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Bad Bunny, BLACKPINK, Frank Ocean headlining historic Coachella
Hundreds of thousands of revelers were descending on California's Coachella Valley for the premier desert arts festival that kicks off Friday, which for the first time won't feature a white headliner. Reggaeton titan Bad Bunny, K-pop superstars BLACKPINK and the influential but reclusive R&B artist Frank Ocean will top the 2023 edition of Coachella, the mammoth event that takes place over two three-day weekends and traditionally kicks off the year's summer concert circuit. It's set to be a history-making weekend, with Bad Bunny -- the globe's most-streamed artist -- as the first Spanish-language and first Latin American act to headline. And K-pop group BLACKPINK of South Korea is the first Asian act to receive a top billing at the festival. Both acts debuted at Coachella in 2019 to great fanfare, teeing up an eventual headlining slot. Ocean -- thought to be the first out queer man to headline the festival -- was originally booked as a top-billed act for the 2020 edition, which organizers postponed and eventually scrapped due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The acclaimed R&B artist, who hasn't released an album since 2016's "Blonde," is anticipated to debut new work at this year's festival. The headliners -- in particular Puerto Rico's Bad Bunny, who is by most measures the world's biggest contemporary artist -- are some of the buzziest in years, since Beyonce shut down the stage in 2018 with her revered "Homecoming" show. But despite their undeniable star power there was some surprise among industry-watchers and fans that Bad Bunny or BLACKPINK nabbed the top slots. That take is misguided according to Vanessa Diaz, a professor at Loyola Marymount University who teaches the course "Bad Bunny and Resistance in Puerto Rico." "They're surprised because they don't view this as mainstream American culture," she said. "People were in disbelief because this seems so not a representation of mainstream American popular music in the way that Coachella has represented that before." 'Public demand' The weekend is set to host perhaps the most international lineup Coachella has ever booked, including Spanish phenomenon Rosalia, Iceland's Bjork and Nigeria's Burna Boy. Belgium's Angele is slated to make her Coachella debut, as France's Christine and the Queens, who has been performing under the name Redcar, will also return after wowing audiences in 2019. And the elusive electronic producer Jai Paul will play his first public performance ever. Domi and JD Beck, the rising jazz duo comprised of a French keyboardist and American drummer, will also take the stage, months after they made a splash in Los Angeles as Grammy nominees. Diljit Dosanjh will become the first Punjabi singer to perform at Coachella, as Pakistani singer, songwriter and composer Ali Sethi will also play a set. For CedarBough Saeji, a professor of Korean and East Asian studies who specializes in K-pop, the festival lineup emphasizing the hottest acts from across the globe is long overdue. "The American music industry, the American decision-makers, are not necessarily the biggest risk-takers," she told AFP. "They want to follow clear indication of public demand, as opposed to sticking their necks out." English virtual band Gorillaz will also perform, as will New Wave pioneers Blondie and the American indie rock supergroup boygenius, which includes Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker. Beyond the supernova that is Bad Bunny, the weekend will once again see a strong showing from Latinos, including but not limited to Los Angeles native Becky G, rapper Eladio Carrion, Argentina's Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, and the Grammy-winning Kali Uchis. Coachella will take place over two three-day weekends, from April 14-16 and 21-23. And OG rock fans will get a special treat: Blink-182 announced just this week it will play a set Friday, the first time the pop punk group will perform with its original lineup in nearly a decade. The post Bad Bunny, BLACKPINK, Frank Ocean headlining historic Coachella appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
High expectations from winners (4)
Vice President and DepEd Secretary Sara Duterte-Carpio took very seriously the job given to her by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to prepare a curriculum relevant to producing competent, job-ready, active, and responsible citizens. In her report on basic education in the Philippines, she revealed in detail the problems confronting it, the teachers, and learners; and crafted means to overcome them, guided by the Constitution and the convention on the rights of the child, reaffirming our country’s commitment to improving the quality of basic education in the Philippines. “The four learners at home — one in kindergarten, one in Grade 4, one in Grade 7, and one in Grade 9 — enable me to see different kinds of problems being experienced by learners every day.” “In my work as Secretary of Education, I am in the company of 28 million Filipino learners throughout the country. I can see numerous problems faced by them every day.” “Four learners at home, plus 28 million more throughout the land, these, my countrymen, make my interest in the future of Philippine education a very personal matter.” “Filipino learners are not academically proficient. In time, Filipino learners experience emotional abuse and exhaustion. Some of them suffer from psychological fatigue. And being academically insecure, many of them may fail to meet the standards of a demanding and competitive world. These are caused and triggered by conditions present at home, in our communities, and even in our schools as a result of problems ingrained in our system. This is the truth. This is our future. But this is a future that we can change. That is why we are here.” “We have to take good care of our teachers. They are the lifeblood of the Department of Education. Without our teachers, our mission to carve a better future for our children will fail.” “And to empower our learners with the relevant skills and knowledge, we shall focus on upscaling their knowledge and capacities as public servants. The assessment of the K-12 curriculum revealed the weak teaching methods of our teachers in addressing 21st-century skills. Studies done by the Research Center of Teacher Quality, the World Bank, and UNICEF showed that our teachers need further support, particularly in explicitly and strategically teaching critical thinking and problem-solving skills.” “While critical thinking was the most evident in the curriculum, it was also the least taught to students by the teachers. Instead, lessons leaned towards conceptual or content-based teaching. And lessons lacked in-depth processing to cultivate critical thinking and problem-solving. Finally, there appears to be insufficient knowledge on developing 21st-century skills, including higher-order thinking skills among learners. This is not the fault of our teachers—whose dedication, integrity, and commitment to serving Filipino children and the country strengthen our collective effort to achieve our shared dreams for our learners. The sad reality is that the system has failed them.” “This is the system that burdens them with backbreaking and time-consuming administrative tasks, a system that provides no adequate support and robs them of the opportunity to professionally grow and professionally teach, assist and guide our learners.” “Our teachers must return to our classrooms and they must teach.” Studies and tests were conducted to measure the literacy of the learners. It was discovered that the issue of literacy is alarming in our basic education. We must address it appropriately and effectively. The 2018 study results showed that 81 percent of Filipino learners could not deal with basic math problems, 81 percent had trouble understanding texts of moderate length, and 78 percent could not recognize correct explanations for scientific phenomena or draw valid conclusions from given data. “We can do better than this,” Sara said. “We are better than this. Studies like these are opportunities for us to thoroughly examine our system and defects that hurt our children’s abilities.” (To be continued) The post High expectations from winners (4) appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Youth backsliding on tobacco use feared
