Alex Hermoso, lead convener of the Zambales-Olongapo Civil Society Network, said in a media forum Kapihan sa Dayrit’s that a case is being finalized to stop the project.

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT — The planned coal-fired thermal plant here faces rough sailing as oppositors mass up to file a Writ of Kalikasan.

Alex Hermoso, lead convener of the Zambales-Olongapo Civil Society Network, said in a media forum Kapihan sa Dayrit’s that a case is being finalized to stop the project.

“We strongly oppose the setting up of the coal thermal Plant in Subic,” Hermoso said, on the issue of an coal energy source inside the Freeport.

Lawyer  Leonardo Bernabe, of the Olongapo Integrated Bar of Philippines, said the local chapter would extend pro bono service in filing the Writ of Kalikasan case.

“Few months ago, we had a meeting with RP Energy where they presented the project but that didn’t change our position,” he said. “The IBP local chapter then passed a resolution strongly opposing the project.”

Bernabe said the writ may include the issuance of a Temporary Environmental Protection Order in case of grave injustice or irreparable injury.

Olongapo City Councilor James Gordon Delos Reyes cited a study of Dr. Art Mendoza on the coal thermal plant which would be “far more damaging than the eruption Mt. Pinatubo” if allowed to proceed.

“Subic is a popular tourism destination because of its pristine environment with triple canopy rain forest and rich marine resource,” he said.

Gabby Mondragon, consultant for ecology of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, said new board members led by Chairman Robert Garcia were reviewing the contract, permits and the Certificate of Registration of Tax Exemption of the project proponent issued by the previous board.

“New conditions were imposed by the current SBMA Board including an assurance from the proponent that the project should be environment friendly,” he told the forum.

Forum producer Rey Garcia of News Central, a Subic-based regional business newspaper in Central Luzon, said proponent Redondo Peninsula Energy Inc. was invited but no representative showed up.

The forum was attended by Subic Bay Freeport Chamber of Commerce president Danny Piano, City Councilor Jong Cortez, Rotaract Club president Mike Dominic Piga,  Olongapo Consumers Association president Shirley Emeterio, businessman Bong Sangco and media organizations in Olongapo.

Damien Dempsey getting the runners ready for PREDA's Run for Freedom 2012

Just under 300 people ran, jogged and walked on April the 28th in the Phoenix Park to show their solidarity with the children being rescued on a continuous basis by the team at PREDA.

Athletics legend Catherina McKiernan and long standing PREDA supporter musician Damien Dempsey helped promote the run and were joined by Today FM dj Ray D’Arcy who helped publicise the event on his popular radio show.

The run made a profit of €1655 which will be used to support the children at the PREDA centre and in promoting the work of the organisation.

A special thanks to all those who travelled to participate in such a memorable event and to our sponsors and supporters who made it all possible.

We are always looking for support and fresh ideas to help us with our work so feel free to email at any stage. If you want to be included in the PREDA email listings and receive regular newsletters about our work simply send me and an email and we will include you in our database.

PREDA Galway photographer Gerry O’Gara has kindly offered to forward on any images you may be interested from the run and has them available to view on his website www.peakepics.com and his number is 0872854645.

Wishing you all many happy hours of jogging until PREDA’s “Run for Freedom” 2013!

Fr. Shay noted that development aid form Germany is blocked because of the dispute over the nationalization of the airport terminal 3 in Manila . He assured the committee members that the Philippine government was doing all could to resolve the dispute over the construction and ownership of Terminal 3 build by the German company Fraport but which was taken over by the Government of President Gloria Arroyo resulting in huge losses to Fraport and the German Government .

Several members of the committee stated that they had visited the Preda Jail rescue project and were shocked at the conditions of child prisoners and had seen the sex industry where minors are sold to foreign sex tourists. The abusers get a addicted to abusing minors and are a danger to German children when they return ,he said. The committee members stated their commitment to help with solution to these problems but that the Good governance in the Philippines is the most important need to end sex tourism and the sexual exploitation of children.

Mindoro hunger strikers and their supporters, including comedienne Juana Change (extreme right), pose for a souvenir photo following the announcement of revocation of the mining clearance of Intex Resources nickel project in Mindoro. Photo by Roslyn Arayata

It was a blistering hot day in November 2009 when I went to the protest picket line outside the Philippine Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).There were about forty people on hunger strike in tents led by father Edwin Gariguez. He is a servant-leader dedicated to empowering the Mangyan indigenous people of Mindoro, to organize and protect their rights and lands from the onslaught of the massive open-pit mining project of the Intex Resources.

