Philippine Canadian Inquirer #326

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JUNE 29, 2018

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VOL. 6 NO. 326

REWARDED

Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Aaron Aquino (left) turns over the cash reward worth some PHP7.6 million to four operating units of the agency for their meritorious accomplishment in conducting anti-drug operations during the ceremony at the PDEA headquarters in Quezon City Story on page 12.

JOEY O. RAZON / PNA

HRW asks PNP to stop antitambay campaign

BY KATHERINE PADILLA Philippine Canadian Inquirer MANILA, PHILIPPINES — The Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Tuesday, June 26, called on the Philippine National Police (PNP) to “immediately end” its antiloitering policy.

Phelim Kine, deputy director in

8

SolGen asks SC to dismiss petition to allow same-sex marriage in PH

HRW’s Asia Division, said that the PNP’s ‘crime prevention’ campaign is targeted at “low-income Filipinos,” the same group of people whose communities have been “terrorized” by the police’s war on drugs.

“The Philippine National Police are again demonstrating their preference

19 Number of Pinoy crime victims drops in Q1 of 2018 — SWS

❱❱ PAGE 10 HRW asks

Get the latest news & updates www.canadianinquirer.net

❱❱ PAGE 7

Walk or die: Algeria strands 13,000 migrants in the Sahara

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Philippine News

JUNE 29, 2018

FRIDAY

Gov’t urged to make De Lima seeks SC nod sure cheap NFA rice to attend oral argument on reaches intended PH withdrawal from ICC beneficiaries

BY JOSE CIELITO REGANIT Philippine News Agency MANILA — As the National Food Authority (NFA) starts distributing affordable rice in the market, two opposition senators on Tuesday urged concerned authorities to implement proper actions to ensure that the imported rice reaches its intended beneficiaries.

The NFA has imported 250,000 metric tons of rice from Vietnam and Thailand to replenish its buffer stocks and distribute to public markets across the country.

Initial shipments have begun arriving in the country in the first week of June but inclement weather has delayed its distribution.

Meanwhile, further shipments are expected to arrive until August this year.

“With the arrival in the market of rice imported by the NFA, government should ensure that affordable rice reach the intended areas for the benefit of the low-income sector,” Senator Francis Pangilinan said in a statement.

Besides keeping a close watch over the distribution stage, Pangilinan said the government should also be on the lookout against unscrupulous traders who take advantage of the price and quality of the imported rice to make more profits.

The imported rice is of two varieties and sold by the NFA at PHP27 and PHP32 per kilogram.

In contrast, commercial rice of comparable qualities cost between PHP42 to as high as PHP51 per kilogram.

“Authorities should also be on guard against possible illegal diversion and repacking of rice to be sold to the commercial market at higher prices. The quantity of the imported grains has certainly made hoarders and profiteers on the lookout anew for their illegal activities,” Pangilinan said.

Repacking of NFA rice to be sold as commercial rice has been a persistent bane to government efforts to maintain a steady supply of affordable rice in the market.

The opposition lawmaker condemned the illegal business practice, saying such manipulation of rice stocks results in “lack of supply, higher prices, and hungry Filipinos.”

However, Pangilinan said the prospect of hoarding and illegal repacking of NFA rice could be proactively nipped in the bud by seeking the help of the Philippine National Police and the National Bureau of Investigation to raid and inspect rice warehouses.

“Instead of going after the ‘tambays,’ the PNP would have better use for its force by guarding the Filipino’s staple food to make sure that they are available in the market at prices affordable to ordinary Filipinos,” Pangilinan said.

Pangilinan’s sentiments were echoed by Senator Paolo Benigno Aquino IV. Aquino urged that besides ensuring that cheap rice reaches its intended destinations, government should also ensure the supply of affordable rice in the market to prevent the unnecessary increase in the price of rice.

He noted that prices of commercial rice soared with the absence of NFA rice in the market since March of last year.

“Mahigit isang taon ding nalunod ang ating mga kababayan sa mahal na presyo ng bigas.

Ngayon, tiyakin natin na tuluytuloy na ang supply ng murang bigas para gumaan naman ang kanilang kalagayan (Our countrymen have drowned from the high price of rice for more than a year. Now, we must ensure a steady supply of cheap rice in order to ease their situations),” the lawmaker said.

“Rice is the daily staple of Filipinos. Thus, government should pay close attention to it and ensure that there is an ample supply of affordable rice in the market,” he added. ■

BY CHRISTOPHER LLOYD CALIWAN Philippine News Agency

MANILA — Detained Senator Leila De Lima asked the Supreme Court (SC) to allow her to participate in the oral argument on the petition seeking to invalidate the Philippine government’s withdrawal from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC).

In her four-page manifestation with motion, de Lima asked the SC to allow her to personally argue, as one of the petitioners, during the oral arguments.

“This Honorable Court is respectfully asked to take judicial notice of its practice of permitting members of Congress to appear before it and argue their cases,” de Lima said.

The detained senator is the lead counsel for the minority senators.

De Lima, along with Senators Francis Pangilinan, Franklin Drilon, Paolo Benigno Aquino, Risa Hontiveros, and Antonio Trillanes IV filed a 17-page petition for certiorari and mandamus and said that under Article VII Section 21 of the 1987 Constitution, “entering into treaty or international agreement requires participation of Congress, that is, through concurrence of at least 2/3 of all the members of the Senate.”

The lawmakers also asked the High Court to compel the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Philippine Permanent Mission to the United Nations to notify the United Nations Secretary General that the Philippines is revoking the notice of withdrawal that it received last March 17.

The diplomatic note stated that the “decision to withdraw is the Philippines’ principled stand against those who politicize and weaponize human rights, even as its independent and well-functioning organs and agencies continue to exercise jurisdiction over complaints, issues, problems and concerns arising from its efforts to protect the people.” www.canadianinquirer.net

Sen. Leila de Lima.

The petitioners said the Rome Statute is a treaty validly entered into by the Philippines that has the same status as a law enacted by Congress.

“The Executive cannot abrogate or repeal a law. In the same vein, the Executive cannot unilaterally withdraw from a treaty or international agreement because such withdrawal is equivalent to a repeal of a law,” they argued.

In withdrawing its membership from the ICC, the petitioners claimed that the respondents committed usurpation of legislative powers, which is punishable under the Revised Penal Code.

SC spokesperson Theodore Te said that the oral arguments have been moved from July 24 to August 7.

Since February 2017, De Lima has been detained at Camp Crame Detention Center over her drug cases pending before the Muntinlupa trial court. She is being accused of having a hand in the proliferation of drug trading inside the walls of the New Bilibid Prison during her stint as secretary of justice.

Two petitions are already pending before the High Court questioning the government’s withdrawal from the Rome Statute without Senate ratification.

The second petition was filed by the Philippine Coalition for the International Criminal Court (PCICC) led by former Commission on Human Rights chairperson Loretta Ann Rosales.

Named respondents in the petition were Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano,

CESAR TOMAMBO / SENATE OF THE PHILIPPINES

Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, Philippine Ambassador to the UN Teodoro Locsin Jr., and Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo.

On March 14, President Rodrigo Duterte announced the Philippines’ withdrawal of its ratification of the Rome Statute, a United Nations (UN) treaty creating the ICC. In the statement, Duterte cited “baseless, unprecedented and outrageous attacks” against him and his administration as the reason for his withdrawal as a state party.

“Given the baseless, unprecedented and outrageous attacks on my person as well as against my administration, engineered by the officials of the United Nations, as well as the attempt by the International Criminal Court special prosecutor to place my person within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, in violation of due process and the presumption of innocence expressly guaranteed by the Philippine Constitution and recognized no less by the Rome Stature, I therefore declare and forthwith give notice, as President of the Republic of the Philippines, that the Philippines is withdrawing its ratification of the Rome Statute effective immediately,” the President said in a statement.

This came after ICC special prosecutor Fatou Bensouda began a preliminary examination on the alleged human rights violations amid the Duterte administration’s intensified war on drugs. ■

Philippine News

FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

DepEd probes alleged overpriced razors for Region 10 students

BY MA. TERESA MONTEMAYOR Philippine News Agency MANILA — The Department of Education (DepEd) has formed a fact-finding committee to look into the alleged overpricing of razors procured by DepEd Northern Mindanao.

It was reported that DepEd officials in Region 10 purchased 13 razors at PHP1,878 each, which actually cost only PHP200 in department stores.

In a statement released Tuesday night, DepEd central office said the factfinding body is tasked to examine the relevant facts and documents relating to the transaction.

“Based on initial reports gathered from the field, the items referred to were part of various tools and equipment for Senior High School Technical Vocational and Livelihood (TVL) Track, procured sometime between April to June 2016 from funds downloaded by

the central office sometime in February 2016,” the statement reads.

DepEd said the payment for the razors has not been made since the supplier did not comply with the requirements, noting that the incident “appears to have occurred prior to the term of the present administration.”

Meanwhile, DepEd assured the public that it will not tolerate any form or act of irregularity in its procurement processes from the central office, down to its field offices; and that it will release concrete information regarding the issue as soon as possible.

On June 25, an online news site reported that DepEd regional director Allan Francisco said the razors’ price was dictated upon the regional DepEd office by the DepEd Manila office and that the razors have been delivered by the winning bidder, Davao City-based N. R. Eustaquio Enterprises Inc. as part of the PHP9-million project for TVL students. ■

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Philippine News

JUNE 29, 2018

FRIDAY

PRRD upset over crime survey results; warns incompetent local execs

BY JELLY MUSICO Philippine News Agency MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte has expressed frustration that around 1.5 million families fell victim to common crimes in the first quarter of 2018 based on the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.

“If this is the case, I’m worthless, I’ll ask you to join me, we better resign altogether,” Duterte said in his speech during the oath taking of Region 9 barangay captains in Molave, Zamboanga del Sur. According to the March 23-27 SWS survey, at least 6.6 percent of Filipinos fell victim to robbery or pickpocket, break-ins, carnapping and physical violence.

The number, however, is lower compared to 1.7 million families (7.6 percent) recorded in its survey conducted last December.

“There seems to be a semblance of a republic and a nation but inside, it’s topsy-turvy. It’s crime-ridden,” he added.

Duterte challenged the village leaders to be proactive in addressing common crimes as well as illegal drugs, saying he

cannot solve the country’s problems by himself.

“There is always illegal logging, there is always illegal drugs. The high rate of crime in your municipality. What are you doing?” he told the region’s 1,904 village leaders who won in the last May 14 elections.

“I do not mean to offend you. But the yoke of burden does not fall on me exclusively. I cannot run this country without you,” he added.

Duterte said he suggested to Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año to make an audit of local government units (LGUs) that have high crime rates.

“I do not want for the life of me to be tinkering with your business as a local government unit for after all, we are elected by the people. But apparently, there seems to be a misunderstanding which has been going on for so long a time,” he said.

Duterte reiterated his warning against LGU officials who use their position as platform to propagate illegal drugs in their areas.

“You barangay captains, governors, you use the platform of public office for

Pres. Rodrigo Duterte and DILG Secretary Eduardo Año.

your drug operation and in the process killing government men even police, I will really kill you,” Duterte said.

“If you are a mayor and you go overboard, you kill police and military, you think you are (the) lord. I will not allow (a) mayor who is (a) gang lord,” he added.

Duterte said sometimes he tries to go beyond the boundaries just to wake up and to get everyone involved in transforming the country into a better and progressive nation.

“You have to help me. I don’t know if

PCOO

I’m ready to — if it’s an overcast, which means all,” he said.

Duterte said he will consider a request to arm barangay captains to fight criminals and to defend themselves.

“You work, I will give you firearms.

But I want (to eradicate) terrorism and drugs and I will have an audit. And if you are not at par, I will file charges against you for incompetence. I don’t want to do it, but you have to defend the country,” he said. ■

Otis Bridge in Manila closed to motorists

BY FERDINAND PATINIO Philippine News Agency MANILA — The Otis Bridge in Paco, Manila was closed to traffic at about 1 a.m.

Tuesday after a barangay official reported a 10-meter crack in the middle of the bridge, a Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) official said.

“The bridge will be reconstructed.

Everything will be replaced. The whole bridge will be a new one,” DPWH-National Capital Region Director Melvin Navarro said in an interview.

Navarro said they are waiting for the result of the assessment being conducted by structural engineers.

“We are talking if we will implement a total closure, if that is their assessment,” he added.

In a separate interview, DPWH South Manila District Engineer De Mikunug Macud noted that some of the girders have collapsed, making the bridge unsafe for motorists.

The bridge was constructed in the www.canadianinquirer.net

1960s, Macud said, adding that a technical inspection of the structure was conducted in 2013 and a year later, it was reported to have a weak foundation.

While funds were allotted for the construction of a new bridge in 2016, he said they were not able to proceed with the project.

“In 2016, unfortunately we could not start the project because of some problems among them. We were not given permit/clearance by the Metro Manila Development Authority because of the construction in Quirino Ave. We were not allowed to simultaneously construct since the two roads are parallel — it will create heavy traffic in the area,” Macud explained.

The project has a budget of about PHP37 million.

Asked when the project would be completed, Macud replied, “One year, if the contractor will be given support and if there are no problems encountered.

We will try to finish it in nine months, 24/7.” ■

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FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

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Philippine News

JUNE 29, 2018

FRIDAY

Marcos camp to comply with PET sanction over gag order violation

BY CHRISTOPHER LLOYD CALIWAN Philippine News Agency MANILA — The camp of former senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday said they will comply with the order of the Supreme Court (SC), sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), to pay a PHP50,000 fine for disclosing sensitive information regarding the recount of the votes for the 2016 vice presidential race.

“We respect the Court’s ruling and shall abide by the decision,” Marcos’ spokesperson Atty. Vic Rodriguez said.

Meanwhile, the camp of Vice President Maria Leonor Robredo said they have yet to receive a copy of the tribunal’s order.

“We have not received a copy of the resolution and we don’t want to preempt the Supreme Court,” Robredo’s legal counsel Romulo Macalintal said in a statement.

“However, we stand firm that the lies propagated by the Marcos camp called on us to defend ourselves. Sometimes, we have no choice but to speak out, in order for the public to be enlightened amid the relentless black propaganda, which aims to discredit the recount being spearheaded by the PET,” Macalintal said in a statement.

Both camps were directed to pay PHP50,000 each for their arguments and discussing the merits of the poll protest cases in public and media interviews.

Bongbong Marcos.

“PET Action, June 26 | SC, as PET in Case no. 0005 (Marcos v Robredo), fines parties and counsels PHP50,000 each for violation of sub judice rule,” the SC Public Information Office (PIO) said in its Twitter account.

Last April 10, the PET directed the both parties to show cause and explain why they should not be cited in contempt for violating the resolutions dated Feb. 13, 2018 and Mar. 20, 2018.

In a resolution dated Feb. 13, the tribunal ordered the parties to strictly observe the sub judice rule pending the proceedings of the instant case.

This was reiterated in another resolution dated March 20, 2018.

However, despite PET’s stern directives, several news reports showed that the parties, their counsels or their representatives, continued to disclose sensitive information regarding the revision process to the public, a clear violation of the tribunal’s resolutions.

The manual recount of votes began on March 19 covering Marcos’ three pilot provinces namely, Camarines Sur, Iloilo, and Negros Oriental.

Marcos filed the protest on June 29, 2016, claiming the camp of Robredo cheated in the automated polls in May that year.

In his protest, Marcos contested the results from 132,446 precincts in 39,221 clusters, covering 27 provinces and cities.

Robredo was declared the winner of the vice presidential race in the May 2016 polls with 14,418,817 votes or 263,473 more than Marcos’ 14,155,344 votes. ■

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Duterte eyes Kuwait visit in August or September

BY AZER PARROCHA Philippine News Agency

On February, Duterte ordered a total ban on deployment of Filipino workers in the Gulf state after the body of Filipina Joanna Daniella Demafelis was found MANILA — President Rodrigo R. inside a freezer in an abandoned apartDuterte is looking at visiting Kuwait ment of her employers. in August or September to personally The Kuwaiti government also thank its government for giving into his slammed the action taken by the staff of labor demands, Malacañang said Tues- the Philippine embassy, who conducted day. rescue operations for distressed FilipiPresidential spokesperson Harry no workers in the said country.

Roque said that although there is no With the help of the Kuwaiti governfixed date when the visit will take place, ment, Demafalis’ employers, Labanese Duterte himself said Nader Essam Assaf that he has been “reand his wife, Mona peating that he will Hassoun of Syria, go.” were arrested and Moreover, Roque detained in their resaid that Duterte’s spective countries. visit will also be subHis first official The issue was reject to the availability trip to the solved last month, of the Emir. state was when the MOA was “It will be subject supposed to signed with all Philto the availability of be in early ippine conditions the Emir and that is May but was granted. why we are looking at pushed back Under the MOA, August or September due to the the Kuwait governthis year,” Roque said two nations’ ment will be required in a press briefing in diplomatic to ensure that FiliDavao City. spat. pino workers are “Iyon po iyong provided with de(That’s the) prelimicent meals, housing, nary information on clothing, commuwhen the Emir will nication lines, 8 to be available to re12 hours of sleep, an ceive the President,” he added. eight-hour work schedule, among othEarly this month, Duterte announced ers. his plan to visit Kuwait, following the Moreover, the employer is also prosuccessful signing of the memorandum hibited to confiscate OFW’ passports of agreement (MOA) on the protection and other personal identification, inof overseas Filipino workers in the Gulf cluding cellphones and other means of country. communication.

His first official trip to the state was The Kuwaiti government will also supposed to be in early May but was pursue legal action against employers pushed back due to the two nations’ dip- who have records of contract violations lomatic spat. or abuse of workers. ■

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Philippine News

FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

7

Number of Pinoy crime victims drops in Q1 of 2018 — SWS

BY JOANNA BELLE DEALA Philippine Canadian Inquirer THE NUMBER of Filipino families who were victims of common crimes went down in the past six months, according to the latest survey of Social Weather Stations (SWS) released on Thursday, June 21.

In its First Quarter 2018 Social Weather Survey, the SWS revealed that 6.6 percent or about 1.5 million Filipino families fell victim to common crimes such as pickpocket or robbery of personal property, break-ins, carjacking, and physical violence.

“This is 1.0 point below the 7.6% (est. 1.7 million) in December 2017, but 0.5 point above the 6.1% annual average victimization by any of the common crimes for 2017,” the pollster said.

According to the latest figure, there is 6.1 percent or about 1.4 million families that lost their property to street robbery, burglars (break-ins), or carjackers within the past six months.

This result is one point below the 7.1 percent last December 2017, but SWS said it is 0.5 point above the 2017 annual average victimization by property crimes of 5.6 percent.

The survey also found out that there is 0.6 percent or 145,000 Filipino families with members hurt by physical vio-

lence, a 0.2 point below the 0.8 percent last December, and similar to the 0.6 percent or estimated 149,000 recorded in June 2017.

SWS said victimization by common crimes reported in its surveys is much ‘higher’ than the number of crimes being reported to the police.

“Except in March 2013 and June 2016 when it was at 10.5% and 11.4% respectively, victimization of families by any common crime was at singledigit levels from March 2012 to March 2018,” it said.

“Meanwhile, except in June 2016 when it was 10.9%, victimization of property crimes was also at single-digit levels from March 2012 to March 2018,” it added.

Since 1989, the SWS has been asking respondents of each quarterly survey whether any member of the family became a victim of street robbery, home break-in, or violence in the past six months.

It was in 1992 when the SWS included motor vehicle theft to its list of crimes specifically monitored.

Fewer break-ins and carjacking

The latest survey also revealed that 2.2 percent or an estimated of 516,000 families were victimized by break-ins.

This result is 1.2 points lower from the 3.4 percent or about 790,000 recorded in December

2017.

“Of families owning any type of motor vehicle, the survey found that 0.5% (est. 51,000) were robbed of it in the past six months, down by 0.7 points from the 1.2% (est. 108,000) in December 2017,” the SWS noted.

The number of families victimized by street robbery, meanwhile, remained at 4.6 percent or about 1.1 million.

Decline in fear of burglary, unsafe streets, drug addicts The SWS, since 1985, has always included two survey items on whether Filipinos in the neighborhood are usually afraid that robbers might break into their homes and to walk in the streets at night because it is not safe.

In 2005, the pollster added the item on whether there are many drug addicts in the neighborhood.

The March 2018 survey showed that 54 percent of Filipino adults agreed with the statement, “In this neighborhood, people are usually afraid that robbers might break into their houses.”

“This is down by 5 points from the 59% in December 2017, and similar to the 54% in September 2017,” the pollster said.

Meanwhile, a total of 46 percent of Filipinos agreed with the statement, “In this neighborhood, people are usually

afraid to walk in the street at night because it is not safe,” which is two points lower from the 48 percent in December 2017 and the lowest since the 42 percent in April 2016.

Lesser Filipinos also believed that there are a lot of drug addicts in their neighborhood compared from the 42 percent recorded last December.

In its statement, the Palace welcomed the result of SWS’s recent survey which showed a decline in the number of families who fell victims to common crimes in the first quarter of 2018.

“Indeed, significant strides have been made in our campaign against illegal drugs and crimes as families reported fewer break-ins and carnapping,” Presidential Spokesper-

son Harry Roque Jr. said on Thursday.

“Fear of burglary, fear of unsafe streets, and presence of drug addicts in the neighborhood had likewise dropped as disclosed by respondent families,” he added.

Roque noted that such public sentiment is “certainly a big boost” to the morale of the country’s law enforcers as they vow to continue to ensure the safety of all Filipinos.

The SWS survey, done from March 23 to 27, used face-toface interviews of 1,200 adults (18 years old and above), with sampling error margins of plusminus 2.5 percent for national percentages and plus-minus six percent each for Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. ■

CBCP open to dialogue with gov’t

BY FERDINAND PATINIO Philippine News Agency MANILA — The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) is open to the proposal for a dialogue with the government and other religious denominations.

CBCP president Archbishop Romulo Valles believes that a dialogue is a good venue for all parties to discuss issues.

“That is most welcome development. To dialogue; is to listen to one another, is always good,” he said in an interview over Church-run Radio Veritas

on Tuesday.

The Davao prelate made the remarks following the tirades of President Rodrigo Duterte against the Catholic Church.

On Tuesday, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the President assigned him to be part of the committee together with Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Ernesto Abella and EDSA People Power Commission member Pastor Boy Saycon.

