When my then 6-year-old brown-skinned American cousin, Teresa, was being prepped up by her mom for bed, her mom accidentally put on too much white powder on her face. I was watching them when Teresa looked at her white-powdered cheeks and said, "Oh look I'm white, I now have more rights." Her mom and I immediately looked at each other, bewildered at how a 6-year-old could already have a sense of "racial" bias that is based on the color of one's skin.

There is a song in the Broadway musical "South Pacific" that has a line that goes "you've got to be taught to hate until you are 6 or 7 or 8." It implied that hating people who are not like us is not innate and has got to be drummed in us by the first people around us - by our parents and members of our extended family. However, studies show that while "hate" may not be present in children the way adults know "hate", "racial" bias gets children even younger than 6.

One study has found that at 9 months old, babies looked at the faces of those "races" that looked like their own longer than they did faces of other "races". Compare that to babies 3-6 months old in the same study which did not show any. Another study showed that when uncertain, babies averaging 7 months old would rely on cues from faces that are of their same "race" than of a different "race", even if both of the groups consist strangers.

I put "race" in quotation marks because in science, it just does not mean anything. There is nothing inside our most fundamental unit- our genes that could just come together and form genetic maps that can define and label you as "African", "Malay", "European" or "Asian". Nada. Zilch. If you had your genes sequenced, one can never tell the details contained in your passport or birth certificate based on your genes. The accident of your birth is really a random rave party of genes that have been passed on across generations, across continents.

Race is a myth because each of us is jigsaw puzzle with 3 billion pairs that form a mosaic from various geographic origins. And to make matters even more enormously tricky, humans since time began would give anything to move and mate – everywhere and with everyone so pinning down race to skin color to a specific location is just intellectually hollow.

We invented "race" and throw it around in the news, billboards and other public communications because it was a convenient way to visually classify who is "us" and who is "them". When we do that, we give in to how nature has wired us. It does not necessarily mean it is good.

There is nothing wrong with bias, per se. We all have it. It is how we can make quick decisions because nature does not want us getting stuck so it gave us brains that have evolved to classify. So babies classify faces according to the ones it is familiar with (more likely having the same skin as hers because skin color is so easy to detect). That forges social alliances and helps us to survive.

But no one stays a baby for long. Continued exposure to just what one is familiar with, well into adulthood could breed serious problems as to how we look at other people, which in turn will guide our actions towards one another. And we all know what happens when we see each other so differently to the extent that we just see the other side with one  blanket, uniform look like how we see immigrants or refugees. We do not see them as individuals with their own stories as you do your own self and the members of your own group.  

That is why when in 2007, James Watson, one of the Nobel prize-winning discoverers of the double-helix structure of DNA said that "All our social policies are based on the fact that their (blacks) intelligence is the same as ours – whereas all the testing says not really", he was scorned by the scientific community because that statement was a reflection of his horrible bias and not science. It became all the more laughably ironic, when his genes were examined and the scientists who probed them revealed that 16% of his genes had originated from those known to be of African descent.

I think that irony goes for all of us when we judge other people whom we think belong to another "race" less worthy than ours. Truth is, you are home to their genes too as much as yours is in them.

When the Genographic Project traced the genetic roots of all living humans today to an African mother ancestor,  you think we should have already kicked ourselves one final time for thinking that unless you were black, you had nothing to do with Africa. You may accept it or not, but evidence says so and that is the mighty thing about scientific evidence – you can go deny or ignore it but it will never go away.

More recently, another very important study is bringing us closer to consider "race" as an empty word.  It basically revealed that the genes that are responsible for skin pigmentation from having so few of it (white) to having lots of it (dark), are so enormously varied in African people and that these same variants are present in people who consider themselves European with light skin.

Even among the African sample, the range of their pigmentation run from as white as the skin of the typical East Asian to very dark. And the study says there is more to be uncovered yet. They also found that some of the oldest gene for light skin pigmentation, which could mean that our ancestors were really light skinned and just evolved darker skin to adapt to the harsh sun when they lost their hair.  This could destroy the often ill-meant joke that black skin equals "primitive". In the light of this new finding, light skin could even be more primitive.

All of us start in our home environment, most likely with people who look like us. That is one of the most compelling reasons for going to school and for traveling– you will be exposed to people who do not think like you because they were not raised like you. You will also naturally be weaned from the biases of your own parents and your in-group and learn to think for yourself. That is how you can exploit the mosaic of genes each of us have been bestowed by nature across time. Each of us carries a part of each other, with NO exception.  This is how you can recover for our species the only valid concept of race there is: the human race. – Rappler.com

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Malaysia is negotiating with a US firm to resume the hunt for missing flight MH370, a minister said Thursday, October 19, in news welcomed by the widow of one of those who had been on board.

The American company, Ocean Infinity as well as Dutch outfit Fugro, which had been involved in the original search, and an unidentified Malaysian company had put forward proposals to relaunch the hunt.

Ocean Infinity was reported to be favored after making a "no find, no fee" offer to search for the Malaysia Airlines plane.

The jet disappeared with 239 people on board in March 2014 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing after diverting from its flight path.

No sign of the plane was found in a 120,000 square kilometer (46,000 square mile) zone selected by satellite analysis of the jet's likely trajectory. 

The Australian-led hunt – the largest in history – was suspended in January, sparking criticism from families of those on board and some experts, who said it was called off too soon.

On Thursday, family members of passengers were sent a message by the MH370 Response Team in Malaysia saying they were in talks with Ocean Infinity on the terms of an agreement.

"The MH370 Response Team has received several proposals from interested parties to search for MH370," said the emailed message, a copy of which was seen by the Agence France-Presse.

"These offers have been thoroughly assessed by the team and the governments of Australia and China... The government of Malaysia has given the permission for the response team to proceed negotiating the terms and conditions with Ocean Infinity."

Malaysia's Deputy Transport Minister Abdul Aziz Kaprawi confirmed talks were under way.

"The ministry is still negotiating to finalise the terms... We favor Ocean Infinity," he told AFP.

Danica Weeks, an Australian whose husband Paul was on the flight, told AFP she was "ecstatic that the Malaysian government is doing what they need to do to continue to find MH370".

