Author Archives: admin

Dear kids, you are free to choose your life, but will you please try activism?

By admin | June 21, 2015

Written for Bulatlat These are precarious times. We live in a world plagued by mass poverty, chronic hunger, wealth inequality, and racism but we seem to lack the will to overcome these preventable miseries. The world order is already ripe for an overhaul yet many are reluctant to admit it. Worse, some of us have […]

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Who Will Benefit from the ASEAN Economic Community?

By admin | June 17, 2015

Written for The Diplomat One of the major projects of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations is the establishment of an ASEAN Economic Community, which aims to integrate Southeast Asia’s diverse economies, a region with 600 million people and a combined gross domestic product of $2.4 trillion. But several civil society organizations are moving to […]

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Laos’ Economic Agenda

By admin | June 10, 2015

Written for The Diplomat This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party (formerly known as Lao People’s Party), which was founded together with the Indochina Communist Party to expel foreign invaders from Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. The struggle for independence finally succeeded in 1975, which led to the establishment of the […]

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Mahathir Versus Najib

By admin | June 4, 2015

Written for The Diplomat Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak’s fiercest critic today is not found in the ranks of the opposition. Rather, it is a former ally: Mahathir Mohamad. Mahathir is Malaysia’s longest-serving prime minister, and served as mentor to Najib. Despite his retirement from government service, Mahathir has remained an influential political figure. At […]

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Why I am not offended when somebody calls me a communist

By admin | June 1, 2015

Written for Bulatlat I keep silent every time I am tagged a communist. It’s not embarrassment but more of disbelief that in this day and age, a red baiter still thinks that this kind of witch hunt is politically legitimate or even persuasive. How dangerous it is to live in a society where people are […]

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Maoism is the reason why the hills are alive in the Philippines

By admin | May 27, 2015

Written for Bulatlat How do you explain the presence of communist rebels in the country’s forest frontiers? Interestingly, the last remaining green spaces in the boondocks are strongholds of the New People’s Army. So who really should rejoice every time a province is declared NPA-free? The masses or the extractive industry? To preserve the richness […]

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Cambodia Defends Its Human Rights Record

By admin | May 17, 2015

Written for The Diplomat Cambodia presented its human rights report before the United Nations Office in Geneva amid growing allegations that abuses are being systematically committed by state forces. The UN committee acknowledged that Cambodia has introduced some reforms in recent years, in particular land reform and registration of indigenous communal lands. But it also […]

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Bakit Aktibista Ang Crush Ng Crush Mo?

By admin | May 14, 2015

Sinulat para sa Manila Today Dahil nagtitiwala siya sa masa; dahil kinakalinga siya ng masa Kaibigan ng mga inaapi, kaaway ng mga ilustradong kontrabida sa lipunan. Hindi umaastang bayani, sa halip ay nakasandig sa lakas ng mamamayang pumipiglas. Mayroon siyang barkada na ang tawag niya ay kolektib, mayroon siyang ugnay mula siyudad hanggang probinsiya na […]

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Malaysia Strengthens Sedition Act

By admin | May 8, 2015

Written for The Diplomat Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has made two contrasting pledges with regard to the Sedition Act of 1948. First, during the election period in 2012, he vowed to repeal the archaic law. Then, two years later, he announced that the law would be strengthened to preserve domestic harmony. Last Friday, Najib’s […]

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How to write against the Left

By admin | April 22, 2015

Written for Bulatlat Start by insinuating that it’s evil to be associated with the Left, for example ‘Beware of Left-leaning groups’. There’s no need to elaborate; simply insert the term ‘Left’ in a sentence to warn innocent minds about the threat posed by Leftist individuals, groups, institutions, and ideologies. To make it more convincing, tag […]

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