Dutch appellate court upholds Joma freedom
The Dutch Court of Appeals has upheld a decision to release Filipino communist leader Jose Maria Sison while he undergoes pretrial investigation, ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau reported Wednesday.
The appellate court in the Hague favored the September 13 decision of a district court to free Sison, rejecting the appeal by the public prosecutor to detain the founding chairman of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) pending investigation.
Sison is under investigation by Dutch authorities on charges that he ordered the assassination of his two former comrades in the Philippines, Romulo Kintanar and Arturo Tabara, while living in the Netherlands.
According to prosecutors, Sison, 68, ordered the assassination of former New People’s Army (NPA) leader Kintanar on Jan. 23, 2003.
The murder was claimed by the NPA itself in an official publication, they said. Prosecutors are also investigating Sison’s role in the murders of Tabara and his son-in-law, Stephen Ong, on Sept. 26, 2006.
Tabara was a member of the highest command of the NPA and his assassination was also claimed by that group.
The appellate court said, "The prosecution file lacks enough concrete evidence to directly link Sison to the assassinations which is needed to prosecute him as a perpetrator.
"The ruling, however, does not preclude Sison from being prosecuted on murder charges. It only denied the prosecutor's request to keep someone in custody. It added that the public prosecutor's office will be the one to decide on whether or not to press charges.
The report said the appellate court’s decision was expected since prosecutors did not ask Sison to appear Wednesday before a panel of three judges at the Palace of Justice.
The report also said the absence of tight security in front of the justice hall was also unusual unlike in the previous three proceedings when authorities barricaded the entrance.
Sison's wife, Juliet, was the first to receive the favorable decision through a phone call from lawyer Michiel Pestman.
Sison was then at a Utrecht police station to fulfill part of a weekly requirement to report to the police.
The communist leader's weekly requirement to report to police officials is not related to his case but is a procedure by authorities to allow him to stay in exile the Netherlands.
At present, Sison is still an asylum seeker in the Netherlands.
Sison has been living in the Netherlands since 1987. He was arrested on August 28 this year in Utrecht.
With reports from Loui Galicia, ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau and AFP
SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryID=94511
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Dutch court to issue verdict on Joma's freedom next month
Dutch court to issue verdict on Joma's freedom next month
A Dutch court will issue next month its decision on a petition of the Dutch prosecution panel challenging the court’s decision to release Philippine communist leader Jose Maria Sison from prison while he undergoes pre-trial investigation, ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau reported Thursday.
The report said the decision by the Court of Appeals in The Hague will be out on October 3 after a hearing on the petition took place on Wednesday.
The hearing, where Sison's wife, Juliet, was allowed inside the court for the first time, lasted an hour.
Sison appeared before a panel of three Court of Appeal judges in the Hague in connection with the public prosecutor’s appeal against the district court's decision on September 13 to release him from detention.
The founding chairman of the Communist Party of the Philippines was ordered released after more than two weeks of detention at the Scheveningen prison.
Sison’s camp, however, was confident that the Dutch court will eventually dismiss the murder charges against him, noting that the prosecution panel does not have any new evidence to pin him down.
"Confident ako (I’m confident). I'm innocent. As I told the court, there can be no direct evidence or sufficient evidence so, yeah I think.. I'm confident the result will be good," Sison said.
"I'm sure they (the prosecution) will try everything they can to get him back into prison but if the court decides against the prosecution, it's gonna be a terrible blow for them and for the whole investigation. We have to wait and see," Sison’s lawyer, Michiel Pestman, said.
"But we are very positive about the outcome," the Dutch lawyer added.
Pestman also said the pieces of evidence presented were not strong enough to start a court proceeding.
Sison was arrested on August 28 on charges that he ordered the murders of his former associates in the Philippine communist movement Arturo Tabara and Romulo Kintanar.
According to Dutch law, Sison was detained pending investigation. The investigative judge decided on August to keep Sison in solitary confinement for another 14 days, noting that Sison might opt to escape should he be given temporary release.
On September 7, the investigation procedure against Sison entered the second stage when the prosecution requested that he be detained further for 90 days.
