Businessmirror september 10, 2017

media partner of the year

United nations

2015 environmental Media Award leadership award 2008

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

A broader look at today’s business

n Sunday, September 10, 2017 Vol. 12 No. 332

2016 ejap journalism awards

business news source of the year

P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 14 pages | 7 days a week

Military under pressure to end war before martial law expires as terrorists infiltrate other areas

‘Unquantifiable’ cost of

Marawi siege

Smoke rises from houses following airstrikes by Philippine Air Force bombers as government forces battle to retake control of Marawi City from Muslim militants onMay 27, 2017. AP/Bullit Marquez

W

By Rene Acosta

ith the surging cost of the war and the security threat posed by the reported continuing buildup and massing of other Islamic State (IS)-inspired terrorist groups in other parts of Mindanao, the military is hardpressed to end the Marawi City siege the soonest possible.

Displaced residents of Marawi City prepare to receive food packs and sleeping mats from the International Committee of the Red Cross at an evacuation center in Saguiaran near the besieged city of Marawi, Lanao del Sur, on May 28, 2017. AP/Bullit Marquez

Armed Forces Chief of Staff Gen. Eduardo Año has already assured that the terrorists’ juggernaut into the city will be over before he retires on October 26, a compelling reason for the soldiers to go for a “quick fix” even before the deadline.

The siege, staged by the Maute-IS group while top defense and military officials were in Russia officially “cavorting” with their Moscow counterparts, flared up under Año’s term, making it his greatest challenge to end and cap his career respectably.

In ending the Maute-IS siege even before the deadline, the battle-weary military could stop the

depletion of its modest funds and give it the opportunity to refocus its attention on dealing with the challenges posed by the other ISinspired groups.

It would also negate the possible tilting, or the further building up, of support by other Moro groups and even by the war-affected civilians, who have been yearning desperately to return even to their ruined homes.

Likewise, it should lend the soldiers an added time to deal with all of the other existing security threat groups in the region before the expiration of the extended martial rule, whose ultimate goal, Continued on A2

EU businessmen push FTA to remove nagging trade barriers

W

By Roderick L. Abad | Contributor

hile European companies remain bullish on their prospects in Southeast Asia, they continue to be concerned about the trade barriers that somehow limit their investments in the region, the EU-Asean Business Council (EU-ABC) said.

“Overall, the sentiment of European businesses across the region is very positive,” EU-ABC Chairman Donald P. Kanak said, pertaining to the results of the 2017 EU-Asean Business Senti-

ment Survey involving top executives of European firms around Southeast Asia.

Kanak’s view was supported

by EU-ABC Executive Director Chris Humphrey, saying: “Satisfac-

PESO exchange rates n US 51.0230

tion with the region [or] optimism about the region had increased since last year.”

High optimism level

Of the 333 respondents, 71 percent said that the region has become more important in terms of their global revenues, as compared to 53 percent recorded last year. Bright prospects go on, as 75 percent of them expect an increase in profits from Southeast Asia for this year.

Companies based in Myanmar (84 percent), as well as Vietnam and Brunei (both 83 percent), showed high optimism levels, followed by the Philippines (78 percent), Lao PDR (78 percent), Cambodia (76 percent), Indonesia (74 percent), Singapore (70 percent), Malaysia (65 percent) and Thailand

(62 percent).

Nevertheless, challenges for businesses remain, hindering Asean from reaching its full economic potential, as 61 percent of the respondents agreed that nontariff barriers are hampering supply-chain efficiency.

More than half, or 56 percent, of the participants indicated that they used regional supply chains last year compared to only 41 percent in 2015.

Despite the marginal hike in the utilization of product or service-movement systems, 55 percent of respondents said there were too many such barriers—up from the responses in both 2016 and 2015.

Sixty-one percent reported that they would make greater use

of regional supply chains if these barriers were removed, again an increase from previous years.

Strengthening ties

Aware of these issues, more than four-fifths of the businesses surveyed want to see strengthened ties between the European Union (EU) and the Asean.

In fact, 88 percent believe in the pursuit of a free-trade agreement (FTA) between the two regions—a significant increase from the 66 percent surveyed in 2016.

A region-to-region FTA between the EU and Asean would bridge together the world’s largest and fifth largest economies, covering bilateral trade in goods alone valued at over €209 billion annually.

“Respondents strongly sup-

port a deep and comprehensive region-to-region EU-Asean FTA to enable greater European investment in the region and continued collaboration on reducing trade barriers and trade frictions,” noted the EU-ABC chairman.

With this in mind, he said, the EU-ABC calls for the acceleration in negotiations on a region-to-region trade deal, following the announcement earlier this year that both sides had agreed to work toward a framework agreement.

It is clear from this year’s survey—the third installment—that nearly nine of 10 respondents agreed that a region-to-region FTA would deliver more advantages than a series of bilateral deals, with 76 percent (up from 66 percent Continued on A2

n japan 0.4705 n UK 66.8554 n HK 6.5294 n CHINA 7.8678 n singapore 38.0797 n australia 41.0531 n EU 61.3552 n SAUDI arabia 13.6058

Source: BSP (8 September 2017 )

NewsSunday BusinessMirror

A2 Sunday, September 10, 2017

www.businessmirror.com.ph

‘Unquantifiable’ cost of Marawi siege Continued from A1

as spelled out, is to end Mindanao’s security problem.

Too modest

As early as last month, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana estimated that the military could have already used roughly P2.5 billion to P3 billion in financing and sustaining its operations against the Maute-IS group in Marawi.

He said the amount was taken from the funds that have been earmarked for other projects of the defense department.

However, a military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Lorenzana’s estimate is very low if not too modest, especially that the secretary himself has also admitted that the cost still excludes the expenses of the Air Force.

The ongoing operations in Marawi involve the Army, the Marines and the Air Force, which tapped its air assets for the bombing operations.

“The estimate is very low, if not modest, as it only talked about the land forces. Compared with the foot soldier, when an Air Force pilot moves, he takes along with him a crew, a plane and bombs that he uses; it’s a war machine,” the military official said.

The operation in Marawi, which has entered its fourth month, is showcasing the assets of the Air Force and their uses.

The official said the cost of the

war, as of this writing, still cannot be quantified.

“It’s unquantifiable, especially if you look now at the picture of Marawi City and the displaced residents,” he said.

Malacañang has already set aside as much as P20 billion for the rehabilitation of the war-torn city, with the amount to be released in three tranches until 2019.

Cost of rehab

Lorenzana said rebuilding the besieged city of Marawi could cost about P56 billion ($1.1 billion).

Months of fighting between Philippine troops and Islamic State-led militants have left the once-vibrant city on the southern island of Mindanao a virtual ghost town, displacing more than 230,000 people.

“There’s a need to rebuild the infrastructure, provide social assistance to those traumatized by the war, restock Armed Forces ammunition and replenish its funding,” Lorenzana said in a September 5 interview, adding that he expects the conflict to be over within three weeks.

At least 770 people have been killed since fighting began on May 23, when hundreds of militants laid siege to the city, prompting President Duterte to declare martial law. As the conflict dragged on, the cost has mounted and the most recent estimate is equal to more than a third of the budget for defense this year.

Lorenzana said current estimates indicated that P50 billion would be needed for the rehabilitation of Marawi City. Up to P3 billion had already been spent by the military since fighting began, and another P3 billion for social welfare and other services, he said.

The government may need to ask lawmakers for an additional P10-billion budget this year to start reconstruction. On top of that, an estimated P7.5 billion is needed to hire 20,000 soldiers and 10,000 police, he added.

He said that for every 10,000 soldiers, the government would need at least P2.5 billion a year to train and equip, compared with the P4-billion projection of Año.

The government this week announced it plans to sell P30 billion of bonds in the fourth quarter to help fund Marawi’s reconstruction.

Other groups

The “protracted” operations against the terrorists in Marawi prompted other groups inspired by the IS to consolidate and make their presence felt in other parts of Mindanao, particularly in Maguindanao.

One of these groups is a faction of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) under Commanders Salahuddin Hassan alias Commander Salah and Esmail Abdulmalik.

The faction, known as Jamaatu al-Muhajireen wal Ansar, has pledged its allegiance to the IS.

During the past weeks, Hassan

President Duterte addresses troops during his visit to the 2nd Mechanized Brigade on May 26, 2017, on the outskirts of Iligan City. At left is Armed Forces chief and martial-law administrator Gen. Eduardo Año and at center is Defense Chief Delfin Lorenzana. AP/Bullit Marquez

and his men, who have been displaying IS emblems, attempted to saunter and make their presence known in the municipalities of Mamasapano, Sharif Saidona, Datu Unsay and Datu Saudi in Maguindanao.

The Army has, however, thwarted the group’s attempt to establish bases in the municipalities.

On the other hand, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), with the support of Army troops, is fighting to boot out the group of Abdulmalik in remote barangays of Datu Salibu, also in Maguindanao.

A total of 50 fighters from both sides have been killed in the skirmishes. Early this week, the military carried out a series of airstrikes against Abdulmalik and his men, killing at least 10 terrorists.

Reinforcements?

As the government fends off terror activities by the IS-inspired faction of the BIFF, the MILF also reported the presence of at least 100 terrorists in the town of Buldon, also in Maguindanao.

It was President Duterte who

first broke the news on the presence of IS fighters in Buldon, although local officials initially dismissed it, claiming the Commander in Chief must be referring to Mount Cararao, which sits between Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur.

Amid this massing by other terror groups, terrorists were also occasionally attempting to reinforce their cornered colleagues in Marawi, as evidenced by the killings recently of 10 armed men who were entering the city by way of Lake Lanao.

EU businessmen push FTA to remove nagging trade barriers Continued from A1

in 2016) saying that such a deal should be pursued now.

“It’s encouraging the governments of the Asean countries and Europe to engage actively to complete the region-to-region freetrade agreements,” Kanak said.

Committed investments

BY and large, the commercial, trade and investment ties between the EU and Asean have been strong and growing over the years.