Ocean Infinity, which said in a statement that "good progress has been made" in negotiating the contract, claims it has the world's largest and most advanced commercial fleet of underwater vehicles for conducting searches.

"We remain optimistic that we will be able to try and help provide some answers to those who have been affected by this tragedy," a spokesman said in a statement to AFP.

Only 3 confirmed fragments of MH370 have been found, all of them on western Indian Ocean shores, including a two-metre wing part known as a flaperon. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – According to think tanks, the current version of the public utility vehicle (PUV) modernization program is not the answer to the country's current transportation problem.

During a House briefing on Thursday, October 19, IBON Foundation and AGHAM - Advocates for Science and Technology for the People said the program does not address the "lack of public mass transport system."

"The goal is for a publicly owned (transport system for) the welfare of the riding public. Finally, we propose that there should be a comprehensive public transport plan for individual vehicle type," Glenis Balangue, IBON Foundation's senior researcher said.

The House committee on transportation called for the meeting with transport officials after a two-day strike by jeepney operators and drivers over the government's plan to replace jeepneys that are older than 15 years. (WATCH: Abala ba ang transport strike?)

The think tanks said the government should not pass the burden of buying new and "expensive" jeepney models if the goal is to promote affordable, safe, and up-to-standard transport system.

Instead of giving the funds from the Comprehensive Automotive Resurgence Strategy program to foreign car manufacturers, IBON Foundation said it can be used to subsidize the cost of jeepneys through cooperatives. 

In their position papers submitted to the committee, the think tanks suggested a "Palit Jeepney" program which focuses on evaluating the roadworthiness of public utility jeepneys (PUJ).

"Evaluation for roadworthiness should be done at a per-unit basis instead of a fixed standard (of) 'older than 15 years' which now stands," Agham said. 

IBON Fondation suggested that the program can start by "auditing all registered PUJs which could still be rehabilitated" and should be complemented by an assured regular maintenance program at "no or minimal cost to the cooperative."

"In addition, the government should establish a partnership with driver and small operator cooperatives by limiting franchises to genuine (operating) cooperatives or associations. This way, the jeepneys can be modernized in a way that respects the small drivers and operator's right to work," the think tank said.

Transport group Pinagkaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operator Nationwide (Piston) said  the PUV modernization plan would lead to a loss of jobs and asked the government to junk the program.

The current version was "pro-big business" and anti-poor, as the new jeepney models cost around P1.5 million each – which was too much for small drivers and operators, Piston said.

Many questions still hound the modernization plan. On Thursday, transportation officials revealed that they are yet to map out a timeline for how the modernization program will be rolled out. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – If the Western world has so much to say about his controversial drug war, they should take the "lead role" in it, said President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday, October 19.

Still smarting from what he perceives to be foreign "interference" in his anti-drug campaign, Duterte launched into a sarcastic rant against the West during a high-level Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) forum.

"If any western country is interested to do it the civilized way, then come, I am inviting you to join the fray and I would be glad to appoint you the lead role in the problem," he said to his audience, which included ambassadors and former foreign government officials.

"Otherwise, if you cannot stop interfering, at least be educated in your assessment for, after all, all countries suffer from social problems," he added. (READ: Duterte to UN rights chief: Shut up, we pay your salary)

Duterte complained that all dead bodies in the Philippines appear to be labeled the result of "extrajudicial killings." (READ: UN: Duterte lacks understanding of human rights institutions)

His tirade was more civil than in past speeches, delivered more calmly and without curse words or insults. But the sarcasm was evident.

If a western country volunteers to spearhead the drug war, he would be happy to "order my soldiers and my policemen just to relax."

In more polite language, likely due to the presence of ambassadors in the room, Duterte asked the West to respect Philippine sovereignty.

"I would like to address myself now to the West. Please do not impose your will on us. Do not derogate our sovereignty by lecturing on us," he said.

While his government's implementation of his drug war may not be to the satisfaction of his critics, "there are things that we have to do because we have to do it," he said. (READ: Duterte to foreign reporter: I don't care about int'l criticism)

Duterte again challenged countries concerned with human rights violations in the Philippines to lodge a complaint with the United Nations. (READ: Duterte foreign policy: Independent but isolated) – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Tycoon Lucio Tan on Thursday, October 19, denied ever supporting destabilization efforts against the government, two days after President Rodrigo Duterte insinuated he had been doing that against past administrations and dared the businessman to do the same now. 

In a statement, Tan said his family and his group of companies remain supportive of the Duterte government, and insinuations he would try to undermine it were "false and without basis."

“I have not and will never support any attempt to undermine duly-constituted authority. That’s the plain and simple truth,” Tan said.

The businessman said he valued his family and businesses, and would not put them in trouble by trying to sabotage the government. 

“I will not sacrifice everything I worked for, including my family’s honor, by supporting any attempt to undermine those in power,” he said.

Tan is the 4th richest Filipino, with an estimated net worth of $4.2 billion. 

At this age, he said, he would only want an "easier" life, he said. Tan is 83.

In April, the President mentioned Tan in a speech before overseas Filipino workers in Qatar, saying the businessman owed the government some P30 billion in taxes, and would have to pay up. 

At the time, however, Bureau of Internal Revenue Commissioner Caesar Dulay told reporters he was not aware of any pending case against Tan. 

In September, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) demanded that the Lucio Tan-led flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) settle with the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) unpaid navigational fees and other charges of P6.965 billion. 

The DOTr also said PAL owes the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) P322.1 million.

PAL offered to settle P6 billion after Duterte threatened to cut off PAL's access to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila. – Rappler.com 

ISLAMBAD, Pakistan – A Pakistani court indicted ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif on corruption charges spiralling from the Panama Papers leak, a senior government official said Thursday, October 19, in a case that could ultimately see the former leader jailed.

"The court also indicted Nawaz Sharif's daughter Maryam and his son-in-law in a corruption case related to their London properties," the official told the Agence France-Presse on condition of anonymity.

A Sharif representative entered a not guilty plea for the sacked premier, who is currently in London with his wife Kalsum as she undergoes cancer treatment.

Maryam also pleaded not guilty, brushing aside the decision as "baseless" as she left the court in Islamabad.  