Intex is a Norwegian based mining corporation that had somehow got a permit from the DENR officials to gouge open a huge open pit nickel mine on the ancestral lands of the Mangyan. Powerful local business men and military officials supported the project giving Intex assurances that they would take care of getting rid of the indigenous people, their leaders and supporters.

The Mangyan are the original inhabitants of the Island. They survived in harmony with nature for thousands of years. Such a mining project would have ripped out their mango trees, polluted their streams and rivers and driven them away from their ancestral lands forever. The only beneficiaries of this destructive mining operation would be the international share holders and investment banks in nations thousands of miles away.

The protest leaders I talked to on that hunger strike were determined that this would never happen. They were called agitators, communists. When they held protests in the capitol of Mindoro Island they were set upon by gun toting goons who did not shrink from beating them up and even shooting dead, one campaigner. Father Edu, as he is popularly called, received death threats.

The eleven day hunger strike, and the previous international campaigning and lobbying by Father Gariguez around Europe developed strong support and finally the Government officials caved in and cancelled the mining permit of Intex, which they should never have approved. Why government officials are serving the interests of foreign corporations and not their own people is a mystery that might only be solved by looking into their bank accounts and life styles.

Goldman Sacs the big investment bank withdrew its support and money from the US$2.4 billion Intex project. Members of the Intex board resigned and the project closed to the delight of the people and their supporters. Father Edwin Gariguez was honored for his solidarity and courage and awarded the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize in San Francisco last 16 April 2012. He risked his life for the sake of the people, the environment and the nation.

It is great people like him and his team that should be the role models and heroes of the Filipinos but sadly instead the media promotes semi-illiterate emotionally dysfunctional celebrity actors and actresses instead. And even help to have them elected to high office to run the nation and lead it into corrupt chaos.

The example of Fr. Edu and the victory won is giving hope and encouragement to all in the Anti-destructive mining movement. If you could see the beautiful and life giving environment of Mindoro Islands and other places in Mindanao and Palawan that are under threat by mining corporations you would want it be saved forever. Then look at a photo of such an excavation as an open pit mine it will truly boggle your mind. We are called to challenge and question the policies of government that allow the destructive mining.

In Palawan and Mindanao in the southern Philippines similar projects are underway amid protests and campaigns to stop them. Open pit mining is perhaps the most destructive of all. All of us must take a stand and say no to such projects and write to government officials to protest or send them this article.

We can ask them if it is necessary to destroy the beauty and life sustaining environment of this planet and centuries old communities just to get nickel. Imagine these gigantic holes in the earth. Some can be excavated so deep that two Eiffel Towers, one on top of the other would fit into it.

The utter destruction of the environment by such projects is enormous; mountain-sides, rivers, streams, forests, rice lands are destroyed or damaged and made unusable. But with the servant -leaders like Father Edwin Gariguez and thousands of dedicated human rights and environmentalists active today there is great hope that we can hold back this destructive force and win out with the people through non-violent peaceful protest.

Nestor Libaton, a reporter of the Catholic-run dxHM (Ang Radyo Totoo), an affiliate of the Catholic Media Network

MANILA, Philippines – The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Wednesday condemned the murder of a Catholic radio reporter in Davao Oriental on Tuesday and urged government authorities to look into the incident, the third to occur against a member of the media in a span of 15 days.

Nestor Libaton, a reporter of the Catholic-run dxHM (Ang Radyo Totoo), an affiliate of the Catholic Media Network, was shot seven times by three men on board a motorbike as he was leaving Tarragona, Davao Oriental, on Tuesday.

Libaton and a colleague Eldon Cruz, had just attended a fiesta celebration and were on their way home to Mati City on board a motorcycle when the radio reporter was gunned down.

CBCP president Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma said the Church hierarchy was saddened by the murder of Libaton, especially when it happened a few days prior the Church’s celebration of World Communications Sunday.

“We are saddened because we know how important communication is and the celebration of the World Communications Sunday is a way of reminding us that as Christians, it is our duty to proclaim and to communicate the teachings of Jesus,” Palma said over Church-run Radio Veritas Wednesday.

The senior prelate also called on Wednesday Philippine National Police chief Director General Nicanor Bartolome and Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo to give attention to Libaton’s case and give justice to the slain reporter.

According to the CBCPNews, the official news service of the Church hierarchy, Libaton did not have any commentary program since it was the station’s policy “not to discuss sensitive controversial issues on air.”

CBCPNews also said Libaton was the third member of media killed within the last 15 days. The others were identified as Rommel Palma, murdered in Koronadal City on April 24 and Michael Calanasan in Laguna on April 30.

