Rappler Newscast | March 18, 2014

Story 1: UP TOPS THE 2013 BAR EXAMINATIONS
The University of the Philippines College of Law tops the 2013 bar examinations, getting 5 of the top 10 slots.
It’s the first time since 2005 that the state university topped the bar.
Nielson Pangan from UP ranks number 1, with a grade of 85.8%.
A total of 1,174 aspiring lawyers pass the exams, comprising 22.18% of the examinees.
The percentage of successful examinees is higher than the 17.76% who passed the 2012 exams.
The top 10 passers come from UP, Ateneo Law School, University of Batangas, University of San Carlos, University of Cebu, and San Beda College Manila.
The passers will take their oath on April 28 at the Philippine International Convention Center.

Story 2: CHINA DIGS UP DETAILS VS PH ON AYUNGIN
China warns the Philippines to prepare for “consequences” for breaking its promise to withdraw a stranded ship from the disputed Ayungin Shoal.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei says under previous administrations, the Philippines promised to tow away the ship grounded in the shoal.
Under the Aquino administration, the Philippines filed a historic case against China over disputed territories in the South China Sea.
Beijing says Manila should fulfill its promises even if they were made under a previous administration.
Hong adds, “Otherwise, it will lose credibility to the international community.”
The Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs did not deny China’s claim, but says the stranded ship was placed in Ayungin before the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea was signed in 2002.

Story 3: HOMICIDE CHARGES SET OVER TAIWAN FISHERMAN’S DEATH
The justice department says it will file homicide charges against 8 Philippine Coast Guard personnel over a Taiwanese fisherman’s death in 2013.
Prosecutors say the 8 personnel “acted in unison with the common purpose, of firing” at the Taiwanese fishing vessel.
This comes 7 months after the National Bureau of Investigation or NBI recommended the filing of charges, saying there was “no categorical proof” the Taiwanese boat posed a grave threat to the Philippine patrol vessel.
The NBI will also charge two coast guard personnel for obstruction of justice.
The 2013 incident strained relations between the Philippines and Taiwan, and left up to 16,000 Filipinos temporarily jobless.

Story 4: NAPOLES MEDICAL CONDITION ‘URGENT,’ SAYS EXPERT WITNESS
Contrary to testimonies of previous witnesses, a veteran ob-gyn surgeon says the medical condition of alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Napoles needs “immediate attention.“
Napoles has been detained for almost 7 months at a police camp in Laguna for serious illegal detention charges.
She asks a Makati court for permission to undergo surgery, to remove a myoma in her uterus that was discovered during a medical examination at a police hospital.
Doctors earlier said Napoles’ condition wasn’t life threatening.
But Doctor Santiago del Rosario, presented as an expert witness during a hearing Tuesday, says the 50-year-old patient’s age makes the situation “urgent.”
Del Rosario adds, “Women in middle age with abnormal bleeding induces the risk of cancer.
A delay could spell the difference between a cure and no cure.”
Napoles’ lawyers are asking that she be allowed surgery in St Luke’s, citing her –quote– “bad experience” at the police hospital.

Story 5: QUEZON CITY MOTHERS CALL ON GOV’T TO PROVIDE RH NEEDS
The Supreme Court is set to decide on the controversial Reproductive Health law next month.
A study shows most women in the poorest barangay of Quezon City want to plan their families, but access to health facilities and contraceptives remains a problem.
Jee Geronimo reports.

At 19 years old, Miracle Pacheco is already a mother of 3
She eloped with her boyfriend when she was 14 and came back to Payatas, with their first child.
Miracle did not want a second child, nor a third.
But she says it can’t be helped, since she keeps forgetting to take her pills.

MIRACLE PACHECO, RESIDENT, PAYATAS, QUEZON CITY: Na-try ko rin mag-pills, pero IUD hindi pa. Kasi sabi nila nakakatakot daw kasi mag-IUD. Sabi nila, yung ibang nakaranas na. Tapos sabi naman nung iba, masakit, mahirap daw mag-IUD…Ang gusto ko sana sa injectable, kasi meron kasi akong nakikitang injectable, may tumataba, hiyangan lang. E hindi po ako hiyang. Lalo po akong pumayat, tinigil ko na lang po. (I tried pills but I haven’t tried using an IUD because some of the people who’ve experienced it say it’s scary. Some say using an IUD hurts. I wanted to use something injectable because I’ve seen contraceptives that are injectable. Some who use it gain weight. It depends on you. For me, I got even thinner so I stopped.)

She swears the baby in her womb, will be her last.
They can’t afford a fourth one; her partner’s only income is scavenging.
A study shows many women in Payatas want to plan their families, but they still end up with unwanted pregnancies.
While most of them are Catholics, they don’t think using contraceptives is a sin, despite the Church’s stand.
Antonieta Inumerable of the city’s health department says their main source of contraceptives is the barangay health center.

ANTONIETA INUMERABLE, HEAD, QUEZON CITY HEALTH DEPARTMENT: Actually, kahit wala yung RH bill, tatayo rin ang Quezon City dahil meron kaming sariling ordinansa na nauna pa nga ang Quezon City kesa dun sa RH bill. (Even without the RH bill, Quezon City will be self-sufficient because we have our own ordinances that came even before the RH bill.)

