KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Almost 300 tons of oil spilled into Malaysian and Singaporean waters after two container ships collided in a Malaysian port, officials said Wednesday, January 4.    

"The oil spill has been contained," a local maritime official told the Agence France-Presse after Tuesday's accident in the busy port of Pasir Gudang in Malaysia's southern state of Johor bordering Singapore.

The Singapore-registered MT Wan Hai 301 collided with the Gibraltar-flagged MT APL Denver.

A preliminary investigation revealed the APL Denver was berthing when it was hit on its starboard side by Wan Hai 301, the official said.

The Marine and Port Authority of Singapore said 12 anti-pollution ships, including four from Malaysia, were deployed to clean up the oil.

It said the spill of 300 tonnes of oil was caused by damage to the fuel tank of the APL Denver. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Two Russian Navy warships – anti-submarine ship Admiral Tributs and sea tanker Boris Butoma docked at the South Harbor in Manila on January 3 for a 4-day goodwill visit. (READ: Russian warships to visit Manila)

Paterno Esmaquel files this video blog: 

PATERNO ESMAQUEL, REPORTING: Nasa likod natin ngayon 'yung Russian vessel na Admiral Tributs. Nakadaong ito sa Pilipinas mula January 2 hanggang January 7. Kanina nag-press con dito si Russian Ambassador to the Philippines Igor Khovaev. Sinabi ni Ambassador Khovaev na pagpapakita raw ito ng magandang relasyon ng Pilipinas at Russia. 

(Behind us is the Russian vessel Admiral Tributs. It is docked in the Philippines from January 2 to January 7. A while ago, Russian Ambassador to the Philippines Igor Khovaev held a press conference here. Ambassador Khovaev says the vessel shows the good relations between the Philippines and Russia.)

Binalaan din ni Ambassador Khovaev 'yung mga tinatawag niyang third party countries na 'wag nang makialam sa gumagandang relasyon ng Pilipinas at Russia.

(Ambassador Khovaev also warns so-called third-party countries not to interfere in the improving relations between the Philippines and Russia.)

IGOR KHOVAEV, RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE PHILIPPINES: We will not tolerate any attempt of any third country to interfere into the relations of our two sovereign states, the Philippines and Russia. We don’t interfere into your relations with your traditional partners, and your traditional partners should respect the interests of the Philippines and Russia. 

Sabi rin ni Ambassador Khovaev, magiging isang malaking karangalan sa Russia kung bibisitahin ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte ang dalawang Russian vessels na nakadaong ngayon sa Maynila.

(Ambassador Khovaev says it will be a big honor for Russia if President Rodrigo Duterte visits the two Russian vessels now docked in Manila.)

Paterno Esmaquel, Rappler, Manila. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Russian Ambassador to the Philippines Igor Khovaev chastised Filipino journalists on Wednesday, January 4, for supposedly failing to report on the visit of two Russian vessels to the Philippines. 

Fact-checking by Rappler showed, however, that the Philippines' 3 biggest newspapers reported about Russian anti-submarine ship Admiral Tributs and sea tanker Boris Butoma.

Rappler also published stories on these Russian vessels.

Russia sent Admiral Tributs and Boris Butoma to Manila for a goodwill visit from Monday to Saturday, January 2 to 7.

Despite local media reports on the Russian goodwill visit, Khovaev complained in a news conference on Wednesday,  "Today I have read all local newspapers, and I was very surprised."

Khovaev pointed out that only Associated Press (AP) and Reuters wrote about the visit of the two Russian vessels to the Philippines.  

"No local publication, no local journalist, wrote anything about this port call by a detachment of Russian vessels. I was really surprised," the Russian ambassador said. 

"I don't understand why other foreign information agencies…cover these friendly visits, but local mass media keep silent. In my humble view, it looks a bit strange," he said.

Eventually, Filipino reporters refuted Khovaev statements on the spot, telling him face to face that the Russian vessels have been widely reported. "Even on social media," a reporter said.

A television journalist even handed his smartphone to Khovaev to show local reports about the goodwill visit.

Holding the journalist's smartphone, Khovaev said he was actually referring to newspapers – the Philippine Daily Inquirer, the Philippine Star, and the Manila Bulletin. "They only republished the articles of the Associated Press and Reuters," the ambassador said.

Inquirer, Star, Bulletin on Russian vessels

Rappler checked the editions of the Philippines' 3 biggest newspapers on Wednesday, and found that all 3 carried items that mentioned the Russian vessels.

The Philippine Daily Inquirer published the story, "Russia Wants Joint 'War Games' with PH Navy," written by Inquirer reporter Cynthia Balana, with reports from AP and Reuters. (In journalism lingo, this means the story was written by Balana with inputs from wire agencies AP and Reuters.)

The Inquirer story said in the second paragraph that "the Admiral Tributs, an anti-submarine vessel, and a sea tanker, the Boris Butoma, arrived in Manila on Tuesday for a 4-day goodwill visit."

The Philippine Star also published the story, "Russia Eyes Maritime Exercises with PHL vs Terrorism,' written by Star reporter Jaime Laude, with reports from Reuters.

The Star article said in the 3rd paragraph that "Russian anti-submarine vessel Admiral Tributs and sea tanker Boris Butoma arrived late on Tuesday for a 4-day goodwill visit." 

Meanwhile, the Manila Bulletin printed the photo of Russian and Philippine contingents showing Admiral Tributs and Boris Butoma to the media.

Russian envoy hits AP, too

While criticizing Philippine media, Khovaev added: "Unfortunately…the coverage by the Associated Press is not really objective. It's not really unbiased."

He pointed out that the AP report quoted a Russian rear admiral as saying that Filipinos "can choose to cooperate with the United States of America or cooperate with Russia."