Being an economic bloc that is considered a giant in the world, the EU is the Asean’s biggest source of foreign direct investment and second-largest trading partner after China.

On the other hand, Asean is the EU’s third-biggest trading ally outside of Europe. Trade in goods alone was worth over €200 billion in 2016.

“Asean is becoming the next key driver of global economic growth. This survey shows that European businesses will continue to contribute to Asean by increased trade, investment and employment,” Kanak said.

Overall, 94 percent of European businesses plan to expand or maintain their current levels of operations and head count in Southeast Asia.

Fifty-eight percent expect to grow their businesses, while 53 percent intend to increase employee numbers. Only 3 percent deem to contract operations (versus four percent in 2016) and only 5 percent expect to reduce head count (versus 7 percent last year).

Meanwhile, 86 percent of them are projecting their level of trade investment in Asean to increase over the next five years.

On the other hand, 69 percent felt that the region would become more important in terms of worldwide revenues over the same time frame.

On AEC

TWO years since the Asean Economic Community (AEC) has been put in place, global attention has been focused on the newly formed regional economic bloc.

The survey indicates continuous optimism in the region, as nearly three-quarters (71 percent)

of respondents said that further Asean economic integration, which started in 2015, was pivotal to their business success in the region, as compared to the 66 percent surveyed in 2016.

Likewise, European companies are generally perceived favorably in Asean, with only 12 percent saying they were viewed less favorably.

Despite the issue of the Great Britain withdrawing its EU membership, the study revealed that there will be no significant fall-out from Brexit on trade and investment plans, with only 12 percent of the participants believing that it would affect their trade and investment plans.

“The EU-Asean Business Council remains committed to working with the European Commission and Asean national governments to achieve the reality of a highquality, comprehensive region-toregion FTA and accelerate the negotiation of FTAs between the EU and Asean region,” Humphrey said.

“We will also continue to work closely with Asean and its memberstates in promoting the further development of the Asean Economic Community,” he added.

Promising results

TOUTED as the region’s “rising economic star,” the Philippines, as expected, keeps on gaining a lot of confidence from European locators across all industries.

Based on the survey, the majority of the 51 respondents from EU-originated businesses operating in the Philippines are looking to expand their operations (71 percent) in the country as compared to its Asean neighbors.

Consistent from last year’s results, the Philippines led anew in projected total head count (52 percent), specifically due to availability of skilled and competitively priced labor and ease of recruiting labor, among the Asean-6 countries, including Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.

The country, nevertheless, lags behind in terms of general business regulation. In particular, it was ranked last in terms of government and political system and prevalence of business-

friendly customs procedures.

While 55 percent in the region feel they are at a disadvantage in Asean without an EU-Asean FTA, those in the Philippines remain on a competitive edge, according to the EU-ABC executive director.

Most of survey respondents here (62 percent) see an FTA agreement between the Philippines and EU as beneficial to business.

“You have the advantage here now that you are currently negotiating an FTA with the EU. So you are ahead in some of the other countries in the region,” Humphrey said.

What’s more, almost threequarters of respondents (71 percent) said further Asean economic integration is key to business success in the Philippines.

Seventy percent of European locators here do not expect the Brexit issue to have a big impact on their businesses in the Philippines.

Commenting on the survey, the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP), in a news statement, said it was elated by the positive results of the third annual EU-Asean Business Sentiment Survey its member-companies had participated in.

“It is clear there is still very much interest in the Asean from EU business. It is imperative now more than ever that the administration shows how the Philippines continues to be committed to improving business conditions in the country, while stressing that the country remains a very competitive choice versus its regional peers,” the ECCP said.

“While there are still quite some issues to address, namely, opening up the economy to further foreign investment and moving forward with the tax reforms, we are confident that the Philippines is moving in the right direction and we are proud to play a part in helping the country grow and reach its full potential,” the group added.

“I think the data speak for themselves. This is what expressed [or] the intention of European companies to continue to invest, to grow and hire, and build their presence in the Philippines and regionally,” Kanak said.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

The World BusinessMirror

UK growth forecasts lowered as BCC sees no pound boost

T

he weaker pound is failing to boost UK growth, according to the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).

The business group downgraded its medium-term outlook for the economy in a report on Friday, citing a weaker-than-expected contribution from trade and subdued consumer spending. Inflation will outpace wage growth until 2019, the BCC forecast, continuing the squeeze on shoppers’ pockets that weighed on performance in the first half of 2017.

While sterling’s plunge following the UK’s vote to leave the European Union last year helped cushion some of the initial impact of the decision, there is scant evidence it is leading to a sustained rebalancing of the economy. At the same time, the decline is pushing up prices for consumers, reducing their spending and threatening one the key drivers of expansion.

“It is increasingly clear that the post-EU referendum slide in the value of sterling has done more harm than good,” said Suren Thiru, head of economics at the BCC. “The contribution of net trade to UK gross domestic product growth is not expected to be as strong as we previously predicted, as we see little evidence that the depreciation of the pound is materially boosting the UK’s external position.”

The BCC’s downgrade to its net trade contribution estimate is mainly based on a rising forecast

for import growth, with few signs customers are switching away from goods brought in for overseas despite their rising costs.

That chimes with the current picture in the UK, where net trade made no contribution to growth in the second quarter.

A repor t l ater Fr id ay w i l l show the trade deficit narrowed slightly in July, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg, rebounding from the widest in almost a year. Still, the forecast reading is above the UK’s five-year average, sug gesting the pound’s decline has failed to improve the nation’s position.

“A cheaper currency does not automatically mean an export boom, no matter how some politicians and commentators will it to happen,” said Adam Marshall, director general of the BCC. “The rising upfront cost of doing business in the UK, the uncertainty around Brexit, and the constraints created by skills gaps and shoddy infrastructure collectively outweigh any benefit arising from the recent depreciation of sterling.”

UK growth has slowed in 2017, with survey data suggesting the third quarter will see more of the same, according to IHS Markit.

While the BCC slightly increased its 2017 growth estimate to 1.6 percent from 1.5 percent, the forecasts for 2018 and 2019 were both cut by 0.1 percentage point to 1.2 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively. Bloomberg News

Sunday, September 10, 2017

A3

Korean budget carrier sees room for 30% cut in airfares

A

new South Korean budget carrier says it can help push airfares down by as much as 30 percent and still stay profitable in a market already crowded with six rivals.

Aero K Airlines Co., backed by venture capital funds, plans to use new, fuel-efficient aircraft and a base where airport levies are at least 60-percent cheaper than the nation’s main hub in Seoul, Chairman Kang Byungho said in an interview. The operator expects to get a permit this month and start services as early as April as the nation’s the seventh low-cost airline, he said.

“We see Northeast Asia as the biggest opportunity,” Kang, 41, said in an interview in Seoul.

“If we do everything correctly, we think we can bring the cost structure down.”

Rising wealth is encouraging more South Koreans to explore Japanese resorts and splurge at luxury shopping in Hong Kong, spawning the budget airlines that sometimes charge as little as $49 for a flight from Seoul to Tokyo.

As travel booms, geopolitical tensions in the Korean Peninsula have cast a cloud over the industry. Earlier this year, China’s objections to a US missile shield on South Korean soil and the fallout resulted in the suspension of many popular services between the two countries in March.

Aero K will save costs by operating out of Cheongju, a city about 60 miles south of Seoul that offers an airport with cheaper landing and parking rates. In

addition, ancillary revenue will help the carrier post a net income of about 50 billion won, or roughly $44 million, in its third year of operations, Kang said.

Investors in Aero K include

We see Northeast Asia as the biggest opportunity. If we do everything correctly, we think we can bring the cost structure down.”

—Kang

Hanwha Techwin Co. and Hanwha Investment Corp., units of Hanwha Group; Atinum Investment Co.; SparkLabs; and Bubang Co., which makes rice cookers.

In March the airline ordered eight Airbus SE A320ceo with 180 seats each. The airline has an option for two more A320ceos and could exercise that in the second year of operations, Kang said. It will consider ordering A320neo in its third year to expand, he said. Focus will be on f lights to cities within three hours—including Japan, Taiwan and China, he said. Bloomberg News

A4

Sunday, September 10, 2017

The World BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Trump keeps pressure on North Korea as force remains an option P

Trump loses appeal on relatives covered by travel ban to America

P

resident Donald J. Trump said it’s not “inevitable” that the US will wind up in a war with North Korea over its continued development of nuclear weapons, but that military action remains an option.

“Nothing’s inevitable,” Trump said in a news conference on Thursday at the White House with the emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah. “I would prefer not going the route of the military, but it is something certainly that could happen.”

He declined to say whether he’d accept a nuclear-armed North Korea that can be successfully deterred from using atomic weapons. A senior administration official later told reporters that the US will not allow North Korea to extort or threaten the world with its nuclear program, and that the administration is not sure the country can be deterred.

The Trump administration is seeking to ratchet up pressure on North Korea after the country tested what it claimed was a hydrogen bomb on Sunday, fol-

lowing several successful tests of ballistic missiles with intercontinental range.

The official said the danger of war is rising, and that the US is also concerned about North Korea exporting its nuclear technology to other nations or to terror groups. Any threat to the US or its allies will be met with a massive military response, the official said.

“North Korea is behaving very badly and it’s got to stop,” Trump said at the press conference.

The US is circulating a draft resolution at the United Nations that would bar crude-oil shipments to North Korea, ban the nation’s exports of textiles and prohibit employment of its guest workers by other countries, according to a diplomat at the world body. The proposal also calls for freezing the

A North Korean soldier (center) looks toward the South Korean side of the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in Paju, South Korea, on July 27. South Korean President Moon Jae-in is seeking a deal with North Korea in 2020 to bring about the “complete denuclearization” of the isolated nation in return for a peace treaty that would guarantee the survival of Kim Jong Un’s regime. SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg

assets of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. But China and Russia, both of which have veto power in the Security Council, have indicated resistance to imposing more sanctions on North Korea.

