yellow dress in front of Jose Rizal’s statue.” (Plus you criticize the Marcoses for their lifestyle, you’re also Imeldific… From what I see, they don’t differ. Also like Marcos, including the hiding of the poor. Wearing an evening gown in broad daylight and that body-hugging yellow dress in front of Jose Rizal’s statue.) Defending herself, Kris stressed that she was the one who paid for the entertainment and decoration at the APEC
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LaPierre. If you go...
Take a walk through the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21. It’s next door to the market. About the Halifax Farmers’ Market
Queen of all Philippine media Kris Aquino with her brother, President Benigno Simeon Aquino III. @WITHLOVEKRISAQUINO / INSTAGRAM
spouses’ lunch, using money she earned from working with SM & SMarkets. She also reminded the commenter, who reportedly worked as a sales agent for SM, that she was a ‘textmate’ of Tessie Sy-Coson.
User @justpeteclyde tried to explain his side but eventually apologized for his comments and referred to the actress-host as ‘soft, adorable, lovely and humane.’ Kris, for her part, was quick to accept the apology. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net
Roughly one year after the founding of Halifax, the Farmers’ Market was established by Royal Proclamation of 1750, with the present day Bank of Montreal as its official site as decided by the Governor and Council. With such rich history dating back 265 years, the Halifax Seaport Farmers’ Market is “the oldest continuously operating farmers’ market in North America.” The 265th year of the farmers’ market was celebrated last
happy and overcome. It’s just so amazing.... To have the ability to use my art and my journey in a way that inspires others and can even make them happy like that — even just for a moment by meeting me — is pretty incredible. And pretty surprising.” The grownup colouring craze isn’t just limited to books. The co-founder of arts and crafts retailer Brika said they’ve “jumped on the adult colouring bandwagon” by having a wall in its Toronto pop-up shop at Yorkdale Shopping Centre devoted to doodling. Nature-inspired wallpaper designed by Brooklyn-based artisan Jacqueline Schmidt has been reproduced as a blackand-white print on which visitors are invited to leave their colourful imprint. “I definitely think, on the one hand, there’s a throwback to childhood and the idea of taking out your pencils and crayons, and doing that is really nice,” said Brika co-founder Jen Koss. “There is a really therapeutic element to colouring.... When you get going and get into the zone and you’re colouring something that’s small and really intricate, I think people find it really relaxing.” ■
month, October 17-18. Aside from being the oldest farmers’ markets in North America, it is also considered as one of the biggest gathering of vendors — over 250 strong! The market itself has been hosted by several locations around Halifax, but found its home at the Halifax Seaport in 2010. It was then renamed to be the Halifax Seaport Farmers’ Market. The Halifax Seaport spans from Pier 19 to 23. This strip is considered to be one of the best places to catch the lively arts and cultural scene that represents this side of Canada. Artists, retailers, art galleries, schools, and even office buildings thrive in this burgeoning community. No wonder the Halifax Seaport Farmers’ Market is a welcomed addition. ■
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NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
Business
Manitoba Telecom Services sells Allstream business for $465M as it refocuses on core business
Japan-funded project opens credit line for MSMEs
BY PETER HENDERSON The Canadian Press
BY RIZA T. OLCHONDRA Philippine Daily Inquirer
TORONTO — Manitoba Telecom Services has reached a deal to sell its Allstream subsidiary, which analysts say was an albatross around the company’s neck as it deals with fierce competition from the national incumbents. MTS (TSX:MBT) said on Monday that it’s signed a deal to sell its Allstream business to Boulder, Colo.-based Zayo Group Holdings Inc. for $465 million in cash. Allstream provides Internet and other services to commercial and government customers and the U.S.-listed Zayo (NYSE:ZAYO) says it wants to add the company’s assets to its own communications infrastructure business. After closing costs for the deal, which requires federal government approval, Manitoba Telecom (TSX:MTS) says it expects net proceeds of roughly $425 million, some of which may be used to pay down debt. This is the second time MTS has reached a deal to sell Allstream, which it took over in 2004. Ottawa blocked its $520-million agreement with Egyptian investment group Accelero Capital in 2013 due to national security concerns. Greg MacDonald, head of equity research at Macquarie, said the deal won’t affect the telecom provider’s core business of providing wireless, Internet, home phone and TV services to Manitoba customers in competition with larger players such as BCE, Rogers Communications, and Telus. “It’s business as usual, which is, based on the most recent quarter, pretty challenging,” he said. MTS president and CEO Jay Forbes said in a statement that the deal positions MTS for
A JAPAN-FUNDED 15 billion yen “agribusiness promotion program” will help private sector enterprises set up shop in Mindanao, which is seen as the new frontier for agribusiness, manufacturing, power, and other industries in a bid to shed its image as a high-risk investment destination. The Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) said the fund will kickstart a program called Harnessing Agribusiness Opportunities through Robust and Vibrant Entrepreneurship Supportive of Peaceful Transformation (Harvest) in the so-called Bangsamoro areas, director for investment promotion and public affairs Romeo Montenegro said via text message. He said the Harvest project would be implemented through the Land Bank of the Philippines. On Thursday, Japanese Press Secretary Yasuhisa Kawamura said in a briefing on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders’ Meeting that Japan committed 15 billion yen for an “agribusiness promotion program” as part of efforts to promote peace in Mindanao through increased economic activities. Documents from the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said the Harvest project was undergoing review by the Neda-Investment Coordination Committee (Neda-ICC) Secretariat for possible implementation in 2016. The ICC evaluates the fiscal,
WWW.MTS.CA
long-term success as it transforms into a customer-centric business in the face of intense competition. In its most recent quarterly report, MTS said that only a “complete turnaround” of Allstream’s operations would allow the subsidiary to become financially sustainable. 3Macs analyst Troy Crandall said the deal was part of the effort by Forbes, who took over the top job at MTS on Jan. 1 of this year, to refocus the company on its core business. “They had their own challenges as a regional telecom, let alone having a declining asset to deal with as well,” he said. “Allstream has kind of been the albatross around their neck.” Crandall said the ill-fated 2004 purchase of Allstream by MTS was mostly about saving on taxes by converting the company into an income trust, but that those advantages were lost when the federal government changed the tax rules in 2006. In 2013, the most recent year for which CRTC data is available, roughly half of the wireless subscribers in Manitoba had an MTS plan.
