August 7-9, 2019 Volume 29 - No. 61 • 2 Sections - 16 Pages
USA
DATELINE Popular boba chain settles on alleged sexual harassment of young Filipina employees FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA
Lawsuit alleges manager of two franchises targeted Filipina employees between the ages of 17 and 23
Duterte prays: Spare PH from ISIS attacks by RITCHEL
MENDIOLA AJPress
PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte on Monday, August 5, admitted that he has been praying to God to spare the Philippines from possible attacks by the Islamic State (ISIS). According to him, the thought of the extremist group harming the country makes him nervous. He said he is afraid that a lot of Filipino will lose their lives if ISIS enters the Philippines. “Meron po akong ISIS at ito yung nagbibigay sa
akin ng kaba talaga. I am not a person easily swayed itong mga dito, but… nakikita naman niyo, nababasa naman ninyo — CNN, you go to YouTube, wherever you are — makita ninyo ngayon (I’m still thinking about ISIS and that makes me nervous. I am not a person who is easily swayed but you see what’s happening on CNN or on YouTube, wherever you are),” said Duterte in a speech in Malacañang Monday evening. “Ang tinatakutan ko yung (What I’m scared of is)… just like Iraq, Syria na maraming inosenteng taong nadadali (where a lot of innocent people died). Ta-
lagang ako’y nagdarasal, I’m praying, I really pray, talagang lumuluhod ako sa Diyos na (I really kneel in front of God) to spare us the kind of brutality and cruelty in our country because it will really be bloody. Bloody as it can ever be,” he added. However, Duterte assured that he will not go down without fighting. “Ayaw kong mag-umpisa. Ayaw ko naman sa panahon ko na gagawin mo sa akin ‘yan. Do it some other time pero ‘wag sa akin. Hindi talaga ako papayag at hindi ako magpalugi (I don’t want to start it.
u PAGE A2
IN late July, the popular boba and restaurant chain Tapioca Express settled a sexual harassment lawsuit with the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on allegations that a franchise owner harassed young Filipina employees. Per the settlement, Tapioca Express is to pay $102,500. The lawsuit alleges that the owner of two Tapioca Express stores in Chula Vista and National City “intentionally” took “advantage of time alone with” young Filipina employees between Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. earlier called for an end to the the ages of 17 and 23 to make “repeated and un- “visa upon arrival” privilege of foreigners entering the Philippines. Philstar.com photo wanted comments of a sexual nature and physical contact,” according to the EEOC. “We commend the young women for coming forward to shine a light on the harassment to which they were subjected,” Christopher Green,
PH visa to be stamped on passports of Chinese nationals
u PAGE A4
Cesar Sayoc, Fil-Am who mailed pipe bombs, sentenced to 20 years in prison THE Filipino American man who pled guilty in March for mailing inoperative pipe bombs to high-profile Democrat leaders and public figures was sentenced on Monday, August 5, to 20 years in prison and five years of supervised release. In reading the sentence, U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff concluded that Cesar Sayoc, 57, made a “conscious choice” to design bombs that would not explode. “He hated his victims, he wished them no good,” said U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff. “But he was not so lost as to wish them dead, at least not by his own hand.” Sayoc was charged for 65 felony counts from four sets of charges after he mailed 16 explosive packages to 13 political targets including former President Barack Obama, former Vice President President Joe Biden, and current 2020 presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris.
u PAGE A3
by PATRICIA LOURDES Philstar.com
VIRAY
THE Philippine visa will now be stamped on passports of Chinese nationals wishing to enter the country. President Rodrigo Duterte has approved Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr.’s proposal to replace the practice of putting the visa on a piece of paper, presBEAUTIES AND THE PRESIDENT. President Rodrigo Duterte shares a light moment with the Miss Earth Philippines 2019 winners who paid a idential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said.
u PAGE A2
courtesy call on the president at the Malacañang Palace on Monday, August 5.
