NTF-ELCAC’s “persona non grata” resolutions are meaningless
For more than three years now, the military, police and Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) have campaigned to have local government units (LGUs) to secure resolutions declaring the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the New People’s Army (NPA) as “persona non grata.” Yesterday, the DILG bragged that 84% of all 1,715 LGUs have already signed such resolutions.
Communist Party of the Philippines
Peace talks
Incidents/Operations
Four alleged members of “NPA hit squad” were summarily executed
Four members of a so-called “NPA hit squad” who died during a raid in Barangay Macabling, Sta. Rosa, Laguna on May 21 were not killed in a “shootout” contrary to the claims of the police and the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).
Communist Party of the Philippines
70 disgruntled NPA Militias surrender to Army in Iloilo
70 NPA Militias from the province of Iloilo denounced communist terrorist ideology and atrocities, and formalized return to the fold of the law in a simple ceremony held at Camp Monteclaro, Barangay Igtuba, Miagao, Iloilo on May 24, 2021.
Kalinaw News
11 Communist NPA, 3 supporters included in the new batch of surrenderors in Masbate
Eleven Communist NPA members and three supporters with their 14 low-powered firearms yielded to the combined elements of the 903rd Infantry Brigade (903Bde), 2nd Infantry Battalion (2IB), and PNP in Barangay San Antonio, Palanas, Masbate on May 23, 2021.
Kalinaw News
5 Killed, 1 Wounded during Army-NPA Clash in Bilar, Bohol
5 NPAs including 1 female member were killed while high-powered firearms were seized during an encounter between 47IB troopers against eleven (11) NPA rebels in Sitio Langub, Brgy Cabacnitan, Bilar, Bohol on Tuesday morning, May 25, 2021.\
Kalinaw News | Philippine News Agency
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MARAWI
Marawi public infra rehabilitation now 65% done, task force reports
THE NATIONAL task force handling the restoration of war-ravaged Marawi City in the southern Philippines said reconstruction of public infrastructure is now 65% complete and on track for completion before President Rodrigo R. Duterte steps down in 2022.
Business World
Ebrahim: ‘Hindi iiwan ng Bangsamoro Government ang IDPS ng Marawi’
“Hindi iiwan ng Bangsamoro Government ang IDPs (internally displaced persons) ng Marawi. Laging nandito ang Bangsamoro para sa kapwa Bangsamoro.” This is the commitment of the Bangsamoro Government according to Chief Minister Ahod Ebrahim’s message on the 4th year commemoration of Marawi Siege on Sunday, May 23.
Bangsamoro Government
Local, foreign media visit rehabilitated sites in Marawi
Members of the international and local media have witnessed the significant progress of the government’s rehabilitation program for the conflict-affected city of Marawi, during the Marawi City Week of Peace Reporting Event.
Philippine News Agency
PCOO brings local, int’l media to rehabilitated sites in Marawi
Members of international and local media witnessed the significant progress of the government’s rehabilitation program for the conflict-affected city of Marawi, during the Marawi City Week of Peace Reporting Event.
PTV
AFP chief reaffirms commitment to lasting peace and progress in Marawi
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Gen. Cirilito Sobejana assured that the military will continuously support the pursuit of lasting peace and progress in Marawi during the culmination program of Marawi Week of Peace on May 23.
PTV
Rebuilding Philippines' Marawi four years after siege
Reconstruction is underway in the Philippine city of Marawi, which was heavily damaged in a conflict with Islamic militants four years ago.
Yahoo News
[Editorial] Marawi still ‘rising from the ashes’
Four years after the bloody siege of Marawi City, the government has completed 60 percent of the rehabilitation of the city where the Islamic State-linked Maute group engaged Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) troopers in a five-month long warfare that began on May 23, 2017. This was the most recent assessment made by Task Force Bangon Marawi headed by the Secretary of the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD).
Manila Bulletin
SOUTHEAST ASIA AND THE WORLD
'Ideologically-motivated' extremism on rise for ASIO: Mike Burgess
Australia's domestic spy agency has warned ideologically-motivated extremism, including right-wing terrorism, is now approaching nearly half the organisation's investigations
Canberra Times
Limitations of electoral rights, extremism, and terrorism: what is wrong with this bill?
In early May, a group of Russian deputies submitted to the State Duma a new package of repressive amendments, including a bill that would limit the right to be elected for individuals connected to extremist or terrorist organizations. This initiative has already caused a great stir among legal scholars. Elena Lukyanova, doctor of law and professor of the Free University, explains why the bill contradicts the Russian Constitution and other legislative acts.
Insitutte of Modern Russia
Russia threatens to slow down Google for failing to delete prohibited content, issues small fine
A Russian court on Tuesday said it had fined Google 6 million rubles ($81,600) for failing to delete content that Moscow deems illegal, according to Reuters.
