Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (Source: internet) Hanoi (VNA) - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has approved "in principle" the recommendation made by security forces to place southern Mindanao island under martial law for another year, the country’s defense chief said on December 5. Earlier, Philippine Secretary of National Defense Delfin Lorenzana endorsed the recommendation of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to extend the martial law. The Philippine National Police (PNP) also supported the one-year extension. Lorenzana said the martial law was discussed on the sidelines of the cabinet meeting late on December 4. However, the defense chief said nothing is final until President Duterte formally sends a letter to the Congress to ask for an extension. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said on the same day that President Duterte "is still studying" the recommendation of the security forces. Local terrorists belonging to the Maute Group and Abu … [Read more...] about Philippine President approves “in principle” martial law extension
Philippines national day
Vietnamese traders win deal to export 29,000 tons of rice to Philippines
Vietnamese traders win deal to export 29,000 tons of rice to PhilippinesBy Trung Chanh Farmers gather rice on field in the Mekong Delta – PHOTO: TRUNG CHANH CAN THO - Two Vietnamese firms have won rice export contracts for a combined volume of 29,000 tons of rice in the Philippines’ 250,000-ton government-to-private (G2P) rice tender, opened on October 18. The director of a rice firm in the Mekong Delta region told The Saigon Times the same day that the two Vietnamese firms that won the export contracts were Vietnam Southern Food Corporation (Vinafood 2) and Vietnam Northern Food Corporation (Vinafood 1). According to the source, Vinafood 2 won the contract for 15,000 tons of rice at US$427.68 per ton, and Vinafood 1 secured a contract for 14,000 tons at US$427.5 per ton. Meanwhile, Thai Capital Crops Co., Ltd, of Thailand won a deal to export 18,000 tons of rice to the Philippines at US$426.3 per ton. As the rice exports secured by suppliers totaled only 47,000 … [Read more...] about Vietnamese traders win deal to export 29,000 tons of rice to Philippines
Typhoon Mangkhut smashes the Philippines, barrels towards Hong Kong
Of the 25 deaths, six people were reportedly buried by landslides, a girl drowned and a security guard was crushed by a falling wall. "As we go forward, this number will go higher," Ricardo Jalad, head of the Philippines' national civil defence office, told reporters about the biggest storm of the year in the region. The Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC), a U.S. Department of Defense agency responsible for issuing tropical cyclone warnings for the Pacific and Indian Oceans, said the typhoon will head towards southern China and make landfall early Monday. As the powerful storm left the Southeast Asian archipelago and barrelled towards densely populated Hong Kong, Philippine authorities began sending search teams to remote areas hit by communication and power outages, AFP reported Sunday. Mangkhut forced thousands to flee their homes and seek temporary shelter from powerful winds and heavy rains. Photo by AFP/Noel Celis In the northern town of Baggao, the … [Read more...] about Typhoon Mangkhut smashes the Philippines, barrels towards Hong Kong
Van explosion kills 10 at checkpoint in Philippine south: army
By Reuters  July 31, 2018 | 09:49 am GMT+7 Philippine National Police Special Action Force personnel man a checkpoint in Marawi city, as government troops continue their assault against insurgents from the Maute group, in Philippines June 10, 2017. Photo by Reuters A soldier, five militiamen and four civilians, including a mother and her child, were killed. Others were wounded but the exact number of casualties remained unclear. An explosion inside a van killed at least 10 people at a military checkpoint in the restive southern Philippines on Tuesday, in what officials said may have been a bombing by militants with ties to the Islamic State group. The blast occurred moments after troops stopped the vehicle and spoke to the driver, according to an official on the island of Basilan and a military incident report. Basilan is a stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf group, which is notorious for kidnapping and banditry, and home of the former "emir" of Islamic State in … [Read more...] about Van explosion kills 10 at checkpoint in Philippine south: army
Philippine Independence Day celebrated in HCM City
At the ceremony to celebrate the 120th Independence Day of the Philippines held in HCM City on June 19 (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNA) - The Ho Chi Minh City Union of Friendship Organisations (HUFO) and the Vietnam-ASEAN Friendship Association on June 19 co-organised a ceremony to mark the 120th Independence Day of the Philippines (June 12). President of the HCM City Vietnam-ASEAN Friendship Association Phan Thi Hong Xuan said Vietnam and the Philippines have strengthened cooperation in different fields such as economy, culture, trade and education. The two countries have also worked together to promote solidarity within and maintained the central role of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in major issues related to security and interests of each country and the region, she added. Xuan also noted that the Philippines successfully hosted activities celebrating the 50th founding anniversary of ASEAN, helping to enhance the bloc’s position in the … [Read more...] about Philippine Independence Day celebrated in HCM City
