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In Syria, Filipino workers who turned to embassy complain of maltreatment

Thursday, March 8, 2012


In Syria, Filipino workers who turned to embassy complain of maltreatment


 Distressed OFWs in war-torn Syria are being sent by the Philippine embassy to jail after they tried to escape not only the dangers of war but also maltreatment from their employers.

By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL
Bulatlat.com
MANILA – Overworked and underpaid, domestic helper Analiza Muaña, 32, escaped from her employer in Syria.

Not only did she clean the house but she also took care of the children, did the laundry and other household chores. She also cleaned the house of her employer’s relatives. Her employer did not provide her three meals a day and was paid a measly $175 salary instead of $400 as stated in her contract.

On June 5, 2011, she escaped and went to the Philippine embassy there to seek refuge. The Philippine embassy endorsed her to prison because her employer reported her to the authorities. She stayed at the cramped jail for a week before she was released. She went back to the Philippine embassy but her nightmare did not end there.

Muaña’s experience is not isolated. Other overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Syria also received the same treatment she got from the Philippine embassy. It is as though they were going from one hell to another.

Inhumane situation
 
Muaña met several other OFWs at the temporary house called the Filipino Workers Resource Centers (FWRCs) in the Philippine embassy.

They were denied a decent meal. “They measure everything. We eat one cup of rice, chicken bones or one slice of eggplant as viand and soup while they (the embassy official) eat good food,” Muaña said.

Another domestic helper, Arlene Castillo, 37, who also stayed at the temporary shelter, corroborated Muaña’s testimony. “They prohibited us from buying groceries even as the food they gave was not enough. We were also prohibited to go outside of the embassy. In the morning, we would only eat half of the Arabic bread and tea,” Castillo told Bulatlat.com.

The experience of Ruth Martinez, 37, another domestic helper, is worse. Martinez got sick while staying at the embassy. She went to the temporary shelter on Sept. 23, 2011 after escaping from her employer.
After two days, she and six others were brought to the hospital because of food poisoning. “We were all vomiting, we had diarrhea. I was very dizzy and my blood pressure also shot up,” Martinez told Bulatlat.com in an interview. All they ate was the food served at the embassy..... MORE

SourceBulatlat.com

URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2012/03/08/in-syria-filipino-workers-who-turned-to-embassy-complain-of-maltreatment/

CJ’s turn EDITORIAL

CJ’s turn

EDITORIAL
Click to enlarge
03/08/2012
Chief Justice Renato Corona appears to be on a media blitz, as the defense team prepares for its turn at the trial, since Corona and his defense counsels are expected to start submitting their pieces of evidence as well as their witnesses to disprove the charges leveled against the Chief Justice in at least three Articles of Impeachment.

Earlier, it was the prosecution and its propaganda spokesmen who kept up with their media blitz, making it appear that their case against the CJ was airtight and that there was no way his defense lawyers can explain away his alleged millions in his bank accounts.

And they have not stopped calling for his resignation, despite the trial being at an advance stage at this point, intimating that the CJ is afraid of testifying before the Senate Court because of his fear at being humiliated.

That is a pretty strange reaction, coming as it does from a prosecution panel and congressional allies who constantly crow that they have already won the case. If the CJ loses the case, it stands to reason that he will be out of the SC position, so why are they trying to exert pressure for him to resign and even portray Corona as being afraid to testify?.... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20120308com1.html

Libya ready to use force against eastern separatists

Libya ready to use force against eastern separatists


Libya’s integrity will be defended by any means - even “with force” if needed - says Libyan “transitional” leader, Mustafa Abdel Jalil. His statement comes a day after the eastern tribal leaders declared autonomy for the region.

­Mustafa Abdel Jalil warned people of the East that the “remnants of Gaddafi regime” have infiltrated the Cyrenaica region in order to exploit its people and resources.

