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Real journalism in a dangerous world

April 30, 2015April 30, 2015 Julius Mariveles Leave a comment

Earl G. Parreno

“Professional integrity is the cornerstone of a journalist’s credibility. Ethical journalism means dedication to accuracy: fact-checking and credible sources.” – US Ambassador Philip S. Goldberg

“Quality journalism enables citizens to make informed decisions about their society’s development. It also works to expose injustice, corruption and the abuse of power.” – Terence Jones, United Nations Resident Coordinator

WHILE statistics show a significant decline in the number of extra-judicial killings (EJK) in the Philippines, “there is still a tragic number of deaths” recorded the past recent years, United States Ambassador to the Philippines Philip S. Goldberg yesterday told a forum marking World Press Freedom Day.

UNITED STATES Ambassador to the Philippines Philip S. Goldberg speaks to journalists, bloggers, students and press freedom advocates during a forum to mark World Press Freedom Day in Manila, Philippines on 29 April 2015 |Photo by Cong B. Corrales

The number of EJKs, he said, including those against journalists, have declined from a high of over 200 per year in the late 2000 to around 50 to a hundred per year in recent years.

“We’ve seen some positive development with regards to press freedom in the Philippines over the last few years. But it’s not there yet,” he said, stressing that “We all have to work so that number becomes zero.”

Speaking in the same forum, Terence Jones, the United Nations Resident Coordinator, pointed out that, “At least one journalist is killed each week in conflict and non-conflict areas (around the world).”

The UN official said, “For peace to be lasting and development sustainable, human rights must be respected. Everyone must be free to seek and impart knowledge and information through media online and offline.”

According to Jones, “Quality journalism enables citizens to make informed decisions about their society’s development. It also works to expose injustice, corruption and the abuse of power.”

“At least one journalist is killed each week in conflict and non-conflict areas (around the world),” says Terence Jones, United Nations Resident Coordinator to the Philippines during a forum to mark World Press Freedom day held 29 April 2015 in Manila | Photo by Cong B. Corrales

The UN, he said, has a Plan of Action with the goal of making journalists safe and putting an end to impunity.

The Philippines is ranked as one the most dangerous places in the world for media personnel.

The UN has declared May 3^rd of every year as World Press Freedom Day. The forum, held at the Bayleaf Hotel in Intramuros, was attended by media practitioners, internet bloggers, journalism students, and human rights advocates. It was organized by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) with the support of the US Embassy in Manila and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).

View clip of Ambassador Goldeberg’s keynote address below. Video by Cong B. Corrales

Ambassador Goldberg, for his part, emphasized the role of “real” journalists in society, pointing out that it is a unique and venerable vocation that requires many different attributes namely, ethics, dedication and bravery.

“They give voice to those without political or economic power. Journalists do this because they have heart, they have heart to expose the truth,” he stressed.

However, he said, “anyone who knows how to write these days could call themselves a journalist.”

“In so many ways you could get your message to the public, through the internet, through blogs. In fact it seems anyone who knows how to tweet these days can say they are journalists,” Goldberg said.

But being a real journalist involves something more, he again emphasized. “It involves real truth-seeking, truth-telling. It’s not fabricating stories to make money or exaggerating the headlines to sell the paper,” the Ambassador said. “Professional integrity is the cornerstone of a journalist’s credibility. Ethical journalism means dedication to accuracy: fact-checking and credible sources. It means educating oneself on a variety of topics to ensure stories are well-informed.”

Too, Goldberg reiterated that press freedom means “freedom from fear, freedom from intimidation, freedom from violence for the journalist, and for the citizen.”

“It’s the right to tell your story, share your opinion and have your voice heard. (But) it’s a two-way street,” he said, and “that puts a tremendous burden (on journalists) in telling that story in a responsible and fair way.”

Beyond the territorial dispute in the South China Sea

April 29, 2015April 29, 2015 Julius Mariveles Leave a comment

Earl G. Parreno

THEY are some of the most destructive land reclamation projects in the country. But unlike other planned developments that have become controversial because of their adverse impact on the environment, these are all taking place almost under the radar. China’s land reclamation projects on reefs, islets and rocks in the Spratly Islands—and their impact not just on the country’s national, but more significantly, food security—are hardly catching the public’s attention.

