Daily News Highlights – May 10, 2015 Edition

Four provinces in the northern tip of Luzon were placed under public storm warning signal number 4 as Typhoon Dodong (international name Noul) moved faster and closer towards Cagayan Valley. 

Packing maximum sustained winds of 185 km/h near the center and gustiness of up to 220 km/h, the typhoon is forecast to move northwest at 20 km/h. The US Navy’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center has labeled Dodong a super typhoon.

Dodong is expected to hit land in Santa Ana, Cagayan Sunday afternoon or early evening. 

Read more on Rappler, and monitor the storm on #WeatherAlert and Project Agos.

Three ambassadors to Pakistan who survived a helicopter crash that killed 7 people have described the terrifying moment the aircraft span out of control before slamming into the ground and catching fire.

Testimonies of diplomats on board from Malaysia, Argentina, and the Netherlands released by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) on Saturday, May 9, also unequivocally bolstered government and eyewitness statements that the disaster was an accident rather than an act of terrorism.

Read more on Rappler.

Russian President Vladimir Putin shrugged off a boycott by Western leaders at a huge military parade Saturday, May 9, to mark the 70th anniversary of victory in WWII before joining mammoth crowds for a commemorative march.

In what is seen as punishment for Kremlin meddling in Ukraine, Western countries led by Russia’s World War II allies snubbed the May 9 festivities, leaving Putin to mark the day in the company of the leaders of China, Cuba and other Moscow-friendly figures.

Read more on Rappler.

Journalists marked World Press Freedom Day (#WPFD) on May 3 at a time press freedom is at its lowest point in a over a decade. Yet in an age of complex threats when everyone is a journalist, press freedom is no longer just for the gatekeepers of news. 

Beyond guns and shackles, this year’s global discussions on press freedom include Internet freedom, gender and labor rights. The issue concerns not just journalists meeting in Latvia for #WPFD, but also Filipino GMA7 regional correspondents protesting their sudden layoffs, and even the average netizen broadcasting on Periscope. 

Read more on Rappler.

President Benigno Aquino III did not take up the issue of illegally shipped Canadian garbage posing a health hazard in Manila since 2013, when he met with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Ottawa on Friday, May 8.

Aquino told reporters in a chartered flight from Ottawa to Toronto in Canada, where he is on a state visit, that the matter has been addressed by Philippine agencies while the private companies involved have been slapped with criminal charges.

Read more on Rappler.

Incumbent mayor Lucilo Bayron survived the recall elections that pitted him against Edward Hagedorn, a former ally who held the top post in the city for 20 years. It was Hagedorn’s supporters who filed a petition for recall against Bayron, citing the alleged “loss of trust and confidence” in his leadership.

Bayron tried, but failed, to stop the recall petition. But his 44,299 votes over Hagedorn’s 39,002 votes – a difference of 5,297 – cemented his hold as city mayor, allowing him to serve his first term in its entirety.

Read more on Rappler.

President Benigno Aquino III has revealed that he is in discussions with Senator Grace Poe on the 2016 elections, though nothing has been finalized yet.

The President confirmed his “recent discussion” with the senator in response to questions from Philippine media on Friday, May 8, during a chartered Philippine Airlines flight from Ottawa to Toronto in Canada, where he is on a state visit.

Read more on Rappler.

Police inspector Sofia Loren Deliu is making waves not while on patrol, but as a candidate in the Miss Philippines-Earth beauty pageant. Sofia said that her joining the pageant was about more than just being a pretty face – she wanted to help the PNP in its advocacies.

“Well, I have nothing against other pageants but we have projects, projects that we pursue after the pageant so when the pageant ends, that’s when the activities start. So I really want to participate in that, and of course incorporate Miss PH Earth to PNP because we have a lot of projects.” 

Read what Sofia is advocating for, on Rappler.

Only 1% of people feel that gays are “completely accepted” on the sporting field, according to a new international survey released on Sunday, May 10, highlighting homophobia.

Close to 9,500 people were interviewed for the survey, initiated by the Sydney organizing committee of a gay rugby event, which found few positive signs that lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) people were welcome playing team sports.

“Even in the most promising countries, such as Canada, discrimination and homophobia were still widely experienced by both LGB and straight participants,” it said.

Read more on Rappler.

From the quiet but contemporary 174,000-population city of Panabo, one former national swimmer turned coach and his 57-strong pool of trainees are looking to shape the future of Philippine swimming with a grassroots initiativue that goes straight to the source.

This year’s Palarong Pambansa host Davao del Norte kickstarted its grassroots sports development program last April with the completion of a floating swimming pool, which aims to train local kids living in coastal areas to become competitive swimmers.

Read and watch this story, and see more inspirational stories from this year’s Palaro on Rappler.