Dear Rappler reader,
It’s Holy Week. As Catholics around the world begin a period of prayer and reflection, many others carry their own cross in the wake of violent incidents the past few days, such as the Palm Sunday church bombings in Egypt that killed 43 and the truck attack in Sweden.
Another earthquake shocked parts of Bicol and Eastern Visayas early Monday, even as victims in Batangas recover from the one that hit them last weekend.
In this week’s editorial, we take stock of the impact of presidential language on children, who had the opportunity to hear and meet the President in Malacañang. In his speech before the young scouts, President Duterte talked openly about killing – and its value. We ask in our #AnimatED: Are we creating a future generation of callous, unthinking, unfeeling, morally ambiguous people with an unshakeable belief in the barrel of a gun?
A magnitude 5.4 earthquake shook parts of Bicol and Eastern Visayas Monday morning, April 10. The quake’s epicenter was located 89 kilometers northeast of Mapanas, Northern Samar, in the Philippine Sea, at a depth of 27 kilometers below the surface. In Batangas, the government delivered relief supplies for displaced families in areas where twin earthquakes struck on April 8.
Huge crowds gathered in Stockholm for a vigil against terrorism on April 9, two days a driver mowed down shoppers in a stolen truck before slamming into the facade of a bustling store. The motive remained unclear, but the style resembled previous attacks claimed by the Islamic State (ISIS).
As the drug war persists in the Philippines, the rising threat of the ISIS command moving into the country remains largely unchecked, warned experts who believe the group poses a larger threat to the Philippines today than ever before.
US President Donald Trump’s top advisers have set the stage for a diplomatic confrontation in Moscow this week when US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson meets with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, days after US cruise missiles slammed into a Syrian air base in retaliation for Syria’s chemical attacks. The US is stepping up pressure on Moscow to rein in Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The Bureau of Immigration confirmed that self-confessed Davao Death Squad (DDS) member Arturo “Arthur” Lascañas flew to Singapore on April 8. There is no lookout bulletin or hold departure order for the retired Davao City cop, who had implicated President Rodrigo Duterte in killings attributed to the DDS.
Exiled communist leader Jose Maria Sison is considering coming home, he said, if the current talks with government lead to the release of all political prisoners. He also said he has another motivation to visit his home country after more than 3 decades of living in Europe: he was reportedly nominated for the National Artist Award.
In this week’s Rappler Editorial, we question President Duterte’s tone and language when he spoke about criminality before children in Malacañang. – Rappler.com
There are no comments yet. Add your comment to start the conversation.