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Amsterdam sex workers protest planned ‘erotic center’
Amsterdam's sex workers Thursday protested against the transfer of their famed red light district to an out-of-town "erotic center", in what is seen as part of a battle for the city's soul. Many wearing masks to shield their identity, dozens of sex workers marched through the streets towards City Hall, one carrying a banner saying: "If sex workers are not to blame, then why are we being punished?" Mayor Femke Halsema wants to uproot the red light district and move it out of town to a purpose-built "erotic center", aiming to rid Amsterdam's image as a "sin city" while reducing the number of tourists and petty crime in the area. But she has found herself up against local residents who do not want the new center on their doorstep, as well as sex workers who feel they are scapegoats for the criminals and crowds surrounding their neon-lit booths. Halsema has long opposed the centuries-old red light district, known as De Wallen, with its neon-lined windows in canalside houses where sex workers stand waiting for customers. The city council has earmarked three possible sites for the erotic center, which would have 100 rooms for sex workers. One sex worker who identified herself only as Lucie dismissed the idea as "one big gentrification project". "It's mainly about combatting the crowds in De Wallen, but that is not the sex workers' fault so I don't see why we should be punished for it," said Lucie, who declined to give her last name. 'We just don't want it' Even the European Medicines Agency has been caught up in the controversy after it emerged one possible site for the erotic center was near its headquarters. The EMA voiced outrage, saying it could affect the safety of people working late at the office. More than 20,000 have signed a petition against the transfer of the booths, calling instead for better crowd control in the area and greater police surveillance, especially at night. Mariska Majoor, a former sex worker who now advocates for their rights, said the protests against moving the district had already been going for 16 years and that City Hall kept changing the goalposts. "The authorities had a plan to reduce part of the brothels already in 2007. Then it was because of the fight against people trafficking and abuse and now it's about the fight against mass tourism," she told AFP. Moving the red light district is Amsterdam's latest effort to transform its image as a party capital. It has also launched a "stay away" campaign to discourage stag nights and boozy tourists, which caused a stir in Britain after the council said it would start by targeting British men aged 18 to 35. The demonstration also attracted out-of-town locals who might suddenly find themselves living next to the new "erotic center." Cynthia Cournuejouls, a 42-year mother living to the south of the city, told AFP: "We don't want the biggest brothel in Europe in our neighborhood." "We just don't want it. We want to keep it here." The post Amsterdam sex workers protest planned ‘erotic center’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Gazans await ‘life and death’ aid, Israel readies invasion
Thousands of tonnes of "life and death" aid for Gaza should be delivered soon, the United Nations said Friday, to relieve a "beyond catastrophic" situation after unrelenting Israeli bombing in response to an unprecedented Hamas attack. Some 175 lorries stuffed with vital medicines, food, and water stretched into the distance at the Rafah crossing with Egypt, which has removed concrete roadblocks and is scrambling to repair the route into besieged Gaza -- the only one not controlled by Israel. Overseeing operations personally, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters: "These trucks are not just trucks, they are a lifeline, they are the difference between life and death for so many people in Gaza." Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas after the Islamist militant group launched a shock raid from the Gaza Strip on October 7, killing at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians shot, mutilated or burned to death, according to Israeli officials. Hamas gunmen also kidnapped some 200 hostages including foreigners from around two dozen countries. The Islamist group said Friday that its armed wing had released two Americans among the captives, a mother and her daughter, the first fruit of mediation efforts by the Gulf state of Qatar. The Islamist group did not detail how or when the hostages were released. The Israeli military said earlier Friday that most of those abducted to Gaza were still alive. It said more than 20 were minors. In response to the Hamas attack, Israeli bombers have levelled entire city blocks in Gaza in preparation for a ground invasion they say is coming soon. The Hamas-run health ministry said 4,137 Palestinians, mostly civilians, have died in the onslaught. Israeli jets pounded more than 100 Hamas targets in Gaza overnight, the army said, with AFP reporters hearing loud explosions and witnessing plumes of smoke billowing from the northern Gaza Strip. Embracing front-line soldiers and clad in body armour, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged them to "fight like lions" and "win with full force". Fists clenched and voice raised, Netanyahu told cheering troops: "We will deal harsh blows to our enemies in order to achieve victory." Defence Minister Yoav Gallant told some of the tens of thousands of personnel preparing the ground invasion that "the order will come soon". 'Beyond catastrophic' US President Joe Biden said Friday he expected the first aid for Gaza to pass through the Rafah crossing from Egypt within the next two days, under a deal he clinched to allow in 20 trucks of supplies for civilians. Medicine, water purifiers and blankets were being unloaded at El Arish airport near Gaza, an AFP reporter saw, with Ahmed Ali, head of the Egyptian Red Crescent, saying he was getting "two to three planes of aid a day". But World Health Organization emergencies director Michael Ryan said Biden's 20-truck deal was "a drop in the ocean of need" and that 2,000 trucks were required. The UN says more than one million of Gaza's 2.4 million people are displaced, with the humanitarian situation "beyond catastrophic" and deteriorating daily. Refugees from northern Gaza told harrowing tales of bombs, profiteering and extreme temperatures as whole families trekked on foot to flee the violence. Mother of seven Fadwa Al-Najjar walked for 10 hours with her family from northern Gaza to reach a UN camp in the southern city of Khan Yunis, saying she saw cars hit by a strike just in front of them. "We saw bodies and limbs torn off and we just started praying, thinking we were going to die," she said. 'It's unimaginable' On the other side of the conflict, the full horror of what Israel suffered on October 7 and following days was still emerging, as traumatised residents recounted their stories. Shachar Butler, a security chief at the Nir Oz kibbutz, where Hamas militants killed or kidnapped a quarter of the 400 residents, recalls more than a dozen gunmen spraying bullets indiscriminately and lobbing grenades at homes. "It's unimaginable," the 40-year-old told AFP as part of a trip organised by the Israeli military. "Anytime someone tried to touch my window, I shot him," he said. "The people who came out got kidnapped, killed, executed, slaughtered." Butler estimated as many as 200 militants attacked the kibbutz, entering from three sides before going house-to-house. Homes there were still charred with burnt personal belongings strewn everywhere. Israel says around 1,500 Hamas fighters were killed in clashes before its army regained control. 