Meanwhile, former CBCP president and Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma is hoping that their ‘plenary assembly’ this July will tackle the is-

sue involving the President’s remarks against the Catholic Church and God. “I look (forward) sa meeting namin dahil alam ko na mapag-usapan ito (because I know we will tackle this) and we can make a response. Siguro una, syempre nalulungkot tayo dahil mayroon mga bagay na nasasabi na hindi naman dapat sabihin na parang (First, we are sad because there are things that should not be said and seem to be) sometimes out of place, out of tune. At siguro pangalawa, bakit ganyan, sa isang dako all of us dapat naman magtanong to what extent www.canadianinquirer.net

yung sinasabi niya? (Although) hindi naman (natin) ma-deny na mayroon din tayong kahinaan (And second, why was it like that? At one point, all of us must ask up to what extent are he saying these things? We must be guided by reflection.

Although, we cannot deny that we have weaknesses),” he said in a separate radio interview.

“Ang simbahan ay mayroon din mga nagagawa na sabihin nga natin na medyo lihis din sa ating tawag sa ating tungkulin (The Church, at times, do things that are not in line with its duty),” he added.

Palma noted that the re-

sponse on the tirades by the Chief Executive against the members of the clergy and God should be thoroughly studied.

The Catholic Church in the Philippines consists of 86 archdioceses and dioceses, with over 140 bishops. More than 80 percent of Filipinos are Catholics.

On Monday, Malacañang officials defended President Duterte’s remarks about God, stressing that it was his “personal belief” which he, and anyone else, had the right to express. ❱❱ PAGE 13 CBCP open

Philippine News

8

SolGen asks SC to dismiss petition to allow same-sex marriage in PH

BY CHRISTOPHER LLOYD CALIWAN Philippine News Agency

Publisher Philippine Canadian Inquirer, Inc. Correspondents Katherine Padilla Joanna Belle Z. Deala RO-Angelica T. Equio Bea Kirstein T. Manalaysay Socorro Newland Bolet Arevalo Administration Head Victoria Yong Graphic Designer Shanice Garcia Photographers Vic Vargas For photo submissions, please email editor@canadianinquirer.net For General Inquiries, please email info@canadianinquirer.net For Sales Inquiries, please email sales@canadianinquirer.net Philippine Canadian Inquirer is located at 11951 Hammersmith Way, Suite 108 Richmond, B.C. V7A 5H9 Canada

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Member

MANILA — Solicitor General Jose Calida on Tuesday asked the Supreme Court (SC) to dismiss the petition filed in May 2015 challenging the validity of provisions of the Family Code limiting marriage to heterosexual couples.

During the resumption on the oral arguments on the matter, Calida argued that the petition filed by lawyer Jesus Nicardo Falcis III on May 18, 2015, seeking the lifting of the prohibitions on same-sex marriage for being unconstitutional, has no basis in law and must be stricken down.

“The definition of marriage adopted by the drafters of our Constitution is guided by the teachings of history and the recognition of the traditions that underlie our society. Marriage, as traditionally conceived in the Philippines, has always been between a man and a woman. Articles 1 and 2 of the Family Code are constitutional,” Calida argued.

Quoting 1987 Constitutional Commission member Bernardo Villegas, Calida explained that “same sex relationships was foremost on the minds of the framers [of the 1987 Constitution] when they deliberated on the meaning of family and marriage,” stressing that while there was empathy for this sector of society, “both natural law and religious values affirm that the normal family relationship is between man and woman.”

“The framers intended marriage as a union between a man and a woman… it is clear that marriage has always been defined as a union between a man and a woman primarily to constitute a complete and perfect community between two heterosexual individuals and, consequently, to preserve the human race,” Calida insisted.

He also argued that limiting the definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman under the Family Code is a “valid exercise” of the state’s police power.

During interpellation, Associate Justice Marvic Leonen asked Calida on the harm in allowing same-sex couples to get married, to which the latter replied: “Well, the harm your honor is that the Constitution and our laws do not sanction such marriage.”

Leonen also questioned Calida on why the law is being interpreted in such a way that it would “impose something on the freedom and happiness of others without showing a viable reason except tradition.”

The magistrate also grilled Calida on whether the Constitution provision on marriage specifically states that it

SolGen Jose Calida.

should be between opposite sex.

“There is constitutional construction.

It doesn’t have to be defined. It is the big elephant in this room,” Calida replied.

Leonen then argued: “Are we not going to interpret the Constitution and the law in such a way that what we wish and what we desire is imposed upon another couple?”

“Why do we interpret our laws and our Constitution that we impose something on the freedoms and happiness of others, without showing a very viable reason except tradition?” Leonend asked Calida.

The top government counsel, however, stood firm on his stance and said that the petitioners should be “able to convince the framers of our Constitution to change the concept of marriage and expand it to same sex couples.”

Calida later softened his stance and said: “It does not say in such language.”

He added that he will expound on his reply to Leonen’s questions in his memorandum.

Falcis, who admitted being gay, sought the lifting of the prohibitions on samesex marriage for being unconstitutional.

He explained that limiting civil marriages and rights that go with it to heterosexuals violated the Constitutionally-guaranteed provisions on equal treatment, undue interference to liberty rights and marital autonomy.

Falcis is asking the Court to nullify portions of Articles 1 and 2 of the Family Code, which defines and limits marriage as between man and woman”; and to “nullify portions of Articles 4.6 (4) and 55 (6) which mentions lesbianism or homosexuality as grounds for annulment

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PCOO

and legal separation of the Family Code as a consequence of the unconstitutionality of Articles 1 and 2.”

Limiting civil marriage to heterosexuals does not violate one’s rights to due process and equal protection of laws, and does not violate religious freedom, Calida further argued.

As to the first two rights, Calida explained that the state is merely upholding a traditional concept of marriage, the limitation applies to all opposite-sex couples, and only opposite-sex marriage can procreate.

As to religious freedom, Calida pointed out that “the exercise of religious freedom is neither absolute nor all-encompassing” as it cannot have its way over state interest.

“The Family Code is a valid state regulation founded on a purely secular purpose when it limited civil marriages to opposite-sex couples. The overriding state interest is the preservation of the tradition and history of marriage in the Philippines as a union between a man and a woman for the primary purpose of procreation,” he argued.

“The Office of the Solicitor General has always been of the position that the pursuit of happiness is everyone’s birthright. Same-sex couples can live happily together. But they cannot demand that the state recognize same-sex marriages because the Constitution simply does not allow such unions,” he added.

Meanwhile, Acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio directed both parties to submit their respective memoranda within 30 days from Tuesday, including all topics Justices pointed out to be tackled. ■

Philippine News

FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

9

Palace backs arming of priests: ‘If they qualify, there’s no problem’

BY AZER PARROCHA Philippine News Agency MANILA — Malacañang on Tuesday expressed support for applications of priests and religious workers to carry firearms outside their homes for selfdefense amid concerns of the killings of Catholic priests in the past months.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said that as long as a priest or religious worker is qualified to bear firearms, he sees no problem with the Philippine National Police (PNP) providing them with permits to carry.

“Meron tayong mga (We have) guidelines. If any priest will qualify, then I’m sure the PNP will issue corresponding gun license,” Roque said in a press briefing in Davao City.

Roque clarified that the PNP would not give them permits to carry firearms simply because they were priests but because their lives are under threat or imminent danger.

“In other words, hindi naman po sila bibigyan ng armas (they won’t be given permits to carry arms) because they are members of the priesthood,” Roque said.

“Bibigyan sila ng armas (They will be allowed to carry arms) if they qualify under the requirements provided by law specifically, ’yung mga taong may banta po sa kanilang mga buhay (those whose lives are under threat),” he added.

However, under Republic Act 10591 or the Comprehensive Firearms and Ammunition Regulation Act, priests, ministers, rabbi, imams, as well as lawyers, ac-

countants, media, cashiers, bank tellers, physicians, nurses, and businessmen are permitted to carry licensed guns while they are on duty.

According to the PNP, the permit to carry firearms is separate from the permit to own firearms. These professionals must already have permits to own firearms before being allowed to carry firearms outside their homes.

These professionals are considered to be in imminent danger due to the nature of their profession, occupation or business and are not required to submit threat assessment certificates as the law automatically recognizes them as persons in imminent danger.

Last week, the PNP bared that from June 2017 to the same month this year, it received applications from over 200 priests, ministers, and preachers applying for a permit to bear firearms outside their homes but there was no information if applications for permits to own or carry increased following priest killings.

Priest killings

The most recent victim, Father Richmond Nilo of the Diocese of Cabanatuan, is the third Catholic priest killed in the country in recent months.

Reports showed that Nilo was shot dead by unidentified gunmen four times while he was about to celebrate mass in a chapel in Zaragoza, Nueva Ecija Sunday evening.

Malacañang has condemned Nilo’s killing and vowed to make the killings of priests its “top priority.”

Filipinos in N. California warned vs. wildfire

BY JOYCE ANN L. ROCAMORA Philippine News Agency MANILA — The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Wednesday advised Filipinos in the path of a dangerous wildfire in Northern California in the United States to follow local advisories after authorities ordered residents to evacuate.

The agency told reporters Wednesday it is “closely monitoring” the situation of the more than 1,700 Filipinos in Lake County, located 178 kilometers from the state capital, Sacramento.

The fire burning in the region has consumed 11,500 acres of land – roughly 4,654 hectares - and destroyed dozens of

buildings, with 600 more being threatened by the flames.

On Tuesday, California Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency in the affected area.

While no injuries or casualties were reported, the DFA, through Assistant Secretary Elmer Cato, echoed the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco’s call on Filipinos to “heed evacuation orders.”

Consul General Bensurto said the Consulate has been in touch with authorities in Lake County, adding that no Filipino has so far been reported affected by the fire.

Filipino nationals in the region, who may require assistance are advised to get in touch with the Consulate. ■

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said that PNP chief Director General Oscar Albayalde is monitoring developments on the case.

Roque also denied that the consecutive killings of priests can be associated to Duterte’s attacks against the Catholic Church, noting that there was no “em-

PCOO

pirical basis” for such claims.

“I don’t think there is any empirical basis for that ‘no. Ang masasabi ko lang po itong kultura ng impunity ay naririyan na po bago pa pumasok ang ating Presidente (I can only say that this culture of impunity has been there even before our President came in),” Roque said. ■

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10

Philippine News

HRW asks...

4 PDEA units receive P7.6-M cash reward

❰❰ 1

for wielding fear, intimidation, and arbitrary arrest to target vulnerable communities rather than respect for the rule of law,” Kine said.

According to the HRW, the arrestees are typically “not brought before a judge, but detained for a period and then released, though sometimes criminal charges are brought.”

The rights watchdog also raised concerns on the “poor and inhumane health and hygiene conditions” of the “grossly overcrowded detention centers” where the arrested tambays (loiterers) are brought.

“Overcrowding of Philippine jails has long made them hazardous to detainees’ health because of inadequate food, ventilation, health care, and toilet facilities,” the HRW said.

“As a result, pulmonary illnesses such as tuberculosis, skin infections, diarrhea, and sepsis run rampant among detainees,” it added.

The HRW also cited the alleged prevalence of “torture and other forms of ill-treatment” in the country’s detention centers, noting the case of Genesis “Tisoy” Agoncillo, a “loitering” suspect who died while in the custody of the Quezon City Police District (QCPD).

The QCPD initially said that Agoncillo died after experiencing difficulty in breathing.

His death certificate, however, showed the presence of “multiple blunt force trauma” in his “neck, head, chest, and upper extremities,” indicating foul play.

The HRW further argued that the anti-loitering policy is “arbitrarily ensnaring Filipinos who are lawfully on the streets at night,” citing the complaints of two call center agents who were arrested and detained in a Makati police station for standing outside their friend’s residence. They remained in custody for an hour but were

BY CHRISTOPHER LLOYD CALIWAN Philippine News Agency

QCPD in Camp Crame, Quezon City.

eventually released.

These types of arrests, the HRW said, evoke “memories of arbitrary police targeting of the urban poor during the 19721981 martial law period under the late President Ferdinand Marcos.”

“The Philippine government should protect the basic rights of all Filipinos rather than let the police demolish them on the pretext of a ‘crime prevention’ campaign,” the rights watchdog said.

The crackdown against loiterers followed after President Rodrigo Duterte on June 13 told the PNP to be strict in its policy against loiterers.

“Ang mga criminals dapat diyan, ang mga durugista (The criminals and drug addicts), they are not supposed to be there [on the streets]. So my directive is ’pag mag-istambayistambay diyan sa, sabihin niyo, ‘Umuwi kayo. Kay ‘pag hindi kayo umuwi ihatid ko kayo doon sa opisina ni ano — Pasig [River] (‘if there are people loitering there, tell them, ‘Go home. If you won’t, I will bring you to the Office of the President), he said.

The President on June 20 clarified that he did not order

PNP

the arrest of any loiterers but simply expressed his disapproval of loitering.

“Wala namang inaaresto (No one is being arrested). I just don’t want you using the streets to loiter,” Duterte said in his speech in Iloilo City.

He, however, changed his tune today, June 26, by saying that the police can arrest loitering minors, and defended that the police’s anti-loitering campaign is legal.

“That to me is legal, until the Supreme Court says it is illegal.

Until the Supreme Court says they cannot do it. I am now invoking the police power of the state to establish order, safety [and] that is not subject to a legislation,” he said.

“You take them into custody not to arrest them, but for their own safety, to protect them. We are removing the minors, take them into custody, tawagin mo yang DSW(D) diyan, pati yung (call the DSWD there, including the) barangay. You take care… sabi ni Mayor, paarestuhin ‘yan (the Mayor said, arrest them) for their own protection. They are not being arrested for any crime, it’s for their own good that they are arrested,” Duterte added. ■

www.canadianinquirer.net

MANILA — Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Aaron Aquino on Tuesday handed the monetary reward amounting to PHP7,594,992.24 to the agency’s four operating units for their meritorious anti-drug operations.

The rewards were given to PDEA-Special Enforcement Service (PDEA-SES),PDEAIntelligence and Investigation Service (PDEA-IIS), PDEA Regional Office-National Capital Region (PDEA RO-NCR) and PDEA Regional Office III (PDEA ROIII) during simple rites on Tuesday at the PDEA National Headquarters in Quezon City.

“These PDEA operating units received cash rewards under PDEA Operation: “Lawmen”, an incentive program for law enforcers or members of the anti-illegal drug units/teams or task forces, including the support unit/s after the conduct of laudable anti-drug operations,” Aquino said.

The program was institutionalized through Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) Regulation Number 1 issued on August 3, 2016 Classified as meritorious anti-drug operations are: successful arrest of violator/s and seizure, confiscation or surrender of dangerous drugs, plant sources of dangerous drugs, and controlled precursors and essential chemicals (CPECs) in any part of the country, or seizure of high volume or quantity of the same made possible through

the conduct of search warrant operation, buy-bust operation, eradication, interdiction, interception, controlled delivery operation, checkpoint, inspection or search and seizure in detention, jail, correctional or prison facility and other legitimate operations.

“Besides issuing awards and recognition, financial reward system is another way of motivating drug law enforcement units go to the extra mile,” Aquino explained.

“Any government agency exercising law enforcement function, or support unit, is entitled to reward under their own ‘Operation: Lawmen’ program.

Non-monetary awards through recognition and commendation shall also be given to deserving law enforcers,” the PDEA chief pointed out.

To deliberate and grant the claims of monetary rewards and the appropriate non-monetary awards pursuant to the DDB regulation, PDEA Operation: “Lawmen” Committee was created.

The committee is a fivemember panel composed of a Chairperson designated by the Head of Agency/Bureau/Office, the Head/Chief of Financial Management Service/Department of the Agency/Bureau/ Office, and representatives from the business sector, academe and religious sector, who have proven themselves for integrity and probity. ■ With

reports

from

Rachel Banares

Philippine News

FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

11

IBP nominates Carpio as next CJ

BY CHRISTOPHER LLOYD CALIWAN Philippine News Agency MANILA — The Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) on Tuesday endorsed the nomination of Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio for the Chief Justice position, which is now vacant following the ouster of Maria Lourdes Sereno through a quo warranto petition filed by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG).

The lawyers’ group, led by its national president Abdiel Dan Elijah Fajardo, said the IBP through its Board of Governors endorsed Carpio for the top judiciary post.

“We are faced with the reality that the Supreme Court itself has set into motion the appointment of Chief Justice vice Ma. Lourdes P. A. Sereno. We thus support the return to, and the recognition of the wisdom, of the long-standing tradition of seniority in the appointment to the highest office of the judiciary, the Supreme Court Chief Justice,” Fajardo said in a statement.

Traditionally, the five most senior justices of the high court are automatically nominated for the Chief Justice post.

Aside from Carpio, the four most senior justices include Associate Justices Presbitero Velasco Jr., Teresita Leonardo De Castro, Diosdado Peralta and Lucas Bersamin.

Velasco and De Castro, however, are mandated to retire in August and October this year, respectively.

Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio.

Peralta, who ranks fourth in terms of seniorty, has still four years before retirement.

Carpio earlier said he would decline all nominations for the top judiciary post, stressing that he doesn’t want to benefit from the quo warranto petition that ousted Sereno.

Though he voted against Sereno’s removal, Carpio said the latter committed culpable violation of the Constitution when she failed to submit all her statement of assets, liabilities and net worth when she applied for the chief justice position in 2012.

Carpio was one of the six justices who dissented from the ruling that nullified Sereno’s appointment as Chief Justice.

He was appointed to the high court by former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in 2001 and is set to retire from the judiciary in 2019.

CSIS

Asked what the JBC will do once he formally declines a nomination, Carpio said his name will not be included on the list of nominees to be submitted to Malacañang.

On Monday, the JBC officially opened the application for the position of Chief Justice.

In a statement Monday, the Supreme Court (SC) Public Information Office said the deadline for filing and completing all requirements is on July 26.

To qualify for a position in the judiciary, one has to be a natural-born citizen of the Philippines and should possess “proven competence, integrity, probity and independence”.

Those applying to the 15-member SC should also be at least 40 years old, a judge of a lower court or had been engaged in the practice of law in the country.

Applications may be made by the applicants themselves or through the recommendation of another person, association, or organization. Endorsements or recommendations have to be formally accepted by the person being recommended.

The JBC kept the same requirements for applicants - including the submission of at least 10 statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN).

To recall, the failure of Sereno to meet this 10-SALN requirement was among the grounds cited by the SC in ordering her ouster from the SC. The Court invalidated her appointment in 2012 due to lack of proven integrity.

The seven-member council tasked to vet nominees to judicial posts listed 24 documentary requirements for nominees and applicants.

Among them are “SALNs for the last 10 years in case of applicants in government service, or for 2017 for those in the private sector.”

The JBC started the search for Sereno’s replacement after the High Court made final its decision ousting her from the top judicial post last week. It set the deadline for nomination and application for July 26.

The 1987 Constitution requires that the Chief Justice position be filled within 90 days from vacancy or from the finality of the SC ruling last June 19.

President Rodrigo Duterte needs to appoint Sereno’s replacement by September.

The JBC is constitutionally mandated to screen applicants to the judiciary and top Ombudsman positions.

It is currently chaired by Senior Associate Justice, now acting Chief Justice Carpio, with ex-officio members Guevarra, Senator Richard Gordon, and Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali.

Its regular members include retired SC Associate Justice Jose Catral Mendoza, representing the justices and chairperson of the JBC Executive Committee; Atty. Jose Mejia, representing the Academe, Atty. Milagros Fernan-Cayosa, representing the Integrated Bar of the Philippines; and retired Judge Toribio Ilao, representing the private sector.

The High Court denied with finality the motion for reconsideration filed by Sereno, who is the first top magistrate to be removed from office through quo warranto proceedings. ■

Duterte on Samar ‘misencounter’: Nobody wants it

BY AZER PARROCHA Philippine News Agency MANILA — President Rodrigo R. Duterte said Tuesday the “misencounter” between government troops and policemen in Samar, where six cops were killed and nine others were wounded, as an event which nobody wanted to happen.

“Kita mo kahapon, ang (You see yesterday, the) misencounter. Nobody wants it,” Duterte said in a speech at the mass

oath-taking of newly-elected barangay (village) officials at the municipal gymnasium in Molave, Zamboanga del Sur. The President also cited Murphy’s Law, an observation that anything that can go wrong will go wrong, to describe the misencounter.

“Actually, what happens there is the Murphy’s Law. If anything can go wrong, it will go wrong, just like the misencounter,” he said.

Duterte said he wanted to visit the slain and wounded cops in

Samar but did not give further details.

“I want to go there. I want the Army to go with me,” he said.

Meanwhile, President Duterte pointed out that the incident was not done intentionally.

“Di naman sinadya ‘yan e (That wasn’t intentionally done),” he added.

Malacañang earlier assured that the Philippine government will provide the necessary assistance to the families of the six slain policemen and the www.canadianinquirer.net

nine others, who were injured during the chance encounter.

“Lahat naman po ng naging biktima o nasasaktan sa labanan na taong gobyerno, iyan po ay pinangangalagaan ng ating gobyerno (All victims, or those wounded in an encounter with government forces are being taken care of by the government),” Roque said in a press briefing in Davao City.

He added that the Palace is still waiting for the results of the joint investigation being conducted by the Armed Forces

of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) on the incident.

“Hayaan po muna natin umusad ang imbestigasyon (Let’s wait for the investigation to proceed),” Roque said.

On Monday morning, soldiers of the Army’s 87th Infantry Battalion “incidentally engaged” elements of the 1st Platoon, 805th Company, Regional Mobile Force Battalion 8 of the PNP as they were patrolling Sitio Lonoy, Barangay San Roque, Sta. Rita, Samar. ■

12

Philippine News

Roque says PH will not follow Gov’t formally US withdrawal from UNHRC suspends back channel

BY BEA KIRSTEIN T. MANALAYSAY Philippine Canadian Inquirer AFTER THE United States (US) withdrew from the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), the Philippine government said that it will not follow this move.

“If that’s the decision of the Americans, so be it. We are also in the UN Human Rights Council. We are not following suit if that’s the question, but the President has no reaction on what the Americans decided to do,” Malacañang said through Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, Jr. in a press briefing on June 21, Thursday.

Roque further noted that President Rodrigo Roa Duterte is “very careful” to never com-

ment on decisions of other states with regards on their sovereignty as he does not want other states commenting on the country’s domestic sovereign decisions.

The spokesperson also said that the Duterte administration is not “alone” as it can reto with the decision of US President Donald Trump.

“Well I guess the latest decision of the US reflects as sentiment that the President himself has articulated and apparently we are not alone in this perception that there is bias in human rights groups,” he added.

However, the Philippine government maintains its decision to not follow.

The UNHRC has 47 Member States, and according to its website, the General Assembly elects the majority of

these members by taking into account the contribution and promotion of the protection of the human rights in these states.

