Skip to content

Month: February 2016

Water source crucial in determining status of Itu Aba (1)

Published by Ellen on February 5, 2016

Itu Aba. Photo by AMTI.CSIS.org
Itu Aba. Photo by AMTI.CSIS.org

Is the water coming from the grounds of Itu Aba (Chinese name: Taiping; Philippine name: Ligaw) suitable for drinking?
The answer to this question is crucial in determining whether Itu Aba is an island or a rock.

The determination of Itu Aba’s feature- whether a rock or an island- is important in establishing the extent of the Philippine’s territory and coverage of its sovereignty.

Itu Aba, occupied by Taiwan, is the biggest feature in the Spratlys in South China Sea which is being claimed wholly by China and Taiwan and partly by Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei.

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or UNCLOS defines an island as “a naturally formed area of land, surrounded by water, which is above water at high tide.”

Continue readingWater source crucial in determining status of Itu Aba (1)

The Junjun Binay libel case vs Trillanes

Published by Ellen on February 2, 2016

Former Makati Mayor Junjun Binay: "Allegations besmirched my good name."
Former Makati Mayor Junjun Binay: “Allegations besmirched my good name.”
Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV. He said he will continue exposing the truth about the Binays.
Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV. He said he will continue exposing the truth about the Binays.
Telling the truth does not make one immune from libel suits.

Last Monday, Judge Dina Pestano Teves of the Makati Regional Trial Court 142, released the warrant of arrest for Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV after finding probable cause in the suit filed by former Makati Mayor Jejomar Erwin “Junjun” Binay Jr.

Trillanes, who is running for vice president as an independent candidate in the coming May election, is in Washington D.C. for the National Prayer Breakfast, an annual event hosted by members of the United States Congress and organized by a Christian Fellowship Foundation attended by some 3,500 guests from all over the world. The U.S. president usually attends the event held every first Thursday of February.

But the senator sent his reaction to the news about the warrant of arrest for him. “If the Binay family believes that I can be intimidated and threatened from exposing them, they are badly mistaken. I will do everything I can to make sure that plunderers will not rule this country again”, he said.

Continue readingThe Junjun Binay libel case vs Trillanes