'No safe place' Biden requested a massive $105 billion security package Friday, including $14 billion for Israel, but paralysis in the still speakerless Congress means it will hit an immediate wall. Fresh from a whirlwind trip to Israel this week, Biden is hoping to staunch the possibility of a wider Middle East war. The United States has moved two aircraft carriers into the eastern Mediterranean to deter Iran or Lebanon's Hezbollah, both Hamas allies, from getting involved. After days of clashes with Hezbollah fighters along the Lebanese border, Israeli authorities announced the evacuation of Kiryat Shmona, a nearby town which is home to some 25,000 residents, many of whom have already left. The conflict has inflamed passions across the region, with protests held in several countries. Thousands flooded into Egypt's iconic Tahrir Square in support of Gaza, an AFP correspondent said. Protests were also held outside the French and US embassies in Tunis. Following a strike at a church compound late Thursday, the Hamas-controlled interior ministry said several people sheltering at the church were killed and wounded, blaming an Israeli strike. The Israeli army acknowledged a church wall had been damaged in one of its air strikes targeting a "command and control centre belonging to a Hamas terrorist". "This place is dedicated for praying, a place of love and peace," said witness Abu Khalil Jahshan. "There is no safe place here in Gaza." The post Gazans await ‘life and death’ aid, Israel readies invasion appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Indian police raid homes of media people
Indian anti-terror police said Tuesday they had arrested two people linked to a news website and raided the homes of 44 others, in a case reportedly connected to alleged Chinese funding. The dawn raids in the capital New Delhi raised international concerns over the situation for media in a country where press freedom has nosedived. Those raided are reported to be connected to NewsClick, an English-language news website that Indian authorities filed a case against in 2021 alleging it was receiving foreign funding. The New York Times in August reported that NewsClick was financed by United States millionaire Neville Roy Singham, saying it “sprinkled its coverage with Chinese government talking points” — claims Singham rejected. The report accused Singham of working closely with Beijing and of “financing its propaganda worldwide.” The post Indian police raid homes of media people appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
SWAT raids cops’ house in ‘Betflix’ crackdown
SWAT teams led a crackdown on illegal online gambling network in Thailand on Monday that saw the house of potentially the next police chief raided. One of the 30 houses targeted was in central Bangkok and belonged to Deputy National Police Chief Surachate Hakparn, who is touted as a possible candidate to replace the outgoing police chief. Surachate, well known in Thailand for his regular appearances in the media giving updates on investigations, denied any involvement in the alleged gambling ring. “I’m not worried at all, because I’m not involved in this and I can answer any question,” he told reporters outside his home while the raid was under way. “Today I see this as nothing more than internal politics within the police,” he said. Police Major General Trairong Phiwpan said the raids stemmed from a probe into a gambling website called “Betflix” and 12 subsidiary sites. Investigators have issued 23 arrest warrants, he said, including eight for police officers —though Surachate said he was not among them. Officers conducting the raid said they were unaware whose house it was. The long-serving Surachate — nicknamed “the cat with nine lives” — has been linked to powerful figures in the previous government. He was appointed by ex-deputy prime minister Prawit Wongsuwan as chief of the Immigration Bureau in September 2018. He disappeared in 2019 over unclear reasons, before then-prime minister Prayut Chan-o-cha made him a special adviser on strategy to police in 2021. Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, who took office last month, told reporters he was monitoring the situation. “There may be the need to set up an independent investigation committee, “because this is a big problem,” he said. “It affects the morale and public impression towards the police.” Thai police have long been dogged by allegations of endemic corruption. WITH AFP The post SWAT raids cops’ house in ‘Betflix’ crackdown appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Pre-historic Tell al-Sultan site added to world heritage list
The United Nations' cultural organization inscribed the pre-historic site of Tell al-Sultan, near the Palestinian city of Jericho in the occupied West Bank, on its World Heritage List Sunday. Tell al-Sultan, which predates Egypt's pyramids, is an oval-shaped tell, or mound, located in the Jordan Valley that contains the prehistoric deposits of human activity. The UNESCO decision, which was posted by the organization on X, formerly Twitter, was taken at its 45th World Heritage Committee meeting held in Riyadh. "The property proposed for nomination is the prehistoric archaeological site of Tell al-Sultan, located outside the antique site of Jericho," UNESCO's assistant director general, Ernesto Ottone, said at the session. The site was inscribed following a three-year candidacy "during which no state party raised any objections", said a diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to the media. "There are no Jewish or Christian remains found at the (Tell al-Sultan) site. It's a place of pre-historic remains," the diplomat told AFP. Israel quit the UN organization in 2019 over accusations it fosters an anti-Israel bias but sent a delegation to this year's meeting in Saudi Arabia. The Palestinian Authority, acknowledged by the United Nations as a non-member observer state, welcomed the listing of the Tell al-Sultan site. Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas said he considered the decision to inscribe Tell al-Sultan "a matter of great importance and evidence of the authenticity and history of the Palestinian people". He vowed that the Palestinian authorities would "continue to preserve this unique site for all humanity", according to a statement from his office. Diverse Palestinian heritage UNESCO's listing shows that the Tell al-Sultan site is "an integral part of the diverse Palestinian heritage of exceptional human value", Palestinian tourism minister Rula Maayah, who was attending the meeting in Riyadh, said in a statement. Given Tell al-Sultan's "importance as the oldest fortified city in the world... it deserves to be a World Heritage Site," she said. "A permanent settlement had emerged here by the 9th to 8th millennium BC due to the fertile soil of the oasis and easy access to water," UNESCO said on its website. UNESCO said the "skulls and statues found on the site" testify to cultic practices among the neolithic population there, while the early bronze age archaeological material shows signs of urban planning. "Vestiges from the middle bronze age reveal the presence of a large Canaanite city-state occupied by a socially complex population," UNESCO added. The Tell al-Sultan site has been under excavation for over a century and is billed as the oldest continuously inhabited settlement on the planet, Palestinian official Wafa news agency reported. It is the fourth Palestinian site to be listed on UNESCO's World Heritage list, alongside the Church of the Nativity and the Old City of Hebron. Israel has occupied the West Bank -- now home to some three million Palestinians -- since the 1967 Six-Day War, when it also seized the Gaza Strip, the densely populated coastal enclave it has since withdrawn from. The Palestinians want these territories for their future state, along with annexed east Jerusalem as its capital. Jericho is one of the oldest inhabited cities on the planet and is a major tourist destination in the Palestinian territories. UNESCO urged for the protection of other archaeological sites in Jericho. "The other archaeological sites located in Jericho, covering among other Jewish and Christian heritage, also have important historical interest and deserve to be preserved as well," said Ottone. Archaeology is a highly political subject in Israel and the Palestinian territories, and some discoveries have been used to justify the territorial claims of each people. The post Pre-historic Tell al-Sultan site added to world heritage list appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Leftists weave yarns, scams
