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JULY 4-10, 2019

T H E F I L I P I N O –A M E R I C A N C O M M U N I T Y N E W S PA P E R

Volume 30 - No. 27 • 16 Pages

2770 S. Maryland Pkwy., Suite 200 Las Vegas, NV 89109 Tel: (702) 792-6678 • Fax: (702) 792-6879

Also published in LOS ANGELES, ORANGE COUNTY/INLAND EMPIRE, NORTHERN CALIFORNIA, NEW YORK/NEW JERSEY

Duterte wants China to guarantee Filipinos’ rights and safety in West PH Sea

by RITCHEL

MENDIOLA AJPress

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte is seeking assurance from China that it will guarantee the rights and safety of Filipino fishermen in the West Philippine Sea following the June 9 Recto Bank incident, Malacañang said Tuesday, July 2.

According to presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo, Duterte made this statement durPres. Rodrigo Duterte

Malacañang photo

USA

DATELINE Trump’s decision to end DACA to be reviewed by Supreme Court FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

THE U.S. Supreme Court announced on Friday, June 28 that it would be reviewing an appeal in the next term on whether the Trump administration’s ongoing plan to end protections under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program is lawful.

With legal arguments set to take place near the end of 2019, the highest court’s decision may likely be made by mid-2020 — peak campaigning time for presidential candidates including President Donald Trump who is eyeing re-election.

Since Trump’s election in 2016, DACA has found itself at the center of political negotiations revolving around immigration and funding for a wall along the southern U.S.-Mexico border.

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US Embassy commends arrest of alleged illegal recruiters in Manila THE U.S. Embassy in Manila has commended the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for arresting two alleged large-scale illegal recruiters.

“This successful international effort came as a result of the collaboration and deep partnership between the U.S. Embassy Diplomatic Security Service Overseas Criminal Investigations office and their NBI-AOCD (Anti-Organized Crime Division) counterparts,” the embassy said in a statement on Monday, July 1.

Irmalyn Melodias-Torres and Gerald Melodias were arrested by NBI operatives last June 20 for estafa and illegal recruitment of workers for employment in the United States.

They were apprehended by virtue of an arrest warrant issued by Puerto Princesa Palawan Regional Trial Court.

According to NBI-AOTD Chief Joel Tovera, the suspects allegedly recruited their victims to work as domestic helpers and caregivers in the U.S. with a salary of P80,000 a month.

The two, he added, even allegedly

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COURAGE. Filipino tribal leaders walk towards the gate of the United Nations Headquarters in New York City on Monday, July 1. They engaged representatives of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the challenges their communities are facing due to attacks by the CPP-NPA-NDFP. They are calling on the UN to help end the communist armed conflict in the Philippines. See story on page 5.

Malacañang photo by Mac Villarino

Justices ask: Should Aquino admin be sued for ‘neglect’ of West Philippine Sea?

by KRISTINE JOY

Philstar.com

PATAG

MANILA — Should officials of the past administration—under whose watch other incidents allegedly harming areas of the West Philippine Sea happened—be named as respondents in a pending plea for a writ of Kalikasan?

Some of the sitting justices of the Supreme Court on Tuesday, July 2, grilled the Palawan fisherfolk, represented by Integrated Bar of the Philippines’ Andre Palacios and Chel Diokno, why they only named officials of the Duterte government in their plea for a Writ of Lawyers Andre Palacios and Chel Diokno of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines represented the Kalayaan Palawan Farmers and Fisherfolk Association in their plea Kalikasan.

They pointed out that the incidents cited for writ of Kalikasan.

Philstar.com photo by Kristine Joy Patag

in the complaint happened in 2012, 2013 and 2014.

Associate Justice Francis Jardeleza, interpellating Diokno, said that the petitioners took a “big, big, big leap” in saying the named government officials should to be held accountable for damage brought by incidents before they assumed office in 2016, and that the damage was “ brought about by lack of enforcement by respondents.”

Among the government officials named as respondents in the Kalayaan Palawan Farmers and Fisherfolk Association plea are: • Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu • Agriculture Secretary Manuel Piñol • Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra

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Human rights, medical marijuana bills filed anew

by ROMINA

CABRERA Philstar.com

MANILA — Several pieces of legislation that failed to make it in the last Congress have been re-filed.

These include the Human Rights Defenders Protection Act and the controversial medical marijuana bill. Also re-filed were measures allowing the use of motorcycles as public utility vehicles, increasing the Social Security System pension, and providing a national minimum wage of P750.

At the Senate, bills seeking to increase the salaries and benefits of workers in the public sector, boosting support for students, and strengthening the government’s campaign against criminality and terrorism were

among the measures filed yesterday.

The bills will be formally acted upon starting July 22 when the 18th Congress opens.

Elected Cebu congressman Raul del Mar filed four bills led by his proposal to create a Mega Cebu Development Authority while Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman filed the Human Rights Defenders bill.

The left-wing Makabayan bloc filed 30 measures courtesy of Bayan Muna partylist, while the elected Kabataan group also claimed to have filed 10 House bills.

Bayan Muna has also filed bills setting at P16,000 the minimum salary for government employees and offering free hemodialysis.

It also filed the no mining zone bill, the

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We are winning the war against illegal drugs – PNP

by AJPRESS

Pacquiao to do talking in the ring

PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Oscar Albayalde said the Philippines is winning the war against illegal drugs as President Rodrigo Duterte marked his third year in office.

According to Albayalde, the improvement in the peace and order situation across the country is a manifestation of the drug war’s success.

“This is a clear manifestation that we are winning the war against illegal drugs, dahil isa ito sa resulta sa kampanya natin sa illegal na droga, yung pag-improve natin sa ating peace and order situation dito, hindi lang sa Metro Manila pero buong bansa yan (Because this is one of the results of our campaign against illegal drugs, the improvement of our peace and order situation, not only in Metro Manila but also in the whole country),”

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Senator Manny Pacquiao and team members run through a tunnel carved inside one of the hills of Griffith Park in Los Angeles, California on Friday, June 28.

Photo by Wendell Alinea/Manny Pacquiao Promotions

by MARC

ANTHONY Inquirer.net

PNP chief Gen. Oscar Albayalde

Inquirer.net photo

REYES

MANNY Pacquiao is not looking past Keith Thurman.

But if you ask his physical fitness coach, Justin Fortune, the 40-year-old megastar is capable of barreling through his talkative opponent, picking up another fight by December, and winning a fourth Fighter of the Year award.

Fortune and head trainer Buboy Fernandez said Pacquiao is already 90 percent in shape for the July 21 battle for the WBA welterweight belt at MGM Grand

in Las Vegas.

That despite the pronouncement of the 30-year-old Thurman that he will send Pacquiao into retirement.

Speaking at the fight primer by Premier Boxing Champions on Fox, Thurman had the audacity to ask Pacquiao: “Have you made retirement plans? Have you made vacation plans or something?”

The Philippine senator, who is the only eight-division champ in all of boxing, replied: “I’m not a talker, I let my action do the talking.’

Obviously, Pacquiao, who has

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JUly 4-10, 2019 • lAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAl

From The FronT Page

Justices ask: Should Aquino admin be sued...

PAGE 1 • Philippine Coast Guard Commander Admiral Elson Hermogino • Police chief Oscar Albayalde “What I am missing...is you don’t even allege that the damage is continuing. You don’t allege it. I cannot find anything here that says the violations are

continuing,” the justice said.

“You blame now officials that came in 2016 for all those acts that happened, that were damaging to us very severely before the officials came in,” Jardeleza added.

Jardeleza, who was solicitor general in during the presidency of Benigno Aquino III, also pointed out that the the previ-

ous administrations challenged China’s nine-dash claim over the South China Sea, and won the landmark arbitral ruling.

Associate Justice Jean Paul Hernando pointed out that the incidents cited in the petition occurred in 2012, 2013 and 2015 but the group impleaded officials who were sitting in the current administration which started in 2016.

“But the officials concerned would not only be in reference to those sitting now, but even those who sat in the past administration, including thenDepartment of Justice Secretary [Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa],” Hernando raised.

‘Aquino officials should be held accountable’ Caguioa was appointed to the SC on January 2016, months before Aquino’s term ended.

“Because he was DOJ secretary from October 2015 to January 2016 before he was elevated to this court. Having sat as DOJ secretary at a time when the government had evidence of violation of our laws, then it goes without saying that the officials of past administration having done nothing as to those 2012 violations should be made liable for these damages, including Justice Caguioa,” Hernando added.

Diokno however explained that petitioners named officials in the Duterte administration as respondents since they are the ones heading the agencies now.

“The respondents are sued in the public capacity as heads of agencies. The omissions or violations that were committed as alleged in the petition should have been the subject of some sort of action, at the very least by the government, if not by the past administration, then by those who succeeded them,” Diokno answered Jardeleza.

The rights lawyer added: “We acknowledge that the former administration was careful not to affect the ongoing arbitration at the time, but this administration, nothing is stopping them from enforcing our laws.”

The SC will resume tackling the Kalikasan writ plea on July 9, with the government, to be represented by Solicitor General Jose Calida, presenting its defense. n

NEW MANILA MAYOR. Chief Justice Lucas P. Bersamin (left) administers the oath of Manila Mayor Francisco Moreno Domagoso at the Bulwagang Katipunan of the Manila City Hall on Sunday, June 30. Moreno upset incumbent Mayor Joseph Ejercito ‘Erap’ Estrada in the last May 13 midterm polls.

PNA Photo by Avito C. Dalan

Duterte wants China to guarantee...

PAGE 1 ing the 39th Cabinet meeting at Malacañang on Monday night, July 1.

“The president wanted China’s assurance that the rights and safety of our fisherfolks are guaranteed,” the spokesperson said.

Panelo also said that Duterte wants the incident to be discussed during his bilateral meeting with China.

“PRRD (President Rodrigo Roa Duterte) told the Cabinet that the

incident be discussed during the bilateral meetings with China,” he said.

Since 2017, Manila and Beijing have been engaging in a Bilateral Consultative Mechanism (BCM) where they discuss specific issues and development in the West Philippine Sea. Duterte recently drew flak for his rather soft stance on the Recto Bank incident, where the lives of 22 fishermen were put at risk after a Chinese vessel hit them

and left them adrift until a Vietnamese vessel rescued them. He has downplayed the collision as just a “little maritime accident,” and told the Filipino fishermen: “Well, I’m sorry. That’s how it is.”

Duterte was also slammed after agreeing with China’s proposition of a joint investigation into the incident. He suggested involving an independent body should the two countries’ findings fail to match but China rejected it. n

We are winning the war against...

PAGE 1 he said during a press briefing.

Duterte’s war against drugs has continuously drawn criticisms both from local and international groups after at least 6,000 people ended up dead during official police operations.

Albayalde, for his part, countered the criticisms and pointed out that the 50 policemen have been killed in action while 144 suffered injuries.

“Fifty police officers killed is perhaps the painful proof that our detractors need for them to accept the fact that slain drug suspects indeed put up violent resistance to evade the law. Or do they want more dead lawmen to convince them some more?” he said.

From July 2016 to the present, a total of 240,565 drug suspects have been arrested in over 150,000 anti-drug operations.

PNP not falling short Albayalde also clarified that the police are not falling short of arrest targets following the release of Commission on Audit (COA)’s report that the PNP missed its 2018 goals.

He said the COA was not referring to the arrest of all wanted persons which include ordinary suspects — just the top 10 most wanted persons arrested in 2018.

“I think kailangan sabihin sa COA ‘yan para maintindihan nila.

Kase ang lumalabas, we are falling short on the arrest of wanted persons (I think we should ex-

plain to COA because it appears that we are falling short of targets for the arrest of wanted persons).

We did not fall short on the arrest of wanted persons),” Albayalde said.

Based on COA’s report, the PNP only managed to arrest 19.37 percent of the most wanted persons, despite its target of 51.57 percent.

Albayalde pointed out that the PNP did not hit its target number of arrests on most wanted persons, it hit triple of its target on arrest of ordinary wanted persons.

The number of arrests of persons with a bounty on their heads increased from 35 in 2017 to 48 last year, according to the PNP chief. n

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Dateline USa

FIRST DAY. Newly-elected Senator Imee Marcos, during the flag-raising ceremony on Monday, July 1, joins Senate officials and employees to work with her in crafting laws. With their experience, Marcos said employees could guide new senators carry out their new tasks.

“I believe we can end extreme poverty and hunger in the next 10 years. Together we can sit through and come up with creative and innovative solutions to end poverty once and for all. To end age-old problems of illness, of ignorance and make the Senate great again,” Marcos said.

Senate photo by Cesar Tomambo

Supreme Court rejects citizenship question on 2020 Census by

Klarize Medenilla AJPress

The Supreme Court on Thursday, June 27 rejected the Trump administration’s citizenship question from being included in the 2020 Census questionnaire.

In his majority opinion released after the 5-4 ruling, Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. wrote that the administration’s justification and intentions for the citizenship questions “seem to have been contrived.”

The decennial count of all persons living in the United States (slated for April, 1, 2020) determines the appropriation of representatives each state gets in the house as well as the allocation of federal funds to each state — the larger the population, the more representatives and funding each state gets. (These funds are typically diverted to public uses such as Medicaid, housing assistance and public education among other programs.)

It also determines how electoral districts are drawn.

The last time the census asked about residents’ citizenship was in the 1950 census survey which asked, “If foreign born — Is he naturalized?” (In 1960, there was a question about birthplace, but didn’t ask about naturalization.)

Then in March 2018, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross

sent out a memo with plans to reinstate the citizenship question on the 2020 count.

According to Ross, the request came from the Dept. of Justice (DOJ) which “sought out improved data” about the voting-age population who were citizens with the purpose of better enforcing the Voting Rights Act (VRA).

In short, Ross reasoned that the DOJ required more accurate citizenship data and that existing resources — the regularly distributed American Community Survey (ACS) and the Social Security Administration and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services — were inadequate.

But Roberts wrote in his majority opinion that the documented presented in the case showed that the Commerce Department — despite claiming it was acting on a “routine data request” from the DOJ — went out of its way to “elicit” a request from the DOJ “or any other willing agency.”

