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National govt share in Malampaya fund continueD to decline in 2016

Fuel, power and cash T

By Lenie Lectura

megawatts (MW), equivalent to about 40 percent of Luzon’s powergeneration requirements. The project, located west of Palawan, was launched in 2001.

The Malampaya project is a joint undertaking of the Philippine government and the private sector. The project is spearheaded by the DOE, and developed and operated by Shell Philippines Exploration BV (SPEX), with a 45-percent stake on behalf of joint-venture partners Chevron Malampaya Llc.—also with a 45-percent stake—and Philippine National Oil Co.-Exploration Corp. The latter holds the remaining 10 percent.

Under the service contract agreement, 70 percent of the gross proceeds from the sale of natural gas would go to the contractor to recover the investment cost. The remaining 30 percent is shared by the government and the consortium on a 60-40 basis, respectively.

HE government’s share from the energy-resource development fund, commonly known as the Malampaya fund, reached P13.43 billion in 2016, slightly lower than the P14.32 billion recorded a year earlier.

Spending habits

During the Aquino administration, former Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho L. Petilla recalled that P15 billion of the government’s share from the Malampaya project was spent. The Arroyo administration, meanwhile, used up almost P20 billion of the Malampaya fund, according to Petilla.

The government, Petilla had said, used the funds for the fuel requirements of the National Power Corp. (NPC)-Small Power Utilities Group, for the Pantawid Pasada fuel-subsidy program for jeepneys, and for the cost incurred when it took delivery of a Navy ship donated by the US government.

The Malampaya project fuels three natural-gas power plants with a combined capacity of 2,700

Debt payments

₧235.662B

The balance of the Malampaya fund as of 2016, according to the DOE

shell philippines

Based on the Department of Energy (DOE) data obtained by the BusinessMirror, the collection of the government’s share from the proceeds of the Malampaya Natural Gas project operations last year stood at P13,435,503,178.93, of which P5,374,201,272.14 was allocated as “source of assistance to LGUs [local government units], while the net share of the national government stood at P8,061,301,906.79.”

In 2015 the total government share amounted P14,320, 625,845.66. Of the total amount, LGU assistance stood at P5,728, 250,338.82, while the remaining net national government share reached P8,592,375,506.84.

The balance of the Malampaya fund reached P235.662 billion as of 2016, according to the DOE.

The DOE, which is now led by Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi, strongly urged lawmakers to pass a legislation that will allow the government to tap the Malampaya fund to pay for the debts incurred by the NPC over the years.

These debts—in the form

of stranded debts and stranded contract costs—are being passed on to consumers via the collection of universal charge (UC), an item found in the electricity bills.

Stranded debts refer to any unpaid financial obligations of NPC that have not been liquidated by the proceeds from the sales and privatization of NPC assets.

Stranded contract costs of NPC or distribution utility, meanwhile, refer to the excess of the contracted cost of electricity under eligible contracts over the actual selling price of the contracted energy output of such contracts in the market.

The stranded costs are due to onerous “take-or-pay” provisions in NPC contracts with independent power producers (IPPs). In essence, this allowed the IPPs to charge NPC for used and unused power.

Legislated measure

The Malampaya fund could only be utilized for energy development projects. “We cannot utilize it, except for ERD [energy resource development]…. Why not use the ERD fund specifically to address the issues on the universal charges, standard contract Continued on A2

Local execs, fishermen laud PCG patrol in northern waters

Rebirth of Batanes fishing grounds

A sunset scene in the grassland of Vayang, or Rolling Hills, in Basco, Batan Island, Batanes. Richard Balonglong | Dreamstime.com

T

By Rene Acosta

he military will sustain its maritime patrol in the country’s northern waters, as local government officials and fishermen in Batanes note a marked decline in the incursion of foreign poachers in the area.

PESO exchange rates n US 49.6700

The air and sea patrols by the Air Force and the Navy, and even by the Philippine Coast Guard, were being conducted both for territorial operations and for the government’s effort to provide a fishing haven for Filipino fishermen.

No less than Batanes Governor Marilou H. Cayco has relayed

to Armed Forces Northern Luzon Command (Nolcom) commander Lt. Gen. Romeo Tanalgo the benefits to fishermen of the frequent maritime patrols by the military.

Tanalgo said Cayco extended the gratitude of Batanes fishermen for the continuous maritime patrol being conducted by the Air Force and the Navy in the country’s

northernmost maritime territory.

The Batanes governor wrote a letter to Tanalgo, wherein she said she was being flooded with positive feedback, especially from the fishermen who are mostly benefiting from the patrols.

“The incessant problem of poaching in our waters took a Continued on A2

n japan 0.4532 n UK 62.0577 n HK 6.3917 n CHINA 7.2087 n singapore 36.3951 n australia 37.2326 n EU 52.6651 n SAUDI arabia 13.2457

Cayco: “The incessant problem of poaching in our waters took a respite after the patrol, and [that], according to our fisherfolk, they can now fish without being in persistent fear of encountering boats with foreign markings.”

Source: BSP (12 April 2017 )

NewsSunday BusinessMirror

A2 Sunday, April 16, 2017

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Rebirth of Batanes fishing grounds Continued from A1

respite after the patrol, and [that] according to our fisherfolk, they can now fish without being in persistent fear of encountering boats with foreign marking,” Cayco wrote.

“Our scarce resources and means in protecting our own territory was obliterated by the AFP’s genuine concern to our people by keeping our people safe and free from threats of foreign poachers,” she added.

Strategic importance

On March 19 the BRP Ramon Alcaraz (FF16) sailed to Mavulis Island in Itbayat, Batanes, for patrol, and also took it to the waters of Ilocos Norte and Cagayan. Since then, the patrol was sustained.

The Nolcom fired off its maritime domain awareness activities in Mavulis Island early last year, following reports about the regular presence of foreign poachers in its waters.

But other than securing its waters for fishermen, the military also wanted to keep the strategic importance of Mavulis.

Mavulis, the country’s northernmost island which borders Taiwan, sits along the Bashi Channel. During their first visit to Mavulis last year, Tanalgo and other officials from Nolcom found in the island trash with Chinese markings, indicating the irregular presence of poachers there.

Aside from illegal fishing, foreign intruders also come into the island to hunt for wild goats and other previously domesticated animals that were left in the island by Ivatans who attempted to settle there.

Violators

The importance of the maritime patrol in the waters off Mavulis was earlier underscored by Ruelle Ibanes, the former mayor of Itbayat.

“We are very thankful for this [patrol]. We have been looking forward to this for decades and I hope that our presence out there [Mavulis] will be sustained because we can only do so much in preserving our territorial integrity, as well as our source of livelihood, which is fishing,” he said.

Ibanes complained that their maritime waters are continuously being violated by Taiwanese, Vietnamese and Chinese fishermen.

“Even fishermen from the capital town of Basco on small fishing boats go there to fish and usually encounter big fishing boats from Taiwan, Vietnam and those from Mainland China out there,” he said.

Tanalgo said the military will support all undertakings of the municipal government in securing Mavulis, noting that civilian participation is a key factor in securing and safeguarding the country’s maritime domain in the area.

The military is also planning to construct an airstrip in Itbayat.

In March last year the Department of National Defense also announced plans to build a maritime facility in Mahatao, also in Batanes, as part of the government’s effort to secure its maritime territory. The facility would include a Navy detachment.

The facility in Mahatao will have naval installations that could provide logistics, training and others support services in the conduct of prompt and sustained fleet and marine operation in Batanes.

A view of the Mahatao Boat Shelter in Batanes, made to protect vessels from big waves during typhoons. Mark Pelobello | Dreamstime.com

Fuel, power and cash Continued from A1

cost and standard debts?” Energy Undersecretary Felix William Fuentebella suggested.

For this to be implemented, Fuentebella said, “It can’t be done on an executive order alone. It has to be coursed through a legislation.”

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said the use of the Malampaya fund is “very specific”. It is possible, however, that the said funds can be used for other purposes.

“That’s a possibility. The stranded cost and stranded debt of the defunct NPC is truly a burden to our customers. We have to find ways to eliminate that added burden,” he said in a text message.

To do this, the senator, who is also the chairman of the Senate Committee on Energy, said, “We need to come up with a law.”

“We’re willing to look at it. We are willing to look at the proposals,” he added.

Fuentebella could not stress enough the importance of the fund to pay for NPC’s debts, which are now assumed by the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM).

“The debts will just balloon.

Sana mas mabilis, kasi by 2019 mas mataas iyung mag ma-mature na debts,” he said, adding that legislators were receptive to the DOE’s proposal, which was also formally presented in August last year to the Economic Development Cluster of the Duterte administration.

Pay more

Last month the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) allowed the PSALM to continue collecting P0.19-per-kilowatt-hour (kWh) UC originally allowed from April 2013 to February 2017.

The said amount was supposed to cover PSALM’s stranded costs of P53.851 billion incurred from 2007-2010.

However, PSALM’s collection from April 2013 to February this year stood at P48 billion, short

by P5.5 billion. As such, the ERC extended PSALM’s collection of P0.19-per-kWh UC to cover for the remaining P5.5 billion worth of remaining stranded contract cost incurred up to 2010.

“The amount might seem small, but they have been charging this amount to millions of consumers for the last four years.

With the ERC decision, consumers will mostly likely pay more for the next nine years,” Party-list Rep. Teodoro A. Casiño of Bayan Muna said.

Casiño wants Congress to probe the decision of the ERC. He is also contemplating on filing a case before the court to prohibit PSALM from passing on to consumers the debts incurred by the NPC.

Consumer burden

The Matuwid na Singil sa Kuryente Consumer Alliance Inc. (MSK) also said consumers should not pay for these debts.

“The way things are going all debts and losses of NPC that would not be covered by PSALM’s proceeds and collections for privatization would eventually be recovered from electricity consumers nationwide. The losses and deficits are combinations of so many factors, many not be the fault and to the benefit of the consumers. Hence, it would be a grave injustice to our people to make them responsible for all the financial losses,” it said.

Under Republic Act 9136, or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001, PSALM was tasked to collect these charges from endconsumers in order to fully pay for the stranded contract cost.

For PSALM’s part, the agency’s officer in charge Lourdes A lzona said her office is determined to reduce the debts of NPC. “We are continuously identifying certain measures to avoid and/

or minimize costs specifically on refinancing. Among these steps are stringent management of collectibles, sale of real-estate assets, disposal of other assets which entail high costs for maintenance,” she said in a text message.

PSALM, she said, plans to sell some real-estate assets that could fetch an estimated P5 billion.

“The sale would be staggered since we still have to sort out which can be sold, depending on the land title. There are areas that can be sold, such as the resort in Puerto Asul, while there are others that can’t be sold, such as the one in Bagac,” Alzona said.

This plan, she added, will be over and above the UC administration and other regular activities to support the liquidation of PSALM’s financial obligations, that being its main mandate.

PSALM has reduced its liabilities by over P44 billion last year, bringing down the power state firm’s obligations to P506.34 billion.

“As of end-2016, PSALM was able to reduce its financial obligations by P44.47 billion from the 2015 level of P550.81 billion to P506.34 billion, broken down into P275.36 billion in debts and P230.98 billion in BOT [build-operate-transfer] obligations,” Alzona said.

The reduction in the level of financial obligations includes bullet payments in 2016 totaling P37.48 billion made for the following bonds: $160 million, Yankee bond; P7.96 billion, Salomon Brother Inc.; $478 million, Citigroup; P23.20 billion, Deutsche Bank; and P6.32 billion, Hongkong Shanghai tranche B-Deutsche Bank/HSBC. PSALM sourced internal funds—from operations of remaining plants and collection of privatization proceeds—to pay off NPC’s debts.

The remaining obligations would also be settled through privatization collection proceeds.