The court, however, decided to set Sison free while the pre-trial investigation continues.
With a report from Loui Galicia, ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau
SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=94141
A Dutch court will issue next month its decision on a petition of the Dutch prosecution panel challenging the court’s decision to release Philippine communist leader Jose Maria Sison from prison while he undergoes pre-trial investigation, ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau reported Thursday.
The report said the decision by the Court of Appeals in The Hague will be out on October 3 after a hearing on the petition took place on Wednesday.
The hearing, where Sison's wife, Juliet, was allowed inside the court for the first time, lasted an hour.
Sison appeared before a panel of three Court of Appeal judges in the Hague in connection with the public prosecutor’s appeal against the district court's decision on September 13 to release him from detention.
The founding chairman of the Communist Party of the Philippines was ordered released after more than two weeks of detention at the Scheveningen prison.
Sison’s camp, however, was confident that the Dutch court will eventually dismiss the murder charges against him, noting that the prosecution panel does not have any new evidence to pin him down.
"Confident ako (I’m confident). I'm innocent. As I told the court, there can be no direct evidence or sufficient evidence so, yeah I think.. I'm confident the result will be good," Sison said.
"I'm sure they (the prosecution) will try everything they can to get him back into prison but if the court decides against the prosecution, it's gonna be a terrible blow for them and for the whole investigation. We have to wait and see," Sison’s lawyer, Michiel Pestman, said.
"But we are very positive about the outcome," the Dutch lawyer added.
Pestman also said the pieces of evidence presented were not strong enough to start a court proceeding.
Sison was arrested on August 28 on charges that he ordered the murders of his former associates in the Philippine communist movement Arturo Tabara and Romulo Kintanar.
According to Dutch law, Sison was detained pending investigation. The investigative judge decided on August to keep Sison in solitary confinement for another 14 days, noting that Sison might opt to escape should he be given temporary release.
On September 7, the investigation procedure against Sison entered the second stage when the prosecution requested that he be detained further for 90 days.
The court, however, decided to set Sison free while the pre-trial investigation continues.
With a report from Loui Galicia, ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau
SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=94141
Leftists in Europe ask Dutch govt to leave Joma alone
By LOUI GALICIA
ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau
Supporters of Jose Maria "Joma" Sison from European countries want the Dutch government to stop any and all proceeding against the Communist Party of the Philippines founding chairman, ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau reported.
Apart from familiar Filipino personalities that have been present in protests held during Sison’s court appearances during his detention, foreign supporters of the Filipino communist leader joined a peaceful protest in front of the Palace of Justice in The Hague.
Around fifty protesters, majority of which were non-Filipinos, braved the heavy rains as they stood outside the Palace of Justice, demanding the investigations against Sison to stop.
A Dutch national, who only want to be identified as Nick said that the Dutch government should stop the whole procedure immediately.
"I think it’s quite unjust to do this," he told ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau.
"I support the Philippine liberation movement and I support all Dutchmen who are fighting for democratic rights in the Netherlands too. This arresting of Sison is a threat not only to the Philippine liberation movement but also to the democratic movement in the Netherlands, when they say that the Marxist-Leninist is a criminal or is a terrorist. They say it about Sison but they can say it about a Dutch activist in the labor movement and democratic movement," he added.
Another foreigner who also wants to be identified only by her first name Anne, traveled all the way from Germany to show her solidarity with Sison.
"It could also happen to me or anyone else who will be taken to custody without any reason and if it was me, I’m sure anybody else would show his solidarity," she said.
She is from the Solidarity International movement and is also a representative of the Marxist-Leninist Party of Germany and she’s still confident that there will be justice for Sison.
"I think if there is any justice here, Joma will stay free. There is no reason to take him back to prison again," she said.
A member of the National Democratic Front, Aldo Gonzales, said that indeed Sison has a big following all over the world and that this is because many are sensitive to any injustice done to any individual regardless of his race.
"Maraming foreigners ang sumusuporta kay Joma dahil nga sa injustice na ginagawa sa isang tao na wala namang kasalanan at malinaw na tumutulong din sa mga mahihirap sa Pilipinas sa mga kababayan na inaapi (A lot of foreigners support Joma because of the injustice to a person who has not committed a crime and who clearly works to help his poor and exploited countrymen)," Gonzales said.
