As Hurricane Ian hits the Americas, Noru has been ripping through the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand
Hurricane Ian has been in the headlines but it is not the only storm that has been causing havoc in the past week.
On Tuesday, Typhoon Noru struck south of the city of Da Nang in Vietnam, heading westwards to Thailand. Initially a tropical storm, Noru originated in the Philippine Sea on 23 September, propagating westwards while gathering moisture and strengthening.
Continue reading...Figures likely to be an underestimate, says Global Witness, as land defenders are killed by hitmen, crime groups and governments
More than 1,700 murders of environmental activists were recorded over the past decade, an average of a killing nearly every two days, according to a new report.
Killed by hitmen, organised crime groups and their own governments, at least 1,733 land and environmental defenders were murdered between 2012 and 2021, figures from Global Witness show, with Brazil, Colombia, the Philippines, Mexico and Honduras the deadliest countries.
Continue reading...Sustained wind speeds of 125mph recorded in what is expected to be strongest storm to hit country this year
Super Typhoon Noru has slammed into the Philippines, battering the heavily populated main island of Luzon with strong winds and heavy rain that have forced thousands of people to flee their homes.
The storm was packing maximum sustained wind speeds of 125mph (195km/h) after an unprecedented “explosive intensification”, the state weather forecaster said.
Continue reading...Dozens injured after tremor hit mountainous area of Abra province, causing extensive damage to some homes and buildings
A strong earthquake left at least two people dead and injured dozens in the northern Philippines, where the temblor set off small landslides and damaged buildings and churches and prompted terrified crowds and hospital patients in the capital to rush outdoors.
The 7-magnitude quake centred in the province of Abra in a mountainous area, said Renato Solidum, the head of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.
Continue reading...Head of Mulanay municipality in Quezon threatens disciplinary action for failing to follow ‘smile policy’
A mayor in the Philippines has ordered all local government workers and officials to smile while serving the public – and threatened disciplinary action against those who fail to comply.
Aristotle “Aris” L Aguirre, the mayor of Mulanay municipality in Quezon, has sought to tackle an apparent problem of low spirits among staff by signing an executive order adopting a “smile policy”.
Continue reading...Human rights lawyer’s team calls on new Philippines president Ferdinand Marcos Jr to ‘stop the rot’ and allow a free press
Human rights lawyer Amal Clooney has condemned a decision by a court in the Philippines to uphold the conviction of Nobel prize-winner Maria Ressa in a cyber libel case and her legal team has said the world is watching to see if newly elected president Ferdinand Marcos Jr will “stop the rot” or continue attacks on journalists.
Maria Ressa, co-founder of the website Rappler, lost her appeal last week against a conviction for cyber libel – just one of an onslaught of legal cases and investigations the journalist is battling.
Continue reading...Son says family has legacy of achievement as he completes clan’s return to power 36 years after father’s ousting
Ferdinand Marcos Jr has promised a government that will deliver for all Filipinos during his inauguration speech, even as he paid tribute to the legacy of his dictator father, whose rule was marked by widespread corruption and rights abuses.
Marcos Jr, who began his term as president of the Philippines on Thursday, said he would emulate his father. “I once knew a man who saw what little had been achieved since independence in a land of people with the greatest potential for achievement. And yet they were poor. But he got it done. Sometimes with the needed support, sometimes without. So will it be with his son. You will get no excuses from me,” he said.
Continue reading...The ‘kill’ order, which seeks to revoke the company’s certificates of incorporation, was made in the final days of Rodrigo Duterte’s rule
The Philippine government is affirming a previous order to shut down the news website Rappler, according to its co-founder, the Nobel peace prize winner Maria Ressa.
Rappler, which has been praised for exposing abuses of power and growing authoritarianism under the outgoing Philippine president, Rodrigo Duterte, has faced a series of legal charges over recent years.
Continue reading...Analysis: Duterte’s popularity remains undented among people in poorer areas despite attacks on human rights, rule of law and media
Six years ago, the tough-talking mayor of Davao City, known as “the Punisher” because of his merciless approach to crime, was on the brink of taking national power in the Philippines. He promised to move power away from Manila elites, tackle poverty, corruption, and drugs. “When I become president,” Rodrigo Duterte told one rally, “I will order the police to find those people [involved in drugs] and kill them. The funeral parlours will be packed.”
The latter prediction was, at least, correct. When Duterte steps down on 30 June, having reached the end of his term limit, he will leave behind a country in which human rights, the media and rule of law have been weakened, say analysts.
Continue reading...Second world war ship found broken in two at depth of 22,916 feet in Philippines at ‘hallowed war grave’
A US navy destroyer that engaged a superior Japanese fleet in the largest sea battle of the second world war in the Philippines has become the deepest shipwreck to be discovered, according to explorers.
The USS Samuel B Roberts, popularly known as the “Sammy B”, was identified on Wednesday broken into two pieces on a slope at a depth of 22,916 feet (6,985m), or about four miles.