The World BusinessMirror

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Sunday, April 16, 2017

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Kim Il Sung’s birthday party one to watch for Korea traders

I

t’s set to be a long week for Korea watchers. Donald J. Trump’s tweet on Tuesday claiming North Korea is “looking for trouble” is stoking the sense of unease that’s wiped $30 billion from South Korean equity values this week and driven a spike in the nation’s debt risk.

Those mulling over what comes next should familiarize themselves with the North Korean holiday calendar, as a series of events over the next 13 days—from founder Kim Il Sung’s 105th birthday to the army’s anniversary— raise the chance of provocative action from the nuclear-armed state.

“Some traders are concerned that North Korea might conduct a sixth nuclear test around these events, prompting a US-ChinaSouth Korea response,” Thierry Wizman, a global interest-rates and currency strategist at Macquarie Group Ltd. in New York, said in an e-mail. “The market’s attention will remain fixated on tensions in the region.”

After an almost uninterrupted selloff since Trump’s Syria strike sparked concern over what it means for his stance toward North Korea, assets in the South took a breather on Wednesday, with the

Kospi index bouncing off a onemonth low following a surge in volatility bets. The won closed up 0.4 percent in Seoul after a six-day slump that’s earned it the mantle of the worst-performing emerging-market currency over the past week. South Korea is seeking to defuse concern as war angst builds.

W h i le t he US emph a si zed it wasn’t interested in regime change in North Korea, the diversion of a warship into the region ratcheted up tensions, fueling losses in a market more accustomed to shrugging off North Korean attention seeking.

Busy month

The “Day of the Sun” holiday on April 15 commemorates the birth of Kim Il Sung, North Korea’s long dead founder and current leader Kim Jong Un’s grandfather. April has proven to be an active month for North Korea in the past, with

North Koreans walk past Ryomyong Street, the newest residential development in Pyongyang, North Korea on Tuesday. North Korea will mark the 105th anniversary of the birth of late leader Kim Il Sung on April 15. AP

a failed rocket launch marking the month in 2012. In Apr il 2009 the countr y fired a missile claiming it was a satellite, prompting the strengthening of United Nations’s sanctions.

“I don’t think the actual situation is too different from previous episodes at this time of year around the birthday celebrations and US-South Korea military exercises,” said Ashley Perrott, head

I don’t think the actual situation is too different from previous episodes at this time of year around the birthday celebrations and US-South Korea military exercises.”—Perrott

of pan-Asia fixed income at UBS Asset Management in Singapore.

“The variable this time that is an unknown for the market is the US president and what the reaction function will be, particularly post the Syria events. That is what is making markets cautious.”

Kim Il Sung’s birthday holiday spills over into Sunday as well, and is followed on April 25 by a holiday marking the foundation of the North Korean military 85 years ago. With Japan’s foreign ministry issuing a travel alert for South Korea, the finance ministry in Seoul has said it will take action if volatility in the markets

increases. Ministry officials met with regulators and the Bank of Korea (BOK) on Wednesday to discuss the impact of geopolitical tension on the market.

President Trump spoke with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, about North Korea by phone on Wednesday.

W hile the current tensions probably won’t wreak long-term damage on Korean assets, Aberdeen Asset Management Plc. is bearish on the won and South Korean debt, said Singapore-based investment manager Leong Lin Jing. The Federal Reserve’s plans to reduce its balance sheet aren’t priced into Korean bonds yet and domestic inflation is expected to accelerate next quarter, pushing yields higher, he said.

A lso looming is Thursday’s BOK polic y rev iew—w ith int e re s t r at e s e x p e c t e d to b e held—and t he US Treasur y’s semiannual report on foreignexchange policy. The document, which could land as soon as this weekend, may l abel some of America’s trading partners as currency manipulators. South Korea’s presidential election is scheduled for May 9.

“The market continues to be concerned over the risk of a US attack on North Korea,” said Masashi Murata, a currency strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman in Tokyo. “A risk is just a risk, but the possibility may be higher than before.” Bloomberg News

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Syrian refugee children run at an informal refugee camp, at AlMarj town in Bekaa valley, east Lebanon Lebanon. For the millions of Syrian refugees scattered across camps and illegal settlements across the region, the chemical attack on a town in northern Syria and subsequent US strike was a rare moment when the world briefly turned its attention to Syria, before turning away again. AP

In Syria and Nigeria, Trump faces the limits of US power

W

ASHINGTON—President Donald J. Trump, inspired

by TV images of faraway suffering to launch missile strikes against Syria, may be about to discover a lesson that has confounded presidents for 25 years: US power can only do so much.

UK households feel the pinch as real earnings almost stagnate

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nited K ingdom living standards are under more pressure than at any time in two-and-a-half years and the squeeze is getting tighter.

0.1%

The pay rise in United Kingdom in three months through February, the weakest since the third quarter of 2014

Adjusted for inflation, regular pay rose just 0.1 percent in the three months through February, the weakest since the third quarter of 2014. That figure could turn negative in the coming months if forecasts for a further pickup in price growth—to 3 percent or even higher—come to pass.

Inflation has jumped in the past year because of the pound’s decline since the Brexit vote, and that, coupled w ith lack luster wage growth, is eating into the spending power of consumers, the engine of the economy. But there was some hope for shoppers on Wednesday that the outlook might not be as bad as feared.

Tesco Plc., the UK supermarket leader, said it would absorb some of the sterling-induced cost bump and keep prices low, which could ramp up pressure on competitors to do the same.

T here’s still likely to be a squeeze on consumers, with the Bank of England predicting that wage growth will remain “modest”. But some wage f lexibility may actually be a good thing, if economic g row th slows as predicted, according to Tapan Datta, head of asset allocation at Aon Hewitt.

“Wages have been f lexible,

that’s taken the strain,” Datta said on Bloomberg Television. “At least the employment levels are not going to necessarily be jolted hugely.” The squeeze is “probably better than having a lot people thrown out of work”, he said.

In February alone real earnings fell 0.4 percent, the first singlemonth decline since August 2014.

Three-month nominal incomes rose an annual 2.2 percent, the weakest since July.

Record vacancies

Earnings are slowing despite unemployment—at 4.7 percent— being close to historic lows. In the latest three months, the number of people in work rose by 39,000 to a near-record 31.8 million. Vacancies in the first quarter rose to the highest ever.

While one Bank of England (BOE) policy-maker has responded to accelerating inflation and broken ranks to vote for a rate increase, the majority are focused on the wage metrics. They say the sluggish performance suggests there is slack in the labor market that could weigh on pay settlements for years, meaning there is no urgent need to tighten.

“Involuntary part-time and self-employed workers, the threat of future job losses due to automation, demographic changes, all work in the direction of leading to less upward wage pressure for a given level of unemployment,” Gertjan Vlieghe of the BOE said last week.

T he BOE say s t he jobless rate can fall as low as 4.5 percent without fueling inf lation, though that may not be tested anytime soon. Economists see unemployment edging up to 5.1 percent by early next year as Brexit negotiations take their toll on demand and investment.

The slowdown may already be happening, with the increase in employment in the latest period falling well short of forecasts.

Bloomberg News

That truth is also embedded in another set of disturbing images that Trump has not cited publicly: those from Nigeria’s conflict-torn northeast, where a very different crisis is drawing different US action toward different ends.

Those two conflicts, in both their contrasts and commonalities, reveal something of the role that Trump has taken on and its limitations. Both are humanitarian disasters whose ground-level stories horrify and enrage. And they are both crises of a sort that the United States, since emerging from the Cold War as the world’s policeman, has repeatedly tried but often failed to resolve.

The range of US intervention efforts, as well as their often modest success, can be seen in those two crises that Trump inherited: Syria, whose civil war has become a global issue, and Nigeria, where fighting with Boko Haram rebels has killed tens of thousands and displaced an estimated 3 million people.

Syria and Nigeria

The two wars could hardly be more different, as are the US responses. Yet, they may still share the fundamental dynamics that make conf lict-driven crises so resistant to outside resolution.

In Syria, the US has sought to either mediate between the warring parties or tip the military balance through force, whether by the Obama administration’s efforts to arm certain rebels or Trump’s missile strikes. The scope of the US’ involvement has been extensive and highly visible.

In Nigeria, US action appears more modest.

There, the US is emphasizing political tools, pressuring the government to improve practices in the affected parts of the country and supporting any reforms. It has helped to coordinate a multinational force from surrounding countries. It is also providing military advisers, intelligence and other forms of military support, which Trump this week extended in the form of warplane sales, but nothing comparable to action in Syria.

The difference between the

t wo approaches is partly explained by the scale of the suffering, which is more severe in Syria, and perhaps by an even wider gap in attention received.

It is also explained by Syria’s wider geopolitical stakes—its conflict touches on the European refugee crisis, Russia’s resurgence, global terrorism and Middle Eastern power struggles—whereas Nigeria’s is contained to a region that is less central to US interests.

But the difference is also due to the contrasting nature of the crises. Syria’s problem is seen, in part, as a deadlocked military imbalance that US force is meant to overturn.

Nigeria’s problems are driven more by crises in governance.

Boko Haram has exploited, and been fueled by, long-held politica l tensions and g r ievances within Nigerian society, including neglect by the central government and abuse by its soldiers. US policy is aimed at helping Nigeria address the underlying issues that helped give rise to the insurgency, pushing for reforms to roll back corruption and military abuses.

Because the goal is restoring government control and local faith in it, military power plays a smaller role in US strategy.

Still, Americans sometimes see the degree of military intervention as a function of political will— if the president cared, he would intervene. This reveals a deeper assumption: that US power can solve any crisis, but only if it is sufficiently and correctly applied.

But while the US has exerted far more effort in Syria than in Nigeria, and has used different tools, the outcomes have been similar to what it often finds in such efforts: disappointment.

Collapse and intervention

The conflicts in Syria and Nigeria, in their breadth of difference, reveal the common factors that make conflict-driven humanitarian crises so hard to solve: simultaneous breakdowns in governance and in the social contract by which a population agrees to exist in harmony.

Once these have collapsed, segments of society, whether divided

by demographic tribe or political affiliation, come to see one another as locked in a zero-sum contest for survival and control. The result is chaos, a self-perpetuating cycle of violence with entire communities caught in the middle.

Syria and Nigeria also illustrate a common US response: intervention, military or otherwise, to resolve the underlying political breakdown that compels the fighting.

Since the early 1990s, when the US took on the mantle of global leadership, it has acted in Somalia, in Afghanistan, in two different parts of Sudan, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, in Liberia and Sierra Leone’s overlapping conflicts, in East Timor and twice in the former Yugoslavia.

It has tried diplomacy and foreig n a id , i mposed pol it ical reforms and peacekeepers, launched cruise missiles and outright occupations. Sometimes the variance in policy was because of differing temperaments or worldviews of key US officials, or the amount of attention those crises received on TV, but the outcomes were consistently modest.

What brings a breakthrough?

The relatively few breakthroughs offer hints as to why other efforts have faltered. Successful interventions have often come in one of two forms: resolving a conflict between two states, or nudging local dynamics that were already aligning around peace.

The US helped, for instance, halt the wars between the nations once united as Yugoslavia. Because the problem was one of bordercrossing forces, outside might could push them back.

This rarely applies, though, in an era where interstate conflict is rare and most wars come from political breakdowns that do not fall along neat borders.

Where outside intervention has succeeded in such crises, it has typically been not by changing those dynamics from the outside, but by capitalizing on major shifts toward peace that arose from within.

In East Timor, which Indonesia claimed as its territory, years of diplomacy and political pressure faltered until Indonesia’s economy collapsed and its hardline president was replaced by a reformer. The breakthrough, as is almost always the case, had come from the conflict’s participants, whose calculus was driven largely by local factors and not the threat or promise of outside action.

