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3 Comments Saturday, November 5, 2011 THE Philippines’ electronics and business process outsourcing industries reportedly shelled out $40 million in additional labor costs after Malacanang declared October 31 and November 7 as non-working holidays. This was pointed out by researchers of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), the country’s biggest business organization, saying that the country has the highest number of holidays in Asia with 21 days this year. President Benigno Aquino III declared 16 regular holidays last year. The BPO and electronics industries have a combined work force of one million people, according to data gathered by the PCCI. During a non-working holiday, these industries which operate 24 hours, seven days a week, are required to shell out an additional $20 million to cover extra pay of employees who are made to work on a holiday, the PCCI said. Even during the time of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo who signed a law on rationalizing holidays, the business community had asked Malacanang to limit the number of holidays to only 16. Last year, President Aquino made the same policy pronouncement by refusing to suspend work on a Monday following his father's death anniversary on August 21, which falls on a Saturday. This year, however, he declared four new special holidays. The Palace declared October 31 as a special non-working holiday to give Filipinos ample time to visit departed relatives and friends for “Undas” while November 7 was declared a regular holiday in observance of the Eid'l Adha (Feast of Sacrifice). Too many holidays have harmed both sectors’ abilities to compete with neighboring countries that keep fewer non-working holidays. Vietnam, for example, only has nine a year. Also, the practice by the government of declaring holidays on short notice has hindered corporate planning, the PCCI said. The business chamber suggested that this early, Malacanang should come out with a list of non-working holidays for the next two years and stop the practice of declaring new ones on short notice which only increases the cost of doing business. (Virgil Lopez/Sunnex) Friday, November 4, 2011 MANILA -- LPG Marketers’ Association (LPGMA) party-list Representative Arnel Ty and others who were charged of violating the Oil Deregulation Law of 1998 will file a petition for review before the Department of Justice (DOJ). “We will file a petition for review and we will do all possible legal actions to protect consumers,” Ty said in a television interview. The DOJ on Friday recommended the filing of charges against Ty, Danilo Chua, Alison Sy, Rene Rosell, Ronnie Sevillana, Mar Dave Tang, Virginia Cid, Bonifacio Eleria, and Antonio del Rosario for setting a uniform selling price of LPG which supposedly leads to cartelization. Ty further said he will not temporarily abandon his duties in Congress pending the resolution of the case since the legal battle is only between the two opposing groups – one who wants an increase in oil prices and the other (LPGMA) which aims to protect the rights of consumers. The case was filed by Jesus Arranza, chairman of the Federation of Philippine Industries last October 2010. (Kathrina Alvarez/Sunnex) Envoys to grace 59th Mine safety week 11/05/2011
By Malen Catajan Saturday, November 5, 2011 AMBASSADORS all over the world will converge in Baguio City for mining development. Seven ambassadors led by Australia’s Roderick Richard Campbell Smith, Brazil’s Alcides Gastao Rostand Prates, Chile’s Roberto Mayorga, South Africa’s Agnes Nyamande-Pitso, Switzerland’s Ivo Sieber, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland’s Stephen Lillie, and China’s Liu Jianchao will attend the four-day mining week in the city. The Philippines Ambassador Delia Albert, former Department of Foreign Affairs secretary and Philippine ambassador to Australia and Germany, will also be present in the festivities. The city will play host to the 59th Annual National Mine Safety and Environment Conference slated on November 8 to 11, gathering mining stakeholders and agencies with this year’s theme “Responsible Mining: Enabling a Better Future.” Activities will kick off with a tree planting on November 8 at the Botanical Garden area adopted by the Philippine Mine Safety and Environment Association. The ambassadors will also attend the Mining Symposium geared to boost the industry and its standards through an exchange of information and technology. On November 10, the anticipated opening of Mining Exhibit at the Garden Wing of the CAP-Camp John Hay convention center is set to display the industry’s best. Published in the Sun.Star Baguio newspaper on November 05, 2011. Palace approves P110-M Irisan rehab 11/05/2011