On Tuesday, through the US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley, the US withdrew from the UNHRC, calling it a “cesspool of political bias.”

“Regrettably, it is now clear that our call for reform was not heeded,” she told reporters, adding that, “Human rights abusers continue to serve on, and be elected to the council.”

“The world’s most inhumane regimes continue to escape scrutiny and the council continues politicizing and scapegoating of countries with positive human rights records in an attempt to distract from the abusers in their ranks,” Haley continued. ■

PNP to sustain crackdown on street crimes, says chief

BY BENJAMIN PULTA Philippine News Agency MANILA — There will be no letup in the government’s campaign against street crimes, Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Director General Oscar Albayalde assured on Tuesday.

In a memorandum, Albayalde instructed all regional directors to oversee the strict implementation of laws and local ordinances through the arrest of violators, such as those drinking and smoking in public places, roaming the streets without shirts, using karaoke beyond the allowed time, minors violating curfew hours, and others.

“Be reminded that among our operational thrusts is the active presence and aggressive deployment of our policemen as an urgent intervention to prevent the occurrence of common street crimes,” Albayalde said.

He added that operations and initiatives will be active in the coming days through the conduct of Oplan Sita, Oplan Bu-

PNP Chief Oscar Albayalde.

labog, Oplan Bakal, and other anti-criminality operations all over the country.

In addition, local police units were instructed to coordinate closely with local and barangay officials in the enforcement of ordinances, and to initiate enactment of ordinances through the Local Peace and Order Councils or Sangguniang Bayan in areas where there is no exist-

PNP

ing ordinance in support of this drive.

“I want to reiterate that the PNP will do everything within the bounds of the law. We assure the public that our drive against street crimes is attuned to the existing Police Operational Procedures with due regard to the human rights and dignity of apprehended individuals,” Albayalde said. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net

talks with NDFP PHILIPPINE NEWS AGENCY MANILA — The Philippine government has formally informed the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) about the government’s decision to suspend all back channel talks pending the three-month review of all signed agreements related to the peace negotiations, a government negotiator announced on Thursday.

Hernani Braganza, government negotiator for back channel talks with the NDFP, said the decision was conveyed in a meeting with NDFP leaders headed by chief negotiator Fidel Agcaoili and chief political consultant Jose Ma. Sison in Utrecht, The Netherlands on June 18-20.

“Upon instruction of (Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process) Secretary Jesus Dureza and (Labor) Secretary Silvestre Bello III, a government team flew to Utrecht to formally communicate to the NDF(P) the decision of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte to re-schedule the proposed resumption of government’s peace negotiations with communist guerrillas,” Braganza said in a press statement.

“The suspension, however, does not preclude communications between the two parties if deemed necessary,” he clarified.

During the meeting, the government team also relayed its intention to use the threemonth review period to consult government instrumentalities and the general public about the peace negotiations with the communist rebels.

“The NDF(P) leaders, for their part, expressed intention to conduct their own separate actions and activities that aim to protect the gains already achieved as a result of back channel, informal and formal talks between the two panels,” Braganza said.

Braganza said the NDFP representatives have expressed willingness to keep an open mind with Duterte’s decision

to suspend the resumption of peace talks.

He said the NDFP is also willing to wait for the outcome of the government’s review of all signed agreements related to peace negotiations.

“They reiterated their commitment to all signed agreements, including those involving the planned visit of Prof.

Jose Ma. Sison in the Philippines to Manila for a meeting with the President,” Braganza said.

The government, he said, has also expressed appreciation for the NDFP’s “open-mindedness in coming to terms with President Duterte’s decision.”

He said the NDFP is “favorably considering” Dureza’s invitation for its representatives to join the government’s public consultations.

“It is our fervent hope that the consultations will help galvanize public support to peace efforts aimed at ending the armed conflict through the achievement of economic, social and political reforms,” Brangaza said.

The Philippine government has extended its appreciation to the NDFP, as well as to the representatives of the Royal Norwegian Government headed by Special Envoy for Peace Idun Tvedt, for their continuing support as third-party facilitators.

Meanwhile, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque confirmed the suspension of back channel talks to give way to more public consultations and a review of all peace deals.

In a Palace briefing Thursday, Roque also extended the Duterte administration’s appreciation to the Royal Norwegian Government for its support to achieve peace between the Philippine government and the NDFP. ■

Philippine News

FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

13

SC begins oral arguments on same-sex marriage

BY CHRISTOPHER LLOYD CALIWAN Philippine News Agency MANILA — The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday started the oral argument on the petition filed last May 2015 challenging the validity of provisions of the Family Code limiting marriage to heterosexual couples.

The petition originally filed by lawyer Jesus Nicardo Falcis III on May 18, 2015, seeking the lifting of the prohibitions on same-sex marriage for being unconstitutional.

Falcis III, who admitted to being gay, filed the controversial petition for certiorari and prohibition and he was joined in the petition by male couple Crescencio Agbayani and Marlon Felipe and a certain Sugar Ibanez and her partner.

During the oral argument, Falcis reiterated that portions of Articles 1 and 2 of the Family Code which defines and limits marriage as between “man and woman” and portions of Articles 4.6 (4) and 55 (6) which mentions lesbianism or homosexuality as grounds for annulment and legal separation of the Family Code should be nullified for being unconstitutional.

He explained that limiting civil marriages and rights that go with it to heterosexuals violate the Constitutionallyguaranteed provisions on equal treatment, undue interference to liberty rights and marital autonomy.

“Nothing in Article XV (The Family) or other provisions of the Constitution limits the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman. But something in the Constitution commands that marriage under

the Family Code be extended to lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender couples,” Falcis told the justices.

Falcis argued that Articles 1 and 2 of the Family Code are unconstitutional as they deprive the petitioners of the right to marry without substantive due process, deny the petitioners of the equal protection of the laws, and violate the religious freedom of petitioners.

He then stated the case of Felipe and Agbayani who were deprived of their right to marry whom they loved and were accused of being immoral in his workplace and could not even show to people that he is not okay.

Falcis also gave an emphasis that there are two important right rights of every individual —decision to marry and decision of who to marry.

The lesbian-gay-bisexualtransgender (LGBT) community justified under the Constitution of Supremacy Article I and II is presumed as constitutional and stated that marriage is indeed a foundation to establish a conjugal and family life.

“Procreation is not a requirement before and after marriage” Falcis said.

During interpellation, Associate Justice Marvic Leonen described the petition as “a very dangerous case” as the issue would require the SC “a very intimate reading of the provisions of the Constitution.”

Leonen also noted that in other countries in the United States, Europe and Australia, the issue of same-sex marriage have resulted in “political battles” that were waged in parliaments, Congress, churches and other political venues.

Leonen further noted that

the issue of same-sex marriage will likely face objection from dominant religious faiths.

“We are going up against a very powerful heteronormative culture in this country,” Leonen pointed out.

But Falcis insisted there is a compelling state interest for LGBT couples to be included in the institution of marriage.

“LGBT couples, with or without children, constitute a family and so should have access to marriage to serve as their foundation,” he explained.

Falcis maintained limiting marriage between a man and a woman is a grave abuse of discretion considering that the Constitution does not define marriage solely as between a man and a woman and that even the Family Code does not require married individuals to procreate or have the ability to procreate.

He also argued that “heterosexuals are no better parents than homosexuals just as homosexuals aren’t necessarily worse parents than heterosexuals.”

“There is no substantial distinction. Same-sex couples just like opposite-sex couples can and do establish a conjugal and family life,” he added.

Falcis cited the lumping of homosexuality or lesbianism with drug addiction as grounds for annulment or legal separation as a clear violation of equal protection clause of the Constitution since it associates LGBT as negative traits.

Associate Justice Teresita Leonardo-De Castro discussed the possibility that the implementation of some laws would be affected if same-sex marriage is allowed.

She specifically asked Falcis

make sense how God created “something perfect” and then “think of an event that would tempt and destroy the quality of your work.”

In his speech, however, the President asserted his belief in a “universal mind.”

“Iyan po ay personal na paninindigan ng Pangulo. Alam

ninyo iyong ating kalayaan ng malayang pananampalataya, kasama po iyan yun sa wala kang paniniwalaan na pananampalataya (This is the personal belief of the President. You know, the freedom of religion includes the freedom not to believe in religion),” Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said

Supreme Court.

MANOLITO TIUSECO / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

how the provisions of the Revised Penal Code on concubinage and adultery should apply in case of same-sex marriage.

Falcis answered :” It will still be sex specific but should highlight the fact that there are bisexuals in our community and some of them may still fall in that provision.

“If they come to court and there is no law to guide judges, how will the judges decide?,” De Castro asked.

Associate Justice Francis Jardeleza expressed strong opposition to the petition, who raised procedural issues and technicalities in Falcis’ decision to directly seek the high tribunal’s judicial intervention.

“I think you are in great peril that your case will be dismissed,” Jardeleza told Falcis during the oral arguments.

“I will be candid to you that at this point in time, I am more inclined to dismiss your case,” Jardaleza added.

Associate Justice Estela Perlas Bernabe questioned the propriety and necessity of the petition, pointing out that Falcis did not even claim that his individual right was violated

by the prohibition on same sex marriage.

As pointed out by Associate Justice Lucas Bersamin, Jardeleza said Falcis, as the main petitioner, should have first raised the issue before the regional trial court in deference to the rule on the hierarchy of courts.

Meanwhile, Acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio adjourned the proceedings and set the next oral arguments on June 26 at 2 p.m. where he directed Falcis and Solicitor General Jose Calida to return.

The petitioners also asked the SC to “prohibit the Civil Registrar-General from enforcing the aforementioned portions of Articles 1 and 2 of the Family Code in processing applications for and in issuing marriage licenses against homosexual couples.”

The petitioners argued that such limitations imposed by the almost three-decade-old Family Code favoring only opposite-sex marriages effectively repealed the 1949 Civil Code, which he stressed never made such a distinction. ■

in a radio interview.

Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo, for his part, said that Duterte was not insulting or calling God stupid but merely “questioning” the theory of creation.

“I don’t think he called God stupid. I saw the transcript, it says ‘Who is this stupid God?’

He was actually questioning the theory of creation as narrated by the writers of the Bible. As we all know, there are many theories on the creation of the human species like (Charles) Darwin,” Panelo told reporters in an interview at the Malacañang press room. ■

CBCP open... ❰❰ 7

While mentioning the Bible’s creation story in his speech at the National Information and Communications (ICT) Summit in Davao City on Friday, Duterte stated: “Adam ate it then malice was born. Who is this stupid God?” Duterte said that it did not

www.canadianinquirer.net

14

Philippine News

5 tuna firm execs indicted for corporate-code violation

BY CHRISTOPHER LLOYD CALIWAN Philippine News Agency

underscores the right of any stockholder or member of his right to financial statements.

The DOJ reversed the earlier resolution issued by Prosecution Attorney Loverhette Jeffrey Villordon dismissing the complaint filed by minority shareholders of Alliance led by Hedy Yap-Chua, a Singaporean investor of the company, against Sycip and several others.

The DOJ noted that the Access Rules being imposed by Alliance is one of so many other barriers to refuse complainants Yap-Chua and the minority shareholders the right to examine the corporation’s records and minutes.

The justice department noted that the series of events from the time that complainant Yap-Chua wrote a notice of inspection on Oct. 2, 2014

to believe that the respondents refuse to accede to the right of the complainant to inspect the corporate records. Such refusal, therefore satisfied the second MANILA — The Department element of the crime,” the DOJ of Justice (DoJ) has indicted resolution stated dated March George Sycip, son of the late 20, 2018. tycoon Washington Sycip, and The majority shareholders of four officials of a tuna processAlliance, led by Dee and Sycip ing company for violation of the as its chairman, including its Corporation Code of the Philipminority stockholders which pines for their continued refusconsist of Singaporean invesal to allow some shareholders tors, have been caught in a disto examine corporation’s books pute for several years now. and other records.

The conflict stemmed from In a four-page review resoluthe alleged questionable acquition approved by Acting Prossition of Strong Oak Inc. of Alliecutor General Jorge Catalan, ance’s 430 million shares worth the DOJ has found that Sycip PHP563.675 million. and his co-respondents, AlThe sale has resulted in the liance president Jonathan dilution of the Singaporeans’ Dee and other executives of shares from 34 percent to 24 the company including Marie percent.

Grace Vera Cruz, Antonio PaThe Singaporean investors, cis and Raymon led by Yap-Chua, K.H. See, viohave insisted lated Sections 74 opening the and 75 in relabooks of Alliance tion to Section The majority shareholders of Alliance, but the majority 144 of the Corpoled by Dee and Sycip as its chairman, continued to reration Code. including its minority stockholders fuse.

Section 74 of which consist of Singaporean The foreign the Corporation investors, have been caught in a investors wantCode provides dispute for several years now. ed to know the that “the records truth behind the of all business deal of Alliance transactions of and Strong Oak the corporation and the min- up to Nov. 7, 2014 when the which they accuse of being a utes of any meetings shall be shareholders representatives questionable company. open to inspection by any di- were not allowed to inspect the Villordon found no probable rector, trustee, stockholder or requested documents is tanta- cause to indict Sycip and his member of the corporation,” mount to a refusal as embodied co-respondents. It held that and that refusal to allow the in the second element for viola- Villordon erred in holding that records to be examined will be tion of Section 74, in relation to the complainants failed to show liable for damages and is pun- Section 144 of the Corporation proof that the respondents reishable.

Code. fused to allow them to examine Section 144, on the other “The above series of events the corporation’s records and hand, states that violators of the and eventually the Access Rules minutes. code shall be punished by a fine and Confidentiality UnderVillardon said the complainof not less than PHP1,000 but taking which were repeatedly ants were actually the ones who not more than PHP10,000 or imposed as conditions in pre- refused to abide by their agreeimprisonment of not less than venting the complainant and ment with the Alliance on the 30 days but not more than five the shareholders in inspecting “Access Rules” in conducting years. Section 75, meanwhile, the corporate records, lead us the inspection. ■

www.canadianinquirer.net

PCOO

Duterte signs mental health law

BY BEA KIRSTEIN T. MANALAYSAY Philippine Canadian Inquirer PRESIDENT RODRIGO Roa Duterte has legalized Republic Act (RA) No. 11036 – the Philippine Mental Health Law. Authored and sponsored by Senator Risa Hontiveros in the upper house, the Philippine Mental Health Law will secure the rights and welfare of persons with mental health needs and mental health professionals.

This law will provide mental health services to the barangays; integrate psychiatric, psychosocial, and neurologic services in regional, provincial, and tertiary hospitals; improve our mental healthcare facilities and promote mental health education in our schools and workplaces.

For Hontiveros, Duterte’s signing will set the path for the government’s policy in including mental healthcare to the country’s public healthcare system. She has earlier urged the President to sign the bill this month, as both the Senate and the House of Representatives ratified it last May. “Help is finally here,” she said in a statement on Jun 21,

Thursday.

“This is the victory of the different advocates who helped in crafting the bill and ensured its passage of the different advocates who helped in crafting the bill and ensured its passage from the time we filed it last October 2016,” she added.

Hontiveros said that she is glad and honored to be a “messenger of hope” for everyone who wanted the legislation of the said law.

“No longer shall Filipinos suffer silently in the dark. The people’s mental health issues will now cease to be seen as an invisible sickness spoken only in whispers,” she added.

The Senator also cited different statistics, saying that everyday, seven Filipinos turn to suicide, and that one in five Filipino adults suffers from a form of mental disorder.

The bill was also authored

by Senate President Vicente Sotto III, Senator Loren Legarda, Senator Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV, Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino, Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara and Joel Villanueva on February 27, 2017.

It was passed by the upper and lower houses on February 12 this year. ■

15

Canada News Canada’s largest national park, UNESCO site threatened: environmental assessment

BY BOB WEBER The Canadian Press FEDERAL DOCUMENTS echo earlier concerns that Canada’s largest national park faces long-term threats that have placed it on a list of endangered world heritage sites.

An environmental assessment provided to UNESCO says oilsands activity, climate change and hydro development are fundamentally changing the environment of Wood Buffalo National Park in northern Alberta.

The report’s executive summary suggests things are getting worse in the Peace-Athabasca Delta.

“Desired outcomes for the world heritage values are not being met,” it says.

Wood Buffalo covers almost 45,000 square kilometres of grasslands, wetlands and waterways — one of the world’s largest inland deltas. Billions of migratory birds from four continental flyways converge there to breed.

It is the world’s only breeding ground for endangered whoop-

ing cranes and home to the largest herd of free-ranging wood buffalo left anywhere. First Nations have depended on the area for generations for cultural and physical sustenance.

It became a World Heritage Site in 1983. But in 2014, the Mikisew Cree filed a complaint to UNESCO that Wood Buffalo’s environmental values were being degraded.

UNESCO investigated in 2016 and last year put the park on its list of endangered sites. It issued a report with 17 recommendations and gave Canada until this year to explain how it would step up conservation efforts.

Both Canada and Alberta have made submissions to UNESCO meetings taking place this week in Bahrain.

Although a complete assessment of the threats to the park has been provided to UNESCO, a copy was not made immediately available. Environment Canada has posted the executive summary on its website.

It warns of declining water quantity and quality.

“Flow rates in the Peace Riv-

Wood Buffalo National Park, Alberta, Canada.

er have become less variable due to flow regulation on the river and (past) climate change, resulting in decreased summer flows and increased winter flows,” it says.

“Seasonal flows in the Athabasca River have declined over the past 50 years due to a combination of increased water withdrawals and (past) climate change.”

Indigenous people no longer

drink from the rivers or lakes, the report says. Deformed fish show up in nets. High levels of mercury have been found in fish and bird eggs.

The report says hydroelectric development, oilsands, pulp and paper facilities, industrial mines, forestry and municipal development are all likely to affect the park in future.

Alberta’s energy regulator has just approved Prosper Pe-

troleum’s Rigel oilsands mine upstream. A project by Teck Resources is also being considered.

Some aspects of the park are healthy, says the environmental assessment. Salt plains and boreal grasslands are stable, while the whooping crane population continues to increase.

Alberta has made proposals to area First Nations on park management.

In a draft document obtained by The Canadian Press, the province offers them a comanagement role in newly created provincial parks that ring Wood Buffalo. It also promises an increased role for traditional knowledge.

“Alberta is actively exploring the inclusion of traditional knowledge into land-use planning, environmental monitoring and assessments, wildlife conservation, protected areas, and decision-making ... in collaboration with Indigenous Peoples,” it says.

UNESCO will consider the submissions this week during the meetings in Bahrain. Representatives from at least two Alberta First Nations are there. ■

Canada spends millions housing and feeding border crossers, detains only some

BY TERESA WRIGHT The Canadian Press OTTAWA — As the United States faces mounting criticism over its treatment and detention of illegal migrants, new statistics released by the federal government show Canada’s treatment of irregular border crossers stands in stark contrast.

The figures show Canada spent over $5 million in 2017 and the first part of 2018 on temporary housing, food and water to migrants who crossed into Canada from the United

States through the unofficial crossing in St. Bernard-deLacolle, Que. Some of this money also went towards security services.

The data was recently tabled in the House of Commons in response to written questions from Opposition MPs. A detailed breakdown of expenditures for shelter and humanitarian services shows the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has paid for items such as generators and heaters, water and hotel rooms for irregular migrants.

The CBSA has also contract-

ed the Canadian Red Cross to help provide services to asylum seekers in Quebec, where the vast majority of irregular border crossers have arrived this year.

This includes handing out hygiene kits, blankets and baby supplies such as diapers and formula. Basic health care services are also offered with the help of a nurse on site, and the option of transporting people to hospital for more serious health care needs.

Carl Boisvert, spokesperson for the Canadian Red Cross in Montreal, says volunteers ofwww.canadianinquirer.net

fer food and shelter to asylum seekers from the time they arrive in Canada until they are cleared by border security officials to proceed to Montreal or Toronto to await a hearing at the Immigration and Refugee Board — a period that can last a few days.

“We make sure that they are safe and we are taking care of them,” said Boisvert.

Most asylum seekers who arrive in Canada are simply seeking a better life after fleeing their home countries due to war and violence, Boisvert says.

When they arrive, they are

warmly welcomed.

“I’m proud to be in this position,” he said. “(The asylum seekers) crossed borders and we know it is very difficult. They’ve made hard choices. And just being there to help them and say, ‘Hi, welcome to Canada, the Red Cross can take care of you, we’re going to provide you shelter, food and just make sure you are safe, for now,’ I know there were some volunteers who were there who were saying they are honoured to just help ❱❱ PAGE 18 Canada spends

16

Canada News

JUNE 29, 2018

FRIDAY

Nearly half of youth incarcerated are Indigenous: Statistics Canada

BY KELLY GERALDINE MALONE The Canadian Press

“I see Indigenous and non-Indigenous people literally doing the exact same crime and not experiencing the same amount of jail time, probation, WINNIPEG — Nearly half of all youth etc.” who end up in custody across Canada Incarceration of youth generally are Indigenous, a statistic that a Manito- across Canada has declined slightly each ba activist says shows unacceptable and year since 2012. But the Statistics Cansystemic racism. ada data from 10 reporting provinces Data released by Statistics Canada and territories also showed the proporshows Aboriginal youth made up 46 per tion of Aboriginal youth in custody has cent of admissions to correctional ser- steadily increased. vices in 2016-17 while making up only It was 21 per cent in 2006-07, but 10 eight per cent of the youth population. years later Aboriginal boys made up 47 “It’s not actually surprising to me to per cent and Aboriginal girls accounted hear those numbers,” said Michael Red- for 60 per cent of correctional admishead Champagne. sions.

“As a member of the Indigenous comIn the provinces, the numbers of Inmunity, with First Nation, Metis and digenous youth in custody were highest Inuit people around me, I see the over- in Saskatchewan (92 per cent for boys; representation of Indigenous people go- 98 per cent for girls) and Manitoba (81 ing into the justice system,” he said. per cent for boys; 82 per cent for girls).

Champagne founded Aboriginal Youth Howard Sapers, an independent adOpportunities in Winnipeg’s North End viser to the government of Ontario on neighbourhood in 2010 to support In- corrections reform, said the increasing digenous youth. Working with kids1 in 2017-10-05 numbers,3:45 particularly for girls, carries Joel_CanadianInquirer_print.pdf PM the inner city area, he has seen how “In- through to adulthood. digenous people often get the short end “We are getting so dangerously close of the stick.” to half of all adult women in custody be-

ing Indigenous,” he said in a phone interview from his Ottawa office.