George J. Mitchell, the former senator who led Northern Ireland peace talks, frequently emphasized this. In a 1999 address, he said, “Peace and political stability cannot be achieved in sharply

divided societies unless there is a genuine willingness to understand the other point of view and to enter into principled compromise.”

That can be a difficult message for Americans accustomed to seeing themselves as deciders of major global issues.

The US assumes this leadership in part because it is the guarantor of the international order and the power of last resort, leading the world to look to US involvement.

Jeremy Shapiro, the research director of the European Council on Foreign Relations, has argued that the US is also driven by what he calls “the American omnipotence problem”.

A string of military victories in the early 1990s, Shapiro told the Times in October, established an assumption “that any problem in the world is basically solvable by American power if there is sufficient political will”.

A s a resu lt, when a cr isis emerges and Americans are confronted with images like those Trump saw from Syria, the question raised is often not whether the US is capable of imposing a solution, but why it hasn’t.

Success and failure in Baghdad

T he US has long t r ied to impose suc h sh if ts f rom t he outside. If success were pr ima r i ly a mat ter of US w i l l or comm itment, it wou ld have come in m id-20 0 0s Baghd ad.

The US, responsible for a crisis largely of its making and driven by a president whose legacy hung in the balance, committed the full force of its might and diplomacy to resolving the city’s sectarian bloodletting.

It imposed block-by-block order through blast walls, patrols and checkpoints. It held high-level peace talks and local neighborhood meetings. It won relative calm, but even proponents said this served only to create space for Iraqis to resolve the deeper issues that divided them, which many tried to do.

Once US troops drew down, it became c lear t hat outside force could restore order to a neighborhood. But it could not resolve the social and political breakdowns that had made it dangerous in the first place and would do so again once the vacuum reopened.

Syria and Nigeria, in their own ways, carry this same dilemma.

US policy options are aimed at alleviating the suffering and violence that are symptoms of deeper problems. But resolution can come only when the war’s participants once again see peaceful coexistence as worth the compromises and risks—a task harder than any US mission. New York Times News Service

Science

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Lyn Resurreccion

Sunday

Sunday, April 16, 2017

A5

Excessive antibiotic use in farming poses threat

K

UALA LUMPUR, Malaysia—The greatly excessive use of antibiotics in food production in recent decades has made many bacteria more resistant to antibiotics.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has estimated that antibiotic use in animal husbandry, poultry farming and aquaculture in the US is over four times USDA recommended levels.

Meanwhile, the US Food and Drugs Administration has estimated that 80 percent of all antibiotics sold in the US are used on animals.

Cheap antibiotics prone to abuse

Antibiotics are used to ensure better health and survival of animals bred for food, but they are also believed by many farmers to promote growth. As prices of antibiotics remain attractively low, they offer the prospect of higher earnings from greater output at low cost.

Hence, there is little or no market incentive to reduce excessive, if not indiscriminate use, and hence, abuse of antibiotics. Thus, such efforts to increase farmer incomes and profitability exacerbate the likelihood and risk of antibiotic resistance.

The widespread use of antibiotics through food chains is, thus, becoming catastrophic. A review by the Food and Agriculture Organization explains how antibiotic-resistant bacteria in animals are infecting humans, through direct contact with animals or indirect transmission through the food we eat.

Earlier the spread of bacteria was popularly associated with international travel, but the threat posed by antibiotic-resistant bacteria in our food is now proving to be far more formidable.

‘Recycling’ antibiotics

Ecologically minded activists have long been promoting ag r ic u lt u ra l rec yc l ing , of ten citing traditional agricultural practices. But adding antibiotics to animal feed has made this a threat to public health. The feed typically contains many drugs, including some only used by humans as antibiotics of last resort.

Much of the antibiotics given to livestock and poultry passes undegraded through their urine and feces, directly affecting food from aquaculture. Thus, waste from pigpens flowing into fishponds exposes fish and shrimps to high

doses of antibiotics livestock get, on top of the antibiotics added to the pond water to prevent or address aquatic diseases.

A ntibiotic-resistant bacteria from this environment then pass to humans who consume such food.

While restrictions have already been widely placed on the use of hormones and steroids to promote growth, the excessive use of antibiotics by farmers has only gained attention in recent years, while a huge reservoir of resistant bacteria was emerging and spreading.

In November 2015 scientists discovered a gene in China that can enable many types of bacteria to become more antibiotic resistant.

The gene has since been found in patients, food and animals from more than 20 countries. More worrisome, these bacteria can resist the last line of effective antibiotics available.

Catastrophic threat

A British government report estimates that about 700,000 people worldwide currently die annually due to antibiotic-resistant infections. If current trends continue, this mortality rate will rise to 10 million yearly by mid-century, i.e., in just over three decades.

In the near future antibiotics will become less effective in treating infections as bacteria mutate to become more resistant. Many more people will die of currently antibiotics-curable diseases. New antibiotics may delay this trend, but no new class of antibiotics has been discovered since the 1980s.

Inline with the World Health Organization’s global action plan, member-nations have pledged to draw up national action plans against antibiotics resistance, as part of a broader effort to tackle antimicrobial resistance. The lack of effective national surveillance and supervision of antibiotics use in animal products masks the severity of the threat.

Sad ly, in most developing countries, the rising threat posed by the exponential growth of dangers due to excessive antibiotic use is mainly of concern to the authorities when it threatens export prospects.

As with improper and excessive pesticide use, the abuse of antibiotics is mainly of concern when it affects national reputations abroad and related export earnings, with scant attention given to the threats posed to domestic consumers. IPS

Students from Philippine Science High School-Eastern Visasas Campus, Pitogo High School and Limay National High School win the Youth Innovation Prizes in the recently concluded “imake.wemake: create. innovate. collaborate.” competition of the Department of Science and Technology-Science Education Institute.

Students from Makati, Bataan, Leyte win innovation prize

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smart hydropower-generator device that aims to lessen the school’s electric bill. An intelligent imaging management system that monitors local pedestrian and road situation. A water-level rise alert system that seeks to reinforce disaster mitigation and warning system protocols in a Supertyphoon Yolanda-struck community.

What’s common in these three technologies?

They are not products of expert scientists or engineers—at least not yet—but of young high-school students from Makati, Bataan and Leyte.

These brilliant students also happen to be the first-ever recipients of the Youth Innovation Prize in the recently concluded “imake.wemake: create. innovate. collaborate.” competition of the Department of Science and Technology-Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI).

In the recent final presentation of projects and awarding ceremony, Philippine Science High School-Easter n Visayas C a mpu s’s (PSHS -E VC)“ Water Rise Alert System”, Pitogo High School ’s (PHS) “Project Iris, or

Intercepting Relayed Imaging System” and Limay Nat iona l High School ’s (LNHS) “Project Maxima: Hydropower Generator” emerged on top of nine other technologies from the same number of team finalists. The event was held at the Henry Sy Sr. Innovation Center, Miriam College, Quezon City.

LNHS’s Jonel Mark Carandang, Aureen Kyle I. Mandap and Kenneth Legaspi developed their hydropower-generator device, Maxima, to provide their school an extra clean source of energy to help lessen its electrical bills.

Their device is equipped with liquid-level, temperature, current and water-flow sensors, steel foundations, batteries, a 500watt electric inverter/converter, an improvised rotary generator

and many others. The actual project cost was only P6,398.

PHS’s Daveren John Cordero, Steven Da-anton and Jose Gabrielle Rivera developed an automatic surveillance system they called as Iris, which can detect cars that step inside the pedestrian lane when the traffic light goes red, helping authorities track the frequency of this type of violation every day and act accordingly.

The trio conducted software and hardware developments for Iris, which only cost them P7,582.

Meanwhile Kent Marc Kobe Bismark, Johan Castillejos and John Ejie Relente of PSHS-EVC made use of their experience during Yolanda to develop their Water Rise Alert System. It is a device powered with a waterlevel sensor, a radio frequencytransmission unit, a lar ms, a raindrop detector, some lights for danger signaling and solar panels, that measures water levels in prone areas and transmit data to a control center to give warnings to residents.

The three projects impressed the judges composed of professors from the University of the Philippines Diliman’s Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute, and Emerson Philippines, a major sponsor in the project.

SEI Director Dr. Josette Biyo congratulated the winners, as well as the finalists, for their impressive ideas and creations.

“The quality of projects we

collected in this activity is very promising. Young students like you certainly have great ideas, and it’s exciting to look forward to our future, when you have more resources and competencies to turn your ideas into great technologies, products or big-time programs,” she said.

The imake.wemake project, which was launched in 2016, sought to unleash the creativity of students in Grades 10 and 11 through the process of innovation. Teams were asked to pitch project proposals about an invention or a technological solution to any problems they encounter in their respective communities such as traffic, garbage, flooding and the like.

Such technologies should be powered by a smart microprocessor called Intel Galileo Board II, funded by Emerson Philippines.

A total of 19 proposals were screened, 13 of which moved on to the Project Pitch phase held in December last year. All 13 schools received a training kit and units of Intel Galileo boards to utilize. After two months of developing, testing and validating their technologies, nine finalists presented their projects in the last phase.

“We hope this is a first of many as there is surely no shortage of ideas from our young kids. This is an important platform for us to urge them to innovate,” Biyo remarked. S&T Media Service

Schneider Electric launches 10 scholars, 37 schools receive this year’s Stride research grants green city contest for 2017

By Rizal Raoul Reyes

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ased on its previous experiences, the Philippines is expected to deliver a strong performance in the 2017 edition of Schneider Electric’s Go Green in the City (GGitC) competition.

“With the Philippines’s consistent performance in the previous competitions, we are confident that Filipino students can once again bring honor to our country because of their drive and passion in producing sustainable green projects,” said Tes Portillo, Schneider Electric Human Resources country head for the Philippines, in a press statement. “ The impact of climate change to our developing country plays a part in shaping these students to become great contributors, not only to Schneider Electric, but to the future.”

In the last four years the Philippines emerged in the top ranks along with China, Germany and India. In 2013 two Filipino students took home the grand prize in the global championship held in Paris, France.

Qualifying for the second time in the global leg, Filipino students secured the second runner-up spot in 2015. For 2014 and 2016, the Philippines took

home the second and first runner-up in the regional leg of the competition, respectively.

Schneider Electric launched 2017’s GGitC in Taguig City recently. The project is an opportunity for the company to showcase the creativity and curiosity of today’s youth, and use their projects as steps forward to achieve our goal to have greener and smarter cities all over the world,” said Rochelle Bulan, Schneider Electric Philippines country manager for Talent Acquisition and Employer Branding.

“For 2017 we are leveling up the challenge by enticing all-female groups to prove and empower women, that they too, are capable of becoming successful in the male-dominated fields of business and engineering,” Bulan added.

The company said the global competition aims to inspire business and engineering students to develop their minds for green and sustainable projects. To broaden the participation in the competition, the organizers made a specific move to improve diversity, calling for all-female groups to join and have the chance at winning the Women in Business Award. Rizal Raoul Reyes

@brownindio

Contributor

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en research scholars and 37 grant recipients in science, technology and innovation are this year’s recipients of grants and scholarships by the United States through the US Agency for International Development (USAID’s) Science, Technology, Research and Innovation for Development (Stride) project.

US Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Y. Kim commended the scholars and the research grant recipients for their dedication in pursuing excellence in science toward innovation.

“Our grantees represent the best scientific minds in the Philippines,” Kim said.

“We look forward to the results of their research projects that should upgrade industries, generate jobs and investments and build skills and capacities in communities, academic institutions and companies,” Kim added.

Stride also awarded P5-million ($100,000), one-year research grants to 24 Philippine universities to undertake collaborative research with US universities or a local industry on disciplines

United States Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Y. Kim (fifth from left) joins the new batch of scholars receiving advanced research scholarships from the US government through the US Embassy in the Philippines’s US Agency for International Development. that contribute to high-growth sectors, including electronics, chemical industries, alternative energy, agribusiness and information technology.