Despite its significant market share, Crandall said, there isn’t much room to grow within the Manitoba market. Scale is a huge advantage for the major telecom companies such as BCE and Rogers, he said, allowing them to cut costs and offer discounted bundles that the smaller players can’t match. “Given their limited geography, MTS just can’t get the scale that its competitors can,” he said. Meanwhile, Crandall said the deal makes MTS more attractive as a candidate for a buyout by one of the incumbents. And while it’s unclear how the Trudeau government will approach regulating the telecom industry, he said the decision by MTS to sell to an American company is far less likely to raise the ire of the new government. Under the deal, MTS has agreed to retain Allstream’s pension obligations and pension plan assets related to retirees and other former employees under its defined benefit pension plans. Allstream will retain those related to current employees. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net
monetary and balance of payments implications of major national projects and recommends to the President the timetable of their implementation on a regular basis. It also advises the President on matters related to domestic and foreign borrowing. In a separate report, Landbank said the Harvest project would be implemented until June 2021. The project would create a lending window for agribusiness and agribusinessrelated investors in the Bangsamoro territory and neighboring areas. Landbank, as the project proponent, s u b m i tt e d its proposal on July 14, 2015. It said Harvest would provide “a line of credit at a concessional rate and terms” to eligible borrowers, including micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as well as cooperatives and large private corporations. The lending facility would assist private sector enterprises to help implement their expansion and modernization plans, to undertake new sub-projects, and to finance production and operating expenses as well as capital investment requirements, according to the NEDA report. “These enterprises would thus be able to alleviate the operational and financial requirements arising from the high risks associated with operating in the Bangsamoro areas (such as, but not limited to security, peace and order situation, inadequate infrastructure for connectivity and power, long gestation nature of agribusiness operations, etc.),” Neda said. ■
Business
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
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PH put a human face to Apec hosting–DTI BY AMY R. REMO Philippine Daily Inquirer PUTTING THE “human side of the equation at the forefront of the economic agenda” was deemed one of the country’s most significant achievements in its hosting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) meetings this year. “That quality of economic growth is as important as the quantitative growth. That everyone matters whether it’s the poor, the youth, the underprivileged, the handicapped, the micro and small businesses. The growth has to be inclusive, sus-
tainable and resilient,” Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo said in a text message Friday. Domingo was referring to the inclusion in the Apec Leaders’ Declaration significant commitments aimed at building inclusive economies; fostering micro, small and medium enterprises’ (MSME) participation in regional and global markets; building sustainable and resilient communities; investing in human capital development, among others. The Apec Leaders’ Declaration, which was issued on Thursday at the culmination of the meetings, also included the adoption of the Boracay Action
BSP: China-led AIIB to benefit country BY AMY R. REMO Philippine Daily Inquirer CHINA-LED MULTILATERAL lender Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) can help plug funding gaps in the Philippines’ infrastructure pipeline and show the country’s commitment to being one of the region’s good citizens. Potential governance issues still hound AIIB, which some speculate can serve as Beijing’s political tool against Washington. However, a top Philippine economic manager said the benefits of taking part in AIIB should be considered. “Joining the bank is a strong signal [we’re] part of the global economic community,” Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Amando M. Tetangco Jr. said at a recent press confer-
ence. “It’s a concrete form of financial cooperation.” Formed by a group of emerging markets led by China, AIIB is a response to World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF)—two institutions that have consistently failed to recognize developing countries’ growing prominence. This comes amid concerns over the government’s and the private sector’s abilities to fund expensive infrastructure projects, which the country needs to catch up to its neighbors in the region. Tetangco said one lingering concern officials have regarding AIIB was the quality of governance. “We want to look at the governance structure of the bank to see if it will be operated with economic and financial considerations, rather than political considerations.” ■
Agenda to Globalize MSMEs— a move that recognizes the substantial contributions of these enterprises to poverty reduction. The agenda is an initiative to address the barriers faced by MSMEs in international trade. “The Philippines will remain steadfast... [in] initiatives that boost growth of the various sectors of the economy, engage local businesses, and generate job opportunities for local communities. We remain committed to our goal of inclusive growth by making the most of the benefits of regional integration and trade facilitation in our own economy,” Domingo said. ■
“The spouses of the Economic Leaders watch a short cultural presentation. Performers enact scenes depicting a traditional wedding celebration in the province.” APEC 2015 / FACEBOOK
Major oilsands operator Imperial still mulling over Alberta’s new climate plan BY LAUREN KRUGEL The Canadian Press CALGARY — Prominent members of both Big Oil and the environmental movement have given their blessing to Alberta’s sweeping new climate change plan. But as remarkable as it was for the likes of both oilpatch billionaire Murray Edwards, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.’s chairman, and former U.S. vice president Al Gore, an outspoken advocate for tougher climate action, to back the plan, not everyone is singing its praises. One of the biggest producers in the oilsands, ExxonMobil Corp.-controlled Imperial Oil (TSX:IMO), isn’t ready to endorse the policy. “We are studying the announcements from the Alberta government to assess their impact on our existing operations and possible future projects in Alberta,” Imperial spokesman Pius Rolheiser said in an email Monday. He added any policy must “protect the competitiveness” of the oil and gas industry. Among other things, the plan aims to cap oilsands emissions at 100 megatonnes anwww.canadianinquirer.net
