MANILA, Philippines – Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David said on Wednesday, August 23, the government's war on drugs has turned his diocese into a "killing field," with 17-year-old Kian delos Santos as the latest victim.  

In a press briefing with Senator Risa Hontiveros at a restaurant in Manila, David said areas near Caloocan, such as the cities of Navotas and Malabon, had also experienced relentless killings.

In Caloocan, he said at least 80% of the killings were done by "vigilantes."

"We don't know who they are, but they roam the streets every night," the bishop said. 

In police reports, these killings are called deaths under investigation but there are no resolutions, he added. 

David wondered how come cases where perpetrators were described by witnesses as "masked men" turned out to be police operations in official reports. "Is it legitimate for the police to conduct police operations in masks?"

David said Delos Santos' case is the only one so far that is being thoroughly investigated. 

However, police's allegations of Delos Santos being a courier must be dropped, he said. "Did he fight back or not? That is the issue here. You cannot impose allegations on a dead person."

Trust in the police

MANILA, Philippines – In the face of criticism from lawmakers, Caloocan City Assistant Prosecutor Darwin Cañete's right to free expression should be respected, said Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II on Wednesday, August 23.

Cañete was among the first to the crime scene following the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Kian delos Santos, who was killed by police during a drug raid on August 16.

The prosecutor then drew flak for saying on his Facebook account and in media interviews that Delos Santos' innocence was far-fetched. Several lawmakers called him unprofessional and unethical.

"I am not saying they did not kill the kid. [Police] should be held accountable if ever it's a proven EJK (extrajudicial killing). But making the kid super innocent? I am not buying it," Cañete told the Inquirer.

He was the same prosecutor who earlier got criticized for saying in a Facebook post that "yellows" – groups aligned with the opposition and critical of President Rodrigo Duterte – must be killed "like cockroaches."

But Aguirre said Cañete is just passionate.

"There are many times that young prosecutors are passionate about their beliefs, but of course we should also respect their right to free expression," Aguirre said on Wednesday during the House appropriations committee hearing on the budget of the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The issue was brought up by Nueva Ecija 3rd District Representative Rosanna Vergara during the budget hearing.

"Why is he allowed to issue statements to the media, post stuff on Facebook? It doesn't put in good light your department," Vergara said.

Aguirre said it was misleading for Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon to say Cañete should not be allowed to handle Delos Santos' case because no case has been filed yet.

"Cañete was assigned by the Prosecution Office of the City to coordinate with the police in connection to the investigation being conducted by them. We found out that there is no case filed, so to the call that we do not allow him to handle this case, walang (there is no) basis," Aguirre said.

Public Attorney's Office (PAO) chief Persida Acosta already said the complaint they will file against policemen, likely murder, will be filed before the DOJ and not the Caloocan City Prosecutor's Office precisely because of Cañete.

Aguirre also said the Caloocan City Prosecutor's Office will exclude Cañete from the raffle should a complaint be filed before them.

Disciplinary action

Oriental Mindoro 1st District Representative Doy Leachon, vice chairperson of the House appropriations committee, urged Aguirre to discipline Cañete.

"Regardless of whether the case is yet to be filed, the fact that he is a prosecutor, for a prosecutor especially since he has connection to the case because he is coordinating with the investigation, it's uncalled for and unprofessional for a fiscal [to do that]," Leachon said.

"Kung nakita ko 'yan tutuktukan ko 'yan. Ang dami na ngang problema, dadagdagan mo pa. (If I see him, I will hit him in the head. There are so many problems already and he's making it even more difficult). I suggest that a letter or memo be sent to the prosecutor to refrain from making statements, so that will also send a signal to other prosecutors," the lawmaker added.

Aguirre maintained, however, that there were "inaccuracies and inappropriateness" in the calls against Cañete, especially referring to Drilon's statement that the prosecutor should be removed from his post.

"If ever it would be proven that he issued these statements, rest assured that as an elder, brother in profession, and the DOJ Secretary, we'll be able to counsel him," Aguirre said. – Rappler.com

TARLAC CITY, Philippines – Caught between two provinces with cases of avian inlfuenza, Tarlac held an impromptu 'Chicken Festival' on Wednesday, August 23, to prove the province is free from bird flu.

Nueva Ecija and Pampanga may presently have cases of avian influenza, but the province of Tarlac is feeling the effect of the scare, according to Tarlac Provincial Veterinarian Dr. Lorna Baculanta. Nueva Ecija stands on the east side of Tarlac while Pampanga covers the south.

"Naapektuhan ang sales ng Tarlac, nandiyan na sa mentality ng tao na natatakot silang kumain pero nagkakaroon lang ng misinformation. Yung mga infected area, sila yung prohibited maglabas ng products nila. Outside the 7-kilometer radius free na from the flu." added the provincial veterinarian. 

(Sales are affected in Tarlac. There's a mentality of being afraid to eat (chicken) but it's just misinformation. The infected areas are the places prohibited from releasing their products. Outside the 7-kilometer radius, it's free from the flu.)

Hundreds of Tarlac residents, government employees and poultry and farm workers trooped to the Diwa ng Tarlac where a boodle fight was held alongside business and political leaders. Chickens and eggs were served as viands.

Department of Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol's move to lift the shipment ban on poultry products yesterday is expected to boost the poultry industry itself.

Baculanta noted biosecurity measures were put into place at various check points in the province, with private agriculture companies donating sprayers and disinfectants. Shipping documents, according to the provincial veterinarian should be available to posted quarantine check point guards.