The USAID also funded 10 prototype development research grants, valued at P1.15 million ($23,000) each, and three innovation-development grants that address human development challenges, valued up to P4 million ($80,000) each.

The $32-million Stride project is the US government’s largest higher-education project in the Philippines.

The five-year project strengthens the Philippines’s capacity for innovation-led inclusive growth through strengthening applied research capabilities in the Philippine universities

and industry, and bolstering humancapacity development in science, technology and innovation.

To date, the project has awarded approximately $5.5 million in collaborative science, technology and innovation research grants to more than 20 universities around the country.

It has awarded 56 scholarships to Filipinos to study in US universities; provided advanced technical training to scientists and researchers; brought 28 US visiting professors to the Philippines; and is establishing 10 knowledge- and technology-transfer offices in select universities in the Philippines.

The USAID’s Stride project is implemented by RTI International, in collabo-

ration with subgrantees the University of Michigan’s William Davidson Institute, Florida State University, Rutgers University and the local nonprofit Philippine Business for Education.

The 10 scholars are Nathaniel Alcantara, Judith Antonino, Jose Paolo Bantang, Lilia Fernando, Lance O’hari Go, Andres Philip Mayol, Josept Mari Poblete, Iris Bea Ramiro, Al Rey Villagracia and Flora Yrad.

The 37 research grantees include Ateneo de Manila University, Benguet State University, De La Salle University Manila, Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University, Iloilo Science and Technology University, M a p u a I n s t i t u t e o f Te c h n o l o g y, M indanao State Universit y-I ligan Institute of Technology, Mindanao University of Science and Technology, Samar State University, Technological Institute of the Philippines, Technological University of the Philippines, University of San Agustin, University of San Carlos, University of Southeastern Philippines, University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman, UP Los Baños, UP Los Baños Foundation Inc., UP Manila, UP Visayas Foundation Inc., Western Philippines University and Xavier University.

Faith

Sunday

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Lyn Resurreccion

A6 Sunday, April 16, 2017

Easter feast: Christ is risen

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By Corazon Damo-Santiago

fter 40 days of sadness, penance and fasting is a feasting to celebrate Easter. Like all feasts a meal like no other is shared—a Eucharistic meal and Christians renew their vows of baptism—a public declaration that “we do not belong to Satan, the Prince of Evil on the tomb of sin, but to Jesus Christ”.

Early beginnings

Easter is derived from the word Eostre, the pagan goddess of the season of sun and rebirth, honored during Ostarum, a pagan spring festival. It was a spring feast of the early nomad Jews, who coated their tent poles with blood of animals to frighten hostile spirits and ensure fertility of f locks.

Easter is celebrated on the same day as the Jewish Pasch, or Passover, until 325, when the Second Ecumenical Council convened Nicaea I in 325. The assembly of bishops representing the whole church proclaimed the Divine Nature of Christ, to negate Arianism, a heresy initiated by Arius, who professed that Jesus is only a man. The council defined Jesus Christ as a real God and a real man.

A new dating system was also introduced. Easter would be celebrated on the Sunday after the first full moon after March 21, the Vernal Equinox when both day and night are equal to 12 hours. But if March 21 is a Sunday, Easter will be celebrated on the following Sunday. Since then, Easter Sunday is always between March 22 and April 25.

Jesus appears to His disciples

To M a r y M a gd a l e ne , Je s u s first manifested Himself as the Savior risen from the dead, although she did not recognize Him (John. 20:13).

Then He walked with two disciples on their way to the village of Emmaus who also failed to perceive that it was He they were talking about (Luke 24: 13-15).

On the evening of the first day of the week, Jesus, likewise, stood in the midst of His disciples, except Thomas. “Peace be with you,” He greeted them.

Jesus breathed on them and said: “Receive the Holy Spirit, whose sins you forgive are forgiven and whose sins you retain are retained ” (John 20: 19-23).

Then when Christ again met

the disciples, Jesus told Thomas to put his finger on his side for the apostle to believe He had, indeed, risen (John 20:27).

The third time Jesus revealed Himself to his disciples was at the shores of the Sea of Tiberias.

Jesus told them to cast their net on the right side of the boat to catch fishes (John 21:5-6).

From grief to joy

In literary form, Paul presented a theological truth how Christ redeemed man from eternal damnation: Jesus Christ who is true God and true man except in sin.

A d a m , a Hebre w word i n Genenis, is a common noun for mankind and a proper noun for the first man, thus, emphasizing man’s death with Adam, and man’s resurrection from the dead through Christ.

Adam became a living being, the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. The first man was from the earth; the second man from heaven.

With Adam, mankind died to sin, and “bore the image of the earthly one”. But with Christ’s resurrection from the dead, we also “bear the image of the heavenly one” (1 Corinthians 15:49).

What a redemptive victimhood.

No less than God, the Son, reconciled us with God, the Father.

He conquered sin and death, and those who believe in Him and die to their sinfulness will also rise and live with Him. How then can Saint Paul not declare joyfully: “Death is swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15:54-55).

Proclaim the Gospel

Jesus gathered the 12 disciples (learners), prime witnesses to the resurrection for leadership roles in the community. Theologians also called them apostles (one who is sent) and with other Christian leaders were sent to “introduce a moral reform”. Thus, early Christian writers noted 70 apostles

The icon of the Resurrection with Christ having kicked down the gates of Hades and pulling Adam and Eve out of the tombs. Christ is flanked by saints, and Satan, depicted as an old man, is bound and chained. Wikimedia Commons

who helped “proclaim the gospel to every creature”.

So the disciples with confidence started to remind others of Jesus’ teachings. Even the high priests, elders of Jerusalem and upper-class leaders were amazed with their eloquence.

His followers divided the world and cast lots for assignments. Unafraid, they preached the gospel, and like Jesus, some were crucified and others met martyrdom, with joyful hearts.

Barnabas, who was with Paul to evangelize the Gentiles, was the first apostle to preach in Rome and Milan. He was martyred by the Jews in Cyprus.

After three centuries, the Christian faith became the official religion of Rome.

Peter became the principal apostle of the Jews, and Paul of the Gentiles. Paul wrote 14 of the 27 books of the New Testament, and seven of the 13 letters had been attributed to him.

Peter, the Rock, was crucified in Rome upside down, while Paul was executed by Nero in Rome in 67 A.D. Andrew, the First Apostle to be called, was bound to a cross, whipped by seven soldiers while he preached for two hours, before he died in Greece. Philip, the first disciple, was also crucified, with his ankles fixed with iron hooks

and hung upside down in Syria.

Bartholomew died in India or Armenia. Skinned alive, his body was cut into strips, pulled off, leaving his body bleeding for a long time and crucified head down.

James the Greater was beheaded in Jerusalem, while James the Less was thrown from the pinnacle of a temple, a hundred feet high, then beaten to death.

Matthias, who replaced Judas, was burned to death in Syria, while Jude Thaddeus was shot to death by arrows.

John, the apostle who stood at the foot of the cross, was thrown in boiling oil and survived miraculously. He was exiled in Pathmos, where he wrote the Revelation, the last book of the New Testament, in a cave. He died of old age.

Matthew, the tax collector, was slain with a sword in Ethiopia.

Doubting Thomas was killed by a lance in Coromandel, East Indies.

A fter the death of the apostles, the Christian faith spread, a lthough it was declared an illega l relig ion. n Santiago is a former regional director of the Department of Education National Capital Region. She is currently a faculty member of Mater Redemptoris Collegium in Calauan, Laguna, and Mater Redemptoris College in San Jose City, Nueva Ecija.

Scientists: Jesus’ tomb faces major risk of collapse J ERUSALEM—Having just undergone an extensive restoration, the site of Jesus’ tomb at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is at risk for significant structural failure if nothing is done to reinforce its foundations, scientists have said. “ W hen it fails, the failure will not be a slow process, but catastrophic,” A ntonia Moropoulou, chief scientific supervisor with the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), told National Geographic in an exclusive inter view.

A team of scientists with NTUA just recently completed a yearlong restoration of the site believed to be the tomb of Jesus Christ in Jerusalem. National Geographic has been extensively covering the restoration process.

During the restoration, the team of scientists determined that the Edicule (Latin for “little house”), a small shrine within the

Church of the Holy Sepulchre that encloses Jesus’ tomb, was resting on an unstable foundation of tunnels, channels, rubble and crumbling foundation mortar.

According to the Gospels, the body of Christ was laid in a new tomb hewn out of rock, in which no one had ever been buried.

The Gospel of Mark details that the women who went to the tomb to anoint Christ’s body instead found that he had risen.

Veneration of Christ’s burial place dates back to Saint Helena in the 4th century, who discovered and identified the tomb. Saint Helena’s son, Emperor Constantine, built the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in 326 and enshrined the tomb.

The shelf on which Christ’s body was laid is the central point of veneration, which has been encapsulated by a 3-by-5-foot marble structure—the Edicule— since at least 1555.

Part of the reason for the unstable foundation is because the site was built on the remains of a limestone quarry that was once used to house tombs of upper class Jews.

Throughout the early history of the Christian church, various shrines surrounding the tomb of Jesus were built and subsequently destroyed, depending on who was in power.

The Edicule and the surrounding rotunda of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, complete with massive 22-ton pillars, rest on this unstable foundation of rubble and tunnels today. The site sees nearly 4 million visitors a year.

While the structural integrity of the site has been a concern for almost 100 years, National Geographic reports, disputes between the three main Christian groups that control the site—the Greek Orthodox and Armenian Patriarchates of Jerusalem and the Ro-

man Catholic Franciscan Custos of the Holy Land—and a lack of funds prevented much restoration progress from being made.

Now, scientists are working with Church authorities to determine the best plan for restoration work on the foundation, which is estimated to cost €6 million and would take about 10 months.

Archaeologists are also hoping to take advantage of the process, which would expose important archaeological sites for the first time in centuries.

Scientists on the restoration team with NTUA are compiling the latest data into a report, which will be given to Church authorities of the three main C h r ist i a n g roups, who mu st reach an agreement before the process moves forward.

“This work is a collective work,” Moropoulou said. “It doesn’t belong to us, it belongs to all humanity.” Catholic News Agency/CBCP News

Pope prays for blast victims on Coptic Church in Egypt

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ATICAN—After a bomb blast killed over 20 people and wounded several others during Palm Sunday celebrations in Egypt, Pope Francis voiced his closeness to the Coptic nation, and prayed for those who perpetrate violence through the arms trade.

After celebrating Palm Sunday Mass on April 9, Pope Francis prayed for victims of “the attack that unfortunately took place today [April 9] near Cairo”, voicing his closeness to Coptic Patriarch Pope Tawardos II, to and to the entire Coptic nation.

“I express my heartfelt sorrow,” he said, and prayed that the Lord would “convert the hearts of those who sow fear, violence and death, and those who make and traffic arms.”

The pope’s words came shortly after a bomb attack took place on the Coptic Christian Church of Mar Gerges in the northern city of Tanta, Egypt.

Wor s h ip p e r s h a d a l re a d y packed the area to celebrate Palm Sunday Mass when the bomb was detonated. According to The Associated Press, at least 26 were killed and around 70 others were wounded in the blast.

A second bl ast took pl ace shortly after outside of a Christian church in Alexandria, killing 11 and wounding around 25.

The man, a suicide bomber, had tried to storm the entrance to the church before being stopped by the police, three of whom died in the blast. The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria has claimed responsibility for both attacks.

The bombings took place just two weeks before Pope Francis is scheduled to visit the Egyptian captial of Cairo on April 28 and 29 in what is largely a bid to foster greater Catholic-Muslim dialogue, particularly on the point of ending extremist violence.

Francis offered his words of sorrow before leading pilgrims in the traditional Angelus prayer after Mass.

