Current Events for Finals

8/13/2019 Current Events for Finals

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PDAF suspended, but not abolished,

SolGen tells SC

ByTetch Torres-TupasINQUIRER.net

5:56 pm | Thursday, October 10th, 2013

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MANILA, PhilippinesDespite Malacaangs pronouncements that the PriorityDevelopment Assistance Fund (PDAF) has been abolished, the governmentchief lawyer told the Supreme Court that the President has no power to stop it.

Solicitor General Francis Jardeleza. INQUIRER PHOTO

Can the President abolish PDAF, Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio

asked Solicitor General Francis Jardeleza.

Not in the sense of abolishing [PDAF] but the President has the general power

to stop releases, Jardeleza told Carpio during part 2 of the oral argument onquestions on the constitutionality of PDAF.

Carpio questioned Jardeleza why he asked for partial lifting of temporaryrestraining order in the use of the remaining 2013 PDAF for scholars and indigentsick people when it has been abolished.

Jardeleza said there was only a suspension of PDAF use for soft projects.
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Earlier Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said they were not bothered byCarpios remarks that the 2013 General Appropriations Act is riddled withunconstitutionality because PDAF has been abolished.

You know, the President has already announced that the PDAF has been

abolishedThey want to declare it unconstitutional. And so they want to make

sure that it will no longer be enacted in some other time. But, as far as theexecutive branch is concerned, the President has already stated that we haveabolished the PDAF, Lacierda said.

The President himself made the announcement last Aug. 23.

But during Thursdays oral argument, Carpio said PDAF could only be abolishedif Congress passes a law or if the high court declares it as unconstitutional.

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SC raises serious questions on PDAFCarpios queries indicate pork barrel illegal

ByTJ Burgonio,Gil C. Cabacungan Christine O. AvendaoPhilippine Daily Inquirer

12:21 am | Wednesday, October 9th, 2013

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Antonio Carpio, the most senior justice of the Supreme Court, zeroed in Tuesdayon provisions in the General Appropriations Act (GAA) of 2013 and askedwhether these can be regarded as unconstitutional.

These are:

The authority of a lawmaker to identify a project as the recipient of the PriorityDevelopment Assistance Fund (PDAF) in the GAA.

The delegation by the President to a Cabinet secretary the authority to realign

funds.The concurrence of the Senate finance committee and the Houseappropriations committee to such realignment.

At the start of oral arguments on several petitions asking the Supreme Court tooverturn three previous rulings upholding the legality of the PDAF, Carpiodirected his questions to Alfredo Molo III, lawyer of petitioner Grego Belgica, adefeated senatorial candidate.
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To all these questions, Molo replied that these provisions in the GAA mentionedby Carpio were unconstitutional.

Molo said it was unconstitutional for a lawmaker to identify a project but in thisyears national budget this was binding and mandatory on the executive

department. A legislator, he said, does not represent Congress and for him toidentify a project is unconstitutional.

This is very simple. On its face, you dont need a COA (Commission on Audit)

report. You can declare PDAF unconstitutional because what? In theexpenditure of funds, it says the President cant spend the money without theconcurrence of the Senate committee on finance and House committee onappropriation. Thats unconstitutional, correct? Because the GAA has been

approved already, Carpio said.

That the Cabinet secretary can realign, thats unconstitutional. That the Senate

committee and House committee can concur with the realignment, thats

unconstitutional. That the legislator can identify a project and thats binding onthe executive. Thats unconstitutional, correct? he added.

Carpio observed that the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) putin all those provisions in the 2013 GAA because this was the practice in the past,although this was not reflected in the GAA.

At first, they were cognizant that the legislators cant execute the GAA. But

they forgot everything now. Thats the problem now. Its riddled with

unconstitutionalities. Correct? On its face. You dont need a COA report,

Carpio said.

The oral arguments, which lasted for 5 1/2 hours, on three petitions questioningthe legality of the PDAF came amid widespread indignation on allegations thatP10 billion in the congressional pork barrel system went to bogusnongovernment organizations (NGOs) and kickbacks to lawmakers in schemeshatched by detained businesswoman Janet-Lim Napoles.

While the issue is being litigated, the court in the meantime suspended theissuance of PDAF funds, to the chagrin of lawmakers who claimed they havenearly 500,000 scholars and thousands of indigent patients dependent on theirpork. They pleaded that the court lift this suspension, particularly with thesecond-semester enrollment just around the corner.

Veto power clipped

The hearings will continue on Oct. 10 and 17. The court said it would holdseparate oral arguments on the controversial Disbursement AccelerationProgram (DAP), an impounding mechanism for government savings, that wasused as a source of the P50 million to P100 million in additional pork given tosenators, following the conviction of Chief Justice Renato Corona in May lastyear.


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Carpio noted that the PDAF also deprived the President of the power to vetothe spending items inserted in the lump sum items approved by lawmakers.

He said that if a legislator reckoned that the President would veto his spendingproposal, the legislator would just simply insert the spending item in his pork,depriving the Chief Executive of his chance to strike this out of the budget. Hesaid this violated the system of checks and balances in a democratic system.

Should the court rule the PDAF unconstitutional, Carpio said the pork wouldrevert to the general fund and the only way lawmakers could access this wouldbe through a supplemental budget where the spending items would bereviewed line by line.

That is the intention of the framers of the Constitution because the Presidenthas a chance to veto an item if he thinks its a waste of government money,

said Carpio.

Justice Jose Perez observed that the PDAF was unconstitutional by itself

because it allowed lawmakers to implement the law after approving itthemselves.

Extraordinary situation

Justice Marvic Leonen said that the failure of the system had led to anextraordinary situation where the political brancheslegislative and executiveappeared to be together on this and where the judiciary was now compelled

to intervene to stop this grave abuse of power.