Sunset on the South China Sea off M?i Né village on the south-east coast of Vietnam | Photo from en.wikipedia.org

Yet, China’s aggressive action in the disputed areas in the South China Sea may lead to a catastrophic collapse of marine biodiversity and fishery in this part of the globe.

“This issue goes beyond territorial dispute,” says Vince Cinches, Oceans Campaigner of Greenpeace. “Reclamation projects in biodiversity impact areas are irresponsible.”

Cinches says that China’s reclamation in the South China Sea, now estimated to have reached 311 hectares, are destroying some US$100 million a year of what is called the Coral Reef Ecosystem Services, quoting a study conducted by Emeritus Prof. Edgardo D. Gomez of the University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute.

Ecosystem services are direct and indirect contribution of the ecosystem to the survival and quality of human life. They include food and other raw materials the ecosystem provides, as well as its role in regulating climate and moderating ecological disturbances.

Concretely, the reclamation of 311 hectares would translate into a 20 percent reduction of fish catch in the area. It could affect more than 12,000 fishers in four provinces of the country namely, Pangasinan, Zambales, Bataan and Palawan. In 2014, some 21,186.8 metric tons of fish were harvested in the South China Sea, according to estimates by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR). This could go down to just 17,000 metric tons this year, based on Greenpeace’s figures.

But China, which is claiming 85.7 percent of the 3.5 million-hectare South China Sea as its own, is planning to build bigger islands from the reefs and underwater rocks. This would mean greater destruction to the reef ecosystem in the area. For instance, in Mischief Reef (also called Panganiban Reef), just 112 nautical miles from Palawan and well within the 200 nautical miles exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, China has built an artificial islet that now measures around 3.2 hectares. Based on satellite photos, this reclamation project, which started only in January this year, can reach at least 500 hectares when done. China has reclamation activities on seven reefs in the Spratly’s at present.

View the lecture of Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio on the South China Sea issue below.

“Reefs are the breeding ground of fish,” says Cinches, “but the Spratly Islands is also important in larval dispersal.” He explains that when the eggs spawned by the fish on the reefs in the Spratly’s are hatched these are carried by the ocean currents to as far as Indonesia where they grow and mature.

“Destroying the reef ecosystem in the Spratly Islands affects the fish supply not just in our country but in the neighboring countries as well,” Cinches points out.

China contends that the reclamations are intended to “improve the living and working conditions of those stationed on the islands.” When it occupied Mischief Reef in 1995, it rationalized its action by saying that the reef will provide “shelter” to its fishermen. Several years on, however, Chinese troops stationed in the reef are shooing away Filipino fishers trying to make a living from the bountiful marine resources in the area. In fact, China has appropriated for itself the fishery resources in the whole South China Sea, with its heavily armed coast guard fleets patrolling the area.

Indeed, China’s aggressive action in the South China Sea is not only gobbling up Philippine territory. It is also eating up the country’s fish supply. A grave matter that the public should know, and act on.

The Ampatuan Files

April 23, 2015April 23, 2015 Julius Mariveles Leave a comment

PHILIPPINE regional trial court Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes has finally denied the petition for bail of Andal Ampatuan Sr., the principal suspect in the 2009 Ampatuan massacre that led to the death of 58 people, 32 of them journalists and media workers.

‘AS AN important note, however, the ruling of the court is not in judgment of guilt or innocence of the accused which requires proof beyond reasonable doubt which is addressed during a full-blown trial,’ Judge Solis-Reyes adds in her ruling denying the bail petition of Andal Ampatuan Sr. | Photo from interaksyon.com

Reyes, who is hearing the murder charges against the accused, denied Ampatuan’s bail plea more than five years after charges were filed against the suspects in what is now considered as the single deadliest attack against members of the media.

“Wherefore in view of foregoing and finding that evidence of guilt of accused is strong the bail petitions filed by Datu Andal Ampatuan Sr. are hereby denied,” Reyes said in her ruling according to a report of gmanetwork.com.

How influential are the Ampatuans in Maguindanao province? How well-connected are they? In 2013, the PCIJ released its documentary “Angkan,” which explored clan politics in the southern Philippine province.