"(The) charges are not only groundless, baseless (...) unfounded also frivolous and on top of that we are being denied our right to fair trial," Maryam said in a statement to the court seen by AFP.

In late July the Supreme Court sacked Sharif following an investigation into corruption allegations against his family, making him the 15th premier in Pakistan's 70-year history to be ousted before completing a full term.

The allegations against the prime minister stemmed from the Panama Papers leak last year, which sparked a media frenzy over the luxurious lifestyles and high-end London property portfolio owned by his family.

The indictment comes ahead of a general election due by the end of 2018, in which Sharif's ruling Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) will face a renewed offensive by cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party.

The former premier last appeared before the anti-corruption court on October 2 before flying back to London. There was no indication if he planned to return to Pakistan to fight the charges.

Sharif has faced similar challenges in the past.

In 1993 he was sacked from his first term as premier for corruption, while in 1999 he was sentenced to life in prison after his second term in office ended with a military putsch. 

Following the coup he was allowed to go into exile in Saudi Arabia, returning in 2007 before becoming prime minister for a third time in 2013.

Last month his wife Kalsum won his former parliamentary seat during a heated by-election in Lahore, in a poll seen as a key test of the ruling party's popularity after Sharif's sacking.

After his ouster, Sharif led supporters from the capital Islamabad to his hometown Lahore in a days-long procession that brought thousands into the streets.

During the rally Sharif repeatedly blasted the court's move to oust him, saying the decision was an "insult" to Pakistanis. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – President Rodrigo Duterte confirmed on Thursday, October 19, that Mahmud Ahmad, the Malaysian terrorist who helped finance the Marawi siege, was killed by the military earlier that day.

"Now the other, the one they call Doc – there are 3 of them:, Hapilon, Omar, and Doc – he is an Arab, he was taken this afternoon. And that completes the story," said Duterte during an event of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

A Malacañang official close to Duterte confirmed to Rappler that the President was referring to Mahmud.

Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesman Brigadier General Restituto Padilla also confirmed Mahmud's death after Duterte's announcement.

The military, earlier on Thursday, said it was still verifying reports that Mahmud was killed.

Mahmud reportedly channeled at least P30 million ($600,000) to finance the attack in Marawi City, according to the military.

He was among 13 fighters the military killed in its latest assault to clear the battle area of what the government called "stragglers."

Mahmud survived the assault on Monday, October 16, that killed the siege's top leaders. 

In the same Thursday speech, Duterte said martial law would remain until the last terrorist is "taken out."

"Everybody was asking, when will it stop? It will not stop until the last terrorist is taken out," said Duterte, referring to martial law he declared in Mindanao after the Marawi conflict broke out.

He did not clarify what he meant by "taken out" or the geographic scope of his remark – if "taken out" from Marawi or from the Mindanao region.

He previously said, however, that he would only lift martial law after the clearing operations in Marawi.

Duterte declared the "liberation" of Marawi from "terrorist influence" on Tuesday, October 17.

On Monday, October 16, soldiers killed the top leaders behind the siege. Abu Sayyaf subleader Isnilon Hapilon and Omar Maute of the family-led Maute Group were shot by government snipers as troops assaulted enemy position to rescue remaining hostages. (READ: The life of a Maute hostage in Marawi) 

These terrorist leaders pledged allegiance to international terrorist network Islamic State (ISIS). – Rappler.com

MOSCOW, Russia – A Russian socialite-turned-liberal journalist stunned many 6 years ago when she joined mass protests against Vladimir Putin. 

A glamorous, wealthy TV personality with multiple projects to her name, she said she risked a lot by joining anti-Kremlin rallies.

"My name is Ksenia Sobchak and I have something to lose," the daughter of the late Saint Petersburg mayor Anatoly Sobchak, who mentored Putin, said to boos from the crowd at the 2011 Moscow rally.

Now the 35-year-old former host of a television reality show has stunned Russians again by declaring her bid to run in a March presidential election widely expected to extend Putin's rule to 2024.

"My name is Ksenia Sobchak. I am standing for president," she wrote in a letter released to announce her campaign on Wednesday, October 18.

Political observers and media suggested her Kremlin bid was designed by Putin's team to rekindle public interest in the election amid widespread political ennui and inject a note of glamour into a campaign devoid of genuine political competition.

Sobchak's campaign, observers said, is meant to steal Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny's thunder and further split the country's embattled opposition.

Konstantin Kalachev, head of Political Expert Group think tank, said her campaign was a Kremlin attempt to "troll" Navalny.

"This is an attempt to artificially create an attractive liberal candidate," he told Agence France-Presse.

Navalny, who shot to prominence by organizing huge protests against Putin in 2011 and 2012, has also announced his intention to run and has over past months sought to rally supporters around the country in a Western-style campaign. 

But officials say he is not eligible to run because he is serving a suspended sentence for fraud. 

Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied Thursday, October 19, the Kremlin was behind Sobchak's bid.

'Disgusting Kremlin game'

Navalny, who is serving a 20-day term in jail on charges of repeatedly violating a law on organizing rallies, has yet to comment after Sobchak's announcement.

But the Yale-educated lawyer said in September, when speculation that Sobchak would stand for president began circulating, that her bid was a "rather disgusting Kremlin game," accusing it of dragging "this liberal laughing stock into the polls to divert attention."

Analysts said Sobchak's candidacy is a political spoiler designed to create the semblance of a competitive election and offer a token candidate to opposition voters who would rather vote for Navalny.

Sobchak has in recent years sought to refashion herself as a liberal political journalist, but gained fame by presenting a popular reality show called Dom-2 (House-2) where contestants have to form romantic relationships.

"Ksenia Sobchak will take part in a show called 'The Presidential Election'," blared the banner headline of the mass-circulation Moskovsky Komsomolets newspaper.

"Circuses for the masses are guaranteed – although the people would rather have bread."

RBK business daily caustically called her "an opponent from Dom-2".

Sobchak said she had met Putin shortly before announcing her bid and told him of her intentions. She declared that her campaign slogan was "I am the candidate 'against all'."

Russian elections used to allow voters to tick a box titled "against all" to reject all candidates. 