Leonen said that even if the PDAF were declared unconstitutional, it would notend corruption because the lawmakers could still push for their desired projects

through congressional insertions. He said it was unfair that the judiciary wasgiven a heavy burden to correct the system.

We are not the savior, the Filipino people working through the departments will

be the saviors. Everybody needs to work together, Leonen said.

Leonen, an Aquino appointee to the high tribunal, sought to expose possibleholes in the petitions, specifically asking Molo to clarify whether indeed thePresident could be impleaded when hes immune from suit. He also wondered

why the petitioner questioned PDAF in general, but not specific provisions in theGAA pertaining to PDAF.

Associate Justice Teresita de Castro, for her part, took to task COA chair GracePulido-Tan, who appeared during the hearing as an amicus curiae, or friend ofthe court, for not checking the misuse of pork barrel over the last several years.Tan apologized and said she came aboard only in 2011.

Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno said the issue before the high court could bepolitical and beyond its purview.


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We are sensitive to the fact that we are not politicians. There are political

solutions, but we have to know if it is time to step in, Sereno said.

Systems failure

Molo replied that injecting shock into the system could send a strong message

that the Supreme Court would enforce boundaries that the legislative andexecutive branches would no longer be allowed to cross.

Sereno expressed astonishment on why, starting with the 2006 national budget,there was a philosophical shift by Congress and the executive branch toward

NGOs in implementing the PDAF.

She observed that the people were financing the growth of NGOs bychanneling funds to them and that the Government Procurement Policy Boardresolution was being used as a legal template to farm out projects to NGOs.

Is this a systems failure? Sereno asked the COA chair. Tan countered that it

was more of a breakdown of controls.We have a systems failure and its too foregone and accountability checks

should have been working which was not, Molo added.

Molo also agreed that Presidential Decree No. 910, issued by the dictatorFerdinand Marcos in 1976, authorizing the President to use proceeds from theMalampaya gas project off Palawan province for other projects other thanenergy development, was unconstitutional.

Carpio noted that by authorizing the President to use the fund for any purpose,Congress abdicated its power to appropriate.

While this was not a problem then because Marcos exercised the powers ofboth the executive and the legislative deparments, it became a problem whenthen President Corazon Aquino came to power in 1986, he observed.

Under the 1987 Constitution, the President could not use that power anymorewith regard to the multibillion-peso Malampaya Fund. When Congressconvened, President Aquino lost her legislative power, he said.

Carpio asked Molo whether giving the President the power to use theMalampaya Fund for any purpose was unconstitutional. The lawyer replied, On

its face, yes.

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Napoles, 37 others face plunder, graft

raps

ByKristine Angeli Sabillo,Matikas SantosINQUIRER.net

3:55 pm | Monday, September 16th, 2013

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MANILA, PhilippinesPlunder charges were filed before the OmbudsmanMonday against Janet Lim-Napoles, alleged mastermind of the P10-billion porkbarrel scam, Senate minority leader Juan Ponce Enrile, Senators Jose Jinggoy

Estrada and Ramon Revilla Jr. and two former representatives.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima on Monday said at a news conference at the

Ombudsman office that in total 38 were facing charges over allegedconspiracy to divert P10-billion to dummy aid organizations and ghost projects inexchange for kickbacks.

De Lima said the five lawmakers allegedly committed plunder in conspiracy withNapoles and other officials of the implementing agencies when eachaccumulated more than the P50 million plunder threshold through a series oftransactions over time through misappropriation, conversion, misuse, andmalversation of the cash value of the project cost allocated from their PDAFand through their acceptance of kickbacks or commissions.

They were Revilla, P224,512,500; Enrile, P172,834,500; Estrada, P183,793,759;former Masbate 3rd district Rep. Rizalina Seachon-Lanete, P108,405,000; andformer Apec Rep. Edgar Valdez, P56,087,500.

Three former representatives were also facing charges for involvement inmalversation, direct bribery and other graft and corrupt practices. They are:

- Rodolfo Plaza of one district of Agusan del Sur- Samuel Dangwa of the lone district of Benguet- Constantino Jaraula of Cagayan de Oro

Mentioned last was Janet Lim-Napoles as co-conspirator of the accusedlawmakers.
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PLUNDER CASES: Janet Lim Napoles, Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Jose JinggoyEstrada and Ramon Bong Revilla Jr. named in the complaint PHOTO by

INQUIRER.nets Matikas Santos

As co-conspirator in the case of the five lawmakers being charged of plunderand 3 other lawmakers charged for malversation and corruption of publicofficials is Ms. Janet Lim-Napoles, the owner of JLN Group of Companies andbelieved to be the mastermind of the PDAF (Priority Development andAssistance Fund) scam operations, De Lima said.

The Justice Secretary said they also recommended the filing of plunder ormalversation charges against staff of the mentioned lawmakers, officials ofinvolved government corporations and officers of Napoles non-governmentorganizations.

Others facing charges include:

Staff of lawmakers- Atty. Jessica Lucila ReyesChief of staff (COS) of Sen. Enrile- Richard Cambestaff of Sen. Revilla- Ruby Tuasonrepresentative of Sen. Enrile and Sen. Estrada- Pauline Labayenstaff of Sen. Estrada- Jose SumalpongCOS of former Rep. Lanete- Jeanette dela Cruzdistrict staff of former Rep. Lanete- Erwin DangwaCOS of former Rep. Dangwa- Carlos Lozadastaff of former Rep. Dangwa

(officers of government corporations)- Alan Javellanaformer president of the National Agribusiness Corporation(NABCOR)- Gondelina Amatapresident of the National Livelihood DevelopmentCorporation (NLDC)- Antonio Ortizformer director general of the Technology Resource Center(TRC)
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- Dennis Cunananformer deputy director general, now director general, ofTRC- Salvador Salacupformer president of ZNAC Rubber Estate Corporation(ZREC), now assistant secretary at the Department of Agriculture

NGO officials- Jocelyn Pioratohead of Agricultura para sa Magbubukid Foundation Inc.- Nemencio Pablohead of Agri and Economic Program for FarmersFoundation Inc.- Mylene EncarnacionCountrywide Agri and Rural Economic DevelopmentFoundation Inc.- John Raymond de AsisKaupdanan para sa Mangunguma Foundation Inc.- Evelyn DeleonPhilippine Social Development Foundation Inc.- Ronald John LimGinintuang Alay sa Magsasaka Foundation Inc.