nually — about 30 megatonnes more than the industry now emits. The plan also includes a $20-a-tonne price on carbon emissions that will cover about 90 per cent of the economy, including essentials such as gasoline and home heating fuel. That price will increase to $30 the following year. In an interview Monday, Shell Canada’s outgoing president Lorraine Mitchelmore — a vocal supporter of the policy — said the feedback she’s heard so far from others in the industry has been “pretty positive.” “You’ll never be able to get something that’s unanimous, but when you take a leadership role because it’s the right thing to do, you get many people be-
hind you,” she said. Shell Canada’s European parent company was among the first oil majors to advocate for a price on carbon and has long been assuming a $40 a tonne price when it makes investment plans. Mitchelmore, who is stepping down from her role at year-end, called the Alberta announcement “historic” and said it makes her proud to be Canadian. “It was one of the best consultations that I’ve seen, actually,” she said of the climate change panel’s review, headed by University of Alberta economist Andrew Leach. ❱❱ PAGE 41 Major oilsands
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NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
Sports
Toronto FC forward Sebastian Giovinco named MLS newcomer of the year
BY NEIL DAVIDSON The Canadian Press
Tennis final to go ahead in Belgium with increased security THE ASSOCIATED PRESS LONDON — The Davis Cup final is set to go ahead as planned in Ghent this weekend with increased security measures because of the ongoing terror alert in Belgium, the International Tennis Federation said Monday. After delaying the trip by a day, Britain’s team flew into Ghent on Monday ahead of the three-day final against Belgium, which begins on Friday. Ghent is about 35 miles (56 kilometers) from Brussels, which is on the highest state of alert because of what the Belgian government calls a “serious and imminent” threat. “The ITF and Royal Belgian
Tennis Federation in consultation with the relevant officials and our risk assessment and security advisers, are closely monitoring the situation in Belgium and specifically in Ghent,” the ITF said in a statement. “As of today there are no changes to the previously published start times ... we are taking every necessary step to ensure the safety of the teams, the spectators, the media and all working staff.” Among additional security measures being implemented is a complete ban on fans taking bags into the 13,000-seat Flanders Expo indoor clay court. Britain is playing in its first Davis Cup final in 37 years and is aiming to win its first title since 1936.
TORONTO — Sebastian Giovinco has scored prettier goals but his April 4 strike against the Chicago Fire, his first in Major League Soccer, offered a glimpse of what lay ahead. The goal capped a slick 17pass sequence for TFC that criss-crossed the field before the Italian international forward poked a shot through the legs of a defender and beat goalkeeper Jon Busch, who was going the wrong way. His last goal of the season, Oct. 14 in a 2-1 win over the New York Red Bulls, assured Toronto of its first ever playoff berth. Giovinco left at least four Red Bull players twisting in his tracks before banging a leftfooted shot past Luis Robles, the MLS goalkeeper of the year. In between, Giovinco scored 20 more times in a spectacular rookie season in North America, elevating his own team while tormenting opposition defenders. The 28-year-old Italian known as the Atomic Ant was rewarded Monday when he was named Major League Soccer’s Newcomer of the Year by a huge margin. The honor added to an already impressive 2015 trophy haul. Giovinco won the league’s Golden Boot award as the league’s top scorer and is a leading candidate for MVP, due to
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be announced Dec. 2. Giovinco is up against midfielder Benny Feilhaber of Sporting Kansas City and forward Kei Kamara of Columbus Crew SC for the MVP trophy named after Landon Donovan. Two of Giovinco’s goals are among the top eight in voting for the AT&T Goal of the Year, which is decided by a vote on MLSsoccer.com. Giovinco proved he could score from almost anywhere this season. His goals came from free kicks, long-range rockets or precise shots from within the penalty box. He even scored from the byline, swerving the ball off his foot. He danced between bigger defenders, often making them look like plow horses. The Italian was originally slated to arrive mid-season but ended up landing in time for the opening kickoff. He recorded an assist in the season opener and scored his first goal in his fourth outing. GM Tim Bezbatchenko said he expected class from Giovinco but thought it might take time to show it given the transition to North America. “Seba came and right from the start showed that he had some flair and a knack for the spectacular,” Bezbatchenko said Monday during a scouting trip to Europe. “I’m not surprised he got the goals but I am surprised at the quality of the goals. I mean they truly are world-class goals, a number of
them, not just one or two.” Bezbatchenko also pointed to the “moments” the elusive Italian created on the pitch, “This game is about moments and he made some special moments for our team this year.” The five-foot-four forward, who was ineligible for rookie of the year consideration because of his previous pro experience in Europe, was a runaway winner as top newcomer. Giovinco got 67.27 per cent of voting by MLS club management, 83.1 from media, and 57.39 from MLS players for a weighted total of 207.76. Montreal striker Didier Drogba was second at 31.55 (14.55, 5.63 and 11.37 ) and Mike Grella of the New York Red Bulls third at 13.84 (3.64, 2.82 and 7.38). It’s the second year in a row that the newcomer award has gone to a Canadian-based player. Pedro Morales of the Vancouver Whitecaps won in 2014. Giovinco set an MLS singleseason record for most combined goals and assists (38). He was directly involved in 66 per cent of Toronto’s 58 goals. He was also involved in two or more goals in 12 games during the 2015 regular season, the most of any player in MLS history. And he is the first player in league history to record 20plus goals and 10-plus assists in a single season. He has single-handedly rewritten the TFC record book. ■
Sports
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
Tigers seal UAAP title clash with Tamaraws