'Hype and squabbles'

Many Russians derided Sobchak's move, saying the poll – which is expected to see the participation of usual suspects like the veteran leader of Russia's Communist Party Gennady Zyuganov – was becoming ever more farcical.

"I don't want to vote 'against all', I want to vote for Navalny," said one tweet.

Others said it was hard to take the announcement seriously.

"If this is Operation Successor, then it's a bold move," quipped Vadim Volkov, a 39-year-old manager.

"It is hard to speak about this without a smile," he told Agence France-Presse.

Sobchak, whose net worth is estimated by Forbes' Russian edition to be $2.1 million, is planning to recruit Vitali Shkliarov, a Russian who campaigned for Bernie Sanders in 2016 in the United States, reported TV Dozhd (Rain) where Sobchak is a presenter.

Sobchak's campaign budget is estimated at some one billion rubles ($17 million), reported the Bell, a daily newsletter founded by prominent Russian journalist Elizaveta Osetinskaya, citing a source close to Sobchak. The idea of having a campaign whose main players are Putin and Sobchak with Navalny banned, "is no doubt a bold bright idea from Sergei Kiriyenko's team," said political observer Kirill Rogov, referring to the Kremlin's first deputy chief of staff.

"There will be no elections but there will be enough hype, squabbles and creativity to keep people glued to the screens." – Rappler.com

KAMPALA, Uganda – Two people have died from the Marburg virus in eastern Uganda, in the country's first outbreak of the deadly Ebola-like pathogen in 3 years, the health ministry said Thursday, October 19.

"Blood samples were taken from two people who have since died and were found positive for Marburg", Uganda's health ministry permanent secretary, Dr. Diana Atwine told the Agence France-Presse.

She said a team of experts had been sent to Kween district, near the Kenyan border, to contain the virus.

"At moment we don't know if there are other people apart from the dead who have contracted the disease because the health experts are still investigating in addition to sensitising the population about the dangers of Marburg and we call for public vigilance," she added.

One individual was a male hunter who died on September 25. His 50-year-old sister died on October 11.

"The second victim had taken care of her brother during his sickness and burial preparation rituals when we suspect she contracted the disease," Health Minister Ruth Achieng said.

The two are the first recorded cases of Marburg in Kween district.

According to the Uganda Virus Research Institute, the first known case of Marburg in the country was in the western district of Kamwenge in 2007. 

A 2012 outbreak killed 10 people and in 2014 one man died.

The Marburg virus is one of the most deadly known pathogens. Like Ebola, it is a haemorrhagic fever -- it causes severe bleeding, fever, vomiting and diarrhoea. It has a 21-day incubation period.

Like Ebola, the Marburg virus is also transmitted via contact with bodily fluids and fatality rates range from 25 to 80 percent.

The name of the disease comes from the city of Marburg in central Germany, where the virus was first identified in 1967 among workers who had been exposed to infected African green monkeys at a research lab. – Rappler.com

LANAO DEL NORTE, Philippines – The Philippine Army’s 4th Infantry Division (ID) on Thursday, October 19, added a brand new battalion under its command, bringing to a total of 8 the number of battalions operating in its area of responsibility.

The 4th ID’s area of responsibility covers Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon, Camiguin, Bukidnon, Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur, Surigao del Norte and Surigao del Sur, and Dinagat Island.

Bukidnon, Misamis Oriental, and the Agusan and Surigao provinces have a strong Communist rebel presence, with Surigao del Sur having been once one of the most militarized provinces in the country in 2015 at the height of the Lumad Crisis with 5 battalions around its borders.

The 88th Infantry Battalion (IB) will be operating from Maramag, Bukidnon, at the former camp of the 8th IB.

Captain Joe Patrick Martinez, spokesperson of the 4th ID said that the activation and deployment of 88th IB which is composed of 450 soldiers is part of the president's plan to hasten the resolution of all internal conflicts in the country.

“They are tasked to address the threat situation in the Southern part of Bukidnon,” Capt Martinez said.

The province has its shares of NPA attacks, most recently the attack on Davao Agricultural Ventures (Davco) where rebels torched vehicles and equipments and disarmed security personnel.

Martinez added that the deployment will help pave way for the smooth implementation of all Government programs and services that would benefit every Filipinos in all parts of the Archipelago.

Major General Ronald C. Villanueva, 4th ID Commanding General, underlined the specific tasks and mission of the said battalion that are aligned to the current AFP campaign which is the Development Support and Security Plan "Kapayapaan".

"When we talk about terrorism, we don't only mean Maute or ISIS; we also talk about the New People's Army that have longed made the lives of our people in Bukidnon miserable, Villanueva said.

He added that the terrorists not only burn trucks and plantations, they "also extort hard-earned money from poor farmers and... recruit children to fight against the government."

Villanueva emphasized the real intent of the NPA is not to topple down the armed forces but to take the governance from the people.

“This is the reason why we remain strong, resilient, and have improved our security stance in order to not just eliminate but to fully address this insurgency situation that have longed been affecting our Country's development," Villanueva added.

"To all of you, soldiers of this battalion, I expect that you will always bear the professionalism as you execute your tasks, build bridges from among the people, earn their respect and gain friends. There is no room for any human rights violations,” Villanueva addressed the soldiers.

“We have already gained... people's support especially during our efforts in Marawi. Don't let one mistake destroy what we have sacrificed for our Country. We support the intent of our Commander-in-Chief to protect the state and the people. Again I remind all of you to perform only your duty as a disciplined soldier," Villanueva added.

Martinez said that the soldiers from 88th IB came from different divisions from the army, the 3rd, 8th, and 9th IDs, and new graduates from the 4th ID.

The soldiers from the 3 divisions were replaced by new graduates from their own divisions. – Rappler.com

UTUADO, Puerto Rico –  It's been a month since Hurricane Maria ripped through Puerto Rico and Samuel de Jesus still can't drive out of his isolated, blacked-out town.

In fact, much of the US territory in the Caribbean is still a crippled mess 4 weeks after that fierce Category Four storm.

The bridge connecting Rio Abajo to the rest of the island was swept away when Maria slammed the island on September 20. For two weeks, Rio Abajo – located in a mountainous region in central-western Puerto Rico – was cut off and forgotten, without power or phone service.