Also recommended to be charged with plunder of malversation were fiveemployees of NABCOR, three from NLDC, and two from TRC:

NABCOR- Victor Cacal- Ma. Ninez Guanizo- Julie Johnson- Rhodora Mendoza

NLDC- Alexis Sevidal- Sofia Cruz- Chila Jalandoni

TRC- Francisco Figura- Marivic Jover

The P10 billion pork barrel scam was first exposed by Philippine Daily Inquirer in aseries of articles alleging the misuse of lawmakers PDAF through Napoles bogus

non-government organizations.

On August 16, the Commission on Audit released a special report on the PDAFwhich revealed questionable practices on the release of the discretionary fundsto lawmakers and dubious NGOs.

According to de Lima, the bulk of the evidence included the affidavits of thewhistleblowers, copies of transactions and documents from the Commission onAudit and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

She said the Department of Justice hopes to further solidify these cases with thefindings of the Anti-Money Laundering Council on the frozen bank accounts ofNapoles as ordered by the Court of Appeals, courtesy of the coercive powersof the Ombudsman.


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In the complaints, De Lima said the modus operandi was for lawmaker to getfrom Napoles 40 to 60 percent of the cash value of the project as kickback inexchange for selecting the NGO identified with her as recipient of his/her PriorityDevelopment Assistance Fund (PDAF).

She said the lawmaker first submits a list of propertiesDe Lima said in filing the cases, the NBI focused mainly on the criminal chargesand that it was up to anyone to file other charges against the accused.

She said the NBI will also file next week the charges in connection with themisuse and abuse of the Malampaya Fund and the second batch of casesinvolving PDAF in two weeks.

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Scattered fighting erupts in Zamboanga

CityAgence France-Presse

2:27 pm | Sunday, September 29th, 2013

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MANILA, PhilippinesGovernment forces hunted the remnants of the MoroNational Liberation Front in Zamboanga City Sunday, with residents hearinggunfire a day after the military declared an end to its three-week campaign.

The Army Saturday announced that police were taking over from troops to clearsections of the vital regional trading center of MNLF stragglers.

But just minutes after the military said the threat to Zamboanga was over,soldiers killed three MNLF fighters in a clash that also left six troops wounded.

What happened was not organized resistance. These are stragglers trying to

escape capture,Zagala told Agence France Presse Sunday, adding that only

a handful of rebels remained.The mission is completed. We have already neutralised the threat to

Zamboanga City.

Fighters swarmed into the citys neighborhoods 20 days ago, taking hostages

and triggering weeks of violence as they sought to derail peace talks betweenthe government a rival guerrilla rebel faction.
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More than 10,000 homes were razed to the ground forcing over 100,000 peoplearound a tenth of the citys population to flee.

The latest clash put the toll at 189 MNLF fighters killed, with 292 captured orsurrendering, while 23 soldiers and police and 12 civilians had also been slain.

A total of 195 civilian hostages had been rescued with no more believed to stillbe in the hands of the gunmen, said Zagala.

The military said Nur Misuari, who founded the MNLF in the early 1970s, had senthundreds of armed followers led by his top lieutenant Habier Malik, toZamboanga.

Maliksidentification card had been found on the body of a slain MNLFmember, Zagala said, though it was too early to confirm his death and forensicexaminations were being carried out.

The conflict area30-40 hectares (74-99 acres) of densely packed

communities, mangrove swamps and pondswould take about two weeks toclear of possible MNLF stragglers, unexploded bombs, booby traps and theburied bodies of dead gunmen, he said.

Muslim rebels have been fighting since the 1970s for an independent orautonomous homeland. An estimated 150,000 people have died in the conflict.

The MNLF signed a peace treaty in 1996 that granted limited self-rule to thesouths Muslim minority.

However, the group is opposed to a planned final peace deal between thegovernment and the remaining major Muslim rebel group, the 12,000-strong

Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).The MNLF believes the deal could leave it sidelined.

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RH law is gender neutral, says govt rep in

final round of debatesByJamie Marie ElonaINQUIRER.net

4:22 pm | Tuesday, August 27th, 2013

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The Supreme Court building in Manila. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, PhilippinesThe Reproductive Health Law does not discriminate a manor a woman when it provided that a health-care provider can be penalized if

he or she refused to perform legal and medically safe health procedure overthe absence of the spouses consent, Florin Hilbay, Senior State Solicitor of theOffice of the Solicitor General, said Tuesday.

It is gender neutral, Hilbay said in his opening remark during the fifth and last

round of oral arguments on the RH law, otherwise known as Republic Act 10354,held at the Supreme Court building.

He issued the statement as reply to the argument of petitioner Couples for ChristFoundation that the RH Law violates the freedom of religion as it confers upon

the wife sole authority to decide on matters relating to her reproductive healthin disregard of their Catholic faith which gives the husband authority to decidein cases of marital deadlock . . .

Hilbay noted that the law recognizes the constitutional right to l iberty andprivacy of either the couple to undergo an RH procedure.

He argued that the petitioner wants men to have the right to override thedecision of women to avail of an RH service.

This is not only unfair, it is also unconstitutional, Hilbay said.

Under the RH Law, it was stated that in case a couple ends up having differentdecisions on a certain RH service, the decision of the one undergoing the

procedure shall prevail.Hiblay is the last speaker from the government side in the series of oralarguments on the constitutionality of the RH Law.

