Mindanao Examiner Newspaper May 12-18, 2014

Sulu employees’ cooperative stronger after 10 years; Governor inspires members

Zamboanga City cancels peace rally PAGE 2

Police warn vs cyber syndicates, hackers PAGE 4

PAGE 3

Broadcaster murdered in Tawi- Tawi

ICT companies eye Zambo for manpower

PAGE 6

NPA claims killing 7 soldiers

PAGE 7

PAGE 9

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May 12-18, 2014

Wei, 58, after killing her husband Hsu Li Min, 57, in a daring cross-border raid in Sabah’s Pom Pom Island.

The woman was eventually released a month later near the village of Liban in Talipao town in Sulu after

paying ransom.

The Abu Sayyaf has resorted to ransom kidnappings to raise money for the purchase weapons and fund terror attacks in the Philippines.

(Mindanao Examiner)

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SABAH RAIDED Abu Sayyaf is prime suspect

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alaysian and Filipino authorities are searching for gunmen who raided a fish farm in Sabah’s Lahad Datu town and abducted its Chinese manager.

The abduction came at tant group.

Reports said Yang is a a time Filipino authorities were also searching for two native of Guangzhou, but the German yachters who dis- Chinese Consulate in appeared at sea off Palawan Kuching in Malaysia claimed province. Stefan Viktor Yang is from Guizhou provOkonek, 71, and his com- ince in southwest China. The panion, Herike Diesen, 55, latest abduction has forced have been reported missing Sabah authorities to declare after fishermen spotted curfew and travel restrictions in several areas there. their empty yacht.

It was unknown how the Malaysia’s The Star Online also reported the gunmen managed to sneak incident and said at least 5 into Lahad Datu undetected armed men on a speedboat despite a previous raid by intruded into the Wonder- Abu Sayyaf militants in ful Terrace and seized the Singamata Adventures and 34-year Yang Zai Lin after Reef Resort in the town of he came out to check the Semporna also in Sabah on April 2. commotion at the farm.

The raiders kidnapped a The report said the gunmen, clad in military 29-year old Chinese holiuniform, first held the daymaker Gao Huayun and farm’s security guard and Filipina resort worker Marcy then captured Yang when Dayawan, who are now behe came out. The assailants ing held captive by the Abu then sped off leaving the Sayyaf under Alhabsi Misaya guard behind. It was not in Mount Taran in Sulu provimmediately known ince in southern Philippines. whether the gunmen are The kidnappers were demembers of the Abu Sayyaf manding RM36.4 million in group or local gang mem- ransom for the release of the bers and Filipino criminals Shanghai woman.

Philippine authorities based in Sabah, but with links to the dreaded mili- said the German adventurers

were heading to Sabah after from a holiday in Palawan when they disappeared on April 25. There were reports that they had been taken captive by the Abu Sayyaf, however no Philippine officials would confirm this.

The disappearance of the Germans coincided with reports by Malaysian authorities that it had foiled a new attempt by kidnappers from the southern Philippines to intrude into Sabah.

Eastern Sabah Security Command Director-General Datuk Mohammad Mentek said the presence of security personnel prevented the intrusion, but it was unclear if the Abu Sayyaf was involved in the latest attempt to cross into the border.

The Malaysian news agency Bernama reported that the tight security in Sabah prevented the entry of lawless elements through Semporna. Malaysia also sent security officials to Sulu to work closely with the authorities over there for the safe release of the two Singamata hostages.

The Abu Sayyaf was largely blamed for the daring raid on the posh Pulau

Sipadan resort in 2000 where they kidnapped 21 people and ransomed them off to Malaysia and Libya for at least $25 million.

In November last year, the Abu Sayyaf kidnapped a Taiwanese tourist Chang An

Military hails arrest of key NPA leader DAVAO CITY – The Philippine military hailed the recent arrest of a key New People’s Army leader in the southern city of Davao, a known strong hold of the communist rebel group fighting for a separate state in the country.

Lt. Gen. Ricardo Rainier Cruz III, commander of the Eastern Mindanao Command, said a composite team of intelligence agents nabbed Roy Erecre, the secretary-general of the communist group in cen-

ARMM

tral Philippines, and his girlfriend Judith Niog. He also praised those involved in the operation that led to the capture of Erecre.

“There is really no way out for rebels, either they die fighting for a senseless cause or they can surrender peacefully and avail of the government amnesty program, or be captured and jailed for the rest of their life.

Peace is the only way and it is the only path to freedom,” Cruz told the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.

Capt. Alberto Caber, a

spokesman for the Eastern Mindanao Command, said a composite team of intelligence agents nabbed Erecre, - who has a P5 million bounty on his head and his girlfriend who were apparently in a holiday vacation and had been to different beach resorts and hotels in Davao region and unaware that undercover agents and informants had followed them throughout the week until their arrest on a village called Sasa.

It was not immediately known who were coddling or protecting Erecre in

Southern Mindanao

Davao

Davao City, but the rebel group is actively operating here.

“The rebel leader was arrested with his girlfriend Judith Jaron-Niog after a week-long surveillance,” Caber said without further elaborating because security forces were still tracking down other rebels who were probably with Erecre in Davao City.

Caber did not say if weapons had been seized from the rebel leader, whose group has been blamed for the spate of attacks against police and military targets in

Manila

the central Philippines.

“Erecre was arrested by virtue of several non-bailable warrants from Cebu and Bohol provinces for atrocities against civilians and government forces since the late 1990s and he was also responsible in the ambush that killed two army lieutenants in Bohol,” he said.

Caber was referring to Lt. Socrates Que who was killed in March 2000 and Lt. Ronnie Bungaos in March 2003. He said Erecre also sits in the politburo of the Communist Party of the

Philippines, whose chairman Benito Tiamzon, and secretary-general Wilma Tiam-zon, were also arrested in Cebu in March this year.

Just recently, security forces also captured a senior communist rebel leader, Felix Armodia, in the southern province of South Cotabato.

Armodia, a regional NPA commander, was captured in his hideout in the village of San Roque in Tampakan town by police and military authorities.