CNBC
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BARMM
BARMM ramps up military, police partnership over security threats
Bangsamoro region's interior and local government Minister Atty. Naguib Sinarimbo stated in a press briefing on Monday that Bangsamoro Government will further strengthen its cooperation with the Philippine National Police (PNP) and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to combat sporadic attacks in Maguindanao.
NDBC News
Bangsamoro leaders, security sector vow to uphold peace, security in BARMM thru peace summit
Bangsamoro Government leaders, together with security sector and other development partners, gathered Monday, May 24, to tackle the existing armed conflicts in certain areas of the region and its immediate resolution.
NDBC News
Bills resetting the 1st regular elections in BARMM
The leadership of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) asked Congress to postpone the first regular elections to select the members of the regional parliament and extend the transition period of the peace process by another three years.
Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism
Mindanao peace advocates mourn loss of Father Mercado
Colleagues and fellow peace advocates in Mindanao are now mourning the death of Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) priest Eliseo Mercado Jr., one of the known prime movers of the inter-religious dialogue initiatives and peace movements in the region.
Manila Bulletin
MAGUINDANAO AND COTABATO CITY
Maguindanao mayors unite versus local ISIS-inspired group
Mayors have promised to crack the whip on the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters that has enclaves in this province where recruits are trained on fabrication of improvised explosive devices
NDBC News
Life hard in Datu Paglas after plantation’s closure
At least 2,000 workers here lost their jobs when a banana plantation ceased operations almost two years ago, prompting local officials to warn that Islamic State (IS)-linked militants could exploit the situation as fertile ground for recruitment.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
LANAO PROVINCES
Smuggled cigarettes seized by JTF Central troops in Lanao del Sur
Some ten (10) boxes of smuggled cigarettes amounting to P150, 000 were confiscated by 5th Marine Company (MBLT-5) of the 1st Marine Brigade under Joint Task Force Central in Malabang, Lanao del Sur on May 23, 2021.
Kalinaw News
Peace activist Aga Khan Sharief aka ‘Bin Laden’ dies in Marawi hospital
Peace activist and Meranaw leader Aga Khan Sharief, more popularly known in Marawi and Lanao del Sur as “Bin Laden” because of his resemblance to Osama, succumbed to a lingering illness early Tuesday morning.
MindaNews
BASILAN
Peace advocates work hard to keep Basilan safe and secured
Another municipality in Basilan forged a pact to support the small arms and light weapons (SALW) program in Basilan. According to Western Mindanao Command Chief Lieutenant General Corleto Vinluan, Jr., military and police officers together with the local government officials of Tabuan Lasa signed this morning, May 25, an agreement to support the implementation of the SALW program in the said municipality.
Kalinaw News | Kalinaw News
SULU
TAWI-TAWI
Military engineers facilitate installation of power lines in Tawi-Tawi
The Western Mindanao Command (WestMinCom) through the 54th Engineer Brigade (54EBde) facilitated the ongoing installation of distribution line extensions (DX) in Lupa Pula, Mapun, Tawi-Tawi. WestMinCom Commander Lt. Gen. Corleto Vinluan, Jr., together with 54EBde Commander Brig. Gen. Anthony Cacayuran, checked on the progress of the said project on May 24, 2021.
Kalinaw News
Turtle Islands, Tawi-Tawi’s Farthest Town, Now Online
President Rodrigo Duterte made history as the first chief executive of the country to directly address the people of Turtle Islands municipality, the farthest town of the province of Tawi-Tawi.
Page One
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DRUGS
Operations/ Incidents
Recovery and Rehabilitation
ILLICIT FIREARMS, EXPLOSIVES, AND AMMUNITION
CROSS-BORDER TRADING/ SMUGGLING/ COUNTERFEIT GOODS
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
KIDNAPPING/ ABDUCTION
Alleged kidnapper falls in Zamboanga City
An alleged kidnapper was arrested by a combined force of police and soldiers in Curuan village here on Monday (May 24).
Philippine Daily Inquirer
ILLEGAL GAMBLING
ILLICIT FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS/ EXTORTION
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Press Freedom/ Freedom of expression
Mindanao in Pictures: 2001 to 2021 (Part 1 of 10)
It has been exactly 20 years since our first dispatch. Along with our stories, we were also busy taking pictures of Mindanao’s major events.
MindaNews
Mindanao in Pictures: 2001 to 2021 (Part 2 of 10)
Mindanews
Martial Law
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COVID-19
Cases
COVID-19 deaths in the Philippines surpass the 20,000-mark
COVID-19 deaths in the country breached the 20,000-mark on Tuesday with the demise of 36 more patients due to various complications from the severe respiratory disease.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Department of Health
IATF/NTF COVID-19
Entry of Filipinos from Sabah suspended
The National Task Force Against Covid-19 has temporarily suspended the entry of Filipino deportees following a request by the local government due to the high number of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases here.