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govt-rep-in-final-round-of-debates#ixzz2hOVlVbdM


Pia Cayetano, Lagman defend RH lawByChristine O. AvendaoPhilippine Daily Inquirer

6:33 am | Wednesday, August 14th, 2013

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PH law authors Sen Pia Cayetano (left) and Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman

MANILA, PhilippinesThe two legislators who authored the reproductive health(RH) legislation pleaded Tuesday with the Supreme Court to uphold the

constitutionality of the suspended law, with Sen. Pia Cayetano arguing, amongother things, that those challenging it had a low regard for women.

At the resumption of oral arguments on Tuesday on the petitions against theimplementation of the RH law, it was the turn of the intervenors in the petition tospeak.

Cayetano and former Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman appeared in court to defendthe laws passage and appeal to the high tribunal to uphold its constitutionality

and ensure its implementation.

Various individuals identified with the Catholic Church and pro-choice groups

have filed suit in the high court to stop the implementation of the RH law, orRepublic Act No. 10354, which mandates the state to provide the poor withreproductive health services, including access to contraceptives and sexeducation for schoolchildren.

Lagman said the high court need not resolve the issue on when life begins,which the petitioners have raised in determining the laws constitutionality.
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I strongly suggest that the issue on constitutionality raised by the petitioners can

be resolved without adjudicating on when l ife beginsas this is a more on thedebate on medical science, said Lagman, the principal author of the RH bill in

the House.

The 1987 Constitution was after all silent on the issue on when life begins, he toldthe high court.

RH law advocates contend that life begins when a fertilized ovum is implantedin a womans womb while those against the law argue that life begins during

fertilization.

In his presentation, Lagman said the RH law protects the life of the unborn, isagainst abortion, and equally protects the life of the mother.

Lagman tangled with Associate Justice Roberto Abad, who in the past threesessions of oral arguments had peppered speakers for the RH law with questions,indicating his stand against the law.

Abad said the RH law will see half of the 23 million Filipinos of child-bearing agegetting contraceptives and intra-uterine devices (IUDs) from the government toavoid maternal-related deaths. But he pointed out that contraceptives and IUDshave resulted in many complications for women like irregular bleeding.

But Lagman said the National Statistics Office has stated that 14 women diedaily because of complications from pregnancy and childbirth, which areamong the problems to be addressed by the RH law.

He also pointed out that contraceptives were included in the essential list ofmedicines of the World Health Organization, which is the main health authority

of the United Nations of which the Philippines is a member.

Abad maintained that a natural form of contraception like withdrawal duringsex was more effective than using artificial contraception, but Lagman arguedthat the RH law promotes all methods and gave couples the option to choosefrom these methods.

No one will be compelled to use contraceptives, Lagman said.

Abad also broached the prospect of adolescents being able to gain access tocontraceptives because of the sex education that they will be getting.

I think we are working on a wrong premise that adolescents, [as well as] adults,

are inherently promiscuous. That should not be the assumption, Lagmancountered, noting that UN studies actually show that sex education would havebeneficial effects on the young as it would instill in them the proper sex values,

delay their engagement in sexual relations, and teach them to avoid havingmultiple sexual partners.

Abad also peppered Cayetano with questions on her position when it was theturn of the senator to present her case.


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Abad argued that hormonal contraceptives have the highest possibility ofcausing cancer and that they can cause Class Icancer.

Cayetano countered that the Class I rank was actually the lowest class as it

was similar to the risk of women getting sick from microwaves and television.

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UN Security Council passes first

resolution on small arms trade

Agence France-Presse| September 27, 2013 at 1:07 pm

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US Secretary of State John Kerry walks towards a dais to speak with mediamembers after a meeting of the five permanent members of the SecurityCouncil plus Germany during the 68th session of the United Nations GeneralAssembly at U.N. headquarters, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2013. AP Photo/Craig Ruttle

UNITED NATIONSThe UN Security Council passed its first resolution Thursday onrestricting the trade in illicit small arms, but Russia refused to back the measure.
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Russia was the only member of the 15-nation body not to support the resolutiondrawn up by Australia, the councils current president.

The measure calls on nations to consider signing a new treaty in conventionalarms, as well as for strengthening the implementation of Security Councilweapons embargoes and securing arms stockpiles.

Russia, which abstained from the vote, said the resolution should havecontained provisions against illegal supplies of arms to non-state groups.

Alexander Pankin, Russias deputy UN ambassador, told the council theresolution lacks an important and urgent provision that his delegation had

proposed.

Russia, one of the worlds key arms producers and exporters, has shunned the

arms treaty. It also often raises the case of non-state groups to attack Syrianopposition rebels.

UN leader Ban Ki-moon used the meeting to urge more countries to sign thetreaty, which the United States joined on Tuesday.

Australias Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said the council has taken too long toadopt its first resolution on small arms.

She highlighted how illicit arms and weapons fuel conflict around the world.

These arms and weapons are linked to terrorism, piracy and transnational

organized crime. They are an impediment to peace building efforts everywhere,and pose threats to civilians, peacekeepers, aid workers and civil societyorganizations.

The council should consider these issues more systematically, return to thissubject with greater frequency and ensure that our commitments today are notforgotten tomorrow, Bishop said.

Syria opposition says 1,300 dead in

chemical attacks by armyAgence France-Presse

8:27 am | Thursday, August 22nd, 2013

5 756 68
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In this citizen journalism photo provided by the Local Committee of Arbeen, aman and woman mourn over the dead bodies of Syrian men after an alleged

poisonous gas attack fired by regime forces, according to activists in Arbeentown, Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2013. AP

BEIRUTSyrias main opposition group accused the government ofmassacring more than 1,300 people in chemical weapons attacks near

Damascus Wednesday, as the UN Security Council called for clarity and

expressed strong concern over the allegations.