(Mindanao Examiner)

Zamboanga Peninsula

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The Mindanao Examiner

May 12-18, 2014

Zamboanga City cancels peace rally

Z

AMBOANGA City has cancelled a peace rally, a month after another rally lambasted the government over the poor plight of victims of war in this southern Filipino port city.

The Mindanao Alliance deployment of police and for Peace was supposed to military forces in strategic hold the rally at the Plaza areas downtown and the Pershing last week as part of outlying barangays is part of simultaneous actions in the pre-emptive security Mindanao as show of sup- measures to safeguard the port to the Bangsamoro Ba- city and people,” Salazar said sic Law, whose draft was sub- in a bulletin posted on the mitted to President Benigno government’s Facebook acAquino by the Bangsamoro count.

“The police and military Transition Commission.

The law would create a and civilian government are ministerial form of Muslim on top of the situation and government in Mindanao will do everything possible to based on the peace agree- ensure the welfare of the conment signed recently by Phil- stituents. Let us remain vigiippine peace negotiators lant but calm and voluntarwith the Moro Islamic Lib- ily share info regarding suseration Front, the country’s picious activities, baggage or personalities in your area. largest Muslim rebel group.

Similar rallies were held Refrain from forwarding unby civil society groups in the verified text messages,” she cities of Isabela, Pagadian, added.

Salazar did not say if the Cotabato,Marawi, Tacurong, General Santos and Davao, Zamboanga is facing terror and also in the provinces of threats, but last month, hunSulu, Lanao del Norte and dreds of Muslims rallied in Zamboanga in protest and North Cotabato.

In cancelling the rally, lambasted the government’s Zamboanga City Mayor failure to facilitate the return Maria Isabelle Salazar has of thousands of war refugees cited the recommendations still in filthy evacuation by the police and military, camps here.

Many refugees and probut the basis of the decision was unclear, except that it testers, some of them Chriswas for the best interest of the tians - carrying placards, streamers and a coffin locals.

“The supposed rally of marched from a mosque in the Mindanao Alliance for the village of Santa Barbara Peace at Plaza Pershing to- to Plaza Pershing in downday was cancelled by the City town Zamboanga where Government based on rec- their leaders and Islamic ommendations of the police preachers spoke about the and military authorities and poor plight of the evacuees.

Gammar Hassan, one of for the interest of the majority of Zamboa-ngueños. The the refugee leaders, said

more than 100 people had died from diseases the past months in evacuations sites and the deaths are continu-

wounded over 400 people. At least 6 villages were burned to the ground due to the fighting, although there were

One Muslim woman shows her placard expressing support to the Bangsamoro Basic law. (Mindanao Examiner Photo - Ely Dumaboc) ing due to poor health services and malnutrition and lack medical and emergency facilities there.

More than 120,000 had been displaced in September last year following attacks by about 400 Moro National Liberation Front rebels in Zamboanga City. The attacks sparked three weeks of street battles that killed and

unconfirmed reports that arsonists were behind some of the burning of houses in predominantly Muslim villages even after the fighting stopped.

Hassan said the government has prevented them from returning to their villages and has forced the refugees to relocation sites far away. He said majority of the refugees have opposed the government’s relocation plan to put them in other areas saying it would be extremely difficult for them to rebuild their lives.

The refugees, many of them Tausug from Sulu ; Yakan, from Basilan; and indigenous Badjao tribe from Tawi-Tawi province - engaged in fishing and other traditional livelihoods - were being relocated to the far villages of Tulungatung and Taluksangay from their original habitat in the coastal villages of Rio Hondo and Mariki and other areas. Some female refugees have resorted to prostitution just to be able to survive because government aid has already stopped.

The government has built bunkhouses as temporary shelters to those affected

by the violence, but it also warned that villagers who are not natives of Zamboanga would not be allowed to return to their former abode, unless they can provide certificates to show they are landowners.

While others protested the relocation plan, many also praised the local government for providing them a living quarter and were elated by their new bunkhouses houses, saying it greatly helped them in rebuilding their family and future. The P10-million bunkhouses, built by the army, were funded by the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

Human Rights Watch The Human Rights Watch also said the government is subjecting the refugees to arbitrary relocation and prohibiting them from returning to their homes.

It said the Zamboanga City government has already transferred hundreds of these displaced residents, who have been camping in a coastal evacuation center the past seven months, to an elementary school several kilometers away, but when classes start in June, the city plans to move them again to government-built shelters that will serve as “transitional sites.”

The displaced residents have not been consulted regarding the transfers or their final resettlement site, which amounts to a forced eviction from their original homes, it said.

“The plight of Zamboanga’s displaced reflects an unacceptable failure by the Philippine government to ensure the safety and welfare of thousands of people forced to flee the September fighting. Rather than addressing return and resettlement in accordance with international law, the government is pushing forward a relocation process that is disregarding their basic rights,” Phelim Kine, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said.

He said the local government also prohibited displaced residents from the city’s Rio Hondo and Mariki villages from returning to rebuild their homes and instead declared the area of the two villages a “no build zone” to protect the areas’ mangrove forests.

The government justifies this decision by citing the National Integrated Protected Areas System Act, which prohibits settlement in areas that have “unique physical and biological significance” that should be “protected against destructive human exploitation.”

However, Kine said this decision will effectively permanently displace thousands of ethnic Badjao, a tribe of traditional fishermen who have lived in the two villages since fleeing ethnic conflict in nearby Sulu province in the 1960s.

The UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement provide that “states are under a particular obligation to protect against the displacement of indigenous peoples, minorities, peasants, pastoralists and other groups with a special dependency on and attachment to their lands.”

While the Zamboanga City government has prohibited the original residents from resettling in the Rio Hondo and Mariki villages, the city’s three billion peso (US$67 million) Zamboanga City Roadmap to Recovery and Reconstruction plan, specifically designates the area that includes Rio Hondo, Mariki, and three other affected villages for the construction of buildings and infrastructures, including “houses on stilts” and a base for the Philippine Navy, among others. That exception to the “no build zone” suggests that the government may eventually allow residential development in those areas.

