Rappler Newscast | January 4, 2013

Story 1: 8 DEAD, 9 WOUNDED IN CAVITE CARNAGE
A man armed with a semi-automatic pistol kills at least 8 people, including 2 children, and wounds 9 others in a residential area in Kawit, Cavite on Friday.
The rampage ends when police shoot and kill the gunman.
Police authorities say the gunman, identified as Ronald Bae, starts firing at his neighbors at around 9:00AM using a .45 caliber pistol.
Bae then goes from house to house seeking targets.
He is allegedly aided by an accomplice.
Residents say he was drinking heavily on the night of January 3.
Police later find evidence of possible drug use in his home.
The local government of Cavite is offering a 100,000 peso reward for information on the gunman’s accomplice.

Story 2: DEATH OF 7-YEAR-OLD REIGNITES GUN-CONTROL ISSUE
The death of seven-year-old Stephanie Nicole Ella reignites concerns on gun control in the Philippines.
Nicole dies Wednesday after a stray bullet hits her on the head on New Year’s Eve.
Her family wants the government to act swiftly to prevent another senseless death.
Voltaire Tupaz reports.

Three days after seven-year old Nicole Ella dies from a stray bullet, the family brings her body home. The shooter is still unknown.
Authorities conduct a door-to-door investigation and invite four men in the neighborhood for questioning.  
The PNP says there are 242 registered guns in the vicinity of Nicole’s home, but they are focusing their investigation only on 45 gun owners based on the type of bullet recovered from her body.  
During the New Year celebrations, stray bullets injure at least 41 and kill 2, including Nicole.
Nicole’s family does not want her death to be in vain.

MERCEDITA ELLA, AUNT OF NICOLE: Huwag pong palampasin ang may kagagawan nito kasi kung taon-taon na lang po na malaya siyang makagawa ng (pagkairesponsable), marami pa pong Nicole, marami pa pong bata na walang kamuwang-muwang sa mundo ang nanakawan ng buhay, ng pag-asa at pangarap, po.

Nicole’s death reignites concerns about gun-control in the country.
PNP records show there are 1.6 million licensed firearms in the Philippines.
A third of all licensed guns belong to the military and police.
But the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey says the figure may be much higher,  up to five million guns.
Police estimate there are nearly 600,000 loose or unregistered firearms.
Politicians are now considering a gun ban during the holidays.

RICOJUDGE ECHIVERRI, CALOOCAN CITY COUNCILOR: Pumapayag na rin ako na pag dating ng New Year, siguro gumawa na lang ng ordinansa, o ng memo ang DILG, o ng batas na gun ban na lang muna siguro para mapanatiling tahimik ang ating lugar. Kung di man gagawa na lang kami ng ordinansa sa Caloocan.

Vice President Jejomar Binay believes the problem is law enforcement.
Malacanang says it will raise the proposals for tighter gun control with the President – a known gun enthusiast.  
Gun-ban or no gun ban, one thing is clear, attitudes need to change.   

VOLTAIRE TUPAZ, REPORTING: I’m here where Nicole was standing, watching the New Year fireworks. The shooter has not been identified, but one thing is clear: the government needs to strengthen measures to prevent senseless deaths like Nicole’s from happening again.
Voltaire Tupaz, Rappler, Manila.

Story 3: BRILLANTES REFUSES TO OK COMELEC RAFFLE
Commission on Elections Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr refuses to approve the results of a party-list raffle because it does not conform to the poll body’s rules.  
On Friday, the Comelec holds a historic raffle to determine the position of party-list groups on the ballot.
But the raffle is nullified because it includes new applicants with Supreme Court status quo ante orders.
Comelec rules only permit groups accredited in 2010 to join the raffle.
Brillantes says the mistake is a clerical error and the poll body will withdraw some 13 groups that are not supposed to be included.
The Comelec may finalize the order of party-list groups in the ballot by Monday.
In previous polls, the names were arranged in alphabetical order.

Story 4: PH 7TH MOST DANGEROUS FOR REPORTERS
The Swiss-based Press Emblem Campaign or PEC says the Philippines is the seventh most dangerous place for reporters, with 6 killed in 2012.
In its January 3 report, the PEC says 141 journalists are killed in 29 different countries, making 2012 one of the deadliest years for reporters.
The number is up by 31 percent compared to 2011 figures.
Syria ranks number one, followed by Somalia, Pakistan, Mexico, Brazil, the Philippines, Honduras, Bangladesh and India.
In 2009, 32 journalists are murdered in Maguindanao, the worst incidence of election-related violence in Philippine history.