Despite the precautions, Makati City is discouraging the sale and movement of live domestic and wild birds and their products including poultry meat, day old chicks, eggs, semen, and manure from Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Bulacan, Tarlac, Zambales, and Bataan as reported by the Philippine Information Agency. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Outgoing Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon reiterated on Wednesday, August 23, that he never committed or tolerated "any form of corruption" while serving in government.

Faeldon made the statement after Senator Panfilo Lacson included him in a list of Bureau of Customs (BOC) officials who allegedly received "tara" or bribes. (READ: FULL TEXT: 'Kita kita sa Customs')

The outgoing Customs chief also refuted allegations that he received a P100-million "welcome gift" when he assumed office, contrary to what Lacson revealed in his privilege speech on Wednesday, on the extent of corruption in the BOC.

"I have not asked anybody to collect tara for me nor have I accepted any tara from anybody. Again, I have not done any form of corruption in my many years of government service nor tolerated those who tried even in the form of request. No is no," said the former Marine officer.

Faeldon called for a "third party investigation" into the exposé of Lacson so that the "truth" would come out.

"The country will appreciate if a third party investigation by a competent body will be conducted so that justice will be served. Just like the Honorable Senator Lacson and the Filipino people, I want the truth to come out," he said.

During his only appearance at the Senate hearing on the P6.4-billion shabu shipment smuggled from China on August 15, Faeldon explained that while he had heard of the "tara" system in the BOC prior to assuming office, he failed to fight it early on because he was "working alone" in the agency in his first 6 months.

Faeldon had said that key people he had recommended to investigate bribery in the BOC were only appointed in December 2016 or January 2017.

To this excuse, Lacson said in his privilege speech on Wednesday: "Boo-hoo! Tell that to the Marines, Mr Faeldon, but not to this institution."

"Mr President, even granting Mr Faeldon's assertion that he was working alone, if he was the principled man that he said he is, he should have stood firm even if he was alone," Lacson said.

During the interpellation after his speech, Lacson also said "it would be better" if Faeldon would not be given another government post.

President Rodrigo Duterte had earlier said he was open to giving Faeldon – whom he described as an "honest man" – another position in government. Duterte had said that Faeldon asked to be fired thrice because of his failure to stop corruption in the BOC, but the President did not agree he should be sacked during those times.

He finally accepted Faeldon's resignation on August 21, as the public expressed outrage over the killing of 17-year-old Kian delos Santos in a police drug raid in Caloocan City.

Protesters questioned why minors like Delos Santos are getting killed in Duterte's bloody drug war, while those involved in the shabu shipment from China as well as corrupt government officials are not punished. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – President Rodrigo Duterte met with the chief of the US Pacific Command (PACOM) on Wednesday, August 23, as Washington seeks better ties with the Duterte administration. 

Admiral Harry Harris Jr, commander of the US Pacific Command, held the meeting with Duterte in Malacañang on Wednesday.

Joining the meeting from the Philippine side were Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr, and Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff General Eduardo Año.

From the American side, US Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim led other representatives in Wednesday’s meeting.

The meeting comes as Duterte slams the US for supposedly interfering in his war on drugs, while the Philippine leader strengthens ties with China. (READ: Duterte admin 'independent' from U.S., 'bullied' by China?) 

Also on Wednesday, Duterte received officers of the China Communications Construction Company.

This meeting was also attended by Cayetano, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, Public Works Secretary Mark Villar, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, and National Economic and Development Authority Director General Ernesto Pernia. 

In his meeting with the Chinese company, Duterte said that the Philippines really needs China's help, as his country faces problems with traffic and lack of viable infrastructure. – Rappler.com

DATU SALIBO, Philippines – The Moro Islamic Liberation Front said on Wednesday, August 23, it had lost 10 fighters in battles to stop a "growing force" of radical militants who support the Islamic State group (ISIS).

The MILF is seeking to prevent the militants from gaining a foothold in an area of Mindanao island that the MILF calls its own, senior rebel leader Mohagher Iqbal told AFP.

Iqbal said 50 or so militants had pledged allegiance to ISIS and had ties to gunmen waging a deadly 3-month-old battle with government forces in the southern city of Marawi.

"The radical elements are growing as a force," Iqbal told the Agence France-Presse by telephone.

An Agence France-Presse video journalist who joined the MILF soldiers on Tuesday said the fighting was centred on vast marshy forests and farmlands near the town of Datu Salibo.

MILF men were filmed firing automatic weapons from a house, crossing streams and marshes with their machine guns, automatic rifles and rations raised above their heads, and inspecting the ruins of burnt houses.

Datu Salibo is about 100 kilometers (60 miles) south of Marawi and about 800 kilometers south of Manila.

Iqbal put the MILF death toll from the fighting, which began early this month, at 10.

He said the militants had also sustained fatalities, although he could not give confirmed numbers.

The 10,000-strong MILF has been leading a decades-long rebellion to establish an independent or autonomous homeland in Mindanao for the mainly Catholic Philippines' Muslim minority.

The conflict has claimed more than 100,000 lives.

The MILF signed a peace agreement with the previous administration in 2014 that envisages an autonomous Muslim homeland in Mindanao, and is hoping President Rodrigo Duterte can shepherd a final deal through a reluctant Congress.

However a range of more hardline militants, including former MILF members, oppose any form of peace with the government and some have in recent years pledged allegiance to ISIS.

The MILF has repeatedly warned that, if the peace process collapses, it will lose many of its younger members to ISIS-aligned groups.

Hundreds of ISIS supporters occupied parts of Marawi in late May. 

Government forces have been unable to dislodge the militants in Marawi despite a massive, US-backed military campaign. 