“We are presented, in other words, with an explanation for agency action that is incongruent with what the record reveals about the agency’s priorities and decision-making process,” Roberts wrote. “Several points, considered together, reveal a significant mismatch between the decision [Ross] made and

the rationale he provided.”

Per the majority ruling, Census Bureau officials have “resisted occasional proposals” to continue asking about citizenship on the questionnaire in fear that including a citizenship question will alter the true count of states with high concentrations of undocumented residents who may fear that divulging their citizenship status could open up the door for deportation.

Since Ross’ memo in 2018, lawmakers and Asian and Pacific Islander (API) advocacy organizations have decried the proposed reinstatement of the citizenship question on grounds that it serves to alter the true count of regions that have higher concentrations of undocumented immigrants like Los Angeles.

Asian American Action Fund Board Member Caroline Fan said in a statement, “The inclusion of the census citizenship question is a deliberate effort to erase AAPI communities and communities of color, and to disenfranchise us. The highest and only goal of the Census is a complete and accurate count.

This question instills fear and decreases participation by our families, particularly considering that many families are of mixed immigration status, and that 1 in 7 AAPIs is undocumented.”

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Dateline USa

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Think tank: Philippines to lose the most in possible US outsourcing ban

Capital economics noted that the Philippines is not as dependent on the goods trade to powThe Philippines would be the er its economy as its neighbors ‘biggest loser’ in Asia if United are, but it does have a robust States President Donald Trump services sector in which Amerifollows through with his threat can firms are major players. to punish American firms that “The Philippines would be outsource jobs, an independent the biggest loser if Trump foleconomic research company lowed through on his threat to has claimed. punish American companies In Capital economics’ recent that outsource jobs abroad,” research brief entitled “Winner Capital economics said, adding, and losers from the trade war,” it “The Philippines has a thriving was revealed that the trade war business process and IT outbetween the U.S. and China possourcing sector, which last year es a major threat to economies brought in revenues equivalent in emerging Asia, which would to around 10 percent of GDP.” The firm said that while the effect of a prolonged trade war between the world’s two largest economies would be more damaging to economies that primarily engage in goods trade, the consequences for economies with strong service sector like the Philippines may result into greater stagnation due to maintaining barriers.

“The long-run consequences would be even bigger if the world also maintained barriers to trade in services and information, to foreign direct investment, and to migration. In this case, there may be a much bigger global downturn, or indeed a long period of stagnation,” it File photo shows Filipino call center personnel attending to a U.S. client at a new business process outsourcing office in Manila.

Inquirer.net photo said. n

by AJPress

tip several countries’ economies into a recession.

“The trade war between the U.S. and China so far appears to have had a small negative impact on most of the region, although some countries, most notably Vietnam, look to be benefiting as U.S. demand has shifted away from China towards alternative suppliers,” the brief said.

It added that in the event of a global trade war, “a number of the region’s economies would be tipped into recession, while no part of emerging Asia would escape unscathed.”

US Embassy commends arrest of 2 alleged...

PAGE 1 tapped elderly holders of U.S. visas to pose as potential employers.

The U.S. Department of State,

the U.S. Diplomatic Security Service, and Overseas Criminal Investigations and the U.S. embassy alerted the NBI on July 26, 2018 to act on the said illegal re-

cruitment scheme.

The suspects are currently detained at the NBI detention facility. (Christia Marie Ramos/ Inquirer.net)

Supreme Court rejects citizenship question...

PAGE 3 LA County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas praised the court’s decision in ensuring that the 2020 census moves toward a more accurate count.

“In Los Angeles County, we face a special challenge. We’re home to one of the most diverse populations in the world. The world is Los Angeles County and Los Angeles County is the world,” Ridley-Thomas wrote in a statement. “This means we have our work cut out for us to reach historically hardto-count population groups,

such as people of color, lowincome residents, immigrants, and people without higher education. Young children and young families are particularly at risk.”

But the Supreme Court’s decision doesn’t kill the citizenship question altogether.

Following the ruling, President Donald Trump announced that he is seeking legal advice to delay the census count to give the administration more time to better organize its reasoning for why it thinks the citizenship question is neces-

sary.

“Seems totally ridiculous that our government, and indeed Country, cannot ask a basic question of Citizenship in a very expensive, detailed and important Census, in this case for 2020,” Trump tweeted on Thursday. “I have asked the lawyers if they can delay the Census, no matter how long, until the United States Supreme Court is given additional information from which it can make a final and decisive decision on this very critical matter.”(Klarize Medenilla/AJPress)

Bureau of Customs personnel inspect the estimated P1.4 million worth of Kush marijuana concealed in a parcel from the U.S. Photo courtesy of Bureau of Customs

BOC seizes P1.4-M weed sent by mail from US

by Faye

Orellana Inquirer.net

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) seized an estimated P1.4 million worth of Kush marijuana concealed in snack packs in Pasay City.

The BOC on Tuesday, July 2, said that the marijuana was seized from a San Juan City resident who claimed the contraband at the Central Mail exchange Center late Monday, July 1.

The marijuana was found hidden inside a bag of tortilla chips

package sent from Illinois, U.S. BOC said the marijuana weighed a total of 847.20 grams.

The arrested individual will be charged for violation of Republic Act No. 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. n

Trump’s decision to end DACA to be reviewed by...

PAGE 1 Trump announced in 2017 that his administration would be winding down DACA, claiming its adoption to have been unlawful and that courts did not have the power to review its decision.

Then acting Attorney General Jeff Sessions cited to a 2015 federal appeals court ruling in New Orleans that blocked a related Obama-era program called DAPA, or Deferred Action for Parents of Americans.

The Trump administration also said it acted to end DACA as a result of lawsuit threats coming from states including Texas.

Protests and lawsuits from immigrant advocates and civil rights groups quickly ensued, with several lower courts arguing that the Trump administration had no clear reason for ending the program, or any clear argument that DACA was illegal.

In California, a federal judge issued the first of three nationwide injunctions in 2018 that required the Trump administration to continue accepting renewal applications from DACA recipi-

ents whose statuses were about to expire.

According to federal data, renewals were made for more than 373,000 DACA recipients.

Federal courts in New York, Virginia, and Washington D.C., similarly made moves to block the administration from immediately ending the program.

The 2012 Obama-era program has protected nearly 700,000 people brought into this country as young children — commonly referred to as “DReAMers” — through providing them with work permits and protection from deportation.

According to data from the U.S. Department of homeland Security, nearly 5,000 applications approved since 2012 were from undocumented Filipinos.

One of the cases up for Supreme Court review was brought forth by California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, together with attorneys general from Maine, Maryland, and Minnesota.

“So far, both lower courts in our legal fight to protect DACA have agreed with us that the Trump Administration’s attempt

to end it was unlawful,” Becerra said in a statement on Friday. he added, “In California and across our nation, [DReAMers] enrich our communities as scholars, entrepreneurs, first responders, and much more.”

The Supreme Court’s announcement comes after it just earlier this month, refused to expedite hearings of the cases coming from four federal appeals courts.

The Justice Department on Friday praised the decision.

“We are pleased the Supreme Court agreed that this issue needs resolution. We look forward to presenting our case before the Court,” said Alexei Woltornist, spokesperson for the Justice Department.

In the meantime, Asian Americans Advancing Justice, an affiliation of five civil rights organizations, encourages DACA beneficiaries to continue renewing their applications.

The federal government is currently under court order to accept and process renewal applications, but it is not accepting new applications. (Rae Ann Varona/AJPress)

Dateline USa

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LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JULy 4-10, 2019

US Navy combat ship in Davao for visit

by Pia Lee-Brago Philstar.com

Filipino leaders pose with Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (PFII) Secretariat officer-in-charge Rosemary Lane (6th from left) and Presidential Communications Operations Office Undersecretary Lorraine Marie Badoy (5th from right), during a meeting at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City on Monday, July 1. Malacañang photo by Mac Villarino

IP leaders bring to UN concern over CPP-NPA atrocities NEW YORK CITY — When Indigenous Peoples (IP) leader Christine Banugan gave her testimony about the atrocities of communist terrorist organizations in insurgency-ridden Philippines, at the United Nations Headquarters here on Monday, she started with a story about the murder of her father and other family members.

Banugan said members of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPPNPA-NDF) broke into their house in December 2016, brutally killing his father with 13 gunshot wounds, together with his uncle, and other family members, who were all on the front line in advocating IP rights and culture.

“They destroyed our development, our education, and our peaceful cultural living was destroyed. And that was our life since then,” Banugan, whose father was former chieftain of the Mandaya tribe in Davao Oriental, told UN human rights officers.

“The reason why my community allowed me to come here in the United States is really to articulate their voice in the community,” Banugan, who now heads their tribe, said.

Banugan and seven other tribal leaders, who fear facing death threats when they return back home for baring the atrocities of the CPP-NPA-NDFP, appealed to UN officers to launch an investigation into the attacks, and urged them to help end the escalating violence fueled by the communist armed conflict in the country.

‘Fully committed’ After hearing their stories, representatives of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

(UN OHCHR) said they are “fully committed” to look into the plea of the tribal leaders.

Rosemary Lane, officer-incharge of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (PFII) Secretariat, urged the tribal chieftains to “participate in the UN forum” on IPs. “There is a process, it’s quite open. The forum is an open platform. Nobody is excluded as long you’re a legitimate IP organization, you are welcome,” she said, referring to the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, the UN’s central coordinating committee for matters relating to the issues and rights of indigenous peoples across the world.

Meanwhile, Denise Hauser, human rights officer of the UN OHCHR, said her agency is “open to receive your complaints, your case, and all evidence.”

“All information you have regarding your case is a great concern and our office is fully committed to closely look into it through the existing mechanisms that we have,” she said.

‘Breaking the silence’ Datu Jacob Lanes, member of the Mandaya Tribe from Davao City, said the IP leaders’ visit to the UN office serves as a “way for the truth to be out there.”

However, more than sharing the stories of violence being sowed by communist terrorists into their ancestral domains, Lanes said their visit is a statement of courage.

“Actually yung takot, matagal na yun. Kaya nga ang sinasabi nila ngayon, bakit ngayon lang kayo umiikot? Kaya malaking challenge yung sinasabi naming ‘breaking the silence’ (Actually fear is something that has been in us for a long time. That’s why they tell us, why are you going

around just now? When we say, ‘breaking the silence’, it’s a huge challenge for us),” he said.

Presidential Communications Operations Office Undersecretary Lorraine Marie Badoy, for her part, said government efforts to end the communist armed conflict in the country are being sustained to promote peace in IP communities.

“What i’m learning from here is that we should step up, the government should step up, because for the longest time, we don’t show up, and now the CPP-NPA has gone stronger and they know the system and they have been misrepresenting our government,” she said.

“What matters at this point is for us to step up and to tell our story and to give documents, because we have a lot of documentary evidence against the CPPNPA and their legal fronts that have entered North America,” she added.

The tribal leaders are travelling across the United States to call on the U.S. government, United Nations, and various international organizations to help get rid of the CPP-NPA-NDFP. President Rodrigo Duterte has created a national task force to work out a mechanism to help end the decades-old communist insurgency.

Contained in Executive Order No. 70, Duterte’s creation of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) seeks to institutionalize a “whole-of-nation approach” in attaining an inclusive and sustainable peace.

The CPP-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines. (Rom Dulfo/PNA)

Filipinos named 3rd sexiest in the world

by Charmie Joy

PaguLong Philstar.com

FILIPINOS were rated third among the “sexiest” nationalities in the world, after Ukranians and Danes, according to the latest survey conducted by a travel website.

The Big 7 Travel surveyed a sample of 1.5 million social media users to vote for the world’s most beautiful people, and Filipinos were included in the list of 50 Sexiest Nationalities in the

World.

The website also cited the “most famous Filipinos in the world – professional boxer Manny Pacquiao along with Bruno Mars and the many Miss World participants – as probably the top scorers” in the ranking.

“Survey respondents were given no further specifications of the term ‘sexy’, so interpretation of the word was up to them,” Big 7 Travel said in a post.

Rounding up the top 10 are

Brazilian, Australian, South African, Italian, Armenian, English and Canadian, respectively.

French got 12th place, American at 45th and Irish snagged the last spot at 50th.

Other Asian nationalities who were in the list are: Japanese (19th), Malaysian (25th), Indian (28th) , and Chinese (31st).

The same website has ranked the Filipinos having one of the sexiest accents in Asia and the world last May. n

Pacquiao to do talking in...

PAGE 1 won 60 fights (including 39 by knockout), lost seven and drew twice, refused to engage in a war of words.

Instead he allowed Thurman “to sell the fight.”

Boxing’s biggest megabuck

draw despite his age, Pacquiao has been training twice-a-day in Los Angeles, including jogging on the hills to Griffith Observatory and sparring at Wild Card under the watch of Freddie Roach.

When he’s not busy trash-talking, Thurman, unbeaten in 29

anti-Manila Bay reclamation bill, and the SOGIE bill. SOGIE stands for Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression.

The militant group also filed measures seeking the repeal of the TRAIN law, renationalization of Petron, and the scrapping of VAT on oil, electricity and water.

“Bayan Muna and the Makabayan bloc hope that these measures be prioritized because these are the ones that heavily impact on the lives of the Filipino people. Addressing the poor conditions of the people should be the highlight of the 18th Congress,” they said.

The newly elected Ang Probinsiyano party-list also filed a House resolution urging the Department of Transportation, Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board, Metro Manila Council and Metropolitan Manila Development Authority to suspend the proposed ban on provincial bus terminals along EDSA. Reps. Alfred delos Santos and Ronnie Ong argued that such ban is unnecessary and that it would be better for the government to adopt “non-oppressive and less intrusive solutions that will improve traffic condition along EDSA without unduly burdening

millions of probinsiyanos.”

“Banning provincial buses will have negligible effect on the traffic situation in EDSA since they only comprise a small percentage of the total vehicular traffic,” they stated in their resolution.

The medical marijuana bill, originally authored by now Isabela Gov. Rodito Albano III, has been re-filed by his congressman-brother Antonio through his policy adviser Dr. Socorro Reyes.

“The bill has been filed since 2014. So this is the fifth year, and this is the third Congress. I have with me the Philippine Cannabis Compassion Society, parents and patients of those who need medical cannabis because they have been very sick,” Reyes told reporters.