Public health advocates in the Philippines expressed growing concern on Thursday over the escalation of influence by the tobacco industry, which they say threatens the health and welfare of young Filipinos. At the launch of the 2022 and 2023 Tobacco Industry Interference Index Country Reports, the advocates warned that the downward trend of smoking in the country could be reversed, and more young people could become addicted to nicotine products if the situation is not addressed. “The tobacco industry has proven just how relentless they are in using their political and marketing machinery to assert their interests via interactions with the government,” said Rom Dongeto, convenor of the Child Rights Network and executive director of the Philippine Legislators’ Committee on Population and Development. “We need to stop tobacco companies from targeting children and youth, especially through online platforms, in the propagation of their deadly vapes and cigarettes,” he added. The 2022 and 2023 TII Index Reports found that the Philippines’ score has consistently increased over the years, indicating the increasing influence of the tobacco industry and the government’s failure to combat interference. The country’s score rose from 45 in 2017 to 54 in 2018 and 57 in 2019. At the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, scores rose to 54 in 2020 and 58 in 2021. By 2022, the country’s score was up another notch at 59 and moved up further to 60 in 2023. The post Youth backsliding on tobacco use feared appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Beyonce ‘Renaissance’ film to hit theaters in December
Beyonce over the weekend wrapped her much-touted Renaissance World Tour, a 56-show performance epic promoting her lauded album that pays homage to dance and disco. And it's on to the next one for the 42-year-old megastar, with her latest project "Renaissance: A Film by Beyonce" now slated for release December 1. It's not the first time Beyonce has released elaborate visual companions to her music. She called both her 2013 self-titled album and 2016's "Lemonade" visual albums. She's also released concert films, documentaries, and 2019's "Homecoming," which chronicled her headliner sets at Coachella. But this time she's shifting away from DVD or streaming-only releases, opting for a theatrical release a la Taylor Swift, whose Eras Tour concert film is poised to rule the box office when it is released later this month. Based on surveys conducted by the company QuestionPro, by the time both Swift and Beyonce have finished their blockbuster tours, they're expected to have generated a combined $9 billion in economic activity just in North America. According to a statement from concert promoter Live Nation, Beyonce's global run earned $579 million. Beyonce's film tracks her artistic journey over the course of her tour and is also expected to include behind-the-scenes footage of her and her family, including husband Jay-Z and their three children. "When I am performing, I am nothing but free," Beyonce says in the trailer for her film. "My goal for this tour was to create a place where everyone is free, and no one is judged." The post Beyonce ‘Renaissance’ film to hit theaters in December appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Linking Fatima-Mediatrix to Russia-Ukraine
(Author’s Note: The Marian messages quoted here are not necessarily authenticated by the Catholic Church.) There was a report years ago from a Mediatrix devotee, who requested anonymity that Our Lady of Fatima healed the aunt of Vladimir Putin and Putin himself. No details were given. The devotee said he visited Putin several times. This report by a Mediatrix devotee links Lipa and Lisbon to Russia and Ukraine. Lipa and Lisbon were linked after Fatima’s Miracle of the Sun was repeated in a Mediatrix shrine in Mindanao on the 100th anniversary of Fatima, precisely to the hour. As a child, Putin was secretly baptized into the Orthodox Church because the Communist Party banned it. The Christian in Putin may be the potential key to ending the war in Ukraine. In 1960, Pope John XXIII unsealed the Third Secret of Fatima in the presence of Cardinal Augustin Bea and his secretary, Fr. Malachi Martin. In an interview at the Art Bell Show USA in 1997, Fr. Martin hinted that, based on the Third Secret, the solution to the world’s ills would come from Ukraine and Russia. The conversion of Russia Our Lady of Fatima revealed that the triumph of her Immaculate Heart would come from the conversion of Russia. St. Pope John Paul II soon consecrated Russia to her Immaculate Heart. Vatican Mariologists attributed the consecration to the ensuing momentary era of world peace, a “Marian intervention.” In 1994, Mikhail Gorbachev visited St. Pope John Paul II, the first visit in history by the Kremlin to the Papacy. Gorbachev instituted Perestroika (reconciliation) and Glasnost (openness), leading to the opening of Christian churches inside Russia. Immediately, Ukraine announced the legalization of the Ukrainian Church (about 70 percent Orthodox), which was brutally disbanded by Joseph Stalin in 1946. The Berlin Wall then crumbled, leading to the reunification of Germany and the end of the Cold War. Gorbachev’s reforms led to the fall of the USSR. Among its former satellites were Ukraine and Belarus, now arch-enemies in the war in Ukraine. Marian’s intimacy with Ukraine On 22 January 2022, during a Ukrainian Orthodox celebration in an unspecified town, a white dove descended on top of the altar painting of the Baptism of Jesus, a warning perhaps of a Russian invasion, which happened a few days later. Ukraine was the first nation to be consecrated to the Blessed Virgin in 1037. In 1914, two weeks before World War I, the Virgin told 22 field workers near the Church of the Holy Trinity in the village of Hrushiv: “There will be a war. Russia will become a godless country. As a nation, Ukraine will suffer terribly for eighty years — and will have to live through the world wars, but it will be free afterwards.” The prophecy was fulfilled. In 1987, a year after the Chernobyl tragedy, in the same church in Hrushiv, the Virgin told 12-year-old visionary Marina Kizyn: “Do not forget those who have died. Chernobyl is a reminder and a sign that …. THROUGH THE BLOOD OF (UKRAINIAN) MARTYRS WILL COME THE CONVERSION OF RUSSIA.” A bright light filled the church where the Virgin appeared. There were daily apparitions until 15 August, the Feast of the Assumption, which attracted about 500,000 people in total. Many witnessed the apparitions. Hrushiv became an instant pilgrim center. The Virgin of Hrushiv became Our Lady of Ukraine. Our Lady appeared to KGB agents trying to manage the huge crowds. At that time, churches were closed, and Christianity was banned. Priests from the “underground Church” emerged from hiding and defied the KGB, saying ten Holy Masses daily outside the church. The KGB did not touch them. Hrushiv was saved from a deadly cholera epidemic in 1855, with not a single death in the village, after the people offered Mass at a spring that suddenly came out of the ground. The Virgin demonstrated her love for the Ukrainian people when she said: “I have come on purpose to thank the Ukrainian people because you have suffered the most for the Church of Christ in the last 70 years. I have come to comfort you and tell you that your suffering will soon end. Ukraine will become an independent state.” (Source: oclarim.com.mo, 6 July 2018) Does Putin have a role in the “conversion” of Russia and the end of the war in Ukraine? Will peace be attained through the blood of Ukrainians as martyrs? These remain to be seen. eastwindreplyctr@gmail.com The post Linking Fatima-Mediatrix to Russia-Ukraine appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
EU hits TikTok with big fine over child data
A European Union regulator hit Chinese-owned social media platform TikTok with a 345-million-euro fine over child data breaches on Friday, in the bloc's latest salvo against the business practices of tech titans. The fine, equivalent to $369 million, is the culmination of a two-year inquiry by Ireland's Data Protection Commission (DPC). The Irish watchdog, which plays a key role in policing the EU's strict General Data Protection Regulations, gave TikTok three months "to bring its processing into compliance" with its rules. The DPC in September 2021 began examining TikTok's compliance with GDPR in relation to platform settings and personal data processing for users aged under 18 years old. It also looked at TikTok's age verification measures for persons under 13 and found no infringement, but found the platform did not properly assess the risks to younger people registering on the service. The regulator highlighted in its ruling Friday how children signing up had TikTok accounts set to public by default, meaning anyone could view or comment on their content. It also criticised TikTok's "family pairing" mode, which is designed to link parents' accounts to those of their teenage offspring, but the DPC found the company did not verify parent or guardian status. Ireland is at the centre of the GDPR regime because Dublin hosts the European headquarters of TikTok and the likes of Google, Meta and X, formerly Twitter. In May, the DPC fined Meta a record 1.2 billion euros for transferring EU user data to the United States in breach of a previous court ruling. TikTok, a division of Chinese tech giant ByteDance, is extremely popular among young people