The soldiers strafed the victims when they failed to stop at checkpoints but according to the human-rights group Karapatan, the victims had difficulty stopping because, aside from the darkness, there were no signs or signals that a checkpoint was being conducted. The soldiers, Karapatan said, suddenly appeared from the roadside.
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New York City ? In the final two-week push before the May elections in the Philippines, Filipino youth, musicians, spoken word artists, organizers and allies are coming together in New York and Los Angeles to show support for the KABATAAN Partylist, the largest youth party representing the youth sector in the upcoming Philippine elections, and to call for clean and fair elections. Youth of KABATAAN-Ugnayan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (Linking the Children of the Motherland), based in New York and New Jersey, and KABATAAN-Kabataang maka-Bayan (KmB, Pro-People Youth), based in California, will speak out for the rights of Filipino youth, both in the Philippines and here, in the US.
ROME — A death penalty free world is possible if key governments are willing to show political leadership, said Irene Khan, Amnesty International’s Secretary General.
“Amnesty International is calling for a universal moratorium on executions. Only six countries — Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Pakistan, the USA and China — were responsible for 90 percent of all executions carried out in 2006. These hard core executioners are isolated and out of tune with global trends,” said Ms Khan.
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In a resolution on the Philippines, adopted by 68 votes to 0 with 0 abstentions, Parliament draws attention to the number of politically motivated killings in the country, which it says has risen dramatically in recent years, as well as the general human rights situation in the country.
The local human rights organisation Karapatan has recorded 180 forced disappearances and over 800 killings, most of them by unidentified gunmen, since 2001. Most of those killed, such as opposition party members, church people, community leaders, peasants, journalists, lawyers, human rights activists, trade unionists, have been accused by the government of being front organisations for illegal armed groups and ‘terrorists’.
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DAVAO CITY — Marco Polo Hotel Davao was awarded ?Child Labor Free? title besting other top companies all over the country. The search was organized by the Employers? Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP).
During the Club 888 business and tourism forum last Wednesday, Marco Polo Hotel general manager Stanley Lao of Davao disclosed that they bested the award against other big multi-national companies around the Philippines like Johnsons & Johnsons and Globe Telecom.
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