The desperation of left-wing groups to remain relevant has pushed them to resort to “elaborate hoaxes and fraudulent money-making schemes,” the National Security Council said on Saturday. NSC Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya said the attempts to defraud came in the guise of manufactured claims against government security agencies. Earlier, the Philippine National Police reported that two young women involved in an anti-reclamation campaign in Manila Bay were missing, and this was linked to their advocacy. Malaya said Jhed Tamano and Jonila Castro had surrendered to the Philippine Army’s 70th Infantry Battalion in Doña Remedios Trinidad town in Bulacan on 12 September, contrary to leftist groups’ allegation that government security forces had abducted the two. “They had actually bolted their organization and sought the help of the authorities for their safe return home,” he said. Fake fundraising Malaya accused the leftist groups of soliciting funds from the public and making it appear that the security forces were irrelevant in protecting the general safety. “They collect money through GCash with the intent of using this to discredit and put the government in a bad light. They want the international community to believe that this country is a failed state,” Malaya said. “The Karapatan-led offensive included a shameless fundraising drive to collect money from the public purportedly to help locate the two young girls. It turned out, however, that the two had bolted their underground organization and went under the care of a friend,” he said. Karapatan is a militant group purportedly advocating for the protection of human rights. Malaya slammed Karapatan’s massive disinformation campaign, “Surface Jonila and Jed Network,” saying, “This was made out of manufactured threads of storylines using the Internet that even the media, the viewing public, and the government became victims of the elaborate deception.” Karapatan was among the first groups to sound the alarm after the two anti-reclamation activists went missing. With help from the Department of Justice, the NSC and PNP’s Cybercrime Group have started to build a case against the scammers from the leftist groups. “We will certainly investigate their possible liabilities in relation to the Revised Penal Code, anti-cybercrime law, and other special laws. We’re working now with the Department of Justice on the possible filing of charges against them,” Malaya said. Not an abduction Meanwhile, Police Capt. Carlito Buco of the Bataan Provincial Police Office said Tamano and Castro were in a safe house with their parents. Citing the police’s final investigation report, Buco said Tamano and Castro were not “abducted” and could not be declared “missing persons.” “The two young girls were staying at a Methodist church in Orion town as far back as 1 September and had been planning to leave their organization,” he said. The post Leftists weave yarns, scams appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Franco’s Spain: a long and haunting dictatorship
What was one of Europe's longest-running dictatorships comes under scrutiny on Friday as a victim of alleged torture by the forces of General Francisco Franco testifies for the first time in a Spanish court. AFP looks back at the dictator's repressive 36-year legacy, which continues to divide Spain nearly half a century after his death in 1975. Civil War Franco rose to power during the Spanish Civil War, which began in 1936 when he led a coup against the country's left-wing Republican government. A three-year battle for control of Spain ensued, pitting Franco's Nationalist rebels, backed by fascist Italy and Nazi Germany, against the Soviet-backed Republicans. The Nationalists won the conflict, which ended in 1939 with hundreds of thousands of dead. Among the killing sites was the Basque town of Guernica, which was bombed by German war planes -- an atrocity immortalised in a haunting painting of the same name by Spanish artist Pablo Picasso. In his book "The Spanish Holocaust", historian Paul Preston estimated that 200,000 people died in combat during the conflict, and another 200,000 were murdered or executed -- 150,000 at the hands of the Nationalists. Atrocities were also committed by the Republican side. After WWII broke out, Franco held talks with Hitler on joining the Axis Powers but ultimately decided against direct military involvement. Executions and stolen babies Franco ruled for another three decades with the backing of the military and the Catholic Church. During his first five years in power, he executed tens of thousands of Republican prisoners and dumped their bodies in mass graves. Spain's prison population shot up, and half a million people fled the country as their property was seized. Newborns were snatched from opponents and poor families to be passed on to couples unable to have children, many of them close to Franco's regime. Campaigners estimate there were thousands of "stolen babies" over the decades. Reckoning with the past After Franco's death on November 20, 1975, King Juan Carlos succeeded him as head of state and led the transition from dictatorship to democracy. The authorities opted for a "pact of forgetting" over the dictatorship's crimes, to avoid a spiral of score-settling between Franco supporters and opponents. For decades, all attempts to bring Franco-era officials to justice were blocked. A major shift took place under Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who has driven efforts to commemorate those who died or suffered violence or repression during the civil war and dictatorship. One of his most controversial moves was to remove Franco's remains from a vast hillside mausoleum north of Madrid that drew a steady stream of right-wing sympathizers and move them to a more discreet family tomb. Right-wing parties have accused Sanchez of needlessly dredging up the past and vowed to reverse a new law that commits the state to searching for victims of the dictatorship buried in unmarked graves. The post Franco’s Spain: a long and haunting dictatorship appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Study reveals hundreds of sexual abuse victims in Swiss Catholic Church