“Forbidding evacuees from returning to their areas of residence by declaring them ‘no build zones’ is effectively a forced eviction that re-victimizes an already vulnerable population,” Kine said. “The government owes Zambo-anga’s displaced residents a clear and open process in which they can meaningfully participate in their return or resettlement.”

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees also raised concerns about the relocation’s impact on the rights of the displaced residents. It said the refugees “did not understand or have enough information about the move prior to the relocation.”

(Mindanao Examiner)

Muslim women say they support the Bangsamoro peace deal. (Mindanao Examienr Photo Ely Dumaboc)

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May 12-18, 2014

Sulu employees’ cooperative stronger after 10 years; Governor inspires members

Sulu Governor Totoh Tan during the 10th Annual General Assembly of the Sulu Provincial Employees Multi-Purpose Cooperative in Patikul town. (Mindanao Examiner Photo - Franzie Sali)

Another Sayyaf falls in Zambo Z AMBOANGA CITY – Police in Zamboanga City arrested a second Abu Sayyaf militant also tagged in a string of kidnappings in the southern Philippine province of Sulu, officials said.

Senior Inspector Joseph Ortega, a regional police spokesman, said the militant, who uses the alias of Ondil, was arrested near a beach resort in the village of Sinunuc.

He said intelligence agents backed by soldiers, were involved in the arrest of the militant.

He said the Abu Sayyaf man was among those who kidnapped 6 members of the Jehova’s Witnesses in August 2002 in Patikul town. Ortega said the militant is being investigated.

“His arrest is part of our continuing law enforcement operation in Zamboanga,” Ortega told the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.

Ondil’s arrest came a day after police agents also captured another militant, Harijin Jinny, in Zamboanga City. Jinny, alias Kim, was working as a security guard at a store in downtown Zamboanga when agents arrested him on the same charges.

It was unknown if the arrest of Ondil was connected to Jinny’s confession during interrogation.

Local officials have praised the regional and city police forces under Chief Superintendent Juanito Vaño and Superintendent Angelito Casimiro, respectivley, for its many accomplishments in Zamboanga.

Author ities have linked the Abu Sayyaf to al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiya and tagged as behind the series of terror attacks and kidnappings for ransom in the Philippines. (Mindanao Examiner)

SULU – Sulu Governor Totoh Tan has inspired members of the Sulu Provincial Employees MultiPurpose Cooperative (SPEMC) during its 10th Annual General Assembly held in Patikul town.

Tan, who was invited to grace the occasion and also served as its guest speaker, cited the rights of the workers during the program.

With the theme “We might not be able to be the best, but we are much better than the rest,” Tan said cooperativism and unity (among workers) go hand in hand for the success of any group.

In his speech, Tan acknowledged the contribution of workers in the economy of Sulu, whose trade and commerce have improved ten folds over the past decade. He also cited SPEMC as one of the driving force behind its long history of cooperativism and unity among its members.

“Being a multi-purpose cooperative of the employees of the Sulu Provincial Government, the members are also workers in the truest sense of the word. Bilang empleyado ng gobyerno, lahat po tayo, kung tutuusin, ay mga manggagawa rin, na nagtatamasa ng mga benepisyo ayon sa batas at may mga tungkulin din na ipinaguutos ng batas.”

“Kalimitan ang pinag-uukulan lamang ng pansin ng iba sa atin ay ang pagtanggap ng sahod at iba pang mga benepisyo, tulad ng mga loans hindi lamang mula sa gobyerno ganun din mula sa mga kooperatiba tulad

ng SPEMPC. Hindi po natin ito pinupuna dahil ito ay karapatan ng mga empleyado subali’t huwag po rin natin kalimutan na ang posisyon o trabaho ay may kaakibat na responsibilidad at mananagot po tayo sa mga taong-bayan na siya nating pinagsisilbihan kung halimbawa magkukulang tayo sa ating panunungkulan,” he said.

Speaking in the local dialect, Tan said: “In ridjiki atawa napakahalal amu dayin ha kawasa atawa hinang ha parinta, in manga yan amana piyangandul katuh taniyu muna-muna sin Tuhan, hikaruwa sin raayat amu in siyapahan natuh ha oath of office.

Awun hak sin raayat katu taniyu amu subay natuh hikatunay kanila. In ahli atawa members sin SPEMPC, ha bihaun timaud na tung-gatus kawhaan tag siyam.

In sila yan katan tiyutunguran sin parinta ha supaya makapagsangsah ha raayat. Malingkat isab aturun iban patut hikapakita sin manga ahli yan amu 329 in taud, na sila na yan in mag-uhanan timindug ha sahbu sin flag-raising ceremony sakahaba Isnin iban flag-retreat sakahaba Jumaat. Mataud sayan aturun in labi tunggatus yan iban makarihil bulansang ha manga jimajaga sin kignutkuhibal sin kitaniyu riy ha Capitol.

In manga clothing allowance amu tarbilang ha manga kapatut sin employees, na subay dasab kakitaan piyapakay biyah sin nakalulukis ha maksud pagpa awun kaniya.

In manga employees sin Provincial Government, sila na yan in samin amu magpakita sin dagbus sin upis parinta pag-iyanun.

In kignut-kuhibal iban laku-tabiat sin manga naghihinang ha Capitol, sakaula kignut-kuhibal da isab sin parinta.

Hangkan subay kamu ma-ayad.

You should act in accordance with the decorum and discipline required by the Civil Service Commission.”

He added: “Walung ka jam in piyagluwas lung-saran ha supaya dih tuud mabanyaga in manga naghihinang, sah bang da lilingun in kaibanan dih misan magguwa opis atawa bang gumuwa dagmit sadja. In work ethics sin manga naghi-hinang ha Capitol subay bahguhun na ha supaya dih kita niyu pagliki’-likian sin raayat iban in hak nila di’ taniyu makaun. In manga members sin SPEMPC amu nagtipun maynaat yan munamuna ayari niyu in ngan sin cooperative niyu iban na sin dagbus iban ngan sin Provincial Government sin Lupah Sug.” “In kamu amuin napi’ mag-oohanan sin cooperative na tunaya niyu tuud in tanggungjawab amu amanah kaniyu sin manga ahli niyu. In kawasa subay bukun hinangun, tabiya yaun kalangkapan hipag pula-puti sin hisiyu-siyu atawa hipagtakabbul iban hi-panglungkup ha kaiba-nan. Maraming salamat po, mabuhay ang SPEMPC and God Bless Sulu,” he said.