Angkan Inc., is a documentary produced by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism in an effort to understand the past, present, and future links that define the clans that have ruled Maguindanao province for centuries. Maguindanao is one of several province whose ruling clans have a long historical and cultural heritage. As such, the clans are seen as very much a part of Maguindanao culture. However, the clans have, over the decades, also intruded into the local and national political scene with the help of patrons in Manila who see their use in the gathering of votes.

And how wealthy is Andal Ampatuan Sr? What are his businesses? Interestingly, the PCIJ found out in 2011 that while Andal Sr declared in his statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth that he is a simple farmer, he and his son, Zaldy, own more than 65 properties scattered throughout Maguindanao, Cotabato City, Davao City, and even in ritzy Dasmariñas Village in Makati, home to many foreign embassies and a refuge of the country’s rich and famous.

“These real properties range from a two-hectare farm lot in Cotabato City, to magnificent structures in Davao City and Shariff Aguak that tower over the simple abodes of one of the country’s poorest provinces. One residential property in Davao City alone covers at least 4,000 square meters, and has a mansion that dwarfs other high-end homes with its opulence.” – An Anarchy of Mansions

Click on the photo to read the full story.

The tall gates conceal the mansion in Juna Subdivision, Davao City, that is owned by Andal Ampatuan Sr. | PCIJ File Photo

Tomorrow: The money of the Ampatuans in the banks and how they tried to secure amnesty for their guns.

5.9M Filipino children suffering more

October 17, 2014October 17, 2014 Julius Mariveles Leave a comment

Close to a year after Haiyan strikes the Philippines
By Cong B. Corrales

THE JOYS of the season may not be as felt as much by 5.9 million children in areas struck by Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda in the Philippines), especially in Eastern Visayas where the super storm left a trail of death and destruction.

Poverty, specifically in Yolanda-hit areas, has made the people more vulnerable — all the more the children in these areas, a non-government organization said, Friday.

Plan International Philippines — one of the largest and oldest child-centered international NGO operating in the country— said Filipino children are twice as vulnerable because of “crippling poverty.”

A CHILD PIGGYBACKS on her mother in one of the villages devastated by the storm in Tacloban City. This photo was taken a week after Haiyan made landfall in Tacloban and other parts of the Visayas, killing thousands of people | Photo by Julius D. Mariveles

“Even a glance at child poverty statistics in the Philippines and the disaster risk profile of areas prone to multiple hazards reveals how the combination of poverty and disaster creates ‘double vulnerability’ for children, who are the most vulnerable group in any population and under any circumstance,” Carin Van der Hor, Country Director of Plan International Philippines, said.

Van der Hor cited the 2009 United Nations global assessment on disaster risk that the Philippines has a seven percent possible mortality rate than Japan should a cyclone with the same intensity hit both countries at the same time.

“Poverty plays a big part in this unacceptable discrepancy,” Van der Hor said.

CHILDREN bring home relief goods as night falls in Tacloban City. This photo was taken a week after Typhoon Haiyan hit the city, one of the hardest-hit areas in Eastern Visayas | Photo by Julius D. Mariveles

Van der Hor added it is this dire situation, particulary in Eastern Visayas where 5.9 million children live, that have worsened their lives when Yolanda hit their region.

Data gathered by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), showed that 13.4 million young Filipinos experience a severe lack of food, shelter, health, and education. Plan International said this means that more than a third of the country’s population under 18 years old are more vulnerable to bear the brunt whenever a natural calamity hits their areas.

As part of their overall response to address this vulnerability among Filipino children, Plan International also promotes “supplemental feeding.” It is a training program that is aimed at improving the nutritional needs of the children in Yolanda-hit areas.

Plan International Typhoon Haiyan Emergency Response Manager Richard Sandison told PCIJ that they launched a survey in Yolanda-hit areas specifically to categorize how severe malnutrition is in the region even before Yolanda happened. They did the technical survey together with other international NGOs within the social welfare cluster, Sandison added.

“The number of severely malnourished children is very low. What’s concerning, though, is the levels of stunting and chronic malnutrition which is running over 50 percent. So it’s a long-term nutrition issue in the Yolanda-hit areas. This is pre-Yolanda so this is not a direct result of the typhoon but it has made them a lot more weaker and a lot more vulnerable,” Sandison said.

Plan International Philippines was among the first organizations on the ground to mobilize relief efforts for typhoon survivors after Yolanda hit, and continues to do so through recovery and rehabilitation assistance aimed to help communities in “building back better and safer” as a response to future challenges.

