ORMOC CITY-A man wanted for the commission of rape was arrested by law enforcers in Kawayan, Biliran on May 13 at about 3:30 pm.

Arrested was Jonel Dejarlo,19 of Barangay Kansoc who was accused of rape with the court which issued a warrant against him did not recommend any bail bond.

Dejarlo is accused of two counts of rape.

He is now detained at the Kawayan municipal police station. (ROBERT DEJON)

MANILA-From May 8 to 26, the United States government is hosting a series of intensive training workshops for more than 100 English teachers from across the Philippines to enhance their teaching methods and skills in English language instruction.

The workshops employ a “training the trainers” curriculum designed specifically for the Philippines by U.S.-sponsored English Language Specialists, Donna Brinton and Jan Frodesen.

The program is expected to benefit more than 7,000 teachers and 250,000 students in the Philippines by preparing participants to lead follow-on training sessions with colleagues in their local communities.

According to Brinton and Frodesen, the program shares information, strategies, and techniques that enable participants to train fellow educators in their home communities.
During the first two weeks of workshops in Manila, more than 60 teachers from academic institutions in Mindanao—including public high schools in Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi—received training.

Twelve teachers from the State Department’s English Access Microscholarship Program, including participants from Fiji, also joined the Manila program.

More than 50 educators from various campuses of Palawan State University are scheduled to join the final set of workshops from May 22 to 26 in Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

On May 17, U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines MaryKay Carlson met with workshop participants to reaffirm the United States’ commitment to working with Philippine partners to support quality education in the country, especially in language learning.

“We know that having a strong educational system is the key to prosperity,” said Ambassador Carlson. “The United States looks forward to seeing the positive results of this program as dedicated Filipino educators share these methods with their peers and students.”

For these workshops, the U.S. government collaborated with the Ministry of Basic, Higher, and Technical Education in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, National Commission on Muslim Filipinos, non-government organization Synergeia Foundation, Inc., and Palawan State University. (PR)

The Philippines is tagged as one of the 17 megadiverse countries in the world and if sustainably protected will help defend the planet against the impacts of the climate crisis.
Oceana, an international advocacy organization, urges Congress to pass the bill declaring Panaon Island as a protected seascape under the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System Act or RA 11038.

This came after the Department of Environment and Natural Resource (DENR) recently endorsed its official designation to the House Committee on Natural Resources chaired by Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr.

This island in the southern tip of Southern Leyte has coral reefs with up to 60% of very good coral cover, way above the national average of only 20%.

The proposed seascape, if enacted, will be called Panaon Island Protected Seascape (PIPS), has an area of about 61,204 hectares or 612.04 sq km covering the municipalities of Liloan, San Francisco, Pintuyan, and San Ricardo.

On May 15, the House of Representatives committee on natural resources provisionally approved the consolidated bill for the proposed Panaon Island seascape pending the submission of a minor revision to the technical description from the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA). The Mapping Authority committed to submitting this by next week.

“We call for the urgency of the measure as we race against time in achieving the targets and more importantly, in preserving the integrity of the natural life support system that our coral reefs, mangroves, seagrasses, and wetlands provide. The destruction of these invaluable havens for the people and wildlife persists and will get worse if we will continue to lay back and take our own sweet time taking action,” said Atty. Liza Osorio, Oceana acting vice president.

As a party to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), we committed to support the initiatives to ensure that at least 30 percent of the global ocean, especially areas of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services, are effectively conserved and managed by 2030.1

Relatedly, in line with Sustainable Development Goal 14: Conserve and Sustainable Use the Oceans, Seas and Marine Resources, the Philippines set the goal of conserving at least 10% of our coastal and marine waters in 2020. However, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) show that as of 27 December 2022, approximately 3.14 million hectares of marine areas are designated as marine protected areas, a mere 1.42% of the country’s total marine areas. 2.

“Meeting the target will help in curbing marine biodiversity loss while providing economic benefits, food and water security, climate change adaptation and mitigation for coastal communities that depend on these ecosystems. We call for the immediate passage of the bill declaring Panaon Island as a protected seascape because it will move us closer to achieving the set target,” added Osorio.

Oceana surveyed 188 fishing households in Panaon Island and found that over one-third of respondents depend on the entirety of their catch to feed their families. In addition, 79% of these households believe that marine sanctuaries have a positive impact on their means of living.

“Prioritizing protection and sustainable management of our marine resources in accordance with the national goals and international commitments will lead to the conservation of critical ecosystems that provide invaluable services to us. The protection of endangered species like sharks, turtles, and mangroves will ensure ecosystem balance, that will provide food, livelihood, and improvement of lives for so many Filipino people, who are reliant in our rapidly depleting seas,” said Marianne Saniano, Oceana’s science and campaign manager for the protection of Panaon Island.

Oceana is an international advocacy organization dedicated to protecting the world’s oceans. Since 2014, Oceana has been working closely with national and local government agencies, civil society, fisherfolk, and other stakeholders to restore the abundance of Philippine fisheries and marine resources. (PR)

School in Bato, Leyte among the beneficiaries

TACLOBAN CITY – At least 12 premier Manila restaurants are in partnership with the non-government organization Thrive by donating a portion of their proceeds to feed schoolchildren.

Founded in 2012, Thrive’s mission is to deliver healthy food to hungry children in the poorest areas of the world and partners with schools to provide more than 12,000 meals to schoolchildren each week in Bangladesh and the Philippines to improve nutrition, boost school attendance, and increase readiness to learn.

The organization is currently feeding more than 400 Filipino children each school day in four schools which include Dawahon Integrated School in Bato, Leyte.

Thrive started their feeding program at Dawahon Integrated School in 2022 focusing on 220 elementary students who are malnourished and undernourished.

Janelle Carlos, Thrive-Philippines Operations Manager said that each of the 12 restaurants selected their specialty dish and contributes 10% of all their sales for this month to their group as part of commemorating the World Hunger Day to be observed on May 28.

The proceeds will be used as donations to feed Filipino schoolchildren.

“It is truly heartening to see many of the top restaurants in the city join together to raise awareness of hunger, and to help feed children in need,” said Monica De Ocampo Casperino, president of Thrive-Philippines.

“We have more than 5,000 children at 20 schools on our waitlist, and through efforts like

(ROEL T. AMAZONA)