By Neil Jerome Morales and Karen Lema MANILA, April 25 (Reuters) - All offers from potential buyers of a strategically located but debt-laden Philippine shipyard will be welcome, the trade minister said on Thursday, ruling out barring Chinese firms over national security fears. Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said the government would not, and could not, block interested buyers … [Read more...]
Philippines President Duterte Bans Foreign Research Ships
By Manuel Mogato MANILA, Feb 6 (Reuters) - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has banned all foreign scientific research off the country's Pacific coast and told the navy to chase away unauthorized vessels, despite earlier allowing Chinese oceanographers to operate there. There was no clear explanation for the about-face by the mercurial Duterte, who has cultivated … [Read more...]
Hundreds Rescued After Ferry Capsizes in Philippines
MANILA, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Four people were killed and seven were missing after a Philippine ferry with 251 people on board capsized during bad weather on Thursday near the capital, Manila, disaster officials and a coastguard spokesman said. Accidents involving boats sailing between the many islands of the Philippines are common. Vessels are often overloaded but the … [Read more...]
Philippine Ferry Capsizes On Anniversary Of History’s Worst Ferry Disaster
A Philippine ferry carrying 251 people capsized on Thursday off an island south of Manila, the capital, a coast guard spokesman said, amid a storm bringing heavy downpours. By evening, 240 of the 251 people who were aboard the vessel, the Mercraft 3, were rescued, according to the Philippine Office of Civil Defense. Seven people were still unaccounted for. The ferry … [Read more...]
Philippines Promises Full Probe After Vietnamese Fishermen Killed in Chase
By Clarissa Batino and Ditas Lopez (Bloomberg) -- Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Cayetano promised a full investigation into the deaths of two Vietnamese fishermen during a weekend sea chase off the coast of Pangasinan province. Philippine Navy personnel opened fire on a Vietnamese fishing vessel on Saturday after it collided with a navy patrol boat. The … [Read more...]