Aboriginal men accounted for 28 per cent of admissions, while Aboriginal women accounted for 43 per cent. At the same time, they represented about five per cent of the Canadian adult population.

“There is little way to escape the conclusion that there are some systemic biases built into the system that are contributing to this overrepresentation,” Sapers said.

Policy decisions, such as mandatory minimum sentences, have had a disproportionate impact on Indigenous communities, he said.

But there is also movement in the other direction, said Sapers, pointing to bail reform, restorative justice efforts and culturally appropriate initiatives.

The justice system cannot stand alone in curbing the trend of incarcerating Indigenous youth, he suggested. Tackling poverty, unemployment or underemployment, poor housing, addictions and mental illness would make a large difference, he said.

Change is needed immediately, Champagne agreed, because right now there is a cycle of institutionalizing Indigenous kids.

It starts with children being taken into care where they are assigned a worker, curfews and strict rules, he said. When they become older, they graduate to the criminal justice system.

“When I see this kind of stuff I get frustrated with all the rhetoric around reconciliation.”

Champagne has worked with youth who have experienced adversity, violence, addictions, homelessness and who are often in conflict with the justice system, but he sees their unique gifts and how much they can contribute to the community.

“We as a society have to get better at recognizing those good things when they are happening, celebrating them ,and telling those stories, so that our young people can see themselves reflected as successful, as helpers and as leaders, because that’s exactly what they are.

“And that’s why they give me such hope.” ■

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Quebec for Fete Nationale weekend THE CANADIAN PRESS MONTREAL — Justin Trudeau greeted crowds at public events in Quebec to celebrate the Fete Nationale holiday on Saturday, where a day of smiles and www.canadianinquirer.net

selfies was briefly interrupted by an angry protester who confronted the prime minister in his own riding.

The incident occurred at a Fete Nationale event at a Montreal park, where ❱❱ PAGE 18 Prime Minister

Canada News

FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

17

Flurry of Liberal nominations signals start of marathon 2019 election race

BY JOAN BRYDEN The Canadian Press THE NEXT federal election is still 15 months away but governing Liberals are already gearing up.

They will begin nominating candidates next week, starting Wednesday, with the acclamation of Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains in his riding of Mississauga-Malton.

And lest anyone doubt this marks the start of the marathon race to the Oct. 21, 2019, finish line, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is to be in attendance to fire the starting gun.

After that, party spokesman Braeden Caley says, nominations will take place at “a very quick pace” over the summer.

For most, if not all, the 183 Liberal MPs, the nominations will be simple acclamations.

The party has decided that incumbents won’t have to fight open nomination contests for the right to carry the party’s

banner in the next election — provided they meet a number of conditions on fundraising and voter-engagement.

Among the conditions, an MP and his or her riding team must have: Taken part in at least two “voter contact day of action” events in the previous 12 months; Knocked on at least 3,500 doors or made 5,000 phone calls; Stocked the riding war chest with money amounting to at least half of the riding’s anticipated election expenses limit for the 2019 election and provided a written plan for raising the other half; Signed up at least 30 new monthly donors; Signatures of support from at least 150 registered Liberals in the riding.

Liberal associations in the 155 ridings not currently held by the governing party must also meet a number of conditions before a nomination con-

Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains at the 2018 Pride Toronto.

BILL MORNEAU / TWITTER

test can be held. They include: documenting that a thorough search for female candidates has been conducted; having at least 15 per cent of the election expenses limit in the bank;

having at least 150 registered Liberals in the riding; and having recruited at least 15 new monthly donors.

The new nomination rules were announced six months ago.

Since then, Caley says, “dozens and dozens and dozens” of MPs and unheld ridings have already met the conditions required to hold nomination meetings, although they were given until October to do so.

Indeed, he says more than one third of the 338 ridings across the country are in position hold their nominations by the end of July.

“The fact that so many Liberal ridings are ready to move forward now shows how much organizational heavy lifting has already been done at the local level to prepare for the 2019 campaign,” he said, predicting that the voter engagement requirements will give Liberals “a real head start” on the campaign.

So far this year, Liberal teams across the country have participated in six “national days of action” to meet with voters and identify supporters. Caley said there will be similar mobilizations of volunteers every weekend in July and August. ■

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18

Canada News

Prime Minister... ❰❰ 16

a bearded man in a white shirt appeared to object to the prime minister’s presence at a holiday that has historically been associated with Quebec nationalism.

“You came to speak English to us?” the man asked in French. “Isn’t your party next week?”

The man then suggested Trudeau had come to “bother us at home,” to which Trudeau replied, “I am home.”

“There’s no place for intolerance here,” Trudeau said to the man, who was quickly pulled away by the prime minister’s security team.

Trudeau was otherwise greeted warmly at the event, where he also crossed paths with with Parti Quebecois Leader JeanFrancois Lisee.

Earlier, Trudeau kicked off his two-day visit to the province in Drummondville, where he visited a public market in the company of his sons Xavier and Hadrien.

He was also greeted enthusiastically during a stop at a

JUNE 29, 2018

FRIDAY

Canada spends... reconstructed 19th Quebecois village, where he shook hands with actors in traditional costumes, stopped for photos and tried to entice his sons to dance to traditional music.

His visit to the province will continue Sunday when he visits two family-friendly events west of Montreal.

Trudeau won’t be the only leader in the province for the June 24 holiday, which is also known as St-Jean-Baptiste Day. Progressive Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer will begin his Sunday 200 kilometres northeast of Quebec City in Riviere-du-Loup, where he’ll hold a news conference and attend at least three fete nationale events as he makes his way to the provincial capital.

And NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh will be in Montreal on Sunday, where he’ll join the celebrations alongside local MP Alexandre Boulerice. ■

❰❰ 15

other humans, even for a short time.”

Despite the fact these individuals are “illegally” crossing the Canada-U.S. border, Canada detains only a fraction of them.

In Canada, immigrants and refugees may be detained if there are reasonable grounds to believe they are inadmissible to Canada, a danger to the public, a possible flight risk or if they are unable to satisfy border officials as to their identity.

The RCMP intercepted a total of 20,593 asylum seekers crossing irregularly into Canada last year and another 9,481 between Jan. 1 and May 31 of this year.

Since April 1, 2017, only 643 have been detained, according to government data.

Meanwhile, it appears very few irregular asylum seekers in Canada fail to show up for their immigration hearings — one of the key rationales used by the Trump administration in the United States for its policy to detain and federally prosecute all illegal immigrants to the U.S.

www.canadianinquirer.net

The Canada-US border at Blaine County, Montana.

Between February 2017 and March 2018, a total of 12,626 refugee claim hearings were held in Canada. Of those hearings, 390 were cancelled due to no-shows and only 20 of those hearings, representing 32 people, were for illegal border crossers.

Boisvert would not comment on how asylum seekers in Canada are treated compared to how they are being treated in the United States, as the Red Cross provides humanitarian assistance in countries around the world.

But he did say they are well cared for in Canada and he was stuck by the sense of optimism and hope he witnessed among those arriving at the Roxham Road crossing.

“It wasn’t very sad. They were saying, ‘We’re trying to find a better future for our families,’ and I saw many smiles,” Boisvert said.

“They said, ‘It’s a hard time.

We don’t know where we’re going, but we hope we have a better future.’ That’s what I saw on site.” ■

World News

FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

19

Walk or die: Algeria strands 13,000 migrants in the Sahara

BY LORI HINNANT The Associated Press ASSAMAKA, NIGER — From this isolated frontier post deep in the sands of the Sahara, the expelled migrants can be seen coming over the horizon by the hundreds. They look like specks in the distance, trudging miserably across some of the world’s most unforgiving terrain in the blistering sun.

They are the ones who made it out alive.

Here in the desert, Algeria has abandoned more than 13,000 people in the past 14 months, including pregnant women and children, stranding them without food or water and forcing them to walk, sometimes at gunpoint, under temperatures of up to 48 degrees Celsius (118 degrees Fahrenheit).

In Niger, where the majority head, the lucky ones limp across a desolate 15-kilometre (9-mile) no man’s land to Assamaka, less a town than a collection of unsteady buildings sinking into drifts of sand. Others, disoriented and dehydrated, wander for days before a U.N. rescue squad can find them.

Untold numbers perish along the way; nearly all the more than two dozen survivors interviewed by The Associated Press told of people in their groups who simply could not go on and vanished into the Sahara.

“Women were lying dead, men..... Other people got missing in the desert because they didn’t know the way,” said Janet Kamara, who was pregnant at the time. “Everybody was just on their own.”

Her body still aches from the dead baby she gave birth to during the trek and left behind in the Sahara, buried in a shallow grave in the molten sand.

Blood streaked her legs for days afterward, and weeks later, her ankles are still swollen. Now in Arlit, Niger, she is reeling from the time she spent in what she calls “the wilderness,” sleeping in the sand.

Quietly, in a voice almost devoid of feeling, she recalled at least two nights in the open before her group was finally rescued, but said she lost track of time.

“I lost my son, my child,” said Kamara, a Liberian who ran her own home business selling drinks and food in Algeria and was expelled in May. Another woman in her early twenties, who was expelled at the same time, also went into labour, she said. That baby didn’t make it either.

Algeria’s mass expulsions have picked up since October 2017, as the European Union renewed pressure on North African countries to head off migrants going north to Europe via the Mediterranean Sea or the barrier fences with Spain.

These migrants from across sub-Saharan Africa — Mali, the Sahara desert near Tchirozerine region at Agadez, Niger.

Gambia, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Niger and more — are part of then dropped in the desert tained — 40,000 dinars ($340) the mass migration toward and pointed in the direction of and a Samsung cellphone.

Europe, some fleeing violence, Niger. They are told to walk, “They tossed us into the desothers just hoping to make a sometimes at gunpoint. In ear- ert, without our telephones, living. ly June, 217 men, women and without money. I couldn’t even A European Union spokes- children were dropped well be- describe it to you,” he said, still person said the EU was aware fore reaching Point Zero, fully livid at the memory. of what Algeria was doing, but 30 kilometres (18 miles) from The migrants’ accounts are that “sovereign countries” can the nearest source of water, ac- confirmed by multiple videxpel migrants as long as they cording to the IOM. eos collected by the AP over comply with international law.

Within seconds of setting foot months, which show hundreds Unlike Niger, Algeria takes on the sand, the heat pierces of people stumbling away none of the EU money intend- even the thickest shoes. Sweat from lines of trucks and buses, ed to help with the migration dries upon the first touch of air, spreading wider and wider crisis, although it did receive providing little relief from the through the desert. Two mi$111.3 million in aid from Eu- beating sun overhead. Each in- grants told the AP gendarmes rope between 2014 and 2017. halation is like breathing in an fired on the groups to force Algeria provides no figures oven. them to walk, and multiple for the expulvideos seen by sions. But the the AP showed number of peoarmed, uniple crossing on formed men foot to Niger It cannot be tolerated that standing guard has been rising murderers are allowed to freely near the trucks. steadily since the walk down our streets.

“They bring International you to the end Organization for of Algeria, to the Migration startend in the middle ed counting in May 2017, when But there is no turning back. of the desert, and they show you 135 people were dropped at the “There were people who that this is Niger,” said Tamba crossing, to as high as 2,888 in couldn’t take it. They sat down Dennis, another Liberian who April 2018. In all, according to and we left them. They were was in Algeria on an expired the IOM, a total of 11,276 men, suffering too much,” said Aliou work visa. “If you can’t bring women and children survived Kande, an 18-year-old from water, some people die on the the march.

Senegal. road.” He said not everyone in At least another 2,500 were Kande said nearly a dozen his group made it, but couldn’t forced on a similar trek this people simply gave up, collaps- say how many fell behind. year through the Sahara into ing in the sand. His group of Ju Dennis, another Liberian neighbouring Mali, with an 1,000 got lost and wandered who is not related to Tamba, unknown number succumbing from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m., he said. filmed his deportation with a along the way.

He never saw the missing peo- cellphone he kept hidden on his The migrants the AP talked ple again. The word he returned body. It shows people crammed to described being rounded up to, over and over, was “suffer- on the floor of an open truck, hundreds at a time, crammed ing.” vainly trying to shade their into open trucks headed southKande said the Algerian po- bodies from the sun and hide ward for six to eight hours to lice stole everything he had from the gendarmes. He narwhat is known as Point Zero, earned when he was first de- rated every step of the way in a www.canadianinquirer.net

hushed voice.

Even as he filmed, Ju Dennis knew what he wanted to tell the world what was happening.

“You’re facing deportation in Algeria — there is no mercy,” he said. “I want to expose them now...We are here, and we saw what they did. And we got proof.”

Algerian authorities refused to comment on the allegations raised by the AP. Algeria has denied criticism from the IOM and other organizations that it is committing human rights abuses by abandoning migrants in the desert, calling the allegations a “malicious campaign” intended to inflame neighbouring countries.

Along with the migrants who make their way from Algeria to Niger on foot, thousands more Nigerien migrants are expelled directly home in convoys of trucks and buses. That’s because of a 2015 agreement between Niger and Algeria to deal with Nigeriens living illegally in their neighbour to the north.

Even then, there are reports of deaths, including one mother whose body was found inside the jammed bus at the end of the 450-kilometre (280-mile) journey from the border. Her two children, both sick with tuberculosis, were taken into custody, according to both the IOM and Ibrahim Diallo, a local journalist and activist.

The number of migrants sent home in convoys — nearly all of them Nigerien — has also shot ❱❱ PAGE 21 Walk or

20

World News

JUNE 29, 2018

FRIDAY

Flooding complicates cave search for Thai soccer team

BY TASSANEE VEJPONGSA The Associated Press MAE SAI, THAILAND — Efforts to rescue 12 boys and their soccer coach who have been missing inside a flooded cave in northern Thailand for three days hinge on pumping out water so that navy divers have headroom to operate, the first high-level Thai official to visit the site said Tuesday.

Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda told reporters that Navy SEAL divers leading the search are seriously handicapped by muddy water that fills some chambers of the cave to the ceiling. He said the divers could proceed only when enough water has been pumped out so there is breathing space between the water and the ceiling. The divers will also soon start using special oxygen tanks that provide longer diving times, he said.

Anupong said the goal was to be able to “reach the kids,” and that rescuers would be working night and day.

“I want to confirm to the media that the SEAL team will be working nonstop because it’s already dark here too,” he said.

“So night and day doesn’t make a big difference. They’ll just need to rotate.”

About a dozen navy divers and other rescuers re-entered the partly flooded cave on Tuesday morning to search for the boys, aged 11-16, who have been missing since their coach took them to the Tham Luang Nang Non cave complex on Saturday after a practice match.

Divers have been seeking a way forward through the chambers of the cave complex, but have been forced to suspend their search several times.

The authorities have also been seeking alternative ways in, using helicopters and search parties on foot to find holes that might exist in the ceilings of other parts of the cave.

A small glimmer of hope was raised Tuesday afternoon when explorers found fissures in two locations in the rock on the mountain under which the cave is located. Experts immediately ruled out one as being too small to be used as a “chimney” to

gain access into the cave, and were still evaluating the other.

Rain that fell overnight increased the difficulty of exploring inside the cave. However, the initial chambers near the cave’s entrance are dry, and a power line was extended inside to provide light and ventilation and help the divers communicate with those outside.

The boys and their 25-yearold coach entered the cave in Chiang Rai province late Saturday afternoon. A mother reported that her son did not return from soccer practice that day, setting off the search.

Relatives of the missing boys and others performed a ritual Tuesday morning calling for those who are missing. They played drums and gongs and two relatives held fishing nets as symbols to fish out lost spirits from the cave. Organizer Jiratat Kodyee said the ritual was a traditional way of showing support for the boys’ families.

“We hope that the water level has gone down, but we will have to see,” Navy Lt. Naponwath Homsai said Tuesday morning. “Today we will try to find passages under the water that hopefully will lead to other chambers.”

However, Tuesday’s initial search mission had to be suspended.

The cave complex extends several kilometres (miles) and has wide chambers and narrow passageways with rocky outcrops and changes in elevation.

Still, officials have said they are hopeful the boys found a safe space away from the floods.

Rising waters Monday evening first frustrated efforts to search farther in the cave, and the efforts were halted temporarily. During the night, rescue teams and electricians extended a power line 1 kilometre (half a mile) and communication lines into the cave.

“We hope this would provide lights for work and fans for ventilation for the SEAL team,” Chiang Rai Gov. Narongsak Osottanakorn said. “Also, it means we can use electric engines to pump water out from the cave as well.”

Parents waited overnight in tents outside the cave entrance as rain poured. Medics sat in a

tent nearby, and bicycles, backpacks and soccer cleats the boys left behind remained at the entrance.

At a prayer session Monday evening, some of the boys’ relatives walked inside the cave entrance, where their cries echoed off the walls. “My son, come on out! I am waiting for you here!” one woman cried.

Another kneeled down near the bicycles and prayed, asking “Where is my child?”

Namhom Boonpiam, whose 13-year-old son Mongkol is among the missing, said she had been waiting at the entrance since Saturday night.

“I haven’t slept and I hope that all of them can come out, all safe and sound,” she said.

“My son is a strong boy. I still have hope.”

Authorities have said footprints and handprints were found inside the cave complex, and that tourists trapped there by past floods have been rescued after the waters receded.

Officials are hopeful there are still safe spaces in the cave complex despite the flooding, Chiang Rai Deputy Gov. Passakorn Bunyalak told a Monday news conference.

“We’re confident that the kids should still be in good condition,” he said, noting that rescuers had seen nothing inside the cave to indicate otherwise.

Getting farther into the cave has required lots of oxygen and special diving skills, which would also complicate rescue efforts once the boys are found, Passakorn said. He said divers might have to first bring in food and the boys might need to wait out the flood or learn the basics of scuba to get out.

The cave, cut into a mountainside near the border with Myanmar, can flood severely during the rainy season, which runs from June to October, and there are warnings against exploring then. ■

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U.S. Pres. Donald Trump (right) in a historic summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (left).

THE WHITE HOUSE

What’s that sound?

Singapore scare highlights US concern

BY JOSH LEDERMAN AND MATTHEW LEE The Associated Press WASHINGTON — As President Donald Trump was heading to Singapore for a historic summit with North Korea’s leader, a State Department diplomatic security agent who was part of the advance team reported hearing an unusual sound he believed was similar to what was experienced by U.S. diplomats in Cuba and China who later became ill.

The agent immediately underwent medical screening — part of a new U.S. government protocol established to respond to such potential health incidents anywhere in the world.

And while the president was flying to the Southeast Asian city state, the U.S. delegation preparing for his arrival was exchanging urgent messages with the State Department headquarters back in Washington, including the agency’s Diplomatic Security and the U.S. Secret Service.

It turned out to be a false alarm, according to four U.S. officials familiar with the matter, who were not authorized to speak to the matter publicly and spoke on condition of ano-

nymity. But the rapid response underscored how seriously the Trump administration views the potential risks at far-flung diplomatic outposts. So far, Americans who have served in at least seven cities in four countries have been tested for possible exposure, with 26 Americans “medically confirmed” to have been hurt.

The incidents have become a new source of anxiety for U.S. officials working overseas and their families — one that remains shrouded in mystery because of investigators’ inability to say what or who is responsible for the unexplained incidents that started more than 18 months ago. Cuba patients have been found to have a range of symptoms and diagnoses including mild traumatic brain injury, also known as concussions.

Medical officials at the State Department are now encouraging U.S. diplomats abroad to be proactive in immediately reporting suspicious sounds or unexplained symptoms, an aggressive approach that U.S. officials described as “an abundance of caution.”

In the immediate aftermath of the first Cuba incidents, ❱❱ PAGE 22 What’s that

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21

GOP leaders eye new bill on family separations at border

BY ALAN FRAM The Associated Press WASHINGTON — Top House Republicans are discussing legislation aimed at curbing the separation of migrant families at the border, GOP aides said Monday. The election-year response to public uproar over the Trumpadministration policy comes as a broader immigration package heads toward likely House defeat this week.

As showdown votes approached, President Donald Trump called anew for an end to the judicial process that currently awaits unauthorized immigrants entering the U.S. He also criticized the idea of hiring additional immigration judges to handle huge backlogs of such cases — even though congressional Republicans have proposed just that.

“Hiring manythousands of judges, and going through a long and complicated legal process, is not the way to go - will always be disfunctional. People

must simply be stopped at the Border and told they cannot come into the U.S. illegally,” Trump said in a tweet Monday with typos and misspelling of dysfunctional.

“If this is done, illegal immigration will be stopped in it’s tracks - and at very little, by comparison, cost. This is the only real answer - and we must continue to BUILD THE WALL!” he tweeted.

Amid public and bipartisan pressure, Trump last week reversed his policy of separating children from detained migrant parents. It has resulted in up to 2,300 children being taken from parents, though the government has said 522 have already been reunited with their families.

The broad Republican immigration bill contains language curbing those separations.

It would also provide money for Trump’s proposed border wall with Mexico and give immigrants brought illegally to the U.S. as children a chance at eventually becoming citizens.

But that bill faces opposition from Democrats and many Republicans and seems likely to fail.

With the plucking of migrant children from families receiving relentless press coverage, GOP lawmakers are eager to pass something that addresses the issue. Many Republicans — especially those from competitive swing districts — view the separation of families as a political albatross, though the policy has been backed by some conservatives.

The Republican aides did not provide detail of what the narrow legislation would do. But it is expected to address a federal court settlement that has forbidden the government from keeping children and families in custody for more than 20 days.

The staffers described the discussions on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak on the record about private conversations.

A bill proposed by Repub-

grant known to have died crossing the Mediterranean, as many as two are lost in the desert — potentially upwards of 30,000 people since 2014.

The vast flow of migrants puts an enormous strain on all the points along the route. The first stop south is Assamaka, the only official border post in the 950-kilometre (590 mile) border Algeria shares with Niger.

Even in Assamaka, there are just two water wells — one that pumps only at night and the other, dating to French colonial times, that gives rusty water.

The needs of each wave of expelled migrants overwhelm the village — food, water, medicine.

“They come by the thousands....I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Alhoussan Adouwal, an IOM official who has taken up residence in the village to send out the alert when a new group arrives. He then tries to arrange rescue for those still in the desert. “It’s a catastrophe.”

In Assamaka, the migrants settle into a depression in the dunes behind the border post until the IOM can get enough buses to fetch them. The IOM offers them a choice: Register with IOM to return eventually to their home countries or fend for themselves at the border.

Some decide to take their chances on another trip north, moving to The Dune, an otherworldly open-air market a few kilometres away, where macaroni and gasoline from Algeria are sold out of the back of pickups and donkey carts. From there, they will try again to return to Algeria, in hopes of regaining the lives and jobs they left behind. Trucks are leaving all the time, and they take their fare in Algerian dinars.