"Maraming supporter si Joma. Yung mga hindi nakapunta dito, at least nag-e-express ng support sa email, sa pakikipagsulatan sa kanya, sa pagtawag (He has a lot of supporters. Those who have not been able to come here have at least expressed their support through email, through correspondence and through calls," he added.
Almost all of Sison’s supporters who seem to be regular fixtures in every protest action for the communist leader were present, except for NDF Chair Luis Jalandoni, who is recovering from an appendectomy on Saturday.
SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=94115
By LOUI GALICIA
ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau
Supporters of Jose Maria "Joma" Sison from European countries want the Dutch government to stop any and all proceeding against the Communist Party of the Philippines founding chairman, ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau reported.
Apart from familiar Filipino personalities that have been present in protests held during Sison’s court appearances during his detention, foreign supporters of the Filipino communist leader joined a peaceful protest in front of the Palace of Justice in The Hague.
Around fifty protesters, majority of which were non-Filipinos, braved the heavy rains as they stood outside the Palace of Justice, demanding the investigations against Sison to stop.
A Dutch national, who only want to be identified as Nick said that the Dutch government should stop the whole procedure immediately.
"I think it’s quite unjust to do this," he told ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau.
"I support the Philippine liberation movement and I support all Dutchmen who are fighting for democratic rights in the Netherlands too. This arresting of Sison is a threat not only to the Philippine liberation movement but also to the democratic movement in the Netherlands, when they say that the Marxist-Leninist is a criminal or is a terrorist. They say it about Sison but they can say it about a Dutch activist in the labor movement and democratic movement," he added.
Another foreigner who also wants to be identified only by her first name Anne, traveled all the way from Germany to show her solidarity with Sison.
"It could also happen to me or anyone else who will be taken to custody without any reason and if it was me, I’m sure anybody else would show his solidarity," she said.
She is from the Solidarity International movement and is also a representative of the Marxist-Leninist Party of Germany and she’s still confident that there will be justice for Sison.
"I think if there is any justice here, Joma will stay free. There is no reason to take him back to prison again," she said.
A member of the National Democratic Front, Aldo Gonzales, said that indeed Sison has a big following all over the world and that this is because many are sensitive to any injustice done to any individual regardless of his race.
"Maraming foreigners ang sumusuporta kay Joma dahil nga sa injustice na ginagawa sa isang tao na wala namang kasalanan at malinaw na tumutulong din sa mga mahihirap sa Pilipinas sa mga kababayan na inaapi (A lot of foreigners support Joma because of the injustice to a person who has not committed a crime and who clearly works to help his poor and exploited countrymen)," Gonzales said.
"Maraming supporter si Joma. Yung mga hindi nakapunta dito, at least nag-e-express ng support sa email, sa pakikipagsulatan sa kanya, sa pagtawag (He has a lot of supporters. Those who have not been able to come here have at least expressed their support through email, through correspondence and through calls," he added.
Almost all of Sison’s supporters who seem to be regular fixtures in every protest action for the communist leader were present, except for NDF Chair Luis Jalandoni, who is recovering from an appendectomy on Saturday.
SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=94115
Dutch prosecutor drags Joma to court again
Dutch prosecutor drags Joma to court again
By LOUI GALICIA
ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau
Jose Maria Sison will appear before a bench of three Court of Appeal judges in the Hague Wednesday in connection with the public prosecutor’s appeal against the district court's decision on September 13 to release him from detention.
The founding chairman of the Communist Party of the Philippines was ordered released after more than two weeks of detention at the Scheveningen prison.
Wim de Bruin, a spokesman of the public prosecutor's office who confirmed previously to ABS-CBN that charges against Sison are not being dropped, said that Wednesday's hearing that begins at 3 p.m. (Netherlands time, 9 p.m. in Manila) will tackle their previous request for respondent's detention which was turned down by the court.
“The court of appeal will decide whether the decision of the [District] court stands or will be overruled.