“We are ready to deter them, even with force,” AFP cited Jalil as saying at a conference in Misrata broadcast by local television. “We are not prepared to divide Libya.”.... MORE

SourceRT.com

URL: http://rt.com/news/libya-cyrenaica-autonomy-jalil-force-071/

Mossad, CIA and Blackwater operate in Syria - report

Mossad, CIA and Blackwater operate in Syria - report


A security operation in Homs reveals Mossad, CIA and Blackwater are involved in the military violence in this part of Syria, as over 700 Arab and Western gunmen and Israeli, American and European-made weapons were detained in Baba Amr district.

­Syrian security forces got yet further proof of Western powers’ military involvement in Syria’s internal conflict, reports Al-Manar, a news agency, affiliated with Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based militant group and political party.

Around 700 gunmen were recently arrested in the former rebel stronghold of Babar Amr..... MORE
SourceRT.com

URL: http://rt.com/news/cia-blackwater-mossad-syria-037/

Naked truth: TSA nude scanner exposed – 'you can sneak anything past them!' (VIDEO)



 Naked truth: TSA nude scanner exposed – 'you can sneak anything past them!' (VIDEO)

A blogger has shown that all the Transport Safety Association’s controversial nude body scanners and much-too-personal pat downs are not effective in the least, as more and more people in the US speak out against the “advanced” security measures.

­Engineer Jonathan Corbett has published a video in which he shows exactly how he took a small metal case through two of the TSA’s billion-dollar armada of scanners in a special side pocket stitched into his shirt.

The reason it is so easy, explains Corbett, is because the scanners blend metallic areas into the dark background. Thus, if an object is not directly placed on the body, it will not show up on the scan. The old detectors would have picked up on the metal, but the TSA’s new and expensive toys, it seems, are woefully inadequate..... MORE

SourceRT.com

URL: http://rt.com/news/tsa-naked-scanner-exposed-075/

Be man enough INSIDE CONGRESS Charlie Manalo 03/08/2012

Be man enough

INSIDE CONGRESS
Charlie Manalo
03/08/2012
These past few days, members of the House allied with the administration issued calls for Supreme Court (SC) Chief Justice Renato Corona to resign from his post.

This was after the House prosecution terminated its presentation of its case against Corona claiming it had presented solid-proof enough to convict the Chief Justice.

However, we view the calls as not only premature but totally uncalled for.

First, the defense has yet to present its case. Second and most importantly, as based on the proceedings of the case, it is very clear it is the prosecution which is bungling its case.... MORE
SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20120308com5.html

Something is wrong VIEWPOINTS Archbishop Oscar V. Cruz 03/08/2012

Something is wrong

VIEWPOINTS
Archbishop Oscar V. Cruz
03/08/2012
There are times when ignorance is bliss. Not to know what is going on, not to think what could happen next, not to have one’s feet on the ground — this is a worry-less life, a carefree existence.

The same goes with thinking simply about the hereafter, with being merely concerned with the beyond. The here and now — never mind. The latter matters are considered “irrelevant, immaterial and impertinent.” Just keep still and everything will be alright. “See nothing. Hear nothing. Say nothing.” — This is the best and safe way of living in this troubled world, in this disconcerting country. Is it really?

A religious people having an irreligious leadership — something is wrong..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20120308com6.html

RP, US step up Balikatan venture with Asean, 2 nations By Michaela P. del Callar and Mario J. Mallari 03/08/2012

RP, US step up Balikatan venture with Asean, 2 nations

By Michaela P. del Callar and Mario J. Mallari 03/08/2012

For the first time, the joint military exercises between the Philippines and the United States this year will include the participation of Southeast Asian nations and other states like Japan and Australia, but America’s top diplomat noted that the multilateral activity’s key focus would be on disaster management, not on the disputes in the South China Sea.

Some 4,500 US personnel and 2,300 participants from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) will participate in the exercises and humanitarian activities from April 16 to 27. Joining them are representatives from some Asean nations, Japan, Australia and South Korea, it was learned.