The rest will leave by bus for the town of Arlit, about 6 hours to the south through soft sand.

In Arlit, a sweltering transit centre designed for a few hundred people lately has held upwards of 1,000 at a time for weeks on end.

Rep. Mark Meadows.

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lican senators would require the Homeland Security Department to keep immigrant families together during legal proceedings and take first steps for hiring 225 new immigration judges and providing more family detention centres.

Rep. Mark Meadows, leader of the hard-right House Freedom Caucus, told Fox on Monday that Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., was working on legislation to “keep those families together” if the broader immigration bill fails.

McMorris-Rodgers, a member of the House GOP leadership, faces a potentially competitive

re-election bid this fall.

“Some of the things that a lot of us want to do,” said Meadows. R-N.C. “So I would think if it doesn’t pass on Tuesday night you’d see a follow up piece of legislation within days.”

House Homeland Security Chairman Michael McCaul, RTexas, told Fox News on Sunday, “I think we at a minimum have to deal with the family separation. I’m a father of five.”

The GOP divisions come at a bad time for the party: Elections are approaching and immigration has riveted public

“Our geographical position is such that today, we are directly in the path of all the expulsions of migrants,” said Arlit Mayor Abdourahman Mawli. Mawli said he had heard of deaths along the way from the migrants and also from the IOM. Others, he said, simply turned right round and tried to return to Algeria.

“So it becomes an endless cycle,” he said wearily.

One man at the centre with scars on his hands and arms was so traumatized that he never spoke and didn’t leave.

The other migrants assumed he had endured the unspeakable in Algeria, a place where many said they had been robbed and beaten by authorities. Despite knowing nothing about him, they washed and dressed him tenderly in clean clothes, and laid out food so he could eat. He embarked on an endless loop of the yard in the midday sun.

With no name, no confirmed nationality and no one to claim him, the man had been in Arlit

for more than a month. Nearly all of the rest would continue south mostly off-road to Agadez, the Nigerien city that has been a crossroads for African trade and migration for generations. Ultimately, they will return to their home countries on IOM-sponsored flights.

In Agadez, the IOM camps are also filling up with those expelled from Algeria. Both they and the mayor of Agadez are growing increasingly impatient with their fate.

“We want to keep our little bit of tranquility,” said the mayor, Rhissa Feltou. “Our hospitality is a threat to us.”

Even as these migrants move south, they cross paths with some who are making the trip north through Agadez.

Every Monday evening, dozens of pickup trucks filled with the hopeful pass through a military checkpoint at the edge of the city. They are fully loaded with water and people gripping sticks, their eyes firmly fixed on the future. ■

❱❱ PAGE 25 GOP leaders

Walk or... ❰❰ 19

up, to at least 14,446 since August 2017, compared with 9,290 for all of 2016.

The journey from Algeria to Niger is essentially the reverse of the path many in Africa took north — expecting work in Algeria or Libya or hoping to make it to Europe. They bumped across the desert in Toyota Hilux pickups, 15 to 20 in the flatbed, grasping gnarled sticks for balance and praying the jugs of water they sat upon would last the trip.

The number of migrants going to Algeria may be increasing as an unintended side effect of Europe’s successful blocking of the Libyan crossing, said Camille Le Coz, an analyst at the Migration Policy Institute in Brussels.

But people die going both ways; the Sahara is a swift killer that leaves little evidence behind. The arid heat shrivels bodies, and blowing sand envelops the remains. The IOM has estimated that for every mi-

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22

World News

JUNE 29, 2018

FRIDAY

What’s that... ❰❰ 20

there was no established procedure for how to investigate incidents or treat patients. Over many months, State Department officials working with doctors from the University of Pennsylvania, along with a Miami doctor initially dispatched to Havana, have developed a thorough, formalized protocol that involves screening prospective patients for the most rapid-onset symptoms of brain injury. Diplomats newly sent to posts including Havana are given “baseline” screenings so that if they later report an incident, their tests results can be compared to their results from before they arrived in the country.

Details of the previously unreported incident in Singapore, which ended up having no impact on the June 12 meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, are emerging as the White House moves ahead with planning for Trump’s next high-stakes, face-to-face meeting with a foreign leader outside the United States: a potential mid-July summit with Russian

President Vladimir Putin next that “the health, safety, and new travel warning for Amerimonth in the Austrian capital well-being of U.S. citizens and cans living in or visiting Cuba of Vienna.

U.S. government employees and a steep reduction in staffTo be sure, there has been no and their family members are ing at what was then the 1-yeardetermination by the U.S. that our greatest concern.” old U.S. Embassy in Havana. the health incidents have oc“For privacy reasons we are The State Department ulticurred in locations other than not able to provide information mately suggested it was a false Cuba and China. Until late last on individual medical cases,” it alarm, saying that after medimonth, the only known inci- added. cal testing, the worker was not dents affected U.S. officials in Similar concern prompted a diagnosed with the conditions Havana who were struck by USAID employee in Uzbekistan observed in Cuba. what the State But once eviDepartment dence that the called “specific incidents might attacks.” not be confined Yet, the discovThe State Department ultimately to Cuba emerged ery in May of at suggested it was a false alarm, with the Guangleast one case in saying that after medical testing, zhou case, U.S. China — affectthe worker was not diagnosed with officials reing an American the conditions observed in Cuba. viewed other employee at the health comU.S. Consulate plaints, includin Guangzhou — ing one of the has added to the child of an Amersense that any unusual sound or to be pulled out of the Central ican couple posted to another concerning physical symptom Asian country for medical test- consulate in China, according should be treated with serious- ing late last year after report- to officials. That also turned out ness until a suspicious incident ing symptoms he suspected to be negative, although a State can be ruled out, U.S. diplomats resulted from the same kind Department medical team is told The Associated Press. of “health attack” that then- still in China visiting all U.S. Asked for comment about the Secretary of State Rex Tillerson diplomatic missions there to Singapore incident, the State had warned about in Cuba. That conduct screenings of employDepartment would say only warning was accompanied by a ees and family members who

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ask for them.

As of late last week, nearly 200 have taken the offer up to date, although only a handful — less than a dozen — have been evacuated to the U.S. for further review by neurological experts at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.

Ambassador Ronald Neumann, president of the American Academy of Diplomacy, said diplomats sign up to serve knowing there are risks to their health and safety. He said the mission takes priority because the United States can’t afford to cut off relations with other countries, especially those as powerful as China.

“In some places it’s more violence, in some places its disease.

Now we’ve got a new one that nobody knows what the hell it is,” said Neumann, who served in Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen and other high-risk posts. “So you do the best to give diplomats and families options, and you soldier on, because that’s what the profession is about.” ■

23

Entertainment Ice Seguerra reveals undergoing hormone replacement therapy

BY JOANNA BELLE DEALA Philippine Canadian Inquirer SINGER ICE Seguerra revealed that he is undergoing hormone replacement therapy for his forthcoming sexual reassignment surgery (SRS).

In an interview with Tonight with Boy Abunda on Thursday, June 21, Ice, formerly known as Aiza Seguerra, admitted that when he came out to the public as a transgender man four years ago, he had no conscious decision to change his birth name because that is how people knew him.

But as time went by, Ice said that he felt different when people call him by his birth name.

“I’ve always responded to Ice kasi ayun naman ‘yung nickname ko sa school, sa barkada, sabi ko (because that is my nickname at school, to my friends, so I said), ‘I’ll just use that’ kasi mas (because it is more) comfortable na (to use) Ice,” he explained.

“Kasi ’Aiza’ sobrang naaalala ko naka- (Because ‘Aiza’

reminds me of a girl in) pigtails and everything. It’s just part of really embracing my identity,” he added.

Abunda, the host of the talk show, then asked the singer if he has ever thought of having surgical reassignment.

Ice responded, “Nung una nandun din ako sa parang why?

Bakit kailangan? Pero alam mo (At first I asked myself ‘why?

Why is there a need?’ But you know) Tito Boy, sometimes, especially nung nag-come out na ako (when I came out) as [a] trans, it’s so hard to wake up every day seeing that you’re in this body. And alam mo ‘yung pakiramdam na ‘di naman eto dapat ‘yun (you know the feeling that this is not how it is supposed to be),” he shared.

“Sinabi ko ‘yun sa wife ko (I told my wife Liza Diño) before.

Kasi nung una parang ‘di niya rin ma-gets eh parang for her, ’Tinatanggap naman kita eh (Because at first, she also could not understand it, for her it is like ‘I accept you),for me you’re a man.’ But it’s not about that. I mean I thank you for accepting

me. But the problem is me accepting me,” he continued.

As he is now in the transition period preparatory, the 34-year-old singer expressed concern on the possible effect of hormone replacement to his voice, which, he said, is the source of his living.

“Pinakamalaking issue talaga diyan is ‘yung boses (The biggest issue here is the voice). Of course, people love what they hear sa akin (from me) and it’s a big risk. This is my bread and butter; I feed my family sa pagkanta ko (through my singing),” Ice stressed.

Despite this, Ice remains positive that the changes to his voice will not be severe.

“Siguro naman ‘yung ganda ng boses hindi mag-iiba (I think the quality of the voice won’t change), it’s just that bababa siya nang konti (it will just get deeper) and all those things,” he said.

“I’m just happy that there’s gender diversity center opened, so at least may doctors na (there are doctors) to talk to about this. Maybe that’s the first step,”

Ice Seguerra.

he added.

Ice appeared as a guest in the talk show to promote his latest single, Anghel Sa Lupa, which is his first album since 2015.

Ice, a supporter of Presi-

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dent Rodrigo Duterte, was also the former chairperson of the National Youth Commission (NYC). He resigned from his post on March 2018 due to “personal reasons.” ■

Tiffany Haddish, Kumail Nanjiani among film academy invitees

BY LINDSEY BAHR The Associated Press LOS ANGELES — The organization that bestows the Oscars is continuing to lean into its promise to make its ranks more diverse by inviting a record 928 new members representing 59 countries to join including actors Tiffany Haddish, Kumail Nanjiani, Gina Rodriguez and “The Rider” filmmaker Chloe Zhao.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences says Monday that that 49 per cent of its invitees are female and 38 per cent of are people of colour. Should all the invitees accept, the new class would boost

its overall membership to be 31 per cent female and 16 per cent persons of colour.

“Hey yo. I’m in The Academy,” Pakistani-American Nanjiani, who co-wrote and starred in “The Big Sick,” tweeted Monday. His wife and co-writer Emily V. Gordon was also invited to join.

Others celebrated elsewhere, like Haddish, who got the news from Melissa McCarthy on the set of their upcoming film “The Kitchen.”

“That super cool,” Haddish said in a video capturing the moment.

“So I get to vote?” Haddish added, before exclaiming with laughter: “I’m going to get movies for free?”

The film academy in 2016 pledged to double the number of female and minority ranks of its members by 2020. Then, just 25 per cent of its members were female and 8 per cent were nonwhite.

Invitees always range from relative newcomers to industry veterans. Some of the youngest prospective members include 22-year-old “Call Me By Your Name” actor Timothee Chalamet and “Beasts of the Southern Wild’s” Quvenzhane Wallis who, at 14, is the youngest invitee this year. Both were Oscar-nominated for their performances.

On the other end of the age spectrum is 84-year-old “Gosford Park” actress Eileen Atwww.canadianinquirer.net

kins. Other highly-recognizable invitees include Dave Chappelle, Jada Pinkett Smith, Amy Schumer, Christine Baranski, Sarah Silverman and Kyra Sedgwick. A batch of “The Simpsons” stars were also among the acting invitees, for their various film roles, including Julie Kavner, Hank Azaria, Harry Shearer and Yeardley Smith.

Both blockbuster and indie films are fair game for academy membership every year too.

This year is no exception, with invitations extended to persons in front of and behind the camera of films like “Star Wars” (including actress Daisy Ridley) and “Black Panther” (like actor Daniel Kaluuya, designer

Ilt Jones and writer Joe Robert Cole) to people like the revered, but very niche Hungarian director Bela Tarr.

Notable music invitees include Kendrick Lamar (“Black Panther”), Melissa Etheridge (“An Inconvenient Truth”) and Sufjan Stevens (“Call Me By Your Name”).

Ten of the invitees were invited to join multiple branches, including Nanjiani (for writing and acting), Zhao (for directing and writing) and “The Florida Project” director Sean Baker (for directing and writing).

They will have to select only one branch.

New members will get a chance to celebrate together at private receptions this fall. ■

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Entertainment

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FRIDAY

Celebrities talk about changes they’ve seen since #MeToo, Time’s Up

BY VICTORIA AHEARN The Associated Press TORONTO — “Grace and Frankie” star Jane Fonda is well familiar with the onset routine of her Netflix series, and so she noticed when things changed at the recent start of its fifth season.

“We had a meeting of all the cast and crew to talk about what to do if you feel that you’re being harassed,” the twotime Oscar-winning actress said in a recent phone interview to promote her film “Book Club.”

“Our cast and crew on ‘Grace and Frankie’ were diverse from the very beginning. There’s a lot of women, people of colour, people with disabilities. It’s really nice to be able to see that.

“And I feel more and more that producers and directors are thinking much more intentionally and regularly about the need for diversity and who they’re hiring. So I think it’s having an impact.”

The “it” she’s referring to is the sweeping movement to end harassment and increase diversity in Hollywood and beyond, driven largely by the #MeToo and Time’s Up campaigns that took off after

the Harvey Weinstein scandal broke last October.

Unions and academies have drafted new codes of conduct, while contract negotiations now consider morality clauses, pay parity and inclusion riders.

But is it leading to change on film, TV and theatre productions?

Many, like Fonda, say they see a difference, however slight.

“Before you start a project, there’s a little spiel now where that subject matter is being introduced and it’s debated,” Quebec director Robert Lepage said in a recent interview for the stage production “Frame by Frame.”

“So you don’t start rehearsals in the same frame of mind as we used to.”

On the first day of rehearsals for “Coriolanus” at this year’s Stratford Festival, a union representative read various declarations, added Lepage, who is directing the production.

“Of course ... this is a recent phenomenon, so we don’t know how that will translate in a more concrete way and if we’ll notice that much of a difference in a year or two years from now,” Lepage said.

“But for sure, there is an awareness

Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda of "Grace and Frankie"

DFREE / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

that wasn’t there before, and there are face now — thankfully, fantastically. actual actions taken.”

We’re not dragging people kicking and Three-time Oscar-nominated actress screaming anymore to talk about it.”

Saoirse Ronan says she’s noticed “a lot Of course, there’s still work to be done. of discussions happening.”

“In the meetings that I’ve had in L.A., “I think that’s something that every- and I talk to agents now in terms of the one is well aware of and anyone who culture in the office, there is change doesn’t seem to be following that, it’s happening but it’s still unbalanced,” blatantly obvious Montreal-born now,” Ronan said in a filmmaker Barry phone interview for Avrich said in a reher new film “On Checent interview for sil Beach.” his documentary “Because everyone “The Reckoning: is so on the same page But for sure, Hollywood’s Worst and really wants to there is an Kept Secret.” make a difference.” awareness “I think we’re goFour-time Oscarthat wasn’t ing to have to see a nominated actor there before, significant increase Ethan Hawke says he and there are of women in leader“definitely see things actual actions ship positions and changing,” noting: “Evtaken. diversity on both erybody is ashamed of sides of the cambehaviour that isn’t in era in order for real line with this movechange to happen,” ment.” added the doc’s To“There’s a definite ronto producer, shift in consciousness that has hap- Melissa Hood. pened and there’s certain behaviour that Still, Hood is encouraged by “the fact was acceptable 10 years ago that’s just that women are being believed and that not acceptable, and that’s wonderful,” they can’t be as easily dismissed anyHawke said in a phone interview for his more. I think there’s been a line drawn new film “First Reformed.” in the sand.”

Cynthia Dale, star of the original “I don’t see women backing down,” “Street Legal” series and the upcoming Hood said. reboot on CBC-TV, says the issue is dis“I see more men understanding their cussed everywhere in the industry now. role, when men are in leadership posi“It’s talked about like it’s the weather,” tions. I see a conversation happening said Dale, also a Stratford Festival acting and I think this is a huge, huge, huge veteran. move forward.” ■ “It’s right there in front of everyone’s

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Entertainment

FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

25

Leak fight nixes Stormy Daniels Grammys to increase meet with feds in Cohen case nominees in top categories from 5 to 8

BY MICHAEL BALSAMO AND CATHERINE LUCEY The Associated Press

STORMY DANIELS’ planned meeting with investigators Monday in the federal probe of President Donald Trump’s longtime personal attorney was abruptly cancelled just hours before it was to start after an ugly, finger-pointing spat between prosecutors and the porn star’s lawyer over who tipped off the media to the sit-down.

Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, was supposed to meet with prosecutors from the U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan in preparation for a possible grand jury appearance as they work to assemble a case against Trump’s longtime personal lawyer, Michael Cohen.

But after several news organizations, including The Associated Press, reported on the meeting, two prosecutors called Daniels’ lawyer, Michael Avenatti, and told him that they were concerned about media attention in the case, he said.

Avenatti offered to move the meeting to another location and reiterated that Daniels — who he says has been co-operating with prosecutors for months — was ready to go forward with the meeting, but they called back to cancel it, he said. The meeting has not been rescheduled, he said.

Daniels has said she had sex with Trump in 2006 when he was married, which Trump has denied. As part of their investigation into Cohen, prosecutors have been examining the $130,000 payment that was made to Daniels as part of a confidentiality agreement days before the 2016 presidential election.

“We believe cancelling the meeting because the press has now caught wind of it is ridiculous,” Avenatti wrote in an email to Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicolas Roos. “We do not think it was any secret that at some point you were going to meet with my client.”

In response, Roos accused Avenatti of leaking the details of the meeting — an allegation that Avenatti said was “patently false” — and said it called into question Avenatti’s “commitment to

BY MESFIN FEKADU The Associated Press

Stormy Daniels.

maintaining the required confidentiality” of what is discussed in the meeting with Daniels.

“Such confidentiality is critical to the diligence, fairness, and integrity of this, and indeed all, investigations conducted by this Office,” Roos wrote. “This is not our preferred approach, and a step we are only rarely forced to take, but we are left with no choice.”

A spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan had declined to comment on the meeting earlier Sunday night and did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment on the cancellation.

Daniels is suing to invalidate the confidentiality agreement that prevents her from discussing the alleged relationship with Trump. She argues the nondisclosure agreement should be invalidated because Cohen, signed it, but the president did not.

Daniels and Avenatti have also turned over documents in response to a subpoena from federal prosecutors about the $130,000 that Daniels was paid, a person familiar with the matter said. The person wasn’t authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Daniels was supposed to appear before a grand jury in New York on June 15, but the appearance was cancelled after she voluntarily agreed to come in for the interview that had been scheduled for Monday, according to an email from Roos to Avenatti.

In April, FBI agents raided Cohen’s home, office and hotel room as part of a probe into his

JSTONE / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

business dealings and investigators were seeking records about the nondisclosure agreement that Daniels had signed, among other things.

Cohen had said he paid Daniels himself, through a limited liability company known as Essential Consultants, LLC, and that “neither the Trump Organization nor the Trump campaign was a party to the transaction with Ms. Clifford, and neither reimbursed me for the payment, either directly or indirectly.”

In May, Rudy Giuliani, one of Trump’s attorneys, said the president had repaid Cohen for the $130,000 payment to Daniels, contradicting Trump’s prior claims that he didn’t know the source of the money.

Earlier this month, Trump said he hadn’t spoken with Cohen — his longtime fixer and a key power player in the Trump Organization — in “a long time” and that Cohen is “not my lawyer anymore.”

The cancelled interview with Daniels comes as lawyers for Cohen, Trump and the Trump Organization continue to peruse millions of items seized in the raids on Cohen to see what can be disqualified from the criminal probe because of attorney-client privilege.

The Trump Organization asked Saturday that the Wednesday deadline to finish making challenges be extended two weeks. Prosecutors on Monday opposed the request, saying further delay “will unreasonably impede the government’s investigation.”

They added that any extension should not go beyond July 5. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net

NEW YORK — The Grammy Awards are extending the number of nominees in its top categories from five to eight.

The Recording Academy told its members in a letter released Tuesday that the nominee increase “will better reflect the large number of entries in these categories and allow voters greater flexibility when selecting this year’s best recordings.”

Album of the year, song of the year, record of the year and best new artist are the categories that will be affected. The change comes months after the Grammys were criticized for the lack of women nominees at this year’s awards show.

For years, the organization has been called out for the lack of diversity when it comes to winners in the top four catego-

ries, where awards tend to go to acts in the pop, rock or country music genres, instead of hiphop or R&B stars, even in years where Kanye West, Eminem and Mariah Carey were predicted to win.

Another change at the organization is with Neil Portnow, the president and CEO of The Recording Academy, who will step down next year. Portnow, who has led the academy since 2002, was criticized at this year’s Grammys when he said women need to “step up” when asked about the lack of female winners backstage. Only two female performers won awards during the live telecast.

Bruno Mars won album, song and record of the year at this year’s show, while Alessia Cara was named best new artist.

Voting for the 2019 Grammys will take place in the fall and will include songs and albums released between Oct. 1, 2017 and Sept. 30, 2018. ■

GOP leaders... ❰❰ 21

attention for months.

Republicans who are battling to retain House control have hoped to focus this fall’s campaigns on the economy and tax cuts.

House Speaker Paul Ryan has said he prefers to see parents and children detained together: “We do not want children taken away from their parents,” he said.

The measure is the product of weeks of bargaining between party conservatives and moderates. Even so, the two GOP factions have been unable to resolve their final differences and vote-counters have yet to round up a majority. Republicans are getting no help from Democrats, who uniformly oppose the legislation.

Another obstacle to consensus for Republicans is Trump.

His recent statements on their bill and history of abruptly flipflopping on past health care and spending measures have not been reassuring.

Last Tuesday, Trump pri-

vately told House Republicans that he backed their legislation “1,000 per cent” and would protect them during their campaigns, lawmakers said. By Friday, he was tweeting that “Republicans should stop wasting their time on Immigration” and wait until after the November elections, when he said the GOP would approve tougher legislation because it will gain strength in Congress. That proposition is dicey at best.

Top Republicans have wanted to hold the votes, win or lose, partly to defuse an effort

by GOP moderates to force the chamber to vote on liberalleaning bills helping immigrants win citizenship. Those measures could pass the House backed by Democrats and a few Republicans, an outcome that would enrage conservative voters.