A study into sexual abuse in the Swiss Catholic Church has identified almost a thousand victims and widespread efforts to cover up abuse, researchers at the University of Zurich said Tuesday, warning it was "just the tip of the iceberg". The year-long inquiry by historians, commissioned by Church authorities, identified 921 victims since 1950 and found that most cases either went unreported or documents containing information were destroyed. Researchers found that "Church leaders ignored, concealed or minimized most cases of sexual abuse analyzed until the 2000s". "When they were forced to act, they often did so not by focusing on the people concerned, but to protect the perpetrators, the institution or their position", the report said. The study, which will be completed by a further three-year research campaign, comes after similar efforts to uncover clerical abuse in other parts of the world. "It is without doubt just the tip of the iceberg", said Professor Marietta Meier, who led the study along with colleague Monika Dommann. According to the initial findings, 74 percent of victims were children, while a total of 510 people, almost all men, were found to have committed the abuse. More than half of the victims were male and almost 40 percent were female, the study found. The subject "has preoccupied us for a long time now and we are distressed and ashamed by it," Renata Asal-Steger, president of Switzerland's Roman Catholic Central Conference, told a press conference. "We have missed the point, we gave countless excuses and our actions fell short of what the victims are entitled to," she added. Asal-Steger emphasized that "it is an important day for the Roman Catholic Church in Switzerland". "Even though atrocious acts and countless failings within the ranks of the three national organizations of the Catholic Church will be brought to light today, we are grateful." Swiss bishops said Sunday that they had opened a preliminary inquiry into accusations of a cover-up of sexual assaults within the Church. It was set up following "allegations made against several emeritus and serving members of the Swiss Bishops' Conference as well as other clergy members in the handling of cases of sexual abuse", the group said in a statement. The post Study reveals hundreds of sexual abuse victims in Swiss Catholic Church appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
DENR, UNDP other countries commits to Circular Economy through EPR
The Philippines produces 163 million plastic sachet packets, 48 million shopping bags and 45 million thin-film bags daily. Thirty-three percent of these are disposed of in landfills and dump sites, while 35 percent are leaked into the open environment and oceans. These are the primary reasons why the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Act of 2022 or Republic Act 11898 has been enacted to ensure full compliance of industries related to plastic use and production. Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga tackled this over the weekend during the launching of LOOPFORWARD, a joint undertaking between the DENR and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Pasay City. “The EPR Act institutionalized the extended producer responsibility mechanism as a practical approach to efficient waste management, focusing on waste reduction, recovery and recycling and the development of environment-friendly products that advocate the internationally-accepted principles on sustainable consumption and production, circular economy and producers’ full responsibility throughout the life cycle of their product,” Loyzaga said in her speech delivered in front of UNDP Resident Representative Selva Ramachandran, Japan, Germany, Spain, US and the European Union representatives along with EPR author Senator Cynthia Villar. "Climate and environmental risks make up the majority of global risks perception in the next decade. So thus we need sustained, concerted, and evidence-informed investments and actions to protect and enhance our natural ecosystem environmental protection for all the different ecosystems that we have from land and sea, and of course we know that environmental protection, our ecosystems, biodiversity and climate change are inextricably linked. A failure in one of these dimensions will cascade well into the other," Loyzaga explained. In the Philippine setting, she cited that 61,000 million metric tons of waste were generated daily. Between 12 to 24 percent of these are plastic waste in various forms. According to a World Bank study conducted in 2019, Loyzaga said, it was reported that around 70 percent of the material value of plastics is lost to the Philippine economy each year. "This is equivalent to roughly a value loss of $790 million to $890 million per year," Loyzaga further explained. "As a country, we are in pursuit of the right combination of science and technology, policy and practice. Locally and through our global partners we are trying to make this possible just as we are discovering the true value of our global capital. The science, engineering, technology and innovation that support circularity are within reach by tapping into expertise both nationally and internationally," she added. Ramachandran, on the other hand, said that while there was significant progress over the last century, the growth was accompanied by excessive abuse of resources and environmental degradation. “The 2023 Circularity Gap Report indicates that only 7.2 percent of the global economy is circular. The rising extraction and use of material has shrunk global circularity from 9.1 percent in 2018 to 7.2 percent in 2023. This leaves a significant circularity gap. The world almost exclusively relies on new materials, more than 90 percent of materials are either wasted, lost or remain unavailable for reuse for years,” Ramachandran said. He added that studies place the Philippines among the highest ocean plastic waste polluters globally. According to Ramachandran, the challenge at hand is how to leapfrog the implementation of EPR in the Philippines. “We can no longer afford to remain business-as-usual and only focus on downstream solutions. We challenge the obliged enterprises to put more focus on waste avoidance and reduction, including through product redesign to improve reusability, recyclability or retrievability, and employing reuse and refill strategies," the UNDP Resident Representative said. “LOOPFORWARD: Linking Opportunities and Partnerships Towards ,” campaign was launched for full compliance and effective implementation of the EPR Act of 2022 by industries and other entities through attainment of time-bound waste recovery targets. It highlights the relevance of the EPR concept and law, gain better understanding among its stakeholders, and convene and gain commitments from the country’s biggest private firms referred to as the “obliged enterprises” under the law. It also seeks to gather support and open possible areas for collaboration among national government agencies, local government units, and development partners. The EPR approach is practiced in many countries around the world. It focuses on waste reduction, recovery, and recycling, and the development of environment-friendly products that advocate the internationally-accepted principles of sustainable consumption and production, and the circular economy. The DENR is the lead implementer of the EPR law and the LOOPFORWARD campaign. The campaign is supported by the CCC and the governments of Germany, Spain, and the European Union under the NDC Support Project for the Philippines, as well as the Government of Japan through the Accelerating NDC through Circular Economy in the Cities Project. The post DENR, UNDP other countries commits to Circular Economy through EPR appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Requiring personal E-visa appearances urged
