June 8, 2012 Edition

When they meet on Saturday (Manila time), June 9, Philippine President Benigno Aquino III and U.S. President Barack Obama would review existing defense ties and discuss ways to broaden these, a top American official has said. The Philippine president is in the U.S. on the invitation of Mr Obama. U.S. officials have pledged to help the Philippines step up its defenses in the face of a rising China. The talks come as the Philippines — a US treaty ally — sees particularly tense relations with China over the disputed islands in the South China Sea.

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UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan has told the UN Security Council that the Syria crisis will “spiral out of control” unless substantial pressure is put on President Bashar al-Assad, diplomats said. Annan renewed calls for the major powers to warn Assad of “clear consequences” if he does not comply with a six-point international peace plan. “The longer we wait, the darker the future looks for Syria,” Annan was quoted as telling the 15-member council. The Assad regime has used heavy weapons, armor-piercing bullets and surveillance drones against UN observers in Syria.

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Global IT defense experts meeting in Estonia predicted the growth of so-called “intelligent cyber weapons” which they fear would be hard to control. They said rapid developments in cyber war technologies could give rise to the creation of programs that can act autonomously and spark conflicts around the world. The experts noted that China and Russia have significantly upgraded their cyber defense capabilities.

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In a letter, Sen Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III told former President Joseph Estrada, a key leader of the opposition United Nationalist Alliance (UNA), that he can’t stand running alongside a “cheat,” referring to former Sen Miguel Zubiri. Pimentel and Zubiri are among the candidates being groomed by UNA for next year’s senatorial race. But the two were locked in an electoral dispute in 2007, which Pimentel eventually won. Estrada refused to budge and insisted Zubiri will stay with UNA. He even advised Pimentel to learn to forgive, in the same way that he had forgiven his father, former Senator Pimentel, for abandoning him when he was ousted as president in 2001.

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Senator Pia Cayetano, a key proponent of the controversial Reproductive Health Bill pending in both houses of Congress, said she’s relieved that the bill has hurdled the period of interpellations at the Senate this week. She granted an interview on Rappler’s #talkthursday on June 7, or exactly a year after the senator delivered her sponsorship speech on the measure. She recalled how, even as a child, she was exposed to misconceptions on sex and reproductive health. “I didn’t understand why my yaya (nanny) called my private part a flower because I’m like, ‘A flower? Is that a flower?’ ‘Coz my mom called it what it was: a vagina.’”

Read the full interview here

The United Nations’ human rights chief is raising legal questions about the continuous drone attacks being conducted by the U.S. in Pakistan. Navi Pillay, speaking after a UN fact-finding visit to Pakistan, said the U.S. drone attacks “raise serious questions about compliance with international law, in particular the principle of distinction and proportionality.” For one, she said, who is accountable when drone attacks are conducted outside the military chain of command? Drone attacks have become a central part of US counter-terror operations. Al-Qaeda leader Abu Yahya al-Libi was reportedly killed in a drone strike in Pakistan earlier this week.

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It took the marriage of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) and Digital Telecommunications to dislodge Globe Telecom from its decades-long tight grip on the postpaid market.  This segment of the market is more profitable, loyal, and ideal for broadband-based services–3 attributes that mobile phone operators in a competitive environment aspire for. As of March 2012, the combined resources of PLDT and Digitel made them breach the 2-million mark, overtaking Globe’s. 

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Syrian woman blogger Razan Ghazzawi, who has become the symbol of the Syrian uprising, has been honored with this year’s Human Rights Defenders at Risk award by the Dublin-based Front Line Defenders foundation, the group announced on Friday, June 8. Ghazzawi is currently on trial before a military court charged with “possessing prohibited materials with the intent to disseminate them.” Her colleague, Dlshad Othman, accepted the award on Ghazzawi’s behalf. In a statement, Ghazzawi said she saw the award as being was for all citizen journalists “who died trying to tell the world what’s happening in Syria, when the traditional media have failed to do so.”

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It happens an average of nearly one a day this year. Citing statistics from the Pentagon, the Associated Press counted 154 suicides for American troops in the first 155 days of the year, and this figure is more than the number of U.S. forces killed in action in Afghanistan. It’s also an 18% increase from the same period last year. The suicides reflect a burdened military that has been fighting demanding wars in the last decade. American authorities have expressed concern.

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Evangelical pastor Rick Warren recently paid a visit to boxing legend Manny Pacquiao, conducted a Bible study and prayed with the Pacquiao couple. The author of the best-selling book “Purpose Driven Life” said Pacquiao has turned into a “Bible-quoting maniac,” describing him as a “purpose-driven boxer.” Pacquiao will defend his WBO welterweight title against American Timothy Bradley on Sunday (Manila time), June 10, in Las Vegas.He said he believes “100 %” he is going to win.

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