November 27, 2014 Edition

It’s been hailed as an unprecedented court victory for 3 Filipinos who filed a maltreatment suit against their former employer, the United Arab Emirates’ ambassador to Ireland. The Employment Appeals Tribunal of Ireland awarded the amount of 240,000 euros (P13.45 million) to Jennifer Villaranda, Myra Calderon, and Laylanie Laporga over an unfair dismissal suit earlier junked by the Rights Commissioner. The 3 had accused UAE Ambassador Khalid Nasser Rashed Lootah and his wife Mehra Metad Alghubaisi of making them do housework for 15 hours a day at 170 euros (P9,514) a month. The tribunal used Ireland’s national minimum wage as basis for the amount of claim in the verdict.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Researchers say they are one step closer to developing an Ebola vaccine, with a Phase 1 trial showing promising results. But they said it will be months at the earliest before it can be used in the field. In the first phase of testing, all 20 healthy adults injected with a higher or lower dose of the vaccine developed antibodies needed to fight Ebola, said the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which conducted the study. The vaccines under development “may play a role in bringing this epidemic to an end and undoubtedly will be critically important in preventing future large outbreaks,” an NIH official added.

Read the full story Rappler.

President Benigno Aquino III told coconut farmers they will soon be able to make use of the multi-billion peso coconut levy funds two years after the Supreme Court ruled that the money belonged to them. In a meeting on November 26 with farmer leaders who had marched all the way from Davao City to Malacañang, Aquino said he will certify as urgent bills on the use of the funds. While these are being worked out, Malacañang will draft an executive order to facilitate the creation of a trust fund from the P71-billion coco levy funds currently in the National Treasury. These assurances came after the 2012 landmark decision of the Supreme Court that said the funds belonged to the farmers. The amount represented 24% of San Miguel Corporation shares that the government gave to Eduardo “Danding” Cojuangco under the Marcos regime.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Protesters tried to storm St Louis city hall on November 26, after two days of nationwide protests against the decision not to prosecute a white policeman who shot an unarmed black teenager. But there were signs that as night – and a light snow – fell on Ferguson the situation was stabilizing. Volunteer clean-up crews were sweeping the streets of the St Louis suburb where angry crowds previously torched businesses and looted stores. Many thousands of people joined demonstrations in dozens of cities. US civil rights leaders have called for more protests on November 29.

Read the full story on Rappler.

More than 4,000 flights were cancelled or delayed November 26 in the US northeast as a winter storm delivered freezing rain and snow ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, one of the year’s biggest travel weekends.Rain was falling in Boston, Philadelphia, New York and Washington, according to the National Weather Service. The weather service predicted “havoc” for travelers along the East Coast from the Carolinas up through New England. But with the American Automobile Association predicting 46.3 million Americans will travel 80 kilometers or more for the holiday, most by car, the bad weather could create big problems on highways.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Pope Francis said he had personally ordered an investigation into a second sexual abuse complaint against a group of Spanish Catholic priests in Spain, after an unidentified man sent a letter to him telling him of how he had been molested when he was an altar boy. “I read it. I called the person and I told him, ‘Go to the bishop tomorrow,’ and then I wrote to the bishop and told him to start an investigation,” Francis said in response to a question by a Spanish reporter on his plane from Strasbourg, France, where he had addressed the European Parliament. “How have I received this news? With great pain, very great pain, but the truth is the truth and we should not hide it.” Police earlier arrested 3 Catholic priests and a religion teacher in Granada after a 24-year-old man accused them of molesting him and other children.

Read the full story on Rappler.

Over 100 politicians from different political parties are now being investigated for campaign overspending during the 2013 midterm elections, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said. The announcement came after the Supreme Court upheld the Comelec’s disqualification of Laguna Governor Emilio Ramon “ER” Ejercito for overspending in the 2013 polls. The poll body said it has started preliminary investigations of election offense cases against more than 100 candidates from across the political spectrum for exceeding the campaign expenditure limit set by law. The Philippines will have its presidential elections in 2016.

Read the full story on Rappler.

The wife of former Senator Manuel Villar Jr dismissed talks of a Binay-Villar tandem in 2016. “Villar as vice president, never. That’s why he’s not paying attention to the talks,” Senator Cynthia Villar said. The Nacionalista Party is one of the country’s biggest political parties. Manny Villar, its president, ran for president in 2010 but lost to President Benigno Aquino III. Vice President Jejomar Binay identified Villar as a potential running mate. But it’s merely a “press release” that didn’t deserve attention, said Senator Villar.

Read the full story on Rappler.

China has drafted its first national law against domestic violence, with activists hailing it as a step forward in a country where abuse has long been sidelined as a private matter. The new law formally defines domestic violence for the first time and streamlines the process for obtaining restraining orders – measures long advocated by anti-domestic abuse groups. But advocates also say the draft law excludes unmarried and divorced couples and falls short in some other areas. Less than two decades ago, physical abuse was not even acceptable as grounds for divorce in China. In 2001 the marriage law was amended to explicitly ban domestic violence for the first time.

Read the full story on Rappler.

What to give the boss and officemates? Or grandparents and spouses? Gift-shopping is often the cause of much holiday stress. For example, buying travelers gifts they can actually use can be daunting, especially on a budget. But with a little research and creativity, you can pick a gift that will make your traveler friends happy. So without further ado, Rappler presents the Christmas 2014 Gift Guide, with gift ideas for different personalities, from the avid traveler to the health buff to people who fancies the art.

Check out all these fun gift ideas on Rappler.