In that case Mr. Sison will be detained again,” de Bruin told ABS-CBN.De Bruin said that all parties, the prosecution, defense and Sison will be present at the proceedings.
“The court of appeal is dealing with the Sison case but we don’t expect a decision today and maybe it will come tomorrow or later in the week,” de Bruin said.
If the appellate court decides in favor of Sison, he will remain free but de Bruin said it will not mean that the case is over.
“He will still be a suspect and the investigation will be continued. In the end there will be a court case,” de Bruin said.
Sison was arrested on August 28 on charges that he ordered the murders of Arturo Tabara, Romulo Kintanar and two other men in the Philippines.
According to Dutch law, Sison was detained pending investigation. The investigative judge decided on August to keep Sison in solitary confinement for another 14 days, noting that he believes Sison may opt to escape should he be given temporary release.
On September 7, the investigation procedure against Sison entered the second stage when the prosecution requested that he be detained a further 90 days.
The court, however, decided to set Sison free.
The ball and the right to appeal, meanwhile, are now in the prosecution’s court.
According to a source who explained the proceedings under Dutch law, this simply means that government lawyers are letting the law take its course.
Even if the appellate court of Appeal decides against Sison’s detention, the prosecution can still appeal. The source explained that the process does not stop because behind this sequence of events, there is such a thing as “principle of opportunity” in the Dutch justice system.
“They will only prosecute all the way up to the Supreme Court if necessary, if they see, if their calculation is that this has a liveable ground for surviving this trial. They don’t go to trial unless they have that guarantee. So to have that guarantee, the judge has no other recourse but to allow the prosecution to appeal because otherwise how will they get their evidence,” the source said.
“So it is a matter of letting the law take its course so at the end of the day whatever the judge decides there are still no winners or losers because the real fight has not yet begun. This is just a preliminary step. And the only logic of this is to give both parties the chance to prepare their case. This is really still in the preparation stage,” the source added.
The source also explained that the Dutch justice system is primarily based on paper.
“You can do anything as long as you have tangible evidence,” the source said.
The source also explained that Sison’s previous solitary confinement is a normal practice in the Netherlands and that it is not the type of solitary confinement accorded to convicted criminals.
“He’s not in solitary confinement as a punishment but as a matter of routine. In Dutch prison, it is customary to have one prisoner per cell and it is a matter of debate now that the prisons are crowded, they even have to pass a law to allow the prisoners to join cells,” the source explained.
Sison is not yet a prisoner in technical terms because he has not been convicted yet. He is only detained for investigative purposes and everything that is happening now is still in the preparatory investigative stage.
The court case has yet to begin.
In a related development, Sison’s sympathizers have scheduled another protest in front of the Palace of Justice to coincide with the start of the proceedings at the appellate court.
Filipinos from the different organizations such as Rice & Rights, Defend, Migrante, Liga ng Kabataang Pilipino, Makibaka and National Democratic Front as well as solidarity groups from different countries such as Turkey Arbeiders Ver., ATIK from Turkey, ICAD (International Organisations Against Disappearances), VEKSAN-AVEG-KON, ILPS (International League of People’s Struggle) and Anti-Imperialist Platform-Surinam previously held protests in all of Sison’s court appearances.
SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=94039
By LOUI GALICIA
ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau
Jose Maria Sison will appear before a bench of three Court of Appeal judges in the Hague Wednesday in connection with the public prosecutor’s appeal against the district court's decision on September 13 to release him from detention.
The founding chairman of the Communist Party of the Philippines was ordered released after more than two weeks of detention at the Scheveningen prison.
Wim de Bruin, a spokesman of the public prosecutor's office who confirmed previously to ABS-CBN that charges against Sison are not being dropped, said that Wednesday's hearing that begins at 3 p.m. (Netherlands time, 9 p.m. in Manila) will tackle their previous request for respondent's detention which was turned down by the court.
“The court of appeal will decide whether the decision of the [District] court stands or will be overruled.
In that case Mr. Sison will be detained again,” de Bruin told ABS-CBN.De Bruin said that all parties, the prosecution, defense and Sison will be present at the proceedings.