(Franzie Sali)

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The Mindanao Examiner

May 12-18, 2014

Police warn vs cyber syndicates, hackers

NPA rebels capture soldier in Davao Norte

DAVAO CITY – Communist rebels have captured a government soldier who was accused of protecting logging operations in the southern Filipino province of Davao del Norte.

Aris Francisco, a spokesman for the New People’s Army, said illegal drugs were also seized from the soldier who was identified as Corporal Rogelio Rosales, a member of the 60th Infantry Battalion operating in Davao and Compostela Valley provinces.

He said Rosales, who has been declared a prisoner of war, was arrested in the village of Florida in Kapalong town while he was fixing the transit of logs in the area.

“Prisoner of War Rosales was on the process of arranging for the transit of logs when apprehended by the NPA. A sachet of shabu was also found in his possession, proof that soldiers who are coddling big loggers in the

province, were also into the illegal drug trade,” Francisco said in a statement sent late Monday to the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.

The arrest of Rosales came nearly two weeks after rebels freed another soldier Sergeant Jeric Curay, who was also captured at a checkpoint in the village of Andap in Compostela Valley’s Laak town on April 4.

Curay, a member of the 72nd Infantry Battalion, was released to Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, who negotiated with the rebels for the soldier’s freedom.

Francisco said the Rosales is part of a gang of soldiers under the 60th and 72nd Infantry Battalions protecting logging operations in the provinces.

“Thus, in the face of brazen abuse of power and wanton disregard of the environmental preservation, the NPA perseveres in imposing

The Mindanao Examiner Media, Film and Television Productions Maritess Fernandez Publisher/Executive Producer (On Leave) Al Jacinto Editor-in-Chief/Producer (OIC) Joshua Alvia Joanna Valerie Wee Graphics/Video Editor Mindanao Examiner Productions Web Master REGIONAL PARTNERS Mindanao Daily Business Week Mindanao Star NEWS/ADVERTISING OFFICES Mark Navales Central Mindanao Richard Suarez Pagadian City Zamboanga del Sur

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CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Ely Dumaboc Zamboanga Peninsula The Mindanao Examiner Regional Newspaper is published weekly in Mindanao, Philippines.

The Mindanao Examiner Television is broadcast in KISMET Cable TV and Pagadian Cable Television Channel 63.

Our business and editorial offices are located at Units 15, 3rd Floor, Fair Land Bldg., Nuñez St., Zamboanga City Phone & fax: 062- 9925480 Mobile: 0917-7103642 URL: mindanaoexaminer.com E-mail: mindanaoexaminer@gmail.com

its total log ban campaign and carrying out punitive sanctions against the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the big logging lords.”

“To protect the remaining forest covers, campaign for reforestation, stop abusive large-scale logging, and secure the livelihood of the masses through sustainable communal farming, the NPA Sub-regional Command strongly enforces its total log ban policy,” Francisco said.

Just recently, three soldiers were also wounded in a rebel attack in the village of Napungas in Davao del Norte’s Asuncion town where they ambushed a military patrol.

The military’s Eastern Mindanao Command and the 10th Infantry Division which have operation control in the area did not give any statement about the arrest of the soldier and accusations against them.

The NPA has been fighting for decades now for the establishment of its own communist state in the country. (Mindanao Examiner)

MANILA - The Philippines has warned Filipinos, especially those who have accounts on social media, to be extra careful what they are posting online and how they use the Internet due to threats posed by hackers and cyber syndicates.

“Be cautious about people you meet online.

Revealing personal details online is extremely risky and may not to be who they seem to be, because there are lot of fake accounts online,” said Philippine police chief Alan Purisima.

“Scammers often seek soft targets so they move on if you do not respond, just block their e-mails and their accounts and cease all contacts with the scammer. If ever you encounter this kind of scam, save the scammer’s details, e-mails, comment

threads, or any other evidence you have of them and the extortion attempt,” he added.

The warning came following the arrest of 58 people in the Philippines who were tagged or implicated in the so-called “sextortion,” or sexual blackmail in which sexual information or images are used to extort money from victims.

Purisima also issued several advisories against sextortion and further advised the public to be aware in posting video clips or make voice calls on the Internet because it can always be recorded by hackers.

The International Criminal Police Organization has recognized the recent accomplishment by the Philippine police in dismantling sextortion activities by an international

syndicate in the country in cooperation with Police Scotland, Interpol, Hong Kong Police, Singapore Police, US Homeland Security Investigation, Child Exploitation Online Protection and the Australian Federal Police.

“I would like to thank them (Philippine National Police and AntiCybercrime Group) for their professionalism and dedication, and without whose cooperation and efforts we would not be here today and this Operation would not have been the success it,” said Interpol Director Sanjay Virmani.

“It is also important to highlight that while the arrests made this week were made here in the Philippines, these crimes are not limited to any one country and nor are the victims,” he added.

A photo released by the Eastern Mindanao Command to the Mindanao Examiner shows a captured politburo member of the Communist Party of the Philippines Roy Erecre.

The Mindanao Examiner

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The Mindanao Examiner

May 12-18, 2014

Broadcaster murdered in Tawi- Tawi

MOTORCYCLE gunmen killed a Filipino broadcaster in an attack in Tawi-Tawi province in southern Philippines, police said. It said the attackers, who were on a motorcycle, shot the 35-year old Richard Najid several times in the village of Tubig Boh in the capital town of Bongao.

Najid was also on a motorbike heading home from a basketball game when he was ambushed.

Najid, who was also quickly the possibility of the station manager of ra- Najid's murder was related dio station dxNN, was to his work. Salido was also rushed to the hospital by quoted by the NUJP as saypolicemen - who re- ing that the victim was sponded to the gunshots – “just one disc jockey, a perbut the victim died along son that plays popular music on FM radio station. He the way.