"We didn't know what to do. We were literally going crazy," said de Jesus, 35.

"Those were difficult, desperate days. We could not find a way out, and the hurricane caused extensive damage," he told AFP.

During the two long weeks following Maria, the 27 families living in Rio Abajo saw their supplies quickly deplete.

De Jesus, who has diabetes, needed to keep his insulin refrigerated. The storm blew away the island's already decrepit power grid, so people resorted to emergency generators.

"But I was running out of gasoline to run the generator," he said.

A helicopter now makes regular deliveries of food, water and medicine because with the bridge washed out, there is no other way in or out of town. 

People can't wade across the river because it is contaminated with human waste after a pipe broke when the bridge went.

Some brave souls use a precarious ladder rigged to get across the water, but for most people it is too dangerous.

We need a bridge "to take out our vehicles and leave in case of emergency, or if there is a landslide," he said.

Where the bridge once stood, residents set up a system of ropes, pulleys and buckets to move supplies over the river, which has been contaminated with sewer water since the hurricane.

Over the remains of the bridge locals hung the single-star, red, white and blue flag of Puerto Rico and a sign that reads "the campsite of the forgotten."

Desperate need for electricity

Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello visited the surrounding municipality of Utuado on Wednesday to deliver supplies, but he did not stop in Rio Abajo.

"Utuado is certainly one of the most severely affected municipalities in all of Puerto Rico," Rossello said.

"Our commitment is to give it support and aid during the whole road to recovery."

Eighty-one percent of Puerto Rico remains blacked out one month after Maria struck. Clean water for drinking, cooking and bathing is scarce, too.

Puerto Ricans' main obstacle to getting back to some semblance of normality is the slowness of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority in getting the power grid back up and running.

The lack of power has paralyzed a key industry – pharmaceutical production – and most businesses including restaurants are closed or operating at great cost through the use of diesel powered generators.

This nightmare comes about a year after the US government established an external fiscal control board for the island after it declared bankruptcy because of 73 billion dollars in debt.

Economist Joaquin Villamil told AFP that damage from Hurricane Maria is estimated at 20 billion dollars – 4 times that of Hurricane Georges in 1998, when measured in 2016 dollars.

Villamil said reconstruction money provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and from insurance companies will have a positive impact on the island's economy in the second half of fiscal 2018 and in fiscal 2019, but this boost will just be temporary.

"From an economic point of view there is not much net gain," said Villamil, who works for a consulting firm called Estudios Tecnicos.

He said the economy has been shrinking since 2006 and Maria will delay any prospect of recovery.

It will take at least until 2026 to get back to the GDP level of 2006, he added.

Making things worse, people are leaving the island for the mainland US. Forecasts are that the population now at 3.4 million will go down to 3.1 million or even less by 2026, said Villamil.

The government of Florida estimates that since October 3 – the day a state of emergency to deal with an influx of Puerto Ricans was declared – more than 36,000 people from the island have poured in. – Rappler.com

BRUSSELS, Belgium – British Prime Minister Theresa May pressed EU leaders Thursday, October 19, for a Brexit deal she can "defend" at home as her counterparts said at a summit in Brussels that there were encouraging signs of progress in the talks.

May appealed for "urgent" movement at a summit dinner, the night before her 27 counterparts were set to decide that there had not been enough progress on divorce issues to open trade discussions until at least December.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the EU's most powerful figure, said however that there were positive indications despite the deadlock over Britain's exit bill and other issues ahead of Brexit in 2019.

"The clear and urgent imperative must be that the dynamic you create enables us to move forward together," May told her colleagues, according to Downing Street.

"There is increasingly a sense that we must work together to get to an outcome we can stand behind and defend to our people," she told them over a dinner of butternut gnocchi and smoked haddock, pheasant supreme and fresh pineapple.

The EU is expected to say on Friday, October 20, when they meet without May, that they will start internal preparatory work on a post-Brexit transition period and a future trade deal with Britain.

In a move to sway her colleagues on what is a key topic for them, May published an open letter to the 3 million European citizens saying a deal to secure their post-Brexit rights was "within touching distance".

'Encouraging signs'

Merkel struck an optimistic note after the leaders' dinner, saying she could see "zero indications that we will not succeed".

"I want very clearly a deal and not some unpredictable solution, on this we are working very intensively," Merkel said.

But Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said that while May "pleaded her case well", she did not offer any more detail than in a speech she made in Florence in September.

"I didn't expect anything else this evening, but things have to be made more concrete in the weeks leading up to December," Rutte said.

Referring to the fact that the summit was moved from the EU's new building after a chemical leak in the catering area, Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite said on Twitter: "Lessons from #EUCO kitchen: fuming over #Brexit must not become toxic."

May went on a diplomatic blitz ahead of the summit, calling the French and German leaders among others and having dinner with European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker in Brussels on Monday, October 16.

She walked into the summit room flanked by both Merkel and France's Emmanuel Macron, with the 3 leaders deep in conversation, occasionally whispering behind their hands.

Her personal appeal to the 27 heads of state and government effectively bypassed chief EU negotiator Michel Barnier, who is meant to be handling all aspects of the talks for the bloc.

But European leaders have been increasingly vocal about their frustration at divisions in May's cabinet over Brexit, saying they are still unsure what Britain wants, even after 5 rounds of negotiations.

The EU agrees that of the 3 key separation issues at stake, citizens' rights is the most advanced, but sticking points remain on the bill and Northern Ireland's border with Ireland.

The exit bill is the most poisonous issue, with Germany and France insisting that there should be no impact on the EU's budget from Britain's departure.

In Florence, May promised to maintain Britain's contributions for two years after Brexit to complete the current EU budget period, totaling around 20 billion euros ($24 billion).

European Parliament chief Antonio Tajani dubbed that sum "peanuts" this week and said it should be nearer 50 or 60 billion euros.

'Poorer and weaker'

The slow progress has fueled fears that May's government may collapse, or worse that Britain may fail to strike a withdrawal agreement before its formal departure on March 29, 2019, which could cause economic and transport chaos of both sides of the Channel.

