DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Rodrigo Duterte wants to make a comeback in the Philippines. What could go wrong?
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-16 | by ( Kathleen Magramo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

But major cracks appeared in January, when Rodrigo Duterte called Marcos a “drug addict” and threatened that the president could be removed from power. Months later, Vice President Duterte-Carpio resigned as education secretary, a departure seen by analysts as a sign that the relationship between the country’s top leaders was beyond repair. “And when they get there, I will be the president of hell.”Marcos insisted he thought he and the vice president were friends. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte attend an education-related event in Manila on January 25, 2024. Despite all the controversies and alleged links to extrajudicial killings and suspected criminals, Duterte has told Davao voters that a vote for him is a vote for order.

Persons: Rodrigo Duterte, Donald Trump’s, Sara Duterte, Carpio, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, –, Ferdinand Marcos, Marcos, Rodrigo Duterte’s, Richard Heydarian, ”, Duterte, “, ” Duterte, Duterte's, Jes Aznar, Sebastian Duterte, Paolo Duterte –, Heydarian, “ It’s, ” Heydarian, Ezra Acayan, Ferdinand Marcos Sr, ” Marcos, Sandro Marcos, behead, Ranjit Singh Rye, ” Rye, Cleve Arguelles, Numero, Sebastian, Rodrigo’s, Paolo, ” Arguelles, reigniting, Prospero Nograles, Margarita, Karlo Nograles, Arguelles, Pastor Apollo Carreon, God ”, of Jesus Christ Organizations: CNN, Trump, Asian Center of, University of the, International Criminal Court, ICC, Department of Education, Lawmakers, Getty, Davao, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Kyodo, Marcos, FBI Locations: Philippine, Davao City, Mindanao, Philippines, United States, China, University of the Philippines, Davao, Manila, “, Duterte, West Philippine, Washington, Beijing, Rye, Karlo, of

☆ The Filipinos Living in the Shadow of China’s Military Might
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-12 | by ( Camille Elemia | Jes Aznar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For travelers flying into the tiny island of Thitu, the reality of China’s territorial ambition becomes instantly clear. There they are: dozens of Chinese ships surrounding a speck of land that a few hundred Filipinos call home. Small wooden fishing boats line a white sand beach on the eastern shore. On a neighboring reef, it has constructed a military base whose lights shimmer at night like a city. So it is upgrading its crumbling military facilities that lie on the island’s southern end.

Locations: Thitu, China, Philippines

☆ Drag Goes Mainstream in the Philippines, a Bastion of Christianity
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-22 | by ( Camille Elemia | Jes Aznar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Before he put on the glittery neon yellow tasseled jumpsuit, donned the yellow wig, and lip synced and danced onstage under colorful spotlights, Paul Hidacan went through his preshow routine in a busy dressing room. “I grew up in my church,” said Mr. Hidacan, 21, who has attended service in cropped tops, skirts and boots, and started performing in drag last year. “I know there are some who raise their brows when they see me, but the pastors accept me.”In many places in the Philippines, drag is becoming more mainstream, and more popular. Drag queens are on fashion magazine covers, and are pitching name-brand products like MAC Cosmetics, Shell gasoline, Durex condoms and Samsung phones. Students of at least one public university recently held a drag competition.

Persons: Paul Hidacan, “, ”, Hidacan Organizations: MAC, Shell, Samsung Locations: Philippines

☆ What this holiday of sacrifice teaches us about mindfulness
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-16 | by ( Monica Haider | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The three-day holiday of Eid-al-Adha commemorates the story in the Quran of God appearing to Ibrahim, or Abraham, in a dream and commanding him to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience. Muslims believe that as Abraham was about to sacrifice his son, an angel of God stopped him and gave him a ram to sacrifice in place of his son. Many people kick off the holiday by calling and texting Muslims they know throughout the world with “Eid Mubarak,” which means blessed feast or festival. Here are some mindful takeaways from the Eid holiday that you can include in your routine – no matter what you believe in. It sounds like a miraculous happening, but when applied to daily life, one can view it as doing one’s work and trusting that things fall into place.

Persons: Ibrahim, Abraham, God, “ Eid Mubarak, Abraham’s, Yasmine Saad, ”, Rania Awaad, Gabriel Reynolds, ” Reynolds, Eid, Prophet Abraham's, Ismail, Babu Babu, —, doesn’t, ” Saad, Jes Aznar, Getty, David Spiegel, “ we’ve, “, Awaad Organizations: CNN, Stanford Muslim Mental Health, Islamic Psychology, Islamic Studies, University of Notre Dame, Stress, Health, Stanford Medicine Locations: Saudi Arabia, Mecca, Islam, New York City, Chennai, India, Mamasapano, Central Mindanao, Philippines