with 150 million users in the United States and 134 million in the EU. TikTok 'respectfully disagrees' In response to the fine, TikTok said it "respectfully disagrees" with the verdict and was "evaluating" how to proceed. "The DPC's criticisms are focused on features and settings that were in place three years ago, and that we made changes to well before the investigation even began, such as setting all under 16 accounts to private by default," a TikTok spokesperson told AFP. The platform insists that it closely monitors the age of its users and takes action when needed. TikTok says it deleted almost 17 million accounts worldwide in the first three month of this year due to suspicions that they belonged to people under 13 years old. Earlier this month, the social media giant opened a long-promised data centre in Ireland, as it tries to calm fears in Europe over data privacy. GDPR came into force in 2018 and was the EU's toughest and most famous law on tech, ensuring citizens give consent to the ways in which their data is used. Friday's fine comes after the EU last week unveiled a list of digital giants -- including Apple, Facebook owner Meta and ByteDance -- that will face tough new curbs on how they do business. The post EU hits TikTok with big fine over child data appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Family killed by Nazis to be beatified in Catholic first
A Polish couple and their seven children, killed by Nazis during World War II for hiding Jews, will be beatified Sunday, the first time an entire family is given one of Catholicism's highest honors. The ceremony in the family's hometown of Markowa in south-east Poland will be attended by over 30,000 people, including 80 bishops, 1,000 priests, the country's chief rabbi, and an Israeli delegation. It was there, on 24 March 1944, that German police acting on a tip-off shot dead Jozef Ulma and his wife Wiktoria, who was seven months pregnant and partially gave birth during the execution. Their children, Stanislawa, Barbara, Wladyslav, Franciszek, Antoni, and Maria, aged between two and eight, were killed too, along with the eight Jews the family had been hiding in the attic. The eight -- Shaul Goldmann and his five children, including his daughter Lea Didner and her five-year-old daughter, and Golda Gruenfeld -- were also shot before the family farmhouse was looted and set on fire. The police fired up into the attic from the floor below, "and the blood of the victims began to drip from the ceiling... onto a photograph of two Jewish women lying on a table below", Vatican News said. That photograph "has been preserved as a 'relic'", it said. Baptism of blood The massacre followed "a story of love and friendship", said Italian journalist Manuela Tulli, who has written a book on the family along with Polish historian and priest Pawel Rytel-Andrianik. "When the Jews asked for help, they opened their doors. They lived together for a year and a half, cooking and eating together", Tulli told AFP. Jozef Ulma was a keen photographer as well as a farmer, and photographs he took that survived reveal the family's life through simple, everyday scenes. "We see the children running barefoot in the grass, doing their homework, the mother hanging out the washing," Tulli said. The families were denounced by a Polish policeman. After they were executed, 24 Jews in Markowa were murdered by their Polish neighbors. The Ulma family will be the first ever to be beatified, a key step on a possible path to sainthood in the Catholic Church. And in a rare move, the Ulmas' newborn seventh child will also earn the title of "blessed". The child is eligible for beatification through the concept of "baptism of blood", having been born "at the time of the mother's martyrdom", according to the Vatican's department for saints. Usually, people need to have performed a miracle to be eligible for beatification, but martyrs are exempt. Jozef and Wiktoria Ulma were recognized by Israel in 1995 as members of the "Righteous among the Nations", an honor for non-Jews who tried to save Jews from Nazi extermination. The family also has a museum dedicated to it in Markowa and in 2018 Poland decreed 24 March -- the date of the massacre -- a day of remembrance for Poles who rescued Jews during the German occupation. The post Family killed by Nazis to be beatified in Catholic first appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Bong Go boosts fire victims’ recovery in Cebu City
Senator Christopher "Bong" Go has remained steadfast in his dedication to assisting disaster victims as shown by his team’s relief operations on Monday, 14 August, to communities affected by fires in Cebu City. Go’s team, in coordination with Mayor Mike Rama, Vice Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia, and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), assisted 103 recovering fire victims gathered at the Atillo Gymnasium in Barangay Punta Princesa. DTI provided livelihood assistance through its Pangkabuhayan sa Pagbangon at Ginhawa (PPG) program which Go pushed for during the Duterte administration and continues to support its implementation in order to boost livelihood recovery of those affected by various crises. In addition to the livelihood support, Go’s team provided shirts and masks to all beneficiaries, and a pair of shoes, a watch, a cellular phone, and balls for basketball to select recipients. “Sa panahon ng kahirapan at pagsubok dulot ng iba't-ibang sakuna, nais namin sa inyo'y magbigay ng pag-asa at tulong na magbibigay daan sa inyong mga pangarap. Ang programa na ito ay hindi lamang simpleng tulong kundi isang oportunidad upang makabangon at makamtan ang mas magandang kinabukasan,” stressed Go. Go underscored the crucial role of DTI’s PPG program in providing opportunities for sustainable income generation and the agency’s dedication to assisting affected communities in their journey toward recovery and rebuilding their lives. “Palaguin niyo ang inyong negosyo. Kapag lumago ang inyong negosyo, dalhin niyo po ang mga kita sa inyong mga pamilya... mas masarap sa pakiramdam kapag pinagpawisan at pinaghirapan niyo po ang inyong pagnenegosyo,” he added. In a video message, Go highlighted his other efforts to enhance disaster preparedness, response, and recovery strategies on a broader scale. He also asked for support for the passage of Senate Bill No. 188, which aims to establish the Department of Disaster Resilience (DDR). The proposed legislation envisions a new government department led by a cabinet secretary, focusing on comprehensive approaches to strengthen disaster preparedness across the country. The DDR's core areas of concentration include disaster risk reduction, disaster preparedness, response and recovery, and the advancement of resilience. “Mayro’n rin po ako nai-file na Department of Disaster Resilience, ito pong departamento na ito, a cabinet-secretary level na siya po ang makikipag-coordinate bago pa dumating ‘yung bagyo at ilikas po ang mga kababayan natin sa ligtas na lugar at preposition of goods,” Go explained. “Part rin po ito ng trabaho nila ang disaster-related tulad ng sunog. Kapag may lindol, sunog, bagyo at itong pagputok ng bulkan, ilikas na kaagad sa mga ligtas na lugar. Iyan po ang Department of Disaster Resilience at restoration of normalcy kaagad,” he added. As chairperson of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography, Go initiated the Malasakit Centers program in 2018 in Cebu City after he personally witnessed the struggles of financially incapacitated Filipinos in getting medical assistance from the government. It was later institutionalized under Republic Act No. 11463, which he principally sponsored and authored. To date, there are 158 Malasakit Centers, including those at Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC), Cebu City Medical Center, and St. Anthony Mother & Child Hospital, that have helped over seven million Filipinos, according to the Department of Health (DOH). Other Malasakit Centers in the province are located at Cebu Provincial Hospital in Carcar City, Lapu-Lapu City District Hospital, Eversley Childs Sanitarium and General Hospital in Mandaue City, and Talisay District Hospital in Talisay City. Moreover, Go said DOH has identified areas to construct Super Health Centers (SHCs) in the province. SHCs were funded to be established in the cities of Bogo, Danao, Lapu-Lapu, and Mandaue; and in the towns of Borbon, Cordova, Moalboal, Samboan, and San Francisco in 2022. This year, more Super Health Centers were funded in the cities of Carcar, Cebu, Talisay, and Toledo; and in the towns of Carmen, Consolacion, Liloan, Medellin, and San Nicolas. An additional SHC will also be established in Danao City. “Ang isang malaking bagay dito ay ang early detection kung may sakit ang isang pasyente. Dahil nasa kanilang komunidad ang SHC, madali na para sa kanya ang magpakonsulta. At kung malalaman agad ang sakit ng isang pasyente, mabibigyan siya ng primary care, malalapatan ng lunas, at lalaki ang tsansa na maka-recover siya sa kanyang sakit,” he explained. SHCs offer database management, out-patient, birthing, isolation, diagnostic (laboratory: x-ray, ultrasound), pharmacy, and ambulatory surgical unit. Other available services are eye, ear, nose, and throat (EENT) service; oncology centers; physical therapy and rehabilitation center; and telemedicine. Go, vice chairperson of the Senate Committee on Finance, supported the funding of various projects in the province, including the construction of multipurpose buildings in Barili, Cordova, Ginatilan, Pilar, Tabogon, and Talisay City; improvement of existing roads in Alcantara, Alcoy, Alegria, Asturias, Balamban, Boljoon, Borbon, Carmen, Madrilejos, Malabuyoc, Minglanilla, Moalboal, Pinamungajan, Sibonga, Sogod, Tabogon, Tabuelan, Carcar City and Naga City; improvement of flood mitigation structures in Catmon and Tuburan; installation of street lights in Asturias, Compostela, and Daanbantayan; and acquisition of ambulance units for Madridejos and Naga City. The post Bong Go boosts fire victims’ recovery in Cebu City appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Bangladesh court sentences two journalists over plot to kill PM’s son