The motive of the kill- is not a journalist.”

“That the chief of a ing is still unknown, but police said it has launched province's police force can an investigation into the display not only insensitivity but, more alarming, igmurder.

The National Union of norance reflects on the Journalists of the Philip- quality of what is supposed pines and the National to be the country's main Press Club of the Philip- law enforcement agency pines have condemned the and explains why media murders and human rights killing.

The NUJP said it was violations in general condisturbed by the reaction tinue to be committed with of the provincial police impunity,” it said.

In June 2007, gunmen chief Joselito Salido who reportedly dismissed also killed radio broad-

caster Vicente Sumalpong in Bongao town. His two companions who were also journalists were wounded in the ambush. The three were on a motorcycle when gunmen attacked them.

The latest attack came a day after Philippine media joined the celebration of the World Press Freedom Day, vowing to protect each other from attacks and threats and upholding the rights of every journalist in the country.

“For us journalists in the Philippines, where a critic can anytime fall down with a bullet in the head, it is the day to review what press freedom is all about, celebrate the times when the Philippine press has helped to expose corruption or enlighten the public on a difficult issue and, last but never the least, remember our colleagues who were slain by press

freedom’s enemies,” the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines said during the celebration.

Ten journalists have been murdered in the past 12 months in the Philippines and 26 since President Benigno Aquino assumed the presidency in 2010, making the country one of the most dangerous for journalists in the world, according to the International Federation of Journalists.

Joel Egco, president of the National Press Club of the Philippines, said the killing of Najib is “is a humiliating sequel to President Benigno Aquino’s pathetic gaffe when he attempted to address the issue of media killings before local and international media recently.”

He said Najib’s murder came barely a week after Aquino blabbered helplessly when asked to ex-

plain why media killings persist under his administration.

“This is a clear indication of lack of real concern or plain disregard for the deadly plight of Filipino journalists. He couldn’t even get his facts straight.

The Aquino government’s apparent apathy toward the unabated killing of journalists is a contributory factor to the culture of impunity that threatens press freedom,” he said.

Egco said the acts of intimidation against journalists in the country are an affront to press freedom.

“Journalist killers grow more brazen each day and as the list of the fallen swells, so must our resolve to put an end to these killings. Since he became president, we have yet to hear from President Aquino any strong directive to law enforcers and justice personnel to work doubly hard

in addressing the issue.”

“Each death becomes part of government statistics, a main ingredient in the administration’s lip service.

As we mourn the passing of another brother in the profession, we warn Mr. Aquino that in the end, he will only have himself to blame for allowing media killings become a flourishing trade under his watch,” Egco said.

In 2009, gunmen who were followers of a political clan in Maguindanao province in southern Philippines killed 58 people – at least three dozen of them journalists and media workers – in one of the worst attacks against the media in the country. The case has not been resolves up to now, although most of those involved in the brutal murders have been arrested. (With a report from Ely Dumaboc)

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The Mindanao Examiner

May 12-18, 2014

ICT companies eye Zambo for manpower

President Benigno Aquino during the launching of the Bohol Fabrication Laboratory in these video screen shots by the Presidential Broadcast Staff Radio-Television Malacanang.(Best available photo)

Aquino launches Bohol Fabrication Laboratory MANILA - President Benigno Aquino led the launching of the Bohol Fabrication Laboratory (Fablab) at the Bohol Island State University (BISU) in Tagbilaran City in Bohol province.

The Bohol Fablab is a technical prototyping platform designed to improve the competitiveness of the Boholano creative industry sector and support its long-term viability by providing the necessary tools and equipment to do rapid prototyping and modeling.

Aquino inspected the state-of-the-art equip-

ment inside the fabrication laboratory which include a laser cutter, a high-resolution milling machine, a CNC ShopBOt, a 3D printer scanner, a sewing and embroidery machine, a drying machine, a LED TV, a laptop and video conferencing equipment.

He was also briefed by officials about the new facility, the first of its kind in the country and is a platform for learning and innovation which provides stimulus for local entrepreneurship.

Officials said the laboratory is connected

to a global community of learners, educators, technologists, researchers, makers, and innovators. It also seeks to develop, through the BISU System, a pool of designers who can readily assist Boholano Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in product design and development, and to upgrade the framework conditions for creative work in the province.

The Bohol Fablab is co-founded by the Philippines and Japan and will be under the mentorship of Japan’s prestigious Keio University.

Young man tries to rape sexagenarian neighbor PAGADIAN CITY – Police said a 23-year old man who tried to rape a widow thrice his age surrendered after his victim complained to authorities in southern Philippines.

Police said the sexagenarian woman was able to scream for help when his neighbor Ramil Ondong broke into her house in the village of Balongating in Guipos town and tried to abuse

her.

She said the man destroyed her kitchen’s roof in order to gain entry into the house and then forcibly opened her room where she and her grandson were sleeping.

Her scream for help alerted other members of her family and neighbors and Ondong escaped, but surrendered later after his family convinced him to give up because

5 men shot in Dapitan DIPOLOG CITY – Police said 5 people were shot by a group of men in an attack at a coconut farm in Dapitan City in Zamboanga del Norte province in southern Philippines.

Police said the victims were gathering coconuts in the farm owned by Herminio Acaylar in the village of Santa Cruz when the armed group arrived and attacked them with a shot gun.

The victims were identified as Nelson Dalaguan, 45; Roger Catacuta, 37; Allan Dumasig, 52; Eddie Magundaya, 46; and Samuel Malabago, 30.

Police said three of the attackers have already been identified as Rodrigo and Salia Andile, Lorenzo Lasing, but 12 others remain unidentified, although they are all resi-

dents in the area.

“Victims sustained gunshot wounds in the different parts of their bodies and were brought to Sindangan District Hospital for medical treatment,” said Inspector Dahlan Samuddin, a regional police spokesman.

It was not immediately whether the victims were working in the farm or stealing coconuts.

“Investigation disclosed that prior to the incident, victims were harvesting coconuts at the farm owned by Herminio Acaylar when the suspects arrived and without any apparent reason shot the victims and fled after the attack,” Samuddin said.

