No speed contest EDITORIAL 05/30/2010

No speed contest

EDITORIAL Click to enlarge 05/30/2010 The joint congressional body validating the results of the votes for the new president and vice president is moving in the right direction: That of flushing out all possibilities of fraud and inaccuracies from the country’s first venture into automated elections. From the start, the leaders of both chambers of Congress showed a resolve to not sacrifice accuracy for speed and thus far, the National Board of Canvassers (NBoC) that has been constituted from members of the Senate and the House, appears to be holding up in their commitment. The real trial, however, would come when glaring differences occur in the Certificates of Canvass (CoC) which are the main documents that the NBoC uses as basis for the count and the supplemental documents such as the electronic and manual elections returns that supposedly would all have to show identical figures. Also the holding of the House committee on suffrage and electoral reforms of a related inquiry into the allegations of electronic fraud provides a clearer picture of what the NBoC is up against and will likely contribute to facilitating the canvass. The pressure bearing on the congressional body is to come up with a proclamation of the new leaders prior to June 30 when the term of Gloria finally constitutionally lapses. But a greater undertaking for the body is to make a pronouncement that is indisputable to most Filipinos. If for instance the count for Noynoy Aquino, based on the unofficial Comelec tally, fails to hold in the NBoC canvass, his administration faces the same endless strife that had beguiled the Arroyo administration for the past nine years..... MORE   Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20100530com1.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL No speed contest FRONTLINE Disappointment comes early ENQUIRY No-el and No-proc? BLURBAL THRUSTS Sourgraping in Subic VIEWPOINTS Autism COMMENT How to authenticate CoCs if ER is unsigned digitally FEATURE Prague secret police lookout gives glimpse back in time

Disappointment comes early FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 05/30/2010

Disappointment comes early

FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 05/30/2010 This early, even before proclamation day, it looks like a lot of Noynoy Aquino voters and supporters are rueing having campaigned for him and perhaps even voted for him. Some of them of course expect too much from a Noynoy victory, as gleaned from the number of disgruntled folks who went to his home on Times Street, expecting to be given jobs — even that of being his driver or some other menial job. The common gripe: Noynoy asked us to help him win the presidency. Now that he has won, we now seek his help --- evidently to get them out of their miserable existence. What was striking was the mood they were in, when Noynoy, to them, no longer made himself accessible to the “people.” This change is naturally expected. On the campaign trail, the candidate, to win the vote, goes all over the archipelago, smiles, waved, throws whatever to those lining the streets. He always makes certain he is visible before the people. Once he is presumed to have won the polls, the candidate no longer mingles with the crowd, mainly for security reasons but also because he was never comfortable being with the masses. In other cases, such as in the case of the Noynoy volunteers, there appears to be a lot of disappoinment, if not disenchantment, being aired among these volunteers, who apparently very naively believed that with Noynoy in Malacañang, change would be coming, but now with reality setting in, they know that no change will be forthcoming, with the same bunch of Gloria’s former officials and politicians, whom Noynoy scorned during his campaign, now surrounding him. Bottom line is that Noynoy and his propagandists succeeded in generating too much hope among the voters and volunteers with his campaign line of change, something he and his administration will hardly be able to deliver, because change cannot really come about, even as that nonsensical musical plug of ABS-CBN about change beginning with the each of the Filipino (Ako ang Simula) plays itself out.... MORE     Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20100530com2.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL No speed contest FRONTLINE Disappointment comes early ENQUIRY No-el and No-proc? BLURBAL THRUSTS Sourgraping in Subic VIEWPOINTS Autism COMMENT How to authenticate CoCs if ER is unsigned digitally FEATURE Prague secret police lookout gives glimpse back in time

No-el and No-proc? ENQUIRY Demaree J. B. Raval 05/30/2010

No-el and No-proc?