Inumerable says supply remains a problem, despite Quezon City’s ordinance on reproductive health.
The current budget is not enough.
The city needs P200 million for its reproductive health program, but only P14 million is allotted this year.
It’s a sum the Reproductive Health Law can provide, and more, if the Supreme Court decides to uphold its constitutionality.

MIRACLE PACHECO, RESIDENT, PAYATAS, QUEZON CITY: [IUD] ang gusto nyang [tita] gawin sakin para ‘di na masundan kaagad kasi mahirap po kasi ‘pag sunud-sunod e. ‘Di ka man lang maka-enjoy a malaki na mga anak mo, meron na naman, kaya parang gusto ko na yatang mag-IUD, kaya lang yung iba naririnig ko parang mahirap mag-IUD, nakakatakot daw pong mag-IUD. (My aunt wants me to use an IUD so that we don’t have children too soon after I give birth. It’s hard if they follow one after the other. You can’t enjoy your child growing up because there’ll be another one right after. I think I want to start using an IUD but I’ve heard it’s hard and scary to use.)

Miracle has decided, despite fears, she’ll use an IUD.
She’s been told it’s safe and low maintenance.

JEE GERONIMO, REPORTING: The women of Payatas know their reproductive health needs, but they call on their government to provide it for them. Will the government listen to them when it decides on the RH law next month? Jee Geronimo, Rappler, Manila

Story 6: HOPE FOR CUDIA? NEW BODY PROBES APPEAL
All is not lost for dismissed Philippine Military Academy or PMA Cadet Jeff Cudia.
Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Ramon Zagala confirms the military formed a Special Investigation Board that will probe the case given “new matters” raised by Cudia during his meeting with President Benigno Aquino.
Aquino tasked Chief of Staff Emmanuel Bautista to handle the re-investigation of Cudia’s case.
Aquino also advised Cudia to file a new appeal.
Cudia says the Honor Committee, composed of PMA cadets, abused its powers when it decided to expel him from Class 2014.
He says members pressured a cadet who initially voted to acquit him.
A dismissal requires a unanimous vote from committee members.
The committee declared Cudia guilty of violating the Honor Code, when he reportedly lied in his explanation of why he was late in one class last year.
He appealed the decision but the PMA command upheld the committee’s decision.

Story 7: PUTIN, CRIMEA LEADERS SIGN TREATY TO MAKE CRIMEA PART OF RUSSIA
Russian President Vladimir Putin signs a treaty with Crimean leaders to make the territory part of Russia despite opposition from the West, which refuses to recognize Crimea as a sovereign state.
In a controversial referendum Sunday, Crimeans voted overwhelmingly to leave Ukraine and join Russia.
The vote is due to pro-Moscow sentiment and opposition towards the new leaders in the capital Kiev.
In a speech before the Russian parliament, Putin calls Crimea an integral part of Russia, saying its transfer to Ukraine in 1954 was –quote– “a historical injustice.”
He also accuses the West of double standards, saying it intervened in Kosovo in 1999 but now hits Russia for its actions in Crimea.
Crimean lawmakers ask for support in recognizing their independence, but the West denounced the referendum as illegal.
In a bid to force Russia to back down, the United States and the European Union impose travel bans and asset freezes on several Russian officials.
On Tuesday, the Philippines says it “remains deeply concerned” about the situation in the peninsula.
The Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs says it “hopes for a diplomatic solution” to this issue.
The Philippines also “calls for maximum restraint to be shown by all parties.”

Story 8: THE wRap: YOUR WORLD IN ONE READ
At number 2, more than a week since Flight MH 370 disappeared, many are puzzled over the absence of communication from the missing plane.
There have been no calls or social media posts from the 239 people on board the plane since it was diverted.
Citing analysts, The New York Times reports the plane may have been flying too high for passengers’ cellphones to connect to base stations on the ground.
If someone deliberately disabled communications equipment – as investigators hypothesize –  air phones built into the plane’s system also would not work.

At number 8, On the third week of the trial of South African Olympian Oscar Pistorius, gun dealer Sean Patrick Rens says, the athlete knew gun safety laws before buying firearms.
Rens says Pistorius knew when it is legal and not legal to fire at unknown persons breaking into his home.
These details are significant in his trial, where he is accused of shooting his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp through a bathroom door last year.
Pistorius claims the death was an accident, and he mistakenly acted in self-defense when he thought Steenkamp was a burglar.

And at number 10, A new device introduces a novel form of messaging: smell-center communication.
Biomedical engineer David Edwards develops the oPhone, which allows users to mix and match smells, and send the resulting composition as a message.
With the help of perfumers, Edwards created a menu for users to choose from, with up to 356 combinations possible.
A free app will soon allow anyone to send ‘smell notes.’

Story 9: US SCIENTISTS FIND MAJOR EVIDENCE OF BIG BANG
In a major discovery for understanding the origins of the universe, US scientists say they found echoes of the Big Bang, 14 billion years ago.
Researchers say it’s the first direct evidence of cosmic inflation, or the rapid growth spurt that came in the first moments of the life of the universe.
With the help of a telescope at the South Pole, scientists find gravitational waves that rippled through the universe 380,000 years after the Big Bang.