He said police were searching for the attackers. (Mindanao Examiner)

police were searching for him.

Police said Ondong has been detained in the town while charges are being prepared against him. (Mindanao Examiner)

Zamboanga ICT Council President Louell Felix Saavedra and some of the IT executives who participated at the recently concluded 2014 ICT and Job Fair held in Zamboanga City.

(Mindanao Examiner Photo - Joshua Alvia and Joanna Wee) ZAMBOANGA CITY – Zamboanga City has hosted the three-day 2014 ICT and Jobs Fair where executives of some of the best Information and Communications Technology companies gathered here and shared their success and inspirational stories.

The event, held at the Garden Orchid Hotel, was organized by the Zamboanga ICT Council whose current president, Louell Felix Saavedra, spoke on various topics along with prominent guests.

Among those who shared their insights about Information and Communications Technology were Ronald Cirujano, Country Manager of Elance; Christine Rom, President and CEO of game development company called PODD; Alvin Juban, Head of Operations of Secret 6; Markku Kero, CEO of Job and Esther Technologies in Finland; Raymund Vidar, Development Manager of Voyager Innovations; and Rogelio Umali, Head of Technology and Innovation Support Services of Smart Communications’ Monetization Group.

Each of them also spoke about their companies and the importance of Informa-

tion and Communications Technology not only in trade and commerce, but in everyday’s life where more and more people largely depend on new technologies in the fast changing world of computers and electronics.

An estimated 2,000 people, mostly IT graduates and experts and students attended the ICT and Job Fair with the organizers saying the number of those interested to work in high-paying jobs in IT companies was staggering.

Saavedra urged students in Zamboanga and nearby provinces and cities to take IT courses because of its promising demand not only in the country, but abroad.

“In Zamboanga City alone, there is a big potential for ICT and BPOs or Business Process Outsourcing and IT companies are coming flocking over here and that’s why we have this ICT and Job Fair here,” he told the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner. He said the ICT Confederation of the Philippines is also advocating “on a national scale” different programs that helps provide trainings, workshops and organizes strategic planning sessions and

Suspension of mining firm in Mindanao praised CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Environmentalists praised the Mines and Geosciences Bureau for suspending the operations of the nickel mining firm MarcVentures Mining and Development Corporation in Surigao del Sur province for various violations.

“We are very happy to hear MGB’s action, although we expected the suspension to be imposed last year after the multi-disciplinary team assessment on MMDC’s mining operations in Barangay Cabangahan (Cantilan) and Sitio Pili, Panikian (Carrascal),” said Chito Trillanes, a spokesman for the Vicar iate of CARCANMAD CARLANPAR-Social Action Center of the San Pedro Apostol Parish in Cantilan town.

The order was issued by MBG Director Leo Jasareno.

“The order of Mines and Geosciences Bureau Director Leo Jasareno suspending MarcVentures Mining and Development Corporation mining operations in Cantilan and Carrascal is a very welcome development for our people not only in Cantilan but in the entire province of Surigao del Sur. We commend Director Jasareno for taking this difficult stand against MMDC, a

big mining firm, which is backed-up by strong politicians in our area,” Trillanes said.

He said they now seeking the cancellation of the Mineral Product Sharing Agreement (MPSA) of MarcVentures and indemnification for the damages it caused to the environment and our people.

“To us, the suspension concretely shows that the Aquino Administration’s Matuwid Na Daan has a place in our province. For a while, our people thought it is just an illusion and they seem to lose their faith with this administration. However, with the findings by the multi-disciplinary team of major violations committed by the company, we believe that MGB should impose heavier sanctions than just suspending MMDC,” he said.

MarcVentures was accused of mining outside its mining areas and Trillanes said the cancellation of the MPSA is the only assurance that “MMDC will no longer be a serious threat to the integrity of God’s creation in our area especially in the Watershed Forest Reserves.” The company denied all allegations against them. (Mindanao Examiner)

activities and affairs, road shows in an effort to bring awareness to the public about the industry.

“We are trying to encourage the government and private industries and schools and universities and that’s why we are promoting ICT in Zamboanga. All of us in the Zamboanga ICT Council are also members of the Zamboanga City Chamber of Commerce and Industry - we are private businessmen and all of us have our own businesses as part of the Chamber and we are doing all of these events to get the attention of everybody, especially the local government, the telephone companies to be our partners in this endeavor,” Saavedra said.

He said they are now trying to lure companies to put up call centers and IT hub in Zamboanga, particularly at the Zamboanga City Special Economic Zone.

“Zamboanga has huge potential in ICT and we are optimistic that we may be able attract local and foreigner investors and make this city their BPO and become an IT hub in the southern Philippines, just like what they have in Cebu,” he said. The Zamboanga ICT Council was established in 2012 by the Regional Information Technology and ECommerce Committee in Western Mindanao and the Zamboanga City Chamber of Commerce and Industry then under its president Pedro Rufo Soliven as a nonprofit professional organization.

Saavedra said the ICT Council was created for the purpose of establishing an entity that will be looking at areas of opportunities in ICT and BPO to complement the needs of the locals for better employment and IT jobs. He said his group envisions being the recognized champion of ICT and acting as a catalyst and enabler of innovation and economic development in Western Mindanao. The Zamboanga ICT Council is also composed of Michael Kelly Lim, Vice President; Maureene Bello, Corporate Secretary; Antonio Itturalde, Treasurer; and Board Members Oliver Ong, Cheryl Ortega, Danny Lim, Edwin To, who is now the current President of Zamboanga City Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Efren Wee, Myrna Natividad and Soliven himself. (Joshua Alvia and Joanna Wee)

8

The Mindanao Examiner

May 12-18, 2014

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Refugees get their supply of rice and canned goods sent by the Davao del Norte provincial government to an evacuation camp put up by the United Church of Christ of the Philippines in Davao City where tribesmen who fled military operations in Talaingod town. (Photo by Kilab Multimedia)

Tribesmen celebrate pull out of troops from Davao town DAVAO CITY – Philippine tribesmen celebrated the pull out of government troops in Davao del Norte’s Talaingod town and praised all those who supported their plight at the height of military offensive against communist rebels in the area.

