Seems Duterte means business.

Yes and I apoligise for getting the name wrong (it's an age thing)

May I also recommend "America's Boy" by James Hamilton Paterson?

PRESIDENT Duterte’s first foreign trip next month would surely be a big political and media event, Malacañang said on Sunday.

This early, several leaders from neighboring countries have expressed eagerness to meet with Mr. Duterte during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) meeting in Vientiane, Laos, according to Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar.

“We all know President Duterte is the most talked-about leader in Asean and around the world,” Andanar told government-owned dzRB radio.



Media mob

“We expect the international media companies to mob the President in Laos to talk to him,” he added.

Mr. Duterte’s weeklong trip would be his first abroad since winning the May 9 elections. He had previously said he would avoid frequent overseas travelduring his six-year term due to his advanced age.

The 71-year-old Chief Executive will fly to Brunei for a working visit on Sept. 4-5 before heading to the Asean summit in Laos on Sept. 6-8.

Mr. Duterte will then go to Indonesia for atwo-day working visit on Sept. 8-9.

In an earlier interview, the President said he wanted to personally thank the royal government of Brunei for providing employment to thousands of Filipinos. Marlon Ramos



Read more: http://globalnation.inquirer.net/143351/asean-leaders-await-duterte#ixzz4Ig409avO
Follow us: @inquirerdotnet on Twitter | inquirerdotnet on Facebook

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2016/08/28/editorials/dutertes-threat-democracy/#.V8OdyT54WJJ

Hmm. The goings on of the last twenty four hours have opened my eyes. I don't believe that Freddie ( or John or whatever hus name is) said anything offensive enough to warrant him being banned, and I believe that there are certainly some double standards going on here. For the record I agree with a number of the points that he raised.

My brief visit here has convinced me that the nature of this place has changed.

I no longer feel welcome here, so it's goodbye from me, again.

I agree with Andrew. Andrew was one of the shrinking number of members who seemed like a normal decent person. I Myself have noticed there is a clique of right wing and borderline white supremacist here who foist their views on everyone else. Time for me to consider my place here also.
Enjoy the discussion gentlemen.

I have to say that I too cannot see the reason for the ban of @FreddieB, although his comment about others thinking the death of a five year old would be worth paying was crass.
I have been on the edge about leaving the forum for sometime now and will probably stay but avoid political, religious threads.

Duterte to Chinese envoy: Treat us as your brothers, not enemies


Treat us as your brothers and not enemies.

President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday personally pleaded to the Chinese ambassador to the Philippines to allow Filipino fishermen to fish over the disputed West Philippine Sea.

“I hope the Chinese may find a place in their hearts for the Filipinos. I hope you treat us [as] your brothers and not enemies and take note of our plight,” Duterte said in front of Chinese Ambassador Zhao Jianhua during his speech at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.

READ: Duterte calls on China to let Pinoys fish in West Philippine Sea

The President reiterated his willingness to hold bilateral talks with China after the United Nation’s favored the Philippine diplomatic protest on the disputed West Philippine Sea.

But he said he won’t flaunt the sea ruling yet.

READ: Philippines wins arbitration case vs. China over South China Sea

“I will never bring the matter because it might lead only to the suspension of the talks in China and that is not good, Mr. Ambassador. So I propose that we just have a soft landing everywhere,” he said.

But the Chief Executive said the Philippines would eventually discuss the ruling with China.

“I will not use the judgment arbitral now but I would, one day, sit in front of your representative or you and then I will lay bare my position. And I would say that this paper, I cannot get out of the four corners of this document,” he said.

Duterte reiterated his earlier pronouncements that the country would not wage a war against China but made remarks in jest.

“But for now, Mr. Ambassador, I want to just talk to you for the moment. Maybe give us time to build our forces also. You have so much superiority,” he said in jest, drawing laughter from the crowd.

But he went serious then said that he would rather seek peace than war.

“I don’t go to war. There’s always war and peace. If I am not ready for war, then, peace is the only way,” he said. RAM/rga



Read more: http://globalnation.inquirer.net/14...us-as-your-brothers-not-enemies#ixzz4Ii4aei5X
Follow us: @inquirerdotnet on Twitter | inquirerdotnet on Facebook

Very little news about the daily tragic deaths of Filipino on duty Policemen murdered by cowardly drug dealers in the liberal bleeding heart press..
Its not hard to notice the lack of interest in the men that are paid to uphold the law.
Society is sick.