The former head of Britain's MI6 foreign intelligence agency, John Sawers, warned Thursday that Britain could be left "poorer and weaker" by Brexit and needing to spend more to maintain influence abroad.

Goldman Sachs chief executive Lloyd Blankfein meanwhile took to Twitter to say he would be "spending a lot more time" in Frankfurt, just stopping short of naming the German city as a post-Brexit headquarters.

May is under pressure from senior Brexiteers at home, and a group urged her in a letter on Thursday to walk out of the talks if the EU does not agree to move on to trade.

Separately, Britain's opposition party leader Jeremy Corbyn held talks with leading European Union negotiators on Thursday, warning that leaving the EU without a deal would be "catastrophic". – Rappler.com

BRUSSELS, Belgium – The EU is to consider stepping up measures aimed at punishing North Korea for its nuclear and ballistic weapons programs, in a summit agreement approved by leaders on Thursday, October 19.

The bloc blacklisted the North Korean army on Monday, October 16, as part of a new round of sanctions that European powers hope will help force Kim Jong-Un's regime to the bargaining table.

New measures approved by EU foreign ministers also included a complete ban on investment in the North, which carried out its 6th and most powerful nuclear test last month, and a total embargo on oil and petrol products.

EU heads of state and government meeting in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, October 20 will give their backing to the new measures, which go beyond sanctions imposed by the UN, and warn Pyongyang that more could be on the way.

"The recent behavior of the DPRK is unacceptable and poses a significant threat to the Korean peninsula and beyond," the leaders said in written conclusions to the summit.

"The European Council will consider further responses in close consultation with partners and the EU will continue to reach out to 3rd countries urging the full implementation of UN sanctions."

The EU has more sanctions in force against North Korea than against any other country, and given the limited trade between them there is little scope to expand measures much further.

Estonian Foreign Minister Sven Mikser, whose country holds the bloc's rotating presidency, said last month that "there is only so far we can go further before hitting absolute zero."

EU leaders will also reiterate their demand for Pyongyang to "fully and unconditionally" abandon its nuclear and ballistic weapons programs.

Tensions have soared in recent weeks following Pyongyang's latest nuclear test as US President Donald Trump engages in an escalating war of words with Kim.

The North's missile and nuclear capabilities have made significant progress under Kim, who told party officials this month that the country's atomic weapons were a "treasured sword" to protect it from aggression. – Rappler.com

PARIS, France – Pollution claimed the lives of 9 million people in 2015, one in every 6 deaths that year, according to a report published on Friday, October 20.

Almost all the deaths, 92%, happened in low- and middle-income countries, it said, with air pollution the main culprit, felling 6.5 million people.

Almost half of the total toll came from just two countries – India and China – researchers reported in The Lancet medical journal.

In rapidly-industrializing countries such as India, Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, Madagascar and Kenya, pollution can account for as many as one in 4 deaths, they added.

"Pollution and related diseases most often affect the world's poor and powerless, and victims are often the vulnerable and the voiceless," said co-author Karti Sandilya of Pure Earth, an anti-pollution NGO.

"As a result, pollution threatens fundamental human rights, such as the right to life, health, wellbeing, safe work, as well as protections of children and the most vulnerable."

With global welfare losses of about $4.6 trillion (3.9 trillion euros) per year, the economic cost of pollution-related deaths and disease is also concentrated in the developing world.

"Proportionally, low-income countries pay 8.3% of their gross national income to pollution-related death and disease, while high-income countries pay 4.5%," said the researchers.

Aside from outright poisoning, pollution causes an array of deadly ailments such as heart disease, stroke, lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The deadliest form, responsible for more than two-thirds of deaths, was air pollution, they added.

Call to action

This includes outdoor pollution from factory and car emissions, and indoor pollution from wood, charcoal, coal, dung or crop waste being burnt for heating and cooking.

After water pollution in second place with 1.8 million deaths, "workplace pollution including exposure to toxins and carcinogens was linked to 0.8 million deaths," said the report.

These included the lung disease pneumoconiosis in coal workers, bladder cancer in dye workers, and asbestosis and lung cancer in workers exposed to asbestos.

"Lead pollution was linked to 0.5 million deaths that resulted from high blood pressure, renal failure and cardiovascular disease," said the report.

In a separate comment, The Lancet editors Pamela Das and Richard Horton said the report came at a "worrisome time, when the US government's Environmental Protection Agency, headed by Scott Pruitt, is undermining established environmental regulations."

The latest findings, they added, should serve as a "call to action".

"Pollution is a winnable battle.... Current and future generations deserve a pollution-free world," the pair wrote.

Pruitt announced this month the US would pull out of former president Barack Obama's Clean Power Plan.

There was some good news in the report too.

Deaths due to water and household air pollution dropped from 5.9 million in 1990 to 4.2 million in 2015, said the report authors, as poor countries became richer.

On the other hand, deaths from pollution associated with industrial development – such as outdoor air pollution, chemical and soil pollution, increased from 4.3 million to 5.5 million over the same period. – Rappler.com

TUGUEGARAO CITY, Philippines – Dubbed the strongest to hit Cagayan province in recent years, Super Typhoon Lawin had left unimaginable damage when it struck the country a year ago.

Four people were killed and billions worth of damage was reported.

But a year after, not much of the damaged government infrastructure has been rehabilitated.

In Peñablanca town, considered ground zero, residents are still hoping the government would fast-track the rehabilitation of schools and bridges to bring back their normal life.

‘Unfavorable’

In Peñablanca National High School, one of the heaviest hit schools in the province, students are forced to hold their classes in an improvised wooden classroom.

After the typhoon, the school could no longer use 16 of its classrooms. 21 improvised classrooms were built to accommodate the school’s population.

Junior High School student Joval Taguinod shared their difficulties with holding classes in an “unfavorable” environment.

“One of the difficulties we experience is the dust. Our shoes get dusty or dirty. If our things fall on the floor, they also get dusty. When it’s rainy, we also get a little wet because of these types of rooms,” Taguinod said in Filipino.

But Taguinod, understanding that the government could not immediately build new classrooms for them, asked that the improvised classroom be at least cemented.