Two elderly Bangladeshi newspaper editors were sentenced in absentia Thursday over a plot to kill the prime minister's son, charges their supporters say were confected to punish them for supporting the country's opposition. Shafik Rehman, 88, and Mahmudur Rahman, 70, were convicted along with three others in what authorities said was a thwarted conspiracy to kidnap and murder Sheikh Hasina's eldest child while he was based in the United States a decade ago. All five were sentenced to seven years in jail, prosecutor Abdur Rahman Khan Kazal told AFP. Rehman edited two of the country's most popular Bengali weeklies and later became an adviser to the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party before his arrest in 2016. Rahman was known as a prominent critic of Hasina's ruling Awami League, which has targeted BNP members with periodic crackdowns and mass arrests over the past decade and was arrested in 2013. Both men were later granted bail to seek medical treatment abroad and have not returned. Friends and supporters of the pair maintain their innocence. The other three defendants have been fugitives since the conspiracy charges were filed and were also sentenced in absentia. Sajeeb Wazed, 52, the prime minister's son, now serves in a senior advisory position to his mother's government. Rights groups and foreign governments including the United States have long raised concerns over efforts by Hasina's government to silence criticism and stamp out political dissent. The 2022 World Press Freedom Index compiled by Reporters Without Borders ranked Bangladesh at 162, below Russia and Afghanistan. Bangladesh's draconian Digital Security Act, under which hundreds of people have been arrested since 2018, has caused particular alarm. Dainik Dinkal, the country's only remaining newspaper aligned with the BNP, was shut down in February. The post Bangladesh court sentences two journalists over plot to kill PM’s son appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Cyber education, a must
“Digitalization is the call of today, not the call of the future, but of the present. It is here. It is needed, and it is needed today.” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. highlighted in his second SoNA his administration’s agenda for all government agencies and local government units to digitalize all their services. He called for the digitalization of payments, business registrations, issuances of permits and licenses, loan applications and revenue collections. The digitalization efforts, he stated, should be made to streamline processes for ease of doing business, combat corruption and make decisions in a data-driven and science-based manner. I commend this push for e-governance and e-commerce by the President. He is right. The digital age is upon us and we must invest in digital technology and infrastructure for our economy to be globally competitive. Cyber Education Law However, the very basic foundation needed for the government’s digitalization efforts should be the investment in human capital. We know that our labor is the country’s biggest asset and the factor that keeps our economy afloat. We export labor, remittances flow, and these in turn fund local consumption. That is why there is an urgent need for us to legislate the incorporation of cyber-education among our population and we must start with our basic education. Investing in cyber-education is not a novel idea. It is a model of development in many advanced countries. As the World Economic Forum or WEF found out in a study, countries like Israel (which currently ranks 8th in the Cyber Risk Literacy and Education Index) show that cyber-risk education and connected institutions can contribute significantly to the national economy by producing more jobs and greater innovation. It concluded that cyber-investment in human resources, i.e., prioritizing cybersecurity education earlier than most and regular assessment of cyber-risk literacy of children and youth at key points in their development and education, is an investment for the future and has been found to have led to a wealth of cyber-related innovation and economic growth among top-ranking countries. The UK, Australia, Canada, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, Germany, France, and, recently, China, are also investing heavily in cybersecurity education. These countries recognize that cybersecurity education is essential to protecting the digital economy and both public and private digital infrastructure from cybercrimes and cyberattacks. As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, the need for cybersecurity education will only grow. Digitalization will positively impact Filipinos’ lives but concomitant negative issues have emerged related to Internet use. Some of the most common cybersecurity crimes and offenses in the world today continue to emerge and develop, some of which President Marcos Jr. mentioned in his speech, such as identity theft, phishing and other online scams. Current statistics also show the vulnerability of Filipino children in the digital space. A recent study claimed the Philippines is a global hotspot for Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children or OSAEC. A sharp increase in possible OSAEC cases has been recorded by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, from 1.34 million in 2020 to 3.19 million in 2021, the second highest in the world behind India. In 2018, the Department of Justice Office of Cybercrime received 579,006 cyber tips on the online sharing, re-sharing, and selling of child sexual abuse images and videos. According to the study, sexual exploitation negatively impacts cognitive functioning, as well as mental health, including post-traumatic stress disorder and depression; and across the life course, it can negatively impact the physical, psychological, social, educative and economic well-being of children victims. The foregoing examples are just among the many important reasons to introduce cybersecurity education in the K-12 system. We must educate users of technology, especially children, on the potential risks they face when using internet communication tools, such as social media, chat, online gaming, email and instant messaging, to cultivate cybersecurity awareness at the primary school level. Verily, investing in cybersecurity awareness among the young population will have several positive impacts on the Philippine economy and quality of life. The post Cyber education, a must appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Bong Go inspects infra project, aids indigents in Cebu
