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Philippines ‘Pushed to the Wall’ as It Sends Warning to Beijing Ships in South China Sea

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Filipino officials warn that tensions between the Philippines and China in the South China Sea are reaching a breaking point.

China’s hostility in a disputed part of the South China Sea is “pushing [the Philipines] to the wall,” according to Filipino security official Jonathan Malaya, who serves as the assistant director-general of the National Security Council.

The comments come after the Philipines Coast Guard claimed it recently discovered a large Chinese Coast Guard ship in the disputed Scarborough Shoal.

“The presence of the monster ship in Filipino waters… 77 nautical miles from our shoreline, is unacceptable and, therefore, it should be withdrawn immediately by the Chinese government,” Malaya said at a news conference alongside senior military and coast guard officials.

The spotting is among several that PCG has reported in recent months, which the Philipines views as provocation and intimidation from China. (Read more from “Philippines ‘Pushed to the Wall’ as It Sends Warning to Beijing Ships in South China Sea” HERE)

Sword-Wielding Chinese Soldiers Seize Filipino Ship in Its Own Waters, Forcing Bare-Handed Brawl

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The Chinese Communist regime admitted on Wednesday that it used force to board Filipino ships and force them out of the Philippines’ territorial waters, an act of piracy the Chinese touted as a “police action” because the Filipinos entered an area illegally claimed by China.

The Philippine military said its forces used their “bare hands” to fend off Chinese “barbarians” and demanded China pay damages for its conduct during the incident.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) posted video and photos of the encounter on Wednesday night, showing Chinese personnel attacking their rigid-hulled inflatable boats (RHIBs) with knives, axes, and poles.

(Read more from “Sword-Wielding Chinese Soldiers Seize Filipino Ship in Its Own Waters, Forcing Bare-Handed Brawl” HERE)

Philippines Drops China’s Belt and Road as Tensions Flare

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The Philippines in late October became the latest country to back out of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), with Transport Minister Jaime Bautista telling reporters the sudden withdrawal came after Beijing did not respond to funding requests on railway projects.

China had pledged almost $5 billion (€4.7 billion) to build three rail lines — two in Luzon and one in Mindanao — under the BRI, a keystone of Beijing’s foreign policy offering Chinese-backed loans for major infrastructure projects mostly in developing parts of the world.

However, China and the Philippines have been locked in a years-long dispute over maritime territory in the South China Sea, which China has claimed in its entirety.

In the most recent incident, a Chinese coast guard ship rammed a Philippine fishing vessel in contested waters near Second Thomas Shoal.

However, Philippine officials did not mention territorial tension as the reason behind the pull out. (Read more from “Philippines Drops China’s Belt and Road as Tensions Flare” HERE)

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Good Friday Crucifixions Return to Philippines After End of Coronavirus Restrictions

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The city of San Fernando, Pampanga, Philippines, held its first unrestricted Good Friday crucifixion ceremony since the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic began in 2020 this week, nailing eight people to crosses as a form of penance for sin.

Among those being crucified were two long-time veterans of the practice: Ruben Enaje, 62, who was crucified for a 34th time; and Wilfredo Salvador, 66, who told reporters he had been engaging in the practice for 15 years. An anonymous woman wearing a head covering was also among the eight crucified, refusing to be identified when reporters asked.

The neighborhood of San Pedro Cutud in San Fernando has been hosting live crucifixions – devotees carry their crosses on their backs to the site of the event and are then nailed by their palms to the cross briefly before being attended by a medical team – for decades before former President Rodrigo Duterte abruptly ended the practice in 2020 as part of sweeping civil rights restrictions banning religious gatherings during Holy Week, the holiest time in the Christian calendar, allegedly to prevent the spread of coronavirus. Prior to attempting a full ban of Christian activities during Holy Week, Duterte had spent years attacking Christianity and the Catholic Church in particular, urging civilians to “kill bishops” and claiming he was molested by a priest as a child. Duterte has publicly named the priest: Father Mark Falvey, S.J., who faced prolific accusations of child sex abuse in California. (Read more from “Good Friday Crucifixions Return to Philippines After End of Coronavirus Restrictions” HERE)

Photo credit: Flickr

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Man Dies After Police Force Him To Do Squats After Violating COVID Rules

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A Philippines man allegedly died when he was forced to do 300 squats as punishment for breaking COVID-19 curfew rules, according to a new report.

Darren Manaog Peñaredondo, 28, was out after 6 p.m. April 1 buying drinking water in his city of General Trias, Cavite, when he was nabbed by village guards, Rappler reported. The Cavite province currently has a strict curfew in place from 6 p.m to 5 a.m., per Inquirer.net. . .