“They have always looked forward to getting medical marijuana for a cure to their illnesses,” she said.

“We are very hopeful that this will be approved. It’s 2019 and we hope that this bill will be passed this time around because patients badly need it,” she added.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III, and other Senate leaders were the first to file their respective bills.

Sotto’s first measure, Senate

marine warfare. With its high speed and shallow draft, LCS provides presence and access to places where larger ships cannot go.

The U.S. 7th Fleet conducts forward-deployed naval operations in support of U.S. national interests in the Indo-Pacific area of operations. As the U.S. Navy’s largest numbered fleet, U.S. 7th Fleet interacts with 35 other maritime nations to build partnerships that foster maritime security, promote stability and prevent conflict. n

THE U.S. Navy’s combat ship USS Montgomery arrived in Davao City on Saturday, June 29, for a port visit to the Philippines during its first deployment.

“It is an honor to visit one of the longest-standing U.S. allies in the Indo-Pacific region,” said the Montgomery’s commanding officer Edward Rosso.

He said the port visit will allow the U.S. “to demonstrate our commitment to maritime security in the region, while strengthening relationships with our friends, partners and allies.”

During the port visit, the ship will host local military and civic leaders.

“My crew and I are very much looking forward to visiting Davao City,” Rosso said.

Rear Adm. Joey Tynch, commander of the Logistics Group Western Pacific, stressed the importance of the U.S.-Philippine partnership.

“Our navies, just like our nations, have a long history of cooperation and partnership based on mutual trust, respect and U.S. Navy’s combat ship USS Montgomery arrived in Davao City on Saturday, June 29, Contributed photo decades of friendship,” Tynch

1 in 5 Filipinos gets news from Facebook — SWS

by Pia Lee-Brago Philstar.com

ONE in five adult Filipinos uses Facebook daily to read news, according to a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.

The First Quarter 2019 Social Weather Survey of SWS conducted on March 18-31 found that 21 percent of adult Filipinos or an estimated 13.9 million individuals use Facebook daily for reading the news.

A majority 60 percent or 40.4 million adults still consume news daily through television, while only 15 percent or 9.7 million individuals do so through radio.

Even fewer adults, only two percent or one million individuals read newspapers daily.

“Thus, Facebook as a daily news source is more common than radio and newspapers combined, and is second only to television,” SWS said.

As of March, SWS said 99 percent of adults who use the internet or an estimated 30.3 million individuals have a Facebook account. This is equivalent to 45 percent of the total adult population or around 30.5 mil-

lion individuals.

YouTube is the second most popular social media site among adult Filipino internet users.

Thirty-eight percent of adult internet users or an estimated 11.7 million individuals said they own a YouTube account.

This is followed by Instagram with 15 percent or around 4.7 million individuals, Twitter with eight percent or around 2.7 million individuals, and Viber with seven percent or an estimated 2.1 million individuals.

The survey also found that having a Facebook account is more common among urban dwellers (56 percent) than rural dwellers (38 percent).

By major geographic areas, the proportion of adults with Facebook account is highest in Metro Manila at 64 percent, followed by other Luzon areas at 48 percent, Mindanao at 39 percent and the Visayas at 33 percent.

Half of adult Facebook members who are college (49 percent) and high school graduates (49 percent) read the news daily using the social media site. SWS said this is higher compared

with 37 percent among elementary graduates and 36 percent among non-elementary graduates.

“Reading the news through Facebook is positively related to educational attainment,” SWS said.

The survey also asked whether adult Filipinos use social media for political and social activities. Respondents were allowed to choose more than one activity from a set of pre-listed activities in the questionnaire.

Of the estimated 30.4 million adults who have at least one social media account (among Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter and Viber), 31 percent or an estimated 9.4 million individuals use social media to “like or promote material related to political or social issues that others have posted.”

Fourteen percent or about 4.3 million individuals use it to “follow any elected officials, candidates for office, or other political figures.”

Six percent or about 1.8 million individuals use it to “post own thoughts or comments on political or social issues.” n

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“As soon as I hit him one time, I’m pretty sure I’m gonna hit that respect button real quick,” Thurman said on his latest Instagram post n

Human rights, medical marijuana bills...

PAGE 1

said.

“Every port visit and exercise we complete together continues to strengthen maritime security and regional stability,” he said.

The Montgomery is the fourth ship to be named after the capital of Alabama.

It is classified as an Independence-class littoral combat ship (LCS) – a fast, agile and missionfocused navy vessel designed to operate in near-shore environments for surface warfare, mine countermeasures and anti-sub-

Bill No. 1, seeks to provide medical scholarships in state universities and colleges (SUCs) to increase the number of doctors serving in the public sector.

“The granting of scholarships to deserving medical students would aid in the increase of the number of physicians in the country,” he said.

His filing of a bill granting 14th month pay for workers in the private sector gets applause from the largest labor group.

“The bill is aptly necessary in enabling the wealth of our economic growth also benefit those who helped build and sustain such growth,” Trade Union Congress of the Philippines president Raymond Mendoza said in a statement.

“Workers must also get their fair share of the pie and this 14th month pay bill will ensure in a way that all companies must do so,” Mendoza said.

Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto filed his “One Town, One Doctor” bill, a novel scholarship program in which government funds the schooling of one medical student from a municipality on the condition that he or she will serve the town for four years after graduation. (With reports from Paolo Romero, Mayen Jaymalin/Philstar.com)

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http://www.asianjournal.com • (702) 792-6678

JULY 4-10, 2019 • LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL

OPINION

‘A lesser evil’

FEATURES

COMPARED to the drug scourge, illegal gambling is the lesser evil, according to President Duterte. Still, jueteng, masiao and certain other numbers games remain illegal, and there are laws against them that must be enforced.

So it’s good to hear Philippine National Police officials saying that they intend to enforce those laws, especially if the violation is brazen. Previous PNP officials have issued similar statements even as they acknowledged that some jueteng lords have contributed to limited police resources in the past.

Instead of looking the other way in the face of blatant violation of the law, President Duterte can prod his congressional allies to consider proposals to legalize and regulate jueteng. The illegal status of the game engenders corruption, which the president says he wants eradicated along with the drug menace.

Like drug trafficking, jueteng has also corrupted the political system and undermined elections. True, illegal gambling has generated employment especially in the countryside. But so does drug trafficking, and it’s still no excuse to tolerate the illegal activity. Providing jobs and livelihood opportunities to lo-

cal communities allowed the drug cartels to thrive in Colombia and Mexico.

Kidnapping for ransom is a major cottage industry in Sulu and parts of Basilan, no doubt providing lucrative profits and livelihoods to those involved in it. Yet this is no excuse to tolerate the criminal act.

In a country where the government operates casinos, lotteries and its own version of jueteng, the national policy on all forms of gambling needs clarity. The proposal to legalize jueteng has been tossed around by policy makers for a long time. Until jueteng is placed under state regulation, however, it will remain an illegal activity, no matter what the president of the republic may say.

Illegal gambling may be a lesser evil, but it will still be evil — a corrupting influence that gives its operators a prohibited edge when they launder their dirty money through politics. And the PNP has a mandate to enforce the law, regardless of the degree of evil. (Philstar.com)

Editorial

3 more challenging years — for Duterte and PH

Commentary

DINDO MANHIT THE phenomenal rise of the Davao strongman as the most powerful leader in the Philippines has disrupted the Philippine political and economic landscape in the past three years. A majority of Filipinos did express optimism in the last presidential election that President Duterte would be a disruptive leader who would initiate drastic yet effective solutions to achieve “real change.”

While the president’s unorthodox style of leadership and management of state affairs created an environment of political uncertainty and unpredictability, the political will to undertake bold reforms given

Philstar.com photo

his high popularity ratings offered a good opportunity to institute radical changes in national policies.

We have become familiar with his brutal approach toward human rights and the rule of law, his populist brand of politics, the “militarization” of government, preoccupation with federalism, expansionist fiscal management (“Dutertenomics”), and what many think is a defeatist approach in handling the West Philippine Sea issue.

Three years on, the lack of wide-ranging institutional reforms shows that the promise of radical change was farfetched, especially on the issue of corruption in the bureaucracy. Further, the president’s inability to end the perennial drug problem in three to six months, as he had promised, is

a serious stain on his record. To date, the drug scourge seems to have only worsened, as the president and the police have admitted several times. The calls by international human rights advocates for an independent investigation into the killings spawned by the “war on drugs” have been summarily rejected by the government.

Still, despite the many controversies it has had to battle in the past three years, the Duterte administration’s net satisfaction ratings in the last survey ranged from “good” to “excellent.” Its latest satisfactory rating of 81 percent, however, should not lull Malacañang into thinking that good perception is enough; ultimately, the president’s leadership and legacy will be primarily gauged through the actual impact of his governance on the

lives of majority of Filipinos.

Under Duterte’s watch, the following landmark bills have been signed into law: free college tuition, free irrigation, free internet access in public places, tougher sanctions for hospitals demanding deposits, universal health care, expanded maternity leave, more accessible and affordable mental health services, and the institutionalization of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino program.

In line with the president’s populist stance, the Senate and House of Representatives worked to pass laws that aimed to alleviate the conditions of the poor and widen access to basic education, health and social services.

Despite these landmark laws, there are still unfulfilled promises that need to be reevaluated. The coconut farmers, for

instance, anchored their hopes on Duterte’s campaign promise to return the more than P75-billion coconut levy fund to them. Initially, the President said he would do that within his first 100 days. Unfortunately, it took the Senate and the House of Representatives almost three years to pass the measure—and then the President vetoed the measure this year.

Meanwhile, the increase in the compensation of teachers and nonteaching personnel still hangs in the balance due to budgetary constraints and the possible distortion of the salary standardization policy of government.

The major pivot of the Philippines to China and the government’s “soft stance” on the West Philippine Sea issue have been widely criticized. Instead

of fighting for the Philippines’ sovereign rights, which the Hague ruling had upheld, the President decided to set aside this landmark decision. The passive and “defeatist” policy on the West Philippine Sea was crafted to get more loans and grants from China—a trade-off that, three years on, still has to show worthwhile results.

In the next three years, the biggest challenge for the Duterte administration is reducing poverty especially in the rural areas, alongside raising agricultural productivity, the anemic progress of which has been a drag on economic performance. It also needs to control inflation, undertake more institutional reforms, dismantle existing monopolies and increase labor productivity. A full plate right into its closing days. (Inquirer.net)

Impossible for Carpio and del Rosario not to know that they are deceiving the country Commentary

RIGOBERTO TIGLAO THE claim that President Duterte should be impeached for not restricting our exclusive economic zone (EEZ) from foreigners is so absurd that it is astonishing that media has given it mileage at all, with even otherwise sober commentators believing that rubbish.

What is disgusting is that the two men mainly responsible for spreading this nonsense—Supreme Court Justice Antonio Carpio and Aquino 3rd’s foreign secretary Albert del Rosario—cannot not know that they are misleading the public, as I will show in the course of this piece.

Why are they doing so? Because of an ideological hatred for China, and an added factor for del Rosario, to cover up for his role in our losing Bajo de Masinloc (also known as Panatag or Scarborough Shoal) in 2012 to China. The Yellows are cheering them and repeating their yarn of course because they think they can pull down Duterte’s popularity by stoking the embers of anti-Chinese racism among Filipinos.

At the outset, we have to emphasize first that Duterte was

referring not to our EEZ in its entirety but only to Recto Bank (Reed Bank) within which he said we cannot ban Chinese fishermen. His comment was in the wake of protests over the sinking of a Filipino fishing boat by a Chinese vessel – whether it was a deliberate case of ramming or an accidental collision hasn’t been established.

Recto Bank is indeed within our 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ), and whose natural resources therefore we have the sovereign rights to exploit. (Let’s leave out of this discussion the other fact that Recto Bank is also within the area we claim as territory, the Kalayaan Island Group, but which China, Taiwan, and Vietnam also claim.)

Fire-eating What the Yellow demagogues, and the two fire-eating anti-China haters do not mention because it would immediately shatter their propaganda tack, and what many commentators astonishingly are so ignorant about, is the following.

Our EEZ that includes Recto Bank is partly in an area which three other countries (and Taiwan) have declared as their sovereign territories, decades before 2009 when we drew precise geological coordinates for the zone through the socalled Baselines Law. We call this area the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG), which Marcos named as such when

he declared it part of Philippine territory in 1978. For China it is their Nánsh Qúndo, part of Hainan province; and for Vietnam, Qun o Trng Sa, part of its Khánh Hòa province. Our EEZ also overlaps a similar zone and the territorial sea of three other countries — Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia — and Taiwan.

China occupies two features that is within both our EEZ and KIG, including the most wellknown Mischief Reef. It has five more outside our EEZ but within the KIG. Vietnam occupies five within both our EEZ and KIG, and an additional 9 within our KIG but outside our EEZ. Malaysia occupies four, three of which are in the KIG. (See accompanying map.)

Mind-spinning these may be, the point is this: We cannot and have in fact not been able to ban from this area in our EEZ—the KIG— citizens from countries which also claim it as their sovereign territory. How difficult is it to understand that?

Say, you have title to a property adjacent to your residence, and you shoo away people who are planting kamote there to make use of it. But then somebody else comes and claims it as his property, shows you his title, and says those people are his relatives he gave permission to plant. Do you quarrel with him, even hire goons to throw out those people?

Metaphor’s limits This metaphor has its lim-

its though since in the case of the Spratlys, China, Vietnam, and Taiwan claim it is their sovereign territory. And unlike property disputes among individuals within one country and therefore bound by that nation’s laws, there is no super-state, i.e., no court to determine which “title” is genuine or fake.

It is impossible for Carpio to not know all this. He had declared in 2011: “Under traditional international law typology, States acquire territory through occupation, accretion, cession and prescription, not by executing multilateral treaties (such as UNCLOS that issues guidelines for defining an EEZ.” He wrote that ponencia in an August 2011 decision upholding the constitutionality of the 2009 baselines law that in effect defined our EEZ. Or was it just his staff who wrote it, that he didn’t bother to read?