"But it's not true at all. It's not true. So at least diplomatically speaking, this phrase was taken out of context. In my humble view, it's an example of dishonest journalist," he said.

"So I'm kindly asking you, our Filipino partners and friends, please don't mislead the public. Please refrain from any misinterpretation," the diplomat added. 

Khovaev said: "This visit by a detachment of Russian vessels has only one message – a message of partnership and friendship, and nothing else.

"We have nothing to hide from you. We don't have any hidden intention. We have no hidden agenda," he said as President Rodrigo Duterte moves closer to Russia and China, and away from its traditional partner, America. (READ: Russia warns 'traditional' partners: Don't interfere) – Rappler.com

BEIJING, China – A man armed with a kitchen knife stabbed 11 children at a kindergarten in southern China on Wednesday, January 4, seriously wounding 3, state media reported, the latest such attack in recent years.

The man entered the school in the southern Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region mid-afternoon, claiming he was there to pick up his son, the official Xinhua news agency quoted local police as saying. 

The attacker allegedly climbed a wall to enter the facility, broadcaster CCTV said on social media, adding that an investigation was underway. 

Three children were seriously injured and have been sent to hospital for treatment according to Xinhua. The man is in police custody.

Knife attacks are not uncommon in China.

In February, a knife-wielding assailant wounded 10 children in Haikou, in the southern island province of Hainan, before committing suicide.

In 2014 state media reported that a man stabbed 3 children and a teacher to death and wounded several others in a rampage at a primary school that refused to enroll his daughter.

That followed a March 2013 incident in which a man killed two relatives and then slashed 11 people, including 6 children, outside a school in China's commercial hub Shanghai.

The events have forced authorities to increase security around schools and led to calls for more research into the root causes of such acts.

Violent crime has been on the rise in China in recent decades as the nation's economy has boomed and the gap between rich and poor has expanded rapidly. – Rappler.com

NEW YORK, USA – A commuter train derailed on Wednesday, January 4, at a station in Brooklyn and injured nearly 80 people, officials said, setting off a panic during the morning rush.

The Long Island Rail Road train crashed around 8:30 am (1330 GMT) at Atlantic Terminal in the heart of the New York borough.

"76 non life-threatening injuries reported at scene of LIRR train derailment, Atlantic Terminal Brooklyn," the New York Fire Department said in a tweet.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">76 non life-threatening injuries reported at scene of LIRR train derailment, Atlantic Terminal Brooklyn <a href="https://t.co/rFcimgfK2C">pic.twitter.com/rFcimgfK2C</a></p>&mdash; FDNY (@FDNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/FDNY/status/816656593890766848">January 4, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Passengers rushed out as smoke filled the tunnel. The impact bent the train's doors and smashed windows.

Some of the injured were brought out on stretchers.

Commuter Aaron Neufeld said on Twitter that the crash was "crazy," but added, "Seems only a few people are lightly injured."

New York's emergency notification system warned of traffic and transit delays and road closures in the area.

In September, a train derailed during rush hour as it entered the station in Hoboken, New Jersey, near New York. One person died and 114 were injured.

An investigation into that incident, in which the train entered the station at unusually high speed, is ongoing. – Rappler.com

WASHINGTON DC, USA – A reported pause in global warming between 1998 and 2014 was false, according to US-British research published Wednesday, January 4, that confirmed the findings of a controversial US study on ocean warming.

Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of York, England, corroborated the results of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) research paper in 2015.

Their findings were reported in the US journal Science Advances.

The NOAA paper had shown ocean buoys now used to measure water temperatures tend to report slightly cooler temperatures than older ship-based systems.

The switch to buoy measurements had hidden some of the real-world warming during the 1998-2014 period, the NOAA scientists concluded.

The NOAA paper had drawn outrage from some scientists who insisted there had been a "global warming hiatus" and from critics who consider global warming a hoax.

The US House of Representatives, controlled by the Republican Party, had even demanded the NOAA scientists provide lawmakers with their email exchanges about the research.

The US government agency agreed to transmit data and respond to scientific questions but refused to hand over the emails of the study's authors, a decision supported by scientists worried about political interference.

"Our results mean that essentially NOAA got it right, that they were not cooking the books," said Zeke Hausfather, a graduate student in UC Berkeley's Energy and Resources Group and lead author of the new study.

'Hiatus' debunked

The International Panel on Climate Change, in a report published in September 2013, said the average global warming between 1951 and 2012 had been 0.12 degrees Celsius (0.22 degrees Fahrenheit) per decade.

But between 1998 and 2012, warming had amounted to only 0.07 degrees Celsius per decade, indicating a 'global warming hiatus.'

The 2015 NOAA analysis, which was adjusted to correct for the "cold bias" of buoy measurements, found there was no detectable slowdown in ocean warming over the previous 15 years.

Reporting in the journal Science, the NOAA scientists said the oceans has actually warmed 0.12 degrees Celsius per decade since 2000, nearly twice as fast as the earlier estimates of 0.07 degrees Celsius per decade.

That brought the rate of ocean temperature rise in line with estimates for the previous 30 years, between 1970 and 1999.

The new study uses independent data from satellites and Argo floats, a worldwide satellite-based location and data collection system, as well as from buoys.

The information gathered confirmed the NOAA results in 2015 were correct, the scientists said.

"We were initially skeptical of the NOAA result, because it showed faster warming than a previous updated record from the UK Met Office," said Kevin Cowtan of the University of York.

"So we set out to test it for ourselves, using different methods and different data. We now think NOAA got it right, and a new dataset from the Japan Meteorological Agency also agrees," he said. – Rappler.com

BANGALORE, India – There is "credible" evidence that gangs of men sexually assaulted women at a New Year's Eve celebration in Bangalore, Indian police said Wednesday, January 4, adding they have filed a criminal case over the incident.