ENQUIRY Demaree J. B. Raval 05/30/2010 Elections were actually held on May 10, 2010, but a grave and inexcusable error on the part of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) may put to waste that exercise — as if no elections were held at all and, therefore, we may have to go back to the polling precincts and vote all over again. A voter verification feature in the counting machine would have shown the voter if his choices were correctly registered, but the Comelec disabled this feature. That feature, required under the law, was designed to warn voters of errors made by the machines on election day. Simply put, the voter should have been given proof that his vote was properly counted, that is, the machine read his ballot exactly the way the voter made his choices when he marked the “bilog na hugis itlog.” But the Comelec, instead of implementing this mandatory requirement, disregarded it; rather, “repealed it, usurping the power of Congress,” as my friend Leina de Legazpi correctly pointed out. If we are to follow the precedent set in Germany last March 3, 2009 regarding electronic voting, then we could see the 51 million voters trooping back to the polls after the nullification of the results of the May 10 elections. Let’s ask former Sen. Kit Tatad why this could be the result of the Comelec’s grave and inexcusable error. At the Kapihan sa Sulo yesterday, Tatad came out with his paper entitled “A Proposal to Nullify the May 10 Elections.” Tatad noted that “in 2009 in Germany, the Federal Constitutional Court ruled electronic voting was unconstitutional. The court held that the voting machine does not make it possible for the voter or the voting board to reliably examine, when the vote is cast, whether it has been recorded in an unadulterated manner, or whether when transmitted it has been accurately transmitted in its unadulterated form.... MORE   Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20100530com3.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL No speed contest FRONTLINE Disappointment comes early ENQUIRY No-el and No-proc? BLURBAL THRUSTS Sourgraping in Subic VIEWPOINTS Autism COMMENT How to authenticate CoCs if ER is unsigned digitally FEATURE Prague secret police lookout gives glimpse back in time

Sourgraping in Subic BLURBAL THRUSTS Louie Logarta 05/30/2010

Sourgraping in Subic

BLURBAL THRUSTS Louie Logarta 05/30/2010 As we had predicted, Bongbong Marcos, youngest child of former President Marcos and wife Imelda who handily clinched a seat in the Philippine Senate in the recently-concluded May 10 elections, has started laying the groundwork for his run for the vice presidency (if not the presidency) in 2016 with the reported revival of the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL). The KBL, for those who don’t know, was the political party formed by Bongbong’s late father after he declared martial law in 1972 and abolished the Nacionalista Party and the Liberal Party that have been alternately ruling the country since independence was granted in 1946. The party, which was totally dominant in the Batasang Pambansa from 1978-1986, lost its sheen overnight when Cory Aquino assumed the presidency in February 1986 as a result of Edsa 1, and its members started defecting to other political groups that had sprouted to take advantage of the anti-Marcos fervor as was the fashion of the day. It has remained largely dormant since then, except for a few excursions by Marcos loyalists identified with them, and it is only now that it has regained some of its popularity. Bongbong’s new-found confidence stems from the fact that he had garnered 7th place in the senatorial derby in the Nacionalista ticket, coupled with the stunning victories of his mother as congressman of Ilocos Norte’s second legislative district and sister Imee as governor also of that province. Marcos is himself an incumbent Ilocos Norte congressman, and prior to that a three-term governor of the province. Now that the elections are over and he has proven himself to be a force to be reckoned with in the local political scene, Marcos is said to have this early set his sights on some “higher elective post” in government, and plans to utilize the moribund KBL party as a platform to achieve this objective.... MORE     Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20100530com4.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL No speed contest FRONTLINE Disappointment comes early ENQUIRY No-el and No-proc? BLURBAL THRUSTS Sourgraping in Subic VIEWPOINTS Autism COMMENT How to authenticate CoCs if ER is unsigned digitally FEATURE Prague secret police lookout gives glimpse back in time