Manila Times
Regions
Luzon including NCR
Human error causes QC vax registration mix-up
The Quezon City government on Tuesday apologized for reported discrepancies in the recording of vaccine administration in one vaccination site and assured its constituents that they are working to reconcile the disparity.
Philippine News Agency
Visayas
No ECQ for Negros Oriental: DOH-7 chief
The director of the Department of Health (DOH) in Region 7 (Central Visayas) is not recommending Negros Oriental to be placed under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) amid the continuing surge of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases in the province.
Philippine News Agency
Mindanao
29 quarantine control points set up in GenSan
Police authorities have established at least 29 quarantine control points in parts of the city in line with the implementation of the stricter general community quarantine (GCQ) starting Tuesday.
MindaNews
Gensan residents hit abrupt GCQ implementation
Close to lunch time on Tuesday, pedicab driver Bobby Kegani was still waiting for passengers along what used to be a busy intersection in Barangay Calumpang, this city but only a few came.
MindaNews
100% of COVID ICU beds in Davao City’s SPMC full due to surge
The COVID-19 beds of the state-owned Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC) are either fully occupied or nearly all occupied due to a surge in cases.
MindaNews
World
WHO coronavirus investigators pinpoint overlooked Chinese data for further study, source says
Previously overlooked Chinese data on extensive screening of animals for coronavirus around the time the pandemic erupted is among several areas identified for further study by World Health Organization (WHO) scientists investigating the origins of COVID-19, a source close to the team told CNN.
CNN
Taiwan’s exclusion from World Health Assembly ‘a loss for the world’ – Tsai
Taiwan’s continuous exclusion from several international bodies and meetings like the recent World Health Assembly (WHA) is a loss for the whole world amid the COVID-19 crisis, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-Wen said on Tuesday in her official Twitter account.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Diplomatic, Development and Private Sector
COVID-19 insurance payouts hit nearly P4 billion last year
INSURANCE PAYOUTS related to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have reached P3.89 billion as of end-2020, a survey conducted by the Insurance Commission (IC) showed.
Business World
Incidents and Violations
Editorial, Analysis, Opinion and Features
Covid made the Philippines' hunger crisis worse. So why does hardly anyone want a vaccine?
With nine children and one grandchild, life was hard for Mona Liza Vito and her family even before the pandemic. Vito used to work long hours peeling sacks of garlic, making about $2 a day, while her husband worked as a day laborer in construction. But now their work has dried up, a casualty of an economic downturn in the Philippines after multiple coronavirus lockdowns. And trying to feed so many mouths has become a daily struggle for survival.
CNN
OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
Duterte signs order improving gov’t humanitarian response operations
PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte has signed an order to accelerate and harmonize the national government’s humanitarian response and social service operations during disasters and emergencies.
Business World
Palace denies involvement in 'Duterte Parin Movement'
Malacañang on Tuesday said it had no involvement in the renewed drive pushing Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio to run for president in 2022.
Manila Times
Let a thousand opposition presidentiables run—Palace
Malacañang on Tuesday challenged the opposition to field a thousand candidates against whoever will be the administration’s standard bearer in the 2022 presidential elections.
Manila Standard
OFFICE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT
Robredo: Opposition should have lone bet for 2022 polls
For Vice President Leni Robredo, the opposition should field only one presidential candidate in next year's elections.
CNN Philippines
To combat populism, recognize why such an idea emerged – Robredo
Vice President Leni Robredo has admitted that one way to push back against the rise of populism in the Philippines and across the globe is to understand and acknowledge why such an ideology arose in the first place.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Robredo studying presidential bid
Vice President Maria Leonor "Leni" Robredo said she was studying the "feasibility" of running for president in 2022. She admitted that making a decision is not easy but stressed that the opposition, which "suffered really badly after the 2016 elections," should come out with a single candidate.
Manila Times
Robredo to bring COVID-19 response projects to Palawan
Vice President Leni Robredo on Tuesday said her office will be bringing their COVID-19 response projects to Puerto Princesa City in Palawan.