The conflict has claimed more than 700 lives.

Iqbal said the MILF's current battles against another group near Datu Salibo showed IS was becoming a threat in other parts of the south.

"They're an affiliate of ISIS and they plant the black (ISIS) flag wherever they go," Iqbal said, using an alternate acronym meaning Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.

"They cause trouble everywhere. We are against their way of life. We are against terrorism." – Rappler.com

Bookmark this page to watch the hearing Thursday, August 24, at  2 pm.

MANILA, Philippines – The Senate committee on public order and dangerous drugs conducts a hearing on the death of Kian delos Santos, the 17-year-old whom Caloocan police are accused of executing in an anti-drug raid last week.

Senate Resolution 471 has been filed, expressing the sense to condemn the killing of the Grade 11 student on August 16.

The resolution looks into the accountability of the Philippine National Police in the conduct of the campaign against illegal drugs that may have resulted in unnecessary and unjustified deaths. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Avoid planting drugs as evidence. 

This was the message the country's top cop wanted to instill in the minds of policemen who are at the forefront of the so-called war against illegal drugs.

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa on Wednesday, August 23, even urged policemen to follow due process, and refrain from rushing and ending up with extrajudicial killings.

"Iwasan niyo na 'yung style na taniman ng droga yung suspect dahil gusto niyo kaagad na ma-eliminate sa scheme ng drug business (Avoid the practice of planting drugs because you want to eliminate them immediately in the drug business)," Dela Rosa said in his address at the 116th PNP Service Anniversary in Central Visayas.

He told them to be patient, and to do their job within the law, even if it meant continuously locking up suspects only to see them free the next day. (READ: In the PH drug war, it's likely EJK when...)

"Dahil kayo ay pagod na, alam n'yo 'yang taong 'yan ay labas pasok sa kulungan. Sige lang, huli (Because you are tired and you know that they go in and go out the jail. Just keep on arresting them)...God is watching us," Dela Rosa said.

"Mas maganda 'yung kinasing kasing na trabaho at pagserbisyo (It is better that you do your job and service wholeheartedly)," Dela Rosa added. (READ: Crime and due process: Is there room for dialogue and compromise?)

His warning comes as the PNP's anti-drug operation is under intense public pressure in the past week because of the record-high number of deaths. Among those killed was 17-year-old Kian delos Santos whose case has since sparked public outrage after reports and investigations indicate that the teenager was a victim of an extrajudicial killing.

In a press conference that followed the event, Dela Rosa dismissed reports that said the PNP was eyeing an "emerging drug lord" in Eastern Visayas. The top cop said he meant Western Visayas, and said a new group replaced the Odicta family, which were formerly linked the illegal drug trade.

After scolding his cops in his speech, Dela Rosa came to their defense against allegations that the police engaged in the "dagdag-bawas" (add-subtract) scheme. The illegal practice meant those identified as drug suspects paid policemen to have their names removed from the government watchlist.

"We are doing our best. Binubuwis nga buhay namin dito, tapos gagawa pa kami kalokohan? (We are putting our lives on the line here, and you think we are doing foolish things?) That’s very bad,’ he added. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II on Wednesday, August 23, said the case of slain 17-year-old Kian delos Santos was overblown and that the government's war on drugs, as in any war, is expected to have collateral damage.

"Blown out of proportion in the media [ito] kaya akala mo napakalaki na. Isa lang siya sa thousands na pang-aabuso ng pulis kung talagang may pang-aabuso," Aguirre said during the budget hearing of the Department of Justice (DOJ) at the House of Representatives.

(This has been blown out of proportion by the media, that's why you think it's such a big issue. He's only one of the many thousands abused by the police if indeed there was abuse.)

Aguirre would later say in the hearing that Delos Santos' case is isolated because, according to him, it is the only case where it is clear that the killing was intentional. (READ: 'Nakaluhod tapos nasubsob': How Kian was shot, according to PAO)

Aguirre added that any war would have collateral damage. (READ: How Kian delos Santos was killed, according to police)

"Kapag giyera, hindi mo maiiwasan ang collateral damage (Any war has collateral damage). And I'm sorry to say, that could be an adult or a child," he said.

The justice secretary went on to criticize the groups which have condemned Delos Santos' killing, hitting them for blaming President Rodrigo Duterte.

"Kapag ang krimen ay kaya ninyong ilapit sa Pangulo, do'n lang kayo nag-iingay (When you can link the President to the crime, that's the only time when you create noise)," Aguirre said. (READ: Aguirre: 'Passionate' Caloocan prosecutor free to express himself)

The questioning of House members got intense when it was the turn of leftist lawmakers – Kabataan Representative Sarah Elago and ACT Teachers Representative Antonio Tinio.

In the course of Elago's questioning on the DOJ's actions so far on extrajudicial killings linked to the war on drugs, Aguirre went on the offensive.

"Bakit hindi kayo nagalit sa minassacre sa Bulacan? ... Masyadong partial ang ilang grupo. Para sa kanila, masyadong masama si Pangulong Duterte," the justice chief said.

(Why are you not angry over the massacre in Bulacan? Some groups are so partial. For them, President Duterte is so evil.)

Elago said Aguirre's statements worried her, which only riled up Aguirre even more.

"Nag-express ba kayo ng righteous indignation against drug addicts? Wala (Did you express righteous indignation against drug addicts? No)," the justice chief said.

At that point, Tinio spoke and said he felt alluded to by Aguirre's statements, as he is among the activists seeking justice for Delos Santos. (READ: Kian delos Santos tests negative for gunpowder)

Tinio said: "Kaya walang nag-rally sa massacre sa Bulacan kasi may tiwala kami sa gobyerno na bigyan sila ng hustisya. Kay Kian, ang pumaslang sa kanya ay mga pulis na pinagkakatiwalaan."