Senator Nancy Binay on Tuesday urged the Department of Foreign Affairs to make “personal appearances at consular offices” as a “non-negotiable requirement” for some categories applying for electronic-visa or e-visa to ensure national security is still in place. Binay welcomed the pilot implementation of the country’s first-ever e-visa services on 24 August but stressed that DFA and National Intelligence Coordinating Agency should come up with “better security policies” to prevent possible non-technical loopholes. She added the authorities should ensure that the “probability” of organized syndicates exploiting tour groups and junkets will be lessened, including human trafficking. “We welcome the implementation of e-visas not only to positively boost tourism but also as our commitment to facilitate ease of travel. In the same vein, we urge the DFA and NICA to refine national security policies to deter undesirable travelers from extra-legally bypassing immigration laws,” Binay said. The senator likewise urged the DoF and NICA to review the existing exemption system to avoid any misuse and abuse by some foreign nationals of the Philippine e-visa. Binay cited the country’s digital version of the standard visa allows foreign travelers to enter a certain country for a specific period or purpose. In lieu of physical holographic stamps or stickers on the passport, applicants instead receive an e-visa approval code — which is linked to the passports. The post Requiring personal E-visa appearances urged appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Huge mass in Lisbon ahead of pope’s arrival for ‘Catholic Woodstock’
A sea of flag-waving pilgrims from around the world packed a Lisbon park on Tuesday for an open-air Mass that kicked off a week-long jamboree of Catholic youth on the eve of the arrival of Pope Francis. Lisbon's patriarch, Cardinal Manuel Clemente, delivered the homily at the service held at the hillside Eduardo VII Park with sweeping views of the Portuguese capital and the Tagus River. "Lisbon welcomes you wholeheartedly," he told the crowd as pilgrims waved national flags in the air. Local authorities expect some 300,000 people to attend the opening Mass of World Youth Day, which is actually a week of religious, cultural, and festive events held every three years in a different city. Francis is set to arrive in Lisbon on Wednesday morning to join the event, which has been dubbed the "Catholic Woodstock". The 86-year-old pontiff is by Church standards the most liberal pope in decades and is very popular with young people. During his papacy, he has tried to create a more compassionate church, reaching out to the gay community and talking frankly to youngsters about abortion, divorce, and gender identity. "Pope Francis is open to young people," said Cristina Kelly, a 39-year-old who came from Brazil, just before the start of the Mass. "He called on us and we came. People need that today, for young people to be called to God," she told AFP. 'Recharge spiritual battery' In Portugal, the pope has a typically packed schedule for his five-day visit, despite having spent nine nights in hospital after undergoing hernia surgery in June. Francis, the first Latin American pope, is due to make 11 public pronouncements and hold numerous meetings, and on Saturday will visit the shrine of Fatima north of Lisbon. Church organizers expect one million faithful will attend the event's closing mass which will be delivered by the pope on Sunday at a waterside park on the outskirts of Lisbon. Images of the pope were on display on banners across the city as well as on screens on automatic bank machines along with the message: "I am with you". A Lisbon pastry shop is even selling cookies with the image of the smiling pontiff wearing a crucifix. "My goal is to recharge my spiritual battery because sometimes, as young people, we let it run low," Xochilt Cecilia Velis, a 24-year-old from El Salvador, told AFP in central Lisbon. World Youth Day is part of the Vatican's efforts to galvanize young Catholics at a time when secularism and disgust over clerical child sex abuse cause some faithful to abandon the Church. Meeting with abuse victims The gathering comes as the Portuguese Catholic Church is reckoning with its legacy of clerical sexual abuse. A report released in February by an independent commission determined that at least 4,815 children had been abused by clergy members in Portugal since 1950. The inquiry -- similar to audits elsewhere in Europe and the Americas -- concluded that the Church hierarchy "systematically" tried to conceal the abuse. Pope Francis is scheduled to meet privately with abuse victims during his visit but the date of the encounter or other details has not been released. Initially scheduled for August 2022, but postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Lisbon World Youth Day is the 16th international edition of what has become the largest gathering of Catholics worldwide. Church organizers said there are pilgrims registered to take part in this year's event from every country in the world except the Maldives. A brainchild of the late Pope John Paul II, the event started in 1986. The current one is the fourth presided over by Pope Francis, who became head of the Catholic Church in 2013. The last three events took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2013, in Krakow, Poland in 2016, and in Panama City, Panama in 2019. The post Huge mass in Lisbon ahead of pope’s arrival for ‘Catholic Woodstock’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Binay to DFA: Require personal appearances in E-visa application
Senator Nancy Binay on Tuesday urged the Department of Foreign Affairs to make “personal appearances at consular offices” as a “non-negotiable requirement” for some categories applying for electronic-visa or e-visa to ensure national security is still in place. Binay welcomed the pilot implementation of the country’s first-ever e-visa services on 24 August but stressed that DFA and National Intelligence Coordinating Agency should come up with “better security policies” to prevent possible non-technical loopholes. She added the authorities should ensure that the “probability” of organized syndicates exploiting tour groups and junkets will be lessened, including human trafficking. “We welcome the implementation of e-visas not only to positively boost tourism but also as our commitment to facilitate ease of travel. In the same vein, we urge the DFA and NICA to refine national security policies to deter undesirable travelers from extra-legally bypassing immigration laws,” Binay said. The senator likewise urged the DoF and NICA to review the existing exemption system to avoid any misuse and abuse by some foreign nationals of the Philippine e-visa. Binay cited the country’s digital version of the standard visa allows foreign travelers to enter a certain country for a specific period or purpose. In lieu of physical holographic stamps or stickers on the passport, applicants instead receive an e-visa approval code—which is linked to the passports. Binay urged authorities to make sure that national security would not be compromised amid plans to improve the digitalization of government processes. “Though the e-visa system temporarily gives us an opportunity to recover and jumpstart Philippine tourism, kailangan natin magkaroon ng (there’s a need to have) serious strategic decision on embracing the system as a modern travel solution,” she said. “Every visa decision has a national security dimension. Certain parameters on security should be in place, and apply a multi-layered safety plug plus a face-to-face interview to a narrow category of travelers para talagang salang-sala ang mga pumapasok sa bansa,” she added. Binay said vetting on transnational organizational criminals or TOC-related grounds and extensive security screening should be the prime considerations in approving visa applications. "Mas laganap ngayon ang transnational crimes lalo na ang human trafficking and prostitution na mula Mainland China. Gaano ba kasigurado tayo na ang nabibigyan natin ng e-visa eh talagang mga lehitimong turista? As a matter of national interest, I share the DFA's position to require face-to-face interviews with tourist visa applicants whose profiles fall in marked categories," she said. Hence, Binay