Autism VIEWPOINTS Archbishop Oscar V. Cruz 05/30/2010

Autism

VIEWPOINTS Archbishop Oscar V. Cruz 05/30/2010 Time and again, the nomenclature “autistic” has been heard here and there, and in all probability, will still be mentioned in the times yet to come. This is definitely not in any way intended to malign anyone in particular, much less to put into question someone’s mental personality, constitution and pursuant personal competence to pursue or assume this or that undertaking.  In other words, courtesy of the American Psychiatric Association in its DSM-IV, 4th ed., it would be not only proper but practical to know what really is autism and/or who truly is “autistic” — considering that it is only truth that can set people free from effects of malevolent accusations, insinuations and the like about this or that individual. Both in layman’s language and in general terms, autistic personality disorder means a qualified difficulty in social interactions, an identified impairment in communication, or a particular restricted repetitive behavioral functions or limited interests and consequent activities.  The key feature of all the said social and personal limiting and limited traits is their ingrained predictability to the extent that change in one’s action and reaction patterns is improbable — the older one gets, the more confirmed becomes his or her autism.... MORE     Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20100530com5.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL No speed contest FRONTLINE Disappointment comes early ENQUIRY No-el and No-proc? BLURBAL THRUSTS Sourgraping in Subic VIEWPOINTS Autism COMMENT How to authenticate CoCs if ER is unsigned digitally FEATURE Prague secret police lookout gives glimpse back in time

Prague secret police lookout gives glimpse back in time FEATURE 05/30/2010

Prague secret police lookout gives glimpse back in time

FEATURE 05/30/2010 PRAGUE — High up in a Prague belfry a radio transmitter, faded clippings of the 1967 European Cup and communist propaganda are frozen in time in a tiny spy lookout used by the old regime’s dreaded StB secret police. With the fall of communism in 1989, the plywood cubicle was sealed up and forgotten — until it reopened last month, this time for the public, offering breathtaking rooftop views and a glimpse back at a sinister time. The four windows of the sparsely-furnished office look down at some half dozen “imperialist” embassies, as well as medieval landmarks like Prague Castle and Charles Bridge. “The StB wasn’t called the party’s eyes and ears for nothing,” said Ladislav Bukovszky, head of the Czech Security Services Archive. “It monitored Czechs and Slovaks as well as foreigners, paying special attention to the employees and visitors to embassies.” Reached by a hefty climb up 301 stairs, the lookout was built on beams in a bell tower of the old baroque church of St. Nicholas. Ageing bills in now-open secret police archives show StB agents pretended to be fire department officials when they rented the space from the parish. From the lookout, agents had a perfect view of the British Embassy and of parts of the French, German, Italian, Japanese and US facilities. “As a rule, the StB tried to monitor everyone who walked into a capitalist embassy,” said Jiri Reichl of the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes in Prague. The St. Nicholas lookout was one of about 80 “strongpoints,” as they were called, set up in Prague’s towers, attics or cellars so secret police could snoop on “enemies” of communism. Like the others it was abandoned early in 1990, months after the regime was toppled. It’s the only one that has been reopened for tourists after a private firm happened upon the site.... MORE     Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20100530com7.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL No speed contest FRONTLINE Disappointment comes early ENQUIRY No-el and No-proc? BLURBAL THRUSTS Sourgraping in Subic VIEWPOINTS Autism COMMENT How to authenticate CoCs if ER is unsigned digitally FEATURE Prague secret police lookout gives glimpse back in time

How to authenticate CoCs if ER is unsigned digitally By Orlando Roncesvalles COMMENT 05/30/2010

How to authenticate CoCs if ER is unsigned digitally

By Orlando Roncesvalles COMMENT 05/30/2010 The central question for Congress as a canvassing body is this: How do we know that the Certificates of Canvass (CoCs) are duly executed, if the electronic Election Returns (ERs) on which they are based are not duly executed? Here’s a method for ensuring a proper CoC in the public canvass at Congress, under conditions where the precinct-level ERs were not digitally signed. I presume that the printed ER is nonetheless manually signed by the Board of Election Inspectors (BEI). At the very least there is a precinct count optical scan (PCOS)-printed ER distributed to candidates at the end of the election day. CoCs at the first level, say at the municipal level, are printed out by computer from electronic transmissions (by modem or by reading of CF cards). The proper person signing on the CoC cannot properly attest that the CoC is duly executed if there is a discrepancy between the printed ER and the electronically transmitted (but digitally unsigned) ER.  How does that signatory know that there is no discrepancy? Ordinarily, he knows or he can safely presume there is no discrepancy because there was a digital signature on the ER indicating reliability of the electronically transmitted ER. Extraordinarily, he could publicly and manually compare the printed ER and the electronic ER. If he did this, then the CoC is authentic on its face. (There may still be problems if the PCOS was “pre-loaded” or “post-loaded” with irregular ballots prior to printing the ER and its electronic transmission, and such problems may not even be discovered by a manual audit, but this is a different story.) So there. The proper question to ask of the folks who deliver the CoCs for further public canvass, such as at Congress, is this: What is the assurance that the very first step of generating and transmitting an ER is safe and reliable, given that the machine count is not done manually and publicly?... MORE     Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20100530com6.html

