January 15, 2012 Edition

The Supreme Court holds its first set of oral arguments on Republic Act 10175, or the Cybercrime Prevention Act, on January 15, 3 months after the high court issued a temporary restraining order stopping the government from implementing it. Five lawyers from some of the groups that opposed the law will face and try to convince the magistrates that the law is tantamount to “e-martial law” because it contains provisions that penalize online libel and authorize the Department of Justice to shut down websites that, based on prima facie (on its face) evidence, contains harmful content, among others. The cybercrime law is one of big cases confronting the Court in 2013. 


Read more on Rappler. 
Read the “50 shades of liability.”
Rappler live blog here.
Rappler vlog here.

100% ready and operational by end-2013. That’s the newest promise on Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 (NAIA-3) Transportation Secretary Jose Emilio Abaya announced in a press briefing on January 15. The controversial, corruption-ridden, but crucial half-used airport facility has been handled by at least 4 presidents, and the promised dates to complete what could have been one of Asia’s most modern and fully integrated international airport terminal over a decade ago. Abaya cited the soon to be sealed US$45 million deal with Japanese builder Takenaka as the basis for this new timetable. Previous DOTC Secretary Mar Roxas, who had said NAIA-3 would be fully operational by end-2012, announced the US$45 million deal with Takenaka way back in March 2012. President Benigno Aquino III promised in his 2012 State of the Nation Address (SONA) that the airport facility will be structurally sound before he delivers his 2013 SONA.


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Filipino politicians are “irresponsible” and is “moving in the wrong direction” when the Philippines’ top foreign affairs official gave remarks that will likely stir up a new round of tensions at the South China Sea (also called West Philippine Sea). This was how, in a January 14 editorial, one of Beijing’s official mouthpieces, the China Daily newspaper, described Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario’s statement on the possible filing of another diplomatic protest. The two countries are at each other again after China included the disputed area in its official map.

Read more on Rappler.

Unless you’re the president of the Philippines, don’t bother to seek exemption from the gun ban. This was basically the message of Comelec to individuals who wanted to seek personal or special exemptions on the first week of the gun ban, which is part of efforts to reduce violence in the run up to the May 2013 mid-term elections. Comelec has exempted President Benigno Aquino III who use a revolver for his hobby: practical shooting. He is the military’s commander-in-chief in the first place, the Comelec chief explained.


View the infographic and read additional details on this Rappler report.

As the planet’s temperature rises to “anywhere from 1.1 degrees Celsius to 6.4 degree Celsius” by the end of this century, the chief of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said Australia will experience worsening times. Already, the temperature Down Under has gone off the scale, and has experienced extreme summer heat, increasing the dangers from scores of bushfires. The government’s Climate Commission had warned that, as part of a global warming trend, the current weather was a taste of things to come, with heatwaves likely to be more frequent and intense in the future.


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Korean firm Samsung Electronics claimed it has toppled US rival Apple in the smartphones arena when the global sales of its flagship Galaxy S brands exceeded 100 million since the first model debuted in 2010. The year 2012 was a watershed year for the Korean firm, taking a giant bite out of Apple as it carved out a dominant 28% of the market in 2012, according to research firm IHS iSuppli, which said Apples’ inched up only to 20%. The two tech giants have been embroiled in a long-running patent battle with each accusing the other of stealing designs and technology. Meantime, General Motors lost the global sales crown once again to Toyota in 2012 as its sales grew just 2.9% to 9.2 million vehicles. GM, which briefly regained the crown after Toyota’s supplies were shattered by the 2011 Japanese quake and tsunami, nonetheless remains at number two worldwide.

Read more about the Samsung-Apple rivalry on Rappler.

Read more about Toyota’s global dominance of the car industry on Rappler. 

Fallen cycling hero Lance Armstrong admitted in a taped interview with talk show host Oprah Winfrey that he did use performance-enhancing drugs. This is the latest in the life of the celebrated American athlete who swung from being a sports icon to being stripped of his 7 Tour de France titles, a lifetime ban from the sports, and erased from the cycling history books. His admission followed years of denial that he took drugs to win the Tour de France and other big cycling events. He also personally apologized to staff members of the Livestrong cancer charity. This decision is reportedly part of efforts to rehabilitate his public profile. But above his image, there is a likelihood that Armstrong could face criminal charges following his confession, depending on how thorough or detailed his admission.

Read more on Rappler here and here.

Days before Hillary Clinton, once-presidential candidate and former First Lady, steps down as US Secretary of State, series of assessments of her contributions are flooding in. One was by Michael O’Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, who wrote a glowing one in his Reuters blog. He wrote: “She understood that she was a part of Obama’s administration, not a co-president. Where Obama had strong views or made overall decisions on the nation’s priorities, she did not complain, leak countervailing views, wind up in publicized spats or even allow any space to emerge between them.” He added: “She is more work horse than show horse, more an indefatigable marathoner (despite the setback last month) than a sprinter.” Clinton will appear before the US lawmakers on January 23 to be quizzed about the deadly attack on a US mission in Libya.

Read more on Reuters and Rappler.

Centuries ago, Spain ruled the Philippines. This year, however, it’s the other way around, at least in the brandy world. Philippine liquor maker Emperador Distillers Inc, a wholly owned subsidiary of tycoon Andrew Tan’s Alliance Global Group, announced it is acquiring 100% of Bodega San Bruno S.A., the brandy unit of González Byass S.A. for an undisclosed amount. González Byass is one of the largest and oldest liquor and wine conglomerates in Spain. Alliance said this move is part of efforts to expand its global reach. Emperador is one of the largest liquor companies in the Philippines, selling over 31 million cases of brandy in 2012.


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BBC has relaunched, rebranded and has moved its World News channel from west London to New Broadcasting House in the center of London, calling the new location “The World’s Newsroom” to “truly reflects the world we report,” it said on January 14. After a 3-year-long process, the channel promises to help its audience “live the story” through reports various locations, as well as enhanced social media access that will provide behind-the-scenes access. It promises a “more dynamic look, with robot cameras whizzing around our studios, improved graphics and high definition screen,” as well as “new faces on air.”


Read more on BBC.