Si Robredo at ang kampanya kontra droga

Philippine Vice President Leni Robredo

“Save the user. Jail the user.” Ilang dekada ring ito ang alam kong slogan ng kampanya ng gobyerno laban sa droga. Sa pag-upo ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte, tila “Obosen!” at “Kill, kill, kill!” ang pumalit sa slogan na ito.

Sa ilalim ng rehimeng Duterte, naging sunod-sunod ang pagpatay sa mga pinaghihinalaang adik at pusher. Kadalasang dahilan ng mga pulis, “nanlaban” daw ang mga suspek. Suportado naman sila ng pangulo. Pero hindi lang mga pinaghihinalaang sangkot sa droga ang naging biktima ng patayan. Pati mga inosente, nadamay sa madugong giyera kontra droga ni Duterte.

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VegFest Pilipinas 2019

This year’s two-day VegFest Pilipinas — a festival that showcases products from local independent vegan businesses — begins tomorrow at the BGC Arts Center in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.

In its fourth year, VegFest Pilipinas will host 150 all-vegan vendors who will be offering their dishes and wares from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.

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59 groups from 18 countries, 3 global regions demand #FreeNegros57

Free Negros 57

In a strong show of force, 59 global, regional, and national organizations from across Asia-Pacific, Africa, and Europe issued a joint statement demanding the immediate release of the 57 peasant leaders and human rights advocates, including minors, arrested by local authorities in Negros Occidental (around 710 kilometers south of Manila) in the central Philippines last October 31.

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I-Witness: 20 years of life-changing documentaries

Atom Araullo, Kara David, Sandra Aguinaldo, Howie Severino

I-Witness premiered on Philippine television at the turn of the millennium. It was a time of uncertainty in a changing world, and GMA News and Public Affairs saw the need to tell stories of truth through the documentary format. Twenty years since, I-Witness has become one of the leading TV documentary programs in the country, with over 1,000 life-changing stories that have pursued the truth about Filipino values, culture, current events, and the human condition.

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‘Astronomical’

Imee Marcos and Rodrigo Duterte

Pinagdiskitahan kamakailan ni Imee Marcos, bagong senadora at anak ng yumaong diktador na si Ferdinand Marcos, ang mga convenience store dahil sa aniya’y “astronomical” na presyo ng mga paninda sa mga ito.

Dapat daw imonitor ng Department of Trade and Industry ang mga tindahang ito na bukas 24 oras, ayon pa kay Marcos.

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Just Add 8

PLDT phone

Starting October 6, 2019, all landline numbers with area code 02 will become 8 digits.

In compliance with the directive of the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) in its memorandum no. 10-10-2017, all telecom providers in the Greater Metro Manila area will migrate all existing 7-digit landline numbers to 8-digit telephone numbers.

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Buhay-pasahero

Kapit lang, Kuya!

Habang isinusulat ito, masakit ang kaliwang balikat ko. Gaya nang dati, nakipagsapalaran na naman kasi ako sa MRT kaninang umaga. Mga tatlong tren muna ang dumaan bago ko naipagsiksikan ang sarili ko sa punong-punong bagon. Sumabit sa katawan ng ibang tao ang maliit na bag may lamang payong at powerbank at nahila nito nang todo ang balikat ko.

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Church people stand with Mary Jane: Let her testify!

Let Mary Jane Testify

I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.  (Isaiah 43:19)

In the weeks before the scheduled execution of Mary Jane Veloso in April of 2015, Church people came to understand that a poor Filipina mother of two small boys had been duped into unknowingly carrying a suitcase lined with heroin. As the data unfolded, many were flabbergasted at all of the unfortunate twists, complicated with both major and minor injustices and indifference. Mary Jane Veloso’s experiences reveal that she — like many hopeful migrant workers — was made vulnerable to being trafficked, due to joblessness and inadequate opportunities to provide for her children.

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