Senator Christopher “Bong” Go visited Naga City, Cebu on Wednesday, 12 July where he inspected the seawall project and government vehicles that he had advocated funding for as vice chair of the Senate Committee on Finance. He also aided indigent residents of the city. Go has consistently championed the need to support local governments in their efforts to develop and implement infrastructure projects and improve public service delivery for their constituents. Accompanied by local officials, including Congresswoman Rhea Gullas, Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, and Naga City Mayor Valdemar M. Chiong, Go toured the seawall project site, inspected the acquired vehicles, including an ambulance unit and other multipurpose vehicles, and engaged in discussions regarding other opportunities to further help the community. Go also led a relief operation at Barangay Poblacion tennis court. In his address, the senator reiterated the importance of cooperation between national and local government units in pursuing progress and development. He emphasized that progress could only be achieved through a united and collaborative effort, with local governments playing a crucial role in identifying and implementing projects that address the specific needs of their communities. “Nandito ako para magbayad sa utang na loob sa inyo, sa inyong suporta sa akin. Huwag kayong magpasalamat sa amin. Kami ang dapat na magpasalamat sa inyo dahil binigyan n’yo kami ng pagkakataon na makapagserbisyo sa inyo. Mula sa puso ang aking pasasalamat sa inyong lahat. Maraming salamat talaga, salamat mga Bisaya,” said Go. “Tao lang rin kami na napapagod rin. Pero kapag nakikita namin kayong masaya nawawala ang aking pagod. Makatulong sa mga pasyente, makatulong sa mga kababayan nating mahihirap, makatulong sa mga proyekto na makakapag-unlad ng inyong syudad, at makapag-iwan ng kaunting ngiti sa panahon ng inyong pagdadalamhati. Masaya na rin ako ngayong araw na nakikita ko na nakangiti kayo,” he continued. Aside from the projects he inspected, Go also supported the construction of a slope protection structure in Brgy. Balirong, rehabilitation of a public market and several multipurpose buildings. On the same visit, Go helped around 2,000 struggling Cebuanos by providing grocery packs, vitamins, and masks. Meanwhile, select residents received shoes, shirts, mobile phones, watches, bicycles, and balls for basketball and volleyball. "Ilang beses ng pabalik balik dito sa atin probinsya (si Senator Bong Go) at ganun rin sa mga kalapit probinsya natin. (Talagang) pinapakita niya na hindi lang sa salita... Kung ano ang sasabihin nya gagawin nya. Yan si Senator Bong Go," Governor Garcia expressed. In line with his vision to provide a better healthcare system, Go, as chair of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography, likewise highlighted the establishment of more Super Health Centers in the country, including the 19 centers that will be established in the province of Cebu. Super Health Centers offer database management, out-patient, birthing, isolation, diagnostic (laboratory: x-ray, ultrasound), pharmacy, and ambulatory surgical unit. Other available services are eye, ear, nose, and throat (EENT) service; oncology centers; physical therapy and rehabilitation center; and telemedicine, which makes remote diagnosis and treatment of patients possible. Meanwhile, Go also encouraged those with health concerns and in need of medical assistance from the government to visit Malasakit Centers located at Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC), Cebu City Medical Center, and St. Anthony Mother & Child Hospital in Cebu City, Cebu Provincial Hospital in Carcar City, Lapu-Lapu City District Hospital, Eversley Childs Sanitarium and General Hospital in Mandaue City, and Talisay District Hospital in Talisay City. First established in Cebu in 2018, the Malasakit Center is a one-stop shop through which agencies such as DSWD, DOH, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office assist indigent patients by bringing their hospital bills to the lowest amount possible. On the same day, Go was in Carcar City where he attended the groundbreaking of the city’s Super Health Center, checked the operations of the Malasakit Center at Cebu Provincial Hospital, and provided assistance to more than a thousand indigents. See more photos here: The post Bong Go inspects infra project, aids indigents in Cebu appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Garland denies Hunter Biden probe being interfered with
US Attorney General Merrick Garland on Friday denied allegations that the Justice Department interfered with an investigation of President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter. Prosecutors announced earlier this week that Hunter Biden had reached a plea deal on minor tax and gun charges with the US Attorney in his home state of Delaware. Hunter Biden is due to appear in court on 26 July after agreeing to plead guilty to two federal tax charges and admitting to illegally possessing a gun despite having a history of drug use. A whistleblower from the Internal Revenue Service alleged in testimony before the Republican-led House Ways and Means Committee released this week that the Justice Department headed by Garland had slowed the probe into Hunter Biden. Garland, in remarks to reporters on Friday, noted that the US Attorney in Delaware, David Weiss, had been appointed by former President Donald Trump, a Republican. Garland said he personally had given Weiss the authority to continue his investigation into Hunter Biden and “prosecute any way in which he wanted to.” Joe Biden’s son is also facing one count of illegal possession of a firearm. “I don’t know how it would be possible for anybody to block him from bringing a prosecution given that he has this authority,” the attorney general said. “He was given complete authority to make all decisions on his own.” Hunter Biden, 53, is the only surviving child of Joe Biden’s first marriage, which tragically ended in 1972 when his wife and baby daughter were killed in a car accident. Hunter Biden’s business dealings, especially during the time his father was vice president, have been a major target of Joe Biden’s political opponents, and continue to be probed by congressional Republicans. Hunter Biden became a regular focus of Trump’s attacks ahead of the November 2020 presidential election for his work in Ukraine and China. In his memoir, “Beautiful Things,” Hunter Biden insisted he has never done anything unethical and dismissed allegations that he displayed a lack of judgment by accepting a lucrative position on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma while his father was Barack Obama’s vice president. Under the plea agreement, Hunter Biden is unlikely to face prison time but will be sentenced to probation. According to the charges, Hunter Biden, a Yale-trained lawyer and lobbyist, failed to file his tax returns on time on earnings of more than $1.5 million for 2017 and 2018. In both years, he owed more than $100,000 in taxes on those earnings. Hunter Biden is also facing one count of “possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.” Hunter Biden has admitted having drug problems in the past and detailed his struggles with crack cocaine in his 2021 memoir, released months after his father took office. Hunter Biden and his wife attended a state dinner at the White House on Thursday for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Asked about his attendance at the event, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said “it is not uncommon for family members to attend events at the White House.” The post Garland denies Hunter Biden probe being interfered with appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Bong Go provides aid to fire victims in Cebu
Senator Bong Go highlighted the importance of better and strengthened fire prevention efforts as he provided aid to fire victims in Carcar City, Cebu on Tuesday, 13 June. Go, in his video message, reminded the public to keep their homes safe by following fire safety precautions recommended by the government. He likewise reassured that the Bureau of Fire Protection continues to enhance its capabilities following the enactment of the BFP Modernization Act of 2021. The said law provides for the acquisition of new fire equipment, expansion of fire personnel, and provision of highly specialized training programs. The BFP is likewise mandated to conduct monthly fire prevention campaigns and information drives in every local government unit, especially in informal settlements, economically depressed areas, and far-flung communities. “Mga kababayan ko, mag-ingat tayo dahil delikado pa ang panahon at nasa gitna tayo ng pandemya. Mahirap masunugan. Gayunpaman, tandaan natin na ang gamit naman ay nabibili at ang pera po’y kikitain natin muli. Pero ang perang kikitain natin ay hindi po mabibili ang buhay. A lost life is a lost life forever. Kaya magingat tayo,” said Go. The senator reassured, “Huwag sana kayong mawalan ng pag-asa dahil nandirito ang gobyerno para tulungan kayong makabangon muli. Lapitan niyo lang ako kung may iba pa kaming maitutulong at pagseserbisyuhan ko po kayo sa abot ng aking makakaya.” Go’s outreach team provided grocery packs, masks, snacks, vitamins, and shirts to two affected families at the Perrelos barangay hall. They also provided balls for basketball and volleyball to others. Go, who heads the Senate Committee on Health and Demography, also offered to assist those with health concerns. He advised them to obtain medical assistance from the government through any of the Malasakit Centers in the province, including those at Cebu Provincial Hospital in Carcar City, Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center, Cebu City Medical Center, and St. Anthony Mother & Child Hospital, both in Cebu City. The Malasakit Centers program was initiated by Go in 2018 and was institutionalized under Republic Act No. 11463, which he primarily authored and sponsored. The center is a one-stop shop that brings