February 26, 2014 Edition

According to several sources, China has offered the Philippines incentives if it agrees to quit pursuing a pleading with the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS). The incentives include a withdrawal of ships from the disputed Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal and pledges of investments. In exchange, the Philippines was asked not to submit a written pleading, called a memorial, to the ITLOS by the March 30 deadline. The Philippines is building up a case at the ITLOS against China’s 9-dash claim over a vast area of the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). President Benigno Aquino III convened his entire Cabinet in the last week of January to discuss China’s offer. The Cabinet was divided on the issue, according to palace sources.


On Tuesday, February 25, the DFA summoned the Chinese embassy’s chargé d’affaires to “strongly protest the efforts of China to prohibit Filipino fishermen from undertaking fishing activities in the Philippines’ Bajo de Masinloc.” The Chinese embassy rejected the Philippine protest and urged the government to resolve differences through bilateral consultations and negotiations. The Philippine military transferred command of the area around Panatag Shoal (Scarborough) to the Western Command (Wescom), in a move meant to unify coverage over disputed territory in the West Philippine Sea (East China Sea).


Read the full story on Rappler here, here and here.

President Benigno Aquino III bucked tradition to celebrate the 28th anniversary of EDSA People Power 1 away from Manila. On Tuesday, February 25, the President staged the traditional Salubungan in Cebu instead of at EDSA where the original joining of forces between then defense minister Juan Ponce Enrile and Gen Fidel V. Ramos occurred in 1986. The President also visited Davao Oriental and Leyte to inspect the government’s rehabilitation programs after typhoons ravaged communities there. Aquino admitted that the government needs to do more to help victims of typhoons, but denies that it hasn’t done enough. “We may not have been perfect and I’ll admit that. Pero para sabihin na we didn’t exercise maximum effort e medyo over naman yata yon,” said Aquino.


Read the full story on Rappler.

At least 43 people were killed on Tuesday, February 25 in an attack by suspected Boko Haram Islamists at a secondary school in Nigeria’s troubled northeast. The raid targeted the Federal Government College in the town of Buni Yadi in Yobe state and bore the hallmarks of a similar attack last September in which 40 died. The attackers hurled explosives and sprayed gunfire into rooms at student residential buildings while the students slept. Only male students seemed to be the target, while female students were spared. The name Boko Haram means “Western Education is forbidden.” The group has been blamed for waves of school attacks, especially in Yobe, where scores of students have been slaughtered in the last year.


Read the full story on Rappler.

An Ugandan tabloid published on Tuesday, February 25 a list of 200 people it accused of being gay, a day after a new anti-homosexual law comes into effect. “Exposed!” the headline of the Red Pepper tabloid read, beneath photographs of Ugandans it said were gay, as well as reporting on lurid stories of alleged homosexual actions. “Uganda’s 200 top homos named,” the daily newspaper added, which listed both those who have openly declared their sexuality as well as those who had not, including gay rights activists, priests and music stars. “In salutation to the new law, today we unleash Uganda’s top homos and their sympathizers,” the newspaper added. On Monday, President Yoweri Museveni signed a new law which jails ‘repeat homosexuals’ and requires people to denounce gays. The President also called homosexuals ‘mercenaries.’ Homophobia is widespread in Uganda, where American-style evangelical Christianity is on the rise.


Read the full story on Rappler.

For Jessica Cox, having no arms has not stopped her from achieving her dreams. She is an accomplished pilot and is a Taekwondo black belter. She also tap dances, rides horses, and surfs. “It was a long journey,” Cox said during a press conference. “It’s the truth of my challenges in life. It was especially difficult being the only one who was different. My brother had arms, my parents had arms, [and] to see myself as different was hard to understand,” Cox explained. She didn’t like the extra attention, and was always self conscious. “In college, I became more confident and began to realize it’s truly a gift to be different, and to stand out, and to use it to help other people.” Cox arrived in Manila on February 24 to host a fundraising event for persons with disabilities (PWD) left vulnerable due to disasters.


Read the full story on Rappler.

A million newborn babies a year die within 24 hours, charity Save the Children said in a report out Tuesday, February 25, which urged governments to tackle preventable deaths. The report by the British-based organization said 6.6 million children around the world died in 2012 before their 5th birthday, mostly from preventable causes.

The number has almost halved from the 12.6 million in 1990, but there remains a “deplorable problem of lack of attention to babies in their first days of life,” the aid organization said. In its report, entitled “Ending Newborn Deaths,” it said one million babies did not survive their first 24 hours of life in 2012. It said two million babies could be saved each year if preventable newborn mortality was ended.

Read the full story on Rappler.

As early as now, Olympic figure skater Michael Christian Martinez is gearing up for a return to the next Winter Olympics in 2018. He has already secured support from mall-group SM and the Philippine Skating Union. He plans to continue his training under Russian coach Ilia Kulik in the United States. Kulik, a former Olympic figure skating champion, has been training Martinez since 2010. The next 4 years will be crucial for the 17-year old as he must pile up on his skating arsenal and realize plenty of the potential he showed at Sochi 2014. By 2018, he will no longer have the element of surprise as an up-and-coming figure skater from a tropical country. He’ll need to do much more to secure the first Winter Olympics medal for the Philippines. Asked how ready he is for a long and arduous 4 years of training and competition leading to the next Winter Olympics, Martinez exuded a confidence perhaps buoyed by the warm welcome he received when he arrived back in Manila from Sochi. “Handa ako kasi sigurado yung experience na nakuha ko sa this Olympics (magagamit ko), sigurado sa next Olympics handang handa ako,” he said.


Read the full story on Rappler.

After performing a one-night only concert at the 7,107 International Music Festival in Clark, Pampanga, Red Hot Chili Peppers (RHCP) singer Anthony Kiedis caught the waves at Siargao, Surigao del Norte. He was spotted by surfing aficionados and locals who remarked that Kiedis acted like any ordinary surfer. “Super bait. Parang normal lang na tao,” said local charger Nilde Blancada Rietenbach (Really nice. Like a normal person.) Rietenbach added that in the line-up, he showed respect for the locals. Siargao is a known hot spot for local surfers and is gaining fame internationally.


Read the full story on Rappler.

The Bitcoin community was thrown into turmoil Tuesday, February 25, after the disappearance of what had been its biggest exchange, shaking confidence in the fast-growing virtual currency. The website of Tokyo-based MtGox went down on Tuesday amid the apparent loss of some $300 million in Bitcoins. Critics say the failure of MtGox highlighted the structural flaws in the cryptocurrency, which has no managing central bank. Others were more optimistic and said the closure of MtGox would not hamper the growth of Bitcoin as a virtual currency. The value of a Bitcoin tumbled more than $100 in early trades but then recovered to fetch $517 at 2200 GMT, according to the Winkdex Bitcoin index.


Read the full story on Rappler.

International superstar band Coldplay debuted a new single, “Midnight”, on Tuesday, February 25 and a matching video, which had fans guessing if a new album was in the works. Directed by Mary Vigmore, the music video has the band walking through forests juxtaposed with scenes of a highway and animals. The song blends Chris Martin’s auto-tuned vocals with trippy trance-like music and strong guitar riffs. This is the first music video from Coldplay since its October 2012 “Hurts Like Heaven” video.

Read the full story on Mashable.