advised the DFA to proceed with caution saying that the Bureau of Immigration “should also have a system to check on foreign nationals overstaying in the country.” Considering that the Philippines is the only ASEAN country with a Tier 1 status under the US State Department’s annual human trafficking report, Binay said the DFA cannot turn a blind eye on media reports involving the alleged trafficking of Chinese workers to the country. “Lalo pa ngayong unti-unti nang nanunumbalik ang turismo (now that tourism is reviving)—we also cannot ignore that China is a big market. I share the opinion that we have to take advantage of the global 'revenge tourism' phenomenon, but targeting visitor quotas need not dilute national security interests. At the end of the day, safety nets in homeland security should be in place,” she said. Binay noted that visa applicants must demonstrate their eligibility for e-visa acquisition, whether they are applying for tourism, business, or emergency purposes. The policy must apply to all foreign nationals, and we always have to be on the side of caution and prudence, she added. The DFA is set to pilot the e-visa in China and India beginning on 24 August. It will later allow foreign travelers to enter the country for tourism and business to apply for temporary visas online. The post Binay to DFA: Require personal appearances in E-visa application appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Putting the quit on Quilter
Karl Quilter, a Chicago resident, was recently handed a sentence of 30 years in a United States federal prison for OSEC, or the online sexual exploitation of children based in the Philippines. The 58-year-old Quilter entered last year a guilty plea, claiming that the minors he spoke with on social media sites Facebook, Viber, and Skype from 2017 to 2020 were his “girlfriends.” His modus operandi, court records showed, involved dangling money transfers to persuade his victims to send the requested images. Quilter, in fact, visited the Philippines in 2017 and 2018, but he would not admit to actually having physical sex with minors, something that could have added to his sentence. He, nonetheless, admitted to having vowed to return to the Philippines in 2020 to act out his OSEC fantasies, yet more proof that OSEC oftentimes leads to actual physical abuse by moneyed, well-traveled monsters. The successful prosecution of Quilter and others like him, however, represents only one side of the coin as there’s also a pressing need to stop the abuse at the source, hundreds of miles away. Putting behind bars adults, frequently family members, who enable this heinous crime within the Philippines and other poor countries, is equally important. Unicef, the International Justice Mission, and Interpol have conducted extensive research that indicates that the Philippines, even before the start of the pandemic, had become a major global hub for live-streaming or the distribution of videos and photos of sex acts involving children as young as two years old. According to their estimates, the incidence of OSEC in the country had more than tripled in recent years, with the Philippines receiving more than eight times as many referrals as any other country, “making it the center of the global live-stream sex abuse trade.” The IJM, which started working closely with authorities in the Philippines in 2020 to close physical channels of sexual abuse of minors like bars and prostitution houses, had warned that Covid-19 lockdowns spanning two years had significantly contributed to a threefold rise in OSEC cases. With his department as the lead agency in the government’s efforts against human trafficking, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla has gone, so far, as to warn telecom companies that they would be prosecuted if they did not provide checks and filters against OSEC materials being routed through their networks. The biggest telcos have been heeding Remulla’s call, but as technology moves fast, they have to contend not only with the traffickers but also with tech wizards, those who live off the Dark Web, and who provide the backend support to ram OSEC materials through governmental and corporate check valves. IJM has drawn a silver lining around the dark clouds, saying that significant progress has been made in reducing the availability of children for sale on the streets and for internet-based sex trafficking. The figures, the group claimed, have fallen by as much as 86 percent in the cities where they were present. The relationship between OSEC and money transfers has been made crystal clear by recent research by the Anti-Money Laundering Task Force. It said that to stop the cycle of exploitation and bring the offenders to justice, it is necessary to destroy the illegal financial networks and stop the use of legal ones for OSEC payments. Although Quilter’s sentencing represents an important development in the prosecution of foreign offenders, he is just one among the millions of pedophiles and other perverts who have fueled OSEC, a multi-faceted problem that requires creative solutions and cross-border cooperation among governments, non-governmental organizations, and communities. OSEC operations by families in far-flung barangays are an open secret in communities, betrayed by the sprouting of Wi-Fi antennas in homes that also suddenly had access to extra cash. Cracking down on them has been easier, but the additional challenge now is stopping OSEC coursed through smartphones with internet data access. OSEC has been and will always be a cat-and-mouse game. It’s a virtual one-upmanship in trying to put the quit on depravities perpetrated by the likes of Quilter. The post Putting the quit on Quilter appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Bolivia probes 35 church members behind sex abuse
Bolivian prosecutors are investigating 35 members of the Catholic Church after more than a dozen victims accused them of sexual abuse, authorities said Tuesday. The statement comes as the country is reeling from confessions of abuse that were found in the personal diary of a Spanish priest who died in Bolivia in 2009 after decades of service there. “At present, 35 people are accused and under investigation,” Daniela Caceres, a department head at the Bolivian attorney general’s office, told a press conference. “We have 17 people, identified victims, but out of respect and as a precaution for the protection of the victims, we are not going to give specific details,” she added. Prosecutors opened an investigation following a report by the Spanish daily El Pais in April about the late Spanish priest Alfonso Pedrajas, whose diary indicated that he had abused more than 80 minors in Bolivia, where he had lived since the early 1970s. The post Bolivia probes 35 church members behind sex abuse appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Israel eyes direct flights from Manila