COMMENTARY EDITORIAL No speed contest FRONTLINE Disappointment comes early ENQUIRY No-el and No-proc? BLURBAL THRUSTS Sourgraping in Subic VIEWPOINTS Autism COMMENT How to authenticate CoCs if ER is unsigned digitally FEATURE Prague secret police lookout gives glimpse back in time

Security for digital signatures breached, says IT expert By Charlie V. Manalo 05/30/2010

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Erap, Binay lead in local absentee voting 05/30/2010

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7.3% growth an illusion, not sustainable — Diokno By Aytch S. de la Cruz 05/30/2010

7.3% growth an illusion, not sustainable — Diokno

By Aytch S. de la Cruz 05/30/2010 The 7.3 percent growth in the first quarter that Malacañang has trumpeted as a “fitting legacy” on the final days of President Arroyo and attributed to her “effective” policies is a mirage and will not be sustainable, being the result of the low base effect from last year, election spending and the rush to complete Arroyo’s so-called state of the nation address (Sona) projects, former Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno said. “Adjusting for low base effects and election spending and the last minute rush to complete large scale projects, the economy probably grew by 3.6 percent rather than 7.3 percent,” Diokno said. Diokno sees the supposed strong growth as a combination of the significant impact of election spending on some economic activities such as broadcasting media, which went up 31.4 percent during the period from 1.3 percent a year ago, and rental of office spaces that grew 10.9 percent from negative 4.6 percent. He added the growth in manufacturing is largely base effects and also election induced.  Growth in petroleum output is explained by the sharp decline in refining last year, he said. This soared to 65.9 percent from a negative 29 percent a year ago.  Growth in electrical and office equipment can also be explained by higher demand due to the elections, he said. In contrast, growth that should matter to most Filipinos such as in agricultural output was not realized during the period. “The 7.3 percent growth in this sense is not sustainable. It is also unevenly distributed,” he said. The strong growth has a negative impact on the poor, which are mostly in the agricultural and rural sectors. “Palay production shrunk by 11.4 percent, corn output was down 16.8 percent, and sugar production fell by 4.6 percent,” he said. “What happened to those who rely on agriculture including their families? I expect unemployment, poverty and hunger will increase despite the strong growth. Isn’t that ironic?,” he added.... MORE     Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20100530hed4.html

HEADLINES Security for digital signatures breached, says IT expert Erap, Binay lead in local absentee voting MILF to GMA: Thanks, but no thanks 7.3% growth an illusion, not sustainable — Diokno CHR chief slams Comelec for maltreating whistleblowers

CHR chief slams Comelec for maltreating whistleblowers 05/30/2010

CHR chief slams Comelec for maltreating whistleblowers

05/30/2010 The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) took the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to task yesterday for its treatment of so-called whistleblowers, saying the recent actions of the officials of the poll body on those who recently claimed to have knowledge of election fraud borders on intimidation and harassment. CHR Chairman Leila de Lima, in a statement, particularly noted the action of Comelec Commissioner Nicodemo Ferrer who raised his voice on two whistleblowers on the overpriced ballot secrecy folders calling them liars. Ferrer also reportedly lost his cool and kicked a chair in front of the two witnesses on the anomaly.  “The reported incident involving a Comelec Commissioner and two whistleblowers, wherein the former allegedly pointed repeatedly his fingers at the latter and kicked a chair, llegedly provoking a fistfight, must not be countenanced,” CHR chairman Leila de Lima said. “That incident must be duly investigated. There are legal remedies against false, malicious or libelous claims, if at all, which, however, exclude maltreatment of the whistleblowers. There are proper ways to refute the claims, or counter-act the moves, of whistleblowers other than intimidating or harassing them,” she added. Instead of blowing his top, De Lima said the Ferrer should have given the witnesses an assurance that what they have revealed would be duly investigated. She said whistleblowers are a rare breed of individuals. “Many other people would simply choose to turn a blind eye to an anomaly, so as not to jeopardize their careers, their ambitions, their personal security and the safety of their loved ones. Whistleblowers, on the other hand, see graft and corruption, illegal activity and human rights abuses, and despite the huge personal cost involved, choose to make public these anomalies for the greater good,” she said.... MORE     Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20100530hed5.html