(No one rallied against the massacre in Bulacan because we trust that the government will ensure that justice is served. In Kian's case, the ones who killed him are cops who we are supposed to have trust in.)

Tinio added: "Iniuugnay 'nyo kami sa dilawan. Huwag po. Idikit 'nyo po ako sa pulahan, hindi sa dilawan." (You are associating me with the yellows. Don't do that. Link me to the reds, not to the yellows.)

Tinio also raised his voice to ask Aguirre: "Tinatanong 'nyo kami ano ang ginawa namin? Kayo, ano ang ginawa ninyo, kayo ang law enforcement [official]?" (You're asking us what we've done? You, what have you done, you're the law enforcement official?)

Tinio had to be asked to cut his questioning for orderly procedure.

When things calmed down, Albay 1st District Representative Edcel Lagman told Aguirre, "It is not right that you come here asking for budget but you castigate House members who ask valid questions."

The proposed P17.2-billion budget of the DOJ and its attached agencies for 2018 eventually passed the level of the House appropriations committee on Wednesday. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – President Rodrigo Duterte dared his critics to prove that his son, Paolo, is behind the smuggling of ukay-ukay or used clothing, as he claimed yet again that he will resign if his son is guilty.

In an event in Santo Tomas, Batangas, Duterte explained that Paolo is just helping his in-laws, described by Duterte as "Muslim vendors" selling jars and ukay-ukay in Davao.

"Pero kung 'yung mga jars, ukay-ukay, 'yung pinapalusot ng in-laws niya, if that is smuggling, then give me an accounting and I will resign," Duterte said at the inauguration of a solar factory in Santo Tomas.

(But if the jars, the used clothing, which his in-laws are bringing in, if that is smuggling, then give me an accounting and I will resign.

"I am not defending my son. Prove it, (if) it is true, and I will resign," the President stressed.

Duterte's son, Paolo, is the vice mayor of Davao City, where the President was mayor for more than two decades. 

Duterte denies 'P11 billion' 

A day before President Duterte spoke, a customs broker and fixer claimed that he personally paid at least P5 million ($97,600) to Paolo's "friend" and "handler" to speed up transactions.  

One of Duterte's fiercest critics, Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, cited this as evidence that Paolo is behind smuggling. (READ: Paolo Duterte a 'smuggler'? Trillanes releases documents anew)

Duterte ally Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III, however, said in a Rappler Talk interview that there is no proof to back this claim.

On Wednesday, Duterte also stressed that he is not hiding P11 billion ($214.6 million) in his bank accounts, as his critics claim. 

"They are allowed to open our accounts, at kung totoo 'yung may pera na sobra-sobra ako – sinabi nila sa election na meron akong...P11 billion – my God, you can have my resignation tomorrow. I will step down. Wala akong pera na ganu'n," the President said.

(They are allowed to open our accounts, and if it is true that I have so much money – they said during the elections that I have P11 billion – my God, you can have my resignation tomorrow. I will step down. I don't have that money.) – Rappler.com

*$1 = P51.24

DOHA, Qatar – Qatar has approved a law limiting domestic staff to a maximum of 10 hours' work a day, the first such protection for thousands of household maids, nannies, and cooks in the emirate.

The "Domestic Employment Law" also orders employers to pay staff wages at the end of each month and entitles workers to at least one day off per week and an annual leave of 3 weeks, the Qatar News Agency reported.

They will also receive end-of-service benefits equating to a minimum of 3 weeks wages for each year of service when their contract ends. 

The law prohibits staff being recruited from abroad who are older than 60 and younger than 18.

Hundreds of thousands of foreign workers have flocked to the gas-rich Gulf emirate in recent years, including almost 100,000 women working as house staff.

Other domestic workers covered by the new law include cleaners, gardeners and drivers.

The legislation was issued on Tuesday, August 22, by Qatar's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, QNA reported.

Although Qatar has come under severe international pressure to improve its record on the treatment of construction workers in the run-up to the 2022 World Cup, until now domestic staff have not been protected by any legislation.

Critics have long campaigned for legal protection for domestic staff, with some claiming that they are subjected to working in slave-like conditions.

These included physical and sexual abuse, no wages being paid and passports being confiscated.

In 2014 it was reported that hundreds of Filipino domestic workers had sought sanctuary at their Doha embassy complaining of harsh working conditions.

The issue of ill-treatment of domestic staff stretches across the region.

In 2015 Indonesia said it would stop sending domestic staff to 21 Middle Eastern countries in protests at the treatment of maids in those countries.

Human Rights Watch backed the introduction of the law.

"Tens of thousands of domestic workers in Qatar now have their labor rights protected in law including a limit to their working day and a weekly day of rest," Rothna Begum, women's rights researcher at HRW, told AFP. 

But she added that new legislation must be rigorously imposed by the authorities.

"However, Qatar should ensure there are strong enforcement mechanisms which are key to making these rights a reality."

The legislation comes at a time when Qatar's laws remain under scrutiny from the International Labour Organisation.

The UN body has given Qatar until November to improve its human rights record or face sanctions. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Three eyewitnesses to how policemen allegedly executed 17-year-old Kian delos Santos in an anti-drug sweep in Caloocan City last week will face the Senate on Thursday, August 24. 

The witnesses – all female, and ages 13, 16, and 31 – were interviewed by a specialist in the presence of representatives from National Bureau of Investigation, the Ombudsman, and the Commission on Human Rights on Wednesday afternoon to help prepare their affidavits. 