By JM Agreda Saturday, November 5, 2011 BAGUIO City Mayor Mauricio Domogan said Wednesday that the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) approved a P110-million budget for the rehabilitation of the Irisan dumpsite. The approval, he added, is a result of the city's request for assistance from President Benigno Aquino III through DPWH Secretary Rogelio Singson after the Summer Capital suffered multi-million worth of devastation especially during the height of Typhoon Mina. ‘No takers of Baguio trash’ 11/05/2011
By JM Agreda Saturday, November 5, 2011 BAGUIO City’s waste solution provider is having a hard time looking for a transfer and sorting station for the city's non-biodegradable trash. Mayor Mauricio Domogan told Sun.Star Baguio Friday that Rosario, La Union Mayor Bellarmin Flores III offered Pro Tech Machineries Corp. a four-hectare private lot to be used as a transfer and sorting station for the city’s residual waste. But Neil Orras, who claimed to be the owner of the lot, aired his protest against Flores’s action, saying the lot is not for the mayor to offer since Orras allegedly inherited it from his parents. Domogan admitted the city is pressed to look for a private lot to be used as a transfer and sorting station for its residual and recyclable wastes after the city delegated Pro Tech last month to collect non-biodegradable wastes. This prompted the city's waste solution provider and supplier of Environmental Recycling System (ERS) to search for an area outside the city where they could sort out trash. But as of now, there are still no takers except the offer from Mayor Flores. Domogan said prior to Pro Tech's collection of garbage from the barangays, they have allowed waste segregators to collect at least 30 kilos of recyclables inside the Irisan facility. But this only resulted in residuals being left out, scattered and stockpiled. The stockpiling of residuals has also been the main contention of Tuba residents, claiming the city has been continuously dumping trash in Irisan despite its closure order a few years ago. In response to numerous complaints on continued dumping, the mayor issued Administrative Order 125, allowing Pro Tech to collect the city's trash through a two-truck system. But waste segregators remain a problem, as Mayor Domogan claimed enterprising individuals have been following Pro Tech in the barangays during collection schedules, taking away the recyclables and leaving most of the trash unsorted, resulting again in mixed wastes. The waste solution company then decided to look for a transfer station as staging ground for the city's non-biodegradable wastes, Domogan added. He also said that at first, Pangasinan municipalities, like San Manuel, offered to accept the city's trash. Rosales, Urdaneta and Sison in Pangasinan also made an offer since both are closer to Baguio compared to the Capas, Tarlac facility where the city currently hauls its trash. All these proposals, however, did not materialize as problems on expensive tipping fees, lack of available space to accommodate residual wastes, opposition from community and municipal leaders and host community complaints met Pro Tech's plans to haul out trash there, said Domogan. “Certainly, there were no takers for the city's residual trash until the offer from Rosario town Mayor Flores came,” the mayor said. But with Orras, who claims ownership of the private lot, another round of opposition will be faced by Pro Tech and Mayor Flores. Mayor Domogan reiterated that the private lot will only be used by Pro Tech as a transfer and sorting station for non-biodegradable trash and not for malodorous biodegradable wastes. “The biodegradable wastes will still be fed into the ERS machines in Irisan,” he said. The owner said they are not even amenable to the area being proposed as a transfer and sorting area for Baguio's wastes. With this ongoing problem of continuous opposition of host communities to accept the city's wastes, Pro Tech is now left at a quandary where to temporarily store the city's recyclable and residual wastes before it is finally hauled to their facility in Malasiqui, Pangasinan, which the mayor claims is the final destination of the city's wastes. This transpired after Pro Tech's transfer facility in Carmen West, Rosales, Pangasinan, reportedly has also been opposed by neighboring establishments and residents, prompting the Municipal Government to disallow processing of residuals there. Published in the Sun.Star Baguio newspaper on November 05, 2011. AFP: No more ATS; last was in Al-Barka 10/28/2011
