September 23, 2014 Edition

The slow down in Mayon Volcano’s restive condition is “just a prelude to a bigger explosion,” a senior volcanologist warned on Monday, September 22. Ed Laguerta of the Phillippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said, “Sometimes there is a calm before the storm and there is no time to relax.” Recently, the volcano’s seismic network recorded at least 3 volcanic earthquakes and 13 rockfall events, with weak to moderate emission of white steam plumes and sulfur dioxide flux measuring an average of 1,290 tons a day. Edifice inflation was recorded from January 2012 baselines. All these indicate that “magma is at the crater and that hazardous eruption is possible within weeks,” Phivolcs said.

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Center for Strategic and International Studies analyst Gregory Poling said the Philippines should work with Vietnam in “accurately surveying” the Spratlys in the disputed South China Sea before China completes its artificial islands in the area. These reclamation works can “make it more difficult, if not impossible” to settle the Philippine case against China, he said in an interview published by Deutsche Welle. Beijing, he said, seems to be trying to “change facts on the ground” to make it difficult for the court to decide “what the original status of these features may have been.” But maritime law expert Jay Batongbacal had said China’s reclamation activities do not legally jeopardize the Philippine claim because they took place after the Philippines filed its Statement of Notification and Claim.

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The deadliest Ebola outbreak has been contained in Senegal and Nigeria even as it has killed over 2,800 in West Africa, the World Health Organization said. The results of the latest meeting of WHO’s Ebola emergency committee showed that Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone account for most of the cases by far, and continue to see rising numbers. Liberia has been hit hard, reporting 1,578 deaths from 3,022 cases. All in all, as of September 18, a total of 5,864 people have been infected with the deadly virus in 5 West African countries. As of September 14, the death toll stood at 2,630, with 181 additional recorded deaths after.

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While called the “social networking capital of the world,” the Philippines provides Internet access to only 37% of its citizens. The United Nations 2014 State of Broadband report said this figure recorded in 2013 is below the world average of 37.9%. This puts the country 106th out of 191 countries evaluated in the report. Among ASEAN countries, four fared better than the Philippines: Singapore (73% Internet penetration), Malaysia (67%), Brunei Darussalam (64.5%), and Vietnam (43.9%).

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The London-based Active Change Foundation (ACF) is using #notinmyname on Twitter and urging Muslims to do the same to denounce the violence of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). British Muslims are using social media to counter ISIS’ “ideology of hate.” On its website, ACF said, “Islam teaches peace, respect, and love. ISIS is hiding behind a false Islam. It’s nothing to do with what we stand for. Tell ISIS that they can’t murder in your name.” ISIS has been using social media to recruit followers. It has recently beheaded two American journalists and a British aid worker.

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Member-nations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations should push for economic development powered by green energy that is resilient to climate change. Advocates told a press conference Monday, September 22 that ASEAN, which looks to regional integration by 2015, should stop its fossil-fuel-driven growth. Three of the top 10 countries worst hit by climate change belong to ASEAN – the Philippines, Myanmar and Vietnam. If green energy is not harnessed, the region will see more crop losses due to droughts and loss of lives from stronger tropical cyclones, advocates from Oxfam Grow, Greenpeace, and the Eastern Regional Organization for Public Administration said.

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Former US State Secretary Hillary Clinton told the Clinton Global Initiative on Monday that while it has been exciting to see a lot of changes in the field of women’s rights, it’s been “somewhat distressing to see how hard change still is” in terms of women’s income. Last week, figures showed that American women’s income compared to that of men increased slightly, pushing them up “78 cents on a dollar.” Referring to the gender pay gap, Clinton, who may yet again vie to become the US’ first female president, said the cultural and religious obstacles based on views of women’s roles and capacities are not only wrong but “also no longer affordable.”

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By October 1, the Philippines will no longer be the only member-country of ASEAN that collects terminal fees at the airport. The Manila International Airport Authority on Monday, September 22, said terminal fees will be included in the cost of airline tickets starting October 1 and will be implemented fully by October 2015. The P550 ($12.34) fee is essential to the continued operations of the airport, MIAA said. The amount is distributed as follows: maintenance and upkeep (P390 or $8.76), national government (P100 or $2.24) and aviation security (P60 or $1.35).

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Allowed by the anti-graft court Sandiganbayan, Senator Jinggoy Estrada will be out of detention for 4 hours to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging procedure (MRI). The procedure is meant to address the recurring pain on his left shoulder, which he had long been experiencing but which worsened while he was in detention. He will be brought to the Cardinal Santos Medical Center on Wednesday, September 24. Charged with plunder and graft for the alleged misuse of his Priority Development Assistance Fund, Estrada has been detained for 3 months now.

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Who could be buried beneath? Dating back to the late 4th century BC, the largest burial site to be ever discovered in Greece, has left Greeks in awe. Greek Culture Minister Konstantinos Tasoulas told the BBC, “We are watching in awe and with deep emotion the excavation in Amphipolis…This is a burial monument of unique dimensions and impressive artistic mastery. The most beautiful secrets are hidden right underneath our feet.” Archaelogists say the magnificence of the tomb indicate it must have been built for a prominent person who could be a member of Alexander the Great’s immediate family or a noble Macedonian. Experts however have yet to reach a verdict.

Read the full story on the BBC.