Minerva "June" Ambrosio, director of the National Center for Legal Aid, will be presenting the witnesses, she confirmed on Wednesday, August 23, at Philippine General Hospital (PGH) in Manila.

The witnesses were held in a room at the Child Protection Unit of the PGH, and were asked questions raised by the government representatives. The latter were able to see the witnesses through a one-way mirror, with their consent. 

"But of course since they are children, we have to explain to them what will happen, and that there is nothing for them to be scared of," she added.

The witnesses have been under the custody of Senator Risa Hontiveros since Saturday, when the senator visited Delos Santos' wake in Caloocan. 

Hontiveros said she took custody of the witnesses upon the family's request after they received threats.

She said she commited to the family to prioritize the protection of the witnesses and to attain justice for Delos Santos.

"It pains me that we had to reach this far – to have a 17-year-old kid [killed] for people to take notice," Hontiveros said. 

NEW DELHI, India – The head of India's railways has quit after a series of deadly accidents on the crumbling network, an official said Wednesday, August 23.

The move came days after 23 people were killed when a train derailed in northern India, the fourth major disaster on the country's railways this year.

K. Mittal, who had been in the post since 2014, will be succeeded by Ashwani Lohani, a former engineer credited with helping state-run Air India turn its first profit after over a decade of losses.

"Mr Lohani has been appointed as the chairman of railway board. Mr Mittal's resignation has been accepted," a railway official told the Agence France-Presse on condition of anonymity.

A formal announcement was expected late Wednesday.

The government has come under pressure after a series of accidents, including a derailment on Wednesday morning that injured scores of passengers.

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu indicated on Wednesday that he had offered his resignation to the prime minister, who had asked him to hold off.

Prabhu tweeted that he was "extremely pained by the unfortunate accidents, injuries to passengers and loss of precious lives" and took full moral responsibility.

The latest deadly accident occurred on Saturday in Uttar Pradesh state, the same state where 146 people were killed in an accident last November.

In January nearly 40 people died when a passenger train derailed in the southern state of Andra Pradesh.

The network is the world's fourth largest by distance and remains the main form of travel in the vast country, with 22 million passengers commuting daily.

But it is poorly funded and deadly accidents occur frequently, with experts blaming under-investment and poor safety standards.

A 2012 government report described the loss of 15,000 passengers to rail accidents every year in India as a "massacre." – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – The Supreme Court (SC), sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), issued guidelines in preparation for the ballot revision in the electoral protest filed by ex-senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr against Vice President Leni Robredo. 

On Wednesday, August 23, the Marcos camp released a copy of the PET’s 5-page resolution.

The document contains the composition and hiring process for the members of the Revision Committee, the creation of an Exploratory Mission or Retrieval Team, and the compensation for individuals who will participate in the revision of the ballots.

The revision stage is the 3rd part of an electoral protest, wherein contested ballot boxes will be opened and votes will be recounted and tallied. (READ: Presidential Electoral Tribunal: What happens to a protest?)

Revision committees will be formed for the continuous revision of votes, in the presence of representatives of both parties. The revision is done through the use of vote-counting machines – or manually and visually – as the PET may determine.

Robredo had beaten her closest vice presidential rival Marcos by just 263,473 votes in the 2016 polls. Marcos accused her of cheating and filed an electoral protest against Robredo, prompting a counter-protest from the Vice President. (READ: TIMELINE: Marcos-Robredo election case) 

Below are the guidelines set by the PET under the revision stage for the Marcos-Robredo electoral protest:

• The SC Gymnasium will be used for the revision proceedings. A portion of the 4th floor parking level of the SC-Court of Appeals Multi-Purpose Building and a room at the back of the Division Hearing Room will be used for the electoral protest as well.
• The Revision Committees will be composed of a recorder, a representative from both the protest and protestee, and a coordinator who must be a lawyer not affiliated with the SC. The Robredo and Marcos camps must also assign alternative representatives to the committees.
• Each Revision Committee will get P1,500 per clustered precinct. The money will be used for members’ compensation and supplies. The coordinator will receive P780, P480 for the recorder, and P184 will be allotted for supplies and materials. The document, however, did not specify what the remainder will be used for.
• The Exploratory Mission or Retrieval Team will be tasked to locate and examine the ballot boxes concerned in the electoral protest. The team is expected to watch over the ballot boxes’ transport to the SC.

Lawyer Victor Rodriguez, Marcos's spokesperson, welcomed the PET's latest resolution.

“We cannot wait for the actual process to start because it is the only way we’ll be able to ferret the truth.  We have always maintained that the ballots themselves are the best evidence in any election protest.  This is the reason why we have always pushed for the early revision of ballots," said Rodriguez,

"We hope that this will expedite the process so this issue can be settles once and for all. The Filipino people deserve to know their real Vice President is,” he added.

The PET had earlier ordered the Vice President to pay P15 million for the 31,278 established precincts she is contesting in her counter-protest. Robredo already settled the first half of P8 million on May 2. 

She was originally due to pay the 2nd installment of the protest fee on July 14, but the PET granted her first petition to extend the deadline. (READ: Robredo supporters urge SC: Accept P7-M payment for VP protest fee)

On August 18, the PET deferred Robredo's payment of the remaining balance. She will make the payment "only after substantial recovery" in the 3 provinces Marcos identified where initial recounting of votes will be held to determine if his protest has merit. These are Camarines Sur, Iloilo, and Negros Oriental.

Marcos already completed the payment of his P66.2-million protest fee.