HEADLINES Security for digital signatures breached, says IT exper tErap, Binay lead in local absentee voting MILF to GMA: Thanks, but no thanks 7.3% growth an illusion, not sustainable — Diokno CHR chief slams Comelec for maltreating whistleblowers

Group nixes gun ban, wants ‘total pro-gun’ law By Charlie V. Manalo 05/30/2010

Group nixes gun ban, wants ‘total pro-gun’ law

By Charlie V. Manalo 05/30/2010 While it expressed opposition to the total nationwide gun ban currently being implemented by the government, a group of gun use and ownership advocates is set to ask Congress to pass a law that will relax existing rules on gun ownership and allow Filipinos of legal age to own and bear arms regardless of caliber and quantity. Perry Punla, president of Gun Enthusiast Confederation of the Philippines, said there is a need for lawmakers to draft a law that would give people “the right, not just the privilege to own a gun.” “Right now there is a total gun ban (being implemented), but no (move has been taken to push for the enactment of a) total pro-gun (law),” Punla said in a phone interview with the Tribune. In the proposed total pro-gun gun law, he said gun owners no longer have to apply for a permit to carry firearms because a gun license is enough. “To those who say that guns kill, that is a wrong notion because what can kill is the one holding a gun. It is not unlike a driver of a vehicle: It is not the car which can kill, but the driver,” Punla said in Filipino, in defending the right of anyone to own a gun..... MORE     Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/nation/20100530nat1.html

NATION Group nixes gun ban, wants ‘total pro-gun’ law Wary of ‘retaliatory attacks,’ PNP raises alert in C. Mindanao Lady cop gets medal for securing PCOS machines

Elections Not Credible Even at the Precinct Level By Benjie Oliveros May 20, 2010

Elections Not Credible Even at the Precinct Level

 By BENJIE OLIVEROS

Bulatlat.com
I stand corrected. In a previous analysis “Has the Country Achieved a Clean, Honest, and Democratic Elections,” this writer concluded that except for the long queues, election automation was able to fix the voting process in the precinct level by making the tabulation and transmission of results smoother such that the job of poll watchers has become boring. However, after listening to the reports of the recently-concluded Peoples’ International Observers Mission, it became clear that while in the National Capital Region, voters only had to contend with the long lines and some missing names in official voters’ lists, voters in the provinces had to confront the same old fraudulent process called ‘elections’ even at the precinct level.

The largest delegation of foreign election observers ever to visit the country was divided into teams that went to Abra in Northern Luzon, Pampanga and Tarlac in Central Luzon, Cavite and Quezon in Southern Tagalog, Albay and Sorsogon in the Bicol region, Iloilo in the Visayas, Davao, Surigao and Lanao del Sur in Mindanao, Tondo and Payatas in the National Capital Region. To cover more polling centers they further subdivided into teams with local members of peoples’ organizations. What the different teams saw was the same all over the country. The following are the findings of the foreign observers’ mission regarding what transpired in polling places and precincts.

1. There was a sore lack in the preparations.

- There were too few PCOS machines, with many incidences of breakdown, paper jam, and overheating. The foreign observers discovered that Smartmatic purposely did not install cooling fans in the machines to cut on costs. In Davao, 24 out of 64 PCOS machines failed to transmit returns.

PCOS machines were being delivered up to the day before the elections.

