Left turn
But, in the same breath, there is also a strength in the symbols that our comrades become and live on to be—symbols of inertia but also movement, of loss but also triumph. Symbols of truth and freedom.
Left turn
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Negros after the gunfire: what the blood on our soil is telling us
Negros after the gunfire: what the blood on our soil is telling us
It is tempting to reduce this to a “security success” or a “counterinsurgency incident.” But such language hides more than it reveals. Armed conflict in Negros did not begin with guns. It began long before, in conditions that have shaped the lives of generations.
Oil shock profiteering? Oil firms, Marcos regime rake in hundreds of millions amid crisis
Oil shock profiteering? Oil firms, Marcos regime rake in hundreds of millions amid crisis
Even without a war and an oil shock, and even in times when oil prices are relatively low or declining, the Filipino people are still being oppressed and exploited by local pump price profiteering, and global monopoly and speculative pricing due to oil deregulation.
‘Sana oil’| As Filipinos suffer mega oil price hikes, prices barely moved in our ASEAN neighbors
‘Sana oil’| As Filipinos suffer mega oil price hikes, prices barely moved in our ASEAN neighbors
Jeepney drivers and Filipino consumers do not have to be at the mercy of oil companies. The oil industry does not have to be deregulated. Oil prices can be controlled. The government does not have to be useless.
With deregulation, the Philippines is most vulnerable in Asia to oil shocks
With deregulation, the Philippines is most vulnerable in Asia to oil shocks
Unlike many Asian countries, the Philippines has long dropped, in the name of deregulation, key policy tools, such as state-controlled strategic oil reserves, regulated pricing schemes, and price stabilization mechanisms, which could protect Filipino consumers during global shocks.
A law for everyone except the United States
A law for everyone except the United States
International institutions never held the United States accountable for its repeated acts of aggression against Iran or, for that matter, any of the other countries that suffered from US attacks.
How Trump’s Epic Fury in Iran impacts the Filipino poor
How Trump’s Epic Fury in Iran impacts the Filipino poor
By accommodating multiple US military facilities and weapons platforms, the Philippines exposes itself to becoming a potential target in conflicts involving the US.
CARDINAL RULE: People must be more united than the competing thieves
CARDINAL RULE: People must be more united than the competing thieves
Malalim ang ugat, at malawak din ang sanga-sanga ng sistemang korap. Lahat ng sangkot, dapat managot.
COP30 in the Amazon: A peoples’ COP without the peoples
COP30 in the Amazon: A peoples’ COP without the peoples
Demonstrations at COP30 reveal systemic failures, silenced indigenous peoples’ voices, and the widening gap between promises and reality.
A sunbeam in your hand
A sunbeam in your hand
For all his faults and frailties, those who knew him up close, and personal, regarded Behn with profound, palpable affection and respect. Such was the magnitude of his life that his funeral became a political rally.
‘We, the Peoples?’ The Philippine delegation’s contradictions on civil society inclusion
‘We, the Peoples?’ The Philippine delegation’s contradictions on civil society inclusion
Civil society is not asking for favors. It is asserting its rightful role in shaping the future.
Confronting SDG progress with grassroots realities
Confronting SDG progress with grassroots realities
A far different reality happens in the Philippines characterized by disenfranchisement, environmental degradation, and deepening inequality.
SONA 2025: Anti-corruption, good governance as Marcos Jr. legacy?
SONA 2025: Anti-corruption, good governance as Marcos Jr. legacy?
The most obvious irony is that the flood control projects are his initiatives under the Build Better More infrastructure program, and that some of the public officials involved in the corruption behind the defective projects are the same ones who are applauding the President enthusiastically in the plenary hall.
Gaza: The US-Israel plan to instrumentalise aid is not only ineffective but deadly
Gaza: The US-Israel plan to instrumentalise aid is not only ineffective but deadly
Humanitarian aid must be provided only by humanitarian organisations who have the competence and determination to do it safely and effectively – not warring parties.
Opinion | Shrinking civic spaces in the Asia-Pacific Region: Implications in national levels
Opinion | Shrinking civic spaces in the Asia-Pacific Region: Implications in national levels
“The shrinking of civic spaces in the Asia-Pacific region is a dire warning of the broader challenges faced by civil society at the national level. It is a call to action for governments to respect, protect, and fulfill the rights of civil society and people's organizations to participate in decision-making processes.”
Repression on a loop
Repression on a loop
This atrocious prohibition is not at all new. Seventeen years ago in September of 2007, the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board under Consoliza Laguardia imposed an X rating on a short indie film titled “Rights”, made to press for the safe release of Jonas Burgos.
Rooster or Chicken? On why some disappearances are silenced
Rooster or Chicken? On why some disappearances are silenced
That is why I think this is a missed opportunity for a festival to demonstrate how it can protect, through its mandate, a work which, like the rest, claims to reveal truth in the face of power.
Namber wan delubyo
Namber wan delubyo
Ano ang hinaing ng maralita pagkatapos ng SONA at bagyong Carina?
From Marcos to Marcos: Lawyers murderously attacked
From Marcos to Marcos: Lawyers murderously attacked
From the Marcos Martial Law period to 2000, one lawyer was killed each year (18 in 18 years). From 2001 to the present, there have been 204 lawyers killed at a yearly rate of about 8.87.
Tinig Migrante | Not all migrant workers
Tinig Migrante | Not all migrant workers
For many Filipino migrant workers abroad, advancements in technology have been able to provide comfort as they navigate the long and painful separation from their children, spouses, and parents back in the Philippines. They can check if their children have done their homework, watch their graduation ceremony live, virtually join a family reunion or birthday celebration, or share a prayer with their ailing mother or father. Smartphones, the internet and social media have become essential tools in their lives as migrants. For most Filipino migrants, visits back to their home provinces are expensive, and these are not even possible for many undocumented OFWs.
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