In his brief words before the prayer, he offered a special greeting to all those participating in World Youth Day and their bishops, particularly those from Poland and Panama, and the Church and civil authorities who accompanied them to the Mass.

He also prayed for victims of the terrorist attacks that took place on April 7, in Stockholm, when a 39-year-old Uzbek native drove a large lorry truck into a department store, killing four and wounding 10, including a child.

Francis offered prayers for the victims as well as the many who are “still strongly tried by war, the tragedy of mankind”.

Catholic News Agency/CBCPNews

Who are Egypt’s Coptic Christians?

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AIRO—They trace their founding to the voyage to Alexandria of Saint Mark, the apostle of Jesus and New Testament author. Just a decade or two after the original Easter, which Christians celebrate around the world, tradition states that Mark founded their church, one of the earliest in the Middle East and the first in Africa. It was to become a pillar of early Christendom.

Some 2,000 years later, Egypt’s Coptic Christians have become the preferred target of the Islamic State (IS) group, an apocalyptic cult seeking religious war.

Inside the Arab world’s most populous country, IS seeks to sow discord, undermine President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and split the country. It’s a strategy the group has used before in Iraq, undermining trust in the government and inciting Shiites against Sunnis to provoke a backlash.

That strategy looks unlikely to work in Egypt, where Sunnis vastly outnumber the Coptic minority, who make up some 10 percent of the population of 92 million and who are overwhelmingly dedicated supporters of el-Sissi. But it does whittle away at the Christians’ sense of security.

A look at Egypt’s Coptic community, its traditions and challenges in the Middle East:

What Copts believe Like Catholics, Copts believe in the 10 Commandments, practice sacraments, such as baptism, confession and confirmation and the intercession of the saints.

But the Coptic Orthodox Church split from other Christians in 451 A.D. over a dispute about the nature of Christ. Unlike Roman Catholics, they do not believe in the infallibility of the pope or in purgatory. They believe in the immaculate conception of Jesus, but not of the Virgin Mary. Their priests can marry.

Copts celebrate Christmas according to the Julian calendar, meaning it falls on January 7. The run-up to the holiday is marked by a 40-day period of fasting when red meat, poultry and dairy products are forbidden.

Copts break the fast with feasting and celebrations after a Christmas Eve liturgy that ends near midnight. Easter is preceded by a 55-day fast where no meat, fish or dairy is eaten.

Persecution in modern times In modern times, relations with Muslims have been generally good, although changes started to come about since the hyper-nationalism of the 1950s stoked by military strongman Gamal Abdel-Nasser.

In Nasser’s drive to liberate the country from Western influence and purify the

this February 17, 2015, file photo shows Pope Tawadros II, the pope of the Coptic Church of Egypt, at Saint Mark’s Cathedral in Cairo, Egypt. AP/Amr Nabil Arab nation, Christians—whose religion is more often practiced in the West— began to take on a less favorable light among the majority Muslim masses.

Many Copts consider themselves to be descendants of the ancient Egyptians, with a direct connection to pre-Arab times—hardly a view that made them popular in the days of pan-Arabism.

As conditions in Egypt worsened following a series of Middle East wars, the Copts began an exodus. President Anwar Sadat’s overtures to Islamists and his addition of references to Islamic Law, or Shariah, to the Constitution spurred on the departures and millions of Copts live as expatriates today.

Although generally allowed to practice their religion inside Egypt, Copts face restrictions on interreligious marriage, and church building, and converting Muslims. Activists say Copts are discriminated against and kept from high office, and have, thus, campaigned to have religions removed from Egyptian ID cards.

Coptic Christians targeted by extremists While sectarian killings did happen as early as the 1970s, they have been mostly sporadic over the years, with the exception of the 1990s, when the state battled an Islamic insurgency and Copts faced some retaliation.

On New Years’ Eve 2011, a bomb in an Alexandria church killed over 20 people— the first major assault with a high death toll in living memory and a crime still unsolved to this day. Attacks picked up in the aftermath of the Egypt’s Arab Spring uprising that began weeks later, then more so after the army overthrew an elected but divisive Islamist president in 2013.

The next major milestone came in December 2016, when an IS suicide bomber killed 30 people at Cairo’s Coptic Cathedral. The group subsequently called for more attacks on the minority and pledged more of its own. AP

Tourism&Entertainment BusinessMirror

Editor: Carla Mortel-Baricaua

Sunday, April 16, 2017 A7

The calm and the storm: A five-day travelogue to the north Story & photo by Lorenz S. Marasigan

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First of two parts

ur call time’s at 4:30 a.m., so I hurriedly lugged my backpack on, and booked a ride to Victory Liner bus station in Cubao, Quezon City.

Our five-day itinerary for the trip was packed, as usual. With only two hours of sleep clocked on my body, I prayed to the heavens that I could get a decent sleep on our way to the north.

I saw familiar faces, and new ones, and immediately thought to myself: This trip to Nueva Ecija and Cagayan Valley will be something out of the ordinary.

The sun barely kissed the busy Metro Manila ground when our bus revved its engines through the North Luzon Expressway. Since breakfast is part of the itinerary, I fought the need to sleep.

We stopped over at a Filipino favorite, Jollibee, for a hearty breakfast of beef tapa, eggs and fried rice.

After half an hour of eating and getting to mingling, we went back to the bus, and I dozed off.

‘Hellish’ hike, sheep herding

I woke up, feeling a bit groggy, and disbelief came when our hosts announced that we have arrived at the province of Nueva Ecija. The ride through the North Luzon and Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway was so smooth and fast that sleeping for less than two hours from a pit stop felt like minutes.

Dubbed as the largest province and the biggest rice producer of Central Luzon, Nueva Ecija is an agricultural wonder blessed with vast fields of green plains with backdrops of rich healthy mountains.

O u r f i r st dest i n at ion w a s t he Minalungao National Park, a gem in the town of General Tinio. Lots of tourists

visit the park every year, as it offers a lot of freshwater activities and a notso-cruel hike to its guests.

The sky was downcast that day, but the park was still an eye-catcher: The Penaranda River flowing in between two towering limestone karst, makeshift cottages floating on the river, inviting would-be guests for a short cruise.

There is also a hanging steel bridge that connects the entrance to the hiking trail, which leads to a huge cross on top, and a beautiful view of the area.

After lunch, where our hosts served local dishes, like tiniim na manok, a whole braised chicken brandished with peanut sauce, my friends and I decided to go for a hike.

Locals promised that the hike would be easy, after all, the trail was a series of cement stairs, in between lush green trees. After a few minutes, I felt my legs crying: both literally and figuratively.

I was a lso thirst y by the time we were h a l f w ay t h rou g h. I s l i g ht ly cursed myself for not br ing ing water w ith me dur ing the climb. Good thing, though, that there were loca l vendors sel ling water.

After a hellish (yes, for a big guy who does not exercise, it’s quite hellish) hike, I was treated with a beautiful towering cross made with glass, reflecting what little sunlight it could.

It was worth it, I told myself.

Shortly after a quick rest, we went off to our next destination: The PMP Paradise Farm and Resort. Owned by a former military man, the farm allows its

Floating makeshift cottages on the Penaranda River, where the Minalungao National Park is located.

guests to ride on carabao-pulled carts, go fishing aboard a raft, herd thousands of sheep and ride horses.

The 250-hectare farm also offers its guests gastronomical adventures, wherein visitors experience making and eating the following: palitaw, a sticky-rice dish topped with coconut nibs, toasted sesame seeds and sugar; nilupak, a Filipino snack made with ground cassava roots, milk and margarine; and sinigang na salad, which is basically all the ingredients of the sinigang without the soup, topped with salted egg and red onions, and dressed with calamansi juice.

To be honest, I tasted the best-tasting nilupak at the farm, complemented by lemongrass juice, and a very relaxing short stay at a bahay kubo, a traditional nipa hut considered as one of the most illustrative icons in the Philippines.

After a day’s worth of playing with the sheep, galloping with the horses, trying to catch fish on a raft—on which I miserably failed—we were ready to finally sleep. We had a quick dinner at Microtel Cabanatuan, and checked in at Hotel Consuelo, a budget accommodation in the town of Santa Rosa.

Food, tons of food

I would have had more bottles of beer that night, if not for the tight schedule the following day, which will

Muni fosters sustainable development and mindful living in its annual event

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n its continuing effort to raise awareness on environmental conservation and sustainable development, cause-driven MUNI Cultural Creatives Inc. staged its annual two-day MUNI Market and meet-ups event at the Capitol Commons Park in Pasig City on April 8 and 9.

This year, MUNI Market adopted the theme “ B e yo n d Co n s c i o u s Co n s u m e r i s m ,” w h i c h resonates with the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals, with special focus on responsible consumption and produc tion.

Since 2014, MUNI had hosted annually two simultaneous events: MUNI Market community marketplace showcasing creative businesses and movements with a social and environmental thrust; and meet-ups that gathers cause-driven creatives to spark conversations, share ideas and forge meaningful connections around various themes on mindful living.

According to Jen Horn, founder of MUNI, the events are meant to encourage the participants to be more considerate consumers and producers, while at the same time, provide a venue for local products and organic brands. “[At MUNI] we really believe that everyone in the community has an impact. Because sometimes, we think our little decisions don’t matter, but when

you multiply that by a hundred, or by a thousand, of course it does,” she added.

In MUNI Market 2017, the organizer and p a r t i c i p a t i n g m e rc h a n t s h i g h l i g h t e d t h e importance of making conscious choices whenever consumers shop, eat and live. As such, the merchants showcased their sustainable businesses and advocacies, such as slow food and organic farming, handicraft preservation, health and wellness, livelihood creation for marginalized sectors and fair trade and crueltyfree production.

“The MUNI Market is like a celebration of our community and of the community that we’ve built around living a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle,” Horn said. She furthered that people’s curiosity and interest in helping the cause is the reason the MUNI Market continues to exist. “[On our part] we get more people attending our events. [So] we really want to see how they can contribute, how they can give back, how they can live in a more socially and environmentally conscious way,” she added.

The MUNI meet-ups discussed topics, such as Reimagining Local Fashion, Communicating Your Cause, Beating Manila Traffic, Feeding the Food Revolution, Responsible Travel and Zero-waste

Living. Each speaker discussed their respective topics by sharing personal experiences laced with insights. The meet-ups gave opportunities to participants to get involved in an open forum that enabled them to understand why causedriven initiatives are essential contributions to minimize the negative impact of human activities.

The speakers for MUNI meet-ups 2017 were Tal de Guzman, SOFA Design Institute/Risque Designs; Celia Elumba, director, Philippine Textile Research Institute; Hannah Thiesen, Fa s h i o n R e vo l u t i o n P h i l i p p i n e s ; C h a r i s s e Aquino -Tugade, Manila Collec tible; Gregg Yan, founder of Best Alternatives Campaign; Boogs Rosales, underwater photographer and cinematographer, Founding Partner, Studio H2O; Renee Karunungan, communications specialist, Climate Tracker/Dakila; Roxy Navarro, cofounder, Works of Heart; Val Roque, bike-commuting advocate and director, Division for Environment a n d C l i m ate C h a n g e, t h e D e p a r t m e n t o f Foreign Affairs; Robert Siy, special consultant for Depar tment of Transpor tation-Planning Depar tment and ADB; Roy Joseph Rober to, regional director for Southeast Asia, Climate Tracker; Alex Yague, executive director, Provincial Bus Association of the Philippines; Chef Allen Buhay, Wildflour; Ramon Uy Jr., cofounder, Fresh Start Organic; Edgardo Valenzuela, formerly in advocacy awareness programs, Food and Agriculture Organization; Mac Florendo, founder, Food Rescue Asean; Ann Dumaliang, project officer, Masungi Georeserve; Tin Mansinares, provincial tourism officer, Negros Occidental; Gela Petines, CEO, Reef Nomads; Guido Sarreal, cofounder, Kawil Tours; Bea Misa Crisostomo, cofounder, Ritual; Ziggie Gonzales, proponent, The Plastic Solution; Levin Frias, The E-Waste Project; Victoria Martires Cabo-Chan, trustee/ VP for Youth and Academe, Zero Waste Recycling Movement of the Philippines Inc. To widen its reach and influence, MUNI Market also taps people who share the organization’s values and principles and are interested to work together on common goals. “We have this ambassador program that we’re currently doing in the hopes that we can recruit people who champion their particular cause in their particular community,” Horn explained.

introduce us to Nueva Ecija as the Rice Bowl of the Philippines.