Story 5: ONGPIN TO SUE BSP DEPUTY GOV ESPENILLA
Businessman Roberto Ongpin is set to file a criminal case against Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Deputy Governor Nestor Espenilla for asking the appellate court to have his bank accounts frozen.
In a statement Friday, Ongpin says Espenilla violated the anti-graft law when he sought the freeze order.
The Court of Appeals issues the freeze order after the Ombudsman recommends the filing of charges against Ongpin over an alleged P660 million behest loan from the Development Bank of the Philippines in 2009.
Ongpin says Espenilla testified during Senate hearings last year that the loans were – quote – ‘prudent and positive, and resulted in trading gains for DBP.’

Story 6: CHINA CRACKS DOWN ON BLOGGERS, ACTIVISTS
China is cracking down on a number of high-profile bloggers and activists, just days after a new rule comes into effect requiring the use of real identities online.
The Washington Post reports the accounts of several activists on popular Chinese microblogging site ‘Weibo’ are shut down.
Those affected include investigative reporter Shi Feike, former chief editor of the Southern Metropolis Daily.
Shi’s reporting on the corruption in Chongqing province led to the purge of disgraced politician Bo Xilai.
China’s government exercises strict control over the use of the internet.
On December 28, 2012, China releases new rules that require Weibo users to provide real-name identification.
Critics of the move say this will dampen the free-wheeling discussion on China’s version of Twitter.

Story 7: VITUG VLOG: GIVING IS COOL AND SATISFYING
The holidays may be over, but the spirit of the season never really ends for Filipinos.
Rappler’s editor at large Marites Vitug tells us why in her video blog.

What do Finland and the Philippines have in common?
These 2 are polar opposites: Finland is freezing cold and hosts a tiny population of 5.2 million while the Philippines is oven hot and is bursting with 100 million people.
But they share the same rank: number 17 among the top 20 most generous countries in the world, according to the World Giving Index of 2012.
This means that both countries did well in three areas:
1) donating money to charity;
2) volunteering time to an organization; and
3) helping a stranger
In the case of the Philippines, we had one of the highest levels of participation in volunteering time.
Overall, Australia was the most generous country in the world.
In Southeast Asia, Indonesia was the most giving—and donating money was the most common form of charitable behavior.
It is comforting that Filipinos find the time to help people and causes, like teachers and students who join disaster relief efforts and lawyers who do pro-bono work.
This speaks well of the values we learn in our homes and schools.
And for a new year’s resolution, it wouldn’t hurt to think about giving more.

Story 8: THE wRap: YOUR WORLD IN ONE READ
At number two, around eight million people are expected to join the annual procession of the Black Nazarene this January 9 in Manila.
The procession, which will culminate at the Quiapo church, brings together devout Catholics from all walks of life.
In 2012, authorities shut down cellphone services, and tightened security in the area due to a reported terror threat.
This year, the police and the military say there are no reports of any threats.

At number three, villagers beat up a local politician accused of raping a woman in a rural village in Assam, India.
On Thursday, village women reportedly strip and slap Bikram Singh Brahma, a member of the ruling Congress Party, for allegedly raping a mother of two.
Police later take custody of Brahma.
The Assam Congress Party also suspends him.
The government is under increased pressure to act strongly against rape, following the gang-rape and death of a young medical student last month.
The government sets up a special committee to study changes to the law on rape.

At number five, natural catastrophes in 2012 cause an estimated 160 billion dollars in damage globally, according to Munich Re, the world’s leading reinsurer.
Around 67% of all losses occur in the US, with the year’s highest insured loss caused by Hurricane Sandy.
Global losses are much lower in 2012 compared to 2011, when large disasters – like the earthquakes in Japan and New Zealand – resulted in significant losses.

And at number 10, Internet search giant Google wins a legal battle after the US Federal Trade Commission, or FTC, finds the company did not violate antitrust rules.
The FTC says there is not enough evidence to prove allegations Google manipulated its search results to harm competitors.
As part of a settlement agreement, Google will make some of its patented technologies more available to rivals.
Google corners up to 70% of search engine traffic in the US.
The figure is higher in other markets.
Google comes under scrutiny by antitrust regulators in the EU and UK.