 To prevent mix-ups among combatants of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, criminal syndicates and kidnap-for-ransom groups, an area is identified for MILF fighters to stay in while military or police operations are being conducted in MILF-influenced communities. This “area of temporary stay” (ATS) is not “perpetual” and is designated for a given period and for a certain purpose, usually to allow for the pursuit of lawless elements seeking refuge in MILF-influenced communities, Col. Dickson Hermoso, head of the military’s Peace Process Office, told the Inquirer in a phone interview on Wednesday. “An ATS is designed for a purpose. It is located on the map. It is established by the CCCH (Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities) when there are police operations,” Hermoso said. The ATS is “dissolved” after an operation and the MILF members go back to their communities, he said. When asked about the current number and location of such areas in Mindanao, Hermoso said: “Negative.” But MILF-influenced communities are currently located in the provinces of Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Zamboanga Sibugay and Basilan. Past ATS Hermoso said the last ATS was in Al-Barka, Basilan, and was set up in the aftermath of the 2007 killing of 14 Marines—10 of them beheaded—in the province. MILF forces stayed in this ATS while government troops hunted down the attackers, who included Abu Sayyaf bandits. The clash on Oct. 18, which claimed the lives of 19 soldiers, occurred 4 kilometers away from this former ATS in Al-Barka, Hermoso said. He said an ATS was also established in 2005 to give government troops a free hand in their pursuit of Abu Sayyaf leader Khadaffy Janjalani. “[Janjalani] was allegedly in the proximity of an MILF-influenced area. So an ATS was established in Guindulungan, Maguindanao, near a swampland,” Hermoso said. MILF fighters abandoned Camp Bader in Guindulungan and proceeded to the ATS, with the movement witnessed by government soldiers to dispel suspicion that Abu Sayyaf bandits in disguise had joined the group. Hermoso said that in 2004, nine ATS were established in the provinces of Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao and Davao Oriental in line with the visit of a Malaysian team monitoring the ceasefire agreement between the government and the MILF in June 2001. 4-point peace plan The establishment of ATS for MILF rebels was part of a 4-point peace plan proposed by the government to the group in 2003. This was to avoid “misencounters” while peace negotiations were ongoing. Other “talking points” included in that proposal were: the setting up of an acceptable monitoring team to monitor ceasefire mechanisms on the ground; the enforcement of a joint communique dated May 6, 2002, where the MILF agreed to interdict criminals taking refuge in its controlled areas; and the pinpointing of responsibility for the bombings in urban areas and destruction of power transmission towers in Mindanao. In 2003, then Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita was quoted as saying in an Inquirer report that he expected the item on the ATS to be the most contentious. No longer ‘camps’ On July 18, 1997, the government and the MILF forged an agreement in Cagayan de Oro City to cease hostilities and to continue formal peace talks. The implementing rules were signed four months later, on Nov. 14, 1997, paving the way for the acknowledgment of 7 of the 46 MILF camps—Abubakar in Barira, Maguindanao; Bushra in Butig, Lanao del Sur; Rajamuda in Buliok, Pagalungan, Maguindanao; Omar and Bader in Guindulungan, Maguindanao; Darapanan in Maguindanao; and Bilal in Munai, Lanao del Norte. “But now, we refrain from using the words ‘camps,’ ‘territories,’ ‘stronghold.’ They are called ‘communities’ or ‘areas influenced’ by them,” Hermoso said. After the fall of Abubakar in 2000 when then President Joseph Estrada waged an all-out war against the MILF, the group’s members dispersed all over the conflict areas. But lawless elements also sought refuge in these areas, Hermoso said. Joint action group Under the 2002 joint communique, an ad hoc joint action group against criminal elements hiding in MILF-influenced communities was formed. This group works with the CCCH in monitoring the conflict areas. “If government soldiers or MILF combatants move from one barangay to another with arms, there should be coordination,” Hermoso said. “If there’s a report of violations, the CCCH will send a quick-response team. If there’s an active shooting war, it will serve as a mediator,” he said. Article I of the Implementing Rules and Operational Guidelines and Ground Rules of the 1997 Agreement on the General Cessation of Hostilities lists the prohibited acts. These include terrorism acts such as kidnapping, hijacking, piracy, sabotage, arson, bombings, grenade throwing, robbery liquidation/assassination, unjustified arrest, torture, unreasonable search and seizure, summary execution, burning of houses, places of worship and educational institutions, destruction of properties, and abuse of civilians. Aggressive acts such as attacks, raid, ambuscades, land mines, offensive military actions such as shelling, reconnoitering and unjustified massing of troops, are also banned. The establishment of checkpoints, except those necessary for the government’s enforcement and maintenance of peace and order and for the defense and security of the MILF in its identified