After a lovely breakfast at Harvest Hotel, which served us helpings of batotay, longganisa (sausage) made with beef, we went to visit the National Food Authority Grains Industry Museum in Cabanatuan. The facility, which does not charge its guests any amount, engages its visitors with ancient tools in farming and dioramas.

Right after, we visited the Puno Ice Cream Factory to try its famous treat.

Before joining the trip, a friend told me that I should not leave Nueva Ecija without trying Puno’s Ice Cream. She said it is, by far, the best she’s ever had—even better than the ones she had abroad.

So, with a huge expectation, I tried the family-run ice-cream maker’s Cheese Cashew Macapuno flavor, and found myself in heaven. She was right: Puno defeated the ice creams that I had before.

The ice cream was rich and creamy, and the flavor was the perfect blend of sweet and salty. There’s no denying, too, that this cup is never shortchanged with ingredients.

We also tasted the Buko Sherbet with Lychees flavor, which was full of sweet coconut helpings and hearts of lychees.

The group also had a quick coffee break at Caffe La Tea, where we stuffed our stomachs with nachos, spring rolls and devilled tofus.

After the break, we went off to Crystal Waves Hotel and Resort in Talavera, which

hosted us for lunch, and allowed us to ride their zip line and giant slide and cool off on swimming pools.

I was adamant to try the slide at first, as I am afraid of heights. Being paranoid also contributed to my irrational fear of dying by flying off the ride. But, because I have decided to pursue activities that are otherwise terrifying for me, I slid.

Mustering all the courage that I had in my stomach, I mounted the rubber seat and allowed my body to slide. It was exhilarating.

After the first drop, I went for another, and then another and then another.

I almost didn’t want it to stop, but we had to eat lunch and leave soon, because we have more destinations to visit. Truly, traveling will make you realize that fears are there to be conquered.

Being a landlocked province, and agriculture as its main income generator, Nueva Ecija is a center for knowledge in the art of farming. It is no wonder why this oftentagged pit stop offers its visitors agri-based tourism activities that are, more often than not, eye-openers.

Our visit to the Philippine Rice Institute taught me to value every grain of rice that is served on the table. It also taught me that our country has a lot of potential to be selfsufficient, we just lack the will to do it.

The institute, situated in the town of Munoz, includes breathtaking views of acres upon acres of rice—different shades of green painting the horizon, perfectly complemented by the forthcoming sunset.

It was such an amazing view that I found myself staring at the horizon on a moving truck, feeling more relaxed than I should have been.

By the end of the day, we found ourselves in the Central Luzon State University where we were treated with Tilapia Ice Cream, one of the weirdest flavors of ice cream that I have ever tasted.

With eyes closed, I took a bit of the icecream sandwich, and was not disappointed by its taste. It was sweet, creamy, with bits of cheese (or were they fish flakes?) on each bite.

After a quick shower, our bus went on full speed to Cagayan Valley. It is our first day of sleeping in the bus, but it was nonetheless fine. To be concluded

Sports BusinessMirror

A8 Sunday, April 16, 2017

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By Anne Peterson The Associated Press

N a matter of days, female athletes around the globe scored a trio of wins in their fight for equality after decades of work.

The US women’s national soccer team struck a new collective bargaining agreement with their federation, ending more than a year of, at times, contentious negotiations, with players seeking comparable compensation to the men’s national team.

It followed the US national hockey team’s deal with USA Hockey, after players threatened to boycott the women’s world championships over wages.

The quest for better pay and conditions even extended across the Atlantic to Ireland, where the women’s national soccer team there threatened to sit out of an exhibition match this week.

“It’s pretty incredible what the women’s hockey team did and they were courageous in their fight. There were differences between our battle and their battle, but they were inspirational,” US midfielder Megan Rapinoe said. “For us and them, we were able

to inspire other teams.”

The actions of these teams highlight the struggle for female athletes to achieve fair compensation for their efforts, even if that doesn’t mean identical paychecks to their male counterparts. “Fair” can include even simple items, like access to changing rooms, in the case of the Irish players.

It is not a new fight.

Back in 1995, a group of high-profile players, including Michelle Akers, Julie Foudy, Mia Hamm and Kristine Lilly, were locked out of a pre-Olympic training camp because of a disagreement over bonus pay with the US Soccer Federation. The dispute was quickly settled and women’s soccer made its debut at the 1996 Atlanta Games. The United States won the gold.

Following the team’s victory on penalty kicks in the 1999 World Cup final against China, the players

Editor: Jun Lomibao | mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph

WOMEN ATHLETES NOTCH

TRIO OF WINS The quest for better pay and conditions even extended across the Atlantic to Ireland, where the women’s national soccer team there threatened to sit out of an exhibition match this week.

boycotted a tournament in Australia. They eventually came to terms on a deal with the federation that extended through the 2004 Athens Olympics.

Inspired by the soccer players, Olympian Cammi Granato pushed USA Hockey in 2000 for better conditions and pay. The hockey team was coming off a gold-medal-winning run in the 1998 Nagano Games, the first Olympics that included the women’s game as a sport.

With the help of John Langel, the same lawyer who helped the soccer team strike its deal, the players sent a letter to the federation outlining their concerns. Lacking leverage to move the effort forward, it failed and the issue was largely dropped—until this year.

Langel also helped the team reach its current agreement before the world championships.

This time, a social-media hashtag, #BeBoldForChange, helped make the cause an international sensation.

“I think that this is just the beginning, and I think you’re going to see more of this. We are reaching the next level of women’s sports,” US Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota said. “At the beginning, it was just allowing women to play, then it was making sure they got funded in the schools so they could play, and now we’re reaching that biggest pinnacle, which is really getting them to the point where people are watching them as much as they watch men. And we’re not quite there yet, but the only way we get there is by using examples like what just happened with hockey and moving it out into other sports.”

Ireland’s national team, made up mostly of amateurs with day jobs, wasn’t getting even basic financial support for things like compensation for time off from work while on international duty. Players said they’d been forced to dress in public restrooms and had to share team-branded apparel with the junior national teams.

The women held a news conference decrying the conditions. It won the team public sympathy and helped force the Football Association of Ireland to work out an agreement with the women.

Goalkeeper Emma Byrne posted to Twitter: “Victory! Thank you for all your support. It proves unity is a powerful force.”

There have been other successes, too.

The Australian women’s national soccer team, capitalizing on the team’s surprising play in the 2015 World Cup, boycotted friendlies in the US and wound up negotiating a deal that got them

better wages, bonuses and travel provisions.

In tennis, Grand Slam events and many other tournaments give equal prize money to men and women.

But lingering sexism flared up last year when Raymond Moore, director of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California, made comments that outraged many and forced his resignation.

“In my next life when I come back I want to be someone in the WTA because they ride on the coattails of the men. They don’t make any decisions and they are lucky. They are very, very lucky,” Moore said at the time.

The backlash showed that Moore’s opinion was an outdated and tired trope.

Women’s sports are more popular than ever, thanks in part to Title IX, which spurred increased female participation at the college level. The Internet has given fans greater access to the games and its stars.

That’s been coupled with some amazing performances by female athletes and teams in recent years: From Serena Williams’s dominance on the tennis court to Carli Lloyd’s hat trick in the 2015 Women’s World Cup final to UConn’s supremacy of college basketball.

On Friday night the US women’s hockey team capped an emotional two weeks with a thrilling 3-2 overtime win over Canada in the world championship final.

“If anything that we did can inspire

anyone—sports, girls, boys, out of sports, whatever—to stand up for what they believe in, I think that’s a huge plus,” team captain Meghan Duggan said.

KOREANS DRAW

South Korean (red) and North Korean players hifive each other after their Asian Football Confederation Women’s Asian Cup Jordan 2018 qualifying match at the Kim Il Sung Stadium recently in Pyongyang, North Korea. The match ended in a 1-1 draw. AP

NBA Basketball School unwraps in Mumbai

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HE National Basketball Association (NBA) opened recently the NBA Basketball School, a network of tuition-based development programs around the world for male and female players from ages 6 to 18.

The first NBA Basketball School was launched in Mumbai, India, as part of a multiyear agreement with India On Track (IOT), one of India’s leading sports management, marketing and development companies.

Additional NBA Basketball Schools will be launched in India and around the world in the coming months.

The new initiative adds an additional layer to the NBA’s existing development efforts, including the Jr. NBA, Basketball without Borders (BWB) and NBA Academies.

The Jr. NBA, the league’s global youth basketball participation program for boys and girls, will help identify young players who have the talent to attend NBA

Basketball Schools. From there, the top players from each school will have the opportunity to be selected to attend NBA Academies, the league’s network of elite training centers around the world to develop top international male and female prospects.

“Our goal is to inspire more young male and female players to learn the game under the guidance of established coaches with proven training techniques,” said Brooks Meek, NBA vice president for International Basketball Operations and head of Elite Basketball.

Each school will feature yearlong, tuition-based programs. The curriculum—designed to help players, parents, coaches and organizations—better understand the process of improvement, has been developed by the NBA’s Elite Basketball Development team in consultation with current and former NBA coaches, former players and player development experts.

Junior Altas out to defend Palaro crown

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NIVERSITY of Perpetual Help will defend its boys’ volleyball crown in the 60th Palarong Pambansa Antique is hosting from April 23 to 29 in San Jose Buenavista.

The Junior Altas, the three-straight champions of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, will represent the National Capital Region in the annual multisport competitions supervised by the Department of Education.

The team, coached by Sandy Rieta and Jason Sapin, defeated perennial rival National University, 16-25, 25-

10, 25-19, 24-26 and 15-7, in the Big City meet at the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Succor College in Marikina City in February.

The Junior Altas beat a team from Western Visayas, 25-27, 25-14, 25-21, 25-19, to win last year’s Palaro crown hosted by Albay in Legaspi City.

The team is composed of captain EJ Casana, Ivan Encila, Noel Kampton, Jody Severo, Kirth Rosos, Ryuji Etorma, Vince Lorenzo, Carlo Isidro, Audie Hidalgo, Vergel Golloso, Clark Fernandez and Wesley Cajolo.

INGENIOUS

Fans come to the games ready and wait out a rain delay during a Major League Baseball game between the Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers early last week in Chicago. The World Series champions Cubs won, 3-2. AP

UNDER ARMOUR U ADDS OPEN CLASS

NDER Armour has announced the addition of an Open Category, as well as registration sponsorship for under-18 participants of the Under Armour 3x3 Southeast Asia 2017 Tournament.

All eligible teams will now receive 50-percent sponsorship for their registration fee. Registration is P2,750 for four participants and they will get free Under Armour tops and bottoms.

Organized in partnership with the International Basketball Federation (Fiba), the Under Armour 3x3 Southeast Asia 2017 Tournament is a springboard for local under-18 players to represent the country in the Fiba 3x3 U18 Asia Cup 2017 set from May 26 to 28 in Cyberjaya Gem in Mall, Malaysia.

Flights and accommodation will be fully paid for the selected teams.

Under Armour has also created an Open Category for passionate local and nonresident players aged between 19 to 50 years old (born between 1998 and 1967).