UP Pep Squad stands out in World Cheerleading Championships
BY JASMINE W. PAYO Philippine Daily Inquirer NOT MANY gave University of Santo Tomas a chance to get this far just a few months back. And the Tigers intend to keep proving the doubters wrong. “This time I think we’re really ripe, we’re more mature,” said UST big man Karim Abdul. “This year is different.” True to their word, the Tigers made it a quick finish by intimidating National University with their explosive stand from the get-go and shackling the defending champion’s big guns for a 64-55 victory in the Final Four of the UAAP men’s basketball tournament yesterday at Smart Araneta Coliseum. The victory sealed the championship showdown between UST and Far Eastern University, which claimed the first title berth a day earlier by nipping Ateneo, 76-74, on a Mac Belo buzzer-beater. Game 1 of the best-of-three championship series is set on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. at Mall of Asia Arena. Aside from talking about game strategies that dethroned the Bulldogs, the top-seeded Tigers liked emphasizing their teamwork by referring to their squad as family. “Sobrang gigil kami magchampion (We all want to win the championship),” said UST main man Kevin Ferrer. “Maglalaro kami buong pamilya (Our whole family will play with us).” Just like they did all season, it wasn’t just veterans Ferrer and Abdul who did all the work in the semifinal showdown that saw the Tigers erecting a doubledigit edge right in the open-
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BY MAVELLE DURIAN Philippine Canadian Inquirer
ing minutes, 15-2, and building leads as high as 16 points, 48-32. Louie Vigil helped spark the Tigers’ early run and finished with a near tripledouble of 19 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. Ferrer added 11 points and seven boards. “The players really showed their heart,” said UST coach Bong dela Cruz. “We wanted to finish it in one game. We played good defense from the start to the end.” While the Tigers had everything going, the Bulldogs couldn’t quite tell what hit them, just when it seemed like they found their stride late in the elimination round. “What a time to play our worst game,” said NU coach Eric Altamirano after his fourth-ranked Bulldogs failed to duplicate last year’s Cinderella title run. Top NU guard Gelo Alolino shot a woeful 1-of-17 from the field as the rest of the Bulldogs also struggled with a paltry 26.8 shooting percentage. “We did not get it done on both ends—offense and de-
fense,” said Altamirano. “I was shocked to see them play like that. Add to that UST playing good defense. Nevertheless, I’m proud of the boys. All season, there was never a lack of effort. There was always will to win.” The Tigers likewise think it’s their desire that will fuel them in their title duel versus the Tamaraws. “It’s my last year and we’ll do everything to get that championship,” said Ferrer. “We’ll prepare well, we’ll give them a good fight.” In their only previous Finals meeting, FEU defeated UST, 100-89, on Oct. 18, 1979 at Loyola Center (now Blue Eagle gym) in Quezon City. The scores: UST 64— Vigil 19, Ferrrer 11, Sheriff 10, Daquioag 8, Abdul 6, Bonleon 5, Lee 5, Faundo 0, Lao 0. NU 55— Javelona 17, Alejandro 8, Diputado 7, Aroga 7, Alolino 6, Javillonar 5, Neypes 3, Celda 2, Abatayo 0, Morido 0, Salim 0. Quarters: 15-12, 30-20, 44-32, 64-55 ■
MANILA, PHILIPPINES — The University of the Philippines (UP) Pep Squad won in the 2015 Cheerleading World Championships, bagging up five medals in a two-day competition held in Berlin over the weekend. The UP Pep Squad won two bronzes in cheerleading doubles and small groups mixed; and three silvers for junior cheer dance doubles, cheer dance doubles, and all-female cheerdance. The group also placed fourth in the mixed cheer, fifth and
sixth in all-female cheerleading small groups, mixed cheerleading small groups, while another group placed eighth in cheerleading doubles. The UP Pep Squad also won a bronze and a silver in the seventh edition of the CWC which was previously held in Bangkok. There are over 20 countries with 1,300 participants in CWC, but the cheering squad went up against them. Japan won gold in junior cheerleading, female small groups, cheer dance doubles, and all-female cheer. The UP Pep Squad placed third in the UAAP Cheer Dance Competition last October. ■
UP Pep Squad wins big at World Cheerleading Championships in Berlin. PHOTO COURTESY OF @_OFFDUTYNINJA / INSTAGRAM
Iglupas Phinma Week 1 champ BY MARC ANTHONY REYES Philippine Daily Inquirer PROMISING FILIPINO netter Khim Iglupas employed her quickness and cunning to down the bigger Wang Xin-yu of China, 2-6, 6-1, 62, yesterday and
capture the girls’ singles title in Week 1 of the PSCPhinma international juniors tennis championships at Manila Polo Club. The 17-year-old top scholar of the Philippine Tennis Academy, came back from a sluggish first set to dictate the pace of the next two frames, keeping
the ball low enough to get the 5-foot-11 Chinese out of her comfort zone. “Khim made a variety of shots but the key was to attack the Chinese serve,” said coach Jun Toledo. Iglupas broke in the first game of the second set, and www.canadianinquirer.net
then held to control the tempo of the match. Wang, whose dad is the Chinese Fed Cup team coach and whose mother is a basketball player, never got her game going again after that. The victory gave Iglupas 40 ITF points and her second sin-
gles title this year. In the boys’ final, Japanese Naoki Tajima overpowered Korean Jeong Yeong-seok, 6-4, 6-2, and teamed up with Hiraku Shirashi to turn back Singapore’s Shaheed Alam and Jeong, 3-6, 6-2 (10-1) for the boys’ doubles crown. ■
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NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
Technology
After years of delays, Palestinians get high-speed mobile
Yoav Mordechai, and Palestinian Minister of Civil Affairs Hussein al-Sheikh signed a memorandum of understanding “after examination by the security establishment.” Israel did not extend 3G frequencies to the Gaza Strip, which is controlled by the Islamic militant group Hamas. The Palestinian telecommunications minister, Allam Mussa, said the agreement is a “great achievement for the Pal-
Palestinians can finally enjoy high-speed mobile internet.
BY MOHAMMED DARAGHMEH AND DANIELLA CHESLOW The Associated Press RAMALLAH, WEST BANK — Political science lecturer Amjad Abu el-Ez lived in London and Dubai for 17 years before returning home in 2014 to teach in the northern West Bank city of Nablus. He was stunned to learn he could barely check his email on the commute from his nearby village because Palestinian mobile carriers do not offer high-speed data.
