Youth & Children

Midsayap Evacuees Remain Traumatized


Living in Fear. A Moro mother and child at a Midsayap refugee camp. (davaotoday.com photo by Boy Bagwis)

The clashes in Midsayap, North Cotababto, between government troops and MILF guerrillas may have ended but evacuees still live in fear and uncertainty. Many of them have not been able to rebuild their homes and recover the properties that, according to them, were destroyed and looted by soldiers.

By CJ Kuizon
davaotoday.com

MIDSAYAP, North Cotabato — Ten-year-old Abdullah has been having sleepless nights. Early in March, in a village in this town, government soldiers took him at the height of an armed encounter with members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). That experience traumatized him deeply.

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AFP Cites Minors in Propaganda Offensive vs NPA


The Philippine military seems to be on the propaganda offensive again against the New People’s Army, this time accusing the communist movement of recruiting minors and children. In this news report, the military claims that a 12-year-old member of the NPA was killed in an encounter in New Bataan, Compostela Valley on Saturday. In two earlier press releases, the military said it captured seven NPA guerrillas — all allegedly minors — in Agusan del Sur and Bukidnon. The military says three of the alleged NPA guerrillas in the picture above are minors. (Photo: Public Affairs Office, 6th Infantry Division/AFP)

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Regulating Wi-Fi in Davao a Harebrained Idea

Davao City Councilor Pilar Braga maybe overdoing her campaign against pornography on the Internet. In a privilege speech, according to this report, Braga raised alarm over the sight of “laptop-carrying executives accessing pornographic materials while leisurely sipping coffee in some cafes in the downtown area.” For that, she wanted to regulate wi-fi connections being offered by these bars and cafes.

While we share her concern that minors should be protected from online pornography (and that regulating Internet cafes for that purpose maybe a good idea), we don’t see any good in her new proposal to regulate as well wi-fi.

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