Read a full copy of the resolution here:

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– Rappler.com

ANKARA, Turkey – Turkish EU Affairs Minister Omer Celik on Wednesday, August 23, accused German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel of copying the "far right and racists" in his statements on a festering diplomatic crisis with Turkey.

"Gabriel is not making original statements. He speaks by 'copying' from the far right and racists," Celik wrote on Twitter in a tirade of 29 tweets criticising Gabriel and his Austrian counterpart Sebastian Kurz.

"It can be seen that the German foreign minister has reached the same level as the refugee enemy and symbol of racist politics: the Austrian foreign minister," Celik said in another tweet.

Austria, like Germany, has previously been locked in a bitter spat with Turkey. 

Last month, Vienna blocked Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci from entering the country to attend a rally marking the anniversary of last year's failed coup attempt.

Celik said attacks by "racists, fascists and enemies of Islam" against Turkey or President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meant "nothing" to Ankara.

He accused Gabriel of trying to "sabotage" Turkey-EU relations and "giving racists a message of 'you're right.'"

Gabriel on Tuesday said Erdogan's strident style "had apparently led some to feel motivated to try to threaten and harass my wife".

Worsening relations

The dispute between Ankara and Berlin is showing no signs of easing as both sides make tit-for-tat remarks against each other following comments made by the Turkish head of state.

Erdogan last week urged ethnic Turks in Germany to vote against German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives and two other parties in September 24 elections, labelling them "enemies of Turkey".

Gabriel said at the time that Erdogan wanted to incite people in Germany against each other in "an unprecedented act of interference in the sovereignty of our country".

Kurz on Sunday condemned "the constant interference by Erdogan in the internal affairs of other states," and suggested Germany was not the only country where Turkey interfered.

Turkey repeatedly claims that Germany, home to three million ethnic Turks, is sheltering Kurdish militants and wanted coup plotters.

Erdogan himself hit back at Gabriel personally at the weekend, telling him: "Know your limits."

Relations between the NATO allies deteriorated sharply after last year's failed coup following the widespread crackdown in Turkey on the public sector and journalists.

Berlin says there are 10 Germans, including dual nationals, in custody in Turkey including Turkish-German journalist Deniz Yucel, Istanbul correspondent of the Die Welt daily.

German ambassador Martin Erdmann visited Yucel in prison on Tuesday as well as Berlin-based activist Peter Steudtner, who was arrested in a July raid, the German foreign ministry said in a statement. 

"They are as well as can be expected under the given circumstances," the ministry said, adding Erdmann met each for over an hour, holding "intense" talks. – Rappler.com

HONG KONG – Typhoon Hato left 5 dead in the gambling hub of Macau on Wednesday, August 23, as it brought chaos and destruction to the enclave after sweeping through neighboring Hong Kong, where one man also died.

Local media showed severe flooding had left cars underwater and people swimming in Macau's city streets, with the territory's mega-casinos running on back-up generators. 

The Macau government said one of the men died after being injured by a wall that blew down, another fell from a fourth floor terrace and another was a Chinese tourist hit by a truck. Details on the two others who died were not immediately available.

Apple Daily showed footage of people swimming through muddy water in what are usually roads, and being swept off their feet by winds. 

The sprawling Venetian casino resort was on back-up power and without air conditioning or proper lighting, according to one source. 

One employee of Sands, which owns the Venetian and the Parisian, said power had been out across the whole of Macau but was beginning to return.

"Because many guests come in the summer, a lot of them have been stuck in the major resorts and casinos," the employee said.

"All transportations – air, ground, sea – have halted, so customers who have checked out cannot leave yet."

Electricity was still down at the Grand Lisboa Wednesday afternoon, with the casino and restaurants there out of action, a staff member told the Agence France-Presse.

Residents took to social media to complain about city-wide power and mobile phone network outages.

Brian Chan, 31, said authorities had failed to give enough notice of the impending storm and were not properly prepared, describing the territory as "totally lost" in the typhoon.

The water supply was also limited, authorities said, and 50 flights cancelled from its international airport.

By evening, parts of Macau were still without power.

"Some have no tap water supply. The city looks like after an attack," Harald Bruning, editor of the Macau Post Daily, told AFP, describing it as the worst typhoon he had experienced in 30 years.

Hurricane winds and heavy rain had earlier hit Hong Kong, leaving an 83-year-old man dead after he fell into the sea, police said, and more than 120 injured.

The typhoon shut down the stock market and forced the cancellation of hundreds of flights in the worst storm the city has seen for five years.

'Flying trees'

Meteorologists raised the Hong Kong's most severe Typhoon 10 warning as the storm hit, only the third time in the past 20 years.

The typhoon passed as close as 60 kilometres (37 miles) and made landfall at noon (0400 GMT) in the southern mainland Chinese city of Zhuhai.

Thousands of people were evacuated Tuesday in parts of south China in preparation for the typhoon's arrival, the official Xinhua news agency said.

Hato sent meters-high waves crashing into Hong Kong's shorelines with flooding knee deep in some areas. 

Swathes of marine rubbish washed up on beaches and in coastal residential areas, including white globs of palm oil which have been coming ashore since a massive spillage at sea earlier this month. 

Gusts of up to 207 kilometers per hour brought flying debris, tearing down trees and scaffolding and smashing skyscraper windows. 

Fallen trees cut off roads to parts of the territory.

More than 400 flights were cancelled, with flag carrier Cathay Pacific axing most of its departures until 5:00 pm (0900 GMT). 

The airline said it had begun to reschedule the flights with some taking off Wednesday evening.  

