Asia Pacific Apr 21, 2022

Philippine 'Avengers' battle disinformation before election

Misinformation campaigns are a thriving, and fact checkers can only catch the falsehoods once they're already in circulation.

Asia Pacific May 20, 2017

Duterte says China's Xi threatened war if Philippines drills for oil

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said on Friday that his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping had warned him there would be war if Manila tried to enforce an arbitration ruling and drill for oil in a disputed part of the South China Sea. In remarks that could ...

Asia Pacific / Crime & Legal | FOCUS Apr 19, 2017

Senior Philippine police officials detail paid killings and staged crime scenes in Duterte's drug war

The Philippine police have received cash payments for executing drug suspects, planted evidence at crime scenes and carried out most of the killings they blame on vigilantes, said two senior officers who are critical of President Rodrigo Duterte's "war on drugs." In the most detailed ...

World / Politics Dec 28, 2016

Blood and benefits: Duterte imposes his formula on the Philippines

Rodrigo Duterte has kept his word. "Forget the laws on human rights," he declared in May at his final presidential campaign rally in Manila. "If I make it to the presidential palace, I will do just as I did as mayor. You drug pushers, hold-up ...

Asia Pacific / Crime & Legal Aug 31, 2016

Death toll in Duterte's Philippine drug war surges to 2,000

The number of drug-related killings in the Philippines since Rodrigo Duterte became president two months ago on a pledge to wipe out the illegal drug trade, has reached around 2,000, fresh data has shown. There has been popular support for his campaign, but the wave ...

Asia Pacific / Social Issues Jul 10, 2016

Latest U.S. country rankings on human trafficking raise eyebrows in some Asian nations

When the U.S. government last week raised the Philippines to its highest ranking in a report that assesses how much countries are battling human trafficking, putting it alongside the likes of Britain, Switzerland and Australia, the decision was questioned by aid workers in the ...

Asia Pacific Jul 5, 2015

China lobbies U.N. tribunal on Manila's claims

China's claims to the disputed South China Sea will come under international legal scrutiny for the first time this week, but while Beijing has officially refused to take part in the case, which was filed by the Philippines at a U.N. tribunal, it has ...

Asia Pacific May 15, 2015

In Philippine bay, fear of China trumps fear of brothels

Once opposed to the prospect of a major naval base inside the Philippines' picturesque Ulugan Bay, fearing it would mean bars and brothels for visiting sailors, local residents now look forward to the arrival of American and other foreign warships. The reason is China, whose ...