Praveen Sood, the police commissioner of Bangalore city, said an inquiry had been set up into allegations women attending the Saturday night (January 1) celebrations were chased, groped, molested and robbed.

The announcement followed a public outcry over comments by a local minister blaming the attacks in the southern city – an IT hub considered relatively safe for women – on "western dress".

"We did not waste any time," Sood told reporters, saying police had registered a criminal case without waiting for a complainant. 

"The police teams are working, we are sure we will catch the culprits." 

Additional police commissioner Hemant Nimbalkar told Agence France-Presse the case had been filed against unnamed persons for sexual harassment, illegal confinement and forcefully attempting to disrobe.

Police officers have been sifting through footage from at least 45 CCTV cameras installed in the city centre where hundreds of revelers had gathered to celebrate the new year.

India has been shamed in the past by shocking levels of sexual assault against women, notably in December 2012 when a student was gang-raped on a bus in New Delhi and later died of her injuries.

Indians took to social media to condemn the latest incident, dubbed "night of horror".

"#bangaloremolestation only shows how casual it is to molest women" tweeted Falguni Vasavada-Oza.

"How easy it is to grope! How vulnerable is safety! How deep is (d) hierarchy."

Video footage circulated on social media showed women screaming for help.

The attacks in Bangalore have drawn comparison with last year's mass sexual assaults at New Year's celebrations in the German city of Cologne, where police were also accused of losing control. – Rappler.com

LOS ANGELES, USA – California, home to many foreigners without residence papers, is girding to fight any attempt by President-elect Donald Trump to expel them.

Trump, who takes office January 20, has vowed to deport from the country as many as 3 million immigrants with criminal records and build a wall along the border with Mexico.

But several so-called sanctuary cities in California – ones that intentionally avoid prosecuting undocumented foreigners for violations of federal immigration policy – are beginning to dig in. The state is home to 2.8 million of undocumented immigrants.

"We have all heard the insults. We have all heard the lies. And we have all heard the threats," said Anthony Rendon, speaker of the California State Assembly. He is a Democrat of Mexican origin. "If you want to get to them, you have to go through us."

During the presidential campaign, Trump vowed to cut off federal funds for sanctuary cities, of which there are an estimated 300 in the United States.

But city authorities seem to have no intention of supporting any anti-immigrant initiative by the incoming government. 

Advocates say protecting undocumented immigrants from deportation and other punishments encourages them to report crimes, enroll in school and seek healthcare.

'Come at us'

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee said after Trump won in November that "being a sanctuary city is in our DNA. San Francisco will never be anything other than a sanctuary city."

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti wants to open a $10 million fund to provide free legal assistance to undocumented foreigners, most of whom are Hispanic.

Xavier Becerra, liberal Governor Jerry Brown's nominee for state attorney general, is the son of Mexican immigrants and the first Latino to hold that post.

"If you want to take on a forward-leaning state that is prepared to defend its rights and interests, then come at us," said Becerra, whom the press bills as Brown's attack dog.

Brown has also vowed to oppose any attempt by Trump to change California policy on climate change, labor law and immigration.

The state assembly, controlled by Democrats, has approved a resolution urging Trump and the Republican-led US Congress to develop reasonable immigration policy and refrain from mass deportations.

Los Angeles police chief Charlie Beck has said that his officers would not take part in any federal operation to deport undocumented foreigners.

"We are not going to engage in law enforcement activities solely based on somebody's immigration status. We are not going to work in conjunction with Homeland Security on deportation efforts. That is not our job, nor will I make it our job," Beck said.

However, city officials are powerless to stop federal raids against undocumented immigrants.

In 2015, of 235,413 deportees (59 percent of them with a criminal record), 6,869 were caught in Los Angeles, according to data from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. 

Symbolic

Ron Gochez, of the immigrant advocacy group Union del Barrio, said he appreciates the efforts of local authorities but sees them as symbolic.

"No one can stop them. We don't want people to let their guard down because of these speeches and stop protecting themselves," Gochez said.

Gochez, an American of Salvadoran and Mexican origin, notes that 2.5 million people were deported over the 8 years that Barack Obama has been president – more than under any other US president.

"No matter who is in the White House, the immigrants are always under attack," he said.

In 2012 Obama promised comprehensive immigration reform but it got blocked in the Republican-led Congress.

Through an executive order, he approved a program to let foreigners brought into America illegally as children to study, work and get a driver's license.

Trump threatened to scrap that so-called DACA program, although after winning the election he changed his tune and said, without giving details, "We're going to work something out that's going to make people happy and proud."

With Becerra as attorney general, California could play the same role that heavily Republican Texas did during the eight years of the Obama administration, with lawsuits on issues such as health care, the environment and immigration.

In the meantime, immigrants in California are scared as they wait to see what Trump's policies will actually be.

Union del Barrio has been offering free information sessions for undocumented foreigners. The Department of Homeland Security says there are an estimated 11 million in the country, 60 percent of them Mexicans.

Anti-Trump rallies have been called for January 20 – inauguration day – in several cities including Los Angeles.

"We are not going to sit by idly, we are going to be organized," Gochez told Agence France-Presse. "If we do not defend ourselves, who will?" – Rappler.com

CARACAS, Venezuela – Venezuela's leader Nicolas Maduro on Wednesday, January 4, named a new vice president, who would take over as head of state if Maduro were removed from office this year as the opposition demands.

Maduro told a televised cabinet meeting that he had named Tareck El Aissami, 42, a powerful state governor, to the post.

El Assaimi is governor of the violent northern state of Aragua and served as interior and justice minister under Maduro's late predecessor Hugo Chavez.

"I have appointed Tareck El Aissami executive vice-president of the republic so that he can take up the role from 2017 to 2018 with his youth, experience, commitment and courage," Maduro said.