“The court of appeal is dealing with the Sison case but we don’t expect a decision today and maybe it will come tomorrow or later in the week,” de Bruin said.
If the appellate court decides in favor of Sison, he will remain free but de Bruin said it will not mean that the case is over.
“He will still be a suspect and the investigation will be continued. In the end there will be a court case,” de Bruin said.
Sison was arrested on August 28 on charges that he ordered the murders of Arturo Tabara, Romulo Kintanar and two other men in the Philippines.
According to Dutch law, Sison was detained pending investigation. The investigative judge decided on August to keep Sison in solitary confinement for another 14 days, noting that he believes Sison may opt to escape should he be given temporary release.
On September 7, the investigation procedure against Sison entered the second stage when the prosecution requested that he be detained a further 90 days.
The court, however, decided to set Sison free.
The ball and the right to appeal, meanwhile, are now in the prosecution’s court.
According to a source who explained the proceedings under Dutch law, this simply means that government lawyers are letting the law take its course.
Even if the appellate court of Appeal decides against Sison’s detention, the prosecution can still appeal. The source explained that the process does not stop because behind this sequence of events, there is such a thing as “principle of opportunity” in the Dutch justice system.
“They will only prosecute all the way up to the Supreme Court if necessary, if they see, if their calculation is that this has a liveable ground for surviving this trial. They don’t go to trial unless they have that guarantee. So to have that guarantee, the judge has no other recourse but to allow the prosecution to appeal because otherwise how will they get their evidence,” the source said.
“So it is a matter of letting the law take its course so at the end of the day whatever the judge decides there are still no winners or losers because the real fight has not yet begun. This is just a preliminary step. And the only logic of this is to give both parties the chance to prepare their case. This is really still in the preparation stage,” the source added.
The source also explained that the Dutch justice system is primarily based on paper.
“You can do anything as long as you have tangible evidence,” the source said.
The source also explained that Sison’s previous solitary confinement is a normal practice in the Netherlands and that it is not the type of solitary confinement accorded to convicted criminals.
“He’s not in solitary confinement as a punishment but as a matter of routine. In Dutch prison, it is customary to have one prisoner per cell and it is a matter of debate now that the prisons are crowded, they even have to pass a law to allow the prisoners to join cells,” the source explained.
Sison is not yet a prisoner in technical terms because he has not been convicted yet. He is only detained for investigative purposes and everything that is happening now is still in the preparatory investigative stage.
The court case has yet to begin.
In a related development, Sison’s sympathizers have scheduled another protest in front of the Palace of Justice to coincide with the start of the proceedings at the appellate court.
Filipinos from the different organizations such as Rice & Rights, Defend, Migrante, Liga ng Kabataang Pilipino, Makibaka and National Democratic Front as well as solidarity groups from different countries such as Turkey Arbeiders Ver., ATIK from Turkey, ICAD (International Organisations Against Disappearances), VEKSAN-AVEG-KON, ILPS (International League of People’s Struggle) and Anti-Imperialist Platform-Surinam previously held protests in all of Sison’s court appearances.
SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=94039
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Reyes, Bustamante struggle to defend World Cup Pool title
Reyes, Bustamante struggle to defend World Cup Pool title
By LOUI GALICIA
ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau
Efren "Bata" Reyes and Francisco "Djungo" Bustamante recovered from a possible defeat from their Scottish opponents to win their first match at the PartyPoker.net World Cup Pool tournament held on Tuesday at the Outland nightclub in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
The Pinoy legends are the defending champions of the $250,000 scotch doubles tournament in a winner-break format which feature a total of 31 participating countries.
Reyes and Bustamante gained an easy lead of 6-1 during the first 7 rounds of the race to eight, leaving Michael Valentine and Pat Holz to scramble to shoot their balls successively.
The ninth round saw the Scottish pair gaining back their game as they scored 3-6 and continuously won the rounds to a score of 6-7 while Reyes and Bustamante continuously missed shots and made mistakes.
But, as if luck played a vital role for the Pinoys, Valentine missed a long pot on the 7-ball, giving the Reyes and Bustamanete the thriller win of 8-6.
