SUMMARY
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- Historic deal binds Philippines, MILF
The Aquino government prepared for its biggest event yet in Malacañang, inviting more than 1,000 guests to witness the historic signing of a peace agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The ceremony caps 17 years of protracted negotiations under 4 Philippine presidents, and sets the stage for the crafting of a new law that will create a new Bangsamoro region. The special guest is Prime Minister Najib Razak, who’s not exactly in a good place now given the crisis sparked by the crash of a Malaysian Airlines plane. But it was Malaysia that brokered the talks and provided moral suasion over the rebels during the talks’ toughest periods.
Read the full story on Rappler. - US firm readies lawsuits vs Malaysian Airlines, Boeing
A US law firm said it will pursue lawsuits seeking “millions of dollars” for aggrieved families over the crash of MH370. Chicago-based Ribbeck Law Chartered said it filed a court petition in the US state of Illinois targeting Malaysia Airlines and Boeing, blaming the two companies for the disaster. This appeared to mark the start of what legal experts have warned could be a cascade of lawsuits by passengers’ relatives livid over the unexplained disappearance of their loved ones.
The documents being sought pertain to possible design or mechanical defects or conduct by the airline that may have led to the disaster.
Read the full story on Rappler. - Malaysia on crash: ‘History will judge us well’
“I think history will judge us well,” Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein told media on March 26, responding to questions on how Malaysia would be able to repair its image after the crash of MH370. Malaysia’s authoritarian government has come under international criticism over the unexplained disappearance of the plane on March 8. The government, and flag carrier Malaysia Airlines, still say they have no idea what caused the plane to divert far off its intended Kuala Lumpur-Beijing route, enraging relatives who are demanding answers. Officials said the media have given them a “bruising” treatment.
Read the full story on Rappler. - PH joins 9 countries as ’emerging economies’
The Philippines, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Ethiopia are among 10 countries set to take over as emerging economies from the powerful BRICS nations, the French trade credit and insurance group Coface said. The growth of emerging economies and the effect this has on world trade flows is closely analyzed by economists because of the huge impact on every aspect of the global economy and power balances. Coface broke the 10 new emerging economies it has identified into two groups. The first comprises Peru, the Philippines, Indonesia, Colombia and Sri Lanka, which it named the PPICS. The second group comprises Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Bangladesh and Ethiopia.
Read the full story on Rappler. - Bin laden in-law: Guilty!
A New York jury found Osama bin Laden’s son-in-law and former Al-Qaeda spokesman Suleiman Abu Ghaith guilty on 3 counts of conspiracy to kill Americans and supporting terrorists. The 48-year-old preacher from Kuwait, whose three-week trial has been the most high-profile Al-Qaeda case to reach a US federal court, now faces life behind bars. Abu Ghaith denied the charges but is most famous for appearing with Bin Laden in a video on September 12, 2001 claiming the attacks on US targets that killed nearly 3,000 people the day before. He fled Afghanistan for Iran in 2002. He was arrested in Turkey in 2013 and sent to Jordan, where he was transferred to US custody.
Read the full story on Rappler. - You’re alone, Obama tells Russia
US President Barack Obama said Russia stood “alone” on the Ukraine crisis as he paid his first ever visit to the European Union headquarters in Brussels, cementing Western opposition to the takeover of Crimea. Viewed as the most important trip to Europe by a US president in years because of the crisis over Crimea, it was Obama’s first-ever summit talks in Brussels with the EU’s top officials, EU Council and European Commission presidents Herman Van Rompuy and Jose Manuel Barroso. Russia increasingly “stands alone” on the international scene and had “miscalculated” in thinking it could drive a “wedge” between Washington and Brussels, Obama said.
Read the full story on Rappler. - Show receipts of millions spent, senators told
In 2012, senators spent – or claimed they spent – P636 million to perform “legislative functions.” They had nothing but mostly certifications to prove this. But the Commission on Audit (COA) is putting an end to this practice, and is asking the Senate to submit full liquidation of the amount. The amount was divided among the offices of 23 senators in 2012 in the form of cash advances. COA said the expenses were not supported by official receipts.
Read the full story on Rappler. - Seoul unhappy with plastic surgery ads
South Korea, and particularly Seoul, has an international reputation for plastic surgery, and adverts featuring famous surgeons and giant before-and-after photos are omnipresent – on street billboards, subway trains, bus stops and the backs of bus seats. But it’s been bombarded with complaints that the ads were fueling an unhealthy obsession with body image. Thus a new order to restrict the use of plastic surgery adverts on public transport. Under the new regulations, no more than 20% of advertising at any subway station can be connected with the plastic surgery industry.
Read the full story on Rappler. - Obama’s drunk guards sent home
Three Secret Service agents tasked with protecting US President Barack Obama during his visit to Amsterdam this week were sent home after a night of drinking, with one found passed out in a hotel hallway, the Washington Post said. The 3 agents have been placed on administrative leave, the newspaper said, quoting unnamed sources. The embarrassing incident comes two years after an April 2012 scandal involving Secret Service agents and prostitutes in the Colombian Caribbean resort of Cartagena. In the new case, the alleged behavior would violate Secret Service rules adopted after the Cartagena scandal.
Read the full story on Rappler. - Take 2 for this zoo as it kills 4 lions
A Copenhagen zoo that prompted international outrage by putting down a healthy giraffe and dissecting it in public has killed 2 lions and their 2 cubs to make way for a new male. The 4 lions were put down after the zoo had failed to find a new home for them. There would be no public dissection of the animals this time around, however. Within a few days the new male will be introduced to the zoo’s 2 female lions who, born in 2012, have reached breeding age.
Read the full story on Rappler.
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