The Philippines’ National Day celebrated in Hanoi
The Vietnamese Minister of Culture, Sport and Tourism, Nguyen Ngoc Thien; Deputy-Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army, Major General Ngo Minh Tien and representatives from foreign diplomatic corps in Hanoi attended the event. Filipino Ambassador to Vietnam Noel Servigon addressing the ceremony to mark the Philippines'120th National Day hosted by the Vietnam-Philippines Friendship Association. Photo: baoquocte.vn In his speech, the Filipino Ambassador to Vietnam Noel Servigon emphasized that this was a chance to reminisce about the fight for national independence and to honor those who had bravely fought for the freedom of the Philippines. Regarding the bilateral ties between the Philippines and Vietnam, the Filipino diplomat said that apart from present achievements, there remains much room for the two countries to boost their cooperation in the future. For his part, Minister Thien congratulated the Philippines on its important accomplishments … [Read more...] about The Philippines’ National Day celebrated in Hanoi
Philippines urges tougher global action on cybersex child trafficking
The Philippines' fight to end cybersex trafficking needs other countries to get tougher with sexual predators who pay to watch children being abused over webcam, a Filipina senator said. Organisations such as the United Nations' children's agency (UNICEF) say the Philippines is the epicentre of a growing cybersex trafficking trade, with many children forced to perform sex acts, abused and raped by relatives in front of a webcam. The Philippines receives at least 3,000 reports per month from other countries of possible cases of its children being sexually exploited online, said the Department of Justice. Senator Loren Legarda said the Southeast Asian nation must better enforce its anti-trafficking law, which carries the threat of life imprisonment, but there must be global action to stop cybersex trafficking where victims are sold for sex online. "Developed countries, from which the demand for online sexual exploitation of children usually originates, must do their part," she told the … [Read more...] about Philippines urges tougher global action on cybersex child trafficking
SE Asia Stocks-Philippine index hits record close; Vietnam at over 10-yr top
Philippine shares marked a record close on Thursday on broad-based gains, while Vietnam ended at its highest in more than ten years as trading resumed after the exchange was shut for two days due to a technical issue. Gains on the Philippine stock exchange were mainly led by industrial stocks, with SM Investments Corp closing at a record after declining 0.6 percent on Wednesday. International Container Terminal Services Inc rose 3.1 percent, its best close since June, 2015. The stock fell 2.6 percent on Wednesday. "Yesterday, we had a correction and some profit-taking, so today we are seeing stocks that declined recover what they lost," said Jeffrey Lucero, an equity research analyst at RCBC Securities. Vietnam ended 1.6 percent higher after jumping as much as 2.7 percent intraday. Financials and utility stocks led the gainers, with Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Viet Nam touching a record high, and oil and gas refiner PetroVietnam Gas Joint Stock Corp hitting a more … [Read more...] about SE Asia Stocks-Philippine index hits record close; Vietnam at over 10-yr top
12,000 flee as lava oozes from Philippine volcano
Thousands fled from their homes as lava oozed out of a rumbling Philippine volcano on Monday in what volcanologists described as a "quiet eruption", warning it could lead to a hazardous explosion within days. Lava was slowly flowing out of the Mayon volcano's crater along with a spectacular 1,000-meter (3,280-foot) ash plume rising into the sky, the nation's volcanology institute said. More than 12,000 people have been ordered to leave a seven-kilometer (four-mile) danger zone around the crater, as officials warned them of potentially destructive mudflows and toxic clouds. "Technically, the volcano is erupting but the eruption is fairly quiet. It may escalate into a hazardous eruption," Paul Alanis, science research specialist at the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), told AFP. A hazardous or explosive eruption means a lava fountain or a spray of hot rocks and gases that could move as fast as 60 kilometers per hour, Alanis added. Local disaster … [Read more...] about 12,000 flee as lava oozes from Philippine volcano
Philippines’ Mayon volcano alert raised as eruption feared
MANILA — The Philippines raised the alert level for the country’s most active volcano twice in 24 hours on Sunday, meaning that a hazardous eruption is possible within days. A bright glow from Mayon volcano’s summit crater indicated the start of lava flow, while steam and ash plumes were produced by three steam-driven eruptions, according to the country’s volcanology institute. Mayon’s status was raised late Sunday to Level Three, meaning "increased tendency towards hazardous eruption". "This means that Mayon is exhibiting relatively high unrest and that magma is at the crater and that hazardous eruption is possible within weeks or even days," the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said in a statement. More than 900 families have been evacuated and temporarily sheltered at nearby schools, a national disaster agency spokesperson told the Manila Bulletin. A seven-kilometre (four-mile) extended danger zone has been … [Read more...] about Philippines’ Mayon volcano alert raised as eruption feared