US Ambassador Harry Thomas said the exercise is “unique” as “it is the first time that Balikatan will include multilateral engagement” but he was quick to point out that their participation would be limited to Command Post Exercises (CPX)..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20120308hed4.html

Corona open to take stand, says Sereno lied By Benjamin B. Pulta 03/08/2012

VOWS TO CONTINUE BLOCKING LUISITA’S P10-B PLEA FOR NOY’S KIN

Corona open to take stand, says Sereno lied

By Benjamin B. Pulta 03/08/2012

Chief Justice Renato Corona made the rounds of nationwide radio and television and gave interviews yesterday, telling the nation that he is open to testifying before the Senate impeachment court and spoke of the alleged professional black propaganda machine being cranked up by allies of Associate Justice Antonio Carpio.

He also pronounced that junior Justice Lourdes Sereno lied about what went on during the en banc deliberations in her dissenting opinion.

He stressed that the reason President Aquino had him impeached is due to his determined block of the Hacienda Luisita owners’ plea to be paid a cool P10 billion as “compensation” to the Cojuangco-Aquinos, owners of the hacienda..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20120308hed1.html

Solon lauds approval on second reading of anti-discrimination vs women bill 03/08/2012

Solon lauds approval on second reading of anti-discrimination vs women bill

03/08/2012
Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada hailed the passage on second reading of Senate Bill number 429 entitled, “An Act Expanding the Prohibited Acts of Discrimination Against Women on Account of Sex, Gender, Age, Race, Ethnic Origin, Religion or Beliefs, Disability or other status,” as he expressed appreciation to his colleagues for supporting the measure.

The bill is principally authored by Sen. Estrada, concurrent chairman of the Senate committee on labor, employment and human resources development and the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee on Labor and Employment (COCLE).

Estrada said this development is of perfect timing as the nation celebrates Women’s Week. Presidential Proclamation 224 of 1988 declares the first week of March as Women’s Week and March 8 as Women’s Rights and International Peace Day..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/nation/20120308nat2.html

Police identify killers of UPLB student By Gina Peralta-Elorde 03/08/2012

Police identify killers of UPLB student

By Gina Peralta-Elorde 03/08/2012


At least three alleged suspects in the murder of a University of the Philippines Los Baos (UPLB) agriculture student Ray Bernard Pearanda have been identified by the police Task Force Penaranda.

Police identified Tyronne Kennedy Terbio as the one who stabbed dead Pearanda on Sunday.

Senior Supt. Gilbert Cruz, Laguna police director, identified Carl Dactil de Guzman as the driver of the motorcycle that was used during the crime, and Joseph Beltran as the lookout, who is now under police custody..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/nation/20120308nat3.html

High court junks gov’t claim to defunct bus line’s assets By Benjamin B. Pulta 03/08/2012

High court junks gov’t claim to defunct bus line’s assets

By Benjamin B. Pulta 03/08/2012

The Supreme Court (SC) has denied a petition filed by the government’s Privatization and Management Office’s (PMO’s) claim to the assets of the defunct Pantranco North Express Inc. (PNEI) bus line which closed shop in 1993.

In its decision, the high court through Associate Justice Martin Villarama Jr. said “the CA did not err in dismissing the petition” of the PMO, a government agency which took over the functions of the Asset Privatization Trust (APT).

PMO had taken the case to the SC to question the ruling of the CA which had ruled against the government’s claim to the defunct bus line’s assets in a case involving the bus line’s former employees who had won a labor dispute..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/metro/20120308met1.html

Solon offers his bomb-proof SUV in exchange for aging Noy’s car 03/08/2012

Solon offers his bomb-proof SUV in exchange for aging Noy’s car

03/08/2012
To save money on a brand-new bomb-proof presidential car President Aquino has expressed desire to acquire, a member of the House minority bloc yesterday offered to trade his brand-new sports utility vehicle with the aging presidential car which was severely damaged during the floodings brought about by tropical storms “Ondoy” and “Sendong” in 2009 and 2011, respectively.

At the weekly minority press briefing, Iloilo Rep. Augusto “Buboy” Syjuco bared he was willing to trade his Level 7, 2011 model, bomb-proof Toyota Land Cruiser with the Mercedes Benz limo the President is currently using which reportedly stalled during one of his trips to Baguio City.

“The minority bloc supports the acquisition of an armored vehicle for the President,” Syjuco said..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/metro/20120308met3.html

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