“When I came here and I didn’t find 3G, I felt cut off and insulted,” el-Ez said. “This is something that has become a human right, like water, health and education. Why are we, the Palestinians, deprived of it?” That could soon change. After years of delays, Israel said Thursday that it would allow the Palestinians to have their own 3G network, bringing relief to one of the last places in the world without mobile broad-
band services. The lack of highspeed access has been a source of frustration for young professionals, forcing many to seek creative solutions, sign up with Israeli carriers or scramble to find Wi-Fi networks. Under interim peace accords, Israel controls wireless networks in the West Bank. The Palestinians are among 16 markets, including Cuba and Eritrea, that still use older 2G technology, according to the International Telecommunication Union, a U.N. agency. The GSM Association, an industry group that represents mobile operators worldwide, says the newer technology can transmit as much as 62 times the amount of data per second. Without 3G, Palestinians cannot use Internet messaging services like Whatsapp, make Internet phone calls or watch streaming video, and even simple tasks such as sending email can be slow. The Israeli decision came a week after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met
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with U.S. President Barack Obama in Washington in what was seen as an attempt to reset their famously frosty relationship. At the meeting, Obama emphasized the need for generating momentum to restart peace efforts, more than a year and a half after talks collapsed. Amid a two-month wave of violence, Netanyahu indicated that he was considering several confidence-building measures to help ease the tensions. Giving the Palestinians access to 3G services seems to be the first move to come out of that meeting. “We do not see the Palestinian people as animals,” said Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev. “We continue to take steps to facilitate economic development and the overall well-being of the Palestinian population in the West Bank.” Cogat, the Israeli defense body responsible for Palestinian civilian affairs, announced the deal on Thursday. It said Cogat’s commander, Maj. Gen.
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estinian people.” “With having 3G, I expect a huge positive impact,” Mussa told The Associated Press. “On the economy, investment, telecommunications, education, health - on every aspect of life.” Ammar Aker, executive chairman of the Palestinian Telecommunication Co., which runs the Jawwal mobile carrier, said he expected the 3G infrastructure to be ready within six to eight months. He said the move would open job opportunities and enable Palestinians to develop new mobile applications. Until now, Palestinian developers had to create light applications for the slow network coverage. Most Palestinians, for instance, cannot use mobile GPS apps, in part because of the lack of high-speed access. The lack of high-speed data in Palestinian areas stands in stark contrast with Israel, a tech-savvy country whose carriers have used 3G for a decade. In January, Israel auctioned off 4G mobile broadband radio frequencies to six Israeli carriers. The faster data will remain unavailable for Palestinian carriers. Palestinians who choose to subscribe to an Israeli mobile carrier can access 3G. But coverage can be spotty, and they must often maintain a second Palestinian SIM card to communicate with friends and family to avoid expensive roaming fees between Israeli and Palestinian carriers. Palestinians, who seek to establish their own
independent state, also bristle at being dependent on Israel for such a basic service. The al-Shabaka think tank, a U.S.-based Palestinian research group, estimates that Israeli operators control as much as 40 percent of the Palestinian telecommunication market, reaping $80-$100 million a year, due to the lack of 3G. Mashhour Abu Daqa, a former Palestinian telecommunications minister, said in past negotiations he was always told that the Israeli military was holding up approval of the 3G network on security grounds. But he believes Israeli carriers were behind the ban, trying to protect their interest in the captive Palestinian market. “There is no security reason. Any Palestinian can get 3G through Israeli mobile phones, and second, all Palestinian mobile phones work through Israel in any case,” he said. Yechiel Shabi, spokesman for the Israeli Communications Ministry, said the delays were due to technical reasons, and that rearranging the wireless spectrum was a lengthy process. He said the Palestinian claim that Israel restricted 3G access for profit was “cheap propaganda.” Israeli defense and military officials declined to comment. Israelis and Palestinians are avid consumers of mobile services. Al Quds University business student Mohammed Fareed, 23, said from the time he leaves home in Ramallah at 6:30 AM to the evening, he is disconnected. “The moment I get home I get 20 messages from my groups on Whatsapp or on Viber,” he said. “Sometimes I need to check my email in town in Ramallah, so I just duck into a place I know and I use their wireless.” Lecturer el-Ez said he was excited to soon be able to access 3G, saying “better late than never.” However, he noted that by the time Palestinians have the service, the next generation of technology will be close to industry standard. “I feel the Israelis want to keep us 10 steps behind them,” he said. ■
Technology
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
Facebook tries to ease heartache of breakups with new tool BY MICHAEL LIEDTKE The Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook is trying to ease the heartache of breaking up. A feature announced Thursday will allow people who have split up with a spouse or partner to turn on an option that spares them the emotional pain of constantly seeing their ex-lover’s posts and pictures in their news feed on the world’s largest social network. Facebook will begin testing the breakup protection on mobile devices in the U.S. before deciding whether to offer it to all of its 1.5 billion accountholders worldwide. The option is designed for people who don’t want to risk offending a former husband, wife, girlfriend or boyfriend by taking the more extreme step of ejecting or blocking them from their Facebook network. After changing their relationship status on Facebook, people will also be allowed to remove their names from past posts linking them to a former partner.