areas, is also considered a violation. Sources: Phone interview with Col. Dickson Hermoso; Inquirer Archives; www.opapp.gov.ph Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to step out? Get breaking alerts on your mobile.phone. Text ON INQ BREAKING to 4467, for Globe, Smart and Sun subscribers in the Philippines. By DJ Yap, Ryan Rosauro Inquirer Mindanao, Philippine Daily Inquirer 2:11 am | Saturday, October 29th, 2011  For the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the real issue in the Oct. 18 encounter in Al-Barka, Basilan province, was “coordination,” or more to the point, “uncoordinated movement of troops”—and the so-called “area of temporary stay” (ATS) was only incidental. “The ceasefire agreement provides that such a movement of troops, granting that the MILF was not the target, should be coordinated first through the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH) or the Ad Hoc Joint Action Group (Ahjag),” said Mohagher Iqbal, chair of the rebel group’s peace negotiating panel. The Ahjag was set up in 2002 as an avenue for joint efforts by the MILF and government in the “isolation and interdiction of all criminal syndicates, kidnap-for-ransom groups and other criminal groups, including the so-called ‘lost commands’ operating in Mindanao.” Iqbal said the delineation of an ATS was not reflected in the agreements of the government and MILF peace panels. What were delineated or “acknowledged” were seven MILF camps although after the 2000 all-out war, the rebel group “abandoned fixed camping.” ‘Deliberate attack’ A report of the MILF’s armed wing, the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces, of the Oct. 18 incident said an ATS was designated for the rebel group in May-July 2008. During this time, MILF forces and their families temporarily relocated to Barangay Ginanta to give way to a military operation against the Abu Sayyaf bandit group in Al-Barka, Tipo-Tipo and Ungkaya Pukan towns, the report said. The MILF forces from outside Ginanta returned to their communities of origin after the military operations. But even assuming that the ATS in Ginanta was still effective, Iqbal said, the deployment of the Army’s Special Forces troops was “5 kilometers away from the highway.” According to Iqbal, the Ginanta ATS is nearer the highway and “Cambug is deeper inside.” This is why the MILF considers the Oct. 18 encounter in Al-Barka as “the offshoot of a deliberate attack by government troops.” “Are [MILF commander Dan] Asnawi and his forces/relatives traitors for shooting the Army’s Special Forces who attacked them?” Iqbal said. Review of ceasefire pact The government peace panel is revisiting provisos in the ceasefire agreement on the grant of ATS to the rebels, the military said. In a briefing at Camp Aguinaldo, Col. Dickson Hermoso, chief of the Armed Forces’ Peace Process Office, said the review was prompted by the Oct. 18 encounter with MILF renegades that left 19 Army soldiers dead. The renegades then retreated to an “ATS” some 4 kilometers from the site of the clash. Since that encounter, other skirmishes followed in Zamboanga Sibugay province involving “lawless elements,” prompting the military and the police to launch air, sea and ground assaults on the renegades in Payao town. “Yes, the panel chair and the other side are reviewing the guidelines in the previous agreement on this. If ever there is a need to amend it, the members of the peace panel will … discuss [it],” he said. Hermoso said the situation on the ground had greatly changed from “5 or 10 years ago” because of other lawless elements whose presence complicated the peace process, including kidnap-for-ransom groups, bandits, extortionists, terrorists, etc. “There is a need to review and amend the ceasefire agreement so we can go back to the question of sincerity” on the part of the MILF in pursuing peace, he said. In particular, Hermoso cited certain provisions in the implementing guidelines to the General Agreement on Cessation of Hostilities between the government and the MILF. “There are stipulations on hostile acts and the coddling and harboring of criminal elements” that we need to review, he told reporters. Basilan ATS dissolved Asked if the military intended to make any proposals on how to grant ATS to the MILF, Hermoso said it was entirely up to the negotiators. “We just follow policy,” he said, adding that there was no time frame for the completion of the review. In an earlier phone interview, Hermoso said the military did not officially recognize any ATS at present, although it continued to honor the ceasefire agreement in places claimed by the MILF, including in Al-Barka. He said the purported ATS in Basilan should have been considered dissolved following the termination of police operations in the area in 2007. Hermoso said the only reason the military was steering clear of the Basilan ATS was to honor the mechanisms contained in the existing ceasefire