- There was a lack of teachers serving as BEIs and an outrageous lack of technicians, with one technician handling many clustered precincts.... MORE    

Source:  Bulatlat.com

URL: http://www.bulatlat.com/main/2010/05/20/benjie-oliveros-elections-not-credible-even-at-the-precinct-level/

Comelec, Smartmatic Should Be Held Accountable 29 May 2010 By BENJIE OLIVEROS

Comelec, Smartmatic Should Be Held Accountable 

By BENJIE OLIVEROS

29 May 2010

Bulatlat.com

The faint smile on Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Jose Melo during the evening of May 10 indicated feelings of relief and pride that they were able to push through with the automated elections. A lot of people were bedazzled by the speed by which the election returns were tabulated. Soon, people were praising the Comelec, including a columnist of a major broadsheet saying that he was glad he had to eat his words.

But after a week, the Comelec and Smartmatic were peppered with criticisms and complaints. And now it is being flooded by election protests, which, according to Comelec commissioner Rene Sarmiento, even exceeded the number of protests filed in 2007.

Comelec officials are dismissing these election protests as mere reactions of losers. A Comelec official was said to have commented that there are two types of candidates – those who won and those who were cheated. Malacañang suggested that Congress dispenses with these complaints and proceed with the canvassing of votes for president and vice president.

The position of those who are allied with presumptive president Noynoy Aquino is very much the same – proceed with the canvassing and proclaim the winning candidates. They are even expressing fears that the proclamation of the next president might not be done on time, and would lead to a power vacuum.

Then came a supposed whistleblower who alleged that certain Comelec officials have offered their services in ensuring the victory of candidates in exchange for money. Fingers are being pointed at different directions as to who are behind the alleged whistleblower dubbed as koala. The Comelec is saying that all these are being orchestrated by a losing presidential candidate. Rep. Teddy Locsin is pointing at Malacañang.... MORE  
 
Source:  Bulatlat.com

URL: http://www.bulatlat.com/main/2010/05/29/benjie-oliveros-comelec-smartmatic-should-be-held-accountable/

AES – a Lemon? Published on May 28, 2010 By Carol Pagaduan-Araullo

AES – a Lemon?

Published on May 28, 2010

By CAROL PAGADUAN-ARAULLO
Streetwise/Business World
Posted by Bulatlat.com

Technology has always been a double-bladed tool. In the right hands and wielded properly, it is like a magic wand that can make everyday living easier, work lighter, production faster and more efficient, etc. Used improperly and in the wrong hands, it could cut a swathe of death and destruction more efficiently and swifter than one can utter “hi-tech”.

That is why countless tests, quality control procedures, built-in safeguards, monitors, maintenance requirements, redundancy features, etc. go into all gizmos that are potentially life-threatening, be it a machine pistol, motorcycle, space shuttle, or nuclear plant.

Furthermore, society has seen it fit and prudent to ensure that the authority to operate these high-tech gizmos is restricted by law only to those properly trained and proven competent — technically, physically, mentally and in accord with the purposes of whatever entity is making use of these machines.
In brief, two things are imperative: (1) the quality or reliability of the machine which allows for near zero-tolerance of error, and (2) the competence of the operator.

Both are seriously in doubt with regard to the Automated Electoral System used in the May 10 elections.

Since election day, we have been swamped with an avalanche of complaints and reports of anomalies and electronic fraud — some backed up by hard evidence, others sounding like red herrings to divert and confuse the public mind. Still, the very nature of an automated count compels us not to easily set aside even those complaints that appear to have no clear proof or evidence.

It is noteworthy that in Germany, one of the most technically advanced countries, electronic voting has been constitutionally banned precisely because of the near impossibility of preventing anomalies from occurring.

We start with the premise that elections for government positions are of such crucial importance and are by nature part of the people’s sovereign power such that these cannot be entrusted to anyone but the people themselves, albeit through government. It follows that elections should not be contracted out to any private entity, much less a multinational corporation, whose allegiance to national interests can not be presumed.

In this instance, the Arroyo government, through the Commission on Elections, virtually abdicated its responsibility and duty to oversee the elections. It hired Smartmatic-TIM (for all intents and purposes a foreign business firm with Filipino partners only to comply with legal requirements) to design, set up and operate the automated 2010 elections. There is a clear case for questioning the constitutionality and political wisdom of such an arrangement.

Moreover both Comelec and Smartmatic ignored, bypassed and short-circuited the safeguards provided by law to ensure a fraud- and error-free automated elections.