The accusation, which was strongly denied by Damascus, came as a team ofUN inspectors was in Syria to probe previous allegations of chemical weaponsstrikes leveled against both sides during the 29-month conflict.

Following an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council in New York, thecouncils president, Argentinas envoy Maria Cristina Perceval, said: There must

be clarity on what happened and the situation must be followed carefully.

She added that members welcomed the determination of the secretarygeneral to ensure a thorough, impartial and prompt investigation.

The 15-nation body expressed strong concern about the allegations andagreed that any chemical weapons use is a violation of international law.
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Western governments demanded immediate access for the inspectors toinvestigate the new allegations. Russia, a longstanding ally of the Damascusregime, echoed the call for an inquiry but said it suspected a provocation by

the opposition and its foreign backers.

Videos distributed by activists, the authenticity of which could not immediatelybe verified, showed medics attending to suffocating children and hospitalsbeing overwhelmed.

More footage showed dozens of people laid out on the ground, among themmany children, some of them covered in white sheets.

The claim of chemical weapons use, which could not be independentlyconfirmed, was vehemently denied by the Syrian regime, which said it wasintended to hinder the work of the UN weapons inspectors already in thecountry.

Opposition sources accused the army of multiple chemical weapons strikes

one in Moadamiyet al-Sham, southwest of Damascus, and more in the capitalseastern suburbs.

The Local Coordination Committees (LCC), a network of activists, reportedhundreds of casualties from the brutal use of toxic gas by the criminal regime.

And in videos posted on YouTube, the Syrian Revolution General Commission,another activist group, showed what it called a terrible massacre committed

by regime forces with toxic gas.

In one video, children are seen being given first aid in a field hospital, notablyoxygen to help them breathe. Doctors appear to be trying to resuscitate

unconscious children.

Another video posted on YouTube showed what it said was a case of hysteriafollowing a chemical strike in the eastern suburbs.

A young girl held her head in her hands and frantically repeated Im alive, as

a man in a white coat tried to comfort her.

Not totally convinced

Specialists in the impact of chemical weapons said the video evidence was notentirely convincing.

At the moment, I am not totally convinced because the people that arehelping them are without any protective clothing and without any respirators,

said Paula Vanninen, director of Verifin, the Finnish Institute for Verification of theChemical Weapons Convention.

In a real case, they would also be contaminated and would also be having

symptoms.


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John Hart, head of the Chemical and Biological Security Project at StockholmInternational Peace Research Institute said he had not seen the telltaleevidence in the eyes of the victims that would be compelling evidence ofchemical weapons use.

Of the videos that Ive seen for the last few hours, none of them show pinpoint

pupils this would indicate exposureto organophosphorus nerve agents, he

said.

The opposition National Coalitions George Sabra said more than 1,300 people

had been killed in what he described as a coup de grace that kills all hopes for

a political solution in Syria.

The Syrian regime is mocking the UN and the great powers when it strikestargets near Damascus, while the (UN weapons inspectors) are just a few stepsaway, he said.

State news agency SANA said reports on the use of chemical weapons in

Ghouta (the Damascus suburbs) are totally false. Its an attempt to prevent theUN commission of inquiry from carrying out its mission.

UN chief Ban Ki-moons office said he was shocked by the reports and thattalks were already under way with President Bashar al-Assads government onsecuring access to the alleged attack sites.

The head of the UN inspection mission, Aake Sellstroem, was in discussions with

the Syrian government on all issues pertaining to the alleged use of chemicalweapons, including this most recent reported incident, a UN statement said.

Washington demanded the inspectors be given unfettered access.

For the UNs efforts to be credible, they must have immediate access to

witnesses and affected individuals, and have the ability to examine and collectphysical evidence without any interference or manipulation from the Syriangovernment, said White House spokesman Josh Earnest.

Washington has previously described chemical weapons use as a red line thatmight prompt it to intervene militarily in Syria.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague said: I hope this will wake up some whohave supported the Assad regime, to realize its murderous and barbaric nature.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel was quoted as saying it would be a frightful

crime if verified.

Moscow, which has said it has proof of chemical weapons use by the rebels inMarch, expressed skepticism about the oppositions claims.

The foreign ministry said the timing of the allegations as UN inspectors begantheir work makes us think that we are once again dealing with a premeditatedprovocation.


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Malampaya plunder: 20 face charges

ThursdayFormer DAR and DBM execs named in NBI complaint

ByNancy C. CarvajalPhilippine Daily Inquirer

12:46 am | Thursday, October 3rd, 2013

145 8284 6835

MAIN CHARACTERS Former secretaries and ex- and current undersecretaries ofthe agrarian reform, budget and finance departments, together with Janet Lim-Napoles, are among those who will be charged Thursday with either plunder or
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malversation before the Office of the Ombudsman for their alleged involvementin the P900-million Malampaya Fund scam.

Former Agrarian Reform Secretary Nasser Pangandaman, Janet Lim-Napolesand heads of bogus nongovernment organizations (NGOs) are among some 20people recommended to be charged Thursday with either plunder ormalversation in the Office of the Ombudsman for their involvement in the P900-million Malampaya Fund scam, lawyer Levito Baligod said on Wednesday.

Cecilio Zamora, spokesman of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), saidthe bureau would file the plunder and malversation charges, and submit atruckload of evidence to the Office of the Ombudsman in Quezon City on

Thursday.

Zamora said among those to be recommended for prosecution were formerand current officials of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) andDepartment of Budget and Management (DBM).

Besides Pangandaman, former Agrarian Reform Undersecretary Narciso Nietoand DAR finance officer Teresita Panlilio were among those to be charged.

Baligod declined to name the two DBM officials, saying it was up to theDepartment of Justice to name them. But sources said former Budget SecretaryRolando Andaya and Budget Undersecretary Mario Relampagos would also becharged.