The Open Category consists of men and women brackets. The winners will win cash prizes and medals. Registration deadline for U18 and Open Categories is on April 12.

The Under Armour 3x3 Southeast Asia 2017 Tournament eliminations for the Philippines will take place in Cebu at the Cebu City Sports Club and Ayala Center Cebu on April 22 and 23.

The Manila eliminations will be at the Bonifacio Global City from April 28 to 30.

Players must also register themselves on Fiba www.3x3planet.com and are encouraged to study the Fiba 3x3 Official Basketball Rules.

Journey BusinessMirror

»life on the go

A9 | Sunday, April 16, 2017 • Editor: Tet Andolong

Island adventures in the South Surigao Boulevard Landmark

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Story & photos by Bernard L. Supetran

T is the dream of every tourist destination to be a byword for travelers and go trending on social media.

Surigao City, one of northern Mindanao’s emerging escapades, has become an overnight media sensation of sort because of a 6.7intensity earthquake that struck on February 10. It got more than the media exposure it ever dreamted of, only in a rather unfavorable light, as various reports have portrayed it as a city in rubble.

The scenario resulted in the cancellation of tours and conferences—compounding the city’s lost economic opportunities.

But even before the tremblor struck, Surigao has been quietly making its way into the league of the Philippines’s top travel getaways. It, in fact, registered the highest tourist arrival in 2016, based on statistics from the Department of TourismCaraga region.

To counter the negative impressions on its safety, the city government, led by Mayor Ernesto Matugas, embarked on a charm offensive, dubbed “Suroy to Surigao”, to show to all and sundry that it is business as usual, and its natural attractions are unscathed.

The Surigao Airport, which suffered cracks on the runway, re-

Ipil-Mabua Rock and Pebble Beach

stored its daily flight from Cebu Pacific, while Pal Express inaugurated its new route from Cebu.

Hotel Tavern, the city’s top accommodation, underwent repairs and recently opened in time for summer. Except for a few buildings that needed major face-lifts, Surigao was like its old self bustling with activities.

Dubbed “The City of Island Adventures”, Surigao boasts of 17 islands and islets and 21 villages, scattered in northeastern Mindanao. This means an infinity of beaches, multiplied 20 times over with coves and crystal-clear water even in the middle of nowhere.

Among its main come-ons is Day-Asan Floating Village, tucked in the middle of a 550-hectare mangrove forest and quaint houses on stilts. The two-hour cruise has neatly concealed patches of white beaches, snorkeling and kayaking areas and aquaculture farms of premium lobsters. While it is part of the mainland, the meandering river creates an impression that Day-Asan is an island on its own.

The twin beaches of Looc and Mabua-Ipil teem with smooth,

multisized pebbles and rocks dissected by a cape that affords a sweeping view of the sea and mountain.

Some 30 minutes away from the city is Hikdop Island, home to Buenavista Cave, which will capture the fancy of those getting their taste of Spelunking 101 with its impressive stalagmites, stalactites and the so-called King’s Throne, where the caving for beginners ends.

On the adjacent cove is the Pagkasawan Beach where tourists usually laze around for lunch and snorkeling in the coral gardens just a few meters away. The shore is just about a hundred meters long, but its solitude seems to take you away to a different time and space.

The main barangay of Buenavista, which means “good view”, offers a soothing panoramic view of the string of idyllic islands—Zaragoza, Berok, Danawan, Sumilom, Sibale and Sagisi, which are as alluring as their exotic-sounding names.

The neighboring islands take visitors to the postcard-pretty wooden footbridge, which snakes through a narrow channel and connects the villages of Cantiasay and San Pedro. At 391 meters, it is the longest of its kind in the country and is jocularly called the city’s own little version of the San Juanico Bridge.

Surigao is also a promising dive spot with its lush life, where scuba divers can plunge into Punta Bilar’s marine sanctuary, teeming with dense coral reefs, nudibranchs, notably the “Spanish

Bonok-Bonok dancers welcome guests at the City Hall.

dancer”, juvenile bamboo sharks, moray eels, cuttlefishes, octopus and a profusion of aquatic life.

The Silop Cave System is a terrestrial wonder that has 12 chambers and awesome limestone formations, which are fit even for beginners, and has caught the attention of Philippine Speleological Society, which gathered here for its annual congress a few years back.

For a glimpse of the City’s living past, walk in at the Museo nan Surigao Heritage Center, which showcases the archaeological and geological treasures of the Surigao provinces.

The Battle of Surigao Strait Museum at the Luneta Park chroni-

Premium lobster at Day-Asan Floating Village

Almont Beach Resort poolside

cles World War II’s last major naval encounter, where US forces routed the Japanese Navy in 1944 after Douglas MacArthur’s return. It has a collection of vintage photos, scale models of warships, excavated war materiel, which take you

back to the historic battle.

Surigao might have been shaken by a strong quake, but visitors are up for more earth-shaking sights and experiences when they journey to the City of Island Adventures.

Journey BusinessMirror

»life on the go

A10 Sunday, April 16, 2017

Editor: Tet Andolong

Must-see places for the Holy Week

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By Rizal Raoul Reyes @brownindio

ANY Filipinos combine religion and summer vacation to get a relief from the stress of daily living. To help get the best of Holy Week, real-estate web site MyProperty recommended some of the mustgo sites even after Holy Week that might be less crowded and just perfect for the season.

Siquijor

The mystical island of Siquijor also boasts various tourist destinations. Some of the most noted are the Isla del Fuego, the pristine beaches in San Juan town and the centuries-old Saint Francis de Asisi Parish, which is also the biggest convent in the country, built in 1884. Moreover, Siquijor also has a butterfly sanctuary and breathtaking waterfalls and springs, but medical tourism is the real attraction here.

Simultaneous with Holy Week is the yearly Healing Festival. The four-day festival is opened by a Holy Mass and will include healing sessions, exploration in Cantabon Cave and a holy trek to Mount Bandilaan.

Tarlac

It is known as the country’s version of the Holy Land. Just 30 minutes from the main highway, a traveler can view life-size images that show the mysteries of the Holy Rosary and a number of Bible verses. The local Holy Land also has a replica of the tomb of Jesus Christ to complete the experience. It also highlights a 40foot statue of Jesus on the cross on Mount Golgotha.

Furthermore, Tarlac should be part of anyone’s bucket list as some of the most thrilling tourism experiences can be found here, including the Mount Pinatubo trek adventure and Kart City Tarlac.

Cagayan Valley

The well-preserved white-sand beaches of Cagayan and Palaui Island’s raw beauty are the province’s top attractions. Palaui, once hailed as one of the “World’s 100 Best Beaches” by CNN, is beyond doubt a magnificent sight to behold and experience.

Aside from its amazing water features, Cagayan offers activities suited for Lent. One of the mustvisit pilgrimage destinations in the country is the Calvary Hills in the town of Iguig. It has life-size statues depicting the 14 Stations of the Cross, and the old church of San Antonio de Galica built in the 1900s can be explored here.

Deep Forest Waterfall, National Park Island of Siquijor. Shutterstock

Mount Pulong Bato in Zamboanga City

Going to a pilgrimage is a favorite Filipino activity during Lent. In Zamboanga City, a traveler can go on a nature trekking, while observing religious traditions. At Pulong Bato in Abong Abong Park, the Stations of the Cross commence at the foot of the mountain and end at the peak. Religious images are also scattered and carved into the mountainside. Apart from this marvelous religious place, Zamboanga City is also the home of a large number of natural and manmade attractions to add worth to a meaningful vacation. Carreon, Congo, Nancy, Busay and Merloquet Falls are just some of the water adventures that are an absolute

Sunset in Santa Ana, Cagayan. Shutterstock

must-see in Zamboanga City.

Iloilo

Doing the Visita Iglesia becomes more special because of its centu-

Mount Pulong Bato in Zamboanga City. Zamboanga Historical Landmarks

ries-old churches. A traveler will be mesmerized with the historical churches that surround Iloilo, such as the Jaro Cathedral, Molo Church, Miag-ao Church and Guimbal

Church, to name just a few.

After church hopping, the neighboring island-province of Guimaras is just a short boat ride away, which offers a different kind

of water adventure for tourists as they will see various offerings, such as marine sanctuaries, limestone formations, isolated beaches and coves, and a lot more

Two Seasons opens new hotel in Coron Town

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WO Seasons unveils its newly opened Coron Bayside Hotel, the third property under Two Seasons hotel and resorts (the two other being Two Seasons Boracay and Coron Island Resort and Spa).

Nestled in the heart of Coron, it ups the ante in Coron vacations by being the only first-rate accommodation in town with breathtaking views of both the bay and the town, making every holiday delightful in more ways than one.

The experience begins with impressive accommodations. Choose from these rooms: the comfortable Standard, the plush Bayview, the opulent Bayview Deluxe and the luxurious grand Panorama Suites—all of which are spacious and elegantly designed. Free Wi-fi in the whole hotel is also readily available. There are cribs for those traveling with babies.

If you are on a working vacation, the hotel’s conference room can accommodate up to 130 people. The icing on the cake is the infinity pool. Whether you want to swim in the morning and bask in the sunshine while enjoying a panoramic view of Coron Bay or simply laze in the late afternoon away and watch the picturesque sunset, the experience is sure to be awe-inspiring.

There is also a well-equipped gym and a souvenir shop.

Meals are to be savored as much as an island holiday and Two Seasons Coron Bayside Hotel has leveled up the tropical dining experi-

Sweet retreat at Marco Polo Ortigas Manila

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ence with the BAYA Resto Lounge’s beautifully crafted wooden seats and jellyfish-like ceiling lights. Its menu of local and international dishes offers sumptuous all-day breakfast.

The hotel willingly links its guests to Coron’s rich history and

other beautiful attractions by way of especially-arranged day trips.

These include visits to Culion, Kayangan Lake (touted to be the country’s very own Blue Lagoon) Sangat Wreck and Siete Pecados and lunch at Banol beach. www.twoseasonsresorts.com.

AVE a sweet Easter egg-scape with room offers that are perfect for the holiday retreat. Indulge in an overnight stay with the whole family and enjoy breakfast for two adults and two kids aged 6 years old and below at Cucina. Starting at P5,850, this special rate comes with 20-percent savings on Piccolo Kids Club’s Hop Hop and Away activity that will happen on April 16. This day full of activities for the little kids includes workshops, such as luggage making and cupcake decorating. Play around and meet new friends at the play area. Watch the amazing magic show and balloon twisting. Paint eggs and hang it at the Easter tree. Have fun in all of these together with an Easter brunch. Even moms and dads are welcome to join, too.

Delight in a culinary journey with the four signature outlets. Try Cafe Pronto for freshly baked pastries and freshly brewed coffeé, Connect Lounge for an afternoon

high tea and cocktails; Lung Hin for authentic Cantonese dishes; and Vu’s Sky Bar and Lounge for some evening cocktails. Savor Cucina for a more diverse dining experience showcasing different international cuisines paired with a free flow of house iced tea, soft drinks, coffee or tea. Special for the Easter lunch are more items in the carving station, such as the famous US Prime Rib and Boneless Pork Knuckle stuffed with foie gras. Seafood station will also have additional items, such as shrimp and oyster. Enjoy a 20-percent discount from any of these outlets, as inclusive in the Easter room package.

Aside from these, guests also gain access to the fitness center and the indoor infinity pool, as well as complimentary wireless Internet access. Available for bookings from April 7 to 17. Celebrate Easter at Marco Polo Ortigas Manila. For more information, book online via www.marcopolohotels.com.

Journey BusinessMirror

»life on the go

Editor: Tet Andolong

Sunday, April 16, 2017 A11

Flip-flopping for tourism and the environment Story &photos by Rizal Raoul Reyes

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@brownindio

FTER her meeting with entrepreneur Imelda Precion, Miss Earth 2014 Jamie Herrell pursued her advocacy to the next level. She joined Precion to establish Isla 7107, a company that promotes tourist attractions and festivities of the Philippines through slippers.