To begin with, the source code (or the human-readable version of the computer programs running on the Precinct Count Optical Scan or PCOS and Consolidation and Canvassing System or CCS machines) was not allowed to be adequately inspected by independent IT experts as provided by law. This inspection could have ensured that the machines would be executing the correct steps in the appreciation, counting and canvassing of the votes.... MORE    

Source:  Bulatlat.com

URL: http://www.bulatlat.com/main/2010/05/28/carol-pagaduan-araullo-aes-%E2%80%93-a-lemon/

Campus Journalists Pay Tribute to Colleagues Who Became Victims of Rights Violations Published on May 8, 2010 by Anne Ednalyn Dela Cruz

Campus Journalists Pay Tribute to Colleagues Who Became Victims of Rights Violations

Published on May 8, 2010

Anne Ednalyn dela Cruz


Bulatlat.com

Two victims of human rights violations who were former campus journalists were given tribute by fellow campus journalists from College Editors Guild of the Philippines (CEGP) during the 70th National Student Press Convention in Negros Occidental last April 25.

Former CEGP-Visayas vice president and former editor of Vital Signs, the campus publication of Velez College, Rachelle Mae Palang, and James Balao, former editor of The Outcrop, the student publication of the University of the Philippines-Baguio, were awarded the Gawad Marcelo H. Del Pilar for 2010, the highest citation given to CEGP alumni.

Rachelle Mae Palang: In the Service of the People

Rachelle Mae Palang was Velez College’s Vital Signs editor-in-chief for three consecutive years. In 2005, she was elected as the vice president for Visayas of CEGP.

During her term as vice-president of CEGP, she communicated with student publications across the Visayas islands and worked hard to reopen student publications that were closed by school authorities. She also led campaigns to end all forms of restrictions on press freedom and against students’ rights violations.... MORE    
Source:  Bulatlat.com

URL: http://www.bulatlat.com/main/2010/05/08/campus-journalists-pay-tribute-to-colleagues-who-became-victims-of-rights-violations/

How an Ingredient Found in Everything from Chocolate to Chips Is Causing Massive Environmental Destruction May 29, 2010 by Sarah Newman

How an Ingredient Found in Everything from Chocolate to Chips Is Causing Massive Environmental Destruction

Published on May 29, 2010

 By SARAH NEWMAN
Alternet
International
Posted by Bulatlat.com

The production of palm oil, the common ingredient in an astounding number of products, is causing deforestation, global warming emissions and a loss of biodiversity.

The aisles of any American grocery store, whether it’s a big-box behemoth or a cramped urban bodega, are filled with enough packaged goods to satiate nearly every consumer demand and impulse. But behind the neatly stocked shelves and cheery in-store commercials lurks a dirty secret concerning the dramatic and harmful global impact of the products we buy.

The common ingredient in an astounding number of products — from laundry detergent and chips to soap, candy and makeup — is palm oil. Grown primarily in Indonesia, palm farms are causing alarming rates of deforestation and displacement of indigenous peoples, and are posing a serious threat to local biodiversity. Far from a localized problem, the consequences of palm oil production are international in scope; according to the World Bank, Indonesia is the third largest greenhouse gas emitter in the world, with a whopping 80 percent of its emissions being due to deforestation. And while six million hectares of land in the country have already been converted to palm plantations, a fight is now raging to protect the remaining forests, mainly on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra..... MORE    

Source:  Bulatlat.com

URL: http://www.bulatlat.com/main/2010/05/29/how-an-ingredient-found-in-everything-from-chocolate-to-chips-is-causing-massive-environmental-destruction/

‘Burning lust for power’ by Nestor Mata

‘Burning lust for power’

THURSDAY MAY 27, 2010
Nestor Mata

 

‘Noynoy Aquino seems restless and in a hurry to ascend to the presidency.’ 

WHY is Noynoy Aquino so much in a hurry to be proclaimed as the winner of what might yet be the dirtiest of all presidential contests in our political history?

Is it because Noynoy is being pushed to capture the seat of power by his eager Liberal Party jabberers, his resurrected Kamaganak, Inc., and his drumbeaters in both print and broadcast media?

It looks like they want him to display a burning lust for power. And they also want to quell persistent reports of massive electronic frauds for fear that these might reveal that his presumed victory was an inauthentic political phenomenon.