Food crisis

The center-right opposition has been demanding a popular vote on removing Maduro from office.

It blames him for an economic crisis that has prompted shortages of food and medicine and deadly riots.

The opposition has missed the deadline for sparking fresh elections by a referendum before Maduro's term ends in 2019, however.

Under constitutional rules, if Maduro lost a referendum held after January 10 this year, he could pass power to his handpicked vice-president.

El Assaimi replaces Aristobulo Isturiz, 70, who has been Maduro's vice-president since January 2016.

Opposition maneuvers

The MUD opposition coalition is scheduled to announce its latest plans when its lawmakers gather in the legislature on Thursday, January 6.

It has not said whether it will resume its drive for a referendum against Maduro.

Courts and electoral authorities in October blocked the opposition's bid to hold a recall referendum.

The MUD alleges that Maduro controls the Supreme Court and electoral board through his allies.

Maduro also has the public backing of the military high command.

Maduro vows 'recovery'

Falling world prices for Venezuela's crucial oil revenues have aggravated its economic chaos since 2014.

Maduro says the crisis is the result of a US-backed capitalist conspiracy.

Some opposition leaders sat down in late 2016 to talks with Maduro's government.

Others branded the dialogue a ploy to defuse protests against the government and its "Bolivarian revolution" launched by Chavez.

The opposition walked out of the talks last month, accusing the government of breaking its promises.

The MUD insists that Venezuelans be allowed to vote on whether Maduro should stay in power.

He has refused to allow any such vote and stuck to his defiant line on Wednesday.

He said "2017 will be the first year of the recovery and the expansion of the Bolivarian revolution on all fronts."

Security

El Assaimi, of Syrian and Lebanese ancestry, is a senior member of Maduro's United Venezuelan Socialist Party.

He was a junior security minister before holding the interior and justice post for 4 years.

He then became governor of Aragua, considered the most dangerous state in a South American country plagued by violence.

"I told him, Tareck, get to work day and night working for the security of the people," Maduro said on Wednesday.

He called on the new vice-president to wage a "fight against criminals, the fight to clean up the regional police forces, the fight against far-right terrorists." – Rappler.com

LONDON, United Kingdom – Britain on Wednesday, January 4, said it had picked a "tough negotiator" to replace its ambassador to the European Union, whose unexpected resignation rocked Brexit plans just before negotiations are due to start.

Downing Street announced that Tim Barrow, a former ambassador to Moscow who has previously served in Brussels, would take over from Ivan Rogers as Britain heads into the talks on its divorce from the EU.

Rogers, who resigned on Tuesday, January 3, sent an email to staff condemning "ill-founded arguments and muddled thinking" over Brexit and made it clear he was still in the dark over Prime Minister Theresa May's objectives.

He accepted his departure would add to the "uncertainty" following last year's historic referendum vote to leave the 28-member bloc, but said it was right to leave now.

A highly-regarded diplomat who had been due to end his 4-year stint in October, Rogers said he was quitting 9 months early so his successor could see through the whole divorce process.

A Downing Street spokesperson described his successor Barrow as a "seasoned and tough negotiator, with extensive experience of securing UK objectives in Brussels".

"He will bring his trademark energy and creativity to this job – working alongside other senior officials and ministers to make a success of Brexit," they added.

'Wise counsel'

In the June 2016 referendum, 52% voted for Britain leave the EU. May has given a March 31 deadline to formally begin exit talks. 

The appointment of the new ambassador was welcomed by Britain's Brexit minister, David Davis, who said Barrow's office will play a "crucial role" in negotiations to leave the EU.

"His knowledge of Brussels means he will be able to hit the ground running at a vital time, and steer UKRep throughout the negotiation period," Davis said, referring to Britain's mission to the EU. 

"I am confident that with his help, the UK will be able to forge a new relationship with the EU that works to the mutual benefit of both sides," Davis said.

Foreign minister Boris Johnson said Barrow had been "invaluable" and thanked him for his "relentless energy, wise counsel and steadfast commitment".

The move was lamented by Nigel Farage, a leading anti-EU figure in the Brexit campaign. 

"Good to see that the government have replaced a knighted career diplomat with.... a knighted career diplomat," he tweeted sardonically.

'Muddled thinking'

May has faced criticism for saying little about her plan for Brexit, including the crucial issue of what kind of access, if any, Britain might retain to the single market.

"We do not yet know what the government will set as negotiating objectives for the UK's relationship with the EU after exit," Rogers said in his resignation email to UKRep staff.

He urged colleagues to provide British ministers with their "unvarnished" understanding through Brexit negotiations – "even where this is uncomfortable".

"I hope you will continue to challenge ill-founded arguments and muddled thinking and that you will never be afraid to speak the truth to those in power," Rogers said.

He also criticized the British government for its short supply of "serious multilateral negotiating experience" in London and said the structure of the UK's negotiating team "needs rapid resolution".

Rogers came under fire last month for saying it could take 10 years for Britain to conclude a trade deal with the EU.

The government insisted, though, that he was only reporting back what was being said in European capitals.

The mild-mannered Rogers is widely respected in Brussels where he is known as a vastly experienced operator.

His critics say he is a europhile, but European diplomatic sources described him as being a realist.

Natasha Bertaud, a spokeswoman for the European Commission, said Wednesday it regretted "the loss of a very professional, very knowledgeable while not always easy interlocutor and diplomat".

"His resignation is not a surprise for those who work with him," one European diplomat told Agence France-Presse.

"He was very competent, but not convinced by the Brexit decision and the British government line, leading the UK into an area of dangerous uncertainty."

Triggering Article 50 will start a two-year countdown after which Britain will leave all the institutions and the single market unless alternative arrangements have been agreed. – Rappler.com

WASHINGTON DC, USA – US President Barack Obama on Wednesday, January 4, huddled with top military commanders, urging a smooth transition of power and praising their respect for civilian rule.