“The business is about promoting tourism through flip-flops.

Imelda is a firm believer of the tourist spots in the country. The whole concept represents the 7,107 islands of the country. Furthermore, Imelda knows the good flip-flops,” said Herrell, the vice president of Isla 7107, in a press interview held recently in Makati City.

The 23-year-old Filipina-American Ms. Earth 2014 beauty contest title holder said the primary goal of the company is to promote popular tourist spots in the country, such as the Chocolate Hills, Banaue Terraces, Intramuros, and the Mayon Volcano, among others.

“We want to educate the people in the country by providing information on the hand tags on the slippers about the Philippines and that we should be proud to be Filipinos. We conducted lectures in the different high schools in the provinces and stressing that the slippers are reliable, educational and

colorful,” Herrell shared.

Moreover, Herrell and Precion are also taking it to the the next level by building awareness on the less popular but equally beautiful tourism landmarks in the country, such as the Golingob Cave in Samar. Being a country known for beautiful tourist spots, Herrell said every place that has beautiful sites should be supported and promoted to local and foreign travelers.

By helping the local government units’ tourist spots, Herrell noted the local economy would be boosted and result in additional income.

Herrell and Precion aren’t in the business just for promoting Philippine tourism. The duo wants to ensure that their business supports sustainability and environmental friendliness. It is important for Isla 7107 to be proenvironment, because slippers are one of the major contributors to pollution because, as Herrell

Herrell

pointed out, rubber is hard to recycle. To prove it walks the talk, Isla 7107 has liaised with two organizations that benefit from recycled rubber.

Herrell said Isla 7107 is working a partnership with Bambike, a local start-up that manufactures bicycles from bamboo and rubber. Isla 7107 plans to supply the rubber for the

Isla 7107 slippers

wheels and brakes with the used material from slippers.

“We are also working a partnership with the Department of Tourism and Duty Free Philippines to promote the brand among local and foreign tourists,” Herrell explained.

Isla 7107 is also promoting its recycling advocacy by reaching

out to religious organizations.

“In our project with the Sisters of Mary, we donated a lot of slippers, approximately 6,500, and collected and replaced the wornout ones. We recycled the old ones. It was very timely to give the children new slippers, because we noticed that they used the soles of their old pair as

foot padding,” she lamented.

Herrell wants to prove to people that her beauty is skin deep.

She recalled that in her younger years, people always admired her lovely features.

“Right now, I want to tell people that, even if you are beautiful, you can still do good things,” she explained.

Like a Masbate cowboy

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ASBATE is acknowledged as the country’s cowboyland and “Rodeo Capital” by virtue of its vast cattle ranches and the tell-tale cowboys who tame the herd.

From April 17 to 22 it will sizzle once more with Texan-themed adventure, as it holds the annual Rodeo Masbateño Festival as cowboys and cowgirls from all over the country converge in the provincial capital of Masbate City to show off their skills, such as lassooing, bull riding, whipping and carambola, among others. Establishments will be jazzed up, as Western salons blaring cowboy music as horsemen gallop around.

A much-awaited event is the Cattle Drive on April 19, where scores of cows are let loose in the streets of the city, and herded back to the flock by the cowboys.

This will be followed by the Cattle Horse Riding Team Penning Competition, where ranch and school-based teams will outdo one another with the skills that have made them the stuff of legend.

Spicing up the festival are a trade fair, livestock display and auction, street barn dance, photo competition of Masbate’s sights and sounds, and the search for the Philippine Rodeo Girl. There will also be a gastronomic treat in the beef-cooking competition, which will test the culinary mettle of chefs.

Organized by the Rodeo Masbateño Inc., the event is supported by the Masbate provincial government, Masbate City government, Department of Tourism (DOT) Region 5 and Filminera Resources Corp. Spectators can get a feel of the fever by dressing up in checkered long sleeves, leather vests, jeans, boots and Western-style wide brimmed hats. Visitors can tour the sprawling cattle ranches where they can be cowboys even for a few fleeting moments by learning to ride a horse, lasso a cow and other skills of the trade.

According to Masbate Vice Gov.

Jo Kristine Revil, tourism’s prime mover in the province, Rodeo is their unique way of luring visitors to showcase its country-ranch lifestyle and its best-kept natural wonders. She said that beyond its “Wild, Wild West” image, the province is an exciting travel frontier, especially for beach bums and nature lovers who want to explore the well-kept travel secrets.

The province is a part of the A lbay-Masbate-Sorsogon (A lmasor) travel cluster crafted by the DOT Region 5, which seeks to boost visitor arrivals in the Bicol region.

After the skills olympics, guests can explore Masbate’s glistening shores and crystal-clear water off the beaten path.

Just a few minutes from the city is Buntod Sandbar, a 251hectare reef marine sanctuary that boasts of a 200-meter stretch of white sand and mangrove forest. Snorkel in the glassy sea, paddle a native banca or kayak around the sandbar.

Managed by the Masbate City government and a fisherfolk group, it has been awarded the Para El Mar Best Marine Sanctuary by the Marine Science Network.

In Balud town is Palani Beach, a wide cove in a sleepy shore reminiscent of Boracay’s raw allure.

With only a handful of resorts in a vast expanse, you can beach ball games, go bamboo rafting, row a dugout canoe, or idly laze on the cabanas to gaze at the sunset.

Along the way is Fazenda de Esperanza in Milagros town, an agricultural retreat and halfway house for victims of substance abuse preparing reintegration into society. Literally meaning “farms of hope”, this is a visually refreshing pitstop with the undulating mountain ranges that conjure of pastoral Alpine images. Cool off with flavored cow’s milk or take home organic farm produce and native souvenirs to help fund the institution.

In a secluded point of Dima-

Rodeo Masbateño Mark Arvin Santiago

Catandayagan Falls

Barn Dance Fr. Paolo Cervantes

salang town is Porta Vega, which offers an unparalleled stunning view of the dusk and the moonrise in a mile-long stretch of uninhabited fine sand beach.

If you can’t get enough of the sea and sand, you can hie off to nearby Ticao Island, whose iconic spot is the postcard-pretty Catandayagan Falls, which emanates from a cliff and drops directly into the sea. Burubangcaso Islet boasts of talcum fine sand, crystalline water and a huge monolithic rock.

It is among the chain of islands in Masbate you can almost call your own because of the absence of the madding crowd.

Tucked in Ticao’s northern por-

tion is the Halea Nature Park, a hidden placid cove teeming with aquatic life. Named after a mythical character of Bicol folklore, the marine sanctuary is beautifully framed by limestone rocks and patches of sleepy shores.

On the other side of the island is the Manta Bowl of Ticao Pass, habitat of the manta rays and where butanding (whale sharks), the world’s biggest fishes, occasionally stray from their feeding grounds in Donsol, Sorsogon.

Go scuba diving at the Ticao Island Resort and foray into the world of these amazing underwater creatures.

The subprovince of Burias Is-

Burubangcaso Islet

land is Masbate’s top tourist drawer with its treasure trove of surprises—the awesome rock island of

Animasola, which is punctuated by a powdery beach and a crystalline natural pool.

Journey BusinessMirror

»life on the go

A12 Sunday, April 16, 2017

Editor: Tet Andolong

Bohol tourism

to soar with new airport, major infra projects

Tagbilaran Airport, the 11th-busiest airport in the Philippines, will soon be replaced by the Panglao International Airport, which is scheduled to welcome local and international visitors by early 2018. Stewart Lim via JustGola.com.

like access roads, runway strips, toll booths, and service structures, the airport is steadily seeing itself emerge as the beacon of a brighter and bustling future for Bohol’s tourism.

A green and timely upgrade

I

THE TOURISM ADVOCATE

N the inspiring words of Pierre Bernardo, “To travel is to evolve”, Bohol is on its way to make transformative journeys happen, not only for travelers seeking its beauty, but also for the locals of the charming province themselves.

In my previous column, I mentioned how the Philippine tourism industry boomed this January alone, with tourist arrivals registering an impressive 16.48-percent growth compared to the same onemonth period last year. Without a doubt, Bohol, with its stunning natural wonders and historical attractions drawing crowds of adventure-seekers, had a big share in making this happen.

With developments like a new, state-of-the-art international airport currently being constructed in Bohol, I’m quite optimistic that these numbers will soon soar further and keep the province busy with visitors from all over the world.

Bohol to welcome international flights

Soon to replace the Tagbilaran Airport is the Panglao Internation-

al Airport, a P7-billion facility that began construction in June 2015 under the helm of the Chiyoda-Mitsubishi joint venture as contractor.

Expected to be fully functional by early-2018, the structure serves as a major lifeline in boosting tourist traffic in Bohol and its surrounding neighbors. While currently seeing roughly 800,000 passengers annually, the new airport will be servicing both international and domestic flights in a bigger space, giving Panglao the influx of local and global guests that can easily double its numbers in the coming year.

In a combined effort between the Philippine government and the Japan International Cooperation Agency, much of the work has been focused on modernizing and expanding the grounds and facilities to accommodate a large number of people comfortably. With complete amenities and necessities

With all the developments already set in motion, it’s important to remember the importance of maintaining sustainable and ecofriendly materials and structures.

Thankfully, that is one of the key factors in Panglao International Airport’s building measures.

With advanced Japanese technology implemented, the airport will not only see more efficient systems and space allocation but also set higher standards in green building. Using geotextile sheets, the surrounding environment will be protected from pollutants seeping out from the drainage and soaking yard. That process will be backed by a cutting-edge filtering system that will be put into place during the construction process. Energy consumption will, of course, be another factor in the sustainability of the airport. That is where the photovoltaic power-generation system comes in, operating all the equipment and fixtures by converting solar-cell energy into electrons. The predeparture sections will be air-conditioned using solar power, while most areas will make use of natural ventilation. Lighting the place will use the combined strength of natural light and LED bulbs. To top it all off, a waterworks system will be put in place to aid filtration and waste disposal.

With the continuous modernization of our surroundings and the spike of calamities throughout the nation, it’s good to know that the beauty and reliability of Bohol’s natural resources are not being sacrificed for the sake of building steel giants and bringing in more flights. In fact, it just goes to show that the new airport will only create more positive avenues for Bohol to flourish and succeed.

Seen as one of the most important developments to boost Bohol’s tourism industry, the upcoming Panglao International Airport will open as a sustainable and eco-friendly facility built under world-class standards. the Department of Transportation and Communications.

International flights to Bohol’s upcoming green airport will make it easier for beachgoers around the world to fly to Panglao Island and experience the famous white-sand stretch of Alona Beach. PinoyAdventurista.com

Developments for a more vibrant Bohol

As with any stable ecosystem, Bohol’s efforts will be culminated with other infrastructure projects and partnerships that will complement and serve the cycle of active tourism and economic development.

As EEI Corp. handles local civil matters regarding the upcoming Panglao International Airport, the local government aims to establish various infrastructure projects that will connect to the airport and expand accessibility to other areas.

One of these new developments is the monorail system being initiated by the Provincial Planning and Development Office (PPDO) to connect the airport and the Bohol Business Park to other towns in the area. Starting with Alburquerque, Corella and Maribojoc, PPDO is looking to connect to even more towns as the project develops.

In order to further better connectivity and harness the united, yet varied, formations of each area, projects like the North-South road expansion, interisland bridges con-

necting to Bohol and the Loon Port Development Project have been lined up for the near term.

With all these projects building up toward a bigger and brighter interconnected system, I can’t help but be thrilled at how Bohol is evolving as the new frontier in Philippine tourism. As traversing the province and its surroundings becomes easier in the coming years, I’m sure more adventure-seekers will appreciate the transformative appeal that only the Philippines can bring.