Both of you. I hope you stay around as this forum is a very useful place and it would be a shame to lose so many people who have something useful to say.

My advice is - put anyone who annoys you on ignore.

This topic no longer appears on my page. In fact, I thought it had been removed until it showed up in my Alerts after somebody liked on of my posts.

11 Abu Sayyaf killed in clash with soldiers

ELEVEN members of the Abu Sayyaf Group including a sub-leader were killed while 17 soldiers were wounded during a firefight in Patikul, Sulu on Friday, a day after the President ordered the military to crush the terror and kidnapping group for beheading a Filipino hostage.

The clash, said Maj. Felimon Tan, spokesman of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ Western Mindanao
Command (Westmincom), occurred at 6:12 a.m. Friday.

Members of the Joint Task Group Sulu and the 4th Scout Ranger Battalion were on combat operations when they encountered more than 100 Abu Sayyaf at Sitio Makaita in the village of Bunkaong in Patikul town.

The firefight, which lasted for 45 minutes, resulted in the killing of 10 Abu Sayyaf members who were not identified, and their sub-leader Mohammad Said who has five warrants of arrest for murder.
Scores of Abu Sayyaf members were also wounded, said Tan.

The wounded soldiers, the official said, were evacuated from the encounter site. As of Friday afternoon, government forces were pursuing the bandits.

There were no reports on the group’s Malaysian, Indonesian and Filipino hostages, as well as Norwegian national Kjartan Sekkingstad.

The intense firefight happened two days after the Abu Sayyaf beheaded 18-year-old Patrick Almodovar, one of its Filipino hostages, after his family failed to meet the August 24 deadline set by the group to pay ransom.

The Abu Sayyaf, which is still holding more than a dozen hostages, demanded P1 million.

Almodovar’s severed head, wrapped in a plastic bag, was recovered in the village of Kadjatan also in Indanan town, but his body was missing.

President Rodrigo Duterte, in a news conference in Davao City early on Thursday, vowed to be “harsh” in going after the terrorist group.

“My orders to the police and to the Armed Forces against all enemies of the state, seek them out in their lairs, whatever, and destroy them,” the President said.

The Abu Sayyaf is a loose network of a few hundred Islamic militants formed in the 1990s with seed money from Osama bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda network, and has earned millions of dollars from kidnappings-for-ransom.

Its leaders have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group but analysts say they are mainly focused on lucrative kidnappings.

No-ransom policy

Malacañang on Friday stood by the government’s no-ransom policy following Duterte’s revelation that ransom had been paid to the Abu Sayyaf for the freedom of the Norwegian hostage Sekkingstad.

Speaking to reporters, presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella said the P50-million ransom paid to the terrorist group was not from the government.

“I’m not privy to that. But it was, I think, it was also raised by third parties, not from the government,” Abella said.
Duterte accidentally revealed on Thursday that P50 million had been paid to the Abu Sayyaf group for the freedom of Sekkingstad.

But Abella maintained that the government did not want to encourage others to pay ransom money.

“We don’t encourage. If they [engage in negotiation], that is their negotiation,” Abella said, adding that government forces were “working quietly” for the release of the Norwegian hostage.

The Abu Sayyaf earlier beheaded two Canadians—John Ridsdel, 68, in April and Robert Hall, 50, in June.
The group kidnapped the two Canadians, Sekkingstad and Filipina Marites Flor from a high-end resort on Samal Island in Davao del Norte in September last year.

Flor was released by the group in June following a successful negotiation led by former Sulu Governor Sakur Tan and Presidential Peace Adviser Jesus Dureza, who were tapped by Duterte to secure the woman.

http://www.manilatimes.net/11-abu-sayyaf-killed-in-clash-with-soldiers/282336/

How can a 'Lifetime Member' leave the forum ?

Dear oh dear... some folk take themselves far too seriously. Run for Parliament !

It seems FreddieB had been under suspicion as his IP address matched that of a member that received a life ban from this forum in July of last year when he used the name @JohnAsh. The decision to ban him was not made lightly nor taken quickly (his bad behaviour was tolerated for months and months); all the relevant messages are available via his Profile (click on the link and select Postings).

The very same person re-joined the forum shortly after 6pm (UK time) yesterday. This time he used the name Dazza and posed as the younger of two brothers married to Filipinas. If you read that thread, you'll see that he raised some suspicions due to him using a Proxy Server to hide his real IP address and thus his geographic location (which, of course, were the same as he used before).