In addition, some Republicans are eager for roll calls to show voters back home that they’ve tried to address the issue. ■

26

Lifestyle Sex and gender both shape your health, in different ways

BY LISA F. CARVER Queen’s University The Associated Press WHEN YOU think about gender, what comes to mind? Is it anatomy or the way someone dresses or acts? Do you think of gender as binary — male or female? Do you think it predicts sexual orientation?

Gender is often equated with sex — by researchers as well as those they research, especially in the health arena. Recently I searched a database for healthrelated research articles with “gender” in the title. Of the 10 articles that came up first in the list, every single one used “gender” as a synonym for sex.

Although gender can be related to sex, it is a very different concept. Gender is generally understood to be socially constructed, and can differ depending on society and culture. Sex, on the other hand, is defined by chromosomes and anatomy — labelled male or female. It also includes intersex people whose bodies are not typically male or female, often with characteristics of both sexes.

Researchers often assume that all biologically female people will be more similar to each other than to those who are biologically male, and group them together in their studies. They do not consider the various sexand gender-linked social roles and constraints that can also affect their health. This results in policies and treatment plans that are homogenous.

‘Masculine?’ ‘Cisgender?’

‘Gender fluid?’

The term “gender” was originally developed to describe people who did not identify with their biological sex. John Money, a pioneering gender researcher, explained: “Gender identity is your own sense or conviction of maleness or femaleness; and gender role is the cultural stereotype of what is masculine and feminine.”

There are now many terms used to describe gender — some of the earliest ones in use are “feminine,” “masculine” and “androgynous” (a combination of masculine and feminine characteristics).

More recent gender definitions include: “Bigender” (expressing two distinct gender identities), “gender fluid” (moving between gendered behaviour that is feminine and masculine depending on the situation) and “agender” or “undifferentiated” (someone who does not identify with a particular gender or is genderless).

If a person’s gender is consistent with their sex (e.g. a biologically female person is feminine) they are referred to as “cisgender.”

Gender does not tell us about sexual orientation. For example, a feminine (her gender) woman (her sex) may define herself as straight or anywhere in the LGBTQIA (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex and asexual or allied) spectrum. The same goes for a feminine man.

Femininity can affect your heart

When gender has actually been measured in healthrelated research, the labels “masculine,” “feminine” and “androgynous” have traditionally been used.

Research shows that health outcomes are not homogeneous for the sexes, meaning all biological females do not have the same vulnerabilities to illnesses and diseases and nor do all biological males.

Gender is one of the things that can influence these differences. For example, when the gender of participants is considered, “higher femininity scores among men, for example, are associated with lower incidence of coronary artery disease?(and) female wellbeing may suffer when women adopt workplace behaviours traditionally seen as masculine.”

In another study, quality of life was better for androgynous men and women with Parkinson’s disease. In cardiovascular research, more masculine people have a greater risk of cardiovascular disease than those who are more feminine.

And research with cancer patients found that both patients and their caregivers who were feminine or androgynous were at lower risk of depression-related symptoms as compared to those who were masculine and undifferentiated.

However, as mentioned earlier, many health researchers do not measure gender, despite

www.canadianinquirer.net

the e x istence of tools and strategies for doing so. They may try to guess gender based on sex and/ or what someone looks like. But it is rare that they ask people.

A tool for researchers

The self-report gender measure (SR-Gender) I developed, and first used in a study of aging, is one simple tool that was developed specifically for health research.

The SR-Gender asks a simple question: “Most of the time would you say you are??” and offers the following answer choices: “Very feminine,” “mostly feminine,” “a mix of masculine and feminine,” “neither masculine or feminine,” “mostly masculine,” “very masculine” or “other.”

The option to answer “other” is important and reflects the constant evolution of gender. As “other” genders are

shared, the self-report gender measure can be adapted to reflect these different categorizations.

It’s also important to note that the SR-Gender is not meant for in-depth gender research, but for health and/or medical studies, where it can be used in addition to, or instead of, sex.

Using gender when describing sex just muddies the waters.

Including the actual gender of research participants, as well as their sex, in health-related studies will enrich our understanding of illness.

By asking people to tell us their sex and gender, health researchers may be able to understand why people experience illness and disease differently. ■ This article was originally published on The Conversation.

Lifestyle

FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

27

Bright colours, odd Alaska city honours Guardsmen shapes, huge crowds killed in crash after ‘64 quake for Paris menswear

BY MARK THIESSEN The Associated Press

BY THOMAS ADAMSON The Associated Press PARIS’ FRENETIC menswear shows are highlighting bright colours and odd shapes as they attract huge crowds and VIPs to top collections.

Thom Browne transformed a chic Paris inner courtyard into a garden wonderland that showed off his dramatically oversized clothes and wacky, off-kilter vibe. The designer also included big thick coats for his summer collection, fusing the seasons of the fashion calendar.

The Japanese fashion house Sacai mixed men’s and women’s designs with geometric prints, checks and denim and focused on vivid colours.

Here are some highlights from Saturday’s runway shows.

Thom Browne’s garden wonderland

Floating multicolored balloons, giant lollypops, garden gnomes, colored origami windmills and myriad blooms spilling from colored pots greeted guests at the Leftbank’s Ecole des Beaux Arts.

To showcase his summer designs Saturday, Thom Browne transformed the chic Paris inner courtyard into a verdant garden wonderland.

It drew comparisons to Alice in Wonderland, Willy Wonka’s factory and even Munchkinland as models with comic beards pretended to mow the lawn with metal contraptions or push a wheelbarrow full of flowers. One “gnome” model even climbed inside a tiny garden shed and stayed motionless the entire show.

Browne’s dramatically oversized clothes continued the wacky, off-kilter vibe.

A sheeny sky blue coat with images of whales opened the show, introducing a beautifully random maritime theme that continued in lobsters and crabs.

Sloping-shoulder suit jackets, oversize coats, bags and billowing culottes were imagined in picnic blanket-style crisscross. For the 60 looks, it

was stripes and check galore. A double breasted coat-jacket in grey had blown-up pinstripes with the dominant silhouette of a wide, flat front.

All of the designs were accessorized with a bowler hat with a flower in it, a colored tie and gargantuan striped platform shoes.

Browne shows winter coats for summer as seasons blur

Thom Browne’s decision to include big, thick coats for his summer collection triggered a debate between two front-row fashion editors.

“Winter coats for summer?” asked one, puzzled.

“The seasons are almost the same in the industry now, anyway,” answered the other, with some truth.

Progressively over the years, spring-summer and fall-winter fashion seasons have become increasingly blurred. Winter clothes such as big sweaters and big coats are no stranger to the summer catwalks. Often, summer shows are now distinguishable only for their brighter colour palette and the occasional pair of shorts — and even that garment has been spotted in some winter shows.

Vivid colors at Sacai

A multicolored cube of giant speakers tied together with fluorescent yellow banding greeted guests at Sacai’s warehouse show, suggesting that a quirky, avant-garde show was coming from one of Japan’s top fashion houses.

That was not wrong.

Men’s and women’s designs merged in the diverse 57-piece show from Sacai, with geometric prints, checks and denim all mixing with silhouettes. Some coats or billowing skirts had exaggerated tapering proportions.

The one thing that created unity in this eccentric display was its vivid colours: purple, dark navy, bitter lemon, crimson and bronze. At times, the bright hues came on printed and patterned garments that evoked the ethnic styles of Latin America. ■

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA — A month after the second most powerful earthquake ever was recorded, the Alaska port community of Valdez remained in ruins.

A hulking Alaska National Guard cargo plane’s mission April 25, 1964, was to deliver Gov. William Egan to oversee efforts to rebuild the town on a new site after the magnitude 9.2 earthquake.

After dropping off Egan and surveyors, the twin-engine Fairchild C-123J Provider took off in a heavy snowstorm to return to Anchorage carrying the Guard’s adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Thomas P. Carroll, and three others.

Three minutes later and about a mile (1.6 kilometres) due west of where more than 30 people died when the earthquake ripped apart the city dock, the plane struck the water head-on, at full speed, killing all on board. Despite rescue efforts, it quickly sank to the bottom of Prince William Sound.

The Valdez plane crash made national headlines but has mostly faded from memory for all but a few, including surviving family members and Chuck Volanti.

The former Air Guardsman, who arranged the fateful flight as dispatcher, has been working for four years from his home in Olympia, Washington, to honour those lost in the humanitarian mission. On Saturday, his efforts were realized at the unveiling of a memorial he and Valdez City Clerk Sheri Piece helped design.

Also killed in the crash were Lt. Col. Thomas Norris Jr., the pilot; Maj. James Rowe, co-pilot; and Tech. Sgt. Kenneth Wayne Ayers Sr., flight engineer.

“The crew, what can I say?”

Volanti said. “They were decorated veterans. We were close, like family.”

Many relatives of the men killed attended the dedication of the memorial, which carries the likeness of each man.

The plaque, in part, says: “They were men of the highest principle, grounded in self-sacrifice, duty, honour, integrity and www.canadianinquirer.net

Prince William Sound, Alaska.

strong moral values. In serving to revive the spirit of others they forfeited their own.”

Robin Norris Theobald, then 8 years old, vividly remembers the day of the crash, a Saturday.

Her father, the pilot, came to her with a question: “You know, I have this flight, and I don’t have to go on it. What do you think I should do?”

Her answer was quick, decisive and foreboding: “Don’t go.

You’ll die.”

“He was just a regular dad, and then he was gone,” she recalled in a phone interview this week from Graham, North Carolina.

She finds comfort that her father and his fellow Guardsmen are being honoured for their efforts to help people after the earthquake, which caused millions of dollars of extensive damage from Anchorage to Valdez. In all, 131 people died in the quake or from a tsunami that killed people from Alaska to California.

“I’m just glad they remember him in that light, for the good he was doing,” Theobald said.

Ken Ayers Jr. had his entire family at the ceremony to honour his father, the flight engineer.

He was only 21 months old when the plane went down, but he learned from his mother, Nettie Jo, about his father’s love for fishing and hunting. That’s what drew the family back to Alaska after his father’s active service days in the Air Force.

He calls his mother the “real hero” in all this, raising her family and working herself up from the mailroom with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to being the agency’s head of pro-

curement for Alaska.

She died in 2014, but he says she would be proud of the memorial. “I think she’d be very pleased, certainly,” he said.

Carroll was honoured a month after the crash in a speech on the U.S. Senate floor by Sen. Bob Bartlett, an Alaska Democrat.

“In addition to his family, the Alaska Guard and the state have suffered a terrible loss. For all of us who knew him, admired him and felt a deep affection toward him. All of us shall miss him.”

The night Carroll died, Egan had invited him to spend the night in Valdez and attend a dinner with him because of the poor weather. “I didn’t bring my fork,” Carroll joked when begging off on the invitation and promising to return the next day to pick up Egan, the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported at the time.

One of Carroll’s sons, Thomas C. Carroll, reached the rank of brigadier general. He also became adjutant general of the Alaska National Guard and also died in a plane crash. The younger Carroll’s plane went down in 1992 near Juneau.

Rowe, the co-pilot, gained fame in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake. The Anchorage airport radio tower was destroyed in the quake, so Rowe circled Alaska’s largest city in a C-123 cargo plane, warning off other aircraft from attempting to land and turning his plane into an emergency radio tower, relaying what he could see to the outside world. ■ Associated Press researcher Rhonda Shafner in New York contributed to this report.

28

Lifestyle

After ban ends, Saudi women see new job in becoming drivers

BY AYA BATRAWY The Associated Press RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA — Saudi women are driving freely through busy city streets for the first time after years of risking arrest if they dared to get behind the wheel. And with the longstanding ban now lifted, a new opportunity has emerged: Working as drivers.

It’s a job that had been reserved for men only and one that until recently even many Saudi males rejected as socially taboo. Driving was almost entirely the job of foreigners, often lower-income and from countries like India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Saudi women who want to work as drivers — for ride-hailing services like Uber, for example — are challenging an even wider array of traditional limits on women’s rights and are part of a wave of change that has drawn resistance from parts of the male community in the deeply conservative country.

“It’s very natural for people to resist change,” said Ammal Farahat, an affluent mother of two with a master’s degree who runs who her own consultancy.

“Once they start seeing more positive images and opportunities and what it means for women to drive, they’re going to change their minds.”

Farahat, who had a driver’s license from the U.S. before obtaining a Saudi one, signed up to be a driver for Careem, a local competitor to Uber. She and

her sister, who grew up in Saudi Arabia with a German mother who could drive freely in her home country, are trying out becoming drivers together.

Farahat says she decided to take on the job to defy stereotypes that working as a driver is beneath Saudi women.

For many women who sign up to become drivers, the job provides another source of income and greater financial independence.

“By opening our platform now to women, we are empowering them to be their own boss, to drive or to work whenever they want, and to work how long they want, as well. Perfect for women who are in the workforce,” said Careem co-founder Abdullah Elyas.

It’s not just women. In recent years, thousands of young Saudi men have started moonlighting as drivers for the two ridehailing services.

The change reflects the shift in Saudi lifestyles mirrored by the kingdom’s shrinking ability to rely solely on its vast oil exports for wealth. While 70 per cent of Saudis who work are employed by the public sector, those jobs alone are not enough to keep pace with the number of Saudis entering the workforce.

Official statistics show that the average public sector salary for Saudis is about 10,600 riyals a month ($2,800), far from enough to comfortably cover the costs of one-income households in major cities like the capital, Riyadh.

Unemployment is close to

13 per cent. The overwhelming majority of job seekers in Saudi Arabia are women, and around 34 per cent of Saudis seeking employment are between 25 and 29 years old. The lifting of the driving ban on Sunday is expected to gradually improve women’s participation in the workforce and buoy the economy.

There will still be many roadblocks for women. They need a male relative’s approval to obtain a passport or travel abroad.

And the support of a father, husband or brother is seen as key to a woman being able to work or drive.

Careem says 2,000 women have registered with the company to sign up as drivers since the kingdom announced in September the driving ban on women would be lifted. Uber, meanwhile, launched a website last week with over 100 Saudi women registering their interest in driving.

Already, more than 150,000 Saudi male drivers are signed up with Uber, with the majority working part-time. Careem says 95 per cent of its fleet of drivers are Saudi men, totalling around 170,000.

But 80 per cent of Uber’s customers are women; 70 per cent for Careem.

When the royal decree was announced last year that women would be allowed to drive, some Saudi women eager to drive their own cars shared pictures on Twitter deleting their Uber and Careem apps.

Elyas says the company’s not worried about business be-

ing hurt, and is embracing the change.

“There is a need (for) being driven by a woman in Saudi and we’re opening with that whole new customer segment, which we are excited to serve with our service going forward,” he said.

While there has been a loosening of social restrictions in recent years, the culture here still shuns the mixing of unrelated men and women. A male driver initiating conversation with a female passenger can lead to a complaint.

Uber conducted its own research and found that 74 per cent of prospective women drivers interviewed said they’d only be interested in driving female riders.

To accommodate this, Uber is rolling out a new feature in Saudi Arabia that allows women drivers to select women riders. The company describes it

as an effort at “being mindful of the cultural context” in Saudi Arabia.

Careem says its drivers too can decide to confirm or decline an order based on the rider’s gender by seeing their name.

As she drove around the streets of Riyadh, Farahat talked about how her daughter and niece, both under 5, will never know the challenges her generation went through in getting from one place to another and needing to rely on a man for transportation.

“They’re not growing up in the same Saudi Arabia I grew up in at all,” Farahat said. “It’s exciting, but also I know every generation has their own challenges, so what challenges would they go through? It will be different.” ■ Fay Abuelgasim contributed to this report.

Winged dragon sculpture vanishes from its perch in Nanaimo, B.C. THE CANADIAN PRESS NANAIMO, B.C. — A British Columbia artist built her dragon sculpture with wings, but she never thought it would leave its perch without her help.

Heather Wall says she thinks Rock Dragon 2.0 disappeared from a park in Nanaimo, B.C., sometime late Friday.

The spiky, aluminium dragon weighing about 35 kilograms was seated atop a rock and steel

sphere and was mounted on a two-metre pole.

Wall says the dragon was installed at Maffeo Sutton Park at the beginning of June and had been leased for a year by the City of Nanaimo.

City spokesman Chris Barfoot says it appears that a coordinated effort went into removing the dragon because there was very little damage to the base and no clear signs of vandalism.

Wall agrees the theft of the

sculpture valued at between $12,000 and $15,000 must have been planned because it was spiky, heavy, awkward and hard to reach.

“He’s not a friendly thing to lift,” she says. “I’m suspecting that it took maybe two people to pull him off the globe. That kind of says at least two ladders, two people, some tools and some planning to walk in there because you can’t just drive up to it.”

She says it took three people to put the art work in place www.canadianinquirer.net

when it was installed.

The aluminum dragon with its wings outstretched and appearing as if it was about to blow fire was bolted securely.

“We figured it would be all right,” she says. “I hate people who steal things.”

Barfoot says that while there’s been some minor vandalism to public art pieces in the past, this is the first time anything has been stolen.

“This is a community program, it’s public art for every-

one. It’s not reflective of what the community feels about this program.”

While Wall was disappointed the dragon was gone, she wasn’t worried about it being damaged.

“I mounted that on a stand in the back of my truck and the dragon itself was well above the cab. And I went down the highway at 120 kilometres and it didn’t bother it a bit. People looked at me like I had three heads.” ■

29

Sports ROS books top seed in quarters

Real Madrid Foundation coaches to hold football clinics

BY IVAN STEWART SALDAJENO Philippine News Agency

BY JEAN MALANUM Philippine News Agency

MANILA — Rain Or Shine Elasto Painters needed overtime before shutting down Meralco Bolts, 106-99, in their PBA Commissioner’s Cup showdown at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City Sunday night.

The Elasto Painters survived a slow second half as the Bolts could not complete the comeback, and the former stifled the latter in the extra five minutes to not just secure a twice-tobeat advantage in the quarterfinals but as well as the top seed with a match to spare.

Following a hot second quarter, during which ROS dropped 36 points for a 64-51 halftime lead, the team slowed down and let Meralco score 30 in the third quarter and only making 12 in the fourth.

However, the Bolts failed to capitalize down the stretch in regulation as they failed to score in the last 2:26 of regulation, and the E-Painters, who had their own drought in the dying moments of the regulation that lasted for 4:15, stretched the Bolts’ struggles into the extension, only limiting them to three points in the five-minute period.

Reggie Johnson made 21 points, 18 rebounds, one assist, three blocks, and one steal, while Maverick Ahanmisi added 20 points, eight rebounds, and six assists for ROS, which will close out its elimination

campaign against TNT on July 7.

Chris Newsome tallied 21 markers, 11 assists, seven rebounds, and one steal for Meralco, which at 7-4 to finish the eliminations now needs to hope that Alaska Aces and TNT KaTropa falters in their last games to have a chance to join ROS with the twice-to-beat edge in the quarters.

The Aces’ own quest for a Top 2 finish got into a road block following a 105-86 blowout by Barangay Ginebra in the second game.

Ginebra quickly turned the match into a laugher at the very beginning, opening a 30-16 first quarter lead as Alaska felt the absence of Calvin Abueva and Jeron Teng.

Justin Brownlee flirted with a triple-double after tallying 28 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists with one steal for the Barangay, who put one foot into a quarterfinal berth with a July 6 showdown against the GlobalPort Batang Pier, their remaining game in the eliminations.

LA Tenorio added 12 points, five rebounds, three assists, and five steals.

Vic Manuel made 20 markers, four rebounds, and two assists for the Aces, who now need to beat Phoenix Fuel Masters also on July 6 to stay in the Top 2 hunt. ■

MANILA — Three hundred underprivileged children will have the opportunity to experience world-class football from Real Madrid Foundation (RMF) coaches in the YKK Asia Group Kids Football Clinic scheduled on June 23-24 at the McKinley Hill Stadium in Taguig City.

The children from Gawad Kalinga, Childhope and Punta Fuego (Batangas) will have two days of fun and interactive training sessions under international coaches Pablo Gomez Revenga, Santiago Sanchez Martin and Hector Vicente, who will be sharing football tips, techniques and basic fundamentals.

The three RMF coaches have been scheduled to share their world-class training techniques to 30 local coaches, who will be selected by the Philippine Football Federation, on June 22 in the same venue.

The YKK Holding Asia Pte, Ltd. (YHA) and YKK Philippines, Inc. have jointly chosen to continue their collaboration with the RMF for the latest edition of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative. which is aimed to support the healthy growth of children through football clinics.

This is the second time that the YKK AKFC will be held in the country since 2012.

“We are grateful to YKK for making this clinic possible. We have successfully partnered with HYA since 2012 and have

YKK Philippines president Tadashi Koshio (left) with Real Madrid foundation head coach Pablo Gomez Revenga.

CYBERSECURITY SUMMIT 2017

had incredible and positive experiences from the Asian countries where the events have been held. Watching the local coaches and children engage and participate in a sport which knows no language or social barriers is the ultimate reward,” said Revenga, RMF’s Technical Management Clinics and International Technical Schools director, during Friday’s press conference at Shangrila Hotel at The Fort, BGC. The clinics draw on YKK’s corporate philosophy of the “cycle of goodness”, which states that “No one prospers without rendering benefit to others.”

“YKK’s presence in the Philippines dates back since 1978 and our growth and success during these 40 years owes a great deal to the local society which our customers and employees also form part of. It is a great opportunity and pleasure

for us to give back and help create the initial spark of encouragement for children who do not normally experience big name events due to its exclusivity. This time, it’s their turn to experience greatness,” said YKK Philippines, Inc. president Tadashi Koshio in a statement.

Also present during the press conference were YKK Asia regional manager Alson Ng, YKK Philippines, Inc. assistant vice president for marketing Augustin Villarama and Philippine Football Federation secretary general Atty. Edwin Gastanes.

Meanwhile, those who will join the clinics will receive a full set of YKK/Real Madrid Foundation football jersey kit which includes football boots, a cap, socks and a certificate of attendance. YKK will donate all footballs and training equipment to the participating NGOs after the event. ■

Dandan resigns as Columbian Dyip coach

BY IVAN STEWART SALDAJENO Philippine News Agency MANILA — Ricky Dandan tendered his resignation as head

coach of Columbian Dyip.

In a copy of the resignation letter posted on social media Monday night by the PBA’s official broadcaster ESPN 5, Dandan said that he “arrived at this decision after much thought

and deliberation.”

The concurrent UP assistant coach then reasoned: “My personal decision now is to concentrate all of my attention, effort, and energy full time on helping Coach Bo Perasol and www.canadianinquirer.net

the UP Fighting Maroons in our quest for the Final Four this forthcoming UAAP season.”

