Rights group reports peasant leader missing in Mindanao

The leader of a prominent peasant group has gone missing in Mindanao, a leading rights group in the Philippines said on Monday. Estelita Tacalan, 60, was last seen leaving an office in Cagayan de Oro City on April 27 after attending a meeting to organize Labor Day activities for May 1, Karapatan said. Not a [...]

Banned chemicals found in Mindanao rivers

At least eight kinds of pesticides, seven of which are banned internationally, have been found in air and water samples obtained from several rivers and communities in the southern city of Davao, prompting activists to warn of an impending environmental disaster. The pesticides were found by Interface Development Interventions, Inc, a Davao-based environmental organization and [...]

Radio journalist shot dead in Mindanao

Armed men shot and killed a broadcast journalist on Monday morning in the province of Zamboanga Sibugay on the island of Mindanao, police said. The victim was identified as Mario Vendiola Baylosis, a 33-year-old announcer on Radio Natin in the town of Kabasalan. At least two motorcycle-riding gunmen shot Baylosis three times in the chest [...]

Landmark roadmap for peace announced

The government and the Philippines main Moro rebel group agreed on a road map late on Wednesday that will delegate increased autonomy to a Muslim region on the restive southern island of Mindanao. Following talks in Kuala Lumpur, the deal between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) outlines a transition period to [...]

As livelihoods dwindle, so does the population

Kevin Maramakami met his wife Marikita when they both scratched out a living in Cebu. They would make ends meet by diving to the bottom of the bay in search of coins thrown over the side of arriving and departing passenger ships. Known as Badjao, or sea gypsies, this couple came together after leaving their [...]

Philippine peace mediator honored

The World Methodist Council last week honored the work of a peace activist in Mindanao for more than two decades of work as a mediator in the restive southern island. Joy Balazo was honored during a ceremony at the Wesley Mission in Sydney, Australia, on Thursday, said a statement from Australia’s Foreign Affairs office. Balazo [...]

Bishops’ help sought in peace building

The government is appealing to Catholic bishops for help to allay fears that a new Moro region in Mindanao will disenfranchise Christians. “We need the Church’s support to achieve this goal,” said Miriam Coronel Ferrer, head of the government peace panel with Moro rebels, during a recent dialogue with Church leaders. She acknowledged concerns expressed [...]

Creation of new Muslim region moves forward

President Benigno Aquino ordered the creation of transition commission that will draft the basic laws of a new Muslim region in Mindanao. Teresita Quintos Deles, Aquino’s adviser on the peace process, said the order “affirms the president’s resolve to move forward the peace process… as a strategic initiative for political stability and economic development.” She [...]

PHL highest Catholic official assures help to victims of political killings, rights abuses in Mindanao

The country’s highest official of the Catholic church, Cardinal Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, expressed that he will help human rights victims of Mindanao and will bring the matter to President Aquino. In a dialogue with Manilakbayan (Journey to Manila) delegates on Saturday, Tagle said, “He (the President) asked me once to just tell him what [...]

Benedictine nuns welcome victims of rights violations from Mindanao

Participants of Manilakbayan visited the Benedictine nuns for a dialogue on their plight and sufferings from the hands of multinational corporations and the military in Mindanao. “Impunity continues to permeate in Mindanao. One proof is the slow-paced trial of the Ampatuan massacre. But it is not limited to that,” Jean Marie Serraris, one of the [...]

Two petitions filed vs. peace agreement

Two petitions were filed yesterday at the Supreme Court assailing the constitutionality of a framework agreement that will create a Bangsamoro political entity. The agreement was signed by government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front last October 15. The petitions were filed by perennial presidential candidate Elly Pamatong and a group calling itself the International [...]

Thousands flee typhoon in Mindanao

Thousands of people fled their homes as Typhoon Bopha made landfall in the southern Philippines today. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported that as of this morning total, local time, 8,283 families or 41,608 individuals in Eastern Visayas, Northern Mindanao, Davao, and Caraga regions had fled to evacuation centers. Schools and businesses [...]

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