"Di kami nahirapan sa kalaban. Nahirapan kami sa tira naming (We didn’t have a difficulty with our opponents. We had difficulty with our shots)," sighed Reyes.
The Pinoy who is dubbed as the "magician" seemed to have lost momentarily his magic during the games, but some of his best shots awed his adoring fans and spectators.
"Well alam mo naman si Efren (you know Efren), pride of the Philippines. He brings pride to the Philippines," RP Ambassador to the Netherlands Romeo Arguelles said.
The two high-caliber pool pros can’t help but admit that they were very nervous throughout the game.
"Kaya lang sobrang buenas sila. Pero sabi ko noong nakakuha sila ng anim, ninenerbyos na kami (They were very lucky, We got nervous when they got six rounds)," Bustamante said.
"Nerbyos na nerbyos kami. Namumutla na nga ako (We were extremely nervous. I even became pale)," added Reyes.
A large number of Pinoys from the different parts of the Netherlands came to Outland to show their support to the two legends.
Notably present is a Pinoy who is playing for Canada who came to support his idol Reyes and couldn’t believe the difficulty that the two players had encountered.
"Laro ni Efren, pressure na yun. Humabol yung mga kalaban. Buti nalang namintis si ano [Valentine] kung hindi talo sila (Especially to Efren, that’s pressure. Their opponents came near. It was good Valentine missed or else they would have lost)," Edwin Montar said.
"Possibleng matalo kanina. Malaki kasi yung break parating pasok yung bola sa corner eh. Kung natalo sila dun, siguradong talo sila sa susunod [last round] (They could have lost. There was that big break when the balls always went in the corner. Had they lost they would surely lose the next round)," Montar added.
The Philippines will face Croatia on Thursday.
SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=93981
By LOUI GALICIA
ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau
Efren "Bata" Reyes and Francisco "Djungo" Bustamante recovered from a possible defeat from their Scottish opponents to win their first match at the PartyPoker.net World Cup Pool tournament held on Tuesday at the Outland nightclub in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
The Pinoy legends are the defending champions of the $250,000 scotch doubles tournament in a winner-break format which feature a total of 31 participating countries.
Reyes and Bustamante gained an easy lead of 6-1 during the first 7 rounds of the race to eight, leaving Michael Valentine and Pat Holz to scramble to shoot their balls successively.
The ninth round saw the Scottish pair gaining back their game as they scored 3-6 and continuously won the rounds to a score of 6-7 while Reyes and Bustamante continuously missed shots and made mistakes.
But, as if luck played a vital role for the Pinoys, Valentine missed a long pot on the 7-ball, giving the Reyes and Bustamanete the thriller win of 8-6.
"Di kami nahirapan sa kalaban. Nahirapan kami sa tira naming (We didn’t have a difficulty with our opponents. We had difficulty with our shots)," sighed Reyes.
The Pinoy who is dubbed as the "magician" seemed to have lost momentarily his magic during the games, but some of his best shots awed his adoring fans and spectators.
"Well alam mo naman si Efren (you know Efren), pride of the Philippines. He brings pride to the Philippines," RP Ambassador to the Netherlands Romeo Arguelles said.
The two high-caliber pool pros can’t help but admit that they were very nervous throughout the game.
"Kaya lang sobrang buenas sila. Pero sabi ko noong nakakuha sila ng anim, ninenerbyos na kami (They were very lucky, We got nervous when they got six rounds)," Bustamante said.
"Nerbyos na nerbyos kami. Namumutla na nga ako (We were extremely nervous. I even became pale)," added Reyes.
A large number of Pinoys from the different parts of the Netherlands came to Outland to show their support to the two legends.
Notably present is a Pinoy who is playing for Canada who came to support his idol Reyes and couldn’t believe the difficulty that the two players had encountered.
"Laro ni Efren, pressure na yun. Humabol yung mga kalaban. Buti nalang namintis si ano [Valentine] kung hindi talo sila (Especially to Efren, that’s pressure. Their opponents came near. It was good Valentine missed or else they would have lost)," Edwin Montar said.