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“This work is part of our ongoing effort to develop resources for people who may be going through difficult moments in their lives,” Facebook product manager Kelly Winters wrote in a blog post. The breakup protection serves as another reminder of how deeply ingrained Facebook has become in society. More than 1 billion people now hang out on Facebook at least once a day and those who have the network’s addictive mobile application installed on their smartphones tend to visit even more frequently. The Menlo Park, California,
company has incentive to try to keep its users as happy as possible. People who become upset with what appears in their Facebook feeds are more likely to avoid coming to the network, depriving the company of the opportunity to collect more information about their preferences and show them ads aimed at those interests. The formula has turned Facebook into a huge success story since Mark Zuckerberg founded the service in a Harvard University dorm room more than a decade ago. Facebook’s market value now stands at $300 billion. ■
Major oilsands... “There is no perfect policy, but I think this is probably the most balanced, most well thoughtout policy that I’ve seen ... People have come together ahead of policy versus coming together after.” Samir Kayande, director of energy research at ITG Investment Research, said it seems the cost to oilsands producers will be relatively modest — in the order of 30 cents a barrel more for a steam-driven project. “Even though it means that their costs are going to be a little bit higher than they would have been in the absence of doing nothing, I think there was probably a recognition that doing nothing wasn’t an option,” he said. ❰❰ 37
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And smaller oilsands players won’t necessarily be hit harder, said Kayande. For instance, MEG Energy (TSX:MEG) has a high-quality oil reservoir that’s efficient to exploit. The Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors cautioned the climate policy could imperil Alberta’s competitiveness, unless it’s offset by lower royalties — something the province is also reviewing. It called for the funds raised by the policy to cycle back to the industry. “If this is a truly revenue neutral tax, every dollar raised through new carbon taxes should be made available to industry in order to reinvest into new technology to achieve emission reductions.” ■
Oilsands development in Northern Alberta.
WEATHER UPDATE VANCOUVER
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Long term forecast from www.theweathernetwork.com CALGARY
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Events
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Parol Making Workshop By Kapisanan Philippine Centre for Arts & Culture WHEN/WHERE: 5 to 9 p.m., Nov. 20 at Creative Studio Rm. 108; 12 to 4 p.m., Nov. 22, Flex Studio Gold Rm. 107; 12 to 4 p.m., Nov. 29 Artscape Youngplace 180, Shaw St. Toronto MORE INFO: kapisanancentre.com
NOVEMBER 27, 2015
Tues, Thu & Fri at the Filipino Centre Bldg., 597 Parliament St., Suite 103, Toronto, On. MORE INFO: Call (416) 928-9355 Tagalog Class By FCT WHEN/WHERE: 10 to 11 a.m., every Saturday, Filipino Centre Toronto
Pasko ng Bayan 2015 WHEN/WHERE: 6 to 8 p.m., Dec. 5, Sandy Hill Community Center, 250 Somerset East, Ottawa MORE INFO: Open to the public. Admission is free!
Homework/Tutorial Class By FCT WHEN/WHERE: 11a.m. to 12 nn, every Saturday, Filipino Centre Toronto, 597 Parliament St., Suite 103, Toronto, ON MORE INFO: For registrations, call YUKON Canada New WelcomePack 416-928-9355. The office, at 597 NUNAVUT Distribution Centre Parliament St., Suite 103, Toronto, NORTHWEST By WelcomePack Canada Inc. is open on Mondays, Tuesdays, WHEN/WHERE: 1 to 5 TERRITORIES p.m., Mon, Thursdays and Fridays from 1 to 6 p.m.
CANADA EVENTS
To have your events featured on PCI, please email events@canadianinquirer.net
BRITISH COLUMBIA ALBERTA
Pinoy Connect By Mosaic WHEN/WHERE: Sundays until Dec. 20. Settlement services: 12 to 2 p.m.; Bayanihan Support Circle: 2 to 4 p.m.; Employment Law Clinic: By appointment only at Mosaic Burnaby Centre for Immigrants, 5902 Kingsway, Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: Call 604-254-9626 Temporary Foreign Workers Uncontested Divorce Clinic By Law Courts Center WHEN/WHERE: Saturdays from 2 to 4 p.m., at the Justice Education Society at the Provincial Court of BC Room 260 800 Hornby St., Vancouver B.C. MORE INFO: To book an appointment, call/text 778322-2839 or email: tfw.divorce@gmail.com Seniors Book Club By the Richmond Public Library WHEN/WHERE: Thursdays, 10:30 a.m. to 12 nn, at the Brighouse Main Branch, the Living Rm., 7700 Minoru Gate, Richmond, B.C. MORE INFO: Seniors ages 55 and older are invited to read books and exchange ideas with like-minded. To register visit any branch of Richmond Public Library, call 604-231-6413 or Dorothy Uytengzu and Victoria Francisco on Fazioli By ACAT WHEN/WHERE: 5:30 p.m., Nov. 27 & 28, Showcase Pianos, 3rd Flr., Aberdeen Centre, Unit 3480-4151 Hazelbridge Way, Richmond, B.C. MORE INFO: Tickets at $20.