In fact, what Duterte is saying is exactly what Carpio proposed right after the arbitral panel’s ruling in 2018: “The ruling says that Scarborough Shoal (which is within our EEZ) is a traditional fishing ground of Filipino and Chinese fishermen. So, both can fish there,” he said. “The Philippine government should talk to China and establish protocols so we can fish in peace,” he said.

Why is he saying now that Duterte is violating the Constitution for allowing Chinese

fishermen to fish in an area in our EEZ which China claims is their territory?

Constitution Yes, the Constitution mandates the President to protect our EEZ. But it is absurd, or downright stupid, to claim that a Philippine president is violating the Constitution when he cannot stop foreigners’ activities in, or kick foreigners out of our zone, when they also claim it as also theirs.

Carpio exhorts us not to call the Spratlys a “disputed area.”

But the entire world calls it that.

Even the world’s superpower, the U.S., has not recognized our claim to the Spratlys, with its Navy manual on territories in the world saying: The U.S. does not take a position on territorial disputes in the Spratly Islands.

In 2011, Aquino authorized an energy firm of the Indonesian-owned First Pacific Co. (the source of wealth of his foreign secretary del Rosario) to explore for oil and gas in an area in Recto Bank. In March, two Chinese maritime surveillance vessels forced out of the area the survey ship MV Veritas Voyager that the company had contracted to find out where to drill appraisal wells.

The vessels claimed the area was Chinese territory and the Voyager did not have permission from its government for its activities there.

Did anyone claim that Aqui-

no violated the Constitution for not sending our Navy to escort the ship so it can undertake its surveys?

Then the next year, because of del Rosario’s gullibility in believing what a US assistant state secretary—several ranks below his stature—told him, we lost Bajo de Masinloc, which is of course within our EEZ. Why didn’t they or anyone claim that Aquino should be impeached for not kicking out the Chinese from a shoal within our EEZ? Other than the fact of course that the Yellow Cult was in complete control of media then, there was no way for Aquino to grab back Bajo de Masinloc except by force, which the UN Declaration categorically bans.

In these two cases, del Rosario himself was witness to how a president could not restrict China from a part of our EEZ it claims it owns. Why is he now alleging that Duterte is violating the Constitution by allowing Chinese to fish in Recto Bank?

Or does he want Duterte to do what Aquino stupidly did in 2012, which was to send a warship to arrest Chinese fishermen in Bajo de Masinloc? Well we all know how that ended up.

We our lost territory that at least we could say we controlled since Spanish times.

(ManilaTimes.net)

The views expressed by our Op-Ed contributors are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the predilection of the editorial board and staff of Asian Journal.

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D ateline PhiliPPines Duterte to AFP, PNP: Don’t stage a coup, please

by Nestor

Corrales Inquirer.net

MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte appealed on Tuesday, July 2 to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) to refrain from staging a coup d’etat during his term.

“Do not do it, please, during my term,” he said in his speech at the celebration of the 72nd anniversary of the Philippine Air Force at Villamor Air Base in Pasay City.

“I know that the Armed Forces and the police will have to decide one day, somehow,” he added.

He told the military and the police he did not want violence and that if they would want to oust him, they could call him, as he would be willing to give them the power.

“I told you before: Kung ayaw ninyo ako (if you don’t like me), do not bring your weapons and mechanized armors there. Just call me and we will have coffee and I am ready to say: ‘It’s yours,’” he said.

AFP modernization The president also assured the AFP that his administration would continue supporting its modernization program.

“I assure you that this administration will continue to pursue all efforts to enhance your capabilities against these threats through modernization and capacity building initiatives such as the Military Pilot Training and your conduct for all qualified student officers, thereby assuring a strong future for our Air Force,” he said.

“And during my time, I have never said no to any of the commanders and to [Defense Secretary] Delfin Lorenzana and to Secretary [Hermogenes] Esperon all the things that they wanted File photo shows tourists arriving at the Philippine island of Boracay on October 26, 2018. The Philippines re-opened its crown jewel resort island for our Armed Forces even to the Boracay to holidaymakers on October 26, 2018 after a six-month clean up aimed at repairing the damage inflicted by years of unrestrained mass tourism.

Philstar.com photo police,” he added. n

Duterte OKs P25-B Boracay rehab action plan House to deliver landslide win for Paolo Duterte in Speaker race – solons

by PathriCia

aNN V. Inquirer.net

roxas

MANILA — The House of Representatives will deliver a landslide win for Davao City 1st District Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte if he pursues his bid for the House Speaker in the 18th Congress, his allies declared on Tuesday, July 2.

Pampanga 3rd District Rep. Aurelio Gonzales Jr., Partido Demokratiko Pilipino–Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban)’s National Executive Vice President, believes no other House member would dare to contest the presidential son in the speakership race.

“Pag siya ang pumasok sa speakership palagay ko wala nang lalaban dyan at lahat kami, all the coalition parties sasama dyan, we are for Pulong Duterte for Speaker,” Gonzales said in a phone interview, saying that more than 200 chamber members would surely back President Rodrigo Duterte’s eldest son.

Albay 2nd District Rep. Joey Salceda meanwhile said even Speaker aspirant Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez would give way to the younger Duterte.

“Paolo will get 300 and no need to share term. Surely, Martin will give way. The long and short of it: It’s still the president who will wield the sword,” Salceda said in a Facebook post.

Salceda is also a member of

the ruling PDP-Laban but he has signified his support for Romualdez instead of the partyendorsed Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Velasco.

Asked if he sees no conflict with Paolo’s possible run for the speakership especially as the President, on May 27, vowed to resign if his son would vie for the fourth-highest position in the country, Gonzales admitted they would just heed the orders from the Palace. He even said those supporting Velasco would jumpship to Paolo’s side, which would be acceptable with Velasco, according to Gonzales.

“Eh ‘yan naman talaga eh di ba? ‘Yung speakership naman talaga… nangagaling ang marching orders sa taas. Kaya lahat kami naghihintay,” the Pampanga lawmaker said.

“Yung term sharing, pag sinabi na ng Palasyo ‘yun, wala po kami magagawa lahat kami. Sabi ko nga, we will respect the decision of the Palace, whatever it is,” he also said.

Ako Bicol Rep. Alfredo Garbin Jr., a member of the 54-strong party-list coalition in the House said their bloc has yet to decide on the possible entry of Paolo in the speakership race. But he said he has no issue with this.

“He’s a congressman, he’s entitled to vie the speakership wala namang issues doon… Pagdating sa qualification, as long as you’re an incumbent congressman,

MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte has approved the P25-billion Boracay Medium-Term Action Plan, which will install safeguards against ecological degradation while also sustaining tourism in the island.

Duterte approved the plan “which will sustain the efforts of the government after the closure” during the 39th Cabinet meeting Monday night, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said on Tuesday, July 2.

The action plan has four com-

ponents • Enforcement of laws on regulation of visitors and hotel accommodations • Pollution control and prevention through sewerage infrastructure, and solid and liquid waste management • Rehabilitation and recovery of ecosystems, and sustainability of activities in the island through improvement of roads and public health infrastructure • and construction of permanent housing program for indigenous

people and education facilities The National Economic and Development Authority earlier said the action plan would be implemented until 2022.

Calling Boracay a “cesspool,” Duterte ordered the closure of the island famous for its white sand beaches for six months from April 2018 to make way for rehabilitation works.

The resort island reopened in October last year with a slew of new restrictions. (Gaea Katreena Cabico/Philstar.com)

ASEAN warehouse for disaster response launched

by DemPsey

reyes ManilaTimes.net

Davao City 1st District Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte Inquier.net photo

you can run for any position in the House,” Garbin said in an interview.

But the party-list representative believes a candidate’s ability to “unite” the chamber remains the most important qualification for the next House leader.

Former House Minority Leader Danilo Suarez earlier warned against the idea of Paolo becoming the Speaker, citing “delicadeza” and a possible uproar from the public.

House members will elect their Speaker at the inaugural opening of the 18th Congress on July 22. n

THE Department of National Defense (DND), in coordination with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), launched on Monday, July 1, the new warehouse where goods and equipment for disaster response will be stockpiled.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana led the launching of the warehouse, called the Disaster Emergency Logistics System for Asean (Delsa).

He was joined by Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Administrator Ricardo Jalad; Minister Makoto Iyori and Second Secretary Shintaro Ichichiri of the Japanese Embassy in Manila; representatives from the embassies of Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Australia, Russia and the United Kingdom; and Asean Coordinating Center for Humanitarian

Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA) Executive Director Adelina Kamal, among others.

The warehouse will be co-managed by the OCD and AHA. This will also be supported by the Japanese government through the Japan-Asean Integration Fund.

Lorenzana called on Filipinos, as well as those the Asean region, to always be prepared in times of disasters.

“Disaster will be with us because of the location of our country. We have all kinds of disasters, typhoons, tsunamis, earthquakes and fires, sometimes we also have [what happened during the siege] in Marawi City,” Lorenzana said.

He said the Delsa warehouse would help authorities respond better when there is a disaster.

“In the past we were caught unaware, we did not have any preparation, no stockpile like

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana ManilaTimes.net photo

this one, so we had to spend a lot more time to gather things before we can attend to the victims of disasters immediately,” the Defense chief said.

Delsa will be part of the network of Asean satellite warehouses across the Southeast Asian region.

Another warehouse, in Chainat, Thailand, was launched during the 34th Asean Summit. n

Dateline PhiliPPines

July 4-10, 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ lAS VEGAS ASIAN JOuRNAl

http://www.asianjournal.com â&#x20AC;˘ (702) 792-6678

Robredo hopes for better ties with Duterte

by Glee JAleA ManilaTimes.net

GREEN RIVER. Personnel of the Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission remove thick moss and water lilies that have turned the Pasig River into a green body of water.

ManilaTimes.net photo by John Orven Verdote

Palace: Filing impeachment complaint against president no basis for arrest

by Alexis

RomeRo Philstar.com

MANILA â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Critics of President Duterte cannot be arrested for filing an impeachment complaint over his handling of the West Philippine Sea row, MalacaĂąang said on Tuesday, July 2.

President Rodrigo Duterte previously threatened to jail critics of his polices on Chinese fishing in Philippine waters if they try to impeach him. He made the remark after former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario said Duterte may be impeached for failing to perform his constitutional mandate to defend the Philippinesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; territory.

Although the Recto Bank (Reed Bank) is beyond the 12-nautical mile limit for territorial waters, it is within the Philippinesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; 200-nm exclusive economic zone.

The Philippine National Police on Monday vowed to comply

with Duterteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s directive to have people filing impeachment complaints against him arrested if they are found to have violated the law.

Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo, however, admitted that one cannot be arrested for filing of an impeachment case. â&#x20AC;&#x153;No, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not. Because itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s every citizenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s right,â&#x20AC;? Panelo said when asked whether the filing of an impeachment complaint is a violation of the law. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Mere filing is not (a violation), thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not what the president meant,â&#x20AC;? he added.

Panelo claimed Duterteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s remark about arresting critics was a â&#x20AC;&#x153;righteous indignation.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;That was only an expression of displeasure, disappointment.

It is a righteous indignation. He could not understand why critics and detractors cannot appreciate what heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s doing,â&#x20AC;? the presidential spokesman said.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;He cannot visualize why heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s doing this and he is doing this because he is following the directive of the constitution to serve and protect the people. We want to avoid any armed struggles between two countries because that will endanger the security of the nation,â&#x20AC;? he added. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;PNP knows their lawâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Panelo said there is no need to remind the PNP not to take Duterteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s words literally. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They know their law,â&#x20AC;? he said.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra earlier Tuesday said that filing an impeachment complaint is not a crime. â&#x20AC;&#x153;So, there are only a few situations where warrantless arrests are allowed or permitted under our rules. So, in situations where an unlawful act is not being committed in the first place, so there will be no legal basis for arrest,â&#x20AC;? he said. n

GMA Network finishes probe on Eddie Garciaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s accident GMA Network has completed its internal investigation on the accident that took the life of veteran actor Eddie Garcia but deferred to the wishes of the family â&#x20AC;&#x153;to be given a copy before we share the report with the public.â&#x20AC;?

The TV network issued the statement on Tuesday, nearly two weeks after Garcia, 90, died without regaining consciousness following his accident on the set

of a series he was filming for the station on June 8. The actor died on June 20 at the Makati Medical Center.

Doctors said Garcia sustained a neck fracture when he tripped on a cable during a shooting outside Metro Manila.

The network started an internal investigation right after the accident, which focused on â&#x20AC;&#x153;the absence of a medical teamâ&#x20AC;? at the

shooting and said it was committed â&#x20AC;&#x153;to getting to the bottom of this unfortunate incident.â&#x20AC;?

In a statement by the Directorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Guild of the Philippines Inc. (DGPI), it called the accident â&#x20AC;&#x153;a sad and urgent reminder to the film and television industries that safety protocols at work and on set are of paramount importance.â&#x20AC;? (Darwin Pesco/ManilaTimes.net)

VICE President Maria Leonor â&#x20AC;&#x153;Leniâ&#x20AC;? Robredo remains hopeful about having a â&#x20AC;&#x153;better working relationshipâ&#x20AC;? with President Rodrigo Duterte on their final three years in office, despite her belief that she was always seen by the president as an â&#x20AC;&#x153;enemy.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ang ating parang hino-hope, iyong sanang mangyayari, iyong magandang working relationship between sa pangulo at saka sa pangalawang pangulo. Kasi iyon naman ang nararapat sanaâ&#x20AC;Śkasi ang tingin na sa atin kalaban mula sa umpisa (We are hoping that a better working relationship between the president and the vice president can finally happen. Because thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s how it should really be likeâ&#x20AC;ŚÂ because it seems like we were already seen as an enemy right from the start),â&#x20AC;?

Robredo said in her weekly radio show on Sunday, June 30.

She recalled how there were already signs of hostility shown against her when she and the President held separate inauguration rites in 2016.

Duterte took his oath in MalacaĂąang, while Robredo had a simple ceremony at the Quezon City Reception House. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Mula sa umpisa, ang signals nandoon naâ&#x20AC;Ś ayaw ng pangulo

makihalo sa inauguration. In fact, mayroon na noong preparation for a joint inauguration kasi iyon naman ang tradisyon, pero sinabihan kami na ayaw makihalo ng pangulo sa atin (Even from the start, there already were signals that the president did not want to have a joint inauguration. In fact, a joint inauguration was prepared as it was according to tradition, but we were told that the president did not want to join us),â&#x20AC;? she said.