The Israeli government is targeting direct flights between its country and the Philippines, as it aims to break the record-high 4.5 million tourists to Israel in 2019. Israeli Ambassador to the Philippines Ilan Fluss told the Daily Tribune last Wednesday he will discuss incentives for direct flights with Philippine authorities next week. “Because new destinations are a risk to airlines, you need to have some incentives to start a new route at least for the first year or two, and this is something we have to check with the Philippine authorities if they’re willing to give incentives for Israeli airlines to fly here.” Fluss shared the discussions have been slow but he is “optimistic” there will be a favorable decision on starting direct flights between the two countries either through flag-carrier Philippine Airlines or El Al Israel Airlines. Pilgrims top visitors The ambassador said Filipinos seeking to see the biblical sites in Israel, known as The Holy Land, are a top source of tourists. “The Philippines is one of the leading countries sending tourists to Israel for pilgrimages. Next month, we’ll be sending 1,000 people for pilgrimage in Israel from Manila.” Amid the reopening of economies globally, Fluss said tourists to Israel jumped 21 percent from January to March this year. Last year, Israel attracted 2 million tourists, down from the peak of 4.5 million in 2019. Visitors from North America contributed 70 percent to the total number of tourists in Israel pre-pandemic. The Philippines is one of the leading countries sending tourists to Israel for pilgrimages. Next month, we’ll be sending 1,000 people for pilgrimage in Israel from Manila. Among Israel’s top tourist destinations are the Dead Sea, Negev Desert and Jerusalem City, which has many religious sites, such as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Western Wall. Israel’s Ministry of Tourism announced in December last year it will encourage construction of more hotels, from the affordable to the luxury, to accommodate the projected influx of tourists. The ministry expects at least 4,000 new hotel rooms this year, some to be located beyond the hotel-rich cities of Jerusalem and Eilat. The post Israel eyes direct flights from Manila appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Fugitive Teves claims ‘persecution’
Suspended Negros Oriental Representative Arnie Teves claimed that the military and police raided one of his properties in Bayawan City without a search warrant. “This is real persecution already. This is too much. It’s not right anymore. It’s wrong. The trampling on human rights is too much. Shouldn’t you have freedom and peace in your home and community? Now it’s gone,” he said in Filipino in a press briefing conducted remotely yesterday. Teves is a suspect in the 4 March 2023 assassination of Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo. One of Teves’ lawyers, Ferdinand Topacio, said his client is being subjected to “harassment” as government forces also raided a poultry farm that Teves owns in Bayawan even during the celebration of Eid’l Fitr or the Feast of Ramadan on Friday. Approximately 15 short and high-powered firearms, explosives, and ammunition were found during the initial raid on Teves’ property and two other homes allegedly owned by his relatives on 10 March. Teves’ camp decried as illegal the raid on his properties by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group on 25 March. The authorities have linked his younger brother, former governor Pryde Henry Teves, to the killing of Degamo. The embattled lawmaker talked with the media through his Facebook page, where he said he hoped the raiders did not plant evidence. Teves also sought the help of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to stop government agents from raiding his properties without a search warrant. The President, however, had refused to be drawn into Teves’ problems, saying the legislator should just return home to face the charges. Suspension from House His plea to Marcos came days after he revealed in an interview that he had also sought the help of a colleague in returning home after he had insisted on remaining abroad because he did not feel safe. Last 22 March, the President urged the embattled lawmaker to return to the country, assuring him of tight security upon arrival. Teves is also facing charges over loose firearms and a series of killings in the province in 2019. He has been out of the country since 28 February and his failure to return home to perform his congressional duties and face the allegations leveled against him prompted his two-month suspension by the House ethics panel. PDP, Beijing party solidify ties The meeting was aimed at strengthening economic and cultural cooperation between China and the Philippines. Members of the major political party Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan or PDP Laban yesterday met with their counterparts in the International Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China or IDCPC at the Sheraton Hotel in Pasay City. Former president and PDP Laban chairman Rodrigo Duterte joined the meeting via Zoom, along with vice chairman Alfonso Cusi, Senator Robinhood Padilla, Former Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, Secretary General Melvin Matibag, and the party’s Council of Elders and national executive committee. The meeting was aimed at strengthening economic and cultural cooperation between China and the Philippines. The party leaders and the IDCPC delegation, led by the Director-General of the Asian Bureau Peng Xiubin, discussed methods for strengthening their relationship. Given his high approval rating of over 80 percent even upon his retirement, the conference was significant because former President Duterte’s influence within the party could affect its future direction. In addition, the meeting highlighted the growing relationship between the Philippines and China, as both countries have made efforts in recent years to strengthen trade and investment ties. China has made significant contributions to infrastructure and exchange programs in the cultural and educational realms. The Philippines’ strategic location and swiftly expanding economy in Southeast Asia make it a key player in the region. Therefore, establishing strong alliances with other nations, particularly China, is crucial for its future growth and development. The meeting signified a turning point in Philippine politics. It emphasizes the importance of international relations and political parties working together to influence the country’s future, as well as in the strengthening of “people-to-people” ties. The post Fugitive Teves claims ‘persecution’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Iraq’s ancient treasures sand-blasted by climate change
Iraqi archaeological marvels that have survived millennia and the ravages of war now face a modern threat: being blasted and slowly buried by sandstorms linked to climate change. Ancient Babylonian treasures, painstakingly unearthed, are slowly disappearing again under wind-blown sand in a land parched by rising heat and prolonged droughts. Iraq, one of the countries worst hit by climate change, endured a dozen major sandstorms last year that turned the sky orange, brought daily life to a halt, and left its people gasping for air. When the storms clear, layers of fine sand cover everything -- including the Sumerian ruins of Umm al-Aqarib, "the Mother of Scorpions", in the southern desert province of Dhi Qar. Sandstorms have slowly begun to reverse years of work there to unearth the temples' terracotta facades and many priceless artifacts, said archaeologist Aqeel al-Mansrawi. Archaeologists in Iraq have always had to shovel sand, but now the volumes are growing. After a decade of worsening storms, sand at Umm al-Aqarib now "covers a good part of the site", that dates back to around 2350 BC and spans more than five square kilometers, he said. In the past, the biggest threat was the looting of antiquities at the ruins, where pottery fragments and clay tablets bearing ancient cuneiform script have been discovered. Now the changing weather and its impact on the land, especially creeping desertification, spell an additional threat to ancient sites all across southern Iraq, said Mansrawi. "In the next 10 years," he said, "it is estimated that sand could have covered 80 to 90 percent of the archaeological sites." The fabled land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers hosted some of the world's earliest civilizations, the remains of which are under threat in modern-day Iraq. The oil-rich