"Possibleng matalo kanina. Malaki kasi yung break parating pasok yung bola sa corner eh. Kung natalo sila dun, siguradong talo sila sa susunod [last round] (They could have lost. There was that big break when the balls always went in the corner. Had they lost they would surely lose the next round)," Montar added.
The Philippines will face Croatia on Thursday.
SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=93981
Thursday, September 20, 2007
MediaQuest Holdings eyes foothold on RP mobile TV
MediaQuest Holdings eyes foothold on RP mobile TV
By LOUI GALICIA
ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau
A team from MediaQuest Holdings Inc., part of the PLDT Group, went to the capital of the Netherlands recently to study the latest in mobile television technology and, hopefully, set a record in harnessing the technical skills of Filipinos.
The team visited Amsterdam to attend the International Broadcasting Convention in Amsterdam to look for the latest revolution in broadcast technology.
"We’re launching mobile television in the Philippines very soon. In fact we’re rolling out our network. We’re trying to validate some of the basic principles we’re doing and we're looking likewise to network with other countries who have experiences related to mobile TV," said Jose Benjamin Fernandez, MediaQuest technology and management head.
Fernandez said MediaQuest is proud that the Philippines, through its company, is one of only three or four countries in Asia that will offer mobile television and one of the first countries in the world to launch the service.
He said MediaQuest wants to get first-hand information on mobile TV technology from vendors in Europe. He said he also hopes to see what the company can bring back to the Philippines in terms of training local engineers.
Fernandez said that he is optimistic that it would be a "déjà vu" experience in terms of developing local talents to become experts in the technology.
"In a very short span of time, two to three years, the global community noticed the technical expertise of Filipino engineers to the point that they started hiring Filipino engineers for GSM. Kasi mura yung rate [nila], magaling naman, experiensado. [Their rates were affordable, they were good and experienced] Now we’re seeing a repeat again with mobile TV," Fernandez said.
"We’re one of the first globally...to launch mobile TV. And I think it will be again another source of technical pride for the Filipinos. Good reach, highly-educated, highly skilled, again a good source of export talent," he added.
Fernandez said that the company is confident about the potential impact of mobile television in the Philippines in the same way that cell phones became an instant phenomenon in the country.
At present, there are about 48 million mobile phone subscribers in the Philippines.
MediaQuest consultant Erwin Galang said he expects mobile TV to modify the viewing habit of Filipinos.
He said several studies show that Filipinos watch an average of four hours of TV a day.
With the advent of mobile TV, this could translate to more sales for the company.
"Unang-una, napakataas ng mobile phone penetration sa Pilipinas. Tapos lahat ng tao mahilig. Mahilig sa prepaid, mahilig sa cellular phone. Mahilig sa telebisyon. Tong technology na to ang magbibigay ng access para sa mga kababayan natin na gustong magkaroon ng television na madadala nila (First of all, mobile phone penetration in the Philippines is very high and a lot of people really want cell phones. They want prepaid. They want television. This technology will give our countrymen access to television that they can carry anywhere)," he said.
Galang noted that Filipinos are not yet ready to abandon their regular television sets and switch exclusively to mobile TV.
"Well it is not really switching. You are actually extending your television at home to wherever you are, whether you are in the car, traffic or waiting for the bus," he said.
"Since the technology has just started, it is still expensive. Eventually it will go down," he added.
SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryID=93260
By LOUI GALICIA
ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau
A team from MediaQuest Holdings Inc., part of the PLDT Group, went to the capital of the Netherlands recently to study the latest in mobile television technology and, hopefully, set a record in harnessing the technical skills of Filipinos.
The team visited Amsterdam to attend the International Broadcasting Convention in Amsterdam to look for the latest revolution in broadcast technology.
"We’re launching mobile television in the Philippines very soon. In fact we’re rolling out our network. We’re trying to validate some of the basic principles we’re doing and we're looking likewise to network with other countries who have experiences related to mobile TV," said Jose Benjamin Fernandez, MediaQuest technology and management head.
Fernandez said MediaQuest is proud that the Philippines, through its company, is one of only three or four countries in Asia that will offer mobile television and one of the first countries in the world to launch the service.