Malacañang photo by King Rodriguez
Sara Carpio undecided about Senators weigh in on running for president in 2022 reimposition of death penalty by DAPHNE
GALVEZ Inquirer.net
by DALE
G. ISRAEL Inquirer.net
CEBU CITY –– Presidential daughter and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio is still undecided as to whether or not she will run for the country’s top post in 2022. In an interview Tuesday, August 6, Carpio said she was still keeping herself busy with running the affairs and projects for Davao City. Political plans for 2022 elections, she said, were still not discussed. “I haven’t thought about 2022 yet. My administration is busy to make sure Davao City would experience some gains during the administration of President Ro- Presidential daughter and Davao City Mayor drigo Duterte. I don’t want the Dabawenos to be disap- Sara Duterte-Carpio attended Cebu’s 450th pointed,” Carpio said. Founding Anniversary on Tuesday, August 6.
u PAGE A2
Inquirer.net photo by Dale Israel
SENATORS in the 18th Congress on Tuesday, August 6, had their first debate on the plenary floor on the reimposition of the death penalty. After Sen. Manny Pacquiao delivered a privilege speech on the matter, several senators took their turn to interpellate. In his speech, Pacquiao insisted that “it is high time” that the death penalty be imposed against drug traffickers and manufacturers as the government’s war on drugs could no longer deter them
committing crimes. However, Senate President Vicente Sotto III interjected that among the reasons behind the continuing problem on illegal drugs is “bad demand reduction strategy.” “We won’t need the death penalty. We won’t need these laws if our demand reduction strategy is very successful,” Sotto said during the interpellation. He proposed that the government implement resistance education programs in schools so that children would know that consuming drugs is bad.
u PAGE A2
Advocates respond to USCIS plan to cut parole for family of Filipino WWII vets by CHRISTINA
M. ORIEL
tional chairman of the Filipino Veterans Recognition and Eduction Project, said the pronounceFILIPINO AMERICAN veteran ment is an “egregious act of inorganizations are decrying the justice and discrimination.” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration “This is another broken promServices (USCIS) announcement ise against our veterans. It is to terminate the pathway that re- senseless and totally unacceptunited Filipino World War II vet- able to terminate a program that erans with their families. would have allowed children to USCIS on Friday, August 2 said rejoin their parents,” Taguba that it plans to cease the Filipino said. “It is patently arbitrary and World War II Veterans Parole unjust to target aging and ailing program in line with President veterans who only have a few Donald Trump’s 2017 executive years to live.” order on border security and The administration said it will immigration enforcement that stop the categorical process and File photo from June 9, 2016 shows Filipino World War II veteran Rudy Panaglima speaking about the parole program for veterans like him, as Senators Tim Kaine and Mazie Hirono look called for determining parole on determine per case if the parole has “urgent humanitarian reaon. Under the Filipino World War II Veterans Parole program, Panaglima’s two adult children a “case-by-case basis.” Maj. Gen. Antonio Taguba, na- sons or significant public benewere able to come to the United States. Photo courtesy of FilVetREP AJPress
fit” consistent with the Immigration and Nationality Act. “In a time where the Trump administration often questions the patriotism of others, we question where is that patriotism now for our veterans? When America needed them, our Filipino World War II veterans fought and sacrificed…Parole authority is provided when there is significant public benefit or an urgent humanitarian reason. The public benefit of our WWII Filipino veterans was met in their service to country nearly 80 years ago,” Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC, an organization that advocated for the parole program, said in a statement follow-
ing Friday’s announcement. The Filipino World War II Veterans Parole program, which was rolled out in 2016 under then-President Barack Obama, expedited the process for certain family members of the veterans — who are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents — to come to the country. While waiting for their immigrant visas to be issued, these relatives could provide immediate support and care for the aging veterans, given that visa wait times for Filipino American families can exceed 20 years. As of June 21, 301 Filipinos have received travel documents
u PAGE A3