Late last night, he posted a new thread in this Chat section that was innocuously titled and posed the question "why do nuts rise to the top of a bag of muesli?". But the body of the message contained vile and completely unfounded allegations levelled directly at me personally, by name. In it he accused me of being involved in drugs, of being on the run from Duterte's Death Squad and of coming to Malta on a false pretext - all completely false and made-up in his twisted mind. He also suggested that Duterte should send someone to Malta which can be interpreted as a veiled threat on my life. It was very reminiscent of the kinds of messages he posted in his original incarnation that finally led to his first banning. That vitriolic post also mentioned others by name including a member of the forum staff. I reported it late last night and requested it be removed, it being highly libellous (it has been removed).

After posting his breakfast cereal thread, he returned to his "Hello" thread and posted a taunt to Aromulus. Now although Jim (Oss) replied banning him in that thread, I rather think that Jim had already seen my report of the Dazza's "cereal" message, given what he says in the message that banned Dazza.

I should also mention that JohnAsh truly believed that he should been placed in charge of this site following its owner's untimely death on account of the fact that he posted more messages than anyone else. (That latter point is true: his name was almost always the first in the Top Posters list on the Home Page.) His current campaign may be partly down to his bitter resentment of being rejected as a Mod and banned as a member which has festered over the last months.

The vast majority of 'long term' foreign residents feel exactly the same.
As a long term resident of this country, i have seen the failures of previous administrations and Duterte for all his faults is the right choice for the country.

That's where I stand too, Alfie. I haven't lived there as long as either you or Boots but over the last 9 years I have seen and experienced far too much that is just plain wrong. I had high hopes for Aquino but his performance in the aftermath of the Bohol earthquakes and Super Typhoon Yolanda followed by his failure to act against legislators involved in the pork barrel scam did for him as far as I was concerned. As for Roxas, he has questions to answer as to the disappearance of over £100 million donated to the Philippines (£87 million of which by British donors) following those two fore-mentioned disasters not forgetting several JCB earth-movers, half a dozen Land Rover Defenders and other heavy equipment that vanished into thin air after being flown-in to Cebu by the RAF.

Unlike certain other members of this forum - and especially those critical of Duterte - I actually spent time, almost six years, living in his city and experienced life at first hand there. My experience is not vicarious as others who relied on hearsay accounts promulgated by the Liberal press whose owners and masters definitely did not want a hard man occupying the Palace for the next six years who swore oaths that he would rid the country of corruption and cronyism. And, unlike his detractors here, I have met him, albeit briefly, and also his charming and statuesque daughter, Sara, with whom I have had several conversations. They are very much of the people they represent: you may recall that when she was Mayor before, she personally visited the site and halted the demolition of slum housing, to make way for a private commercial development, until suitable alternative accommodation could be provided for those who would be made homeless, which the developer had promised but failed to do.

Neither you nor I played any part in Duterte's election. Not only do foreigners not have the vote - we are not citizens - but we are specifically barred from any form of political discourse, attending rallies etc., on penalty of imprisonment followed by deportation. But we may hold opinions and can, if we're careful, express them on venues located outside the country such as this forum.

I certainly agree that most foreigners living in the Philippines are supportive of Duterte.

Bizarre behaviour - thankfully it was nipped in the bud.

I see. That's helpful to know.

Moving on...

I'm surprised by Duterte. He actually tries to do what he says. I think he's very brave - he's taking on the press, the drug barons, the vested interests...I watched his press conference when he told the media "Don't fcuk with me". Not something I could see the likes of May, Cameron et al ever doing. I like the guy - he's for real, he's not for show, his nose isn't in the trough and I think he's very aware that he could easily end up with a bullet in his head.

I can't ever support someone who promotes death squads - however, it is clear to me that most people in the Philippines are FED UP with the way things are, and Duterte is the only candidate who would really change things. With anyone else, it's just rhetoric and yet cronyism and corruption continues unabated from administration to administration. I can fully understand why people, including my wife, support him, and perhaps some of his, erm more 'robust' actions are the necessary evil that the Philippines needs at this moment in time. I'll just never be comfortable with summary executions, but I'm not the one living in that society so it's very easy for me (like the rest of the world) to be morally outraged when we don't have to live with the consequences. I also wonder about international criticism - which countries are a historical paragon of moral and social justice, that dare to criticise? I think very few.