together all relevant agencies that offer medical assistance programs to assist poor and indigent patients with their hospital expenses. Other Malasakit Centers in the province are available at Lapu-Lapu City District Hospital, Eversley Childs Sanitarium and General Hospital in Mandaue City, and Talisay District Hospital in Talisay City. There are currently 158 Malasakit Centers throughout the country which have assisted over seven million Filipinos, according to the DOH. Lastly, Go, as Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, supported the funding for various projects in the province, including the construction of multipurpose buildings in Barili, Cordova, Ginatilan, Pilar, Tabogon and Talisay City; improvement of existing roads in Alcantara, Alcoy, Alegria, Asturias, Balamban, Boljoon, Borbon, Carmen, Madrilejos, Malabuyoc, Minglanilla, Moalboal, Pinamungajan, Sibonga, Sogod, Tabogon, Tabuelan, Carcar City and Naga City; improvement of flood mitigation structures in Catmon and Tuburan; installation of street lights in Asturias, Compostela and Daanbantayan; and acquisition of ambulance units for Madridejos and Naga City. “Magtulungan po tayo, mga kababayan ko. Importante pong malampasan natin itong krisis na ating kinakaharap bilang nagkakaisang mamamayang Pilipino,” Go said. The post Bong Go provides aid to fire victims in Cebu appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
From father to son, a staggering inheritance
It could as well have been a list of eligible bachelors. Mark Mateschitz ranks number 30 on the Fortune list of billionaires instead, and as a single 30-year-old, you could say it’s pretty much the same thing. As the only child of the late Austrian billionaire Dietrich “Didi” Mateschitz, who co-founded of the energy drink firm Red Bull in 1987 with Thai businessman Chaleo Yoovidhya (who himself died in 2012, and it must be noted, also handed his 51-percent majority share to his son Chalerm), Mateschitz inherited his father's 49 percent stake when the elder Mateschitz died in October 2022 at the age of 78. Ironically, Mark Mateschitz, who has been dubbed Europe’s richest millennial (estimated net worth: $39.5 billion), did not even carry his father’s name until recently, presumably as a protective measure. He used Gerhardter, his mother Anita’s surname, a ski instructor in her native Austrian. This is perhaps why little is known about his childhood except that he studied at the University of Applied Sciences Salzburg and was often seen with his father at Formula One races. Red Bull is such a prominent advertiser of motorsport, and this visibility is expected to continue under the younger Mateschitz’s helm. When Mark turned 18, his father invited him to work for Red Bull as a senior executive. He seemingly inherited his father’s zeal for drink innovation as Mark launched his own brand in 2018, dubbed The Organics under the Red Bull umbrella. As the name suggests, this includes a whole line of drinks (lemonade, ginger beer, cola, tonic water, etc.) made with alpine water from the Austrian and Swiss Alps. The Alps are known to be one of the largest freshwater reservoirs in the world. It is very reflective of the zeitgeist for brands to reflect millennial aspirations for a clean and healthy lifestyle. This recalls his father’s own epiphany when he was first served Krating Daeng (which translates to red water buffalo) in Thailand, a concoction truck drivers drank for long haul drives, which resulted in creation of Red Bull. After his father died, Mark Mateschitz left his position as Head of Organics at the company to concentrate on his role as a shareholder. He prefers a board of executives to run the company, a decision that has seen comparisons with his father, who was hands-on with the everyday running of Red Bull. Besides Red Bull, Mark is also a shareholder in an Austrian property business. Red Bull sold 11.6 billion cans worldwide in 2022, so Mark Mateschitz’s fortune is very well assured. As to what he will do with that staggering inheritance, shareholders and the world of business can only wait and see. The post From father to son, a staggering inheritance appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
VAWC law covers lesbian relationships
In the recent case of Jacinto v. Fouts (GR 250627, 7 December 2022), the Supreme Court ruled that Republic Act 9262, or the Violence against Women and their Children Act, applied to lesbian relationships, thus benefiting women victimized by their female partners. The case originated from an incident in 2018 where Jacinto was accused of assaulting her live-in partner, Fouts. A criminal case for violation of RA 9262 was filed against Jacinto, who argued that RA 9262 did not apply to lesbian relationships and sought to have the case dismissed. RA 9262 defines violence against women and their children as “any act or series of acts committed by any person against a woman who is his wife, former wife, or against a woman with whom the person has or had a sexual or dating relationship, or with whom he has a common child, or against her child whether legitimate or illegitimate, within or without the family abode, which resulted in or is likely to result in physical, sexual, psychological harm or suffering, or economic abuse, including threats of such acts, battery, assault, coercion, harassment or arbitrary deprivation of liberty.” The trial court rejected Jacinto’s argument, saying that RA 9262 applied to any person, regardless of gender, who has had a sexual or dating relationship with a woman. Citing the case of Garcia v. Drilon (GR 179267, 25 June 2013), the court held that the use of the gender-neutral term “person” in the law’s provisions encompassed lesbian relationships. Jacinto went to the Supreme Court and argued that the trial court was wrong in its interpretation of RA 9262. According to her, such interpretation would unjustly protect one woman in a relationship while denying the other woman the same protection. Jacinto also argued that the Supreme Court’s statement regarding lesbian relationships in Garcia v. Drilon was simply an obiter dictum that was not binding to the present case. An obiter dictum is a remark made, or opinion expressed, by a judge in his decision upon a cause by the way, that is, incidentally or collaterally, and not directly upon the question before him, or upon a point not necessarily involved in the determination of the cause, or introduced by way of illustration, or analogy or argument (Dee v. Harvest All Investment Limited, 807 Phil. 572, 583, 2017). The Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s interpretation that RA 9262 applied to lesbian relationships. It disagreed with Jacinto’s argument that the statement regarding lesbian relationships was a mere obiter dictum. The Court noted that one of the issues raised in Garcia was the supposed discriminatory and unjust provisions of RA 9262 which were likewise violative of the equal protection clause. Thus, the Court’s discussion as to the applicability of the law to lesbian relationships was clearly a resolution of the issue raised in Garcia and not a mere obiter dictum or an opinion of the Court. For more of Dean Nilo Divina’s legal tidbits, please visit www.divinalaw.com. For comments and questions, please send an email to cabdo@divinalaw.com. The post VAWC law covers lesbian relationships appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Forbes names 15 richest female celebrities in America
A total of 15 female stars made this year's Forbes list of America’s richest self-made women. Worth a combined $10.8 billion, these celebrities are taking control of their own fame and fortune. First on the list, as expected, is TV host Oprah Winfrey, with a net worth of $2.5 billion, who reportedly owned 14 properties in Hawaii plus some real estate in California and Wyoming. Next to the media mogul are R&B superstar Rihanna, with $1.4 billion net worth; reality TV actress Kim Kardashian, with $1.2 billion net worth; pop sensation Taylor Swift, with $740 million net worth; and social media personality Kylie Jenner, with $680 million net worth. Occupying the 6th to 10th spots are queen of pop Madonna ($580 million), former Destiny's Child member Beyoncé Knowles ($540 million), power balladeer Celine Dion ($480 million), TV actress Judy Sheindlin ($480 million), and country music icon Dolly Parton ($440 million). Rounding up the top 15 are movie actress Reese Witherspoon ($440 million) at number 11, Billboard's greatest female singer of all time Barbra Streisand ($430 million) at number 12, TV host-comedian Ellen Degeneres ($380 million) at number 13, tennis ace Serena Williams ($290 million) at number 14, and film writer Shonda Rhimes ($250 million) at number 15. The post Forbes names 15 richest female celebrities in America appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Taiwan tribe despairs as drought shrinks bamboo crop