Robredo also hoped that she and the president could finally work together with a shared advocacy when she was appointed chairman of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council, but on December 2016, she was given the directive to â&#x20AC;&#x153;desist from attending all Cabinet meetingsâ&#x20AC;? over their â&#x20AC;&#x153;irreconcilable differences.â&#x20AC;?

With the order, Robredo said, Duterte seemed to show that he did not trust her and that it would be hard for them to work together. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Wala siguro ang tiwala sa atin, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;di ba naakusahan tayo na sumali tayo sa isang rally sa EDSA na hindi naman totoo. Pero base sa maling accusation, hindi na tayo pinapa-attend ng Cabinet meeting (Maybe the trust was not really placed on us because we were accused of joining a rallyÂ

in EDSA, even if it was not true. But based on a false accusation, we were ordered not to attend a Cabinet meeting since then),â&#x20AC;? she added.

Still, the vice president cited her accomplishments in the first half of her term, particularly the anti-poverty efforts of her flagship project, the Angat Buhay Program, in coordination with private parties to help those in the â&#x20AC;&#x153;laylayan ng lipunan (fringes of society).â&#x20AC;?

The Office of the Vice President (OVP) already utilized P350 million for over 300,000 families and beneficiaries from 176 partner cities and municipalities as of December 2018.

The OVP also received the highest audit rating from the Commission on Audit for fiscal year 2018.

Last week, Robredo cleared speculations that she would run for president in 2022, maintaining that she would leave such ambition to â&#x20AC;&#x153;destiny,â&#x20AC;? so as not to taint her advocacies and commitment to doing public service for the poor.

The 2022 race for President is being projected to narrow down between women candidates, with Robredo and Duterteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara DuterteCarpio as perceived frontrunners. n

Stop labelling LGBT community â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Cardinal Tagle

by Neil

ARwiN meRcAdo Inquirer.net

MANILA â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Stop enclosing the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual (LGBTQIA+) community in labels.

Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle said on Tuesday, July 2, as he called the youth to avoid discriminating others. â&#x20AC;&#x153;LGBTQ siguro minsan nandyan din ang limitasyon, nilalagyan natin ng labels, at kapag nalagyan ng labels nakakalimutan nating tao, at kapag tao tinatawag siya na i-develop ang mga God given na buhay, dangal at talino para makapag-lingkod sa buhay, sa kapwa, at sa Diyos (The label LGBTQ may be sometimes limited. When we label people, we forget that they get called to develop their God-given lives and to serve God and others with dignity and intelligence),â&#x20AC;? Tagle said at the Usapang Totoo at Katoto event organized by the Archdiocese of Manila Commission on Youth

Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle

sa San Isidro Catholic School in Pasay City.

Tagle explained that everyone tends to discriminate against others and that this could be avoided if we see other people as humans and as children of God. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Kapag sinabing discrimination may mga iba-ibang pagpapakita yan. Lahat tayo may tendency na mag discriminate. Ang laban sa discrimination ay, nakikita ko ba

Inquirer.net photo

na ang kaharap ko ay tao, nilalang na kawangis ng Diyos, may dangal, may karapatan at kawangis ko? (There are many forms of discrimination, and we all have the tendency to discriminate. The way to fight this is to ask: Am I seeing a human person, an individual formed in the image of God, and someone who has dignity and rights like me?)â&#x20AC;?

Tagle said. n

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LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JULy 4-10, 2019

10

July 4-10, 2019 • lAS VEGAS ASIAN JOuRNAl

http://www.asianjournal.com • (702) 792-6678

VEGAS&STYLE Journal

Is Andrea Torres ‘The Better Woman’ for Derek Ramsay? Jasmine doesn’t mind being 2nd choice to sister Anne by iza iglesias ManilaTimes.net

SHORTLY after dramatic actor Derek Ramsay surprised showbiz with his big move to GMA Network, he dropped a bigger bomb in June when he confirmed rumors he had broken up with longtime girlfriend Joanne Villablanca.

Entertainment website Pep. ph quoted the famed Fil-British hunk in an earlier interview that the breakup was “all for the best,” but refused to go into detail. His revelation was a stark contrast to a major press conference he held in April following his GMA contract signing, which Villablanca — a fitness advocate and commercial model — attended and where the happy boyfriend openly talked marriage.

Last week, however, at the media launch of his first Kapuso primetime soap, “The Better Woman,” a somewhat somber Ramsay admitted he’s still hurting but moving on.

“I mean you have to, right? It’s sad dahil hindi lang isang tao ang nawala sa buhay ko — dalawa because of her daughter who I treated like my own,” the ever forthright actor began. “It’s not easy, especially with plans we already had with each other… It’s sad it didn’t work out between me and Jo but she’s already [decided] her direction in life. She found what I really think she’s passionate to do, which is yung pagiging influencer niya. It’s just difficult that I lost two people,” he said again.

Straightening up as if to shake off the blues, Ramsay declared, “But there’s more to life. Again it’s sad but not everything in life works your way. There are ups and downs, and I’m sure I’m going to be up again at some point.”

Most serious relationship Saying he will always “cherish” the six years he and Villablanca had together, Ramsay continued, “You can’t just turn your back on that and she’ll always have a special place with Sophie (Villablanca’s daughter) in my heart.”

Asked if they’re on speaking

Derek Ramsay

GMA photo

terms, the actor simply said, “For now she’s angry and I’m hurt. She has a different way of dealing [with the breakup] and it’s the same with me. But one day I hope to look back at our six years and smile [at the memories].

“At the end of the day, we’re all designed to love so I’m sure I’ll love again and I’m sure she’ll love again. I’m sure she’ll find the right guy for her.”

Determined to keep the reason for the breakup private, the actor nonetheless expressed frustration how even in his past relationships [Ramsay famously dated Cristine Reyes and Angelica Panganiban] he is pictured as “the guy who cannot commit.” “[But] my relationships go on for four, five, six years! Do you think it’s easy for me to just let go of things like that? No, and that’s what really gets [to] me. I mean I have this huge house that I’m building right now and I’ll be the only one living there so it’s really sad.”

Careful with his next words, Ramsay said quietly, “I was raised a gentleman and I’m not going to say anything bad about my her. I don’t want to talk about it anymore because it affects so many people [other than the two of us] — her daughter, my son, her family, my family. I’ve always been that guy who wants to respect everything because it’s not just about us anymore. A six-year relationship

is not just between two people.

We’ve created a bond with each other’s families so it’s not easy to go through this especially since it’s one of the longest, probably the most serious relationship I’ve ever had in my life.”

Ready to marry Despite this painful setback, the 42-year-old still declared he still wants to get married and start a family.

“People always think you’re not the marrying type but I am. I am so ready to get married because have the perfect marriage as an example from my parents. They’ve been together for nearly 50 years so like I always say, you have to be sure about your decision because if a couple breaks up, it’s going to be awful — awful for the kids, awful for everybody.

“So I guess the best thing here [with Jo] is we didn’t get that far.

Like I said, she found something she’s really passionate about and I’m proud to say nakatulong ako sa kanya with that. And because I love her, I should be happy for her.”

No third party Meanwhile, Ramsay insisted that Andrea Torres — his leading lady “The Better Woman” on GMA — is not the cause of his breakup contrary to speculative reports.

“That’s not fair [to her]. Ako, gusto ko lang sabihin, Andrea shouldn’t be asked about any of this because she has nothing to do with it. And I’m also not the type of guy that likes to use gimmicks to promote a project. So I really wish whoever’s spreading that to stop it because it’s really unfair to Andrea. Any questions about it should be directed to me,” Ramsay declared.

Asked if he still sees a reconciliation with Villablanca, the actor replied in the negative.

“It’s said and done. She’s got her own thing and I’m starting in showbiz again so I’ll just focus on this. We all have different ways in dealing with things and I’m quiet but it doesn’t mean I’m not hurting.

But it is what it is and we have to move on.”

by Marinel

r. Cruz

Inquirer.net

“SHE’S proud and grateful, but also regretful,” said Jasmine Curtis-Smith when asked how her sister, Anne, took the news of her being part of the cast of Alvin Yapan’s historical drama, “Culion.”

The role of Doris, one of the three female leads in “Culion,” was previously offered to Anne.

“Regretful,” Jasmine explained, because Anne had wanted the role for herself, but prior commitments—like an upcoming movie with comedian Vice Ganda— forced the latter to give it up.

“Her loyalty to her other commitments came first. She said, ‘I’m happy that it was given to you. I know you can do it.’ Kinilig ako because we seldom talk to each other about projects, usually kanya-kanya,” Jasmine told the Inquirer shortly after she attended the story conference for the movie, along with the production’s other female leads, Iza Calzado (Anna) and Meryll Soriano (Ditas).

“Our bond is thickening now.

Ate and I are growing together.

We’re genuinely happy for each other,” added Jasmine. “I’m fine with being the second choice to Ate. Truth be told, my role in ‘Baka Bukas’ was first offered to her, too.”

Samantha Lee’s LGBT-themed film “Baka Bukas” won for Jasmine several acting awards.

Jasmine Curtis Smith with her sister Anne

“I think I’ve already outgrown that phase. Had this happened when I was younger, I’d have felt hurt. These days, I actually feel lucky because the role has found its way to me. Being second choice is nothing until you make it a big deal,” Jasmine stressed. “An-

Photo from Instagram/@jascurtissmith

other actress other than Ate was considered to play Doris. Mas kinikilig ako knowing that iOptions Ventures (the film’s producer) thought I am of the same rank as these artists. I’ve now managed to turn situations like this into positive encouragement.”

Andi not closing door to marriage by riCky lo Philstar.com

EVEN as she welcomes her second child next month, Andi Eigenmann said that, although not in the near future, she is not closing her door to the “possibility” of getting married.

“I don’t think about marriage,” Andi admitted during the recent baby shower and her advance

birthday celebration hosted by Aprica at Rockwell last June 22 (actual birthday is June 25). “I used to think that I need to get married but after living the life I have now, I feel contented. This life is enough for me. I’d be happy to get married and I’m not closing my door to that possibility. It’s something that I need to experience in my life.”

Andi Eigenmann and boyfriend Philmar Alipayo with Ellie, Andi’s daughter with former boyfriend Jake Ejercito.

Contributed photo

Andi’s first child, seven-yearold Ellie, is by her former boyfriend Jake Ejercito. The second is by her current boyfriend, surfer Philmar Alipayo with whom Andi is living in Siargao. After giving birth in Manila, Andi will go back to Siargao.

The double celebration was a happy family affair. Almost all of the Eigenmanns were accounted for: Andi’s uncle Michael de Mesa, cousin Ryan, and half-siblings Gabby, Max, Stevie and Timmy (Sid Lucero), except for cousin Geoff who attended to his girlfriend who gave birth a week earlier. Andi’s Lola Rosemarie Gil was in the US, while Cherie Gil was in Palawan. From Andi’s mother side, mom Jaclyn Jose: Andi’s halfbrother Gwen, her aunt Veronica Jones (Jaclyn’s sister) and cousin Abby Asistio.

The Eigenmann siblings organized and hosted the games; the last was Pinoy Henyo where Jaclyn and Michael competed.

“As long as Andi’s happy,” said Mom Jaclyn, “I’m happy for her and I support her all the way.”

Las Vegas-Clark County Library District kicks-off Summer Challenge Kids & teens are invited to beat summer boredom, earn prizes, and sharpen skills through fun activities at their neighborhood libraries LAS VEGAS – The Las VegasClark County Library District (LVCCLD) kicked off its Summer Challenge program this week, inviting local youth to beat summer boredom while having a blast and sharpening their academic skills.

Kids of all ages can choose from hundreds of activities that will inspire new interests and abilities and help prevent summer “brain drain.”

Participation in Summer Challenge earns them points to win cool prizes at their local library branch, PLUS a chance to win one of several District-wide grand prizes, including Vegas Golden Knights team autographed hockey sticks, Chance the Mascot bobble heads, or tickets to the Life Is Beautiful Music & Art Festival.

(And be sure to stop by and take your selfies with our Chance cutouts!)

Children of all ages can participate in Summer Challenge, from babies and toddlers through tweens and teens. There are hundreds of activities to choose from, including puppet and magic shows, storytimes, STEAM workshops, escape rooms, theater and sewing classes, video game tournaments, a Robot Lab powered by Switch, and many more exciting things to explore.

Reading (or being read to) is another fun way to earn points!

Besides books, this includes comic books, graphic novels, magazines, newspapers, whatever they like to read will earn them points for prizes. Participants receive one point for joining in any activity of their choice, or one point for every 25 minutes of reading.

To sign up for Summer Challenge, just stop by your neighborhood branch and learn how to track your kids’ summer activities, or go to the Library District website at LVCCLD.org/SummerChallenge to track their participation online. The program runs now through July 31, and the grand prizes will be awarded in August.

“Summer break can turn into a brain drain for kids, where they start to lose some of their academic skills,” said Dr. Ron Heezen, executive director of the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District. “Our libraries are a great place for kids to explore their curiosity, learn about something new, meet and hang out with friends, and take advantage of our hundreds of free activities

and resources. We invite kids to make this summer memorable with Summer Challenge and get rewarded for having fun at their local library.”

“Summer Challenge is a great example of how we have redefined the word ‘library,’” said Dr. Heezen. “Our library branches have become community centers for free access to arts and culture, homework help, WiFi and technology, employment and career assistance, and so much more. We hope the whole family will stop by this summer and discover what we have in store for you!”

For full details about Summer Challenge, including details on how to sign up, library locations, and a list of hundreds of library events and programs, please visit LVCCLD. org/SummerChallenge.

Community Journal

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Immigrant Living: 101 and Beyond Monette AdevA MAglAyA (Part 1 of 2) “I’ve had It!” Charisse said to herself as she put down her phone. this one broke up with her via text message, saying he’s found someone else and something about her being too square. they say three is a charm or in her case, she thought, three strikes and you’re out. She stiffened her spine, picked up her phone and was going to just block his calls, hesitated for a bit, and with a glint in her eye and a decisive finger, deleted his name from her contact list forever.