"We have to make sure that during this transition period that there is a seamless passing of the baton," Obama said in remarks before a closed-door meeting with his Joint Chiefs of Staff and regional combatant commanders.

Obama will leave the White House on January 20, when Donald Trump is sworn in as the 45th president of the United States.

Trump's mercurial personality and meteoric rise to become the world's most powerful man has led to a slew of questions about how he will wield that power.

Against that backdrop Obama made comments about the military's role that would be unremarkable at any other time, but today appear laden.

"My optimism about America going forward is in part because we have such an amazing military," Obama said.

The armed forces, he said, is "not only one that knows how to fight, but also knows how to uphold the values of the rule of law, professionalism, integrity and recognizes our constitutional structure and maintains strict adherence and respect for civilian authority and democratic practices in determining how we use the awesome force of the American military."

During the 2016 election campaign, the presence of several high profile retired generals at campaign events had prompted questions about the politicization of the military.

Almost 100 retired generals and other senior officers endorsed Hillary Clinton.

Retired general Mike Flynn campaigned for Trump – and has been tapped to become his national security advisor.

Trump has also nominated retired general James Mattis to become Secretary of Defense and retired general Jon Kelly to run the Department of Homeland Security.

The election-time furor prompted Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joseph Dunford – who was at the White House meeting Wednesday – to write an open letter in October about the military's role during elections.

"While we must always safeguard our professional integrity, extra vigilance is required during any political transition," he wrote.

"Our individual and collective obligation during this election season is twofold. First, we must recognize that we have one Commander in Chief, and until authority is transferred on January 20, 2017, the Joint Force must remain clearly focused on and responsive to the existing national command authority."

"Second, the Joint Force must conduct itself in such a way that the new administration has confidence that it will be served by a professional, competent, and apolitical military." – Rappler.com

WASHINGTON DC, USA – US President Barack Obama called on congressional Democrats Wednesday, January 4, to "fight" to preserve his signature health care reform, with its future in doubt as Donald Trump's incoming administration vowed a swift repeal of the controversial law.

Obamacare, the fruit of an 8-year drive to extend medical coverage to tens of millions of Americans, will come under sustained assault when Trump takes office on January 20 with Republican majorities in both chambers of Congress.

But the debate over US health care began in earnest Wednesday at the highest levels, with Obama and Vice President-elect Mike Pence making dueling visits to Capitol Hill to urge their legislative foot soldiers to gird for battle.

"I envy you for the opportunity you are going to have to engage in this fight to protect health care for the American people," the outgoing president told Senate and House Democrats, according to Senator Ed Markey, who attended the 100-minute meeting.

After a crushing election loss, Democrats may have limited options for stalling a repeal of Obamacare without significant Republican defections.

They also face criticism that Obama's reforms have led to rising insurance premiums and a string of technical problems.

But certain elements of Obamacare remain popular, notably the provisions barring companies from refusing coverage due to pre-existing conditions and allowing children to retain coverage on family plans through age 26. 

Repeal and then what?

Republican opposition in general to Obamacare is clear – "They broke the health care system," House Speaker Paul Ryan said of Obama's administration – but his party's prescription to fix it is not.

Ryan has proposed a tax credit system as a possible replacement, but the costs to government and individuals remain vague.

The White House is betting that American voters will revolt if Trump moves to strip millions of their coverage with no viable alternative – forcing the incoming president to confront the most radical reformers within his own party.

While Pence addressed the issue gingerly in Congress, he stressed that Trump would make the process of repealing the Affordable Care Act one of the administration's top priorities.

"The first order of business is to repeal and replace Obamacare," Pence told reporters in the US Capitol shortly after meeting with House Republicans.

But Trump himself cautioned against over-hasty action.

"Republicans must be careful in that the Dems own the failed ObamaCare disaster," the president-elect said on Twitter, warning Republicans to allow it to "fall of its own weight."

While urging a full repeal of the law, Ryan also said Republicans should avoid putting millions of families in further financial jeopardy by gutting Obamacare without a viable alternative in place.

"We've got to fix this by replacing it with something better. In that transition, we want to make sure we don't pull the rug out from anybody," he said.

One Republican lawmaker, Chris Collins, said the party was looking at a six-month timeline for crafting an Obamacare alternative. Other Republicans said that was far too ambitious.

Senator John McCain expressed confidence that fellow Republicans would be able to forge a replacement plan to go along with legislative repeal action.

"We'll be doing both," McCain said. "We'll know what the replacement is."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has already launched the legislative process for repeal, welcomed Pence to lunch with all Senate Republicans after his House huddle.

Pence, addressing reporters afterward, provided no details on the replacement plan being crafted by his party. 

But "the architecture of the replacement of Obamacare will come together, as it should, through the legislative process in the weeks and months ahead," he said.

'A little queasy'

Republican legislators are eager to take charge after 8 years spent fighting against Obama's policies.

But some are wary that white working-class Americans, who helped send them to office, may bear the brunt of any reforms.

Dismantling Obamacare could also have knock-on effects for funding health care for retirees, a group essential to the Republican Party's survival.

In these two issues, Democrats see pressure points they hope to exploit in defense of Obama's plan.

"It's not surprising to me that there are some Republicans who are now a little queasy about the prospect of the impact that repealing Obamacare would have on their own supporters," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest.

"We know there are people all across the country who benefit from this law, who are protected by this law, whose lives have been saved by this law." 

Democratic leaders voiced support for a stiff defense of the Affordable Care Act in the face of Republican attacks.

"Instead of working to further ensure affordable care for all Americans, they seek to rip health care away from millions of Americans, creating chaos in our entire economy," charged Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer. – Rappler.com

PARIS, France – A mysterious type of radio wave from deep space, discovered only a decade ago, has been traced to a precise source for the first time, astronomers said Wednesday, January 4.