He said MediaQuest wants to get first-hand information on mobile TV technology from vendors in Europe. He said he also hopes to see what the company can bring back to the Philippines in terms of training local engineers.
Fernandez said that he is optimistic that it would be a "déjà vu" experience in terms of developing local talents to become experts in the technology.
"In a very short span of time, two to three years, the global community noticed the technical expertise of Filipino engineers to the point that they started hiring Filipino engineers for GSM. Kasi mura yung rate [nila], magaling naman, experiensado. [Their rates were affordable, they were good and experienced] Now we’re seeing a repeat again with mobile TV," Fernandez said.
"We’re one of the first globally...to launch mobile TV. And I think it will be again another source of technical pride for the Filipinos. Good reach, highly-educated, highly skilled, again a good source of export talent," he added.
Fernandez said that the company is confident about the potential impact of mobile television in the Philippines in the same way that cell phones became an instant phenomenon in the country.
At present, there are about 48 million mobile phone subscribers in the Philippines.
MediaQuest consultant Erwin Galang said he expects mobile TV to modify the viewing habit of Filipinos.
He said several studies show that Filipinos watch an average of four hours of TV a day.
With the advent of mobile TV, this could translate to more sales for the company.
"Unang-una, napakataas ng mobile phone penetration sa Pilipinas. Tapos lahat ng tao mahilig. Mahilig sa prepaid, mahilig sa cellular phone. Mahilig sa telebisyon. Tong technology na to ang magbibigay ng access para sa mga kababayan natin na gustong magkaroon ng television na madadala nila (First of all, mobile phone penetration in the Philippines is very high and a lot of people really want cell phones. They want prepaid. They want television. This technology will give our countrymen access to television that they can carry anywhere)," he said.
Galang noted that Filipinos are not yet ready to abandon their regular television sets and switch exclusively to mobile TV.
"Well it is not really switching. You are actually extending your television at home to wherever you are, whether you are in the car, traffic or waiting for the bus," he said.
"Since the technology has just started, it is still expensive. Eventually it will go down," he added.
SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryID=93260
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Pinoys, others troop to Europe's 'largest flea market'
Pinoys, others troop to Europe's 'largest flea market'
By LOUI GALICIA
ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau
The first weekend of September, despite being very busy with most of the summer vacationers returning home from their holidays and with students preparing for the start of the new school year, over a million people including Pinoys, still managed to travel from all over Europe to a small town in France.
Lille, which is near the border of Belgium, is home to "La Grande Braderie," considered as the largest flea market in Europe.
People flock to the streets to browse the seemingly endless stalls that line around 200 kilometers of pavements throughout Lille.
For antique lovers, like a Pinoy couple from Brussels, this is the place to go hunt for paintings and various antique items like clocks, furniture and decorative pieces.
Sammy Ambrocio has made the one-and-a-half-hour drive from Brussels as a pilgrimage to Lille every year with his wife.
“Nagtitingin ako ng antiques dito kasi nandito ang pinaka-malaking braderie sa buong France. Dinadayo namin 'to. Marami na kaming nabili,” Ambrosio said.
Hiking through the never-ending line of stalls and squeezing into the thick crowd, one can be amused finding very odd and old collectors’ items such as a French woman’s magazine that was dated 1950 and old coins, beer glasses, helmets, giant perfume bottles, toys, cars and pins.
Thousands of stalls sell just about anything, even junk.
Ambrocio’s wife, Jopay, who says she is a sucker for antiques, always goes to this flea market because she finds a lot of the older stuff here than in Belgium.
“Nagtitingin ng mga lumang gamit. Mas luma [dito] kesa sa Belgium,” she said.
Belgium is also known for flea markets and the most popular is the regular weekend antique market at Le Grand Sablon, considered as one of Europe’s best.
Pinoys, however, go to Lille for its carnival-like atmosphere and because of children's rides, countless beer stands and restaurants serving specialty dishes.
And at the end of the day, Pinoys go home, bringing with them not only the antiques that they have bought but also the stories for behind these items.
SOURCE: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com
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