The “Building Back Better” project is much more than an approach to construction but that community recovery efforts result in safer, more resilient buildings and infrasture, access to safe drinking water and other services.

Plan International Philippines has helped 1.3 million Yolanda survivors last year and it continues to work Tacloban City with government partners and 6,000 community member-beneficiaries on their “Building Back Better” project.

“It means working with communities on their recovery journey, involving them as partners in the recovery process, providing emotional support and building knowledge, community spirit and resilience,” said Sandison.

He added that these are things that are not seen immediately but can withstand any challenges the Yolanda-hit areas may encounter in the future.

It’s the business of businesses to prepare for disaster: OCD official

September 3, 2014September 3, 2014 Julius Mariveles Leave a comment

By Cong B. Corrales

IS YOUR business ready for the “ber” months? With the onset of the typhoon season in the country, an official of the Office of the Civil Defense reminded businesses prepare for the oncoming typhoons.

“Natural hazards cannot ultimately be controlled and avoided; however, the underlying factors and pressures that cause the vulnerabilities can be managed so that the disaster risks can be reduced,” Romeo F. Fajardo, OCD administrator said.

TACLOBAN CITY AFTER THE STORM | Photo taken a week after Typhoon Haiyan struck the Philippines | Photo by Julius D. Mariveles

Drawing from the experience of typhoon Yolanda (international codename: Haiyan), Fajardo said businesses that were not fully prepared closed shop resulting to instant massive unemployment in the affected areas and making affected communities harder to recover and rebuild.

Fajardo pointed out that during typhoon Yolanda many private hospitals stopped operating, which in turn denied victims of the storm much-needed medical assistance. The reason: most, if not all, of the small to medium enterprises (SMEs) did not have continuity plans.

“Once businesses are affected the local economy of the affected area will also be affected,” he said. Had the privately-owned utilities – water, power, transport, and communications – drawn up their continuity plans before the storm, these basic lifelines could have less affected.

Business Continuity Plans include the concepts of recovery time objective (RTO), or a company-set deadline on how fast their company can recover.

AFTER THE STORM | Village 88 in Tacloban City in ruins a week after Typhoon Haiyan struck. This photo was taken a week after the storm hit the Philippines, killing close to 7,000 people according to the official count | Photo by Julius D. Mariveles

A Business Continuity Plan does not end with the company’s employees and families but also the surrounding communities, Fajardo said.

Based on the data from the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), the typhoon season in the country usually begins in June and peaks in October with at least three tropical cyclones per month, on the average.

This slightly ebbs down by November with two tropical cyclones per month. According to the World Risk Report, last year, the country is ranked third in the world most exposed and at risk to natural hazards. The Philippines has been ranked ninth and sixth in the years 2009 and 2010, respectively.

“For the Philippines, the study’s findings are simply grim: Of the 173 countries surveyed, the Philippines ranked No. 3 in its ‘most high-risk’ list. It is also the country that is the most vulnerable to risks in Asia.”

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The country is vulnerable to almost all types of natural hazards since it is situated in the Pacific typhoon belt, volcanic ring of fire and the continuing climate change brought about by the greenhouse effect. “The private sector has to survive a calamity in the country, one way or the other; thus the need for a Business Continuity Plan. This is still a new concept,” Fajardo said.

In a study by Young Won Park entitled Supply Chain Lessons from the Catastrophic Natural Disaster in Japan, last year, even if diversifying the locations of business ventures would “increase flexibility and abates risk, information ‘portability’—or the ability to quickly disseminate design and operations data along the supply chain—is also crucial to bouncing back from an unexpected catastrophe.”

OLD MAN BY THE SEA in the village of Anibong. People were killed here after their houses were crushed by cargo ships dumped on the shore by the storm surges | Photo by Julius D. Mariveles

“One major lesson from Japan is that companies need to disperse the flow of information along with the physical location of production. Developing ways to capture and share information throughout an existing or expanding supply chain can benefit the overall manufacturing process in addition to mitigating risk,” the same study reads in part.

Takahiro Ono, a Business Continuity Plan manager of Mitsubishi Corporation, said that Business Continuity Plans ensure continuity of operations and services; businesses could restart operations quickly within a tolerable period and can avoid going bankrupt.