So-called fast radio bursts (FRBs) picked up in 2016 by a telescope in New Mexico likely emanated from a dwarf galaxy some 3 billion light years from Earth, the scientists reported in the journal Nature.

FRBs flash only for an micro-instant, and can emit as much energy in a millisecond as the Sun does in 10,000 years.  

Exactly what causes these high-energy surges of long waves at the far end of the electromagnetic spectrum remains the subject of intense debate.  

The new discovery will not settle the issue, but it definitively eliminates several theories that had been in the running, scientists said.

There have been 18 fast radio bursts registered since 2007, but only one – observed in 2012 at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico, and dubbed FRB 121102 – recurred numerous times.

That prompted a team of scientists led by Shami Chatterjee of Cornell University to prepare in case it happened again. 

The idea paid off: in 83 hours of observation over s6ix months, the Karl G. Jansky multi-antenna array of radio telescopes – more powerful that any to have spotted a FRB in the past – detected 9 distinct pulses.

"We now know that this particular burst comes from a dwarf galaxy more than 3 billion light years from Earth," Chatterjee said in a statement.

The discovery does not answer the core question of what produces these strange emanations that long escaped the notice of professional star-gazers.

"Still, even without a clear answer, the finding is a real game-changer," said Heino Falcke, an astronomer at Radboud University Nijmegen in the Netherlands who was not involved in the research.

'Not in our backyard'

Until recently, many experts speculated that FRBs are produced by cataclysmic events such as stars exploding into supernovas, or neutron stars collapsing into black holes.

While it is possible that these one-off scenarios also produce such bursts, all of them are inconsistent with multiple pulses such as those generated by FRB 121102.

The new data also dispels another widely discussed possibility, explained Shriharsh Tendulkar, a scientist at McGill University in Montreal.

"Before we knew the distance to any FRBs, several proposed explanations for their origins said they could be coming from within, or near, our own Milky Way," he said.

Such a close source can now be ruled out – at least in this case.

"It's not something in our backyard," said co-author Casey Law, an astronomer at the University of California in Berkeley.

That still leaves plenty of room for speculation.

One of the top candidates, the astronomers suggested, is a neutron star – possibly a type known as a magnetar – surrounded by material ejected by a supernova explosion.

A neutron star – small but extremely dense – is formed by the gravitational collapse of a star not quite massive enough to produce a black hole when it explodes.

A magnetar is a type of neutron star with an extremely powerful magnetic field. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – The top leader of a local terrorist group that pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (ISIS) was killed in Sarangani in the early hours of Thursday, January 5, a major success for the country's counter-terrorism campaign. 

National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon confirmed to Rappler that Mohammad Jaafar Maguid or "Tokboy" of the Ansar Khalifa Philippines (AKP) group is dead.

"Yes. It was an inter-agency operation led by the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) and police," Esperon said in a text message to Rappler.

Maguid, who was found on board a red Toyota Wigo, was killed early Thursday at Angel Beach Resort in Barangay Kitagas of Kiamba town, according to an initial report obtained by Rappler. 

Three AKP members were arrested: Matahata Dialawe Arboleda, Ismael Sahak, and Morhaban Veloso.

Police Superintendent Joel Limson of the Sarangani Police Provincial Intelligence Branch (PIB) led the joint operation with the 3rd Company of the Regional Public Safety Batallion, Sarangani Police Public Safety Company, Regional Intelligence Division 12, and Kiamba police.

AKP is one of 4 local terrorist groups that pleged allegiance to the foreign terrorist organization ISIS in a YouTube video in 2015.

Maguid is believed to be a former commander of the notorious 105th Base Command of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) trained by Indonesia-based terrorist organization Jemaah Islamiyah. 

"AKP under Tokboy has a direct link to Indonesian groups, especially MIT, Mujihidin Indonesia Timur, led by an Indonesian who trained in the Philippines, Santoso," wrote Rappler executive editor Maria Ressa. 

AKP is also "largely believed by experts to be one of the groups behind another video threatening the November 2015 APEC Summit in Manila and later globally distributed by ISIS propaganda sites," added Ressa. (READ: ISIS’ global ambitions and plans for Southeast Asia) – Rappler.com

SYDNEY, Australia – Australia Thursday, January 5, rejected claims it tried to "recruit" Indonesia's best soldiers as it worked to mend relations with Jakarta after military ties were suspended.

The two neighbors revealed Wednesday, January 4, military cooperation had been put on ice last month after teaching materials deemed offensive to Jakarta were found at an Australian army base.

Cooperation including joint exercises and education and exchange programs were halted after a visiting Indonesian officer raised concerns about the materials.

Authorities did not say what caused offense but the Australian Broadcasting Corporation said it related to posters of West Papua, an eastern Indonesian province where a low-level insurgency has been simmering for decades. 

The ABC also broadcast footage Thursday of Indonesia's military chief General Gatot Nurmantyo giving a lecture in November, voicing fears Canberra was trying to recruit soldiers sent to Australia for training.

"Every time there is a training program – like recently – the best 5 or 10 students would be sent to Australia. That happened before I was chief so I let that happen," he said in translated remarks, according to the broadcaster.

"Once I became chief commander of the national forces, it did not happen again. They will certainly be recruited. They will certainly be recruited."

Australian Defence Minister Marise Payne denied Canberra had targeted Indonesian soldiers to be potential agents.

"No, that is not the case and it is something which we would not countenance of course," she said.

Payne added to the ABC that an investigation into the teaching materials that sparked the bilateral row was almost complete and Canberra took the concerns seriously.

"We are working closely with our counterparts both at the military and at the political level to rectify any concerns, to address any concerns and to resume the relationship in its entirety as soon as possible," she said.