Archbishop Emeritus Oscar Cruz Wednesday said he was already expecting the rise in the number of extrajudicial killings in the country, especially among members of the media since the Aquino administration was showing signs of “weakness” in implementing the law.

Cruz said over Radio Veritas that the culture of impunity and violence in the country will not end if the government would not act to curb it.

The alleged victim “Jona” (not her real name) arrived in Manila last Monday night after a harrowing experience in Hong Kong. De Lima and other Department of Justice officials were on hand to welcome her.

According to De Lima, the DoJ shall provide full legal assistance and support to Jona, saying she wants this case “to highlight once more the resolve of the government to punish and eradicate elements engaged in human trafficking in the country.”

“We are mobilizing the resources of government and our private sector partners to make sure there will be no repeat of cases similar to this,” she said.

“Once again, I warn human trafficking syndicates not to test nor underestimate the resolve and will of this government to go after and prosecute them,” De Lima added.

“The government and our partners are determined to protect the rights and interests of Filipinos even beyond our borders,” she said.

The DoJ initially pursued and assisted the case of Jona before the Shatin Court in HK where she faced charges for overstaying and working without the necessary permits.

DoJ Undersecretary Jose Vicente Salazar who also heads the daily operations of the Inter-agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) said Jona faced the charges after her voluntary surrender to HK immigration officials. Salazar said he believes Jona is a victim of a human trafficking syndicate in the country which lured her into accepting an offer to work in HK without proper processing and documentation.

Salazar said Jona entered HK as a tourist in 2008 after she was made to believe she was to work as a care-giver for the aging mother of her recruiter’s sister-in law.

However, Salazar said Jona was made to work for a Chinese couple upon her entry in HK who engaged her services for more than two years while keeping her passport from her. Her woes were aggravated when her father fell ill and was not allowed to return to the Philippines despite repeated pleas.

Salazar also said Jona’s family never received the promised salary from her recruiter since she arrived in HK.

Jona was allowed to leave only after her father died. She said her employers warned her not to disclose the illegal status of her employment with them and the treatment she received.

Upon learning of her plight, De Lima dispatched Salazar and other IACAT officials to assist Jona and work for her return to the country with help from partner agencies and non-governmental organizations. She was provided with legal representation and assistance for her repatriation.

Salazar said the IACAT and its partners “appreciate the cooperation given by Jona”. This is an indication that the public, particularly those victimized by human trafficking syndicates, have renewed and increased trust and confidence in the government and its law enforcement and prosecution arms ”.

“We intend to reinforce that trust as we continue to pursue similar cases not just in Hong Kong but in other countries even more aggressively,” Salazar added.

This case was referred to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and recommended for the filing of the case against the local recruiter. The case is now with the DoJ. Jona spent the night in Manila to rest and was consequently brought to IACAT NGO member Visayan Forum Foundation Inc for her de-briefing & counseling on May 2. She is scheduled to return to her hometown as soon as the experts say she has adjusted and ready to go home.

Former Liberian President Charles Taylor looks down as he waits for the start of a hearing to deliver verdict in the court room of the Special Court for Sierra Leone in Leidschendam, near The Hague, Netherlands, April 26, 2012. Photo: AP

There is a great hunger in the world. It is a hunger for justice. There is a famine of justice and they who hunger and thirst for it are rarely satisfied. But on 26 April, 2012, a historical landmark judgment at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the De Hague, The Netherlands, handed down a significant conviction that slightly eased the great hunger.

Charles Taylor, the war lord, instigator of atrocities, arms merchant of death and destruction, dealer in blood diamonds, aide and abettor of horrific acts against humanity and war crimes and former president of Liberia was found guilty of all those. He is the first head of state in the history of the world to be tried and convicted by an impartial international court of justice. It came after almost five years of trial, millions of dollars donated by nations supporting the pursuit of justice.

He encouraged and supported a rebel group to instigate a civil war in neighboring Sierra Leone in the 1990′s. Taylor was found guilty of supporting and arming the rebels that tried to overthrow the democratically elected government of that country.

The crimes he is guilty of aiding and abetting are the slaughter of innocents, recruiting child soldiers, murder, slavery, multiple rape, child abuse and grotesque chopping of limbs of civilians to create terror and fear. Half the population of Sierra Leone fled the country and as many as 50,000 were killed. Senseless, barbarous and brutal murders of whole villages of women and children. Thousands died also in Liberia and the conflict threatened to spill over into other nations, Guinea and Ivory Coast.