ABS-CBN News
AUDIT, GRAFT, AND CORRUPTION
BUDGET, FINANCE, and TAXATION
DBM to agencies: Cough up 2020 savings, prioritize COVID-19 booster shots in 2022 spending bids
With a budget crunch due to recession-battered revenue collection yet bigger expenses to fight COVID-19, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has ordered agencies to not only look for savings from last year’s appropriations but also prioritize pandemic response in their 2022 spending proposals.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
April budget deficit narrowed to P44.4B as mandatory tax deadline boosted revenue take
Since the government did not extend the mandatory April 15 income tax-filing and payment deadline this year unlike last year, its budget deficit narrowed by 83.8 percent year-on-year to P44.4 billion in April as revenues climbed by more than half.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Cavite, Batangas, Nueva Ecija LGUs lead 72% spike in requests for BSP loan approvals
The provinces of Cavite, Batangas, and Nueva Ecija led the surge in local government units seeking the green light from the central bank to take on more loans during the second half of last year, according to the monetary regulator.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
BSP seeks to mitigate risk from banks’ shift to ‘sustainable finance’
The central bank wants financial institutions to be better prepared for the risks associated with shifting more credit “green” borrowers and away from those engaged in more traditional carbon-heavy economic activities.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
BUSINESS, ECONOMY AND INVESTMENT
PH’s first quartz production facility in Alviera Pampanga signals uptrend in region’s economy
Central Luzon has emerged to become one of the Philippines’ most vibrant growth epicenter. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the region has transformed into a dynamic agro-industrial corridor supported by booming infrastructure investment.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Oxford Economics: Household consumption in PH to recover slower than most Asian peers
Amid high unemployment and smaller savings due to the harder times wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic, consumption among Filipino households has been projected by UK-based think tank Oxford Economics to grow among the slowest in Asia this year.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
DENR: Creation of Minahang Bayan sites to generate jobs in countryside
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is fast-tracking the establishment of Minahang Bayan areas all over the country amid the growing number of unemployed Filipinos.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
BUILD, BUILD, BUILD and PUBLIC WORKS
CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
DISASTER AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
DEFENSE AND SECURITY
Armed Forces of the Philippines
EastMinCom is Best Performing Unified Command in Combat, Non-military Ops – AFP Chief
Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Gen. Cirilito Sobejana commended the Eastern Mindanao Command (EastMinCom) for sustaining its standing as the best Unified Command in terms of accomplishments in both combat and non-military operations.
Kalinaw News
Philippine National Police
EDUCATION
CHED deserves strongest rebuke for pushing “flexible learning” as new norm
Filipino students and youth are fully justified when they raised a howl of protest against the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) that the school system will not return to face-to-face classes
Communist Party of the Philippines
INFORMATION, COMMUNICATION AND TECHNOLOGY
ELECTION RELATED
Potential bets start advertising on Facebook as 2022 campaign shifts to social media
Potential candidates have started advertising on Facebook more than a year before the May 2022 elections, spending several thousand to a few million pesos since August 2020, data from the social media platform showed.
Kodao Productons
ENVIRONMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCES
LABOR
Workers complain of ‘slave-like’ labor in Isabela’s sugar cane fields
It is not only in the sugar cane fields of Negros and Panay islands that slave-like labor exists, a farmers’ group revealed. The Unyon ng Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (UMA) said it exists as well in two of Northern Philippines’ biggest provinces: Isabela and Cagayan.
Kodao Productons
LEGISLATIVE
Senate of the Philippines
Zubiri appeals for more vaccines to regions as COVID-19 cases hike in N. Mindanao
Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri on Tuesday asked the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Disease (IATF) to deliver more vaccines to the regions as he expressed concern over the uptick of COVID-19 cases in Northern Mindanao.
GMA News
House of Representatives
LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS (LGUs)
DILG urges LGUs to avail of P13B fund for infra, other projects until June 30
The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) reminds local government units (LGUs) that they only have until June 30 to avail of funds for their respective infrastructure projects.
UNTV
LGUs get lion’s share of jabs from AstraZeneca via COVAX
Local government units have received the lion’s share of AstraZeneca vaccines against the coronavirus, as the United Nations pledged more to come under the COVAX facility, the international partnership established to ensure equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines around the world.
Manila Standard
OFFICIAL DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE
FOREIGN RELATIONS
West Philippine Sea
[Editorial] Illegal fishing ban
Hundreds of Chinese maritime militia ships are still scattered across the West Philippine Sea (WPS), and yet here comes another China intrusion — its annual “fishing ban” in the South China Sea that threatens areas within the Philippine exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
Philippine Daily Inquirer
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE
Rice import ban during harvest deceptive, won’t protect PH farmers
The Federation of Free Farmers (FFF) views Malacanang’s assurance that rice imports would be banned during harvest time as “deceptive” and “legally untenable.”
Philippine Daily Inquirer
HOUSING and SETTLEMENT
POVERTY
SOCIAL WELFARE AND DEVELOPMENT
TRANSPORTATION
TOURISM
WATER and ENERGY
Philippines' AboitizPower plans 74-MW solar power plant
Philippine power company Aboitiz Power Corp (PSE:AP) plans to build a 74-MW solar power plant in Pangasinan province on Luzon island.
Renewables Now
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