Indonesian newspaper Kompas said the row erupted after a visiting special forces instructor found teaching materials he deemed disrespectful towards his country's armed forces, as well as materials he thought insulted Indonesia's founding philosophy of "Pancasila".

The ABC reported that the instructor had complained about training posters of West Papua displayed at the Australian Special Forces base in the western city of Perth last November.

Papua's independence movement enjoys support among activists abroad, including in Australia. Indonesia keeps tight control over the area and is sensitive about any perceived attempts by foreign governments or NGOs to intervene.

It is the latest falling out between the key allies and neighbors, whose relationship has been beset in recent years by disputes over Jakarta's execution of Australian drug smugglers and Canberra's hardline policy of turning migrant boats back to Indonesia.

Payne said the row had not impacted Indonesia's cooperation on Australia's policy on boatpeople or their joint work tackling extremists linked to the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) group. – Rappler.com

NEGROS OCCIDENTAL, Philippines – Environmentalists and netizens are up in arms over the treatment of a rescued green sea turtle in Silay City, after photos of the animal with a defaced shell circulated on social media site Facebook this week.

The photos showed a sea turtle marked “Bantay Dagat Silay City” – in yellow paint – on its shell.

Officials of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-18 (DENR-18) are investigating the incident which involved the personnel of Bantay Dagat-Silay City, who rescued the stranded sea turtle at Barangay Balaring on Tuesday morning, January 3.

DENR-18 director Al Orolfo said the personnel had no orientation on what to do when they found the sea turtle, and decided to mark its shell to indicate it was found in Silay.

"We understand their good intention, but the proper protocol was not followed," he said, adding that the personnel involved were new to the job.

Orolfo said the concerned DENR personnel will be given proper training within the first quarter of the year to avoid a similar incident.

The DENR official also explained that the proper protocol when rescuing a sea turtle is to contact the department.

The public could also contact the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and the Department of Agriculture as their officials know also what to do, he added. 

'Animal maltreatment'

For his part, Nathaniel Gerangaya, Community Environment and Natural Resources Office-Bago City chief, said the personnel violated Republic Act No. 9147 or the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act, as the minor infraction is tantamount to animal maltreatment.

Green sea turtles are classified as endangered. Under the law, anyone found guilty of inflicting harm on endangered wildlife faces imprisonment of 3 months and a day to 6 months, and a fine of P20,000 to P50,000. 

Gerangaya said sea turtles are marked to track their migration, but metal tags are used to do this, not paint.

He said the incident, due to “negligence and ignorance,” is very unfortunate. 

Silay City Mayor Mark Golez, meanwhile, said he was “shocked” after seeing the photos. He assured the public that it will never happen again.

Netizens had criticized the treatment of the turtle, among them, Dave Gumban Albao, executive director of Philippine Reef and Conservation Incorporated. In a Facebook post, on Wednesday morning, January 4, he asked for any leads on the turtle after its photos circulated online.

– Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The National Privacy Commission (NPC) found that Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman Andres Bautista is "criminally liable" for the leak of voters' data in March 2016.

In its 35-page decision on December 28, 2016, the NPC found that the poll body, as the personal information controller, violated Sections 11, 20 and 21 of Republic Act 10173 or the Data Privacy Act of 2012.

The NPC also said that Bautista likewise violated Sections 11, 20, 21 and 22 of the same law.

In a statement on Thursday, January 5, the NPC underscored Bautista's "lack of appreciation" of the principle that data protection is more than just the implementation of security measures.

The privacy body also said that Bautista's "willful and intentional disregard of his duties as head of agency, which he should know or ought to know, is tantamount to gross negligence."

The data leak involved over 76 million voters' registration records in Comelec's Precinct Finder and Post Finder web applications.

"The lack of a clear data governance policy, particularly in collecting and further processing of personal data, unnecessarily exposed personal and sensitive information of millions of Filipinos to unlawful access," it added.

"[I]t also includes the implementation of physical and organizational measures, as well as regular review, evaluation, and updating of Comelec's privacy and security policies and practices," the NPC said in its decision.

Section 26 of RA 10173, which penalizes accessing sensitive personal information due to negligence, imposes imprisonment from 3 to 6 years and a fine between P500,000 to P4 million.

Section 36 imposes additional penalties when the offender is a public officer, consisting in the disqualification from public office for a period equivalent to double the term of criminal penalty.

Corrective measures

The NPC, however, cleared Comelec commissioners Christian Robert Lim and Al Parreño, executive director Jose Tolentino Jr, spokesperson James Arthur Jimenez, and information technology officers Ferdinand de Leon, Jeannie Flororita, and Eden Bolo from criminal responsibility.

NPC deputy commissioner Ivy Patdu said that the body did not find sufficient evidence to recommend charges against these officials. She added that the responsibility "ultimately falls within the head of agency."

In addition, the privacy body ordered the Comelec and chairman Bautista to conduct an "independent security audit of all of its personal data processing systems, including those hosted by service providers, within 3 months and conduct a similar audit annually for the next 5 years.

The NPC likewise ordered the Comelec to do the following corrective measures:

1. appoint a data protection officer within 1 month from receipt of the decision
2. conduct a privacy impact assessment within 2 months from receipt
3. create a privacy management program within 3 months from receipt
4. create a breach management procedure within 3 months from receipt
5. implement organizational, physical, and technical security measures within 6 months from receipt

– Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – For failing to act on its appeals, the Alliance of Concerned Transport Organizations (ACTO) filed on Thursday, January 5 a complaint against several officials of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) for “gross neglect of duty.”

In a 4-page complaint filed before the Office of the Ombudsman, ACTO Chairman Efren de Luna accused LTFRB Chairman Atty Martin Delgra III, board members Engr Ronaldo Corpus and Atty Aileen Lourdes Lizada of “undue delay, inaction and efficiency” that resulted in inconvenience among operators, drivers and the commuting public.