Continue reading...Dictator’s son will take office on 30 June, marking the dynasty’s return to the seat of power
Ferdinand Marcos Jr was flanked by his family, including matriarch Imelda Marcos, as he stood at the rostrum in the Philippines Congress to be proclaimed president-elect, marking the dynasty’s return to the seat of power.
Marcos Jr won almost 59% of votes in an election earlier this month, more than double that of his closest rival. His landslide victory followed a highly divisive campaign that was dominated by disinformation that sought to glorify the regime of his dictator father, Ferdinand Marcos Sr, who plundered as much as $10bn while in office, and presided over rife human rights abuses.
Continue reading...Seven Filipinos share their views on the victory of Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr and the future they see for the country
After a landslide election victory, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr is to become the next president of the Philippines. The son and namesake of the late dictator received more than 30m votes, beating his closest rival, the current vice-president, Leni Robredo.
Here, seven people in the Philippines share their views on the result and how they feel about the future of the country.
Continue reading...Artwork’s appearance fuels fears family will use return to power to further stifle efforts to recover ill-gotten wealth
The glimpse of a possible Picasso in the home of Imelda Marcos seen during a visit by her son, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr, after his election win has set off a flurry of speculation in the Philippines, where the family that once plundered billions is set to return to power.
Marcos Jr, the son and namesake of the late dictator, won a landslide victory in Monday’s presidential election, an outcome that has appalled those who survived his father’s regime.
Continue reading...After years of rebranding its image, the Marcos family is back in power. Inheriting a challenging economic situation, it remains unclear how Marcos Jr will use his huge mandate
The Marcos family has spent years rebranding its image, falsely portraying the authoritarian rule of Marcos Sr in which billions were plundered as a golden era and downplaying past atrocities. Researchers have described an onslaught of disinformation designed to revise history, enhance the reputation of the Marcoses and undermine their opponents.
Continue reading...Factcheckers say Ferdinand Marcos Jr was overwhelming beneficiary of a flood of online disinformation before poll
Survivors of the brutal regime of the late Philippines dictator Ferdinand Marcos have described his son’s apparent landslide presidential election victory as the product of trickery and disinformation, warning it is unlikely the billions stolen by his family will be recovered, and that human rights in the country will be weakened.
Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr had won more than 30.8m votes in a highly divisive presidential election by Monday, according to an unofficial count. His vote tally is more than double that of his closest challenger, the human rights lawyer and current vice-president, Leni Robredo, who had campaigned based on transparency and good governance.
Continue reading...Late dictator’s son promises unity but opponents fear family’s return to power could reverse democratic gains
It was in 1986 that the dictator Ferdinand Marcos and his family were forced to leave the Philippines in disgrace. Helicopters airlifted the family from the Malacañang Palace, as protesters filled the streets. Marcos Sr, after ruling with an iron fist for 20 years, had been toppled by a popular uprising, the People Power Revolution.
Crowds stormed the abandoned palace, discovering the extent of the family’s opulence. There were grand artworks, boxes of commemorative gold coins, lavish jewellery, hundreds of gowns, dresses, and, infamously, an enormous collection of designer shoes belonging to the former first lady, Imelda Marcos.
Continue reading...Son of late dictator wins more than twice as many votes as nearest rival after campaign marred by extensive social media disinformation
Ferdinand Marcos Jr, the son and namesake of the late dictator, has won a landslide presidential election victory, signalling an extraordinary rehabilitation for one of the country’s most notorious political families.
With more than 90% of an initial count concluded, Marcos Jr had almost 30 million votes, more than double the tally of his closest rival, the current vice-president, Leni Robredo, a former human rights lawyer.
Continue reading...Ferdinand Marcos Jr leads polls but analysts point to huge rallies of his opponent and the vice-president, Leni Robredo
Voters in the Philippines will go to the polls for a presidential election that pits frontrunner Ferdinand Marcos Jr, the son and namesake of the late dictator, against a human rights lawyer who has promised a transparent government.
Marcos Jr, known as “Bongbong”, whose authoritarian father plundered billions of dollars from the state and presided over rife human rights abuses, has maintained a strong lead in opinion polls in the run-up to Monday’s vote. If elected president, it would mark an extraordinary rehabilitation of one of the country’s most controversial political families.
Continue reading...Report on effects of Typhoon Haiyan says fossil and cement firms engaged in ‘wilful obfuscation’ of science
The world’s most polluting companies have a moral and legal obligation to address the harms of climate change because of their role in spreading misinformation, according to an inquiry brought about by Filipino typhoon survivors.
Experts say the long-awaited report published on Friday, which concludes that coal, oil, mining and cement firms engaged in “wilful obfuscation” of climate science and obstructed efforts towards a global transition to clean energy, could add fuel to climate lawsuits around the world.
Continue reading...Ferdinand Marcos Jr, known as Bongbong Marcos, frontrunner in race to replace populist president Rodrigo Duterte
On 9 May about 67.5 million Filipinos will go to the polls to decide who should replace the populist president Rodrigo Duterte. He has reached the end of his six-year term and is constitutionally barred from running again.
Continue reading...