The US is willing to risk a veto of its proposal rather than see it get watered down, according to a Security Council diplomat who asked not to be identified because negotiations continue. The US has called for the council to take up its resolution on September 11.

Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke for 45 minutes

on Wednesday as the US president seeks China’s help in putting pressure on Pyongyang. While both sides released statements agreeing on the goal of eliminated nuclear weapons from the Korean Peninsula, there was no mention of next steps.

Top Trump administration officials, including Defense Secretary James Mattis, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Joseph Dunford, briefed Congress on Wednesday about the crisis and the administration’s approach. Bloomberg News

resident Donald J. Trump suffered another setback on his embattled travel ban, with an appeals panel leaving in a place a lower-court ruling that forces the administration to accept people with grandparents, cousins and other relatives in the US. Thursday’s decision by a threejudge panel of the San Franciscobased appeals court further frustrates the administration as it heads toward an Ocober 10 showdown before the US Supreme Court over the broader legality of the president’s executive order temporarily barring travelers from six mostly Muslim nations.

The Ninth Circuit panel also said Trump was wrong in how he interpreted an earlier order by the High Court affecting thousands of refugees seeking entry into the US. The Supreme Court on June 26 let the government enforce a limited travel ban, saying the US had to admit at least some close relatives though the court didn’t list all the relationships that qualified. The Trump administration then agreed to let people enter if they had a parent, spouse, fiance, child, sibling, son- or daughter-in-law, or a parent-in-law in the country.

One of the travel ban’s challengers, Hawaii Attorney General Doug Chin, contended the criteria for close relatives was too restrictive. He argued that people with grandparents, cousins and aunts and uncles in the US qualify as having “bona fide” connections and should be excluded from

the ban on travelers from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

Chin also challenged Trump’s interpretation of the Supreme Court order as giving him authority to exclude refugees, even if a resettlement agency had promised that it would provide basic services for them.

The refugee suspension was expected to affect thousands of people covered by what are known as “assurances,” formal promises by resettlement agencies to provide housing and other necessities. Advocates say those people have been thoroughly vetted and don’t pose a national security threat.

The Ninth Circuit judges said in Thursday’s ruling that the Honolulu federal judge who sided with Chin was right on both counts.

“The district court carefully and correctly balanced the hardships and the equitable considerations as directed by the Supreme Court,” the panel wrote. Justice Department Spokesman Nicole Navas didn’t immediately respond to an e-mail request for comment on the court’s ruling.

Trump’s March 6 executive order said the 90-day travel ban and 120day refugee ban would give officials time to assess US vetting procedures and would address an “unacceptably high” risk that terrorists could slip into the country. Lower courts had blocked the ban, saying Trump overstepped his authority and unconstitutionally targeted Muslims.

Bloomberg News

Deadly lung Billionaire who accused top Chinese officials of corruption malady’s return asks political asylum in the US shows Australia’s coal struggle

A

billionaire property developer who has accused some of China’s most powerful officials of corruption has applied for political asylum in the US, his lawyer said.

The billionaire, Guo Wengui, who is in the US on a tourist visa that expires later this year, is seeking asylum status because his public charges against Chinese officials have made him “a political opponent of the Chinese regime,” Thomas Ragland, a Washington-based lawyer representing him, said in a telephone interview late Wednesday.

Asylum—even a pending asylum appl icat ion—wou ld g ive Guo more protection because he could stay in the US while the application was being considered, a process that can take years, Ragland said.

“Asylum offers a level of protection t hat is d if ferent f rom hav ing a v isa status,” R agland sa id. “ Visas can be canceled or revoked.”

From his $68-million apartment overlooking Central Park in Manhattan, Guo, also known as Miles Kwok, has used Twitter and YouTube to publicize his claims that Wang Qishan, a member of the elite Politburo Standing Committee who oversees the ruling Communist Party’s own anticorruption efforts, and his family members secretly control one of China’s largest conglomerates.

S o me o f t he e v i d e n c e he presents to back his c laims are easi ly ref uted or simply d iff icu lt to believe. But some of his accusations, such as t hose m ade a g a i n st t he f a m i ly of Wang’s immediate predecessor, can be cor roborated.

Guo’s actions have earned the ire of the Chinese government.

In April Beijing asked Interpol, the global police organization, to issue a global warrant for his arrest. He is also being sued for libel in US courts by several Chinese individuals and companies.

The asylum application could present a diplomatic quandary

for the Trump administration, which is seeking China’s help in isolating North Korea after it conducted a series of missile tests and underground nuclear tests. Guo is arguably China’s most-wanted man, and giving him asylum would almost certainly antagonize Beijing, which may interpret the move as tacit approval of Guo’s tactics to undermine China’s leadership.

Articles in China’s closely controlled news media have accused Guo of crimes, including fraud, money laundering and rape. In April one of his associates, a former vice minister of state security, appeared in a televised confession in which he said Guo had bribed him.

Guo’s asylum application may be complicated by his claims that he has passports from many countries, including the United Arab Emirates, and is no longer a citizen of China. It is unclear why Guo could not go to another country where he has citizenship when his US visa expires, though Ragland said that the US might be the only country where Guo feels safe from the long arm of the Chinese state.

Guo’s a s ylu m appl ic at ion, which Ragland said was received on Wednesday by a government processing center in Vermont, comes ahead of an important Communist Party meeting next m o nt h t h a t w i l l d e t e r m i n e whether Wang, who is past the customary retirement age, will be able to remain on the Politburo Standing Committee.

Guo’s accusations were seen by some analysts as weakening Wang’s position. But on Wednesday Beijing sent a signal that Wang still enjoyed strong backing from his peers. Three of his fellow members of the seven-man Politburo Standing Committee, plus the top aide to President Xi Jinping, attended a ceremony in Beijing with Wang to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of his father-in-law, a senior leader who died in 1994.

New York Times News Service

C

laustrophobia never bothered Keith Stoddart as he sheared coal from the wall of a long, narrow and dusty tunnel hundreds of meters underground in northeastern Australia. Now, racked by a progressive, deadly lung disease, the 68-year-old gets panicked by pangs of shortness of breath.

His illness had been absent since the mid-1980s in Australia, the world’s top coal-exporting country. At least, that’s what records showed until May 2015, when mine-veterans like Stoddart began presenting in doctors’ rooms with an irreversible scourge from a bygone era: black lung disease.

Twenty-five cases of so-called coal workers’ pneumoconiosis have since been confirmed in Stoddart’s home state of Queensland, government records show.

Many of them were missed by routine medical screening, and all of them point to weaknesses in modern mining technologies and dust controls that the government is now trying to fix. Coal is Queensland’s biggest export-earner, generating A$21.4 billion, roughly equivalent to $17 billion, in the year ended June 2016.

As thousands of current and retired coal miners undergo checks for the condition, caused by chronic inhalation of coal dust, lawyers are preparing compensation claims poised to ratchet up insurance costs for mining companies, and potentially subject them to legal claims for tens of millions of dollars in damages, said Stephen Smyth, state president of the mining and energy division of the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, which represents the bulk of Queensland’s 5,500 underground coal miners.

“It is a ticking time bomb for the industry in Australia,” said David Lennox, a resources analyst with stock advisory firm Fat Prophets in Sydney. “It’s a crisis that’s been a long time in the making and, over a long period of time, it will ultimately take lives.”

New South Wales, the state bordering Queensland’s south, reported in February its first case of pneumoconiosis in a coalmine worker since the 1970s.

In the US black lung disease has killed more than 78,000 miners since 1968, with $45 billion paid in benefits to the injured workers and their survivors, according to the Department of Labor. In China it kills about 6,000 people annually.

Bloomberg News

Science

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

BusinessMirror

Sunday

Sunday, September 10, 2017 A5

Newton Agham Programme: Improving research quality through internationalization

T

By Andrea Teran | Special to the BusinessMirror

he Newton Fund is a United Kingdom government program launched in 2014 to build scientific and innovation partnerships with 16 partner-countries to support their economic development and social welfare.

It has a total investment of £735 mi l l ion up unt i l 2021, with matched resources from the partner-countries.

The Philippines is one of the original partner-countries chosen for the program, recognition of an already substantive bilateral relationship with the United Kingdom, and further commitment to develop research and innovation capacity for long-term sustainable growth.

In the Philippines, the Newton Fund is match-funded by and codelivered with the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and the Department of Agriculture.

Since 2015 the program has received constant support and match-funding from the Philippine government, and was renamed the Newton Agham Programme in 2016. The renaming to include

the Filipino word for “science” is testament to the Philippine government’s commitment to science and innovation partnerships with the UK. The British Council is one of the delivery partners of the Newton Agham Programme in country.

The Council delivers international opportunities for individual earlycareer researchers in higher-education institutions, as well as for institutions themselves. It is done through various programs, such as Researcher Links grants with the DOST, Institutional Links with the CHED and PhD Scholarships with both the DOST and CHED. A s t he UK ’s inter nat iona l cultural-relations organization, the British Council’s charitable purpose includes “encourage[ing] cultural, scientific and technological…cooperation between the UK and other countries”.

Angelo Aquino (third from left), a Department of Science and Technology-Newton Agham Programme PhD scholar, demonstrates his research at a public-engagement event, “I Know I Can 2016”, in Barnsley, United Kingdom. Newton Agham Programme

In this context, the Council’s work in the Newton Agham Programme fits perfectly by supporting science and innovation collaboration between the two countries.

Moreover, the British Council’s work in education focuses on international higher education, sharing the UK’s expertise and innovation and bringing partners together for research, policy and other collaborative opportunities.

In this regard, it delivers the Newton Agham Programme to provide opportunities for internationalization of individual researchers, as well as institutions.

It believes that internationalization promotes institutional development, through improved research outcomes.

Why is internationalization important?