More than 1,000 tribesmen have fled the town and sought safe refuge with the United Church of Christ in the Philippines in Davao City.

Many indigenous villagers have accused the soldiers of harassing them and some even tagged them as members of the rebel group New People’s Army.

They said soldiers put up encampments in civilian communities and public infrastructures, including schools and government buildings. The pull out of troops from at least 11 areas in the town was an offshoot of negotiations initiated by Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and Davao del Norte Governor Rodolfo del Rosario.

Del Rosario has recently sent a truckload of rice and canned goods for the refugees in Davao City in an effort to convince them to re-

turn to the town.

The indigenous group Salugpongan ‘Ta Tanu Ig Kanugon and PASAKA which assisted the refugees thanked all those who supported and sympathized with them in their plight. The indigenous groups celebrated what they considered as “gains” that they have won after almost a month at the evacuation camp provided by the UCCP. Del Rosario also said that the refugees would be given relief goods and medicines before they return to their respective villages in Talaingod.

Datu Doloman Dawsay of Salugpongan ‘Ta Tanu Ig Kanugon said they will all remain vigilant despite the pull out of troops.

“We gained this victory because we are united. The abuses of the military would not have been exposed if we did not fight. We became victorious because we are militant. The military and their cohorts are really determined to discredit and divide us, but we remain strong.

They fabricated a lot of lies just to hide their abuses.”

“They accused us of being NPA to cover-up their

crimes against our people.

The truth will not come out if we had allowed ourselves to be captive by the military,” he said in a statement sent to the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.

The group Exodus for Justice and Peace (EJP) also vowed to continue monitoring the areas and the evacuees when they return home.

The group warned the military not to retaliate against the leaders and communities that protested their abuses citing various cases in Agusan and CompostelaValley provinces where troops allegedly harassed indigenous leaders who exposed military abuses.

“We are happy that the lumads can now go back to their community,” said EJP’s Pastor Jurie Jaime.

The support group of the Manobos, Defend Talaingod Save Pantaron Range, also said: “The pull out of the military forces in the area is just an initial victory just so the refugees can go back to their homes. But this is just the beginning; the soldiers involved in abusing these people should still be held accountable.”

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The Mindanao Examiner

May 12-18, 2014

Respect for human rights assured in Zamboanga

Zamboanga City Mayor Maria Isabelle Salazar (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Local Mayor Maria Isabelle Salazar has vowed to protect human rights in Zamboanga City and called on the public to support the government in the pursuit of peace and development here.

“We respect human rights and we uphold the rights of citizens in Zamboanga,” she told the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.

Salazar’s statement came after the United Nations and the Human Rights Watch issued separate statements over the plight of thousands of war victims are still in filthy evacuation centers eight months after Moro National Liberation Front members attacked Zamboanga.

The assault left more

than 400 people dead and wounded and displaced over 120,000 villagers following three weeks of deadly street clashes and house to house battle.

The mayor said there are bunkhouses for refugees where they can temporarily stay while the government works on the rehabilitation projects in areas devastated by the fighting. But many refugees wanted to return to their original village and habitat.

Since September, more than 100 refugees, including children, had died from diseases in the evacuation sites and the number of casualties is still rising due to lack of medical and emergency facilities there.

Salazar has appealed to citizens to support the

government’s peace and development programs in an effort to build back better Zamboanga.

President Benigno Aquino visited Zamboanga City in December and accompanied by Salazar inspected the sports complex where thousands of refugees are staying. He assured them of the government’s rehabilitation efforts, saying his administration is working closely with various agencies to rebuild houses destroyed during the war.

Aquino said the government already spent some P273.8 million in relief aid and cash-for-work program for those displaced by the fighting and that he allocated an additional P3.5 billion for the rehabilitation efforts here.

(Mindanao Examiner)

Anti-poverty group tells government, 'don't fool us with your statistics' MANILA - The Global Call to Action Against Poverty Philippines has questioned the government's poverty statistics, saying poverty has increased and did not go down as what Manila is insisting.

“Don’t fool us with your statistics” it said, reacting to the report released by the Philippine Statistics Authority that

poverty incidence went down to 24.9% of the population in the first semester of 2013.

According to GCAP Philippines, the change in the figure is due to the different metric used in measuring poverty incidence – from the usual Family Income and Expenditure Survey (FIES) to Annual Poverty and Indicator Survey (APIS).

Going by the FIES, the poverty incidence increased in 2006 and has remained high even after three years into the Aquino Administration. “ We challenge the government to come clean to the public in trying to maneuver the statistics on poverty. We believe that changing the method is highly questionable. Nevertheless,

NPA claims killing 7 soldiers DAVAO CITY – Philippine communist rebels said it killed 7 soldiers and wounded 14 more in separate attacks in the restive region of Mindanao, south of the country, and that the military have hidden its casualties from the public.

Rigoberto Sanchez, a spokesman for the New People’s Army, said with the increasing military casualties, government troops have targeted civilians for failing to support the anti-insurgency campaign that resulted in widespread human rights violations, especially in Davao City and Davao del Norte province.

“The 10th Infantry Division-Eastern Mindanao Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippine has concealed the rising number of casualties of its troops in the field as they intensify psychological

warfare and combat operations in Davao hinterlands.”

“Raging against the civilians who have boldly exposed human rights abuses in the villages of Paquibato and Talaingod, Davao del Norte, the 10th ID has taken to downplaying, if not, hiding the incidents to stir terror in the minds and hearts and civilians. But no amount of cover-up can they stifle the growing armed struggle and increasing unity between the NPA and the masses,” Sanchez said in a statement sent late Saturday to the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.

He said rebel forces killed and wounded at least 21 soldiers in separate offensive last week Davao City’s Paquibato district alone.

“The AFP is relentless in waging war against ci-

vilians by its continued hamletting in Paquibato and interfering in the civilian bureaucracy in order to control the populace. These repressive acts further inflame the masses to str uggle against fascism and turn to the people’s army for protection,” Sanchez said.