ACTO also charged the LTFRB officials with violation of the code of conduct and ethical standards for public officials and employees, and violation of the Anti Graft and Corrupt practices act.

Among the pending cases that ACTO claimed LTFRB sat on are the reversal of minimum jeepney fares to P7.50 filed on May 2016 and again on October 2016, and the petition to implement a rush hour rate for jeepneys in Metro Manila filed last March 2016.

“It is frustrating that the LTFRB would not take any action on the above cases concerning PUJ fares while it allows the Transport Network Companies (TNCs) such as Uber and Grab to unilaterally implement its own fare scheme enabling them to impose surge pricing and rush hour rate without having undergone the mandatory process under the Public Service Act,” the complaint said.

ACTO also said there has been a severe delay in acting on jeepney operators’ applications for dropping and substitution. A requirement for filing such application is the surrender jeepney plates to LTFRB.

“Without a plate, they will have no source of income. The continued delay in acting upon these applications affects the living of these operators.”

ACTO also wants the LTFRB officials preventively suspended.

LTFRB Chairman Delgra has not responded to Rappler’s requests for comments as of posting. – Lian Buan/Rappler.com 

NORTH COTABATO, Philippines – Thirty-four more inmates who escaped from the North Cotabato District Jail have been recaptured as of Thursday noon, January 5, provincial police said.

Superintendent Peter Bonggat, North Cotabato jail warden, gave the update during a media briefing at the jail grounds. The latest count brings to 39 the total number of inmates recaptured since the jailbreak on Wednesday, January 4.

A total of 158 inmates bolted the jail.

Bonggat cited many obstacles in the manhunt. "This is a very wide area. Aside from sugar, rubber, and coconut plantations, there are areas and camps held by rebels that we cannot easily enter," he told Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Sultan Kudarat Governor Pax Mangudadatu, who met with acting North Cotabato Governor Shirley Macasarte, told Rappler he will go around the different municipalities of his province to convince other local governments to turn over escapees monitored in their areas.

Wednesday's jailbreak was the biggest in the nation's history, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) spokesman Xavier Solda told AFP.

He said 13 "high-value targets" – 7 Muslim rebels and 6 organized crime gang members – were not among those who escaped. 

BIFF plot?

During the media interview, Bonggat presented to reporters empty shells or mortars that the attackers used for the jailbreak. He blamed the incident on detained members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) who allegedly tried – in vain – to free fellow inmates, the Gunsang brothers. 

Bonggat said the jail is located just 500 meters away from the camp of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The BIFF is a splinter group of the MILF.

"The purpose was to overrun the jail so that can rescue their members but they failed," the jail warden said.

Mangudadatu said in an interview with Rappler on Thursday that he was not convinced that the BIFF was behind the jailbreak. He said the two Gunsang brothers were not influential enough to prod an operation of such scale.

MILF spokesman Von al-Haq also insisted Thursday that none of the group's members were involved in the raid, adding the group was willing to coordinate with government to allow searches in its communities. 

"The commander named to be the leader of the raid was 100% a notorious criminal. He was never a member of the MILF," Al-Haq told AFP. 

Al-Haq said the commander, known by an alias of Commander Derby, had broken into the jail to release a relative who was the leader of the Muslim inmates. 

Al-Haq said the relative and the leader of the Christian inmates were among the first to escape, and remained on the run.

In a statement on Thursday, the BJMP said it has not pinpointed those responsible for the incident. "The BJMP does not want to speculate on the identity of possible perpetrators who stormed the North Cotabato District Jail past midnight yesterday," it said.

"Currently, the joint forces of BJMP, PNP, and AFP are still pursuing the escapees. All units of BJMP Region 12 including facilities in nearby provinces remain on heightened alert," it said.

BJMP chief Serafin Barretto Jr, who was in Kidapawan to oversee the situation, told reporters that Bonggat will be "relieved for debriefing," following the jailbreak that killed one jail guard.

Bonggat was installed as warden on September 16, 2016. – with reports from Editha Caduaya, Agence France-Presse/Rappler.com

SINGAPORE – A Swiss banker was charged in Singapore on Thursday, January 5, with money laundering and other offenses related to an international corruption scandal involving neighboring Malaysia's state fund 1MDB.

Allegations that huge sums were misappropriated from the Malaysian state fund triggered a scandal which has embroiled Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, who has so far weathered the resulting political storm.

Jens Fred Sturzenegger, 42, who headed the Singapore branch of Swiss lender Falcon Private Bank, was slapped with 6 charges for allegedly failing to report suspicious transactions totaling $1.7 billion in March 2013.

One transaction alone involved $1.265 billion.

Sturzenegger also faces 10 charges of giving false information to Singapore authorities in relation to their investigation into the use of the city-state's banking system as a conduit for the transfer of illicit funds involving 1MDB.

His lawyer Tan Hee Joek told reporters that Sturzenegger is expected to plead guilty when he appears in court on January 11. He is currently free on bail.

Three Singaporean private bankers from Swiss lender BSI have already been jailed by a Singapore court in relation to the scandal.

BSI and Falcon Bank were kicked out of Singapore last year for what regulators called massive lapses in financial controls.

Singapore, a regional financial hub known for its transparency and strong stance against corruption, has launched the investigation into alleged unlawful fund flows linked to 1MDB.

Among the Singaporeans jailed last year was Yeo Jiawei, who was sentenced to 30 months for witness tampering and obstructing the 1MDB probe.

It was revealed during Yeo's trial that he worked closely with Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low, a family friend of Najib.

Najib founded the 1MDB fund while Low helped set it up and played a key role in its decisions. 

Both men have strongly denied any wrongdoing. – Rappler.com