EDSA People Power Revolution

May 29, 2012 Edition

Analette Abesamis

This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.

  1. D-day: Historic vote on Chief Justice Renato Corona

    THE BARRISTERS.

    After 44 trial days in more than four and a half months, it’s decision day for the Philippines.  23 senators will vote to convict or acquit the Philippines’ Chief Justice on impeachment charges against him.  The prosecution and defense summarized their arguments Monday.  The key points: should public officials declare their dollar accounts and commingled funds?  Each senator will announce his/her decision and then have 2 minutes to explain why.  The vote will be done in alphabetical order.

     

    Read and watch the prosecution arguments here,  the defense arguments here, the key issues here  and where the senators stand here – all on Rappler.

  2. From dollars to cars: are they ‘illegal?’

    Former monetary officials say Chief Justice Corona may have engaged in “illegal” activity if what he said in his testimony in his defense is true. “If he was trading already in the late 60s — he said 1968 — there were still import and foreign exchange controls then, so the only way he could get dollars was from the black market,” said Dante Canlas, a former member of the Monetary Board, the policy-making body of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. “There’s now a chief justice who had been doing illegal things since 1968,” added the former economic planning secretary who currently holds the BSP Sterling professorial chair in monetary economics.  When Corona testified, he arrived at the Senate in a car with tampered or different license plates.  Rappler followed a police investigation after another car owner complained his license plate was being used by Corona’s black Suburban.  Defense lawyers tell Rappler Corona rented the car.

     

    Read about the dollar activity here and the car here  – all on Rappler.

  3. Why it’s important to draw the line

    A new book to be published next week,”The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty” by Dan Ariely looks at why people lie or cheat.  Its findings may provide reflection points for a country trying to stem corruption.  Ariely writes, “Everybody has the capacity to be dishonest, and almost everybody cheats – just by a little”- torn between opposing motivations of personal gain and your own belief that you’re honest and honorable. He adds,”sadly, it is this kind of small-scale mass cheating, not the high-profile cases, that is most corrosive to society.” He and his colleagues ran a series of experiments and found that being reminded of moral codes at the point of decision can help stop cheating or lying.  He says, “while it’s important to pay attention to flagrant misbehaviors, it’s probably even more important to discourage the small and more ubiquitous forms of dishonesty – the misbehavior that affects all of us.”  These findings echo an earlier piece by Rappler’s Maria Ressa, which talks about the importance of drawing your own line to prevent a psychological skid to corruption.

     

    Read more about Ariely’s findings on the Wall Street Journal and about drawing the line on Rappler.  

  4. Annan arrives in Syria, urges ceasefire

    Pressure is increasing on Syria after wide international condemnation of a brutal massacre last week in the Houla area of central Syria which killed at least 108 villagers, including 49 children and 34 women. The United Nations’ special envoy Kofi Annan arrived in Syria Monday to try to salvage a peace plan – even as Syria’s ambassador to the UN called its condemnation of his country a “tsunami of lies.” The chairman of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff warned that continued atrocities could bring up the option of military intervention.

     

    Read more about Kofi Annan’s plan on the New York Times.

  5. Jessica Sanchez performs at US Memorial Day concert

    Filipinos in the United States and around the world supported Jessica Sanchez last week during the American Idol finale – the first contestant with Filipino roots to make it that far.  Days after her loss to Phillip Phillips, Sanchez performs at the National Memorial Day concert at the West lawn of the US capitol in Washington, DC. Memorial day honors the American men and women who died serving their country.  This year, the US announced that more than 1,851 have died in the decade US troops have been in Afghanistan.  Sanchez opened the program by singing the national anthem and later sang “The Prayer.”

     

    Watch Jessica Sanchez here on Rappler.

  6. Greece fears ease

    Global share markets recovered Monday from sharp falls last week after euro zone concerns increased market volatility.  Some good news Monday after European stocks rose and the euro recovered slightly after Greek politics started showing “support for pro-bailout parties.” While analysts say there may be a greater emphasis on good news leading up to Greece’s second election in 6 weeks on June 17, there’s still more trouble in Europe after Spain’s debt yields hit a record high.

    Read more on CNBC

  7. Two set themselves on fire in Tibet

    Two men set themselves on fire in Tibet to protest China’s actions which many Tibetans say is attacking its culture, religion and environment.  Citing economic development, China moved thousands of ethnic Han Chinese into Tibet.  One man died, while the other is in the hospital, according to the publicity department of the Chinese Communist Party’s regional committee in Tibet.  AP reports this is part of a spate of self-immolations: at least 34 since March 2011. “It’s very significant that it happened in the religious and political heart of Lhasa outside the Jokhang temple,” Kate Saunders, spokeswoman for the International Campaign for Tibet told Bloomberg.  “It’s a further indication that the causes of the self-immolations across Tibet are still there.”

     

    Read more on Bloomberg.  

  8. Blair testifies about Murdoch ties; shares disruption with Murdoch

    Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair was once the most popular prime minister in recent memory.  He left disgraced largely over his support of US actions in Iraq.  On Monday, he appeared in front of a judicial inquiry into Rupert Murdoch’s ties to power.  The godfather to one of Murdoch’s daughters, Blair said the media tycoon had never tried to lobby him for commercial interests and that the Labour party “decided more often against than in favor” on regulatory matters affecting Murdoch’s companies. Their testimonies had one thing in common: disruption.  Like the pie throwing incident during Murdoch’s testimony, an anti-war protestor interrupted Blair’s testimony and accused him of being a war criminal. Blair denied the charges.

     

    Read more on the New York Times.  

  9. Facebook’s plans and woes

    Facebook hopes to release a new smartphone next year, but the launch of its IPO remains controversial – a lesson, some analysts say, of insiders and large players putting small investors at a disadvantage.  An investigation has begun and some are warning of a bubble that may burst.

    Read more about Facebook’s smartphone plans on Rappler and Facebook’s IPO woes on the Wall Street Journal

  10. Justin Bieber under investigation

    Trouble for pop superstar Justin Bieber, who allegedly hit a photographer after he tried to take a picture of Bieber and girlfriend Selena Gomez in a mall in Calabasas, California.  A spokesperson for Bieber did not immediately respond to media inquiries.  The photographer allegedly complained of pain after and was taken to the hospital.  

     

    Read more here on Rappler.  

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