View all events by scanning this QR code or visiting
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NEWFOUNDLAND
MANITOBA
SASKATCHEWAN
Autumn Serenade By Philippines Canada Trade Council
FRIDAY
ONTARIO
QUEBEC
WHEN/WHERE: 6 p.m., networking; 7 p.m. show; Nov. 27, at the Kay Meek Centre, 1700 Mathers Ave. West Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: Tickets at $35. Featuring performances by Kay Balajadia Liggayu (soprano); Nazer Salcedo (Tenor); Daniel Furtado (piano) and Jeremiah Carag (tenor) Rocksteady Canadian Tour 2015 By Great Smile Production in cooperation with GMA WHEN/WHERE: Nov. 27, Vancouver; Nov. 29, Winnipeg; Dec. 4, Toronto; Dec. 5, Brampton, On. MORE INFO: Featuring Glaiza de Castro and Julia Clarette UP Alumni Association in B.C. Celebrity Night By UPAABC WHEN/WHERE: 6 p.m. to 12 mn., Nov. 28, Floral Hall, VanDusen Garden, 5251 Oak St., Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: $25 per person FilCan Network for Truth & Justice Christmas Party By Tapsilog WHEN/WHERE: 5:30 p.m. to 12 mn, Nov. 28, at St. Patrick Recreation Centre, Main St., Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: Features Gawad Ulirang Ina at Ama and Bb. Maharlika 2015 Open Philippine Folk Dance & Music Workshops By Kababayang Pilipino WHEN/WHERE: Dance Workshops – Nov. 29, Dec. 6 & 13, 2 to 2:30 p.m., Jandali Studio Music Workshops – Nov. 29, Dec. 6 & 13, 2 to 2:30 p.m., Zagar Studio MORE INFO: Cost $20 for 3 workshops, $10 drop in fee www.canadianinquirer.net
LoL ComedyNOVA Riot WHEN/WHERE: SCOTIA 6:30 p.m., Nov. 30, Edgewater Casino 750 Pacific Blvd., Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: Manila’s Comic Pride Canada Tour English Now: No Cost Language Training for Jobs in Administration or Retail By ISS of BC MORE INFO: Contact 604-684-2325 or englishnow@issbc.org Skills Now: Project-based Training for Immigrants in Retail and Administration By ISS of BC WHEN/WHERE: Call or email at 604-684-2581 (ext 2193 Nanki) skillsnow@issbc.org MORE INFO: Receive a certificate or skills training in retail or administration; job search workshops; and strong employment opportunities. Free Drop-In English Conversation Circle for Temporary Foreign Workers By Mosaic WHEN/WHERE: Mondays, 6:30–8:30 p.m. until Dec. 14, at Mosaic Vancouver Community Room, 1720 Grant St. Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: 604-254-9626 ext. 487 Art Show of JA Tan WHEN/WHERE: 6:30 to 8 p.m., Dec. 2, at the Hycroft Gallery, 1489 McRae Ave. Vancouver, B.C. MORE INFO: Exhibit runs from Dec. 2 to Jan. 4 Paskong Pinoy 2015 WHEN/WHERE: 4:30 p.m. Dec. 5, Eagles Hall (next to Bronson Muffler) 2965 Boys Road, Duncan MORE INFO: Fee $5 (16 to 18 yo); $10 (19 yo+). Door prizes by donation. Potluck.
NOVEMBER 27, 2015
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NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
Food
Need a special something for the foodie in your life? Here are the best food books of 2015 BY J.M. HIRSCH The Associated Press HAVE YOU ordered your copy of the latest five-ingredientpaleo-gluten-free-Nordic-kale smoothie cookbook yet? Me either. You know why? Because nobody outside hipster man bunloving enclaves in Brooklyn and Los Angeles actually eats that way. Just don’t tell the publishing industry, which forever seems to trip over itself to get into ink whatever outrageous culinary fad crosses the editors’ Facebook feeds. Surely there’s a better way... Until then, we’re left to sift through the thousands of food books spewed forth each year. And we do it with particular fervour during this season of gifting as we search for books to satiate the foodies on our lists. So to save you a bit of trouble, I’ve assembled my list of the most useful, most inspiring and most interesting food books of 2015. In no particular order: “Kitchen Hacks: How Clever Cooks Get Things Done” by Cook’s Illustrated magazine (America’s Test Kitchen, $19.95)
The folks at Cook’s Illustrated magazine have long collected kitchen tips and hacks from readers — the original culinary crowdsourcing. Now they’ve gathered their top 1,000 tips into one book (perfectly sized for stuffing in stockings). Nicely organized by circumstance (such as cleaning, food storage and how to transport things), the book is an amusing collection of ways to help you get the job done. Ideas include how to tame the tears when chopping onions (burn a candle), what to do when avocado pits get stuck on your knife (tap it on the counter) and how to pit olives using an upside down funnel (you’ll just have to see that one for yourself ). There also are some
easy recipe hacks, including my favourite — how to use dry sherry, vanilla and liquid smoke to improve the flavour of cheap bourbon.
on the banal eats she (and many of us) had growing up. And so she gives us slow cooker cocktail meatballs (complete with a bottle of Heinz Chili Sauce), desperation nachos (which allow for Cheez Whiz) and Spaghettios sammy (which is exactly what you think it is). Tosi has a sense of humour. The recipient of this book should, too.
“The Broad Fork” by Hugh Acheson (Clarkson Potter, $35)
This is Southerner-by-wayof-Canada Hugh Acheson’s gorgeous ode to produce, and it is seriously inspiring. As in, the man makes a bowl of kohlrabi puree look (and taste) decadent, and that’s no easy task. Blissfully, the book isn’t vegetarian, but it does show you how to truly enjoy your veggies. Organized by season, then by vegetable, the book guides the reader through simple — yet sensual — ways to eat more plants. I mean, fried Brussels sprouts with lime vinaigrette? Poached eggs over sunchoke hash? Sauteed parsnips with country ham, parsley and basil? One of each, please. This is a prime contender for best cookbook of year. “Spuntino: Comfort Food (New York Style) by Russell Norman (Bloomsbury, $45)
A London restaurateur idealizing New York City food and drink? Sounds like doomed carpetbagging. But Russell Norman captures if not a Big Apple vibe, at least a taste of comfort you will crave. The book, named for Norman’s London eatery, is a gorgeous romp through visceral recipes you will crave. Things like mackerel sliders, eggplant chips with fennel yogurt, and a salad of ribbon steak, chicory and anchovy. Make no mistake: This is Brit gastro pub grub, but it’s tinged with a New York flavour. And the section on Prohibition-era cocktails certainly ups the appeal. “A Visual Guide to Drink” by Ben Gibson, Patrick Mulligan and Pop Chart Lab (Avery, $30)
This is a book I was prepared to hate. When you first open it, it seems like just page after page of charts and graphs
“Olympia Provisions” by Elias Cairo (Ten Speed Press, $40)