According to a 2015 British Council study on internationalizing the Philippine higher-education sector, internationalization goes beyond student and faculty mobility, and contributes to improving research and teaching quality. Furthermore, international research also increases citations by increasing readership across the globe.

Add it iona l ly, a 2017 Br itish Council study on international mobility, research and education provision proposed a new framework for assessing inter nationa lization, notably highlighting national policies suppor t ing inter nat iona l re search engagements (on top of t ra nsnat iona l educat ion a nd mobi l it y pol ic ies), fol low i ng from top globa l universities’ internationalization strategies.

In a survey of 38 countries, only five were assessed “very strong” for national support in all three areas: Australia, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Netherlands and the UK. This strong UK foundation is also evident in a 2013 comparative study on the level of internationalization of the UK researcher base conducted by the UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), which found that, while British researchers comprise only 4 percent of the global researcher population, they produce 16 percent of the world’s most highly cited articles.

On top of this four-fold productivity, the same study found that international collaboration produced research of superior quality.

International scientific and innovation opportunities allow researchers to collaborate with the best people around the world and, more impor tant, tac k le global or regional challenges from diverse perspectives.

In turn, internationally mobile staff become more productive with higher publication rates and in high-impact journals. It is, therefore, opportunities for highquality international research that lead to improved publication productivity, rather than simple access to publication.

Indeed, in an analysis conducted in 2014 by Dr. Fabian Dayrit, the Philippines’s National Academy of Science and Technology’s vice president, national incentives to simply

increase publication rates locally discouraged collaboration and did not improve research quality.

In summary, internationalization offers Philippine universities opportunities to work with the best researchers in the UK, build networks globally and respond to issues relevant to national development, through partnerships under the Newton Agham Programme.

This can be achieved through individual awards, such as the Newton PhD Scholarships, travel grants and fellowships; or institutional grants, such as Institutional Links and regional workshops.

Either way, individuals and higher-education institutions develop linkages with UK partners through research in significant priority areas. In addition, partnerships with UK universities can reveal best practices and inject fresh global perspectives into local teaching, which can benefit students in country.

In conclusion, the Newton Agham Programme contributes to improved research and teaching outcomes through international opportunities by providing cofunded opportunities for international collaboration.

The Newton Fund is managed by the UK Department for BEIS, and delivered through 15 UK Delivery Partners, which include the Research Councils, the UK Academies, the British Council, Innovate UK and the Met Office.

S&T helped make bamboo zip bike the newest attraction in Palawan Pangasinan firm sees benefits

A guest enjoys the bamboo zip bike—the first in the country—found in Ugong Rock in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan.

A

bike with a bamboo frame is now the newest attraction at Ugong Rock in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan. Called the Bamboo Zip Bike, the adventure is a fun combination of bike and zipline that surely gives the tourists, both local and foreign, the thrill and the chance to enjoy nature.

The Bamboo Zip Bike Adventure allows thrill-seeking visitors to explore the breathtaking scenery in Ugong Rock using a bamboo bike on a 250-meter-long high wire suspended at about 90 feet from the ground.

Along with two more traditional ziplines, the Bamboo Zip Bike Adventure is now one of the most popular activities in the city. It is usually included in tour packages offered by various travel agencies and has made headlines as the first tourist-spot offering an environment-friendly cycling adventure.

Ugong Rock, found in Barangay Tagabinet, Puerto Princesa City, is one of the go-to places of tourists and is known for its spelunking and zipline adventures. It has taken its name from the reverberating sounds, or ugong, produced

by stalactites found within the caves of the limestone formation that stands 75-feet high.

Ugong Rock prides itself as an ecotourism spot and a frontrunner in sustainable tourism in the province.

The place is run by the Ugong Rock Multipurpose Cooperative (Ugong Rock MPC), an organized group of indigenous people in Palawan along with the ABS-CBN Lingkod Kapamilya Foundation.

It was formed through the community-based Sustainable Tourism Program of the Puerto Princesa City Tourism Office. Currently, they have 45 members working for the improvement and sustainability of the ecotourism site.

The Bamboo Zip Bike Adventure was introduced to the public in October 2016. It was inspired by the first-ever zip bike launched in Bohol in Central Visayas, but comes with a twist.

Ugong Rock MPC prov ided a new k ind of adventure and exper ience to its clientele, while stay ing tr ue to their commitment of being an env ironment steward by using a bike made

out of an abundant loca l raw mater ia l, the bamboo plant, in its newest attraction.

Through the Department of Science and Technology’s (DOST) flagship program, Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program (Setup), the Ugong Rock MPC was able to start the pioneering project delivering sustainable livelihoods and opportunities to the people in their community.

They were able to acquire zipbike facilities, such as bike lanes, cable wires, harness and handmade bamboo bikes.

W it h t he a ssist a nce f rom KawayanTech in San Jose, Tarlac, bamboo-bike frames with two support cords, for safety, were handmade for the Bamboo Zip Bike Adventure setup. KawayanTech is a company whose vision is to “promote a lifestyle of health and sustainability using bamboo as an alternative and appropriate community-based technology with practical applications”.

“The DOST was a big help, especially Setup, which gave us the chance to have the bamboo zip bike, which we have been aspiring

for. This gave our community additional income and gave jobs to our men. It has become the source of their income. Besides assisting in the zip bike, taking of photos of the guests on the zip bike gives them additional income,” said Romel Ortega, president of Ugong MPC. The Setup assistance has allowed them to expand their tourism activities from the famous spelunking and zip-line adventures, and now to include a unique bamboo-bicycle experience.

A n est i m ated 10 0 to 20 0 tourists visit Ugong Rock daily, which means more customers are enjoy ing the activ ities that are offered. To accommodate more g uest s, Ugong R oc k i s planning to add more bamboo bikes soon.

“We currently have two zip-bike units. We are planning to add two more,” Ortega said.

In addition to providing the tourists an unforgettable experience, Ugong Rock focuses on developing activities that raise environmental awareness and promotes sustainable management of natural resources.

One can ride the bamboo zip bike for only P500. This includes a souvenir photo on the bike to remind the visitor of the experience.

Ugong Rock ’s bamboo zip bike supports sustainable tourism in Palawan and is the beginning of growing a green economy for the province. Every visit will not only satisfy one’s adventure gene but will also be able to help the local community. “ T he income f rom the zip bike goes to the reserve fund, which we save so we could buy more bamboo zip-bike units.

Our income from spelunking and zip line go to the general fund, which is used for the repayment to Setup, maintenance, operations, salary and benefits of employees at rentals.”

S&T Media Service/DOST PSTC-Palawan/DOST-MIMAROPA Regional Office

of bamboo-charcoal technologies

The Department of Science and Technology-Forest Products Research and Development Institute bamboo-charcoaling kiln produces pyroligneous liquor and high-quality charcoal.

I

n a bid to boost their town’s economy, a company based in Bayambang, Pangasinan, is set to go into large-scale charcoal making using bamboo.

CS First Green Agri-Industrial Development made the decision after one year of piloting various machines from the Department of Science and TechnologyForest Products Research and Development Institute (DOST-FPRDI).

“We pilot-tested four kinds of equipment: the DOST-FPRDI bamboo-charcoaling kiln, hydraulic briquettor, crusher and drum kiln,” said Levin Uy, company president. “Using bamboo waste from our own plantations, we found that these technologies truly help create jobs, and can help Bayambang build a thriving bamboo industry.”

Uy added that their sister organization, the Kasama Kita sa Barangay Foundation, has found the drum kiln especially useful for making charcoal using solid waste collected from the barangays.

According to DOST-FPRDI’s Engr. Amando Allan Bondad, “The bamboo-charcoaling kiln is a special kind of oven that turns out high quality charcoal for industrial uses.

The drum kiln, hydraulic briquettor and crusher, on other hand, are used for creating charcoal briquettes—solid charcoal, which is easier to ignite, burns slower and emits more steady heat than the ordinary kind.”

The charcoaling kiln generates two products: high-quality bamboo charcoal and industrial vinegar or pyroligneous liquor.

A powerful cleaning agent, bamboo charcoal is widely used in industries to purify many kinds of substances—water,

air, precious metals and alcoholic beverages, among others. It is also widely tapped in agriculture, and in pharmaceutics and cosmetics manufacturing.

Industrial vinegar, on the other hand, is a high-end product that comes from the kiln’s collected and condensed smoke. In demand abroad, especially in Japan, it serves as a disinfectant, bathroom deodorizer, organic pesticide, and is commonly used in medicine, cosmetics and food-processing industries.

Engr. Belen B. Bisana, chief of DOSTFPRDI’s Bio-Energy and Equipment Development Section, said, “We are happy to work with a company that has its own bamboo plantation. Bamboo is not yet popularly used for charcoal in the Philippines, but it is an ideal material, since it grows fast and can be reharvested without harming the environment. The part of the plant that is used is the stem base, which is usually left behind after the poles are harvested.”

According to Uy, “One year of field testing with DOST-FPRDI was encouraging to us. We saw the institute’s capacity to give good technical assistance, as well as the potential of bamboo in boosting the progress of our community. We look forward to getting to know other bamboo-processing technologies that may prove useful to us.”

The piloting of the bamboo-charcoaling kiln was part of the recently concluded project, “High Quality Charcoal from Bamboo for Industrial Uses”. It was financed by the DOST-Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development.

Rizalina K. Araral/S&T Media Service

Faith A6 Sunday, September 10, 2017

Sunday

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

‘Satanic rosaries’ could simply be ‘agimat/anting-anting’

C

By Rosabell C. Toledo | Correspondent

oming in contact with a “cursed, satanic rosary” could basically bear the same effect as that of a Harry Potter horcrux— one could be influenced to fall into a perpetual mood of negativity, and eventually end up doing evil things at the urging of harmful spirits that possess said rosary, the Catholic Church warns.