Under Dandan, who took over Chris Gavina at the turn of the year, the Dyip posed an early threat in the Commissioner’s

Cup, going 3-2 to start the conference.

However, they lost five of their last six games, dropping them to 4-7 and eventually knocking them out of playoff contention. ■

30

Business Guidelines for new telco player Japan extends 1.84-B to be released this week: DICT yen grant aid to PH

BY AEROL JOHN PATEÑA Philippine News Agency

BY LESLIE GATPOLINTAN Philippine News Agency

MANILA — The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is set to release within this week the draft terms of reference (TOR) for the entry of the muchawaited third player in the local telecommunications industry.

This initiative was done in compliance with the directive of President Rodrigo Duterte for the department to implement measures that will hasten the entry of a new competitor in the industry to improve the state of Internet and mobile services in the country.

“Ilalabas na po namin ang draft ng terms of reference within this week. Next week tatawag po kami ng public forum for dis- DICT Acting Secretary Eliseo Rio Jr. CYBERSECURITY SUMMIT 2017 cussing the terms of reference.

All stakeholders will be wel“Importante po ang terms of nance secretary as vice chaircomed (We are set to release the reference kasi dito po namin person, Office of the Executive draft terms of reference within mapipili yung talagang quali- Secretary and the National Sethis week. We will be holding fied na makipag-compete sa curity Adviser. a public forum next week for Globe and Smart (The terms The DICT earlier said a numdiscussing the terms of refer- of reference are important for ber of issues are needed to be ence. All stakeholders will be us to select who is qualified settled before the TOR is rewelcomed),” DICT Acting Sec- to compete with Globe and leased to the public and the telretary Eliseo Rio Jr. said in a Smart),” he added. co industry stakeholders. radio interview Monday.

Under Administrative OrAmong these issues include Rio said he was the distribution able to discuss of frequencies the delays in the which were forselection promerly awarded cess for the new The terms of reference are to Bayan Teletelco with the important for us to select who is communications President during qualified to compete with Globe Inc. (Bayantel); the National ICT and Smart. establishment of Summit held in a common tower Davao City last policy which week. may be leased to “We explained to him that der No. 11, the President has new and existing players for the there is an oversight committee ordered the oversight commit- installation of communication na nagsusuri ng terms of refer- tee to assist the National Tele- facilities; commercialization of ence. Pero siyempre sabi niya: communications Commission the National Grid of the PhilipGawin ninyo yan. Do what is (NTC) in the formulation of pines-Transco dark fiber — unright. So may pressure na talaga the TOR for the selection and used fiber optic cables that may sa amin para umusog (We ex- assignment of radio frequen- be utilized for the transmission plained to him that there is an cies for the entry of new telco of communication signals; and oversight committee that is re- player. It will also oversee com- the reduction of interconnecviewing the terms of reference. pliance of the NTC and other tion rates among mobile netHe told us: Work on it. Do what implementing agencies with works. is right. So there is really pres- the TOR provisions. The comThe DICT targets to name sure for us to move forward),” mittee is composed of the DICT the third major telco player he added. secretary as chairperson; Fi- within the year. ■

MANILA — The Japanese government is extending 1.84-billion yen (roughly PHP892.69 million) grant aid to the Philippines for a flood control project in Cagayan de Oro River Basin and for human resource development scholarship.

Socio-economic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Philippines Chief Representative Yoshio Wada on Monday signed the grant aid for the two projects, as part of JICA’s support to help improve the quality of lives of Filipinos and contribute to the country’s sustainable and inclusive development.

The 1.278-billion yen (PHP621 million) project Improvement of Flood Forecasting and Warning System for Cagayan de Oro River Basin was requested by the Philippines from JICA to help reduce flood risks in Northern Mindanao.

“We are confident that through this Project, and with Japan’s expertise and state-ofthe-art technology, we will be more resilient against floodrelated disasters in the Cagayan de Oro River Basin, the longest river basin in the country,” said Pernia, also the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary.

Under JICA’s development cooperation, a flood forecasting and warning network will be established in partnership with the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).

JICA will support both hard (radar, rainfall gauges and water level sensors) and soft infrastructure (capacity building of counterparts) to help ensure accurate flood forecasting and timely flood warnings.

Pernia commended partners from the Japanese government and JICA for their continued

www.canadianinquirer.net

support for the Philippine government’s efforts related to disaster resiliency, noting the country has endured a wide array of natural disasters, Meanwhile, the 563-million yen project for Human Resource Development Scholarship (JDS) aims to help young people working in government by giving them study opportunities in Japan and contribute to Philippine development upon return.

A total of 319 Filipinos have already been granted this scholarship, and 21 more professionals from government have been accepted this year.

Now on its 16th year of implementation, Pernia noted the JDS continues to be relevant and within the goals and strategies in the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2017-2022.

He said the PDP provides for the strengthening of the civil service, enhancement of labor capacities and improvement of service delivery, with human capital development particularly higher education, serving as an accelerator of innovation and inclusive economic prosperity.

“This will surely contribute to our efforts in ramping up economic activities, and particularly in the infrastructure sector,” he added.

For his part, Wada said “the Human Resource Development Scholarship project not only strengthens the relationship of JICA and the Philippines through people-to-people exchange, it also gives us the chance to share Japan’s accumulated knowledge and expertise to promote inclusive development.” ■

Business

FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

31

Growth of low cost airlines giving boost to Canada’s biggest secondary airports

BY ROSS MAROWITS The Canadian Press

Abbotsford Airport runway.

YXXOPS / WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

MONTREAL — Formerly sleepy secondary airports in Canada’s two busiest air markets are in for a new lease on life thanks to the rise of discount airlines and projected growth in travel over coming decade.

Airports in Hamilton, Ont., and Abbotsford, B.C., that have traditionally played second fiddle to Vancouver International Airport and Toronto Pearson International Airport, were buzzing last week as lowcost WestJet offshoot Swoop

launched service between the two, catering to the country’s most price-sensitive passengers.

“It’s been a crazy week,” says Cathie Puckering, chief executive of John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport, which got an additional boost when Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA announced plans last week to enter Canada and offer direct service to Dublin next spring.

After an 80 per cent increase in passengers last year, the airport hopes renewed interest from airlines will help spur a return to its heyday in 2003 when it accommodated one million

passengers.

Hamilton, which is also Canada’s top domestic cargo airport, flew nearly 600,000 passengers last year, well short of its capacity to handle more than three million people. Interest waned after WestJet moved its eastern Canadian base of operations to Toronto Pearson following Air Canada’s merger with Canadian Airlines and Globespan Airways ceased operations to Europe.

Established in 1940 as a military flight school, civil flights began in 1964 after military ❱❱ PAGE 36 Growth of

Trump denies he’s to blame PSE gets SEC approval for Harley Davidson decision for short selling

BY DARLENE SUPERVILLE The Associated Press WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump denied Tuesday that his trade policy is to blame for Harley-Davidson’s decision to shift some motorcycle production overseas, saying on Twitter that the company is using “Tariffs/Trade War as an excuse” to hide previously announced plans to move jobs to Asia.

The Milwaukee-based company said Monday it came to its decision because of retaliatory tariffs it faces in an escalating trade dispute between the U.S. and the European Union. The company had no immediate response Tuesday to the president’s assertions.

Trump warned Harley-Davidson that any shift in production “will be the beginning of the end.”

“The Aura will be gone and they will be taxed like never before!” Trump said in one of several tweets Tuesday. He was referring to tariffs HarleyDavidson would face on motorcycles produced overseas and shipped back to the U.S. for sale.

The president has held up the iconic American motorcycle maker as an example of a U.S. business harmed by trade barriers in other countries, but HarleyDavidson had warned that tariffs

could negatively impact its sales.

Trump recently imposed steep tariffs on aluminum and steel imported from Canada, Mexico and Europe in his bid to level the trade playing field and reduce trade deficits between the U.S. and its trade partners.

But those countries have treated Trump’s action as an insult and have chosen to respond in kind.

The U.S. and China are also volleying back and forth over tariffs.

Trump tweeted that Harley-Davidson had already announced it was closing a Kansas City plant and moving those jobs to Thailand. But it was union officials representing workers at that plant who claimed the jobs were being shifted to Thailand.

Harley-Davidson has denied a link between Kansas City and Thailand.

“That was long before Tariffs were announced,” Trump said.

“Hence, they were just using Tariffs/Trade War as an excuse.

Shows how unbalanced & unfair trade is, but we will fix it.....”

Trump said he’s getting other countries to reduce and eliminate tariffs and trade barriers, and to open up markets.

A group from Harley-Davidson met with Trump at the White House last year.

“When I had Harley-Davidson officials over to the White House, I chided them about

tariffs in other countries, like India, being too high,” Trump tweeted. “Companies are now coming back to America. Harley must know that they won’t be able to sell back into U.S. without paying a big tax!”

Trump added that the administration is finishing a study on imposing tariffs on cars from the EU, which he claims has taken advantage of the U.S. for too long.

“A Harley-Davidson should never be built in another country-never!” Trump tweeted.

“Their employees and customers are already very angry at them. If they move, watch, it will be the beginning of the end — they surrendered, they quit!

The Aura will be gone and they will be taxed like never before!”

Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., said Trump’s attack on HarleyDavidson is an example of the president “punching down.”

“I don’t have a problem with the president taking on China,” Kinzinger said Tuesday on CNN, adding that he personally likes Trump. But the Illinois Republican said it bothers him when Trump also takes on Canada and European nations, among others.

“Don’t take on Harley. It’s a great company,” Kinzinger said. ■ Associated Press writer Laurie Kellman contributed to this report. www.canadianinquirer.net

PHILIPPINE NEWS AGENCY MANILA — The Philippine Stock Exchange, Inc. (PSE) has secured the approval of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to introduce short selling in the stock market.

Short selling is in place in several exchanges and is utilized by investors as a hedging mechanism.

Short selling is a strategy that seeks to capitalize on an anticipated decline in the price of a security. Short seller is one who tries to sell high and buy low.

“We are grateful to the SEC for approving the guidelines for short selling. We are optimistic that this facility will lend support to our securities borrowing and lending program and help improve liquidity in our market,” said PSE President and Chief Executive Officer Ramon Monzon.

The approved implementing guidelines for short selling transactions include provisions on eligible securities, procedures for short selling transactions, and the execution of short selling orders, among others.

In the case of eligible securities, members of the PSE index (PSEi) and exchange traded funds are the only securities considered as eligible for short

selling transactions.

For any eligible security, only 10 percent of its outstanding shares can be shorted. The limit acts as a safeguard for the orderly conduct of short selling activities, while still providing ample room for price discovery.

Meanwhile, in executing short selling orders, trading participants will have to ensure that the client has entered into the necessary securities borrowing arrangements prior to entering a short selling order.

Such borrowing arrangements must adhere to existing SEC, Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), and PSE regulations governing securities borrowing and lending.

Monzon explained, “Since this is the first time we are introducing short selling, our guidelines were crafted with the goal of ensuring that short selling transactions are transparent and effectively monitored. Even with a limited number of eligible securities and a cap on short interest to begin with, we believe that the ability to take short positions will further spur trading activity and attract more investors to our market.”

The PSE has outlined activities for various stakeholders in the coming weeks to apprise them of the rules and guidelines for short selling transactions. ■

32

Technology Xiaomi: A Chinese startup out to challenge Google, Amazon

BY YOUKYUNG LEE The Associated Press SEOUL, KOREA, REPUBLIC OF — Xiaomi, a Chinese cellphone maker that helped pioneer the trend toward ultralow-priced smartphones, is preparing for what would possibly be the biggest tech initial public offering since e-commerce giant Alibaba’s in 2014.

The 8-year-old is a star among Chinese unicorns, a term that refers to startup companies that are valued at more than $1 billion. It has a dedicated Chinese fan base and its media-savvy leader is an Asian celebrity. But it is untested outside the region.

Can a Chinese company be cool outside Asia? Can Xiaomi achieve its goal of expanding beyond hardware to be an internet service company?

A guide to Xiaomi and its upcoming IPO in Hong Kong: Where did Xiaomi come from?

Xiaomi — pronounced “SHEE-YOW’-mee” — was founded in 2010 by CEO Jun Lei and seven colleagues who included veterans of Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Microsoft Corp. and Motorola Inc. Their first smartphone, the Mi1 released in 2011, was an instant hit with little marketing.

Consumers buzzed about its low price of 1,999 yuan ($305) and competitive quality.

It helped to ignite an unusual fan culture on which Xiaomi has built its product development. Customers take part in

design decisions by sending suggestions over social media.

In 2013, Xiaomi sold more handsets in China than Apple.

The next year, it became China’s top-selling smartphone.

The company later was passed in sales volume by local rivals Huawei, Oppo and Vivo. But after a slump in 2016, Xiaomi’s growth rate outpaced other smartphone makers in the following year. While Samsung, Apple and Huawei saw flat or 10 per cent growth or less in 2017, Xiaomi sales jumped 58 per cent, according to IHS. Last year, the company had a 6 per cent share of the global smartphone market, despite minimal presence in Europe and the United States.

How much money does Xiaomi make?

Xiaomi lost money last year.

A lot.

The company reported a loss of 43.9 billion yuan ($6.8 billion) on revenue of 114.6 billion yuan.

Even if the company turns that around, CEO Lei has promised to keep prices low for consumers by holding profit margins on hardware sales to 5 per cent, a stance that might rattle investors.

“Xiaomi is more than a hardware company,” said Lei in an open letter to investors. “Although our hardware business is essential to building our user base, we do not expect it to be the main source of our profits.”

Xiaomi makes 90 per cent of its revenue from hardware sales but calls itself an inter-

net content company. It wants to make money by delivering services to the more than 100 million users of its connected devices and 190 million people who use its software MIUI. How much is the IPO expected to raise?

The IPO is expected to raise billions of dollars — possibly the biggest haul in the tech sector since Alibaba raised $22 billion in 2014 — though forecasts of how much have declined. It aims to raise as much as $6.1 billion in the IPO, Bloomberg and the South China Morning Post said, citing anonymous sources familiar with the matter.

Investors are likely to value Xiaomi at $63-$68 billion, down from earlier expectations of as much as $100 billion due to its “low profitability,” Choi Won-seok of Shinhan Investment Corp. said in a report.

“Compared to other Chinese tech companies, it will be an attractive price point for investors,” wrote Choi.

Why are investors optimistic?

Xiaomi is the rare Chinese brand that has succeeded abroad.

“Xiaomi is probably one of the few Chinese companies that have gotten enough international attention not in a negative way,” said Melissa Chau, associate research director at research firm IDC. In India, it unseated Samsung as No. 1 in smartphone sales. This is a bright spot because India is one of the few remaining handset markets with

www.canadianinquirer.net

XiaoMi Note.

big growth, said Chau.

South Korean trendsetters love Xiaomi. Other Asian fans rave on YouTube and social media about Xiaomi air purifiers, suitcases and vacuum cleaners.

Admirers compare Xiaomi’s minimalist design to Apple or Japan’s Balmuda, known for its sleek beauty.

It is also one of the few hardware manufacturers that have been able to use their hardware products as an entry point to selling services and software.

“If you think of other hardware makers who do that, you can only think of Apple,” Chau said.

In the letter to investors, Lei said the eight co-founders wanted to make “the coolest company in the hearts of our users.”

“Good companies make profits, great companies also win over people’s hearts,” Lei wrote.

“We pride ourselves even more in being a technology company with a rare ‘fan culture.’”

MIRTMIRT / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

What comes next?

But can it stir similar enthusiasm among investors and Western audiences?

A key challenge will be winning over U.S. and European consumers who might be more wary of Chinese brands.

Another challenge is to show investors that, like Google or Amazon.com Inc., it can make a profit from services, reducing reliance on handset sales.

Selling Chinese internet services to global consumers could be tougher than selling Chinese phones.

Xiaomi founder’s vision, however, echoes that of many Silicon Valley internet companies.

“Fundamentally, the internet is all about transparency, efficiency and equality,” Lei said in his letter to investors. “We want to allow everyone, regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, nationality, or education level, to enjoy the benefits of technology.” ■

Technology

FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

33

Instagram unveils new video Alexa, I can trust service in challenge to YouTube you with my

checkbook, right?

BY MICHAEL LIEDTKE The Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook’s Instagram service is loosening its restraints on video in an attempt to lure younger viewers away from YouTube when they’re looking for something to watch on their smartphones.

The expansion announced Wednesday, dubbed IGTV, will increase Instagram’s video time limit from one minute to 10 minutes for most users. Accounts with large audiences will be able to go as long as an hour.

Video will be available through Instagram or a new app called IGTV. The video will eventually give Facebook more opportunities to sell advertising.

It’s the latest instance in which Instagram has ripped a page from a rival’s playbook in an effort to preserve its status as a cool place for young people to share and view content. In this case, Instagram is mimicking Google’s YouTube. Before, Facebook and Instagram have copied Snapchat — another magnet for teens and young adults.

Instagram, now nearly 8 years old, is moving further from its roots as a photo-sharing service as it dives headlong into longer-form video.

The initiative comes as parent company Facebook struggles to attract teens, while also dealing with a scandal that exposed its leaky controls for protecting users’ personal information.

Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom told The Associated Press that he hopes IGTV will emerge as a hub of creativity for relative unknowns who turn into internet sensations with fervent followings among teens and young adults.

That is what’s already happening on YouTube, which has become the world’s most popular video outlet since Google bought it for $1.76 billion nearly 12 years ago. YouTube now boasts 1.8 billion users.

Instagram, which Facebook bought for $1 billion six years ago, now has 1 billion users, up

BY KEN SWEET The Associated Press

IGTV.

from 800 million nine months ago.

More importantly, 72 per cent of U.S. kids ranging from 13 to 17 years old use Instagram, second to YouTube at 85 per cent, according to the Pew Research Center. Only 51 per cent of people in that group now use Facebook, down from 71 per cent from a similar Pew survey in 2014-15.

That trend appears to be one of the reasons that Facebook is “hedging its bets” by opening Instagram to the longer-form videos typically found on YouTube, said analyst Paul Verna of the research firm eMarketer.

Besides giving Instagram another potential drawing card, longer clips are more conducive for video ads lasting from 30 seconds to one minute. Instagram doesn’t currently allow video ads, but Systrom said it eventually will. When the ads come, Instagram intends to share revenue with the videos’ creators — just as YouTube already does.

“We want to make sure they make a living because that is the only way it works in the long run,” Systrom said.

The ads also will help Face-

INSTAGRAM

book sustain its revenue growth. Total spending on online video ads in the U.S. is expected to rise from nearly $18 billion this year to $27 billion in 2021, according to eMarketer.

Lele Pons, a YouTube sensation who also has amassed 25 million followers on Instagram, plans to launch a new cooking show on IGTV in hopes of increasing her audience and eventually generating more revenue. “It’s like Coca-Cola and Pepsi,” she said. “You will never know what you like better unless you try both.”

IGTV’s programming format will consist exclusively of vertical video designed to fill the entire screen of smartphones — the devices that are emerging as the main way younger people watch video. By contrast, most YouTube videos fill only a portion of the screen unless the phone is tilted horizontally.

Snapchat began featuring vertical video before Instagram, another example of its penchant for copying rivals.

But Systrom sees it differently. “This is acknowledging vertical video is the future and we want the future to come more quickly, so we built IGTV.” ■ www.canadianinquirer.net

NEW YORK — Hey Alexa, what’s my bank account balance?

Big banks and financial companies have started to offer banking through virtual assistants — Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s Siri, and Google’s Assistant — in a way that will allow customers to check their balances, pay bills and, in the near future, send money just with their voice. And with the rapid adoption of Zelle, a bankto-bank transfer system, it soon could be possible to send money to friends or family instantly with voice commands.

But the potential to do such sensitive tasks through a smart speaker raises security concerns. Virtual assistants and smart speakers are still relatively new technologies, and potentially susceptible to being exploited by cyber criminals.

Regional banking giant U.S. Bank is the first bank to be on all three services — Alexa, Siri and Assistant. The company did a soft launch of its Siri and Assistant services in early March and this month started marketing the option to customers.

Other financial companies have set up virtual assistant features. Credit card companies Capital One and American Express both have Alexa skills that allow customers to check their balances and pay bills.

There are other smaller banks and credit unions that have set up Google Assistant or Alexa as well.

“We want to be there for our customers in any possible way that we can,” said Gareth Gaston, executive vice-president for omnichannel banking at U.S. Bank.

For now, U.S. Bank is keeping the features available through bank-by-voice fairly restrictive.

Customers will be able to check bank balances, pay U.S. Bank credit cards and mortgages, ask Alexa or Google the due dates on bills, and other basic functions. Money cannot be trans-

ferred from a U.S. Bank account using voice yet, Gaston said, but the bank is considering the option.

Asking Google, Alexa or Siri for the weather or to tell a joke is one thing, but it’s a whole other issue when these assistants access and share sensitive personal information. These apps will typically announce a person’s available balance over the speaker, which has the potential to create awkward situations at parties.

In the case of Google and Alexa, users must create a secure connection between their bank and the assistant through Alexa’s Skills or Google’s Actions.

All banks require the use of a four-digit PIN before they will provide balance and bank account info over these speakers, and suggest making those PINs different from the one on a customer’s ATM card.

Apple’s Siri is the most restrictive of the three virtual assistants, only showing a user a bank account balance on a screen, and not allowing other features like paying bills. Banks can integrate Siri into their iPhone and iPad apps, but Apple’s HomePod smart speaker that launched earlier this year does not currently accept banking commands. A company spokeswoman declined to say whether that feature was coming.

Google Assistant has the capability to do individual voice recognition, providing one additional level of security on that platform, but that is not implemented on U.S. Bank’s Action yet. Security experts say that additional level of security could be foiled, however.

“Users’ voices can be recorded, manipulated, and replayed to the assistants,” said Kurt Baumgartner, a security researcher with Kaspersky Lab. “Also, with access to banking accounts and abilities to transfer and pay out money, remote financial fraud may be within the reach of cybercriminal groups soon.” ■

JUNE 29, 2018

34

CANADA

HIRING LUCKY SUPERMARKET 10628 King George Blvd, Surrey B.C is hiring all positions such as: store manager, grocery manager, produce manager, office administration, file maintenance clerk, head cashier, cook, BBQ chef, meat cutter, baker, bakery clerk, grocery clerk, frozen clerk, meat clerk, produce clerk, cashier, truck driver and kitchen helper.