As the storm moved away, the observatory gradually cancelled  all typhoon signals, although it said there would still be strong offshore winds and the rain continued. 

Hong Kong is regularly besieged by typhoons between July and October, but direct hits are rare. 

The city saw its strongest storm in 1962 when the eye of typhoon Wanda passed over and gusts of 284 kilometres per hour were recorded.

It killed 130 people and destroyed thousands of residential huts, leaving 72,000 people homeless. – Rappler.com

PARIS, France – Fighting in the troubled southern Philippine region of Mindanao has combined with extreme weather events to create a "humanitarian catastrophe", French aid groups said Wednesday. 

Around one million people have fled their homes in the region, according to Thibault Henry, head of the Philippines chapter of the charity Acted.

"Basic needs are not covered," Henry told AFP.

"Clearly it's a huge humanitarian crisis, a catastrophe, that will affect the region for many years," he said, noting that more than half of the population lives in poverty.

In early July a top government official estimated the number of displaced at 400,000.

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and government forces, with US military backing, are battling terrorists who support the Islamic State group (ISIS) in the region.

Hundreds of ISIS supporters occupied parts of the city of Marawi in late May in a conflict that has claimed more than 700 lives.

Mindanao was struck by typhoons in 2012 and 2013 and a drought in 2016, Henry noted, adding that other rebel movements affected other parts of the region.

Vanessa Cardamone of Handicap International said conflict combined with extreme weather events had created a "complex crisis".

She said only six percent of those displaced are in camps, while most are lodging with private individuals.

For his part Javad Amoozegar of the French charity Action Contre la Faim said humanitarian aid is falling far short of needs.

"The Philippines is at the bottom of the list... forgotten by the news," he said. "Most donors look at the number of victims before mobilising. Here the people aren't dead yet, but we want to help them so they don't die."

The 10,000-strong MILF has been leading a decades-long rebellion to establish an independent or autonomous homeland in Mindanao for the mainly Catholic Philippines' Muslim minority.

Hardline militants including former MILF members oppose any form of peace with the government, and some have in recent years pledged allegiance to ISIS.

The MILF has repeatedly warned that if the peace process collapses it will lose many of its younger members to ISIS-aligned groups. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II on Wednesday, August 23, said there is no need at this point or in the near future to create an independent fact-finding commission to investigate alleged summary killings in the police's war on drugs.

Aguirre said it is sufficient that the Philippine National Police (PNP), Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) are looking into allegations of extrajudicial killings (EJKs), saying they are "coping up."

"As of this time, I am not seeing that to be done in the near and foreseeable future," Aguirre said.

"Mr Secretary, it will be hard to trust the investigation to the police agencies because police is involved," said Albay First District Representative Edcel Lagman, who was among the lawmakers who interpellated Aguirre on Wednesday during a hearing of the House committee on appropriations on the Department of Justice (DOJ) 2018 budget.

Lagman said an independent commission will "determine the motives or possible rewards for the killings, to determine numbers of killings, including by police and vigilante groups, recommend prosecution and recommend bible policies other than police action with respect to the drug menace, which is basically a poverty and health issue."

Aguirre said extrajudicial killings in the war on drugs are just "exceptions to the rule," adding that the case of slain 17-year-old Kian delos Santos is an isolated one.

"It is only in this Kian delos Santos killing that appears, that there is an abuse on the part of the policemen. At this stage, a commission is not yet necessary," Aguirre said. (READ: Aguirre: Kian case overblown, any war has collateral damage)

Data on drug-war EJK cases 

Based on Aguirre's numbers, 3,050 people have died in legitimate police anti-drug operations. 

But when Lagman asked how many cases were being investigated by the DOJ, Aguirre could not come up with a number.

This, despite the fact that he was asked the same question a week ago during a Senate hearing on the DOJ budget. The DOJ's budget hearing was deferred in the Senate because Senator Franklin Drilon was not satisfied with Aguirre's answers, even accusing the justice secretary of "hiding something."

Aguirre told Lagman on Wednesday that he will submit "if not within the week, early next week" the collated data that will come from 223 city and provincial prosecutors' offices nationwide.

Drug war-related EJK cases being handled by the DOJ have been repeatedly questioned.

Detained Senator Leila de Lima claims Aguirre has instructed his prosecutors not to file any charges against state agents enforcing the war on drugs, saying the DOJ "has not filed a single case."

After De Lima first made the accusation, we asked about it on July 21. Aguirre was again quizzed about cases being filed by his office on August 17 in the Senate and then in the House on August 23. The justice secretary has yet to present his data. 

Aguirre signed Department Order 120 which ordered the NBI to investigate alleged drug war EJKs. When asked by Drilon during about the status of the investigations, Aguirre was evasive.

It was NBI Director Dante Gierran who told Drilon that they were investigating 37 cases – 3 have been recommended for prosecution, while 3 have been recommended for closure.

“You call that performance? Of the over 4,000 cases related to drugs, exactly 37 being investigated and of the 37, 24 pending, 3 have been recommended for prosecution. Dismal. Well, it's a part of the culture of impunity,” Drilon said.

Drilon came up with the number 4,000 based on Aguirre's own declarations in the Senate budget hearing that there have been about 1,000 vigilante killings, on top of the 3,050 deaths from legitimate police operations.

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'Other EJKs'

When the DOJ presented before the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland last May, Undersecretary Renante Orceo used a different set of data.

Orceo said they were handling 219 cases of EJK based on the Aquino-signed Administrative Order (AO) 35 which seeks to resolve cases of enforced disappearances, torture, and other grave violations of the right to life, liberty, and security of persons.

