News Roundup 02 March 2024
Mar 02, 2024 • 4 min Read
Chinese vessels detected near Philippine Rise | PHILSTAR.COM – MANILA, Philippines — Recent reports reveal that two Chinese vessels have been monitored lingering in the waters near the resource-rich Philippine Rise, situated on the eastern side of northern Luzon.
Ray Powell, a former US Air Force official and ex-Defense Attaché, shared this information on X (formerly Twitter).
In Powell’s post on Friday, he disclosed that two Chinese research vessels, Haiyang Dizhi Liuhao and Haiyang Dizhi Shihao, set sail from Longxue Island in Guangzhou on February 26.
“On 26 February, two research vessels left port at Longxue Island in Guangzhou, China & moved ESE through the Luzon Strait,” he wrote on X.
“As of 1 March they are loitering east of Luzon in the NE corner of Benham (Philippine) Rise, which is in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone,” he added.
Powell’s map showed the Chinese vessels sailing between Basco, Batanes, and islands near the main Luzon island.
In September of last year, Powell showed a map displaying the presence of at least three Chinese survey ships in the eastern part of the Philippine Sea, close to the Philippine Rise.
Previously known as Benham Rise, the Philippine Rise is an underwater plateau in the northeastern seaboard of the country which is believed to be rich in oil, gas and marine resources.
The United Nations declared the underwater plateau as part of the Philippines’ continental shelf in 2012.
Full Story at: Chinese vessels detected near Philippine Rise | Philstar.com
Authorities informed of potential hideout of ex-Palawan official in journalist’s murder | PHILSTAR.COM – BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and an international coalition supporting press freedom provided information to Philippine authorities this week about the location of former Palawan governor Joel T. Reyes.
Reyes is linked to the 2011 assassination of radio broadcaster Gerry Ortega.
The coalition, named “A Safer World for the Truth,” includes RSF, Free Press Unlimited (FPU), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), and the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP). They met with the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) in Manila, urging the arrest of Reyes.
During the discussions, the coalition shared information into Reyes’ hiding place. DOJ Assistant Secretary Jose Dominic F. Clavano IV vowed swift action, and PNP Chief Benjamin Acorda Jr. committed to implementing the arrest warrant against Reyes, according to RSF.
“The information provides all the keys to finding and arresting Reyes. It is now their (DOJ and PNP) responsibility to immediately arrest the former governor and bring justice to the journalist’s relatives, 13 years after this shocking crime,” RSF Asia-Pacific Bureau Director Cédric Alviani said.
The NGO coalition, operational since 2020, identified deficiencies in the judicial procedures related to Ortega’s murder.
Full Story at: Authorities informed of potential hideout of ex-Palawan official in journalist’s murder | Philstar.com
Taguig City: Makati Park and Garden is ours | INQUIRER.NET – MANILA, Philippines — Taguig City asserted Saturday that the Makati Park and Garden is under its jurisdiction, citing a Supreme Court ruling in 2022.
The local government criticized Makati City for calling Taguig City a land-grabber over the administration of the park.
“Tinuldukan na ng Korte Suprema ang usaping ito. Walang karapatan ang Makati na akusahan ang Taguig ng pangangamkam ng lupa. Ang Korte Suprema mismo ang nagsabi na ilegal na kinamkam ng Makati at inukupahan ng mahigit tatlong (3) dekada ang 10 EMBO barangay,” Taguig City said in a statement.
(The Supreme Court has already ruled on this matter. Makati has no right to accuse Taguig of land grabbing. The Supreme Court itself said that Makati illegally seized and occupied 10 EMBO barangays for more than three decades.)
On Friday, Makati City claimed that it owns the Makati Park and Garden located in Barangays West Rembo and Cembo – two villages included in the 10 Embo barangays which the Supreme Court said in 2022 are under the jurisdiction of Taguig City.
According to Makati City, personnel from the Taguig Traffic Management Office tried to enter the park on March 1 but security guards and the Makati Public Safety Department personnel stopped them from proceeding.
Full Story at: Taguig City: Makati Park and Garden is ours (inquirer.net)
OCD chief says better response measures vs sea disasters needed | INQUIRER.NET – MANILA, Philippines — The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) said Saturday that better response measures must be instituted against marine environmental disasters.
“It has been a year since the oil spill incident happened in Mindoro. Though it took us time, still we were able to surmount all the challenges that we encountered because of inter-agency and multisector action,” OCD Administrator Undersecretary Ariel Nepomuceno said in a statement
“[A]nd though we hope that it will not happen again, the incident calls on us to strengthen our preparedness and response so that we can minimize the negative impacts of such incident,” he added.
Nepomuceno’s assertions came a year after the oil spill incident in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro.
Full Story at: OCD chief says better response measures vs sea disasters needed (inquirer.net)