The photo of the rosary (left) confiscated during a recent infestation case of Libera Nox, which, according to Novaliches Chief Exorcist Fr. Ambrosio Nonato Legaspi, is a “satanic” rosary. When the photo’s (right) levels are adjusted to make it dimmer using an image editor, the supposed Iluminati insignia of the sun with its rays and the snake at the back of the Crucified Christ becomes visible to the naked eye. Legaspi warned the faithful about such satanic rosaries that are now in circulation the country. Libera Nox/CBCPNews.Net

The Diocese of Novaliches Office of Exorcism (Libera Nox) said it was first alerted of the purported existence of satanic rosaries in the country when a parishioner surrendered one to the office.

Odd symbols not easily visible to the untrained eye supposedly adorn cursed rosaries, such as a snake wrapped around the cross, a pentagram and an Illuminati insignia-reminiscent sun.

The absence of the “Inri” inscription at the top part of the cross is another red flag signifying the sinister roots of a rosary, the religious organization said. Inri is the initials of a Latin phrase “Iesus

Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum,” meaning “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.”

Libera Nox Chief Exorcist Fr. Ambrosio Nonato Legaspi earlier warned the public against the circulation of these satanic rosaries in an earlier episode of the Hello Father 911 radio show on Radio Veritas, titled “Infestations, Padugo and Pag-aalay.”

“Be careful as the rosaries you might be using could actually been infested or cursed,” Legaspi said.

Legaspi and the rest of Libera Nox exorcists went on to explain that the rosaries are being circulated by Satanists and Illuminati

members. The rosaries were purportedly infused with a curse after a satanic “pray over” done to it by instigators.

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), for its part, has disclaimed that Legaspi was speaking of the satanic rosaries as head of Libera Nox, and not as an official representative of the CBCP. Archbishop Emeritus Oscar Cruz criticized the advisory from Legaspi, citing that the so-called satanic rosaries could simply be amulets (anting-anting) that Filipinos use to ward off evil spirits, thus, less ominous and demonic as was originally portrayed.

For Cruz, it is entirely possible that Legaspi simply made a mistake in his assessment of the surrendered rosary.

Amulets and charms (agimat, anting-anting) have been embedded in many cultures, including that among Filipinos.

It is widely documented that our early warriors, and even the Katipuneros, like Andres Bonifacio, believed and possessed agimat usually acquired as birth rights to apparently free them from harm or make them invincible.

Nena Concepcion, 79, remembers agimat and charms as parts of her childhood. Growing up in Iloilo, she recounts how her grandfather often told stories of an old charm he allegedly swallowed and embedded in his body, making him immune to accidents of any kind.

“None of us [young ones] knew whether he was telling the truth, and moving to the city made a lot of us skeptical about it. But charms and amulets were nevertheless part of childhood memories I hold close to heart. It made me feel special to be part of a family who considered themselves invincible heroes,” Concepcion said.

Truly, the Philippine amulet, of which bizarre rosaries could be part, bears a long local history and is an essential part of the Filipino mythological realm.

“Although it has undergone an evolution of context, commerce and use, the anting-anting still figures heavily in the daily lives of rural folk. Steeped in myth and religion, the anting-anting links to the Filipino’s belief in the soul

and his ideas on leadership, power, nationalism and revolution, and contributes a fascinating facet to the complex rural psyche,” nonprofit group Philippine Alternative Medicine said.

With these beliefs preceding the Spanish colonization and the era of Catholicism in the country, it is expected how the CBCP has always told Filipinos not to believe in charms and amulets more than they believe and trust God. “In its revolutions and wars, in the recurrent struggles of the poor and marginalized against the invaders and colonizers, in the conf licts and sk ir mishes aga inst t he r ic h oppressors, the anting-anting has been the essential part of the Filipino battle gear, worn with the belief that its spiritual and magical powers will provide invincibility, protection or the edge that would shift the imbalances of power into parity,” PAM argued.

The anting-anting or satanic rosar y, Libera Nox maintains that the best thing to do is not to dispose of these rosaries, but to surrender them to religious authorities.

“We do not advise the rosaries to be thrown away, because it may simply fall into another person’s hands. I suggest that it be surrendered. Allow priests to do the deliverance prayer and they should be responsible for proper disposal afterward,” Libera Nox Assistant Case Officer Philippe de Guzman said in a TV interview.

De Guzman, who was also present during the said “Hello Father” episode, said satanic rosaries have odd symbols on them that are not readily noticeable to the untrained eye. Often made of plastic, the symbols could either be a snake wrapped around the cross, a pentagram and/or a sun with rays, an insignia of the Illuminati, CBCPNews.Net said.

Libera Nox earlier said that neutralizing satanic rosaries require more than the usual blessing with holy water, since the curse could have been made strong through more than 30 minutes of satanist prayer by its creators, so a full exorcism is actually necessary to ensure the rosaries could not cause harm to anyone anymore.

Manila Archdiocese celebrating Season of Creation

M

a nil a A rc hbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle reminded the public to protect the environment as he led the celebration of the World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation in the morning of September 1.

“Care for creation is care for life,” the head of the Archdiocese of Manila told the thousands who gathered at Burnham Green at Luneta Park as he officiated a Mass to mark the monthlong celebration of the Season of Creation from September 1 to October 4.

“It is high time for us to rea l ly work together, especially us Filipinos, who have w it n e s s e d w i d e s p r e a d d e struction of lives, lands and infrastructure because of the ha r mf u l ef fects of c l imate change. Among these are typhoons, extreme weather and earthquakes,” he added.

Tagle also reminded everyone about the message of Pope Francis in his encyclical Laudato Si that nature is not apart from humanity.

The Season of Creation has

been institutionalized by the Archbishop of Manila in 2013.

It celebrates the season in recognizing God, the Father, as the Creator, said Lou Arsenio, a founding member of the Global Catholic Climate Movement and Ecology Ministry coordinator of the Archdiocese of Manila.

Arsenio, told the BusinessMirror, that the liturgy is centered on Jesus, but although “we proclaim in the ‘Apostles Creed’ that God is the Creator we lack to reflect on the profession of our faith.”

She said the archdiocese’s observance of the fifth Season of Creation this year is very important in order to realize and give emphasis on faith and liturgy about God, the Creator of the entire universe.

With this year’s theme, “Caring for our Common Home in Communion of Communities,” various activities were set, including the recovery of plastic bags and styropor food packs for recycling at Plaza Roma near the Manila Cathedral in Intramuros, Manila, and onthe-spot logo-design contest.

In Mandaluyong and nearby places of Villa San Miguel, the public is invited to participate in a recycling caravan on September 10.

The Ecology Ministry’s theological and biblical perspectives stems from the basic principle of the “Creed,” which says “I believe in God the Father, Creator of heaven and Earth…” and is discussed in the Genesis, Psalm 95 and Psalm 8. They explain God’s creation and present the “mandates of stewardships in the social teachings of the church.”

Pope Benedict XVI’s encyclical, Caritas in Veritate, and Saint John Paul II encyclical, Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, also underscores the social concern of the church in stewardship, Arsenio said.

Arsenio added Laudato Si, with its main banner to promote ecology, is leading people to act and appropriate the encyclical with the programs of the Archdiocese of Manila for ecological consciousness.

She said the archdiocese’s ecology-education program aims to make people realize that God

is the Creator and that no one owns anything, thus, all creatures deserve respect and place in the world.

Arsenio added the people exploit nature for their needs and wants, and do not recognize creation as God’s gift to mankind.

She said the Ecology Ministry of the archdiocese is in its 12th year in its campaign. It includes the reduction of the use of plastic and the holding of monthly plastic-recover y caravan in the archdiocese, in particularly in Santo Niño de Pandacan, where 4 tons of plastic wastes are recycled as plastic chairs for public schools.

The ministr y joins other dioceses of Manila and environment non-gover nmenta l organizations in its advocacy.

It has been addressing ecological local and global issues, such as waste management, water and air pollution, climate change, land reclamation and conversion and rural ecological concerns, such as mining, logging and genetically modified organisms.

PNA and Vanessa M. Puno

Job by Léon Bonnat (1880) Wikimedia Commons

The mystery of suffering

By Corazon Damo-Santiago

Conclusion

Even the just suffers

J

ob was a pious, upright and a very rich man. He suddenly “suffer[ed] a complete reversal of fortune.” He lost all his properties and children, and was afflicted with a loathsome disease.

A faultless and God-fearing man, he tore his clothes, cut off his hair, prostrated himself on the ground and said, “Naked I came forth from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I go back again. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord,” according to Job 1:20-21.

His wife told him to curse God and his friends rallied that he complain. He remained faithful, said nothing sinful, firm in his convictions, saying if “we accept good things from God; should we not accept evil?” as said in Job 2:10.

Unknown to Job, his afflictions were not by chance. The Lord gave Satan permission to test Job’s fidelity or insincerity to him on condition that Satan does not physically harm Job, said in Job 1:12.

Job accepted his fate, did not question God’s motives, grew in his receptivity and endurance but expressed his feelings of anguish and confusion and even cursed the day he was born.

“Perish the day on which I was born, the night when they said, the child is a boy,” according to Job 3.1.

God did not answer why Job suffered. For can anyone know the mind of God? “Dare you vie with the perfection of the Almighty?

It is higher than the heavens, what can you do? It is deeper than the nether world, what can you know?” said in Job 11:7-8.

But God asked Job: “Where were you when I founded the Earth?” (Job 38:4). “Have you ever, in your lifetime, commanded the morning and shown the dawn its place?” (Job 38:12). “Have the gates of death been shown to you, or have you seen the gates of darkness?” (Job 38:17).

God continued to describe the heavens, Earth’s grandeur, living things and the order in the world.

Seemingly, God emphasized “I fashioned the world from nothing, manage it well and I am in charge.”

The lives of saints are replete with sufferings. Many of them experienced to the hilt many sufferings, such as hunger, illnesses

and mystical experiences, and shared God’s passion and death on the cross.

Many were imprisoned, fed to wild animals, burned in stakes, drowned, dragged on the streets, beheaded, thrown on mountaintops and crucified.