Charisse used to go into a season of self-pity after a break-up but realized that it was like flogging yourself silly after the one you foolishly trusted kicks you to the curb.

One day she took action. She decided to be kind to herself and take none of the bad behavior others feel they can pile on her. She built her self-confidence daily, rigorously with positive affirmations and learned to do many things with excellence just like her Mom and her Lola taught her — two generations of awesome women who continue to guide her. as a research associate for a non-profit firm for a decade, she made a modest living allowing her to have her own place and some expendable time doing things for others. She kept close tab of her expenses but made sure she had money for her continuing education and time to spend generously with other people. Charisse kept in close touch with her family keeping them in the loop about her simple but utterly engaging life.

She mentally threw out the window the new wave speed-dating, internet dating, web-chatting schtick.

It works for some but certainly not for her. It’s a jungle out there.

She decided she will do things the old fashioned way. She was going to be a jolly mini-renaissance girl, a well-rounded lady that considers technology as a useful tool but never a crutch. “hah! tall order,” she admitted to herself but she knew on the gut level she was going to do it or die trying. her dad and her brother said she had spunk and gumption.

Health@Heart PhiliP S. ChuA, Md, FACS, FPCS aS a student of history, I found Jerusalem a most fascinating city the first time I was in Israel in 1960 as a grantee of the asia Foundation to the global conference of the International Federation of Medical Student associations being the national president of the Student Philippine Medical association representing my fellow medical students from all five medical schools in the Philippines at that time. I carried the official message of then Philippine President Carlos P. Garcia and read it before the international assembly. that same fascination and more overwhelmed my being once again when I returned to this holy city 18 days ago with my wife, Farida, daughter Portia, her husband, Chito, and son, Brendan, and traced “the footsteps of Jesus Christ” on via dolorosa (Way of Suffering), the path to his crucifixion on Calvary (Golgotha) circa ad 30-33. the people of Israel are hospitable and friendly. It was a wonderful sentimental journey. to some individuals with extraordinary religious belief, the experience could be over-powering. a few of them could develop the Jerusalem Syndrome, a temporary mental phenomenon of obsession, sadness, delusions, or psychosis triggered by an emotion-filled visit to this blessed city, affecting not only Christians but Jews and Muslims as well. the condition normalizes after departing from Jerusalem. In 2010, a man who was in tel-aviv (about 33 miles from Jerusalem) and dressed like Jesus Christ proclaimed he was the Messiah. Whether the tourists who developed the syndrome actually had a psychiatric disorder prior to arrival in Israel is not clear.

Stendhal Syndrome also known as the Florence (Italy) Syndrome, Stendhal Syndrome is a psychosomatic experience with rapid heart rate, dizziness, fainting spell, confusion or hallucinations, following exposure to objects of exquisite beauty or overwhelming phenomenon. this was named after a French author of the 19th century, Marie-henri Beyle (17831842), pseudonym Stendhal, who described his experience in his 1817 visit to Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence, where Machiavelli, Michelangelo, and Galileo are buried. he was so awed and overcome with profound emotion to be in the “presence of greatness,” he developed some of the symptoms. this

LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JULy 4-10, 2019

11

Once upon a time series...

City of Las Vegas Cultural Arts CHARISSE’S CONFECTION August 2019 calendar of events A story in two Scoops

She always got going when the going got tough. She thought it was the built-in spark plug wired into her by praying to God constantly.

She learned how to do things, like write, bake and cook, even dance and sing and do stand-up comedy — pursuits that made her so busy, so disciplined and so doggone tired she just didn’t have time to be sad.

She talked to senior people in the mall and at the senior center and realized she enjoyed learning so much from their stories. She also felt their intense loneliness.

She became friends with them and looked forward to senior center nights. She became particularly close to dolly, an elegant graceful, silver-haired lady that seemed like she was to the manor born.

Boy, were those senior citizens a hoot to be with! She learned to tango and do the foxtrot with them. She volunteered to read to the children at the library. the kids made her laugh and they taught her to be joyful and lighthearted. her friends complained that she was missing in on the action. Quietly, she begged to differ.

Best of all, she rediscovered prayer and its powerful, wonderful effect on her and the people around her. She found comfort in the quiet sanctity of her small parish church. through her journey of self-discovery, Charisse learned to never be one to wallow over a breakup — more so with an extremely crass text break-up.

“What is wrong with guys these days who won’t be man enough to do a face-to-face break-up? So many beta boys, spineless soy boys around her orbit! Where are the gentleman alpha males that pursued the love of their life with all they’ve got?

Charisse was convinced romance and courtship are dead like the dodo. Or perhaps, the reason there are no alpha males and manly men is that women don’t act like women these days. and the men are so confused they want to be women.

“Oy vey!” she sighed. She picked up the expression from one of the Jewish women at the center.

She alternates it with her mom’s expression of exasperation, “hay Naku!” at this rate, I will be the only sin-

gle lady aka “old maid” whose sell by date is about to expire among her group of friends. the current social media template seems to work for her friends but not for her. Charisse shrugged her shoulders. With an impish grin, she said out loud, “I don’t care. I will be a happy, single lady just the same.

So goodbye to love.”

Charisse sprung into action to slam shut another annoying damper of a mini-chapter of her life. She went to her kitchen, tied her long lustrous brunette hair into a bun, put on her apron determined to whip out a delicious baked goodie, a confection like no other. Baking was her magic wand to shoo away the blues. She opened her pantry, peeked at her refrigerator and checked out ingredients for one of her specialties, Crema de Fruta, a layer of lady fingers, covered by cream, then a layer of peaches and cherry and a thin layer of clear gelatin on top to hold the layers together. She will bring her delicious confection to the Senior Center tomorrow for dolly who will be celebrating her 80th birthday. dolly loved seeing her every time she stopped by at the Senior Center. her eyes lit up when she sees the younger woman. She loved to regale her with wonderful tales of a glorious past. Charisse listened and learned of a wonderful, well-heeled family life until a tragic accident wiped out all except for a grandson. dolly’s eyes would close when she recalls the tragedy while Charisse kept her respectful silence squeezing the woman’s hand slightly as a tiny measure of comfort.

Charisse’s natural curiosity as a researcher would normally drive her to check out her story on the internet. But she felt dolly’s story was told to her in confidence like a secret and so it will stay that way.

She purposely didn’t ask for her full name because she enjoyed the mystery and the company of the older woman. She thought that too much information overload has killed all the mystery and wonder in this world. and so she just let it be.

(To be continued next week …) *** Nota Bene: Monette Adeva Maglaya is SVP of Asian Journal Publications, Inc. To send comments, e-mail monette.maglaya@ asianjournalinc.com

Fall I Class Registration available through Sept. 14 for sixweek session Sept. 3-Oct. 12. the city of Las vegas offers fine arts classes at several locations that are designed to mold amateur artists in a guided, dynamic and studio-style program tailored to the needs of each student. these open-enrollment classes encourage exploration while creating the opportunity for each student to experience a diverse performing and visual arts education. Classes are available for all ages and levels of experience in dance, music, theatre, visual and cultural arts. to register, or for more information, visit online or call 702-229-aRtS (2787).

• Charleston heights arts Center Class Registration (ages 7adult) • Charleston heights arts Center, 800 S. Brush St. • Courses offered include adult drama and Improvisation, visual arts, Music theory, Group Guitar and private lessons in piano/voice/ guitar by appointment.

• Rainbow Company Youth Theatre Drama Class Registration (ages 4-17) • Charleston heights arts Center, 800 S. Brush St. • Classes taught by awardwinning Rainbow Company staff.

Courses offered include Story drama, Performance Fundamentals, acting essentials for Youth, and acting Skills for teens. Classes are in demand and space is limited; early registration recommended.

• West Las Vegas Arts Center Class Registration (ages 2-adult) • West Las vegas arts Center, 947 W. Lake Mead Blvd.

• Classes offered include african dance, West african djembe drum, Ballet, Urban Street dance, Recording & engineering, video Recording, Martial arts, and Chess.

Story Pirates “Create-A-Show” (all ages) thursday, aug. 1, 10:30 a.m., and Saturday, aug. 3, 2 p.m.

Fifth Street School, 401 S. Fourth St. tickets: $5 (plus tax/fees). Call 702-229-aRtS for group tickets.

When the Pirates take the stage, you’ll be amazed at what happens next... and so will they! that’s because the 45-minute show they’re performing has not been written. the Pirates will steal your kids’ ideas and incorporate them on the spot into an interactive show that validates the imagination of every child in the audience. Laugh as heart-kidney failure. Because of your daughters and sons invent the inability to bring the feet down monsters, dancing ninjas, superto stabilize oneself while floating hero tomatoes - or any other idea on the back, the person could get off balance and suddenly flip face down and drown. the presumption that nobody drowns in the dead Sea is not true. I have floated on the dead Sea twice now, 59 years apart, and felt exactly the same sense of instability and lack of control while afloat like a cork. done cautiously, the dead Sea experience in the Land of Jesus could be a pleasant memory to be cherished forever.

Black mud for health and the city of Las vegas active beauty? the black mud in the dead Sea adult and senior centers offer is rich in minerals, like sulfur, so- exercise, fitness, craft, arts, dium, potassium, magnesium, etc., dance, music and computer and claimed to have rejuvenating classes; cards; games; discussion qualities. dead Sea mud was baked and social groups; luncheons; by the sun for tens of thousands of sports; and special events Monyears in this dessert and has been day through Friday to residents used to make the skin healthier, age 50 and better. Many of these treat acne, reduce inflammation, activities contribute to wellness and treat illnesses from psoriasis, and a healthy lifestyle. a listing of arthritis, to back pains. Soaking in classes and activities is published concentrated salt water reminds in the Beyond the Neon Leisure me of how to preserve fish, meat, Guide, available online at www. and pickled vegetables. While there lasvegasParksandRec.com and is no scientific evidence for their in the centers. all activities are efficacy, black mud and other cos- subject to change. Most activities metic products from the dead Sea require $10 annual memberare very popular, marketed around ship in city of Las vegas active the world at a premium price (some adult/Senior Citizen Programs, $100 or more for a small jar) for fa- available at all senior and active cial mask, moisturizers, shampoos, adult centers. active adults ages conditioners, pain relieving creams, 50+ can subscribe here to receive etc. Like all the tourists at the Kalia a monthly email about upcoming Beach Resort in the dead Sea that events and activities, or text Lv dry hot (97 degrees Farenheit) day SeNIORS to 468-311. Las vegas of June 26, 2019, I scooped up some Senior Center is closed for renoblack mud myself and applied it to vations.

Breakfast Sandwiches (ages my face and all over my body, while in the water in this lowest part of 50+) Friday, aug. 2, 9:30 to 11 the world. here, this premium “cosmetic item” is free, so everyone on a.m.

Cost: $5. the beach was shiny black all over, Lieburn Senior Center; 6230 hoping to look younger and make body aches and pains disappear Garwood ave., 702-229-1600. enjoy a breakfast sandwich even for a brief moment in time. after showering away the slimy with egg, meat, fruit, coffee and black mud, I looked at myself in juice. Registration opens July 1; the mirror, and voila! — a younger advance registration open until me — but not by eight years, more July 31. Call 702-229-1600 for like by eight seconds younger…and information and registration.

Bunco (ages 50+) “pickled.” What ahype! But it was Wednesday, aug. 7, 10 a.m. fun, anyway.

Cost: $5 includes games and *** Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS, FPCS, Cardiac lunch. Registration opens July 1; Surgeon Emeritus in Northwest Indiana and register by July 31. derfelt Senior Center in Lorenchairman of cardiac surgery from 1997 to 2010 at Cebu Doctors University Hospital, where he zi Park, 3343 W. Washington holds the title of Physician Emeritus in Surgery, ave., 702-229-6601. enjoy bunco and lunch with is based in Las Vegas, Nevada. He is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, the Philippine friends. Call 702-229-6601 for College of Surgeons, and the Denton A. Cooley information and registration.

Ice Cream Social (ages 50+) Cardiovascular Surgical Society. He is the Wednesday, aug. 7, 11 a.m. chairman of the Filipino United Network – USA, a 501(c)(3) humanitarian foundation in the United to 2 p.m.

Cost: $3.

States. Email: scalpelpen@gmail.com

In the land of Jesus Jerusalem Syndrome

is more of an extreme emotional response rather than a psychiatric aberration.

Paris Syndrome the Paris Syndrome (syndrome de Paris or Japanese Pari Shokogun) is a symptom complex among some tourists in Paris, France, resulting from extreme shock from severe disappointment after seeing the city of love different from their romantic expectations. Symptoms could include anxiety, acute delusion, hallucination and sense of being persecuted with prejudice, hostility and aggression, rapid heart rate, dizziness, sweating, nausea and vomiting. It is more of an acute cultural shock. this was observed particularly common among Japanese tourists, hence the name Pari Shokogun.

“Manila Syndrome” I coined this “syndrome” just for this column to describe my “symptoms” whenever I arrive in Manila for our annual medical missions in the rural areas. they include an anxious anticipation and joyous expectations, a voracious appetite for pinakbet, kare kare, tortang talong, crispy pata, ginataang kalabasa, letchon kawali, dinuguan at puto, kutsinta, bibingka, kalamay, sapin-sapin, suman of various kinds, and, of course, halo-halo and buko pandan. the extreme gastronomic urges occur more than 3 times day, intermingled with itches for shopping and bulakbols to various resorts with pristine beaches and clear blue waters. the exhilarating feeling of “being home again” results in endless nostalgia and spiritual buoyancy. Sentimentality sets in on the day of departure from this City of Love in this Pearl of the Orient Seas, inspiring a Macarthurian pledge, even among foreign tourists. dead Sea – saltiest the dead Sea, a lake (1412 feet below the sea level, the lowest part in the world) bordering Jordan and Israel, is 1003.94 feet deep and is the saltiest body of water on earth. except perhaps for some salt-tolerant bacteria deep under, there is no fish or any life form in the dead Sea. It is the deepest hypersaline lake around the globe, with 34.2 percent or higher salinity, 9.6 to 10 times saltier than oceans, which have an average of 3.5 percent (35 grams of salt per liter). the dead Sea has a thick density of 1.24 kg/liter, which makes a swimmer float, unable to stand, because the dense water pushes the legs up by buoyancy.

