Author Archives: admin

Malaysia Accused of Mistreating Refugees

By admin | December 24, 2014

Written for The Diplomat A documentary produced by Al Jazeera has portrayed the Malaysian government as neglectful of the rights of refugees and asylum seekers in the country’s detention centers. The claims were supported by Richard Towle, the representative for Malaysia of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). “Refugees are treated as illegal […]

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The real lessons from Hagupit

By admin | December 21, 2014

Written for the CNN “Seeing the first set of images from the typhoon zone in the Philippines is like experiencing a dreadful sense of déjà vu: Flooded roads, fallen huts, small buildings with the rooftops ripped off, and dead animals littering the streets. If this devastation appears eerily familiar, it is because we also saw […]

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Cartoons as Social Commentary and How Our Animated Heroes Reproduce Conservative Values in Society

By admin | December 13, 2014

Published by Manila Today Cartoons do not merely entertain, they also instruct and influence the emotion and thinking of children and adults alike. Even governments sometimes ban cartoons for transmitting messages they deem harmful, subversive, and inappropriate for public viewing. For Filipino kids who grew up in the 1970s, they learned the meaning of Martial […]

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Koreans Alarmed by Rising Crime in the Philippines

By admin | December 7, 2014

Written for The Diplomat The Korean embassy has issued a statement expressing alarm over the reported spike in crimes victimizing Korean tourists and businessmen residing in the Philippines. It cited the killing of a Korean businessman last July and the abduction and killing of a Korean college student in Manila last March as examples of […]

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10 Happy things activists always love to do

By admin | December 2, 2014

Written for Bulatlat 1. Journeying to the countryside to live with peasant and IP communities. Nature tripping, mountaineering, and political field work plus more. Tourism is fun but an activist explores the rural not just to celebrate and document geography but to study the condition of the masses. He is not there to feitishize the […]

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Laos’ Internet Law Undermines Free Speech

By admin | November 25, 2014

Written for The Diplomat The government of Laos has signed an Internet law that claims to support the growth of the Internet but actually contains numerous contradictory provisions that undermine free speech and other citizen rights. When this was reported almost two months ago, the concern of many was the broad and vague cybercrimes enumerated […]

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Why Malaysia Reduced Its Fuel Subsidy

By admin | November 8, 2014

Written for The Diplomat Malaysia’s decision to slash fuel subsidies has led to an increase in the price of petrol products, which in turn angered many consumers but was applauded by economists and credit rating agencies. Prime Minister Najib Razak defended the government action by citing the need to balance the budget. He said the […]

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It’s the 21st century and you are still afraid of the Left?

By admin | November 5, 2014

Written for Bulatlat According to some intellectuals and their disciples, it is foolish to join the Left or become a Leftist in the 21st century. They sarcastically remind activists that the Berlin Wall already fell in 1989 and it was followed by the disintegration of Soviet Russia in 1991. In response, we should assert that […]

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What We Can Learn from the Music Videos of Lupang Hinirang

By admin | October 28, 2014

Published by Manila Today We grew up singing the Philippine national anthem; in fact we can only recite the beautiful prose of Lupang Hinirang if we quietly sing it. Today, when the use of LCD projectors is already common, we sing and watch the national anthem in schools, movie theaters, public halls, and government buildings. […]

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Are you dating an activist? Take the quiz

By admin | October 26, 2014

Written for Bulatlat He had you at “power to the people!” and then he said he wanted to “occupy” your heart, and that you are his 99 percent. Yet you find his world quite exotic, his vocabulary sometimes confusing, although he seems sincere given his passionate determination to fight for his beliefs. Indeed, it is […]

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