“As the abusive military operations continue to plague the masses, the NPA is determined to hit Army units, staging surreptitious attacks in greater latitude as possible, while the masses participate and become truly part of the people’s war,” he added.

There was no immediate statement from the 10th Infantry Division and the Eastern Mindanao Command about Sanchez’s allegations.

Security forces captured a senior NPA regional rebel leader Felix Ar modia in Tampakan town in the southern province of South Cotabato.

The Easter n Mindanao Command tagged Armodia as behind the spate of attacks on military and police targets, including various construction firms in the region.

The NPA is fighting for decades now to overthrow the democratic government and install a communist state in the country. It is the world’s longest-running communist insurgency. (Mindanao Examiner)

no matter what method is used—APIS or FIES—the government has admitted it will not reach the 16.6% target of the Millennium Development Goal in poverty eradication,” GCAP Philippines said in a statement sent to the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.

Currently, the poverty threshold stands at P52 per person per day. According to the government, the poverty threshold is the amount a family or individual needs in order not be considered poor. ”Having P52 is not enough to provide decent living for one person even for a day,” it said.

GCAP Philippines urged the government to be realistic in addressing poverty reduction and avoid hiding the reality under the official poverty

statistics that is making matters worse for the genuine poor.

It maintains that economic growth, no matter how high, is meaningless if it does not translate into improved quality of life for the average Filipino.

The government officials need to get out of their air-conditioned offices and feel the pressing issues and experienced everyday by the majority of Filipinos, it fur ther said.

The poor and marginalized still experience inaccessibility of basic ser vices compounded by privatization of government institutions and rampant corruption.

According to GCAP Philippines, the National Housing Authority and

local governments still prioritize resettlement designs that are only for rent and not for ownership by the urban poor people resettled.

It said resettlement areas also need to package basic services including sustainable livelihood options needed for decent living.

Furthermore, recent developments in the pork barrel case also reveals more allegations of gover nment officials involved in the corruption case, which unfortunately include a big number of elected and appointed officials.

Among all these issues of corruption and privatization, it said the poor are the most vulnerable, yet usually the most left out in the development processes.

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May 12-18, 2014

SULU EXECUTIVES CITED FOR POLICE SUPPORT SULU – The Philippine National Police – Criminal Investigation and Detection Group has cited Sulu Governor Totoh Tan for his invaluable support to the efforts of the law enforcement agency in the province.

Sulu Vice Governor Sakur Tan was similarly cited by the CIDG and both leaders have been given certificate of appreciation during the courtesy call by lawyer Edwin Quilantes, the agency’s deputy regional director, to the two officials at the Capitol Office in Patikul town.

The police officer was accompanied by Senior Inspector John Paul Tovera.

Quilantes also praised the provincial executives “in grateful recognition for the invaluable support extended by the Sulu Provincial Government that led to the success of Investigation Skills Enhancement Seminar in the province.”

Both the governor and vice governor have been very supportive to the PNP program and vision in the province in an effort to maintain or improve the peace and order in Sulu and at the same time strengthen the local police force to effectively carry out its mission to serve the public.

(Franzie Sali)

Lawyer Edwin Quilantes, deputy regional director of the Philippine National Police – Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, hands certificate of appreciation to Sulu Governor Totoh Tan and Vice Gov. Sakur Tan for their support to the PNP at the Capitol Office in Patikul town.(Mindanao Examiner Photo - Franzie Sali)

Cops convince refugees to avail relocation program in Zambo ZAMBOANGA CITY – Police said it helped convinced many war refugees in Zamboanga City to avail of the government’s relocation program rather than stay in filthy evacuation centers.

Police also denied reports that it arrested a war refugee Abdil Sakandal for putting up a sign outside his tent opposing the relocation. The Department of Social Welfare and Development complained to the police authorities that Sakandal violated public order.

Sakandal’s signs read: “Ayaw naming ilipat kung saan-saan lugar. Kung saan kami nagmula doon pa rin sa Rio Hondo at Mariki.”

And “No to relocation. Only in Mariki.”

Human rights groups said Sakandal was only expressing his sentiments and his rights must be respected. Senior Inspector Joseph Ortega, a regional police spokesman, said of-

ARMM

ficers only invited Sakandal at the police station to explain to him about the government’s relocation program and convinced the refugee to remove the signs because it will only create agitation among other refugees.

Some of the refugees also put up signs opposing their relocation to other areas, but also removed them Photo courtesy of Gammar Hassan. later.

“There was no arrest and uphold human rights bewe only invited the refugee at cause we are the protector of the office and explained to the people,” Ortega told the him about the good inten- regional newspaper Mindation of the government’s re- nao Examiner. location program and he was Sakandal, a resident of convinced by it and he even- Rio Hondo, was among huntually removed all the signs dreds of refugees still staying he put outside his tent. Our at the beachfront along intention really is good. We Roseller Lim Boulevard. The

Southern Mindanao

Davao

government has offered them to relocate in bunkhouses in other villages while the rehabilitation project is still going on.

The United Nations and the Human Rights Watch have issued separate statements over the plight of thousands of war victims are

Manila

still in filthy evacuation centers eight months after Moro National Liberation Front members attacked Zamboanga.

The assault in September left more than 400 people dead and wounded and displaced over 120,000 villagers following three weeks of deadly street clashes and house to house battle.

Mayor Maria Isabelle Salazar said there are bunkhouses for refugees where they can temporarily stay while the government works on the rehabilitation projects in areas devastated by the fighting. But many refugees wanted to return to their original village and habitat. Gammar Hassan, a refugee leader, said since

September, said at least 117 refugees, including children, had died from diseases in the evacuation sites and the number of casualties is still rising due to lack of medical and emergency facilities there.

Salazar has appealed to citizens to support the government’s peace and development programs in an effort to build back better Zamboanga.

President Benigno Aquino also assured the refugees of the government’s rehabilitation efforts, saying his administration is working closely with various agencies to rebuild houses destroyed during the war.

Aquino said the government already spent some P273.8 million in relief aid and cash-for-work program for those displaced by the fighting and that he allocated an additional P3.5 billion for the rehabilitation efforts here.

(Mindanao Examiner)

Zamboanga Peninsula