The P900-million fund was supposed to benefit victims of the back-to-backTropical Storms Ondoy and Pepeng that hit Luzon in 2009, but was remittedinstead to Napoles, alleged mastermind of the P10-billion pork barrel scam,

through 12 NGOs that she had set up.Last month, the NBI filed plunder and malversation charges against Napoles,three senators and 34 others in connection with the pork barrel scam.

The 12 NGO presidents to be charged in the Malampaya Fund scam are JohnLim of Ginintuang Alay sa Magsasaka Foundation, John Raymond de Asis ofKaupdanan para sa Mangunguma Foundation, Genevieve Uy of Kasaganahanpara sa Magsasaka Foundation, Simplicio Gumafelix of Karangyaan para saMagbubukid Foundation, Jesus Castillo of Dalangpan Sang Amon UtodFoundation, Nova Kay Dulay of Tanglaw Para sa Magsasaka Foundation;

Gertrudes Kilapkilap of Bukirin Tanglaw Foundation, Lilian Espanol of SaganangBuhay sa Atin Foundation, Lorna Ramires of Masaganang Buhay Foundation,Vanessa Eman of Abundant Harvest for Peoples Foundation, Eulogio Rodriguez

of Gintong Pangkabuhayan and Ronald Francisco Lim of Micro Agri BusinessCitizens Initiative.

Each of the NGOs received amounts ranging from P55 million to P82.5 million,according to the liquidation report.


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No mayor to be charged

Baligod, a lawyer of the whistle-blowers, said that no mayor would be chargedin connection with the Malampaya Fund scam.

The beneficiaries and signatures of the [90] mayors were all forged. There was

no delivery of goods, he said.Baligod said he would act as a private complainant in the Malampaya Fundscam and that the NBI complaint would be signed by its officer in charge,Assistant Deputy Director Medardo de Lemos.

Merlina Suas, a former Napoles employee and whistle-blower in the pork scam,earlier said Napoles had assigned her as project coordinator with the DAR forthe Malampaya Fund operation.

Signatures forged

In her affidavit, Suas said the signatures of Nieto and the heads of the NGOs in

the tripartite memorandum of agreement for the distribution of the P900 millionwere genuine, but those of the mayors were forged.

She said the local government units (LGUs) were made the supposedbeneficiaries of the fund without their knowledge. The Napoles NGOs weresupposed to deliver agricultural kits to the LGUs.

Suas and Benhur Luy, another whistle-blower and a former Napoles employee,said there were no deliveries for the DAR livelihood projects because thesignatures of town mayors and the names of recipients on the list were forged.

Advance info

Luy said Napoles had been tipped off of the plan of the Arroyo administration torelease money from the multibillion-peso Malampaya Fund, royalties from thegas project off the west coast of Palawan province.

He said Napoles was given the information three months before Malacaangissued the directive releasing money from the Malampaya Fund.

Luy said Napoles called for a meeting of her JLN Corp. staff in their office at theDiscovery Suites in Pasig City in July 2009 after she found the Malampaya Fundas a new source of their racket.

It was on Oct. 13, 2009, when then Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita gave the

go-signal to agencies to use the Malampaya Fund in such amounts as may benecessary for relief operations, rehabilitation, reconstruction and other worksand services to areas affected by natural calamities.

Nine days later, Nieto formally requested a P900-million budget to providedirectly to our farmer-beneficiaries the necessary inputs to help them recoverfrom their losses in a letter to Andaya.


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The Arroyo administration spent a total of P14 billion from the Malampaya Fundsupposedly for areas devastated by Ondoy and Pepeng.

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Palace says DAP suspended with PDAF,

insists its not porkByKristine Angeli SabilloINQUIRER.net

4:06 pm | Monday, September 30th, 20132 592 113

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda FILE PHOTO

MANILA, PhilippinesThe Disbursement Allocation Program (DAP), which hasrecently been making headlines as the source of alleged bribes to senators, hasalready been suspended, said a Palace official on Monday.

We suspended DAP at the same time we suspended PDAF, according to

(Budget) Secretary Butch Abad, said Presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierdain a televised press conference.

The DAP was the latest of discretionary funds questioned by the public and themedia after Abad confirmed it was the source of the additional pork barrel

Senator Jose Jinggoy Estrada claimed was given to senators months after theconviction of Chief Justice Renato Corona last year.
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After the conviction of the former Chief Justice, those who voted to convict

were allotted an additional P50 million as provided in a private and confidentialletter memorandum of the then chair of the Senate committee on finance [nowSenate President Franklin Drilon], Estrada said in his privilege speech Thursday,

implying it was an incentive for the Coronas ouster.

But Drilon, in an earlier interview, said it was not a bribe while Lacierda insistedthe fund is not for the lawmakers use.

These funds are disbursed to the projects nominated by the senators so it

means it goes to the implementing agency, Lacierda said, adding that it is

reserved for important projects of the government.

Drilon said the DAP was introduced in 2011 to address governmentunderspending and the low GDP (gross domestic product) growth at the time.

Senators also debate on whether the DAP is a form of pork barrel.

Senator Panfilo Lacson said he considers DAP as regular pork, claiming the fundswere from insertions by lawmakers to the General Appropriations Act (GAA).

Senator Joker Arroyo, who received DAP this year but voted to acquit Corona,insisted it was not pork barrel. He said the P47 million he secured under the GAA,released in February, went directly to the Department of Education for theconstruction of school buildings in Bicol and for medical assistance.

On Saturday, Abad confirmed that Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, FrancisEscudero, and Drilon received around P100 million worth of releases from theDAP after the Corona impeachment. He said House members also receivedP10 million to P15 million in DAP, which was a lump sum budgetary item that

pooled savings from unused budgetary items.