“We’ve been like this for 4 months. We’re asking the government to improve our classrooms, cement it a little, for us to have protection during rains so that we won’t get wet,” he added.

One of Taguinod’s teachers, Cyrene Carag, appealed to the government to act fast in the rehabilitation as the school’s current set-up is “not conducive for learning.”

Carag said that the lack of electricity in the improvised classrooms is making her job as a social studies teacher harder.

“For me, I’m a social studies teacher so it requires a lot of pictures for students to visualize what happened in the past, or movies or shows. In this kind of environment, we can’t do audio-visual presentations, no power outlets so we really just narrate to the students the events in the lesson,” Carag said.

Broken bridges

During the onslaught of Typhoon Lawin, two bridges of Peñablanca town were destroyed, isolating 13 barangays (villages). A year after, two of them have yet to be replaced.

In Barangay Cabasan, one detour bridge and one floating wood bridge were constructed as temporary bridges for people going in and out of the 13 barangays.

But barangay councilman Marlo Pagulayan complained that the bridges would be submerged during heavy rains.

In fact, Pagulayan said both of the detour bridge's approaches were washed out last week due to continuous rains.

"This October, heavy rains are starting again. If it rains overnight, the water level submerges the overflow bridge and the approach gets destroyed. As you can see the local government is putting backfills to repair the approach so that motorcycles and tricycles can use the detour again here in Cabasan," Pagulayan said.

"We hope the government can speed up the disbursement of funds because it has given us big problems here, especially now that it’s harvesting season. It’s difficult to transport our products," he added.

The Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) Cagayan Valley said they have already requested P110 million from the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Fund for the rehabilitation of the said bridges, but the request has yet to be approved. – Rappler.com

TOKYO, Japan – Japan's Emperor Akihito will step down on March 31, 2019, a report said Friday, October 20, the first imperial retirement in more than two centuries.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will meet top officials and members of the royal household next month before announcing the date, the Asahi Shimbun reported, citing unnamed government sources.

Akihito's eldest son, 57-year-old Crown Prince Naruhito, will ascend the Chrysanthemum Throne the next day on April 1, the paper said.

The popular 83-year-old Akihito shocked the country last year when he signaled his desire to take a back seat after nearly 3 decades, citing his age and health problems.

There have been abdications in Japan's long imperial history, but the last one was more than 200 years ago.

Akihito's unexpected move presented a challenge since there was no law to deal with an emperor retiring from what is usually a job for life – and it reignited debate about allowing women to ascend the traditionally male-only throne.

In June, the parliament passed a one-off rule allowing the aging emperor to step down but the Asahi report is the first time a precise date for the abdication has been mooted.

"It is an immeasurable relief to me that his majesty ... can now have days of rest as he reaches an advanced age," Empress Michiko, who turned 83 Friday, said in a statement.

The status of the emperor is sensitive in Japan given its 20th century history of war waged in the name of Akihito's father Hirohito, who died in 1989.

Some worried that changing the rule to allow any emperor to abdicate could put Japan's future monarchs at risk of being subject to political manipulation.

"Nothing has been decided on this issue," a spokesman for the Imperial Household Agency told Agence France-Presse, declining to comment further. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Opposition Senator Antonio Trillanes IV said on Friday, October 20, that he only presented facts about the situation in the Philippines during his meeting with US Republican Senator Marco Rubio in the United States.

In a statement, Trillanes also denied reports that he tried to convince US lawmakers to persuade US President Donald Trump to cancel his planned visit to Manila in November for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit  (ASEAN) and Related Meetings.

“I would like to confirm the information that I met with senior US government officials to include Senator Marco Rubio. As mentioned in the tweet of Senator Rubio, we talked about enhancing RP-US relations, corruption, and the human rights situation in the country,” Trillanes said.

“To be clear, I did not try to stop the state visit of President Trump since these things are carefully planned and cannot be stopped on the mere say-so of a Philippine senator,” he said.

Malacañang earlier expressed hope that Trillanes did not give “biased” information to US officials that would "adversely affect” the ties between the two countries.

The opposition senator denied this and said he just presented factual information. After all, he said, no one can "fool" the US government on the status in the Philippines.

“Unlike the officials of the Duterte Administration, I presented only factual information. Besides, you cannot fool the US government; they know what's happening in our country,” Trillanes said.

Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III earlier said that he hopes Trillanes is not “wishing or, worse working for bad relations between the Philippines and other countries” and that anyone who loves the country should always promote its best interests.

In an apparent reply to such concerns, the minority senator assured the public that he did push for the country’s interests – which he said is not the same as what President Rodrigo Duterte wants.

“Be assured that I pushed for the interests of our country. But let me emphasize that the interests of our country are not necessarily the same as the interests of Mr Duterte,” Trillanes said.

Rubio and US Senator Benjamin Cardin of Maryland earlier introduced a bill seeking to restrict the supply of defense equipment to the Philippine National Police, which used to head the bloody campaign until Duterte ordered the Philippine Drug Enforcement Authority to take over following public backlash. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – In a new wave of rants against Liberal Party president and Senator Francis Pangilinan, President Rodrigo Duterte showed he continues to be clueless about an amendment to the Juvenile Justice Act of 2006, also called the Pangilinan Law.

Duterte, in speeches on October 18 and 19, falsely claimed that the law, so-called because it was authored by Pangilinan, has not been changed, such that children below 15 years old who commit serious offenses like murder, rape, or robbery are sent to correctional facilities. (READ: Beyond juvenile delinquency: Why children break the law)

Without this amendment, said the President, the youths "go scot-free" and thus have no sense of accountability for their crime.

"It could be stealing, robbery with rape, with homicide or rape with killing, they go scot-free. There’s no such thing as, they are brought to a judge. It’s a vacuum created by Pangilinan," said Duterte at the Philippine Business Conference on Thursday.

Thus, declared Duterte, Pangilinan is the "one single person" who "promoted criminality in this country."

Duterte had previously made this assertion in April when he told his audience of 4- to 10-year-old kids of the need to lower the age of criminal responsibility to 9, instead of 15.

Six months later, the President is still unaware that the Pangilinan law was amended in 2013.

