Some 150 overseas Filipino workers forced to flee strife-torn Libya earlier this year are getting a fresh start in Bulacan province, opening new businesses with an P11-million loan from the provincial government. Read the rest of this entry »

CEBU CITY, Cebu, Philippines — The Australian Federal Police (AFP) has signified its interest in putting up a high-tech crime center in the Philippines with the aim of combating cyber pornography in the country and training authorities to effectively monitor cybercrimes. Read the rest of this entry »

A RECENT column,“Saudization? It might be a blessing,” got flogged a lot, the negative reactions coming from here and elsewhere. The main point of the over-the-top criticism was this: that I was a clueless jerk who had no understanding of the level of pain and dislocation the Saudization program would inflict on domestic helpers and other low-skilled Pinoy workers in the KSA. Read the rest of this entry »

MANILA, Philippines – An increase in the average monthly pension of senior citizens would significantly help the sector cope with rising commodity prices, the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) said in a recent report on the situation of senior citizens in the country. Read the rest of this entry »

Listen up, Filipinos, because this concerns you. You have adopted bad English habits from us Americans for far too long. Yes, we Yanks are responsible. Our culture pushed our slangy ways upon you; we take full blame. Our version of the King’s English is sloppy, unkempt. It’s also very malleable and attracts more new words per year than Kim Kardashian does Twitter followers. But henceforth, you really should take your lead from the folks who invented the language itself: the English. Read the rest of this entry »

To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring — it was peace. — Czech writer Milan Kundera

Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are. — Chinese Proverb

Why is it that many of us think that we’re too overwhelmed by our frenetic busy schedules, when we can still work hard and balance things with relaxation? Even the Bible said that the all-powerful God of the universe took a rest on the seventh day after creation. Read the rest of this entry »

For every woman who breaks free from domestic drudgery, another takes her place. Since the boom, Irish families have hired thousands of women from the Philippines. One of them tells Kay Sheehy of her life of exploitation here — the low wages, the long hours and the terrible heartbreak of being forced to leave her own children back home Read the rest of this entry »

MANILA, Philippines — A labor group has lauded the leadership in the House of Representatives for including a measure proposing a ban on the use of cancerous asbestos in the construction industry as one of the priority bills for the second term of the 15th Congress. Read the rest of this entry »

LOCAL CHAPTERS of a business chamber have expressed concern over policies and practices that hinder business activities at the local level, officials said in a business conference on Friday, even as the government has called for close coordination with officials to iron out differences. Read the rest of this entry »

MANILA, Philippines-Philippine and other Asian assets may rise if investors shift funds from the U.S. amid debt concerns in the world’s biggest economy, a local bank treasurer said. Read the rest of this entry »