It is impossible to submerge the whole body in the dead Sea. Swallowing the very salty water could lead to acute pulmonary edema,

Discover the arts! they call out - and watch the Story Pirates bring their ideas to life.

Create-a-Show is as crazy, hilarious and unexpected as kids themselves. tickets available online at www.artsLasvegas.org or by calling 702.229.aRtS (2787). this production made possible through grant support from the National endowment for the arts, WeStaF and the Nevada arts Council.

2019 Performing & Visual Arts Camp Final Productions (all ages) thursday, aug. 1, 2 p.m., Charleston heights arts Center, 800 S. Brush St. Saturday, aug. 3, 2 p.m., West Las vegas Library theatre, 951 W. Lake Mead Blvd.

Free and open to the public. enjoy the final production created by talented students of the Performing & visual arts Camp.

Created and performed by the youth participating in this annual summer camp program, this breathtaking production shares stories of their search for selfidentity, social justice and personal truths through dance, music and theatre. Presented in partnership with the Las vegas-Clark County Library district. For information, visit www.artsLasvegas.org, or call 702.229.aRtS (2787).

Ethnic Express International Folk Dancing (ages 8+) Wednesdays, aug. 7, 14, 21, and 28; 6:30 to 8:45 p.m.

Cost: $6 per person per week at the door.

Charleston heights arts Center, 800 S. Brush St., 702-229-aRtS (2787). have an evening of fun learning international dance styles, including arabic, armenian, Bulgarian, Chinese, Greek, Israeli, Macedonian, Russian, Serbian and turkish folk dances. No need to bring a partner. dances co-presented with the city of Las vegas. For more information, call 702-732-4871 or go online to www.ethnicexpresslasvegas.org/.

Rainbow Company Youth Theatre Ensemble Audition (ages 10-18) Saturday, aug. 10; 1 to 6 p.m. (arrive by 1 p.m., finished by 6 p.m.)

Charleston heights arts Center, 800 S. Brush St. the Rainbow Company Youth theatre program is a nationally acclaimed, award-winning youth theatre group, operated by the city of Las vegas. For more than 40 years, the company has provided theatre arts classes and a professional training program for young people. the core of the Rainbow Company is its ensemble

of 40 dedicated students, ages 10-18, selected yearly by open auditions. the Rainbow Company ensemble members work in all aspects of each production. Under the tutelage of professional directors and designers, they are responsible for the creation of the show’s costumes, make-up, sets, lights, sound and backstage crew responsibilities. Serving as an ensemble member requires participants to make a serious commitment to learning the art of theatre. No preparation is required for the audition; wear comfortable clothes and shoes. For information, visit www.artsLasvegas.org, or call 702.229.aRtS (2787).

Rainbow Company Youth Theatre Audition - “The Witches” (ages 8-adult) Written by Roald dahl, adapted by david Wood.

Saturday, aug. 17; 1 to 6 p.m. (arrive by 1 p.m. finished by 6 p.m.)

Charleston heights arts Center, 800 S. Brush St. the Rainbow Company Youth theatre is holding open auditions for their upcoming 2019-2020 Season production of “the Witches.”

Based on the popular Roald dahl book, originally published in 1983.

In “the Witches,” a boy and his grandmother dare to tale on the Grand high Witch and her followers, who have some wicked plans in store for the world’s children. extravagant costuming and scenery will adorn this spirited adventure just in time for the spooky season. Roles available for both children and adults. No preparation is required to audition; wear comfortable clothes and shoes. Performance dates are Sept.

27, 28, 29, and Oct. 4, 5, and 6, 2019. For information, visit www. artsLasvegas.org or call 702-229aRtS (2787).

The Poets’ Corner (ages 17+) hosted by LaBlaque.

Friday, aug. 16, 7:30 p.m.

Free and open to the public.

West Las vegas arts Center, 947 W. Lake Mead Blvd.

Founded at the West Las vegas arts Center in 1997, the Poets’ Corner premiered as the first established poetry program in Las vegas. this monthly forum event, hosted by LaBlaque Williams, is for established poets and openmic participants and features the best local talent. due to potential subject matter, we strongly advise participants be age 17 or older. For information, visit www.artsLasvegas.org or call 702-229-aRtS (2787).

USA Ballroom Dance (ages PAGE 12

City of Las Vegas August 2019 senior special events Las Vegas residents invited to celebrations, luncheons & activities at city centers Lieburn Senior Center; 6230 Garwood ave., 702-229-1600. enjoy a bowl of ice cream with your choice of toppings. Registration opens July 1; register by aug. 5. Call 702-229-1600 for information and registration.

Movie & Trivia Day (ages 50+) Wednesday, aug. 7, 1:30 p.m.

Cost: $3. Register by aug. 2. doolittle Senior Center, 1930 N. J St., 702-229-6125. enjoy a recently released or classic movie, with a little bit of trivia and some light refreshments.

Lieburn Lecture Series (ages 50+) thursday, aug. 8, 10 to 11 a.m.

Free and open to ages 50+.

Lieburn Senior Center; 6230 Garwood ave., 702-229-1600. do you have the right coverage with your insurance? Come ask Mario from State Farm. Sign up at the front desk. Registration opens July 1; advance registration open until July 31. Call 702229-1600 for information and registration.

Left Hander’s Lunch (ages 50+) thursday, aug. 8, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Cost: $6/member. Registration opens July 1. east Las vegas Community Center, 250 N. eastern ave., 702229-1515. enjoy this meal that starts with dessert and works backwards, ending with the salad. Call 702229-1515 for registration and information.

Chillin’ with Santa (ages 50+) Friday, aug. 9, 11:30 a.m.

Cost: $5 for lunch. Registration opens July 1; register by aug. 2. derfelt Senior Center in Lorenzi Park, 3343 W. Washington ave., 702-229-6601. enjoy lunch with friends and

the opportunity to help at-risk students with school supplies.

Call 702-229-6601 for information and registration.

National Thrift Shop Day Trip (ages 50+) thursday, aug. 15, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Cost: $5/member. Registration opens July 1. east Las vegas Community Center, 250 N. eastern ave., 702229-1515. explore the many thrift stores throughout the valley. Bring funds for lunch and shopping.

Call 702-229-1515 for information and registration.

Elvis Murder Mystery (ages 50+) Wednesday, aug. 21, 11:30 a.m.

Cost: $5 lunch with elvis theme. Registration opens July 1; register by aug. 14. derfelt Senior Center in Lorenzi Park, 3343 W. Washington ave., 702-229-6601.

Come dressed like elvis to enjoy lunch with friends. Call 702-229-6601 for information and registration.

Pirate Party (ages 50+) thursday, aug. 29, 11 a.m.

Cost: $6. Registration is required by aug. 27. doolittle Senior Center, 1930 N. J St., 702-229-6125. ahoy Matey! doolittle Senior Center needs a crew to discover a bounty of hidden treasure! Join us for pirate grub and games, if you dare!

Indoor Garage Sale Saturday, aug. 31, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. vendor registration opens July 1. vendors: $5/table. Free for shoppers of all ages. east Las vegas Community Center, 250 N. eastern ave., 702229-1515. vendors must be ages 50+.

Find hidden treasures or sell yours. Call 702-229-1515 for information and vendor registration.

12

July 4-10, 2019 • lAS VEGAS ASIAN JOuRNAl

PeoPle and events

UP Maroons train in Vegas for UAAP Season 82

Balayan of Las Vegas Association celebrates 441st anniversary

BALAYAN of Las Vegas Association commemorates its 441st Anniversary in Sin City. Officers and Members of the Balayan of Las Vegas originated from the town of Balayan, Batangas.

Balayan of Las Vegas’ President Resty Martinez Lopez aims to unite Balayanons in Southern Nevada to share the rich culture of the Balayanons and give back through its programs and projects in their hometown.

Balayan is located in the southwestern part of Batangas and south by the Balayan Bay. The town is rich among the natural resources of sugarcanes and coconuts. The town of Balayan is known for its significant events, which include the Parada ng Lechon (every June 24) and the Feast of Immaculate Conception celebrated annually every December 8. Widely known products originating from the area include the Bagoong Balayan.

In 1978, a commemorative stamp was released by the Philippine Postal Corporation (PHL-

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City Of Las Vegas Cultural Arts August 2019...

PAGE 11 13+) Saturday, Aug. 10; 7 to 10:30 p.m. Dance lesson at 7:30 p.m.

Cost: $10 per person at the door.

Charleston Heights Arts Center, 800 S. Brush St., 702-229-ARTS (2787).

Co-presented by the city of Las Vegas and USA Dance Las Vegas Chapter #4038, a local chapter of the national nonprofit volunteer organization, dedicated to the promotion of ballroom dancing.

For more information, call 702260-0772 or go online to www. usadancelasvegas.com.

New Exhibitions Native Nevada Basketry Traditions Aug. 8-Nov. 7; hours 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; closed Fridays, weekends and holidays.

Artist Reception: Thursday, Nov. 7, 4-6 p.m.

Free and open to the public.

City Hall Grand Gallery, 495 S. Main St., first floor.

Co-curated with Basket Weaver, Rebecca Eagle from Northern Nevada, the focus in this exhibition is to display baskets that have differences and similarities in construction and design having to do with tribal traditions and affiliations. All basket weavers are Native American and either from Nevada, or currently living in Nevada.

For information, visit www.

ArtsLasVegas.org or call 702-229ARTS (2787).

Closing Exhibitions Reverence for the Irrelevant Through Aug. 1; hours 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; closed Fridays, weekends and holidays.

Free and open to the public.

City Hall Grand Gallery, 495 S. Main St., first floor.

This exhibition displays the beauty in irrelevant objects by reconfiguring them into sculptural art. For more information, call 702229-ARTS (2787) or visit www.

President Resty Martinez Lopez and Board of Director Jun Aesquivel recognized the presence ArtsLasVegas.org.

The Wide View of other Las Vegas Bataguenos (Nasugbu, Lipa, Lemery, Taal and Tanauan) Co-presented with Opportunity Village.

Through Aug. 31, hours Thursdays and Fridays, noon-5 p.m.

Free and open to the public.

Mayor’s Gallery, Historic Fifth Street School, 401 S. Fourth St. This exhibition will display visual work in different media created in different settings by a majority 2019-2021 Balayan Las Vegas Association Officers taking their oath of office with Atty. Nadia of female artists participating in classes and workshops at OpportuC. Jurani nity Village’s fine arts program.

Post) to celebrate the 400 years ity of Balayan in the province of As the title suggests the concept Anniversary of the municipal- Batangas. of this show focuses on the wide

Dr. NOEL Fajardo of Las Vegas Gastroenterology and Vissia Calderon of Calderon Law played hosts to the UP Maroons basketball team’s in Las Vegas, before the team flies back to the Philippines for the coming UAAP season.

The UP Maroons almost won last year’s UAAP championship trophy from the Ateneo Blue Eagles.

Bo Perasol, UP Maroons head coach, says that Las Vegas training camp boosts his players’ confidence because of the conditioning, nutrition, training and strenghtening therapy the players get during their two-week training.

It’s been more than 30 years since the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons basketball team won its lone UAAP championship trophy and 20 years since made it to the final hour until last year when the UP Maroons almost took home the championship trophy.

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(as opposite to a narrow) view how artists in the program contemplate the natural world, from observation to imagination and abstraction, and how these viewing angles are non-linear or hierarchic, and multifaceted, layered across, non-vertically. The exhibition’s positive and progressive message is to prove that cultural barriers can be overcome. Also, the notion is on ability rather than on (barrier building) disability of program participants at Opportunity Village. A sense of artistic freedom can be discovered in three multi-media showcases, varying from the Grand scheme of things to the specifically noted. It is being presented as a survey spanning works from 2012-2019.

Current Exhibitions Remnant Featuring the photography of Jason Tannen.

Through Sept. 28, hours Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-9:30 p.m., Saturdays 8:30 a.m.-7 p.m.

Artist Reception: Thursday, Sept. 26, 5-7 p.m.

Free and open to the public.

Charleston Heights Arts Center, 800 S. Brush St. Jason Tannen is a photographer, gallery curator and educator.

Since 1978, his photography has explored the urban landscape, integrating photography with video, installation and time-based digital media. Tannen has exhibited his photographs and video projects widely, in the United States and internationally. This exhibition explores the urban environment and his interest in tracing urban erosion and obsolescence, as seen in storefront displays and the topography of signs, symbols and human representation. For information, visit www.ArtsLasVegas.org or call 702-229-ARTS (2787).

Celebrating Life! 2019 Winner’s Circle Through Oct. 3; hours Monday-Thursday, 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; closed Friday-Sunday and holidays.

Free and open to the public City Hall Chamber Gallery, 495 S. Main St., second floor.

This exhibit features the awardwinning artists of the juried fine arts competition open to residents ages 50+ of Clark, Esmerelda, Lincoln, Mineral and Nye counties of Nevada. Winning 2019 artists include: • Best of Show-J.D. Houghton; • Ceramics: 1st-Allen Graef, 2nd-Diane Sogan, 3rd-Beth Macleod, Honorable Mention-Nanci Rose Marmer;

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• Watercolor: 1st-Linda Smith, 2nd-Patty Stroupe, 3rd-John Birkland, Honorable Mention-Shari O’Donnell; • Sculpture: 1st-Gail Seidner, 2nd-Marian Rasfeld, 3rd-Austine Wood Comarow; • Photography: 1st-Lamar Marchese, 2nd-Robert Oberman, 3rdGlenda Sessums; • Mixed-Media: 1st-Karin Serra, 2nd-Casey Southard, 3rd-Sheila Spargo, Honorable Mention-Beth Phillips-Folwell; • Painting: 1st-Janet Wand, 2ndSue Irish Katz, 3rd-Lily Adamczyk, Honorable Mention-Susan Richardson; Drawing and Pastel: 1stLaura McEwan, 2nd-Diane Crane Benelli, 3rd-Marie Hee, Honorable Mention-Terry Gailey, Honorable Mention-Judi Rosenthal.

For information, visit www.

ArtsLasVegas.org or call 702-229ARTS (2787).