One of the key amendments requires that children above 12 years old and up to 15 years old who commit murder, kidnapping, rape, destructive arson and certain violations of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act be "mandatorily placed in a special facility within the youth care faculty or ‘Bahay Pag-asa’ called the Intensive Juvenile Intervention and Support Center (IJISC)."

This is exactly what Duterte said should happen in his recent speeches.

"What Kiko Pangilinan should have done was make a colatilla or a condition provided that in every town or city, there should be a correctional institution. Not to put them in prison but to detain them and be lectured on what is right and what is wrong...Now, why don't they amend it?"

Davao City has its own Bahay Pag-asa-type of facility, which Duterte himself helped establish.

It's not clear if Duterte was told about the amendment but ignored or forgot about it, or if no official or personnel of the Presidential Management Staff (PMS) bothered to correct him.

The PMS is the Malacañang office tasked to assist the President in policy matters, from drafting his speeches to keeping him up to speed on policy developments, to helping him prepare for major summits and events. – Rappler.com 

MANILA, Philippines – A new Pulse Asia survey released Friday, October 20, showed that road infrastructure, flooding, and illegal drugs are among the top concerns of Filipinos at the local level.

Pulse Asia's September 2017 Ulat ng Bayan said that for 15.9% of Filipinos, the Duterte administration should immediately act on the country's poor state of roads or road infrastructure.

The other top local concerns, according to the survey's respondents, are flooding (11.2%) and illegal drugs (10.2%). A majority or 17.2% of Filipinos did not mention any local concern which they think should be immediately addressed by the administration.

While majority of respondents from Metro Manila cited illegal drugs as their most urgent local concern (18.3%), this was not the case for the rest of Luzon, where 30% of the respondents did not mention any urgent local concern.

Majority of respondents from Visayas (28.5%) and Mindanao (23.5%) cited road infrastructure as their leading local issue.

The table below shows other local concerns included in the survey:

The survey conducted nationwide from September 24 to 30, 2017 used face-to-face interviews with 1,200 representative adults 18 years old and above.

Sampling error is ± 3% error margin for nationwide, and ± 6% for Metro Manila, the rest of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – A majority of Filipinos continued to approve of the Duterte administration’s performance on most leading national concerns, but gave the government significantly lower marks in the equal enforcement of the law, according to the latest Pulse Asia Research, Incorporated survey released on Friday, October 20.

The administration obtained lower approval ratings in fighting criminality and corruption – both falling by 6 percentage points – and a "significant" 7-percentage point drop in approval on "enforcing the law on all, whether on influential or ordinary people," Pulse Asia said in a statement.

“For the period June to September 2017, the only significant change in the national administration’s performance ratings is the decline in the level of appreciation for its efforts to enforce the law equally on all citizens (-7 percentage points),” said Pulse Asia president Ronald Holmes.

Another Pulse Asia survey, also conducted in September, showed that most Filipinos believed extrajudicial killings (EJKs) were happening in the Duterte administration's war on drugs. The campaign has been criticized for targeting mostly poor drug suspects.

In September, the government got a 78% approval rating in fighting criminality, from 84% in June; and 70% approval in fighting graft and corruption in government, from 76%. Approval for the equal enforcement of the law fell to 67% from 74%.

The government got majority public approval on most of the 12 national concerns cited in the survey conducted from September 24 to 30, except on poverty reduction and controlling inflation.

Filipinos gave the government the highest approval rating in its response to the needs of calamity victims and fighting criminality, both at 78%, followed by protection for the welfare of overseas Filipino workers at 76%.

The other issues where the government obtained majority approval are on fighting corruption (70%), protecting the environment (68%), enforcing the rule of law (67%), promoting peace (67%), defending national territorial integrity (65%), creating more jobs (63%), and increasing workers’ pay (58%). 

The government did not get public majority approval on its performance in reducing poverty (49%) and controlling inflation (45%). Controlling inflation is the top urgent national concern of Filipinos, according to the survey.

Rising prices top concern among Filipinos

The survey results also showed that rising prices, higher pay for workers, and fighting criminality remain the top concerns of Filipinos.

Based on the survey, 50% of Filipinos believe that the government should prioritize reining in prices of basic goods. 

Other urgent national concerns are increasing workers’ pay (42%), fighting criminality (36%), creating more jobs (32%), fighting corruption in government (28%), and reducing poverty (28%), peace promotion (21%), equal enforcement of the rule of law (16%). 

Holmes said Filipinos are “least concerned” about environmental degradation (14%), reducing the amount of taxes paid by citizens (9%), controlling rapid population growth (8%), protecting the welfare of overseas Filipino workers (6%), preparing to successfully deal with terrorism (5%), defending national territorial integrity (4%), and amending the 1987 Philippine Constitution (2%). 

The Pulse Asia president also said that Filipinos’ sense of urgency on the 15 national issues in the survey “hardly” changed, except on the issues of inflation and fighting criminality, which both increased by 8 percentage points or from 42% to 50%, and from 28% to 36%, respectively.

“Year-on-year, there is a single notable change – the 13-percentage point rise in the percentage of Filipinos who consider the need to control inflation as an urgent national concern,” Holmes added.

He also said that the majority of residents in the Visayas (51%), Mindanao (51%), and the rest of Luzon (52%) cited rising prices as the most pressing national concern, while in Metro Manila, the most urgent concern is increasing workers' pay (45%).

"Across socio-economic classes, most of those in Class E are concerned about inflation (56%). In Class D, the top national concerns are inflation (48%) and workers’ pay (41%) while in Class ABC, the most urgent national concerns are inflation (50%), workers’ pay (37%), criminality (36%), and corruption (36%)," Holmes said.

The nationwide survey, which is based on a sample of 1,200 representative adults 18 years old and above, has a ±3% error margin at the 95% confidence level. Subnational estimates for each of the geographic areas covered in the survey have a ±6% error margin, also at the 95% confidence level. 

The major news in the days leading to the survey and during the survey period included the Senate probe into the P6.4-billion shabu shipment from China, the filing of double murder charges against Caloocan police and others for the killing of teenagers Carl Angelo Arnaiz and Reynaldo "Kulot" de Guzman, and the grant of bail to former senator Jinggoy Estrada. – Rappler.com