Hacking at a bamboo plant with a machete, Avayi Vayayana peels back the shoot's stiff bark as he scans southern Taiwan's mountains, anxious for more of the money-making crop his Indigenous tribe increasingly struggles to find. Generations of the Tsou tribe have lived off Alishan township's bamboo forests, which Vayayana says were planted by his forefathers and typically harvested in April and May. But "the weather in the last few years has really been out of whack", the 62-year-old tribal chief tells AFP. "The rainfall has been delayed and the bamboo shoots' growth is noticeably affected." In the Indigenous village T'fuya, the dark-brown cones of the island's native stone bamboo -- or Phyllostachys lithophila -- have become harder to spot. "The little young shoots will not sprout if there's no rain. After a while, they will die inside the ground," Vayayana says. The February-to-April rains are crucial to the growth of bamboo shoots -- which are popular in Asian cuisine -- but since late last year, there have not been any significant downpours. The Tsou tribe, which has a population of 7,000 in Alishan, has seen their bamboo shoot harvest steadily decline. On a misty May morning, a welcome drizzle finally blankets the bamboo forest Vayayana is working in, but he tells AFP it is too late. This year, his haul is one-third of 2022's harvest. Worse, Vayayana and his family must now also contend with crop-raiding monkeys, he explains after an airgun shot rings out in the distance: his cousin trying to scare away the marauders. "Because many surrounding bamboo forests have died, now where there are bamboo shoots, all the monkeys will go," he says. 'Frontline victims' Southern Taiwan is experiencing its worst drought in decades. Water levels in the Tsengwen reservoir serving the southern Tainan and Chiayi regions plummeted below 10 percent this year, the third such drop since 2018, leaving reservoir beds cracked and exposed. The Tsengwen serves as a primary water source for a massive foundry making the island's precious semiconductors -- soaring in demand globally -- and also supplements the region's rice-growing plains. But for the third year in a row, the government is providing subsidies to farmers not to plant their crops -- a sign of the severe water needs. An hour's drive from the reservoir, Alishan too is experiencing drastic weather changes. From January to April, rainfall declined to 226.5 millimeters (8.9 inches), a more than 50 percent drop compared to the same period last year, according to Taiwan's Central Weather Station. For the Tsou -- whose lifestyle is entwined with nature -- the impact is "comprehensive", says Greenpeace Taiwan's Lena Chang. "They are the frontline victims of climate change," Chang tells AFP. Data compiled by Greenpeace Taiwan shows the drop-off in rain to be persistent. In the past three decades, Alishan has lost an average of 2.6mm of rainfall per year in February and 1.2mm in March -- a vital period for bamboo shoot growth. At T'fuya's crop collection point, villagers offload sacks of bamboo shoots from trucks, weighing them before sending them to factories to be boiled and tinned for mass consumption. "This year, the rain came too late and many bamboo trees are sick. The harvest is very bad," Voyu Baniana, 24, tells AFP. "In my family's plantation, we have none. I can only work for other people this year." New cash crop Those who returned to their villages after a period of working in cities are finding it harder to live off of crops they grew up cultivating. Voyo Yulunana, 43, still remembers the long days he spent as a child harvesting bamboo shoots, the sale of which bolstered the community's living standards. "Buying a car or building a house, we counted on the bamboo," he says. Since Yulunana returned from a brief stint in the city working in construction, he has noticed "the rains don't come when they should". Luckily, his grandfather made a switch to growing coffee beans, which Yulunana and other younger Tsou have shifted toward in the past decade. "Coffee is slowly replacing bamboo shoots as the cash crop" in Alishan, says Yulunana. But even it is not immune to climate change -- a late spring rain affects the plant's flowering season, and the erratic weather last year nearly devastated his family's 400-shrub crop, he said. "At this point, I can get by with just growing coffee," Yulunana said. "Who knows what new crops will appear after coffee?" The post Taiwan tribe despairs as drought shrinks bamboo crop appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Special twinbill: ‘Lungs’ and ‘Every Brilliant Thing’
Three years after it was abruptly halted by the Covid-19 pandemic, The Sandbox Collective returns with a twinbill show featuring Duncan Macmillan’s plays Every Brilliant Thing and Lungs. With Sandbox Festival 2023, patrons will have the opportunity to purchase a single, same-day ticket good for both shows. The shows will run one after the other, with a 20-minute interval in between. From 17 June to 15 July, the plays will run at the Zobel de Ayala Recital Hall, second floor of the Maybank Performing Arts Theater, 9th Avenue cor. 26th Street, BGC, Taguig City. The Sandbox Collective’s managing artistic director, Toff de Venecia, hopes that Sandbox Festival 2023 will give audiences a fresh perspective on how one experiences theater. Twinbills are not an entirely new concept in theater; however, spending three hours at the theater might be unfamiliar to some Manila theatergoers. “I’m very excited for the twinbill experience of Duncan Macmillan’s works, and see how these award-winning one-act plays will resonate with each other, adding to how the world has changed dramatically since we first staged them in 2018 and 2019, thereby impacting the audience’s overall experience and takeaway,” DeVenecia said. Interactive play Every Brilliant Thing is a one-act, interactive play that follows the story of a young child growing up with a parent suffering from mental illness. The show has been staged in multiple countries and has also been translated into different languages, such as Mandarin, Arabic, Spanish and Hebrew. Taking on the challenge once again in Every Brilliant Thing is actress, model and TV host Teresa Herrera, who will alternate performances with theater actress, multimedia host, entrepreneur and Gawad Buhay awardee Kakki Teodoro. For the 2019 run of Every Brilliant Thing, both Herrera and Teodoro picked up Gawad Buhay nominations for Outstanding Female Lead. Jenny Jamora, who directed all its previous runs, will once again step in as director. She, too, won Outstanding Stage Direction for a Play at the 12th Gawad Buhay Awards. Meanwhile, multimedia comedy artist and master impersonator Jon Santos will bring a Filipino-translated performance of Every Brilliant Thing to the local stage. Tasked with the play’s Filipino translation is award-winning playwright, translator, actor and director Guelan Luarca, the recipient of the 2022 Gawad Rolando Tinio Translator’s Prize by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts. Changed world In March 2020, Lungs was set to be staged, and the actors and The Sandbox Collective’s creative team sought to answer the topical questions, “What world are we leaving the future generations?” and “Even if I wanted children, with everything going on around us, what kind of world would I be leaving them?” Three years down the road, the world has changed in exactly the way the play’s characters feared. On the heels of those questions comes a new one, brought on by the current state of our society: What does it mean to stage a play with characters so fearful of a far-off future in our present time, now that so many of those fears have come true in the real world? Lungs received seven Gawad Buhay nominations during its original 2018 run, including Female Lead Performance in a Play for returning cast member Sab Jose. For this festival, Jose will be joined by Gawad Buhay-nominated theater actor Reb Atadero, who was last seen in Breakups & Breakdowns and Ang Huling El Bimbo. [caption id="attachment_137900" align="aligncenter" width="525"] Sab Jose, Brian Sy, Justine Peña and Reb Atadero.[/caption] The 2023 run will also welcome theater actors Brian Sy and Justine Peña as they step into the shoes of Lungs’ anxiety-ridden characters. Peña’s performance in Uncle Jane earlier this year was lauded by critics and theatergoers alike, while Sy’s turn in Coriolano garnered him a Gawad Buhay Award for Best Male Featured Performance in 2020. Serving as the show’s assistant director in 2018 and 2020, Gawad Buhay awardee Caisa Borromeo now takes the reins as director for Lungs. The post Special twinbill: ‘Lungs’ and ‘Every Brilliant Thing’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Wes Anderson says lockdown helped inspire ‘Asteroid City’