Windows on First: “There Is Nothing I Can Do Without You” Featuring the Artwork of Shan Michael Evans.

Through Oct. 18, available to view at all times.

Open to the public on First Street; no admission fee.

Las Vegas City Hall, Windows on First, 495 S. Main St., along First Street.

This living and evolving public art exhibition features themes of dependency, growth change and circumstance the Las Vegas Valley and the world around us experiences. For information, visit www.

ArtsLasVegas.org or call 702-229ARTS (2787).

First Street Art Trail Aerial Gallery Banner Artwork Exhibition Through March 2, 2020 Vinyl banners will be available to view at all times on First Street from Bridger to Boulder avenues.

The Aerial Gallery along the First Street Art Trail is the newest rendition of this long-running banner artwork program. Artworks

by Natalie Delgado, Shan Michael Evans, Chase McCurdy, Austine Wood Comarow, Diane Bush, Jeff Fulmer, Brian Martinez and Joseph Watson are featured on light poles spanning eight blocks from Bridger to Boulder avenues. Other artworks along the trail include the Windows on First temporary public art installations, Mary Hill’s Cycled Musings bike racks, and Jesse Smigel’s Snowball in Vegas cat sculpture. Visitors are invited to bike and walk the trail to explore and discover. For information, visit www.ArtsLasVegas.org or call 702229-ARTS (2787).

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LAS VEGAS ASIAN JOURNAL • JULy 4-10, 2019

13

Malaka Gharib’s graphic novel “I Was Their American Dream” explores identity as a Filipina-Egyptian

By Christina M. Oriel / AJPress “WHEN I was growing up, my mom would always say: ‘You have to be better than us.’ She never explained what she meant by that. But I understood. I had to somehow rise above my parents’ life in America. But how?”

Filipina-Egyptian writer and artist Malaka Gharib explores this idea of a ‘better life’ in the early pages of her graphic memoir, “I Was Their American Dream,” which was released earlier this spring.

Through comics that illustrate anecdotes — from her Filipina mother and Egyptian father’s immigration stories to her upbringing in Cerritos, California and struggles to find a sense of belonging — Gharib goes beyond the stereotypical caricatures of what Filipinos or Egyptians are thought to look and act like and shows that there’s more to the immigrant experience than what the media portrays.

Gharib, who is the deputy editor and digital strategist of NPR’s Goats and Soda by day, was compelled to explore race and identity following the 2016 election after seeing the “anti-immigrant” rhetoric in the news.

The result: a novel inspired by a ‘90s comic book charting Gharib’s perspective in a mixedrace household through red, white and blue colored-drawings, with some pages inviting the reader to be interactive as well.

The pages take readers through trying to fit in at high school and college, summers in Egypt where her dad moved back to after the divorce, the defiance of being a writer instead of a traditional job, and teaching her husband about her multicultural identity.

Yet, with the specific details of Gharib’s personal story, a universality emerges that especially first generation kids in American can relate to, whether it’s emulating what we see while watching popular TV shows or having to balance the cultures we identify with.

In a conversation with the Asian Journal, Gharib talks about the creation of “I Was Their American Dream” and why it’s time to own our identity and culture.

Asian Journal (AJ): At what point did you want to tell your story as a Filipina-Egyptian growing up in America?

Malaka Gharib (MG): I never really thought much about race issues that deeply until 2016 and seeing all the anti-immigrant rhetoric in the news. The very onedimensional conversations that I was seeing in the media about immigrants — that we were coming here and taking people jobs, that we were terrorists — did not really match with what I grew up with in Cerritos, California. I grew up in a town that was an Asian bubble and had a lot of diversity and people from every social class.

I also had my parents’ own story,

Pages from Gharib’s “I Was Their American Dream” explore questions of identity and belonging as a first-generation growing up in a multicultural, mixed household.

Reprinted from “I Was Their American Dream” (copyright 2019 by Malaka Gharib), published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC

which didn’t match the news either. Thinking about my dad, for example, he’s Muslim. I was a little too young for the post-9/11 discourse about Muslims, but for some reason, 2016 seemed to be the moment because I was an adult by then and I thought about my dad who liked gardening and loved the movie ‘Forrest Gump.’

He’s totally harmless. I wanted to correct the narrative that I was seeing and provide my own nuanced perspective for readers and also my generation.

AJ: How did you decide a graphic novel would be the best platform for doing so?

MG: As for why the graphic novel format, a big part of my artwork is the zine and comic book culture…I would buy zines at Skylight Books in LA and then try to create my own zines and comics at home and get them printed at the copy machine at my uncle’s medical office in Historic Filipinotown.

That was a very foundational way for me to express myself. There wasn’t a question in my mind that I wanted to emulate this diary feel, DIY-style in expressing myself in the book.

AJ: How did this idea become a book deal?

MG: My publisher is Clarkson Potter, which is an imprint of Penguin. I was making stuff and posting it on Instagram. I think I had less than 30 cartoons on there when a friend of mine at NPR said, ‘Hey, my friend is an agent and you should pitch this as a book.’ I didn’t take it seriously because I couldn’t imagine it turning into a book. She was very encouraging about it and said, ‘Here’s your idea: cartoons about being a first generation Filipino-Egyptian-American.’ I think everybody in 2016 understood that there was this need for nuanced immigrant stories and that was something easy to sell to publishers during that time.

AJ: The book is a quick read but is rich with intricate detail — whether it’s your mom using a cookie tin for a sewing kit or your dad eating KFC on the couch. What was the storyboarding process like and how did you decide on what details to include on certain pages?

MG: For me, I wanted to use the least amount of information to convey the maximum story. That’s

what I really love about the comics format in that it’s very restrictive.

It’s like poetry: What are the base images, words and dialogue you need to tell the most impactful story? I had Easter eggs throughout the entire book too...if you knew, you knew. Everybody was like, ‘I totally eat with one foot up and the other foot down on the chair too.’

I’m so glad that people caught that because I put this little Easter egg in there. Like people who understood the sewing kit cookie tin reference — those are the little things I put in there for us.

As for storyboarding, what was it that I wanted to say on a whole?

I wanted to explore my relationship to race during high school and I would then unpack that into further detail. What did I aspire to look like? Why did I think that way? Why did I think that looking that way was the right way to look?

When I unpacked those questions, I tried to use anecdotes to bring those answers to life. I wanted to look like that because I didn’t fit in. Instead of saying that, I tried to think of stories. I thought about [my sister] Min Min and how she took those pictures in high school with all those Filipina girls next to her...I never got to do anything like that because I didn’t have a group of Filipina girlfriends because I didn’t pass as one.

AJ: How reliant were you on past diaries and drawings?

MG: I relied on them pretty heavily. I kept a very serious journal in high school and college and even in my prepubescent years. I have them all at home and looked back at those in case there were any stories that were missing, but I also fact-checked my own history by calling elementary, high school and college friends.

AJ: What conversations did you have with your family and friends? I know you spoke to your mom and dad about telling this family history.

MG: I tried to use a journalist framework, which is you should never let your subject be surprised when they read the final story.

You should be giving them clues along the way as to what the story is about, if it’s going be combative or supportive. In the question, they should be able to infer the tone and content of the story. I asked my parents questions like, ‘Why

An artist and writer, Gharib knew a graphic novel would be a fitting medium to tell her story.

Photo by Andrew Castro

did you and dad get a divorce?’

‘Dad, why did you get so upset when I told you Darren was going to be my husband? Do you feel okay with people knowing that?’

I tried to be very fair to them and give clues to my family members about what the story was going to be about.

AJ: Were there any memories or instances growing up that you wanted to include but didn’t end up because of page constraints?

MG: Absolutely, that’s a great question and haven’t gotten that one before. I wanted to explore the conflict in religion. I think that when you’re growing up in a really devout household, religion is so important and you take it as seriously as your parents. When you’re young, you don’t question religion then and you believe the stories they tell you. You believe that two angels are on your shoulders watching your every move and you believe in heaven and hell and are guided by that righteousness. I wanted to talk about more deeply when I lost my faith in Catholicism, which was around the time I got confirmed. We went on this retreat in Big Bear and it was weird and cultish and I felt really uncomfortable. They made us kneel around in a circle and they said they would bring Jesus out at any second but they made us pray for an hour and when they finally brought Jesus out, he was a candle. I was so mad. It confirmed to me that I was better off as a Muslim anyways in the end.

I wanted to include that story in the book because I think that

religious pressure is such a big part of the immigrant experience too. I had limited space and also, I had a great editor named Kat Chow, who is one of the founding members of NPR’s Code Switch podcast. I hired her to help guide me in the process of helping me explore my race and identity issues. She basically said, ‘You can’t fit everything in. You just have to unpack a few things.’ I let that one go but that was something I really wanted to go into.

AJ: The pages where you compare praying in a Filipino Catholic household versus the Egyptian Muslim household and the contradictions were interesting. Do you still feel that pressure of being on top of the customs and language when you’re with your sides of the family?

MG: Oh yeah! My dad and a lot of my Arab family are on Instagram and there are a lot of things I just don’t post. I don’t post photos of me smoking hookah or me eating during the month of Ramadan... out of respect of my family members. I don’t post overly provocative clothing because it’s very conservative in the Middle East and I don’t want my family to get the wrong idea about me.

AJ: Growing up what were some of your favorite books or authors who inspired you to be a writer and journalist?

MG: This is a very cliché thing but Tatay [maternal grandfather], when I was growing up in the 8th grade, he gave me a copy of ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ and it was a PAGE 14

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Sheriff Lombardo meets with Las Vegas Asian American community leaders

IN an effort to strengthen the relationship between Las Vegas’ Asian American community and law enforcement, Sheriff Joe Lombardo and his Area Command Captains met on Wednesday, June 26 at the Min Indian Bistro Spring Valley.

During the dinner, hosted by the Asian American Group of Las Vegas and the Asian American Coalition of Nevada, current plans for the Chinatown and other concerns by the Asian American communities were discussed.

In his speech, Lombardo highlighted successful programs done by local police force to decrease crime and thanked the community for the support.

AJPress photos by Robert Macabagdal

Malaka Gharib’s graphic novel “I Was Their American...

PAGE 13 very mature, introspective, moody, coming-of-age story...I probably read it six times through the duration of high school but I really loved the poignant sensitivity and care of Holden Caulfield. I wanted to emulate that in my writing style too. Comics and zines too, but I didn’t get into reading longer form or mainstream ones until after college. I read a lot of indie ones but I don’t even remember the titles of them. I was also really moved by the American Girl books.

I like wholesome things in general, which is why the book, you could argue, can be perceived as wholesome and appropriate for young adults. I liked the historical stories

about the girls, learning about their lives and cultures, and how they shaped them and their view of the world. I always wished they would have a book for a Filipino Egyptian so I tried to think about writing one.

AJ: You spend your time at NPR writing about poverty and global development. But you’ve written pieces about your Filipino culture, whether through food or your husband wearing a Barong to your grandfather’s birthday. What was it like pitching those stories to your editor at NPR and having that platform to talk about your identity on a mainstream scale?

MG: I am very lucky to be at

a place where I can have such a huge platform...I did a piece about the Filipino lunch club we had and one about mental health and I did one recently about Thanksgiving... and an interesting perspective for the mainstream to see that other cultures just don’t eat turkey and mashed potatoes. I feel this obligation to write about stories I’m passionate about. I’m always thinking about the people I grew up with in Southern California, what they might be interested in reading because I am them and I am interested in reading that stuff too.

AJ: You have some anecdotes around the question of ‘what are you?’ In the book, you write ‘I used to love this question because it gave me the opportunity to talk about my ethnicity. But not everyone felt that way.’ How have you come into your identity over the years?

MG: There’s no better time than now to proclaim from the rooftops your ethnicity. If this how you identify yourself and you are proud of it, then why should we hide that?

There is something so beautiful about representing your culture...

For a little bit, I didn’t want to tell people who I am but now, I want you to know exactly who I am and I want to celebrate my ethnicity.

AJ: Through this journey, what does it mean for you to be Filipina?

MG: My whole life, we were taught that being Filipino was a bad thing. In high school, I went to school with a lot of other Asians but I quickly understood that Filipinos were at the bottom of whatever hierarchy of the Asians with the Japanese at the top. When I would go to Egypt, my dad would tell me not to tell others that I was Filipino because, in the Middle East, Filipinos are the help. I had thought it wasn’t an honorable thing to be Filipino, but now, I get so excited when I see another Filipino out in the world. It’s a time to celebrate each other and it has lifted my heart in so many ways.

AJ: What do you want readers to take away from “I Was Their American Dream”?

MG: First of all, I hope people can relate to this book who aren’t Filipino or Egyptian. What I’ve been amazed by is that so many people have found it relatable. It’s not just Filipinos who are reaching out and saying thank you for writing this book. It’s been people from so many countless cultures.

I’ve seen the book become a force to bring people together like I saw a post of a group of young people having a kamayan dinner and said they were inspired by the book to have the dinner and talk about being Filipino. Someone told me, ‘This book makes me want to call my grandma and celebrate everything that we are.’

Gharib inside her childhood room in Lakewood, California.

I want people to be proud of who they are. No matter who you are, take pride in it. There’s nothing to be ashamed of and you don’t have to try to be something that you’re not.

AJ: In this book and even in your other writings and posts on social media, you share a lot of yourself. What’s something people may not know about you?

MG: I actually don’t find the things I share too personal. I feel like the stories are so universal that they’re impossible to be truly personal. I hope that makes people more vulnerable. In this world where everything’s so fake and posed, you’re constantly being promoted at by ads and everything is so algorithmically chosen for you so I want there to be some

Photo by Andrew Castro

vulnerability, kindness, personal connection and intimacy. I hope the things I make bring people together or a person closer to how they’re feeling.

AJ: For you, what does the American Dream mean?

MG: I never knew that I needed to have an American Dream. I only thought that American Dreams were for outsiders. But I grew up feeling like an outsider too in this country and I realized that I also needed to have a dream, which was weird. But it wasn’t like my parents’ dream of a white picket fence or buying all my titos some polo shirts from the outlet. Mine was to feel a sense of belonging in my own country — the country that my parents told me I belonged in, yet it hadn’t felt that way.

This interview has been lightly

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