LOS ANGELES
VOL. XXI, NO. 18
ONE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP: Rise to Power Mixed Martial Arts at MOA The Arena May 31: Lightweight Iranian Kamal “The Prince of Persia” Shalorus, (upside down) about to pin Filipino Fighter Eduard “The Landslide” Folayang, to the canvas on his way to beating the Filipino fighter. Story on page 6. PHOTO: BOY CABRIDO/Weekend Balita/US Asian Post
JUNE 8-14, 2013
Aquino admits rift with Enrile But Palace downplays its effect on bills MANILA, June 6 (Mabuhay) – The head of the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office (PLLO) on Thursday admitted not being in good terms with resigned Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile but denied that it has caused the vetoing of bills in the 15th Congress. Secretary Manuel Mamba, who acts as President Benigno Aquino III’s link to Congress, said local politics in Cagayan have caused a rift between himself and Enrile, who also hails from the same province. “I can’t go directly to the Senate President. In a way, it has affected our coordination, but we tried for it not to be affected,” Mamba said in a phone interview Thursday. He added that he once attempted to reach out to Enrile, but the resigned Senate leader supposedly declined his invitation to talk. “I reported it to the President. Ang sinabi niya, basta, diyan ka. We just decided to let my undersecretary coordinate with the Senate. I’ll be the one concentrated with the House and the Palace,” Mamba said. ‘Lack of coordination’ Acting Senate President Jinggoy Estrada, however, said he believes that the discord between Enrile and Mamba really took its toll on legislation in this Congress. “There is really a lack of coordination on the part of the PLLO. The PLLO head is not in good terms with the Senate President,” Estrada said in a separate press briefing. He added that he only saw Mamba at the Senate only once, during See AQUINO-ENRILE RIFT, page 12 deliberations on the sin tax
President Benigno S. Aquino III converses with Vice President Jejomar Binay during the 5th Global Conference of the Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC) Opening Ceremony at the Reception Hall, Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City on Thursday (January 31, 2013). (MNS photo)
Fil-Chi businessmen vow to pay correct taxes
Filipino peacekeepers such as these officers of the Philippine contingent of the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) stand in formation during a medal ceremony at UNAMID’s Super Camp in El Fasher, Sudan, are volunteered contingents from the Republic of the Philippines as part of its contribution to UN and worldwide peace. El Fasher, Sudan. UN Photo/Albert Gonzalez Farran. www.unmultimedia.
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Filipino UN peacekeeper in Golan wounded MANILA, June 6, 2013 (AFP) – A Philippine UN peacekeeper in the Golan Heights was wounded by shrapnel Thursday amid fighting between Syrian government and rebel forces, the Filipino military said. “Currently, he is being treated by medics inside a shelter and is in stable and good condition,” a military statement said. Shrapnel hit the soldier just above the right ankle, it added. News of the casualty came a month after the Philippine government said it may withdraw from the UN peacekeeping force in the Golan Heights because of security concerns, following earlier abductions of See UN PEACEKEEPER, page 12
MANILA, June 5 (Mabuhay) – President Benigno Aquino III’s speech took a less strident tone when he hosted the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc. (FFCCCII) in Malacañang for the oath-taking of its new set of officers. Gone was the scolding that the Chinese-Filipino businessmen received during the group’s convention in March when Aquino chided them for not paying the correct taxes and warned them of consequences. Despite that dressing-down, the FFCCCII made good on its commitment to help the government address the backlog in classrooms and handed See FIL-CHI BUSINESSMAN, page 12
U.S. phone surveillance of millions triggers outrage Verizon has been ‘under secret court order to provide records’ BY MICHAEL MATHES
WASHINGTON, June 6, 2013 (AFP) – Civil liberty groups, privacy campaigners and some U.S. lawmakers reacted with outrage Thursday to revelations that the U.S. intelligence community is monitoring millions of Americans’ telephone records. As Washington was jolted by overnight news that U.S. carrier Verizon was under secret court order to provide sweeping amounts of phone data to intelligence agencies, senior U.S. lawmakers insisted the program was legal and has been going on for years. But critics vented their anger at what appears to be a dramatically broad scope of surveillance. “It’s a program in which some untold number of
innocent people have been put under the constant surveillance of government agents,” said Jameel Jaffer, deputy legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). “It is beyond Orwellian, and it provides further evidence of the extent to which basic democratic rights are being surrendered in secret to the demands of unaccountable intelligence agencies.” Former vice president Al Gore, on his Twitter feed, agreed: “In (this) digital era, privacy must be a priority. Is it just me, or is secret blanket surveillance obscenely outrageous?” London’s The Guardian newspaper reported that Verizon, one of the major U.S. telephone operators, is under a topSee SURVEILLANCE, page 12
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