Wes Anderson's new film puts Westerns, theatre, 1950s Americana, and an alien into a blender for another of his atypical -- and star-packed -- concoctions that he says is about "reckoning with forces beyond your control". As always, "Asteroid City", which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday, features a roster of actors that reads like a Hollywood phonebook. Tom Hanks, Steve Carell, and Margot Robbie -- newcomers to the Anderson family -- join past collaborators Scarlett Johansson and Edward Norton and regulars like Adrien Brody, Jason Schwartzman, and Tilda Swinton in the film. The one-of-a-kind director never seems too influenced by events in the real world, but he told AFP the Covid-19 pandemic did have an impact. "This movie is certainly informed by the most bizarre viral moment in recent history," he said. "Writing it during this pandemic, in the middle of the most locked-down lockdown, we were not sure we would ever go out again -- so I think that's sorta in it. Hanks is intimidating "Asteroid City" is a bizarre and knotty tale set in a remote desert town where a group of child geniuses is gathered for a science competition that is interrupted by an alien visitor, leaving them locked up in quarantine. But in typically convoluted Anderson form, the desert story is presented as a play being performed in New York. Anderson says he wanted to pay homage to actors, who remain something of a mystery to him, even after working with the biggest names in the business. "Many of the actors are my friends now, but nevertheless they are different on set," Anderson said. "Actors recognize something in each other that normal people don't go through -- this thing of being the one who everyone is going to watch. It has this interesting strange effect. It became part of what the movie is about." Working with Hanks was a joy, he told AFP, though he was initially nervous. "He's a wonderful actor but also a huge movie star... it's intimidating. "But his manner on set is: you suggest something and he says 'Sorry, I should have thought of that.' That encourages you to be better because you're empowered by this person with such an aura." Scarlett's smokey voice One person who is glaringly absent is Bill Murray, who has appeared in all of Anderson's films since "Rushmore" in 1998. "Bill was cast in a part but then he got Covid three days before we were supposed to shoot," said Anderson. "We replaced him very quickly with the wonderful Steve Carell who was great." Luckily, Murray's health improved to come to hang out on set for the last of the shoot, he added, and Carell turns in a hilarious cameo as a hotel owner. What Anderson often loves most about his actors is their voice, something he discovered when he cast George Clooney as the lead in the animated film "Fantastic Mr. Fox". "Only when I recorded George did I realize how much it's about his voice? And that kinda applies to the majority of actors -- so much depends on the voice." Johansson, who did the voiceover for Anderson's "Isle of Dogs" (2018) "has this wonderful, slightly smokey voice," he said. Arguably, no director has ever had a style that is so immediately recognizable as Anderson's: the symmetrical playhouse-like sets, bright colors, and deadpan irony. He can't help it. "There's a way I do scenes that is just me," he said. "It's more like a condition than a choice." The post Wes Anderson says lockdown helped inspire ‘Asteroid City’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Bong Go aids fire-hit Cebu communities, stresses fire prevention interventions
On Saturday, May 20, Senator Christopher “Bong” Go had his team mounted a relief activity for Cebuanos whose houses were damaged in a fire incident in Cebu City. In a video call, the senator underscored that he will continue to promote and advocate for better fire prevention measures in the country. “Sa mga nasunugan po dito sa Cebu City, sana nasa mabuti kayong kalagayan. Huwag po kayong mawalan ng pag-asa, ang importante ay buhay kayo. Ang gamit po ay napapalitan, ang pera ay kikitain pero ang pera ay hindi nabibili ang buhay. A lost life is a lost life forever. Kaya mag-ingat po tayo,” Go expressed. The senator's team mounted the relief activity at Barangay Mambaling gymnasium, where they distributed grocery packs, snacks, vitamins, masks and shirts. They also gave away bicycles, mobile phones, shoes, watches and balls for basketball and volleyball to select beneficiaries. A team from the Department of Social Welfare and Development also extended financial support. In total, 171 affected families were aided from Barangays Duljo Poblacion, Pit-os, Mambaling, Kalunasan, Luz, Sinsin, Kamputhaw and Basak San Nicolas. Go has primarily authored and co-sponsored Republic Act No. 11589, otherwise known as the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Modernization Act. "Importante po na mabigyan ng suporta ang modernization ng ating Bureau of Fire Protection dahil napaka-importante ng tungkulin na ginagampanan nila upang makapagligtas ng buhay," Go explained. "Halos linggu-linggo akong bumababa sa mga nasusunugan. Nakikita ko ang hirap ng ating mga kababayan. Kahit isang bahay lang ang masunog, damay pati ang kapitbahay. Maraming pamilya ang apektado kaya dapat na palakasin natin ang kapasidad ng BFP sa pagreresponde sa sunog," he added. Signed by former president Rodrigo Duterte in 2021, the Act provides for the acquisition of modern fire equipment, expansion of the BFP's manpower, and provision of highly-specialized training to firefighters, among others. It also mandates the bureau to implement monthly fire prevention campaigns and information drives in every local government unit. Go also offered to help those with health issues. As Chair of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography, he encouraged them to seek the services of the Malasakit Centers located at Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center, Cebu City Medical Center and St. Anthony Mother and Child Hospital, all located in the city. The Malasakit Center was first established in VSMMC in 2018. To date, there are 157 such centers nationwide that have helped over seven million particularly poor and indigent patients, according to the Department of Health. The Malasakit Center is a one-stop shop where patients may conveniently apply for medical assistance from concerned agencies such as the DSWD, DOH, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office. In Cebu province, there are also Malasakit Centers at Eversley Childs Sanitarium and General Hospital in Mandaue City, Cebu South Medical Center in Talisay City, Lapu-Lapu District Hospital in Lapu-Lapu City, and Cebu Provincial Hospital in Carcar City. Go then mentioned that DOH has also identified areas to construct Super Health Centers in the province. SHCs were funded to be established in the cities of Bogo, Danao, Lapu-Lapu, and Mandaue; and in the towns of Borbon, Cordova, Moalboal, Samboan and San Francisco in 2022. This year, more Super Health Centers were funded in the cities of Carcar, Cebu, Talisay and Toledo; and in the towns of Carmen, Consolacion, Liloan, Medellin and San Nicolas. An additional Super Health Center will also be established in Danao City. Through the collective efforts of fellow lawmakers, sufficient funds had been allocated for 307 Super Health Centers in 2022 and 322 in 2023. DOH, the lead implementing agency, identifies the strategic areas where they will be constructed. Super Health Centers offer database management, out-patient, birthing, isolation, diagnostic (laboratory: x-ray, ultrasound), pharmacy, and ambulatory surgical unit. Other available services are eye, ear, nose, and throat service; oncology centers; physical therapy and rehabilitation center; and telemedicine, where remote diagnosis and treatment of patients will be done. “Mas malaki ito sa rural health unit (pero) mas maliit sa ospital. Mayroon na siyang laboratory, minor operating, emergency, pharmacy, birth facilities, (at) dental services. Hindi niyo na kailangang bumyahe ng malayo para sa pagpagamot,” explained Go. Meanwhile, Go was also instrumental in the passage of Republic Act No. 11717, which increased the bed capacity of VSMMC from 1,200 to 1,500 beds. As Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, Go likewise continues to help improve the delivery of public service in the city as he supported the rehabilitation and expansion of the Barangay Multi-Purpose Building Area at Barangay Duljo Fatima and the acquisition of a mini dumptruck. “Yan po ang ipinangako ko sa inyo noon, kahit saang sulok kayo ng Pilipinas, basta kaya lang po ng aking katawan at panahon, pupuntahan ko po kayo -- makatulong sa abot ng aking makakaya, makabigay ng konting solusyon sa mga problema, masuportahan ang mga proyekto na makakapagpaunlad sa inyong lugar, at makaiwan po ng konting ngiti sa panahon ng pagdadalamhati,” said Go. On the same day, Go also sent another team in Mandaue City and provided similar relief to more fire victims. ### The post Bong Go aids fire-hit Cebu communities, stresses fire prevention interventions appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»