Data released by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) showedthat all those who voted to convict Corona received DAP funds while those whovoted to acquit (Senators Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos and Miriam Defensor-Santiago) got nothing.

Lawmakers who received P30 million to P50 million worth of releases from theDAP were Senators Antonio Trillanes, Manuel Villar, Ramon Revilla, FrancisPangilinan, Loren Legarda, Lito Lapid, Jinggoy Estrada, Alan Cayetano, EdgardoAngara, Ralph Recto, Koko Pimentel, Vicente Sotto III, Teofisto Guingona, and

Serge Osmea.Lacierda said the DBM will soon release information on the agencies thatreceived funds from the DAP.

Read more:http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/498023/palace-says-dap-suspended-
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with-pdaf-insists-its-not-pork#ixzz2hOWy09up


Aquino defends DAP; ex-Chief Justice

seeks peoples action vs porkByChristian V. EsguerraPhilippine Daily Inquirer

1:56 am | Wednesday, October 9th, 2013

35 1058 656

The Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP), a lump-sum fund that critics sayis unconstitutional and another form of pork barrel that Malacaang controls, ishere to stay if President Aquino had his way.

The President on Monday rejected calls to scrap the DAP that allows theDepartment of Budget and Management (DBM) to pool government savingsand use them for other purposes.

Its not that we forced any savings on anybody, Aquino told reporters on the

sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Bali, Indonesia.

But retired Chief Justice Reynato Puno, apparently buoyed by the

antipork rallies, said Filipinos were empowered to scrap the pork barrel through apeoples initiative.

It is time for the One Million People March Movement to convene a PeoplesCongress to enact a law through initiative that will abolish the PriorityDevelopment Assistance Fund (PDAF), stop the DAP and check abuses ofCongress in the exercise of its power over the purse, Puno said in a statement.

Church bells across the country will ring on Friday in a show of solidarity withpeople calling for the abolition of the pork barrel system.

The Church Peoples Alliance against Pork Barrel on Tuesday encouraged all

parishes nationwide to join the tolling of bells for three minutes on Oct. 11 at 1p.m. to signal our deep attachment to the cries and struggles of the poor for

justice, peace and society.

The newly formed group is a coalition of bishops, priests, nuns and lay leadersfrom various denominations.

Aquinohimself criticized for enjoying discretion over some P450 billion in specialpurpose funds in next years national budgetmaintained that realigningsavings was not a unilateral decision on Malacaangs part.

Approved by Congress
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We can only fund from savings items that have already been approved byCongress. We are not inventing a new budgetary line, he argued.

The President said he was aware that portions of the savings had been coursedthrough lawmakers in the DAP scheme created by the DBM in 2011.

But on the issue that some of them eventually channeled funds toquestionable nongovernment organizations (NGOs) linked to Janet Lim-Napoles,he said he didnt know about this.

You expected those entrusted with the funds to act properly, he added.

DAP funds diverted

Last week, the Inquirer reported that four senators were allotted in 2011 a totalof P400 million for agrarian-related projects, but they later realignedthroughthe DBMmost of the amount to National Livelihood Development Corp.(NLDC).

Senators Bong Revilla, Jinggoy Estrada, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Tito Sotto IIIlater asked the NLDC to implement their respective projects through NGOs oftheir choice, documents obtained by the Inquirer showed.

Use it or lose

The DBM allowed the realignment of funds from the Department of AgrarianReform to the NLDC, as shown by copies of negative special allotment release

orders.

In defending the DAP, the President cited a Cabinet policy of use it or lose

when it came to funds allotted for different agencies. The previous Arroyo

administration had a similar policy.There is no reason for everybody to be delayed if there is an opportunity to

accelerate that project which was approved by Congress, which they foundmerit with, and if we can accelerate the benefits that will accrue to the people,why delay it? he argued.

So, why lose and go through the whole process and have it approved again in

a subsequent year?

Aquino said members of his Cabinet knew that for funding on projects, we give

it to somebody else whos way ahead of his schedule and thereby get to the

fulfillment of whatever that project or program is at an earlier stage.Antidengue medicine

One particularly questionable use of funds that caught his attention involved P5million allocated for antidengue medicine. He didnt identify the legislator, but

the Inquirer reported in July that Sen. Lito Lapid had channeled P5 million eachfor three towns with no dengue cases.


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Aquino said he got curious because he knew there was still no medicine fordengue. After seeing the document on the allocation, he asked, How comeno one caught this?

Petition against DAP

Former Iloilo Rep. Augusto Syjuco has asked the Supreme Court to declare theDAP unconstitutional and to recommend charges against Budget SecretaryFlorencio Abad and Senate President Franklin Drilonthe supposed creators ofthe program.

Fr. Joaquin Bernas, a constitutional law expert, and former Budget SecretaryBenjamin Diokno earlier said Malacaang was not authorized to transfer items inthe General Appropriations Act from one department to another.

But Malacaang countered that the Constitution and the Administrative Codeauthorized the President to realign savings.

Former Sen. Joker Arroyo said Aquino used the Administrative Code to createthe patently illegal DAP.

Unprecedented

Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago noted that the four predecessors of Aquino hadnot invoked the Administrative Code to realign funds.

The DAP came to light after Senator Estrada said that 20 senators were given anadditional P50-million allocation as incentive for voting to convict then ChiefJustice Renato Corona in May 2012 for not declaring his dollar deposits in hisstatement of assets, liabilities and net worth.

Abad confirmed that 20 senators got a total of P1.107 billion in additional porkafter Coronas conviction. He said the funds came from the DAP, which was

aimed at pump-priming the economy. It turned out that each senator receivedfrom P35 million to P100 million each.

Moral authority lost

In a statement, Puno said that Congress cannot legislate against its own selfish

interest and that legislators have lost their moral authority to be the guardiansof the peoples money.

