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Yolanda survivors arrive in Villamor

Text and photos by LITTLE WING LUNA VILLAMOR Air Base has become the first stop for Typhoon “Yolanda” victims fortunate enough to board the military’s C-130 planes from typhoon-ravaged Cebu and Tacloban. Friday was the third day that hundreds of hungry, weary and grieving souls landed at the Philippine Air Force hangar in Pasay City,

Yolanda survivors arrive in Villamor

Like a post-apocalyptic Hollywood movie

Text and photos by LUIS LIWANAG NATURAL disasters and extreme weather phenomena have become so routine lately that to hear the impending landfall of another supertyphoon failed to whet my appetite for another adrenaline-charged news coverage. Spending time with family and keeping my word on commitments to friends were at the top of my list

Like a post-apocalyptic Hollywood movie

Mass burial in Tacloban

Text and photos by LUIS LIWANAG TACLOBAN CITY—The city government of Tacloban finally buried the dead in a shallow ditch that officials said was just a temporary resting place for those who perished from the wrath of Typhoon Yolanda. Cadavers wrapped in body bags, blankets, mats and even GI sheets collected from all over the

Mass burial in Tacloban

PNP, AFP assured of payment for poll duties

By VINCE NONATO THE Commission on Elections has finally signed the P100 million check to fund the honoraria and other expenses of police and army deputies tasked to maintain peace and order and carry out other election-related duties, Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. announced Friday. The funds, P60 million of which will go to the Philippine

PNP, AFP assured of payment for poll duties

‘Pork’ and a million

Slideshow by MARIO IGNACIO IV The “Million People March” social media activists had been cooking up for weeks failed to produce the promised million. But no matter. The message from the almost 100,000 rallyists who descended on Rizal Park on a drizzling Monday morning was crystal clear: Enough of “pork.” From all indications, the motley throng

‘Pork’ and a million

Martial Law victims dying while waiting for compensation

By JONATHAN DE SANTOS GOVERNMENT has been dragging its feet in implementing a law awarding financial compensation to victims of human rights abuses during the martial law years, despite the fact that their number is slowly dwindling. “Not a month passes without one of us dying,” Felix Dalisay, who spoke for Samahan ng Ex-Detainees Laban

Martial Law victims dying while waiting for compensation

44 months since Maguindanao: The wait continues

By JONATHAN DE SANTOS THE widows wore red, and not the black of mourning. “This doesn’t mean we are happy,” they said. “This shows we are still brave.” The two were Cipriana Gatchalian and Ramonita Salaysay, both of whom lost their husbands in the infamous Maguindanao Massacre on November 23, 2009. Last Tuesday, they and

44 months since Maguindanao: The wait continues

Transparency in the extractive industries

By MARIE GAY ALESSANDRA V. ORDENES HOW much is the government really getting from mining? How about other extractive industries such as gas and oil? How much is the industry actually paying the government? And, most important, do such payments comply with laws? Filipinos should be getting the answers to these and other questions about

Transparency in the extractive industries

‘Monggi’ group apologizes, changes its name

By DARLENE CAY ALL’S well that ends well. What started out as a potential dispute between a photographers’ group and an organization working in behalf of people with Down Syndrome turned into the seeds of collaboration, with both groups promising to cooperate on projects promoting persons with disabilities (PWDs). Members of Monggi Productions, an abbreviation

‘Monggi’ group apologizes, changes its name

Quezon City courts go digital; more transparent system seen

By MIKHA FLORES THE Supreme Court launched on Friday an electronic filing system that will digitize judicial processes in trial courts in Quezon City. Dubbed as “eCourt”, the system uses case management software that will allow judges and court personnel to organize case flows from the filing of the complaint up to its resolution and

Quezon City courts go digital; more transparent system seen