Patayan Sa Davao City, Walang Humpay

DAVAO CITY (Mindanao Examiner / Oct. 21, 2007) – Isang Chinese businessman ang pinatay sa lungsod ng Davao City sa Mindanao at posibleng sabit ang grupong Davao Death Squad (DDS) sa krimen.

Sinabi ngayon araw ng pulisya na binaril sa ulo sa dayuhan na tubong lalawigan ng Fujian sa China.

Hindi pa mabatid ang motibo sa pagpatay, ngunit sinabi ng pulisya na walang kinalaman ang hold-up sa krimen dahil nabawi pa sa bangkay ang kanyang cell phone, alahas at wallet.

Hindi naman agad ibinigay ng pulisya ang pangalan ng biktima at ipababatid poa umano ito sa Chinese Embassy. Tinatayang nasa 40 taong gulang ang biktima at may negosyo umano sa Davao.

Malaki naman anhg hinala ng iba na ang DDS ang nasa likod ng pamamaslang dahil marami na itong napatay at pinaniniwalaang private goons sa lungsod.

Talamak ang patayan sa Davao at mistulang inutil naman ang mga awtoridad sa kadahilanang ni isang miyembro ng DDS ay walang nadarakip dito.

Daan-daan mga katao na ang napatay ng DDS s amga nakalipas na taon at karamihan sa mga itinumba nito ay mga umano'y kriminal o kaya ay may mga records sa pulisya. (Mindanao Examiner)

Japan-RP Economic Deal, To Ratify Or Not?

MANILA, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 05 Sept) – Opposition Senator Loren Legarda on Wednesday questioned the effects on local trade of the controversial Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA) after one of the country’s oldest Japanese firm says it will shutdown operation in the country.

She asked: “Will Manila's weakened import tax system that comes with the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement drive large Japanese companies to close down their factories here, and simply bring in at lower cost their finished products from Thailand, Vietnam and other Asian countries?”

Legarda, head of the Senate committee on economic affairs, raised this question shortly after Japanese condiment maker Ajinomoto Co. Inc. bared that it would terminate its Philippine manufacturing operations effective Oct. 10.

Ajinomoto, which has been in the country since 1953, said it would reduce its Philippine activities to the marketing, distribution and sales of ready-made condiments from facilities in Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and China.

The shutdown of Ajinomoto Philippines Corp.'s Pasig City factory would result in dislocation of 271 full-time workers.

Ajinomoto is a well-established brand in the Philippines. The firm produces mostly food seasoning, soup mixes and cooking oils, including monosodium glutamate (MSG), more popularly know here as "Vetsin" and the first-of-its-kind "Ginisa flavor mix."

The firm's Pasig plant also produced frozen foods and juices.

“If Japanese firms like Ajinomoto are already abandoning their manufacturing plants here, even before the onset of the lower (Philippine) tariff schedule that comes with the JPEPA, what assurance do we have that the promised increased productive investments from Japan will actually come in, once the Senate ratifies the accord?”

“What impact will the JPEPA actually have, for instance, on our automotive manufacturing industry, which is dominated by Japanese firms, and which employs thousands of Filipino workers?” Legarda asked.

The Department of Trade and Industry earlier said it expects a total of P222 billion in incremental investments from Japan over the next four years once the Senate ratifies the JPEPA.

“Once the JPEPA is in place, will Toyota Motor Phils. Corp., Honda Cars Phils. Inc., Mitsubishi Motors Phils. Corp. and Isuzu Phils. Corp., also start dismantling their manufacturing plants here? What will stop them from just bringing in, at lower cost, completely build up Japanese cars from Thailand or somewhere else?" Legarda asked.

"These are justifiable questions that the administration, which is pushing hard for the JPEPA, should answer straightforwardly," she said in a statement sent to the Mindanao Examiner.

"If the feared risk of migration by some Japanese manufacturers is real, then we hope the administration had the foresight to prepare a program of safety nets to go with the JPEPA, once the agreement is finally endorsed to the Senate," Legarda said.

Legarda, however, said economic and trade planners should clearly project and specify as to which sectors or industries stand to gain from the JPEPA, and the extent of the benefits in terms of jobs creation.

Zamboanga Cops Link Soldier To Chinese Slay

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 01 Nov) – Police on Wednesday have implicated a government soldier as allegedly behind the murder of a Chinese trader in Zamboanga City.

Police said the soldier was linked to the Oct. 26 killing of Mawang Huang by the wife of a dismissed soldier who was earlier captured here in a raid on his hideout. The captured man was also allegedly involved in the killing.

Huang, who owns three cell phone stores here, was shot in downtown Zamboanga and police said robbery was the likely motive for the attack.

Police did not release the name of the soldier, but local media reports, quoting unnamed police officials, identified him only as Abas, who is assigned in Lanao del Norte province.

The reports could not be independently confirmed. Police mounted a massive manhunt for the suspect. More than a dozen people, including policemen and soldiers, had been killed in a spate of gun attacks here the past weeks blamed by authorities to the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group.

It was unknown whether the soldier or his group was involved in other killings. More than 200 people had been killed in a series of gun attacks in Zamboanga City the past four years.

Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat has offered P50,000 rewards for anyone who can help authorities solve the string of murders, but the bounty was too small compared to the P43 million intelligence fund the local government has, his critics say.

Local traders have expressed alarm over the unabated killings. (Mindanao Examiner)

Chinese Trader Shot In Downtown Zamboanga

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 26 Oct) – A Chinese trader was shot and critically wounded in an attack late Thursday in downtown Zamboanga City in the southern Philippines, police said.

The man, identified only as Huang, was shot in the chest by a motorcycle gunman at around 7 p.m. along the busy downtown road called Tomas Claudio, police said.

Huang, who has several cell phone shops in Zamboanga City, was making rounds on his stores when attacked.

“He is our boss and usually goes around at this time to visit his stores downtown. He usually carries a bag full of cell phones,” a woman, who works for Huang, told reporters.

Little was known about the victim except that he resides in Manila, but was in Zamboanga City to visit his business. It was not immediately known if Huang has relatives here.

Last week, unidentified gunmen also killed two cops in separate attacks in Zamboanga City.

More than 200 people had been killed in a series of gun attacks in Zamboanga City the past four years. (Mindanao Examiner)