They suffered in silence, praising God until their last breath.

Salvific suffering

S uffer i ng , i nd e e d , i s t he mo s t w a s t e d re s ou rc e. Me n do not realize or are not fully convinced that suffering is not only redemptive but also a way to spiritual growth.

The resurrection of Christ did not stop hardships in life and death but gave it a new meaning. If man suffers with the crucified Christ, he will also live with him.

In his lifetime, while he consoled people, he did not eliminate anguish. Theologians emphasize that when Christians accept life’s difficulties and offer God a yes-Iaccept, God is pleased.

As John Paul II remarked in To Cross The Threshold of Hope, if the agony on the cross did not happen, that God is love is an empty statement.

God created us, owns us and has “exclusive, inalienable, absolute right over us,” Fr. Edgardo Arellano noted in The Value of Suffering: The Interior Joy of Victimhood. Therefore, it is for every Christian to accept sufferings in humility because of these Five Basic Truths.

“1. I am nothing.

2. I am, therefore, good for nothing because nothing good comes from nothing.

3. I am worth nothing because nothing per se is a nonbeing and, therefore, nonexistent. A nonbeing and nonexistent has no value or worth.

4. If there is anything good and valuable in me, it comes solely from God, who owns exclusively, absolutely and inalienably all that is good in me.

5. Freely, God leases all the good in me, to accept it as my own, to share his life and accept His Divine Law of love and life.”

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.

Sports BusinessMirror

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

C

By Lindsey Tanner The Associated Press

HICAGO—Researchers are tackling fresh questions about a degenerative brain disease now that it has been detected in the brains of nearly 200 football players after death. The suspected cause is repeated head blows, an almost unavoidable part of contact sports.

As a new National Football League (NFL) season gets under way, here’s a look at what’s known—and what still needs to be learned—about the condition:

Sunday, September 10, 2017

A7

BRAIN DAMAGE no obvious symptoms. Many players whose autopsies showed more advanced disease had experienced personality changes, aggressive behavior, paranoia, poor memory, attention problems, dementia and depression.

Some died by suicide. Whether the tau changes associated with CTE cause those symptoms is unclear.

WHAT’S NEW? The largest report to date on chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) included 202 brains from football players at the youth, college and professional level, all donated post-mortem to a Boston brain bank. CTE was detected in all but one of the 111 NFL players studied, 90 percent of the college players and 20 percent of the high-school players. It was absent in two younger players’ brains.

A previous report had described the disease in an 18-year-old football player, but finding additional cases at the high-school level raises new questions about the game’s safety for young players.

HOW COMMON IS CTE? The high occurrence of CTE in donated brains surprised researchers at Boston University and the VA Boston Healthcare System, whose brain bank is billed as the world’s largest focusing on traumatic brain injury and CTE. But whether CTE is truly common in sports or the general population isn’t known. Most brains studied for CTE have been donated by family members because of concerns about mental symptoms that might be related to the disease—they don’t come from a random population of people. Some experts think it isn’t common since many athletes get repeated head blows and never develop symptoms.

WHAT CAUSES CTE? Repeated knocks to the head are the most likely cause of CTE. Scientists believe genes probably play a role and may explain why some people with repeated head blows never develop the disease. Lifestyle habits, including diet, alcohol and drugs, may also somehow contribute.

HOW DO HEAD BLOWS AFFECT THE BRAIN? Though the brain is jello-like in texture and cushioned in cerebrospinal fluid, a powerful hit—from a hard tackle, a fist or bomb shock wave—can cause a concussion, forcing the brain to ricochet back and forth inside the skull. Besides bruising and swelling, researchers believe that force can cause the brain to elongate, stretching nerve cells and their axons—fiberlike parts that transmit messages between cells. With a mild blow, these cells may return to normal, but a forceful hit may cause them to die.

Common symptoms after a concussion include dizziness, confusion, headaches, nausea and sometimes temporary loss of consciousness.

CTE has been linked with repeated concussions and some scientists believe it may occur after repeated head

N

EW YORK—Seventeen hockey organizations teamed up to unveil a “Declaration of Principles” that National Hockey League (NHL) players hope will boost the game at all levels, particularly among young children and the parents who decide what sports to have them play.

Going beyond the “Hockey is For Everyone” campaign and a partnership with You Can Play that promotes inclusiveness, the league and NHL Players’ Association took the unconventional step to list eight guiding principles for hockey culture. USA Hockey, the International Ice Hockey Federation and others joined in on the initiative, which earned praise from Pope Francis and garnered optimism from top players about the impact it could make.

“Hopefully it makes more kids want to play the game, more parents maybe push their kids into playing hockey or starting it at a young age,” Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Seth Jones said. “The things I’ve learned as a kid just growing up playing—discipline, the love and the passion for the game, commitment—these are all things that you need in life outside of hockey, and that’s what the principles are about.”

At a news conference on Wednesday attended by leaders from all over the sport, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman called it an “important day” for hockey. Hockey Hall of Famer Pat LaFontaine, now the league’s vice president of hockey development, spearheaded the process.

The declaration says hockey’s greatest value is in the development of character and life skills, and it also noted there are significant benefits to kids playing multiple sports. Among other things, it said programs should provide a safe, positive and inclusive environment for players and families “regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation and socio-economic status.”

Asked to evaluate the initiative, Saint Joseph’s University sports marketing professor Amie Sheridan said she considers it an effort to grow hockey’s footprint and show it’s not a cost-prohibitive sport.

Ottawa Senators captain Erik Karlsson said he wanted parents and kids to know that.

“I think hockey these days is a much cheaper sport than what it used to be,” Karlsson said. “I think that that’s something that’s important to

THIS combination of photos provided by Boston University shows sections from a normal brain (top) and from the brain of former University of Texas football player Greg Ploetz (bottom) in Stage IV of chronic traumatic encephalopathy. AP

blows that don’t cause any obvious symptoms. But they still don’t know how many head hits is too many.

WHAT HAPPENS IN CTE? The disease involves progressive brain damage, particularly in the frontal region, which controls many functions including judgment, emotion, impulse control, social behavior and memory. A signature feature is abnormal

get out there—that it doesn’t actually cost you that much if you just want to play for fun.”

Secondhand equipment and ice time aren’t available in some parts of the US like in Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby’s hometown of Lloydminster, Saskatchewan, one reason hockey struggles to attract young players who could more easily pick up a basketball or a soccer ball.

Data from the National Federation of State High School Associations shows high-school boys hockey participation has been largely stagnant over the past four years, though USA Hockey reported an increase of about 6.5 percent among all youth players over that time. USA Hockey Executive Director Pat Kelleher said “enormous progress” has been made, but this is another effort.

“At a time when sport is under pressure from issues ranging from violence to doping to corruption, it is helpful for an organization to set principles that guide their behavior,” University of Oregon marketing professor T. Bettina Cornwell said. “In terms of marketing, and financial support from sponsors, they want to know what sport stands for and this statement goes some distance in describing a culture that should be appealing to a marketer or sponsor.”

The NHL and its teams have already taken stands on topics of inclusion, including the Carolina Hurricanes and Dallas Stars coming out against what they called “discriminatory” state legislation aimed at restricting restrooms for transgender people.

In a letter written to the Archbishop of New York, Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin said the pope was pleased by the initiative and “trusts that this significant gesture will inspire greater appreciation of the pivotal role played by sports and sportsmanship.”

“To be able to hammer these principles— not into the kids, but into the coaches and into the organizations so they bleed it into the kids, that’s what’s going to draw more people into hockey,” New York Rangers defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk said. It could “draw more parents to say: ‘You know what, I like what they’re doing over there. Maybe they’re not going to play baseball or football and I’m going to get my kids involved in something that’s really going to mean a lot for them in their life.’” AP

deposits of tau protein that accumulate around small blood vessels in brain crevices. Tau occurs normally in brain cells, helping them maintain their shape and function.

But researchers believe that multiple head blows may dislodge tau protein from the cell structure and cause it to form clumps inside nerve cells. These tau clumps can damage and ultimately kill nerve cells, and can spread as the disease progresses. At advanced stages, brain

shrinkage may occur.

Abnormal tau deposits in different shapes, patterns and locations have been implicated in other brain diseases, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or ALS. WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS? Research suggests early stages of CTE may cause

IS IT JUST A FOOTBALL DISEASE? What’s now called CTE was once thought to mainly affect boxers; the earliest known reference in the medical literature was a 1928 report by a New Jersey pathologist who referred to a “punch-drunk” syndrome.

The first published finding about CTE in a retired NFL player was a 2005 report on Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Famer Mike Webster.

CTE also has been found in other contact sports, including soccer, baseball and ice hockey; in soldiers exposed to bomb blast waves; domestic violence victims; and in psychiatric patients who engaged in repeated head-banging.

WHAT’S FOOTBALL’S RESPONSE? Thousands of former players are due to get damage awards from a $1-billion settlement stemming from lawsuits claiming the league hid what it knew about a link between concussions and CTE. Earlier this year the NFL hired a Vanderbilt University sports concussion expert, neurosurgeon Dr. Allen Sills, as its first full-time chief medical officer.

Injury risks are part of football, but the league is trying to make the game safer, Sills said.

New “no-go” criteria this season for when to keep injured players out of the game list confusion, amnesia and loss of consciousness after an on-field injury. Injured players will be evaluated in new portable sideline exam tents, for privacy and to reduce distractions for those with suspected concussions.

There also will be a ban on “leaper” block attempts, where a defender leaping over the offense to block a kick is tackled midair.

WHAT’S NEXT? Researchers are seeking to refine brain scan techniques to identify CTE tau deposits in living brains.

They’re also looking for clues in blood or cerebrospinal fluid that would allow them to diagnose CTE before death. If such markers exist, they could be targets for drug treatment.

Symptoms associated with CTE can sometimes be managed with drugs or other treatment, but there’s no cure and the only way to prevent it is to avoid head blows.