country is still recovering from decades of dictatorship, war and insurgency and remains plagued by misrule, corruption and widespread poverty. Compounding its woes, Iraq is also one of the five countries most impacted by some effects of climate change, including drought, says the United Nations. Upstream dams in Turkey and Iraq have reduced the flow of its big rivers, and more water is wasted by Iraq's ancient irrigation system and outdated farming practices. Summer temperatures topping 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) now often batter Iraq where droughts have parched agricultural areas, driving farmers and pastoralists into crowded cities. "The sandstorms became more frequent, the wind became dustier and the temperatures increase," said Jaafar al-Jotheri, professor of archaeology at Iraq's Al Qadisiyah University. "The soil has become more fragile and fragmented because of the lack of vegetation and roots," he explained. As more farmers flee the countryside, "their land is left behind and abandoned and its soil becomes more exposed to the wind". Winds pick up "more sediment fragments that reach the archaeological sites", Jotheri said, adding that the "sand and silt cause physical weathering and disintegration of buildings". The problem is compounded by salinization, said Mark Altaweel, professor of Near East Archaeology at University College London. During extreme heat, he explained, water on the land surface evaporates so quickly that the soil does not reabsorb the crystals, which are left behind as a crust. "When it's hyper dry, the water quickly evaporates and that leaves that salt residue," he said, adding that "you can see it on the bricks". Jotheri said that salt in the earth carried by sandstorms causes "chemical weathering for archaeological buildings". Iraqi authorities insist they are tackling the complex and multi-layered problem. The government "is working to contain the sand dunes", said Chamel Ibrahim, director of antiquities of Dhi Qar province. He pointed to a plan to plant a "green belt" of trees at a cost of about $3.8 million. But Jotheri voiced doubt, saying that to keep the vegetation alive, "you need a lot of water". When it comes to climate change, he said, "we are the country facing the most and acting the least. We are at the bottom of the list in terms of acting against climate change." The post Iraq’s ancient treasures sand-blasted by climate change appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
PLDT strengthens defenses vs child porn, blocks over 2,900 sites
PLDT is ramping up its efforts to protect children from online predators. The telco said it has blocked more than 2,900 sites linked to online sexual abuse and exploitation of children......»»
WHO warns of drawn out pandemic as South Africa cases top 500,000
The UN health agency warned that the coronavirus pandemic would be lengthy and could lead to “response fatigue”, as the case count in South Africa topped half a million. Although many Latin American countries have begun relaxing stay-at-home measures, the virus is still spreading quickly across much of the region Six months after the World Health Organization declared a global emergency, the novel coronavirus has killed more than 680,000 people and infected more than 17.5 million, according to an AFP tally. South Africa is by far the hardest hit country in Africa, accounting for more than half of diagnosed infections, although President Cyril Ramaphosa said the fatality rate is lower than the global average. Health authorities had been expecting a surge in cases after the gradual loosening of a strict lockdown that was imposed at the end of March. Nigeria on Saturday also announced it would ease a lockdown in the commercial capital Lagos, allowing churches and mosques to reopen next week. An emergency WHO committee reviewing the pandemic “highlighted the anticipated lengthy duration of this COVID-19 outbreak, noting the importance of sustained community, national, regional, and global response efforts”. “WHO continues to assess the global risk level of COVID-19 to be very high,” it said in its latest statement. The agency also said the effects of the pandemic “will be felt for decades to come”. Mexico overtook Britain to become the third hardest hit country in virus deaths — after Brazil and the United States — with more than 46,600 fatal cases. Although many Latin American countries have begun relaxing stay-at-home measures, the virus is still spreading quickly across much of the region, which has now recorded more than four million cases and almost 200,000 deaths. Half of them are in Brazil, where President Jair Bolsonaro said he believes “nearly everyone” will catch the virus eventually, after himself recovering from it. The US, the hardest-hit country in the world, has now tallied more than 4.6 million cases and 154,319 deaths. Vaccine race The outlook was bleak in Asia as well, where India and the Philippines reported record increases in new daily infections. “We are waging a losing battle against COVID-19, and we need to draw up a consolidated, definitive plan of action,” said an open letter signed by 80 Filipino medical associations. Japan’s Okinawa declared a state of emergency after a record jump in cases on the islands — many linked to US military forces stationed there. The pandemic has spurred a race for a vaccine with several Chinese companies at the forefront, while Russia has set a target date of September to roll out its own medicine. However, US infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci said it was unlikely his country would use any vaccine developed in either nation. “I do hope that the Chinese and the Russians are actually testing the vaccine before they are administering the vaccine to anyone,” he said. As part of its “Operation Warp Speed”, the US government will pay pharmaceutical giants Sanofi and GSK up to $2.1 billion for the development of a COVID-19 vaccine, the companies said. ‘Day of freedom’ France, Spain, Portugal and Italy all reported huge contractions in their economies for the April-June quarter, while Europe as a whole saw gross domestic product fall by 12.1 percent. Daily case numbers in Switzerland have crept up again in recent weeks, while Norway recorded its first virus death in two weeks. At least 36 crew members confined to a Norwegian cruise ship have tested positive for the new coronavirus, the operator Hurtigruten said on Saturday. Despite the resurgence in cases, there have been demonstrations in Europe against the curbs. Thousands protested in Berlin on Saturday urging “a day of freedom” from the restrictions, with some demonstrators dubbing the pandemic “the biggest conspiracy theory”. In South Korea, the elderly leader of a secretive sect at the centre of the country’s early coronavirus outbreak was arrested for allegedly hindering the government’s effort to contain the epidemic. People linked to Lee Man-hee’s Shincheonji Church of Jesus accounted for more than half of the South’s coronavirus cases in February and March, but the country has since appeared to have brought the virus under control. The pandemic has also continued to cause mayhem in the travel and tourism sectors, with more airlines announcing mass job cuts. Latin America’s biggest airline, the Brazilian-Chilean group LATAM, said it would lay off least 2,700 crew, and British Airways pilots overwhelmingly voted to accept a deal cutting wages by 20 percent, with 270 jobs lost......»»
Senate committee seeks Quiboloy s arrest
The Senate committee on women, children, family relations and gender equality has requested the arrest of pastor Apollo Quiboloy after his repeated failure to attend a probe on the sexual abuse complaints against him and his church members......»»