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that leave you feeling a bit like you’ve stumbled into a nightmare PowerPoint presentation. Then you start reading and you get sucked in by the minimalist presentation of gobs upon gobs of cools facts, figures and lesser known tidbits about everything booze. The “Breweries of the United States” chart, for example, is just a two-page map of the country with dots indicating craft breweries. Simple and dull? Yes. And no. It’s easy to get lost wondering things like, what the heck is wrong with North Dakota? And I could spend hours dissecting the family tree diagram of beer styles. No question — this is a weird coffee table book. But for the boozer in your life, it’s going to be hypnotic. “What Katie Ate on the Weekend” by Katie Quinn Davies (Viking Studio, $40)
Speaking of books I wanted to hate... There is a growing genre of cookbooks that seem to exist mostly to let you know that the authors’ lives are more beautiful, more delicious and way more fun than your own. Australian food photographer and blogger Katie Quinn Davies is right at home here. Except www.canadianinquirer.net
I was drawn to her book anyway. And I became convinced her life really is more beautiful, more delicious and way more fun than my own. In fact, her book — a follow to her first, “What Katie Ate” (also the name of her blog) — is beautifully photographed (no shock since that’s her day gig) and the recipes are truly appealing. I want her spiced squash and apple soup with bacon, and her crab, lemon and chili spaghetti (even if I have to wade through dozens of pages of lifestyle photos to get to them). Get this book for the person who wants to get lost in — and inspired by — a cookbook. “Milk Bar Life” by Christina Tosi (Clarkson Potter, $35)
If “What Katie Ate on the Weekend” is all about aspirational eating, Christina Tosi’s book is dedicated to embracing your grubby inner child. Deliciously so. As the pastry chef and owner of Momofuku Milk Bar, she made a name for herself with crazy good creations like compost cookies, crack pie and cereal milk ice cream. Her latest book pulls her more into savory territory, but with the same sense of whimsy. Many of the recipes are riffs
Elias Cairo is a bit of an icon in the food world, particularly on the Portland, Oregon, scene, where his Olympia Provisions has become a revered institution. What started as a salumeria has morphed into a mail order business, two restaurants and now a book. This is a book to inspire carnivorous cravings. Are you likely to tackle its three-page recipe for homemade chorizo? Probably not. But you will LOVE the centerfold spread of 19 creative ways to dress hot dogs. Get this book for the meat geek in your life (because it also has ample recipes for using charcuterie, even if you’re not ambitious enough to make it from scratch). “The New Sugar and Spice” by Samantha Seneviratne (Ten Speed Press, $27.50)
And I’ll wrap with something to satisfy the holiday sugar rush. Samantha Seneviratne has a fresh approach to what can feel like a tired niche — the baking book. She organizes her beautifully photographed cookbook by spice, so chapters are sorted by cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and so on. It’s a different way to peruse — and be inspired by — a baking book. And tucked inside those chapters are approachable and creative takes on classic treats. So you get brownies laced with cinnamon, a frosted chocolate cake spiked with an impressive tablespoon of nutmeg, and an orange pull-apart bread flavoured with cloves. Great for the home baker eager for fresh ideas. ■
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
BOOK LAUNCH
Seen & Scenes: Vancouver
Del Gachallan launched on Nov. 21, his autobiography, "Into My Third Life," at the All Saints Parish Hall in Coquitlam. Special guests include Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart (6th from L) and Deputy Consul General Anton Mandap (3rd from L) (Photos by Charen Cusi).
MASQUERADE BALL The Bukas Loob sa Dios recently held a masquerade ball in Richmond, BC as a fundraising event highlighted by dancing and live band music.
UP Alumni Association President Charen Cusi with the author, Del Gachallan
VANCOUVER MULTICULTURAL SOCIETY 41ST ANNIVERSARY
PHILIPPINE RED CROSS The Canadian Red Cross of British Columbia (BC) and Yukon hosted a breakfast meeting on Nov. 24, with the donor community. Philippine Red Cross Secretary General, Dr. Gwendolyn Pang, was guest and resource speaker. Deputy Consul General Anton Mandap represented the Philippine Consulate General (Photos by Laarni Liwanag de Paula).
MS. VANCOUVER Filipino Canadian Christine Adela White was crowned Miss Vancouver 2015 at the pageant ceremony held at Sutton Hotel in Vancouver, last Nov. 22. White also bagged the Most Photogenic award during the pageant night. (Photos by Treenee Lopez).
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Seen and Scenes: Toronto
NOVEMBER 27, 2015
FRIDAY
CANCER SOCIETY
SSS OUTREACH
Chona Stinson, Mrs. Philippines 2013, received a Certificate of Appreciation from the Canadian Cancer Society representatives for her group's donation. Also present are Mary Grace Enciso, and Fe Gregorio of the Beauties of Summer.
Philippine Social Security System Foreign Representative Officer Roberto Roldan, who is based in Toronto, On., recently held an SSS Outreach Program at the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles. Here are some pictures of the event (Photos from Roberto Roldan’s FB).
ONTARIO FILIPINO WOMEN'S CLUB The Ontario Filipino Women's Club (OFWC) held its Christmas Party on Nov. 20, at JC's Banquet Haus. Rebecca Reyes is the current OFWC president (Photos by Ariel Ramos).
A RISING STAR Fienness Mendoza, a young artist from Stoney Creek, On. soared high during her concert dubbed, “Our Christmas Rendezvous with Fienness Mendoza,” at Delta Hotel, Toronto East. Fien dreams of making it big in the international scene (Photo by Jojo Taduran).
For photo submissions, please email info@canadianinquirer.net. www.canadianinquirer.net
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FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2015
Don’t limit your dreams Be different!
Become an Independant Financial Consultant Becoming an independent financial consultant has been a huge stepping stone for many who join Greatway Financial. This has enabled them to achieve their financial goals and dream bigger. It is not full-time but part-time. They do it at their own time. You too can have that opportunity to write your own pay cheque! What do Greatway financial consultants do? They passionately share their blessings with others by educating others about finances.
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NOVEMBER 27, 2015
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