Studies are under way to identify if specific genes make certain athletes more vulnerable to brain damage from head blows, and researchers hope to pin down how many head blows it takes to develop CTE.

‘HOCKEY IS FOR EVERYONE’

Taking it easy on Russians M OSCOW—The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has eased a ban on Russian athletes, allowing them to compete in qualifying events for next year’s winter games in South Korea.

The IPC banned all Russian competitors from last year’s summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro after World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) investigators accused Russia of a vast cover-up of drug use, including in disabled sport.

Wednesday’s new ruling allows

Russians to “compete as neutrals” in alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, biathlon and snowboard qualifying events. There’s no decision yet on whether Russia’s ban will be lifted for the Winter Paralympics in Pyeongchang next March.

HOCKEY organizations unveil “Declaration of Principles”.

The IPC says Russia must still fulfill seven key demands. Those include accepting Wada’s findings, reforming the national drug-testing agency and changing how Russian Paralympic sport is administered. AP

A8

Sunday, September 10, 2017

by Manuel Ortega Abis n a certain evening when the moon and the stars have turned into beads of pearl strewn all over the darkened skies, the sea waves rush in to repeatedly prostrate themselves on the shore to seek help and attention in catching and collecting these opulent prizes of the heavens; and hopefully form out of them a lustrous necklace which, in turn, they can offer as a poignant gift to their ailing and depressed mother—the Sea. On a certain evening such as this, then, that the story about a young, innocent girl named Hiyas and a cave called Curiosity came to be told.

So it came to pass that, on a certain evening, Hiyas arrived sauntering along the shore, combing the beaches for seashells. For, as she recalled her own mother saying to her before, “If you would be able to place a seashell close to your ear and close your eyes, my child, you would be able to listen to the music of the sea being played.”

But, alas, for all the child’s time on the shore, not once did Hiyas find a single seashell. But this did not daunt her from still trying the best she could.

And so, as Hiyas kneels on the sand once more and digs her fingers, the sea waves repeatedly prostrate themselves on the shore next to her to cry for help and attention.

“Oh, young girl, young girl! Please help us?”

As Hiyas stands on her bare feet, the ornate hems of her white chemise softly blown by a breeze, and her long, black, and straight hair tossing and turning on its trimmed edges a bit, she turns her young girl’s face to the sea waves; her young girl’s innocence instantly opens up her heart to them.

“My dear sea waves, what is it? How may I be of help? In truth, I do not know if I—a mere girl of nine—would be able

to help you with your problem. But let me offer, instead, my young girl’s attention. For, as Inay had said to me before, listening to others is already a big part of helping them. My dear sea waves, what is it? What is it which is troubling you this certain evening?”

“Bless your Inay, young girl, for she has the wisdom and the heart of our own mother, the Sea! But, as the heavens would bear upon us, we direly need help in catching and collecting the moon and the stars. For they have turned into beads of pearl; and we have meant to offer them as a lustrous necklace to our ailing and depressed mother.”

For a moment, Hiyas turns silent to think. Then, she replies to the sea waves.

“Indeed, your problem appears to be very difficult. And I have neither the wisdom nor the heart to undertake such a dangerous mission. But, perhaps, I can find someone else who would be able to help you in catching and collecting the moon and the stars.”

As Hiyas sets out to begin looking for someone else who would be able to help the sea waves with their very difficult problem, she meets a small sailboat resting on its hull on the other side of the shore. As she approaches it, its young, white sail hails the young, innocent girl.

“Oh, young girl, young girl! What are you doing here on this side of the shore this certain evening? You should be at home with your mother, catching and collecting the warmth of her evening stories.”

Hiyas immediately confesses to the young, white sail.

“My dear sail, I am searching for someone else who would be able to help the sea waves with their very difficult problem. For they want to catch and collect the moon and the stars in the heavens for their sick mother, the Sea. And I have neither the wisdom nor the heart to undertake such a dangerous mission.”

The sail turns silent for a moment.

Suddenly, it cups the palms of its silky

BusinessMirror hands and begins to whisper something to the old, wooden boat which resting its heavy body on the beach, but has been alertly listening to the ongoing conversation. Hiyas appears to feel out of place. Sensing this, the young, white sail turns to her and explains.

“Indeed, the problem of the sea waves is very difficult. But—could it be as difficult as my task? For I, the sail, have the task of catching and collecting all the winds to my advantage. Now how much more wisdom and how much more heart for a dangerous task than mine then? But, alas,” the sail explains, “my task is no more as difficult as the problem of the sea waves and no more as dangerous as the mission they seek help with and attention to undertake. What use is the sheet of my sail, which can only catch and collect winds, when it comes to the moon and the stars? For, like your white chemise, child, I could only be as good as my proper use.”

The old, wooden boat also shares its own experience to the young, innocent girl.

“True, so true!But, what about me?

Could anything else be as difficult as my learning? The sail may have taken many months for it to master the winds.

While I, your old and humble boat, have counted many, many years to learn how to catch and collect the waves of many seas and oceans, and turn them all, so to speak, to my side. How much more wisdom and how much more heart for a rigorous learning than mine then? But, alas, too,” the boat explains to Hiyas, “as the sail speaks the truth, my learning can no more be as difficult as the problem of the sea wavesand no more as dangerous as the mission they seek help with and attention to undertake.

What use is the hull of my boat, which can only catch and collect waves, when it comes to the moon and the stars? For, like your bare feet, child, I could only be as good as my proper use.”

As Hiyas listens, she is saddened by the explanations of both the sail and the boat. Not far from hearing distance, however, a tall coconut tree begins to sway her long, green leaves. The girl notices the tree, for its leaves appear to be beckoning her to come closer.

As Hiyas approaches it, the tall coconut tree starts to speak.

“Oh, young girl, young girl! What are you doing here on this side of the shore this certain evening? You should be at home with your mother, catching and collecting the intimacy of her motherly hands as she combs your long, black, and straight hair.”

The young girl opens up her heart to the tall tree.

“My dear tree, I am searching for someone else who would be able to help the sea waves with their very difficult problem. For they want to catch and collect the moon and the stars in the heavens for their sick mother, the Sea. I have already asked for the help of the sail and the boat, but they told me they could not help at all.”

The coconut tree stops swaying its leaves and thinks for a moment. Afterwards, she says to the child.

“Indeed, the problem of the sea waves is very difficult. But—could it be as difficult as my nature? For I, the coconut tree, have the nature of bearing fruits at the top of my tall trunk in order to make it hard for the young men and boys of the nearby village to catch and collect all of them all at once. Now how much more wisdom and how much more heart to survive in the nature of this world than mine then? But, alas,” the tree explains, “my nature is no more as difficult as the nature of the problem of the sea waves, and no more as dangerous as the mission they seek help with and attention to undertake. What use is the tall trunk of my tree if my nature can only catch and collect fruits and leaves, and not the moon and the stars?

The nature of their problem, therefore, appears to be deeper than the Sea itself.

But, have faith—as long as you remem-

ber, like your long, black, and straight hair, child, something could only be as good as its proper use.”

Hiyas quickly turns more distraught than ever before. As she turns to leave the tall coconut tree and has frustratingly decided to walk back to the other side of the shore where she came from before, and to finally turn home with a bowed head, teary-eyed, and with a heavy heart, she suddenly hears a hollow and glowering voice behind her.

“Oh, young girl, young girl! What are you doing here on this side of the shore this certain evening?”

The child of nine turns around and sees a dark cave near the farther, cragged side of the shore. Being unsure if it was the cave which spoke to her, she walks over to it. Closer and closer, stopping only when she has finally reached and stood front and center of the dark and seemingly deep mouth of cave; a mouth which seems to be as large as the main doorway of their old church in the heart of the village where Hiyas and her mother lived.

After a long silence has filled this first encounter between Hiyas and the creature of deep darkness in front of her, the cave tones down its glowering voice to reassure the heart of a child which is now confused whether to open up or close itself like a hapless clam.

“Come closer, child.”

Hiyas does not move.

“Come, child, do not be afraid. What are you doing here on this farther, cragged side of the shore. Do you have anyone to take care of you? Do you have any home?”

The girl quickly answers.

“Oh, I do, my dear cave! I have a mother! And a home in …”

“Sir Curiosity!” the cave reminds Hiyas. “My name is Sir Curiosity!”

A bit taken aback, the girl respectfully introduces herself.

“I am glad to meet your acquaintance, Sir Curiosity. I am Hiyas.”

“And so?” the cave rebuffs her. “What are you doing here then?”

“Well, Sir Curiosity,” Hiyas remembers the sea waves, “I have been searching for someone else who would be able to help the sea waves with their very difficult problem. For they want to catch and collect the moon and the stars in the heavens, and form out of them a lustrous necklace which, in turn, they will offer as a poignant gift to their ailing and depressed mother, the Sea. I have already asked for the help of the sail, and the boat, and the tree, but they all told me they could not help at all.

I feel sorry for the sea waves because it seems that no one could give them any help and attention to their very difficult problem.”

The cave grows darker and its mouth seems to appear deeper as it lets out a loud scowl of disdain.

“Bah! What foolish lies are you talking about?”

“Lies?”Hiyas asks.

“Yes, all foolish lies! Do you not know the true story of that greedy and terrible witch—the Sea?” “The Sea!A witch?”

“Yes!” Sir Curiosity adamantly answers the young, innocent girl; then explains further.

“You see, child, the Sea already has all the pearls she needs in the world.

They are enthroned in the oysters and mussels resplendently displayed on her bed. But she has become very jealous of the people of your village—your pearl divers and pearl farmers—who have used their knowledge and skill against her dark wisdom and heart in order to produce the most beautiful of all jewelries and ornaments the world has ever known. Bah! You, young and innocent as you are, child, I can understand now how you have been taken in with such foolish lies! The wretched Sea is ailing and depressed because of her own greed for pearls, and has become envious of the people who have acquired the knowledge and skill to cultivate and properly use these opulent prizes of the heavens!”