agreement with the MILF. “It’s very hard to distinguish lawless elements from legitimate MILF members. If we hit unintended targets, then we would have a problem on our hands,” he said. Hermoso said the MILF was only taking advantage of technicalities in claiming that the ATS remained in effect. To improve/strengthen Teresita Deles, President Aquino’s adviser on the peace process, also said the government was reviewing its ceasefire agreement with the MILF. But she said that the agreement was being revisited only “to see if we can improve/strengthen [it] and how.” “It’s the appropriate disposition in the negotiations to always be ready to review and reflect how the situation can be improved toward a durable peace,” Deles said in a text message to the Inquirer. Pressed on whether the review could lead to a suspension of the agreement, she said: “Not likely.” On which provisions were under review, she said: “Sorry, we’re not there yet.” She said the CCCH and Ahjag members were “still engaged on the ground, so we can’t call them to any meetings yet.” “It’s not a literature review that we’re after but taking lessons from the ground,” she added. Different from MOA-AD In a statement, Deles sought to allay fears raised by Sen. Francis Escudero that the agreement between the government and the MILF for ATS could lead to a new version of the aborted Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD). “…ATS is a military term. From the point of view of the ceasefire mechanism, it is an area to temporarily hold MILF forces so that government forces may be able to accomplish their mission,” Deles said. “It is of a different concept from the areas mentioned in the MOA-AD, which was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. The ATS therefore is an operational term, which qualifies that the areas held by the MILF, is only temporary,” she said. Deles also said she was no longer the peace adviser when the MOA-AD was forged with the MILF during the Arroyo administration. With a report from Norman Bordadora Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to step out? Get breaking alerts on your mobile.phone. Text ON INQ BREAKING to 4467, for Globe, Smart and Sun subscribers in the Philippines. By Frances Mangosing, Katherine Evangelista INQUIRER.net 7:02 pm | Tuesday, October 18th, 2011 MANILA, Philippines—The Armed Forces of the Philippines rejected the call of the global human rights group, Amnesty International (AI), not to use government militias or the Special Cafgu Active Auxiliaries (SCAAs) to augment private security forces in mining companies. Cafgu stands for Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit. Colonel Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos, AFP public affairs chief, told reporters on Tuesday that President Benigno Aquino III’s approval of a military proposal to use SCAA in securing mining sites following the attack of three mineral extraction firms in Claver town, Surigao del Norte by members of the New People’s Army recently. The move “would enhance security in the area and would prevent a similar incident to happen.” He said it will not lead to human rights violations as claimed by the AI, which issued a statement saying the military “cannot ensure proper discipline and accountability for the militias and paramilitary groups, creating an environment conducive to human rights violations.” Burgos emphasized human rights protection is part of the government militiaman training. He added the deployment of government militias is the result of consultations and dialogues between mining firms and the military. “We have more than 40 SCAA companies…. These will enhance security in the area,” Burgos said, adding that locals are recruited as government militia because they have extensive knowledge of their areas of operation compared with other military personnel. “As far as AFP is concerned, human rights violations have never been tolerated in our ranks. We have given emphasis in protection and promotion of human rights in all aspects of our security operations embodied in Internal Peace and Security Plan – Bayanihan,” he said. Burgos said that should there be any human rights violations, it would be acted upon immediately, as the AFP is always open in case if they see (any human rights violations) involving personnel. The military has assigned one non-commissioned officer for every 10 Cafgu personnel to ensure that these militiamen will abide to the military’s “principles” of human rights, Burgos said. He added that if any militia or military personnel was involve in any human rights violations these should be reported to the AFP. Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones. About to step out? Get breaking alerts on your mobile phone. Text ON INQ BREAKING to 4467, for Globe, Smart and Sun subscribers in the Philippines. |  ArchivesOctober 2011 CategoriesAll | ||
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