Not a few observers have commented on Noynoy’s stance in the last few weeks after the May 10 national elections..... MORE  

Source:  Malaya

URL: http://www.malaya.com.ph/05272010/edmata.html

Maguindanao Massacre: Half a Year of Mourning for Justice by Jenny S. De Venecia May 29, 2010

Maguindanao Massacre: Half a Year of Mourning for Justice

Published on May 29, 2010

To date, the Ampatuan massacre is still the worst political killing in the country with the most number of journalists/media practitioners killed in a single event.

By JENNY S. DE VENECIA
Bulatlat.com
MANILA – Justice has been elusive for the families of the victims of the Maguindanao massacre and as the media marked the sixth month since the gruesome killings were committed, a lone and widowed wife joined as they continue to seek justice for the slain victims.

With their traditional black shirts, candles and banners demanding for justice, Editha Tiamzon, wife of UNTV driver Daniel Tiamzon, and journalists led by Malaya Business Insight, marched along Port Area, Manila, Sunday, May 23.
Despite the tremendous risk to her security, Editha still chose to participate in the event to continue the fight against the powerful Ampatuan clan. “If I won’t go out and shout for justice for the victims, these killings will be forgotten,” she said in Filipino during the program.

“It has been six months, my children and I are missing my husband,” Editha said. She said she will continue to fight for justice even if it takes a year for it to be served. “I am thanking everyone who is helping us, including the media people who have supported us since the beginning,” she added.

Karapatan and other media organizations namely the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP), Freedom Fund for Filipino Journalists (FFFJ), Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR), Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) and Kapisanan ng Broadkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) also participated in the event.
The program commemorated the infamous Maguindanao massacre, in which 57 people were abducted and brutally killed last November 23, 2009 in the town of Ampatuan, Maguindanao. Among the victims were 32 journalists/media practitioners who escorted the wife and sisters of Esmael “Toto” Mangudadatu in filing his certificate of candidacy for governor.

To date, the Ampatuan massacre is still the worst political killing in the country with the most number of journalists/media practitioners killed in a single event..... MORE    

Source:  Bulatlat.com

URL: http://www.bulatlat.com/main/2010/05/22/campaign-contributions-pre-programming-key-to-aquino-victory-sison/

Low Turn-Out in Absentee Voting Due to Ghost of Garci – Migrants’ Group by Janess J. Ellao May 22, 2010

Low Turn-Out in Absentee Voting Due to Ghost of Garci – Migrants’ Group

Published on May 22, 2010

By JANESS ANN J. ELLAO
Bulatlat.com
If there is one thing that keeps overseas Filipino workers (OFWs )from going through the hassles of overseas absentee voting, Migrante International said, it is because the ghost of Garci is still haunting the Filipino people.

“How sure are they that their votes would be counted?” Migrante chairperson Garry Martinez said, “The ghost of Garci is still here, haunting us.”

Garci is the moniker for former Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano whose telephone conversation with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was recorded during the 2004 elections. In the said conversation, Arroyo was asking Garcillano to ensure that she wins by one million votes against Fernando Poe Jr. who was her rival for the presidency. Dubbed as the “Hello Garci scandal,” this almost caused the downfall of the Arroyo administration in 2005.

Martinez said their chapters abroad reported that most OFWs were discouraged to vote for fear that the election results would merely be manipulated even if it was automated.

Higher than 2007 But Still Low

This fear, according to Martinez, has resulted to a very low turn-out in the overseas absentee voting. With over 568,733 land-based registered voters and 21,097 seafarers, only 24 percent or 153,300 voted as of May 10, 7:00 p.m.

While this is higher than the 16 percent turnout during the 2007 elections, it is still considered low compared to the 2004 elections where there was a 65 percent turnout in the overseas absentee voting.

Migrante Middle East coordinator John Monterona said that no single post had reached a 50 percent turnout this election.... MORE    

Source:  Bulatlat.com

URL: http://www.bulatlat.com/main/2010/05/22/low-turn-out-in-absentee-voting-due-to-ghost-of-garci-%E2%80%93-migrants%E2%80%99-group/