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Hiyas is shocked beyond belief by what she heard from the cave.

“But, Sir Curiosity, I don’t understand,” Hiyas tells Sir Curiosity, “is it difficult to catch and collect the pearls inside their oysters and mussels?”

“It is,” the dark cave replies, “and, since the Sea is greedy, she has grown jealous because the pearl divers and pearl farmers can produce more pearls than her in less the amount of time. More pearls than her evil heart’s unquenchable desire!”

“But,” the young girl’s heart is becoming more and more curious, “what happens to the oysters and the mussels?

Aren’t they living beings, too?”

Sir Curiosity is taken aback with the young girl’s innocent question. After a pause, the cave tries to weave a reply satisfactory to Hiyas and to its own growing ulterior motive.

“Indeed, you are correct, child, these treasured oysters and mussels are living beings, too. And they are well taken care of by these pearl divers and pearl farmers after harvesting the pearls. For these people have the needed wisdom and heart to do so.”

“So,” Hiyas asks again, “nothing will happen to these oysters and mussels after their pearls have been taken from them? They will not get sick, or depressed—or die?”

Sir Curiosity laughs with a hollow kind of laughter.

“No! Not at all! You see, child, these oysters and mussels, well, they are very much—like me!”

Hiyas intently looks at the cave. The cave continues with a darker and deeper tone of voice.

“Yes, an oyster of the Sea is like me, a cave on land. Just as the oyster can produce the lustrous pearl, I, as a cave, can also produce—the most beautiful things.”

“What beautiful things?” Hiyas asks.

“Like, for example,” the cave takes its time to set its trap, “you, my child. If you will come in to my depth and darkness, I will turn you into a very beautiful princess! Very much like the pearl enthroned in its oyster!”

Sir Curiosity carefully watches the young, innocent girl’s eyes light up when it said the word ‘princess.’ For, in secret, the cave is luring Hiyas to enter its depth and darkness; where the bones and skulls of all those which have entered and have not found their way out are now strewn all over the ground of the cave like its grotesque and ghastly trophies. For, in truth, it is the avaricious cave which has become very envious of the life-nurturing nature of the Sea; and, in consequence, has made it its mission to be a death trap for all those that will ever find their way in this farther, cragged side of the shore.

“Do you mean to say, Sir Curiosity,” asks Hiyas, “that any creature, or anything at all, which would enter you shall come out more beautiful than when it first entered? And as you said—just like the pearl formed inside its oyster?”

“Yes!” “And if,” Hiyas asks again, excitedly, “I would enter you now, Sir Curiosity, and as you mentioned before, I shall come out later as—more beautiful? As a princess?”

“Yes!” Hiyas closes her innocent eyes and begins to imagine herself a princess: a crown adorning her long, black, and straight hair; a gown beautifully beaded with different gems and regally worn over the white chemise she is presently wearing; and the most expensive highheeled shoes which only royalty could afford. And how about the most unappealing shrill of her own voice, which the people of her village have found so ‘ugly and painful to their ears’? The same young and innocent voice of a child which has made Hiyas be so cruelly branded and teasingly tagged as the “Shriek” by the other children.

The Shriek.

The word has become no term of endearment to the girl. Oh, how she wished the word drowned out by the beautiful music of a seashell!

As Hiyas takes a long time in imagining and thinking of so many things, Sir Curiosity grows impatient.

“So, child, come, come! Take my hand of darkness and let it lead you to your new destiny! Come and enter! And soon as you come out again, child, you shall be more beautiful than that wretched Sea, as well as all the girls and women of your village!”

Hiyas opens up her eyes. But, instead of surrendering to the lures of the cave, she asks one more final question.

“Do you mean to say, Sir Curiosity, that if any creature, or anything at all, which would enter your cave would turn out to be a more beautiful creature or thing, then… if I desire the sound of my own voice… to be more beautiful and appealing…”

The cave fails to listen to the child’s low and seemingly insignificant ramblings. It flashes a dark smile as it begins to taste the nearing success of its death trap over its new prospective trophy. Hiyas, however, has another thing presently occupying her heart and her mind—and the pandoric intentions growing inside her voice box; for she has grown tired of being branded as the “Shriek” and has now thought that this was the way to finally change the ‘ugly and painful’ shrill of her voice. She shall focus all her energy to shriek at the top of her lungs in front of the gaping mouth of the cave, and—hopefully—it shall return, reverberate to her magically transformed.

Suddenly, the child lets out a shriek.

Sir Curiosity is quickly seized with panic.

As the dire echoes of the girl’s shriek reach the farthest corners of the cave, bats come flying out in wave after dark wave of black wings, deep crimson eyes, sharp paws, and squeaks apparently and annoyingly more offensive than the girl’s.

In a pure fit of daze, Hiyas runs away from the cave cupping both her ears. She runs and runs. Away from the tall coconut tree.Away from the sailboat resting on the beach.Away from the sea waves.

Away from the moon and the stars.Away from the Sea—and towards home.To her own mother’s eternally warm and everwaiting embrace.

“What happened to you, my dear child?”

The young, innocent girl tells her story to her ever-doting Inay. After listening to the girl’s story, Inay wipes away the tears, sobs, and sniffles from the child’s face, and embraces her beautiful daughter more tightly. Soon as she has felt that the heart and mind of Hiyas have already calmed themselves down, Inay tells her the truth about the Sea and its pearls; and about some of the people of the village who exploits the Sea through rampant pearl diving and indiscriminate pearl farming.

After listening to her mother, Hiyas finally discovers that, indeed, it was the dark cave which has lied to her.

After a long and thoughtful moment, young and innocent girl Hiyas tells her Inay that she wants to find a way to help the sea waves and attend to their own ailing and depressed mother—the Sea. So it came to pass that Hiyas and her mother launched a small environmental protection campaign in their village to save the oysters and mussels from being abused and even destroyed for their precious pearls.

In return, the Sea and her waves showed their appreciation to Hiyas and her own mother by casting on the shore all kinds of seashells; which, in turn, Hiyas turned over to the people of the village to form out of them wonderful necklaces, bracelets, anklets, as well as other jewelry and decorative items.

Once in a while, however, Hiyas would choose one, apparently more precious than the others, and, as she closes her eyes, she would place the seashell close to her ear and listen to the music being played inside it.

The most beautiful music to accompany the most beautiful voice, and together create the most beautiful song in the world—fit for a princess!

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Sunday, September 10, 2017

A9

Cutting my Mother’s hair

By Alice Theresa Sun-Cua

We need a hairdresser, I tell her.

But she gently insists, handing me her special Solingen scissors for the job.

So I sit her near the window, where the morning light is bright, where flawed eyes like mine could better see.

I comb her eighty-eight year old white wispy hair and realize that not too long ago, I sat on an almost-same chair.

Mother at the Icu

By Alice Theresa Sun-Cua

She is propped up by pillows in this aseptic room smelling of baby powder and astringents: eyes closed, breathing soft.

On her left forehead, a deep gash now sutured, the hematoma less purple.

Two days ago, creeping up from bed at three in the morning, vertigo overtook her as she whirled—as my world too, whirled—making her fall, fall, fall, hitting her head on the marble floor, the very fear she always had.

Mother, had I been there, could I have broken that fall, catching your frailty with my own, to still both our frightened hearts?

This scene plays in my mind like an unending keening as if the lessons the years have taught were never learned: that time takes, irrevocably, what it gives, however unbearable the pain, and loss, whether after living apart with unuttered kind words, the wounds have healed, at last.

So I simply sit beside her bed, from time to time getting up to rearrange the pillows, touch her hair, whisper stories I should have told her long, long ago.

Measured Space

By Alice Theresa Sun-Cua

Here, below this sun-drenched expanse of grass they lie: Juanito, Evelyn, and lately, Anthony.

Father. Sister. Brother.

My mother stands silently before the marble stone that bears the names; while I light the candles and incense, busying myself with flower arrangements.

I will my mind not to think back on the day when Anthony, done with prayers and offerings, stretched full length on the adjacent space, to enjoy the softness of the grass, as if measuring the length and width of the plot.

I remember his audible sound of… was it satisfaction?

What could have he been thinking then, lying comfortably in that spot, his limbs loose and easy, his laughter full of mirth, father and sister beside him?

Slowly the lights and joss sticks burn down, and my mother turns to me wordlessly. She holds out her hand, and I press it close to mine.

I look away to still the overwhelming darkness, trying not to look back, pretending not to see my brother sprawled on the grass, his eyes searching mine; both of us afraid of peering too closely at the abyss that is in our hearts.

I gently separate parts with a comb, measuring each strand, unsure where to start. (Ear-length, she wants it.)

She laments its thinness, and although I see her pink scalp through the now-lanky hair, I quickly assure her it’s not too bad.

The sound of the snipping is soft, as clouds fall on the blue towel draped around her thin shoulders.

She allowed my hair to grow long when I was a child, but it was too wavy, too wayward, too wilful, too wild.

The sound is muted, like the sound heard while cutting the umbilical cord, separating child from placenta.

So every day she spent time washing and combing my hair, attaching pins to make a tight chignon, everything in place.

I try my best to even out the edges, slowly shaping behind her ears.

I tell her I’m done, bringing a mirror.

But the school games became too unruly, the clips often got undone; and I went home hair all askew.

She looks at the freshly-cut hair, turning her head this way and that.

She smiles. I heave a sigh of relief.

Tourism&Entertainment A10 Sunday, September 10, 2017

BusinessMirror

Editor: Carla Mortel-Baricaua

Culion Island, a prison cordoned off with unforgiving waters.

The welcome arch to Libis, Culion in Palawan, which separated those who were infected from those who were not. A hundred years later, the curse was lifted, but, to this day, the arch remained.

In an age where the cure for leprosy had yet to happen, forced segregation was deemed to be the only way out. The lepers of Culion.

Ministers from Asean countries and India does the famous world-leaders handshake.

One of the many booths showcasing local cultures and products. This one was from LaoPDR.