The trial held in The Hague is part of The Special Court for Sierra Leone, established in June 2002, based in the capital Freetown and set up by the United Nations and Sierra Leone and pushed by Britain, the United States and Canada. It has found eight more leaders of fighting forces guilty of atrocities and sentenced them to long prison terms. Taylor was tried in The Hague to prevent his followers from causing disruption and unrest where it held in Freetown.

The guilty verdict handed down by judges from Samoa, Ireland and Uganda was brought about by the testimony of as many as 115 witnesses. They testified to the mutilations, they displayed their own mutilated bodies and described the way children were drugged and forced to kill their own parents and friends.

The verdict sends a strong message to other national leaders, war lords and instigators, supporters of crimes against humanity that even if they are not in direct command of the forces doing the evil deeds they will still be held responsible.

While we may take some small comfort in the thought that at least one tyrant has been found guilty, (Taylor will be sentenced on 6 May) there are millions of victims of brutality, rape and violence living with anger and hopelessness and longing for justice.

The evil doers are militant and active in raping and killing but those of us who deplore and condemn such acts seldom get involved in personal or a group action to work for peace and justice. Everyone ought to belong to a justice and peace group and lobby, rally, protest, campaign and work for peace and justice in every way possible. We can change the world of injustice if we become active and put our faith in the value of justice. Faith without action is worthless wrote James the apostle.

Lets do some justice together. I am appealing to readers for help in one for many cases of child rape where justice is being thwarted by the prosecution and even the judge. Please Write to the Philippine Secretary of Justice, Leila de Lima, DOJ, Padre Faura Street. Manila, Philippines.

The charge is against the accused Apolonio Valdez for Incestuous Rape, Criminal Case No. FC 1966. At the regional Trial Court, Pampanga. Please request for a special prosecutor to help Rosa, a 7 year old rape victim by the live-in partner of her Mother. The mother is aiding and abetting the rape and does nothing to help the child who is in the care and protection of the PREDA children’s Home, Olongapo City. www.preda.org. violently Raped at 7 years old the child is still waiting for justice now 9 years old. This is just one of 35 cases of child abuse, the children are afraid to go home because the abuser is out there waiting for them. They should be in jail. The children are hungering and thirsting for justice and so should all of us. shaycullen@preda.org

With the implemented tranches of the Salary Standardization Law (SSL), the 100% increase in the basic salary of prosecutors has been met which effectively integrates aIlowances as regular pay.

“This will address the recurring issue of denial of access to justice by parties and litigants by imposing an exaction on the redress of wrongs when filing criminal complaints,”De Lima said.

De Lima issued Department Circular No. 025 dated April 12, 2012 ordering all assessment clerks and collection officers in the Regional, Provincial and City Prosecution Offices to cease and desist from assessing and collecting legal fees, revoking Department Circular No. 42 and other related circulars implementing the provision of R.A. No. 9279 and its implementing rules and regulations.

“The DOJ will continue to work hard on making justice available everywhere to everyone ,with the full support of the national government. “We are studying the need for policy to deter nuisance, harassment or collection suits and urge the citizenry to be judicious when resorting to filing cases,” De Lima added.

R.A. No. 9279 took effect on 16 May 2004 as a legislated solution to address the low levels of compensation for prosecutors by sourcing special allowance from fees for various services rendered. The DOJ is advocating for justice sector-wide compensation scheme for its investigators, prosecutors, counsels, other lawyers and staff to be aligned with industry standards.

The Fair Trade group in Kosterschule in Baden-Baden. They have organized the presentation of the Preda-Akbay Theater play "Once we had a Dream". Monday, 30 April. Promoting Fair Trade and Human Rights.

The theater group AKBAY and our partner organization Preda will make a tour through Germany in May 2012.

Seven Filipino youth will bring in their self-written, very impressive piece of “Once we had a dream,” the fate of many children of Asian island nation on the stage.

The piece is played in German.

The Tatort-Verein leads the overall tour with partners such as world shops, churches and schools, which organize in place performance. After the presentation there will be discussions with the audience.

The Internet video clips of the musical can be seen. They were made at a performance in 2009 in Bonn. This is also Father Shay Cullen of Preda in the interview.

The tour is organized by Lawrence Block (lorenz.block @ tatort-verein.org), who will accompany the group, also from Germany,  Ulrike Thönniges (ulrike.thoenniges @ tatort-verein.org)
Tel: 0221-9123045.

http://www.tatort-verein.org

http://www.tatort-verein.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&catid=11:aktuelles-inahlte&id=29:aktuelles-1