EJKs that are covered by AO 35 are deaths of individuals from sectors such as media, labor, and other cause-oriented groups. "It doesn't cover TokHang," Aguirre said on Wednesday, referring to the earlier name of Oplan Double Barrel Reloaded or the police's anti-drug raids.

Aguirre said that since Duterte, media killings have been removed from his jurisdiction and placed under Communications Secretary Martin Andanar in his Presidential Task Force on Violations of the Right to Life, Liberty and Security of the Members of the Media.

Orceo, in charge of the other EJKs under AO 35, said there have been no new cases under Duterte, given that media killings are no longer part of their coverage.

"As of this moment, since the President assumed office last year, there are still no new cases on extrajudicial killings, what we have right now is the old ones, 2-3 years ago," Orceo said.

Still, in their 2018 budget, P33.2 million was allotted for operations for the other EJKs under AO 35.

That prompted BH Partylist Representative Bernadette Herrera-Dy to say: "Can you submit to the office (the data) because I'm trying to see, because this is P33 million, and kung wala naman palang ibang cases (if there are no other cases) we would like to see how you are spending this one." – Rappler.com

WASHINGTON, USA – Hillary Clinton calls Donald Trump a "creep" in her new memoir and describes how the now-president's behavior during one of their debates made her skin crawl, according to excerpts released Wednesday, August 23.

"We were on a small stage and no matter where I walked, he followed me closely, staring at me, making faces. It was incredibly uncomfortable," Clinton, who made history last year as the first woman presidential nominee of a major US party, wrote in her upcoming book, titled "What Happened."

"He was literally breathing down my neck. My skin crawled," she added, noting that the October 2016 debate at Washington University in St Louis came just days after the release of a shock audio tape in which Trump was heard bragging about groping women.

"What would you do? Do you stay calm, keep smiling and carry on as if he weren't repeatedly invading your space? Or do you turn, look him in the eye and say loudly and clearly: 'Back up, you creep, get away from me,'" Clinton steamed.

"'I know you love to intimidate women, but you can't intimidate me.'"

The excerpts were obtained by MSNBC, which broadcast portions of the audio version – in Clinton's own voice – of the highly-anticipated memoir in which the former first lady dissects her doomed presidential campaign.

The book is set for a September 12 release in the United States. On Wednesday, advance sales pushed it to number one on Amazon's list of best sellers.

Clinton has said that after months of reflection on her defeat, she spent much of this year writing a book that aims to pull back the curtain on the strategies – and failures – in one of the most astonishing elections in US history.

In the excerpts she also describes her feelings of having let down the American people.

"Writing this wasn't easy. Every day that I was a candidate for president, I knew that millions of people were counting on me and I couldn't bear the idea of letting them down. But I did," she wrote.

"I couldn't get the job done. And I'll have to live with that for the rest of my life."

'Do over'

Publisher Simon and Schuster said last month that the former secretary of state's tome would be her "most personal memoir yet."

The publishing house said the book would reveal what Clinton felt during the bruising 2016 campaign, and her thoughts on the mistakes she made.

"I don't have all the answers," she said in the excerpts.

"I write about moments from the campaign that I wish I could go back and do over. If the Russians could hack my subconscious, they'd find a long list," she said, taking a jab at Moscow which US intelligence agencies have concluded sought to influence the US election in Trump's favor. 

Clinton has pointed the finger at Russia's "disinformation" effort and cyber-hacking against her campaign as one of the reasons for her stunning defeat.

In May, she said the hack and release of private emails from her campaign chief John Podesta, and the FBI briefly reopening an investigation into her own emails just 10 days before the election, helped tip the scales to her rival.

As for Trump controversially standing behind her during their second debate, Clinton said in the book excerpts that while she "kept my cool" despite the Republican candidate's lurking, she strongly considered spinning around and telling Trump to back off.

"It certainly would have been better TV," she wrote. – Rappler.com

CAGAYAN Philippines – The provincial government of Isabela has ordered the temporary closure of the Ilagan to Divilacan road, where it is undertaking a P2.28-billion rehabilitation project that would speed up transportation between inland and coastal towns in the province.

Isabela Governor Faustino Dy III cited vehicular mishaps and road safety problems in ordering the road closure.

Dy said the accidents and problems are "due to overzealous motorists who have attempted to use the road as means to reach the municipalities of Divilacan and Maconacon, as test sites for their all-terrain vehicles, or to ferry illegally harvested rattan and other products."

The governor added that "unplanned, unsolicited, and undesirable" activities along and around the road may pose risks and other problems to the project, project contractors, and the motorists themselves.

He said the road is not yet "prepared to accommodate vehicles other than those used in the project" and cited the ongoing construction of certain bridges and road sections.

Motorcyles ferrying people to and from Divilacan, however, are allowed to use to road.

The 82-kilometer all-weather road project was originally targeted to begin in 2012 and completed this year, but work on the project only began in March 2016. 

In justifying the road project, the provincial government cited the "absence of access from inland Isabela to coastal Isabela” that deprived coastal towns of affordable transportation, and speedy delivery of government services especially in times of calamity.

The road project – stretching from Barangay Sindon Bayabo in Ilagan to Barangay Dicatian in Divilacan – is also seen to reduce poverty and improve the capability of the government in environmental project and conservation.

The project seeks to speed up travel time from Ilagan to Divilacan and neighboring coastal towns,  which used to be accessible only by boat from Santa Ana town in Cagayan province, by helicopter, and through Aurora province roads. 

Environment advocates had opposed the project, citing its potential impact on the protected Sierra Madre, where the road passes through. – Rappler.com