Peñaredondo, along with another curfew violator, were brought to a shopping plaza and forced to perform “pumping” exercises, similar to squats, his partner Reichelyn Balce told Rappler. . .

After completing the grueling activity, Peñaredondo reportedly returned home, with help from the other curfew violator, around 8 a.m. the following morning. Bacle said her partner was in obvious pain and struggled to walk the entire time he was home. . .

Peñaredondo suffered a seizure later in the evening and despite being briefly revived, he passed away around 10 p.m., per the Guardian. (Read more from “Man Dies After Police Force Him To Do Squats After Violating COVID Rules” HERE)

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Why Did Stephen Paddock Make a Massive Money Transfer to the Philippines Just One Week Ago?

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Las Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock wired $100,000 to an account in the Philippines the week before he opened fire on a concert, multiple senior law enforcement officials told NBC News.

Paddock’s girlfriend, 62-year-old Marilou Danley, was in the Philippines, her native country, Sunday when Paddock began firing from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas. It remains unclear whether the money was intended for Danley, her family members, or for some unknown purpose . . .

Authorities maintain that Danley, who is scheduled to return to the U.S. for questioning Wednesday, did not participate in planning the attack. (Read more from “Why Did Stephen Paddock Make a Massive Money Transfer to the Philippines Just One Week Ago?” HERE)

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‘Obama Not Welcome’: Filipinos Protest Presidential Visit

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Photo Credit: BULLIT MARQUEZ / AP

Photo Credit: BULLIT MARQUEZ / AP

Police armed with truncheons, shields and a fire hose clashed with more than 100 left-wing activists who rallied at the U.S. Embassy in Manila on Wednesday to oppose a visit by President Barack Obama and an expected security pact that would increase the American military presence in the Philippines.

Read more from this story HERE.

Typhoon Haiyan: 600,000 Believed Homeless; Desperate Survivors Wait in the Open for Aid as Rains Return

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Photo Credit: EPA/FRANCIS R. MALASIGHundreds of thousands of people were spending their fifth night sleeping in the open in the Philippines last night as soldiers and aid workers struggled to deliver help to the victims of Typhoon Haiyan.

Almost half of the estimated 660,000 people left homeless by its devastating wind and waves were still without shelter as tropical weather brought more heavy and forecasters warned of the risk of a second typhoon later this week.

Anger across the Philippines was continuing to rise at what seemed to be the slow response to the crisis, with many areas yet to receive aid on the scale needed.

The number killed remains unclear, with the United Nations estimating at least 10,000.

Benigno Aquino, the Philippines’ president, said yesterday that he believed that the true figure was lower – saying only between 2,000 and 2,500 had perished – but many of the worst-affected towns and islands have yet to provide reliable death tolls.

Read more from this story HERE.

Hagel Sends US Troops Into Philippines to Help with Post-Typhoon Humanitarian Efforts

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Photo Credit: REUTERSSecretary of Defense Chuck Hagel on Sunday directed the U.S. Pacific Command to support American humanitarian relief efforts in the Philippines in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan.

Col. Brad Bartelt, a Marine Corps spokesman, said the U.S. military was called in at the request of the Philippines government.

Haiyan struck the island nation Friday, impacted more than 4.2 million people across 36 provinces in the Philippines, according to the Philippine government’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

The death toll has reached 1,000 but the number is projected to climb to 10,000.

Philippine officials say they will have a better idea about fatalities and damage in the coming days as transportation and communications systems are repaired.

Read more from this story HERE.

Manila Challenges Beijing’s South China Sea Hegemony

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photo credit: jun acullador

The Philippines said Tuesday that it is taking its feud with China over competing territorial claims in the South China Sea to an international tribunal.

Philippines Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario’s office summoned Chinese Ambassador Ma Keqing in Manila and challenged the assertion that China’s sovereignty extends over “virtually the entire South China Sea.”

Manila says China seized control of the Scarborough Shoal, a rocky outcrop, last year and then illegally barred the Philippines from the area. China calls the shoal Huangyan Island.

Manila wants a tribunal operating under the 1982 U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea to declare as “unlawful” Beijing’s actions in the disputed waters.

“The Philippines has exhausted almost all political and diplomatic avenues for a peaceful, negotiated settlement of its maritime disputes with China,” Mr. del Rosario said at a news conference in Manila, according to a report by The Associated Press. “To this day, a solution is still elusive.”

Read more from this story HERE.