Please email resume to: hrsurrey@luckysupermarket.ca

Electronic Technicians Needed Experience in Low Voltage Electrical System installation and Servicing Computers with Networking Email resume to suda@alarmboss.com Call 416-432-1902

NANNY/BABYSITTER

LOCATION: BRAMPTON Employer: Romelo Perez for 2 children (15 & 11 y.o.), Mon-Fri, $14/hr for 40 hrs/wk. 3 year-contract Requirements: LanguageEnglish. Education- Completion of secondary school (min.)

Experience- 1-2 yrs. child care/babysitting exp; criminal record check, in good health. Duties: Supervise and care for children, prepare and serve meals, assist with feeding, grooming, hygiene, homework and school projects. Perform light housekeeping & cleaning duties including wash/iron clothes and household linens.

Take children to and from school and appointments, travel with family if needed.

APPLY BY EMAIL: melo.perez@outlook.com

www.canadianinquirer.net

35

Travel Rural bookstore trades in books, imagination and old-fashioned summer vacations

BY BRETT BUNDALE The Canadian Press RIVER JOHN, N.S. — Down a sunny dirt road, deep in rural Nova Scotia, is a magical place.

At first glance, Mabel Murple’s Book Shoppe & Dreamery is a “barn full of books and a pasture full of poop,” Sheree Fitch, author, storyteller and bookstore owner, says with a laugh.

But beyond printed words and colourful books, reading nooks and grassy fields, animals and big oak trees, there’s a land of make-believe where every sentence can start with “What if” and imaginations can soar.

“I wanted to open a space where people can come, sit down with a book, bring their bug spray, sunscreen, a clothes pin for the nose, and they can dream in this space,” Fitch says of her unorthodox shop outside the village of River John, along the Northumberland Strait.

Located on an old farm populated by donkeys, sheep and scatterbrained hens and roosters, the tourist draw opened last summer in response to a rash of rural closures, including the village school.

“We didn’t have a lot of money but I thought, ‘What if it’s not just about bottom-line dollar. We’ve got a beautiful property, let’s open it up,’” Fitch says after a morning spent feeding barnyard animals.

And so her husband, Gilles

Plante, converted an old grainery into a rustic bookstore with handmade shelves painted light green and purple.

They ordered a few boxes of books — enough inventory to last the season, they thought — and made three parking spots.

They expected a smattering of supportive locals and a few come-by-chance tourists.

They ended up with three pastures full of cars and soldout shelves on opening day.

For nine weeks, tourists and teachers passed through the barn’s screen door, as did cottagers and daytrippers, and locals returning with each round of visiting relatives. Visitors brought picnic lunches and children ran through the grassy fields.

“They got out of their cars and stepped into a world away from the screens,” says Fitch, whose playful stories and lively rhymes began with her first book, “Toes in My Nose,” in 1987.

“They could sit and have an egg salad sandwich and lemonade and read a book.”

Mabel Murple’s became the little bookstore that could, selling local titles and championing Atlantic literary tourism as a valid industry.

The bookstore is on a back road in what some might affectionately call the middle of nowhere, a few turns off the province’s famed Sunrise Trail.

It opens for its second season July 2 to host Read by the Sea’s WordPlay Children’s Book Fes-

Mabel Murple’s Book Shoppe & Dreamery.

tival, with readings by authors Paulette Bourgeois, Wesley King and Justin Gregg.

This time, mystery books and mind, body and spirit sections are being added to the collection of children’s books, nonfiction, poetry and award-winning adult literature.

“Last year people came in and said, ‘Where’s your mystery section?’” Fitch says. “They said, ‘We’re on vacation, Sheree, a little bit lighter.’ People wanted the beach reads.”

Mabel Murple’s will also stock more crafts from local artisans, including wood carvings, pottery, handmade fabric dolls and knitted keepsakes.

“We want to sell books but we also want to support local artists and create a destination,” she says, adding that “we opened this for the commu-

FACEBOOK

nity, but it was community that helped us build this.”

Storytelling surrounded Fitch as a child growing up in New Brunswick when her father would dream up fanciful bedtime stories, while her mother filled the house with “tongue twisty” songs from the ‘40s.

In her 20s, while balancing the demands of being a single parent and pursuing an undergraduate, and later a master’s, degree in English literature, Fitch began making up stories for her two young children.

“Most of those early books were really truly inspired by my kids,” she says. “I had an audience I wanted to write for ... so many magical things happen in the world of childhood if you listen carefully.”

Fitch has written dozens of stories for kids, young adults,

adults and non-fiction educational books. Her latest book, “EveryBody’s Different on EveryBody Street,” is a children’s book about mental health, human weakness and strength.

She’s also spent years reading to children and advocating for literacy as a globetrotting educator, speaker and storyteller at schools, libraries and conferences from Nunavut to Bhutan before she put down roots on a dirt road.

At 61, Fitch doesn’t appear ready to slow down. Plans are afoot to add a labyrinth in a nearby field, and to host school field trips next spring. She wants to open the ethereal property to children who might not otherwise have a chance to visit.

“We want this to be part of an old-fashioned summer vacation. There’s something nostalgic about getting off the iPad, the iPhones, and just enjoying some good old-fashioned books, storytelling and picnics. I really believe eyeball-to-eyeball and face-to-face communication is what human beings need the most. It’s called human interaction and it’s essential to people’s well-being and health.”

If You Go

Mabel Murple’s Book Shoppe and Dreamery is located at 286 Allen Road in River John, N.S. Open for the season July 2 to Labour Day, Wednesday to Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Bring bug spray, sunscreen and picnics. ■

Street artist Banksy splashes Paris with works on migrants THE ASSOCIATED PRESS PARIS — Banksy is believed to have taken his message on migration to Paris, which has seen seven works attributed to the provocative British street artist.

The works attributed to Banksy have been discovered in recent days, including one near

a former centre for migrants at the city’s northern edge that depicts a child spray-painting wallpaper over a swastika.

Nicolas Laugero Lasserre, editor of the Artistikrezo website that broke the story, said he heard a few weeks ago through contacts in the French street art world that Banksy was planning a trip.

He said he started looking for

the works and came across the one in the northern Porte de la Chappelle neighbourhood.

The same wallpaper stencil was used in a 2009 exposition at the Bristol Museum, he said, describing it as “a real signature” of the elusive artist.

It didn’t take long for others to add — or detract — from Banksy’s work. First came the blue tag over www.canadianinquirer.net

the wallpaper. Then on Monday, another artist temporarily covered over Banksy’s work with a poster depicting a woman’s face, but the paper was quickly pulled off and an art restorer frantically tried to cover the works with a clear plastic.

Not all the works directly reference migration. One is a play on the 1801 painting of Napo-

leon crossing the Alps. Others show rats, including one that appeared to have been altered over the weekend.

“It lands at a key political moment, and for me that’s really the genius of Banksy,” Laugero Lasserre said.

Banksy’s publicist did not immediately respond to a request for comment. ■

36

Travel

JUNE 29, 2018

In Western North Carolina: Do go chasing waterfalls

BY HILLARY SPEED The Associated Press BREVARD, N.C. — Some are big.

Some are small. Some are wide.

Some are narrow. Some crash down. Some are a slow trickle.

And some, you can slide right down.

There are at least 250 waterfalls in Transylvania County, North Carolina, located about halfway between Asheville, North Carolina, and Greenville, South Carolina. Known as the “Land of Waterfalls,” the region has the biggest concentration of waterfalls on the East Coast, according to the local tourism board. The cascades are particularly dramatic now after record-setting rainfall this spring. Unique features include a temperate rainforest in Gorges State Park, where more than 80 inches (200 centimetres) of rain fall annually.

“This is a land of all kinds of superlatives,” says Nathan Jordan, a spokesman for the Transylvania County Tourism and Development Authority.

With lots of state and national parks in the area, visitors have easy access to other outdoor adventures too, including biking trails and fly fishing.

Travellers who do go chasing waterfalls this summer could challenge themselves to hunt down as many as they can, bucket-list style, or they could make a leisurely jaunt to one or two.

There’s no wrong reason to visit a waterfall.

Go for the Instagram shot

Those who want the best #nofilter photos for the least amount of hiking can easily pop into the Pisgah National Forest and take selfies in front of the 60-foot (18-meter) Looking Glass Falls.

Five miles past the forest’s main entrance, this beast of a waterfall can be viewed within steps of the main road, U.S. 276. A staircase meets the road near the top of the gushing falls.

You can park your car and take in the breathtaking view from up there or walk down to get a closer look or even swim.

Movie buffs can pose as Katniss Everdeen, from “The Hunger Games,” at Triple Falls and

Gorges State Park.

Bridal Veil Falls, in the DuPont State Forest, near where some scenes from the movie were filmed. At Hooker Falls, in the same forest, see the wide, 13-foot (4-meter) falls where Hawkeye’s canoe plunged in “The Last of the Mohicans” as he fled Magua’s men.

Go to get wet

Swimming is permitted at many of the waterfalls in Transylvania County. At Hooker Falls, water from the Little River pours over the ledge to create a large and popular swimming hole with various depths. Those who want calm can wade in the shallow creek area farther away from the falls, while the more adventurous can swim in the deeper parts or even dare to walk along the rocks underneath the falls.

For an even more exhilarating experience, some of the waterfalls are smooth enough to slide down.

At Sliding Rock, less than 3 miles (5 kilometres) down the road from Looking Glass Falls in the Pisgah National Forest, lifeguards monitor visitors who climb to the top of a giant rock formation and then slide down the natural water slide into a 7-foot (2-meter) pool of water at the bottom. Children can ride on their parents’ laps, and life jackets are available for a small fee.

Another popular sliding spot is Turtleback Falls, in Gorges State Park. It’s a steep dropoff and not monitored by lifeguards, and it’s only reached by a strenuous 1.75-mile (2.8-kilometre) hike.

“You need to be a strong swimmer, and it’s not the most family

NC STATE PARKS

friendly thing in the world, but it is awesome,” Jordan said. “For somebody that’s a millennial and a traveller and a bucket-lister, they’re going to get the biggest thrill out of that destination.”

Pura Vida Adventures offers canyoneering trips that include rappelling down waterfalls, some as high as 75 feet (23 metres). The company also offers family tours themed on “The Hunger Games,” referring to younger participants as “tributes” and teaching survival skills involving fire, shelter, snares, knot-tying and off-trail travel.

Go to relax

While waterfalls offer a dose of the unexpected for visitors chasing thrills, they can also be peaceful and meditative.

A novice waterfall hunter or serenity-seeker might try Moore Cove Falls. The water spills over a stone shelf in a narrow curtain just a few feet across, but its 50-foot (15-meter) freefall cascade is stunning. It’s accessible via a mild 1.4-mile (2.25-kilometre) hike.

The water gathers in shallow puddles at the bottom, making it good for small children and those who don’t want to get soaked.

But even here, intrepid visitors can walk behind the falls and take a shower underneath if they’d like.

If You Go...

LAND OF WATERFALLS: Waterfalls of Transylvania County in Western North Carolina: www.visitwaterfalls.com.

Nearest airports are in Asheville and Charlotte, North Carolina. ■ www.canadianinquirer.net

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Growth of... ❰❰ 31

activities ended.

Management of the airport changed several times before ownership was transferred in 1996 to the regional municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth, which in turn contracted a private company to operate it for 40 years.

Airlines are attracted to Hamilton due to fees that are 30 to 50 per cent lower than Pearson’s. Its smaller size cuts the amount of time required for passengers to get to departure gates and allows planes to spend less time on the ground between flights.

“The emerging carriers are looking for partners that share the same philosophy and the same vision in growing the business opportunities,” Puckering said.

Hamilton airport is not only a convenient alternative for people west of Toronto, it has a large catchment area of its own.

More than two million people live within an hour’s drive, and there are nine million Canadians and Americans within two hours drive.

Abbotsford International Airport offers similar advantages, which have allowed the airport to grow especially in the past few years, after the municipality purchased it from the federal government in 1997 for $10, says Mayor Henry Braun.

Traffic increased 38 per cent between 2015 and 2017, reaching 677,000 passengers last year, he said. The airport expects to surpass one million in a year or two, and has the capacity to accommodate more than 2.5 million passengers annually.

Braun said the airport is the lowest cost operation in Canada and likely North America.

The lack of an airport improvement fee alone saves about $3,000 per Swoop flight.

“The welcome mat is out and we’re doing everything from a cost platform basis to make it enticing for the airlines,” he said in an interview.

Braun said the low fares offered by its airlines is stimulating demand from people who don’t typically fly and helping to repatriate some of the millions of travellers who cross the border to depart from Bellingham, Wash.

“We’re not trying to become YVR (Vancouver International Airport),” he said, pointing to

Abbotsford’s spartan air terminal. “We are trying to service the region and we have the capacity to take on way more passengers here and we’re happy to do that.”

Canada doesn’t have the same history with secondary airports as Europe and the United States. The country’s low population and proximity to the U.S. have allowed border airports to effectively pick up the slack from larger hubs.

It’s also been only about 25 years since the federal government spun off airports to local operators. Airports have begun to specialize as the country’s largest airports are getting full because of strong traffic growth, said Canadian Airports Council president Daniel-Robert Gooch.

“The airports are starting to work together and saying how can we structure our offering so that we’re able to serve the needs of this region, maybe in a more co-ordinated way.”

Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport has expanded its offering of turboprop service, and debate continues on the potential construction of an airport in Pickering, east of Toronto.

There are also nearby airports in the Region of Waterloo and London, Ont., that offer year-round service to cities including Toronto and Calgary and seasonal flights to sun destinations. Among the airlines are WestJet, WestJet Encore, Air Canada, Air Transat and Sunwing.

Montreal has been primarily served by Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport since the closure of Mirabel as a commercial airport in 2004.

However, efforts are underway to expand Montreal’s original airport at St. Hubert on the city’s south shore to accommodate smaller commercial aircraft.

The key to success for secondary gateways is to keep costs contained and attract a variety of airlines to strengthen their positions as airport alternatives, said Rod Hayward, an associate professor of business at University of the Fraser Valley.

“As more ultra low-cost carriers fly into a market you get better schedules, more options and more choices at the airport so it becomes a more credible choice for the consumer.” ■

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Food Instead of meat kebabs, why not concentrate on some veggies?

AMERICA’S TEST KITCHEN WHEN IT comes to grilled kebabs, vegetables are often an afterthought, typically used as a filler on meat-heavy skewers.

But this treatment often leads to mushy, burnt vegetables with no flavour of their own. We wanted to create a recipe that would put the vegetables front and centre.

We started by choosing the right vegetables. We wanted a good mix of flavours and textures, but we knew that not all veggies would hold up to the high heat of the grill.

We started with bell peppers, which sweetened beautifully over the flames, and zucchini, which held its shape nicely and had a satisfying texture. Portobello mushroom caps were the perfect addition to the kebabs; as they released their moisture over the flame, they picked up great char and developed a deep, meaty taste.

Tossing grilled vegetables

with a bold dressing can amp up their flavour considerably, but for our vegetable kebabs, we took the idea one step further. We tossed the vegetables with half of the dressing before skewering and grilling them, giving them great flavour from the start.

We pumped up the complexity and nuance of the remaining dressing with juice from grilled lemons, and tossed it with the cooked vegetables for a punchy, bright finish. You will need eight 12-inch metal skewers for this recipe.

Grilled vegetable kebabs

Servings: 4 Start to finish: 40 minutes

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard • 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary • 1 garlic clove, minced • Salt and pepper • 6 portobello mushroom caps (4 to 5 inches in diameter), quartered • 2 zucchinis, halved length-

wise and sliced 3/4 inch thick • 2 red bell peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1 1/2inch pieces • 2 lemons, quartered Whisk oil, mustard, rosemary, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper together in large bowl. Transfer half of dressing to separate bowl and set aside for serving.

Toss mushrooms, zucchini, and bell peppers with remaining dressing, then thread in alternating order onto eight 12-inch metal skewers.

For a charcoal grill: Open bottom vent completely. Light large chimney starter half filled with charcoal briquettes (3 quarts). When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour evenly over grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.

For a gas grill: Turn all burners to high, cover, and heat grill until hot, about 15 minutes.

Turn all burners to medium.

Clean and oil cooking grate.

Place kebabs and lemons on grill. Cook (covered if using gas), turning as needed, until vegetables are tender and well browned, 16 to 18 minutes.

Transfer kebabs and lemons to serving platter. Juice 2 lemon quarters into reserved dressing and whisk to combine. Pour

dressing over kebabs and serve with remaining lemons. ■ Nutrition information per serving: 152 calories; 73 calories from fat; 8 g fat (1 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 0 mg cholesterol; 332 mg sodium; 17 g carbohydrate; 5 g fiber; 10 g sugar; 6 g protein.

Why buy barbecue sauce when you can design your own AMERICA’S TEST KITCHEN

basic ingredient lists, all of these sauces will give any food a boost of bold, tangy flavour.

BARBECUE SAUCE is one of the most versatile sauces out there — it can be served as a dipping sauce or a topping, brushed onto protein and vegetables during cooking, or stirred into beans and shredded meat after cooking.

Further contributing to its versatility is the fact that there are so many styles found throughout the United States, from sweet and tomatoey to thin and vinegary, to thick and creamy. And while you can find plenty of bottled barbecue sauces, making your own is simple and provides a range of flavour and texture possibilities that taste worlds better than store-bought. Even with their

Classic barbecue sauce

Servings: 4-6 (Makes 2 cups) Start to finish: 30 minutes This sauce can be used on just about anything. For a thinner, smoother texture, strain the sauce after it has finished cooking.

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil • 1 onion, chopped fine • Salt and pepper • 1 garlic clove, minced • 1 teaspoon chili powder • 1 1/4 cups ketchup • 6 tablespoons molasses • 3 tablespoons cider vinegar • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce • 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Heat oil in medium saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and pinch salt and cook until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and chili powder and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Whisk in ketchup, molasses, vinegar, Worcestershire, and mustard. Bring sauce to simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened and reduced to about 2 cups, about 25 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. (Sauce can be refrigerated for up to 4 days.) ■ Nutrition information per serving: 154 calories; 21 calories from fat; 2 g fat (0 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 0 mg cholesterol; 905 mg sodium; 35 g carbohydrate; 1 g fiber; 28 g sugar; 1 g protein. www.canadianinquirer.net

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Food

JUNE 29, 2018

FRIDAY

How to speed up a slow cooking barbecued beef brisket AMERICA’S TEST KITCHEN IN RESEARCHING recipes for barbecued brisket, we found that cooks could agree on one thing: slow-cooking (for up to 12 hours) to tenderize the meat.

We wanted to figure out a way to make cooking this cut of meat less daunting and less time-consuming, and we wanted to trade in a professional smoker for a backyard grill.

We brined the brisket to season it throughout and to make sure the meat remained juicy even after hours on the grill. In our tests, we had trouble figuring out how to maintain a low temperature in the grill without frequently refueling.

But then we realized that fire can burn down as well as up. We layered unlit briquettes on the bottom of our grill and added hot coals on top for a fire that burned consistently in the optimal 300 F range for about 3 hours. We then transferred the brisket to the oven to finish cooking.

Barbecued beef brisket

Servings: 8-10

Start to finish: 7 hours and 15 minutes, plus 30 minutes to rest brisket If your brisket is smaller than 5 pounds or the fat cap has been removed, or if you are using a small charcoal grill, it may be necessary to build an aluminum foil shield in order to keep the brisket from becoming too dark. To do this, make two 1/2-inch folds on the long side of an 18-by-20-inch piece of heavy-duty alumi-

num foil to form a reinforced edge. Place the foil on the centre of the cooking grate, with the reinforced edge over the hotter side of the grill. Position the brisket fat side down over the cooler side of the grill so that it covers about half of the foil. Pull the foil over the brisket to loosely tent it.

Some of the traditional accompaniments to barbecued brisket include barbecue sauce, sliced white bread or saltines, pickle chips, and thinly sliced onion.

• 1 (5- to 6-pound) beef brisket, flat cut, untrimmed • 2/3 cup salt • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar • 3 wood chunks, preferably hickory, or 2 cups wood chips (if using gas) • 3 tablespoons kosher salt • 2 tablespoons pepper • 1 (13 by 9-inch) disposable aluminum roasting pan (if using charcoal) or 1 (9inch) disposable aluminum pie plate (if using gas) Lightly score brisket fat cap in 1-inch crosshatch pattern, being careful not to cut into meat. Dissolve salt and 1/2 cup sugar in 4 quarts cold water in large container. Submerge brisket in brine, cover, and refrigerate for 2 hours.

While brisket brines, soak wood chunks in water for at least 1 hour; drain.

If using gas, soak wood chips in water for 15 minutes, then drain. Using large piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil, wrap chips in 8 by 4 1/2-inch foil packet. (Make sure chips do not poke holes in sides or bottom of packet.) Cut 2 evenly spaced 2-inch slits in top of packet.

Combine remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, kosher salt, and pepper in bowl.

Remove brisket from brine and pat dry with paper towels. Transfer to rimmed baking sheet and rub salt mixture over entire brisket and into slits.

For a charcoal grill: Open bottom vent halfway and place disposable roasting

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pan on 1 side of grill. Add 2 cups water to pan. Arrange 3 quarts unlit charcoal briquettes banked against other side of grill. Light large chimney starter twothirds filled with charcoal (4 quarts).

When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour on top of unlit charcoal to cover one-third of grill with coals steeply banked against side of grill. Place soaked wood chunks on top of coals. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent halfway. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.

For a gas grill: Remove cooking grate and place wood chip packet directly on primary burner. Place disposable pie plate filled with 2 cups water on other burner(s). Set cooking grate in place, turn all burners to high, cover, and heat grill until hot and wood chips are smoking, about 15 minutes. Turn primary burner to medium and turn off other burner(s). (Adjust primary burner as needed to maintain grill temperature of 250 F to 300 F.) Clean and oil cooking grate. Place brisket on cooler side of grill, fat side down, as far away from coals and flames as possible with thickest side facing coals and flames. Cover (position lid vent over meat if using charcoal) and cook for 3 hours. During final 20 minutes of grilling, adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 F. Set wire rack in rimmed baking sheet lined with foil and transfer brisket to rack. Roast in oven until tender and meat registers 195 F, about 2 hours.

Transfer brisket to carving board, tent with foil, and let rest for 30 minutes.

Slice brisket against grain into long, thin slices and serve. ■ Nutrition information per serving: 451 calories; 260 calories from fat; 29 g fat (10 g saturated; 1 g trans fats); 120 mg cholesterol; 1833 mg sodium; 3 g carbohydrate; 0 g fiber; 3 g sugar; 45 g protein.

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FRIDAY JUNE 29, 2018

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JUNE 29, 2018

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