They call it an encirclement of their nation and say the United States is trying to constrain its main economic and military rival. The United States also has a new security agreement with Papua New Guinea. On Wednesday, Mr. Biden signed a $95-billion supplemental military aid and spending bill that Congress had just passed and that includes $8.1 billion to counter China in the region. In addition, the United States continues to send weapons and Green Beret trainers to Taiwan, a de facto independent island and the biggest flashpoint between the United States and China. A swarm of Chinese militia and Coast Guard vessels chased a Philippine Coast Guard ship in the South China Sea last year.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Biden, Antony J, Blinken, Yuri Gripas, ” Ely Ratner, Xi, ” Kurt Campbell, Joseph Wu, ”, “, Samuel J, Paparo Jr, Mr, Paparo, Carl Vinson, Richard A, Brooks, Trump, Lloyd J, Austin III, Chen Jining, Jes Aznar, David H, Berger, Obama, Tony Mcdonough, United States —, Admiral Paparo, China’s “ revanchist, we’re Organizations: Australian, U.S, Marines, United, Pentagon, Corps, Mr, White House, White, The New York Times, American, Marine, Green, China’s, Liberation Army, Seoul SOUTH, Pacific Command, People’s Liberation Army, Agence France, Nuclear Forces Treaty, Defense, Communist Party, Tokyo Okinawa, U.S . Navy, Coast Guard, Philippine Coast Guard, Marine Corps, Army, Philippines Luzon Partner, Australia Darwin Potential, NATO, Tomahawk Locations: Beijing, United States, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Japan, Okinawa, Taiwan, Asia, Pacific, U.S, China, Shanghai, South China, South Korea, Guam, Washington, Manila, Taipei, People’s Republic of China, Palau, West Papua, Seoul, Tokyo JAPAN CHINA Taipei TAIWAN Hong Kong, GUAM philippines MALAYSIA INDONESIA JAPAN CHINA TAIWAN, philippines GUAM, INDONESIA Seoul, GUAM philippines, MALAYSIA INDONESIA, Philippine, Moscow, Tokyo, Ryukyu Islands, South, Philippines Luzon, Luzon, Spratly, Australia, Canberra, Singapore, Darwin, Australia’s, . North Carolina, Virginia, Perth, United Kingdom, Navy’s, America

☆ What Meltdown? Crypto Comes Roaring Back in the Philippines.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Eli Tan | Jes Aznar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

On a recent Tuesday night, around 20 people crowded into the second floor of Joniel Bon’s newly opened internet cafe in Quezon City, 10 miles from Manila. Seated at computers with 34-inch curved monitors, they began playing video games such as Heroes of Mavia and Nifty Island, as music from Taylor Swift and Maroon 5 hummed from the speakers. Playing these games can be a full-time job, and some of Mr. Bon’s customers had settled in for the night with slices of pizza to fuel them. The games reward players with cryptocurrency tokens for completing small, daily challenges. Often, players convert their tokens to pesos, the country’s currency, earning around twice the Philippines’ minimum wage of $11 a day.

Persons: Taylor Swift Locations: Quezon City, Manila, Nifty, Philippines

The European Union’s upcoming ban on imports linked to deforestation has been hailed as a “gold standard” in climate policy: a meaningful step to protect the world’s forests, which help remove planet-killing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. The law requires traders to trace the origins of a head-spinning variety of products — beef to books, chocolate and charcoal, lipstick and leather. To the European Union, the mandate, set to take effect next year, is a testament to the bloc’s role as a global leader on climate change. Developing countries have expressed outrage — with Malaysia and Indonesia among the most vocal. Together, the two nations supply 85 percent of the world’s palm oil, one of seven critical commodities covered by the European Union’s ban.

Organizations: European Union Locations: Malaysia, Indonesia

This is what it looks like when a Chinese naval vessel bears down on your fishing boat. We know because we were there. This boat was carrying Times journalists off the island of Palawan, in the Philippines, looking at how China was imposing its territorial ambitions on the South China Sea. An international court says China has no claim to these waters. The Chinese navy boat guarding Mischief Reef said differently.

Locations: Palawan, Philippines, China

☆ They Ride and Lasso Like Texans. They Live 8,000 Miles Away.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Jes Aznar | Mike Ives | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

A honky-tonk twang echoes across a fairground as cowhands wrangle cattle inside a dirt-floored stadium. The scene would be typical in Texas, but this rodeo is happening about 8,000 miles away, on an island in the Philippines. Nearly every spring for 30 years, the best wranglers in the country have traveled to the island province of Masbate to test their skills at the Rodeo Festival in Masbate City. It’s both a sporting event and a celebration of Philippine cowboy and cowgirl culture. “Where there’s cattle, there’s rodeo,” said Leo Gozum, 51, a livestock farmer who directs the festival’s rodeo events.

Persons: ”, Leo Gozum Organizations: wranglers, Rodeo Locations: Texas, Philippines, Masbate, Masbate City, Philippine

☆ Taiwan’s Trade Clash with China Could Benefit the U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Yuka Hayashi | Joyu Wang | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The U.S. and the Philippines have carried out the largest-ever annual military exercises amid an escalation of Chinese military activity around Taiwan. WSJ’s Shelby Holliday explains what makes this year’s drills different. Photo: Jes Aznar/Getty ImagesWASHINGTON—Taiwan has begun preparing for a sharp rise in economic tension with China, stepping up efforts to encourage businesses to look for investments in the U.S. and other countries. Businesses from the island are facing a sprawling Chinese trade investigation involving nearly 2,500 goods, including agricultural products, metals, plastics, chemicals and minerals. The probe, which Beijing has said is in response to “trade barriers,” threatens to disrupt commerce to Taiwan’s top export destination.

Search resuls for: "Jes Aznar"

10 mentions found