Because he did not think Congress would abolish the pork barrel system, Puno

called on the leaders of the One Million People March Movement, which hadlaunched several antipork barrel rallies, to use for the first time the reservepower given to the people via Republic Act No. 6735, which provides for a

system of initiative and referendum.

Puno said RA 6735 allowed people to directly propose and enact laws.

Under our 1987 Constitution, the power to enact laws is no longer exclusivelyvested in Congress but can now be directly exercised by the people in


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recognition of the doctrine that the people are the real sovereign and not theirelected legislators, he said.

The former Chief Justice said the people should use this power tomake lawswhenever their elected representatives default in the performance of theirsacred duty to enact laws to promote the general interest, or worse, wheneverthey betray the public trust.

I am confident that the proposed law will readily get the endorsement of 10percent of the total number of our registered voters and at least 3 percent ofthe registered voters of every legislative district as

required by RA 6735, he said.

Raise awareness

Puno prodded the movement to continue educating and raising awareness ofthe people about the evils of PDAF, the DAP, etc., in our public plazas but also

provide them with a solution to the problem of our rotten pork barrel system.In a statement, the Church Peoples Alliance against Pork Barrel said the ringingof the church bells would also signify the demands of the people to abolish thepork barrel, to rechannel the funds to social services such as education, healthand housing and to hold accountable all those involved in the P10-billion scam.

The three-minute activity is also meant to sound the peoples call to declare theDAP unconstitutional and demand presidential accountability, according to Fr.Ben Alforque, convenor of the group.

He said the expos on the pork barrel scam and the implementation of the DAPwere a manifestation of massive robbery of the peoples treasure chest.

He said the Church was being called more than ever to take a decisive

action and to side with the poor, who are the direct and indirect victims of graftand corruption.

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Aquino signs law postponing SK electionsByTJ BurgonioPhilippine Daily Inquirer

6:54 am | Saturday, October 5th, 2013

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President Benigno Aquino. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, PhilippinesPresident Benigno Aquino III last Thursday enacted a lawpostponing the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections originally scheduled on

Oct. 28 to allow Congress to reform the youth council.The law sets Oct. 28, 2014, and Feb. 23, 2015, as the period within which theCommission on Elections (Comelec) could set the date for the SK elections.

The signing came more than a week after the Senate and the House ofRepresentatives reconciled their versions of the bill, and ratified the bicameralcommittee report on this in plenary.

Originally scheduled to be held on Oct. 28, simultaneously with the barangayelections, the SK elections were put off to allow Congress to introduce reforms inthe much politicized and even graft-tainted youth council.

Lawmakers, meeting in the bicameral conference committee, adopted aprovision prohibiting current SK officials from keeping their posts in a holdovercapacity after their term expires at noon of Nov. 30.

They made clear that no appointment would be made to fill the vacancies.

Lawmakers, however, acknowledged that by agreeing to set the SK electionsafter a year, they also recognized the need for youth representation in thegovernment.

None of the lawmakers proposed abolishing the SK.

We didnt want to wait for 2016 (barangay elections) Its not good if there is

no youth representation for three years. Thats why we said discussions on thereforms should be rushed so that new system will be put in place, said Sen.

Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who sponsored the Senate version.

The senators and representatives also agreed to introduce a provision allowingthe barangay council to use a portion of the SK fund for youth developmentprogram.
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Under an existing law, the SK is entitled to a 10-percent share of the barangaysinternal revenue allotment (IRA).

It will be the lookout of the Department of the Interior and Local Government(DILG) to monitor the use of the fund for its intended purpose, Marcos said.

The Republic Act, a consolidation of Senate Bill No. 1186 and House Bill No. 2849,has yet to be numbered.

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Ten Largest Refugee CampsThe fighting in Syria has forced more than 2 million people out of the countryand into refugee camps. Review the list of the 10 most populous U.N. refugeesettlements in the world. (Numbers based on the latest data available fromUNHCR as of Sept. 2, 2013) (An earlier version of this slide show incorrectlyreferred to the UNHRC instead of the UNHCR.)

1. Dadaab, Kenya

A complex of five camps hosts 402,361 people, mostly from neighboringSomalia. Here, boys fetched water from a puddle at the camp in 2011.

2. Dollo Ado, Ethiopia

A complex of five camps hosts 198,462 people, mostly Somalis fleeing droughtand famine in their home country. These people slept in the open there in 2011.

3. Kakuma, Kenya

A total 124,814 Somali and Sudanese refugees live in Kenya's Kakuma refugeecamp. Here, men competed at a makeshift stadium at the camp in 2004.

4. Al Zaatri, Jordan

Hosts about 122,723 Syrian refugees. Almost 5,000 citizens a day on average areflowing out of Syria, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Antnio Guterres said

Tuesday.5. Jabalia, Gaza Strip

Nearly 110,000 Palestinians live in the Gaza Strip refugee camp. Here, boysplayed soccer at the camp in 2003.

6. Mbera, Mauritania
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A total 75,261 refugees, mostly fleeing the conflict in northern Mali, occupy therefugee camp in Mbera. Here, the camp in 2012.

7. Yida, South Sudan

A total 70,095 people mostly from Sudan live in the Yida camp, in the newly

independent South Sudan. Girl refugees lined up at the camp in 2012.8. Nakivale, Uganda

A total 68,996 refugees live in the Nakivale settlement. Here, a Rwandan refugeecleaned beans at the camp in 2009.

9. Nyarugusu, Tanzania

A total 68,197 people, mostly Burundians and Congolese, reside at the camp inKasulu, northwest Tanzania. Here, children walked out of their classroom at thecamp in 2010.

10. Tamil Nadu state, India

Some 66,700 Sri Lankan refugees live in more than a hundred camps on thesouthern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. About 34,000 more live outside the camps.Here, a girl at a camp outside Chennai, India.

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