Archive for the ‘Foreign Affairs’ Category

The Malacañang-DFA disconnect

Will somebody please tell President Aquino that he doesn’t have to answer all queries of reporters? That’s why he has a spokesperson. Like the cancellation of the visits to Vietnam (Sept 13 to 14) and Indonesia (Sept. 14 to 15). Coming from him, the cancellation had a grating effect. Aquino also said that he is [...]

September 3, 2010  Tags:   Posted in: Benigno Aquino III, Foreign Affairs  66 Comments

Unsilenced

Visiting Italian Lawyer Gabriella Citroni, in a forum marking the International Day of the Disappeared (which was actually last Monday) at the University of the Philippines, said a person disappearing does not follow logic. “People are born, they live and they die. They don’t disappear,” she said. But it happens. In the Philippines the practice [...]

September 1, 2010  Tags: ,   Posted in: Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, Military, Philippine National Police  6 Comments

Bakit wala man lang mensahe sa Canada?

Pangwalong araw na ngayon mula nang mangyari ang trahedya ng panghu-hostage sa Rizal Park kung saan namatay ang walo sa 25 turista na galing Hongkong ngunit wala pang mensahe ng pakikiramay or paghingi ng paumanhin sa pamahalaan ng Canada. Hindi ba alam ng Malacanang o ng Department of Foreign Affairs na tatlo sa walong namatay [...]

August 31, 2010  Tags:   Posted in: Foreign Affairs, Peace and Order, Philippine National Police  31 Comments

China’s flag raising

While China was protesting the draping of the Philippine flag on the coffin Senior Police Inspector Rolando Mendoza, who hostaged a bus-full of tourists from Hongkong last Monday at the Rizal Park which resulted in the death of eight of the visitors, it was also doing its own flag- raising operation. Foreign news agencies reported [...]

August 30, 2010  Tags: ,   Posted in: Benigno Aquino III, Foreign Affairs, South China Sea  61 Comments

Chinese Vice Premier cancels Manila visit

By Tessa Jamandre VERA Files Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang has cancelled his official visit to Manila, supposedly set for the first week of September. But the Department of Foreign Affairs clarified the cancellation had nothing to do with the hostage-taking incident that is straining diplomatic relations between the two countries. Li was supposed to [...]

August 27, 2010  Tags: ,   Posted in: Foreign Affairs  91 Comments

Unending confusion

Our efforts to get clarification on why Hongkong Chief Executive Donald Tsang was not able to talk with President Aquino during last Monday’s hostage-taking crisis has led us to more confusion. In his press conference Monday evening, after eight of the 22 Hongkong nationals on a sightseeing visit to the Philippines ended up dead when [...]

August 27, 2010  Tags: , ,   Posted in: Benigno Aquino III, Foreign Affairs, Peace and Order, Philippine National Police  132 Comments

WikiLeaks on Afghan War stirs journalism debate

It brings back the unending journalist dilemma of the right of the public to information versus national security. By Ron Synovitz Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty As the Pentagon investigates the potential damage from the leak of more than 91,000 classified U.S. military reports on the war in Afghanistan, the leak is fueling debate about [...]

July 31, 2010  Tags: ,   Posted in: Foreign Affairs, Military  7 Comments

Our political envoys in Athens, Madrid, Riyadh & Canberra are snubbing Noynoy as THE President;

Update: Raissa said Ambassador Rigoberto Tiglao wrote her a “nasty” letter. She said Tiglao updated the Philippine embassy in Greece today. He explained why he was not able to do it earlier. Canberra also updated their websites. Click here on Raissa’s post on the embassies’ website updates. ***************** So why the heck were their appointments [...]

July 8, 2010  Tags: , ,   Posted in: Benigno Aquino III, Foreign Affairs  80 Comments

Romulo compels Aquino to defend Arroyo’s privileged envoys

Anytime this week, the Union of Foreign Service Officers, will bring to court the issue of the extension of the service of political ambassadors appointed by Gloria Arroyo. It would be the first suit against officials of the Aquino administration. Members of the UNIFORS are not happy doing this but they have to inorder to [...]

July 7, 2010  Tags: , ,   Posted in: Benigno Aquino III, Foreign Affairs  93 Comments

Romulo pre-empted Malacañang on retention of envoys?

Related article: “Sadly, the new team continues to hit the ground tripping on its own feet..”-Malaya editorial The July 5 statement of Malacañang says Romulo and Ochoa have recommended Arroyo envoys’ extension of service and the memo is still at the President’s desk. Yet, last July 1, Romulo sent out a memo individually to the [...]

July 6, 2010  Tags: , ,   Posted in: Benigno Aquino III, Foreign Affairs  70 Comments