Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

As the Philippines marked National Press Freedom Day on Sunday, the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) and the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS) called for stronger safeguards for journalists, citing the country’s 114th ranking in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index of Reporters Without Borders.

In a statement, the CHR warned that press freedom in the Philippines continues to ‘face serious challenges.’

‘The lack of accountability for crimes against media workers perpetuates a dangerous cycle of impunity,’ it said as it urged the government to ensure swift justice for victims and their families.

The CHR added that Red-tagging, vilification and other forms of intimidation likewise pose threats to journalists and the public’s right to information.

It cited its National Inquiry on Red-tagging, which found that journalists are frequently targeted for critical reporting on government policies and programs.

The CHR also reiterated its recommendation for legislation that would specifically penalize Red-tagging, saying that it continues to strengthen mechanisms aimed at protecting media workers.

In April, Reporters Without Borders (RSF), an international nongovernment organization that advocates for press freedom, said the Philippines improved from 116th place in 2025 to 114th place this year, although it remains in the lower half of the press freedom index.

The index measures the degree of freedom enjoyed by journalists, news organizations and netizens in 180 countries and the efforts made by authorities to respect this freedom.

The RSF, however, noted that despite its extremely dynamic media landscape, the Philippines remains one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists. It cited the Maguindanao massacre in 2009, which left 32 journalists and media workers dead.

The PTFoMS, on the other hand, said that ‘continuous vigilance and action’ is needed in defending press freedom amid threats.

While noting that its efforts have contributed to improved international press freedom rankings and stronger mechanisms for responding to threats against media, it also acknowledged that journalists continue to face challenges, including violence.

The task force called on the public to recognize the vital role of journalists in democracy.

‘Let us recommit to fostering an environment where truth prevails over disinformation and where laws protect rather than restrict press freedom,’ the PTFoMS said.

Decriminalizing libel

The CHR, meanwhile, reiterated its call to decriminalize libel and cyberlibel, saying journalists should work free from criminal prosecution and undue restrictions.

‘Beyond protection mechanisms, laws and policies must foster an environment where journalism can flourish without fear of criminalization or undue restriction,’ it said.

The CHR also warned of artificial intelligence and digital technologies being used to surveil journalists, expose sources, suppress dissent and spread disinformation.

At the same time, it urged the government to address impunity and create a safe civic environment free from censorship, intimidation and other threats.

‘When journalists are silenced, people lose information necessary to make informed decisions, participate meaningfully in public life, and hold institutions accountable,’ the CHR said.

Damage and losses to Zambales agriculture due to heavy rains and floods have reached P37.55 million, based on the latest data from the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office on Sunday (Aug. 30)

According to Rolex Estella, head of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office, the tally is the accumulated losses from the habagat and tropical cyclones.

Rice accounted for the biggest share of the losses at P21.58 million with damages in 1,069.42 hectares of farmland affecting 1,267 farmers, based on the assessment of the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA).

The municipality of Sta. Cruz recorded the highest rice losses at P11.38 million, followed by the towns of San Antonio with P2.8 million and Subic with P2.05 million.

High-value crops sustained P10.7 million in losses, affecting 358 farmers and 73.64 hectares.

Sta. Cruz also recorded the highest losses in high-value crops at P4.03 million, followed by the town of Botolan at P3.54 million and Subic at P1.69 million.

The assessment also included damage to agricultural facilities, irrigation systems and farm equipment.

Agricultural infrastructure sustained P1.21 million in damage, including a pig pen in Barangay Sta. Fe, San Marcelino, which was washed out and covered by mud.

Damage to agricultural machinery and equipment reached P1.55 million, including farm machinery in Sta. Fe, San Marcelino that was either washed away by floodwaters or buried under soil deposits.

A hand-held agricultural tractor in Barangay Bayto, Sta. Cruz, was also partially damaged.

The assessment also placed damage to a small water impounding project in Barangay Amungan, Iba, at P700,000 after its embankment slope and foundation were undermined.

Fisheries were also affected, with losses of P906,220 in capture fisheries and P796,065 in aquaculture.

Separately, the Provincial Veterinary Office reported the loss of 193 animals valued at P1.18 million.

The figures, said Estella, remain a progress report as assessment and validation of losses continue in affected areas.

The Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Zambales earlier declared the province under a state of calamity following the widespread flooding and damage caused by the successive episodes of heavy rains.

Under the Revised Penal Code, a person commits bigamy by contracting a second marriage during the existence of a valid first marriage. In earlier Supreme Court rulings, bigamy had two consequences for the offending spouses: (1) they cannot remarry, and if they do, (2) they cannot use the invalidity of the prior marriage as a defense unless they have secured a prior judicial declaration of its nullity.

Ramon Paul L. Hernando, en banc), the Supreme Court unanimously modified item (2), holding that a prior void ab initio (from the beginning) marriage is a valid defense even without a judicial declaration of its invalidity. Recently, the Court-in Lapira v. Fariscal (Feb. 26, 2026, per J Alfredo Benjamin S. Caguioa, Third Division)-reiterated this change by acquitting a woman convicted of bigamy in the lower courts.

Let me briefly explain the facts in the recent decision. Imelda Lapira and Jimmy Fariscal married in a civil ceremony in 2001. In 2004, Imelda went to Japan ostensibly to work. Unfortunately, Jimmy lost communication with her and later discovered, to his disappointment, that his wife had married a Japanese national, Takahiko Sato, in 2000, before their marriage in 2001.

Charged with bigamy, Imelda claimed that her marriage to Sato was a ‘sham,’ allegedly arranged only to facilitate her entry into Japan. She maintained that no marriage ceremony took place and that she merely signed a blank paper at the instruction of ‘Jo’ who arranged her travel documents.

Nevertheless, the regional trial court convicted her of bigamy as there was no evidence that her marriage to Sato had been dissolved legally. The Court of Appeals affirmed, holding that she remained criminally liable since, per existing jurisprudence, her first marriage had not been judicially declared void prior to contracting her second marriage.

THE SUPREME COURT RULED with three significant aspects.

First, it held in Lapira, as it did in Pulido, that though Article 40 of the Family Code requires a court declaration of nullity for ‘purposes of remarriage,’ it did not prohibit the accused from collaterally attacking the validity of a prior void marriage.

Therefore, the accused in a prosecution for bigamy can freely raise the defense of a prior void ab initio marriage without first securing a court declaration. Imelda was acquitted because her prior marriage to Sato lacked the essential and/or formal requisites to a contract of marriage-like a valid marriage license and marital ceremony.

Second, citing settled jurisprudence, the Court in Lapira further clarified that a marriage certificate is ‘prima facie evidence of its contents’ and may be used to prove bigamy when the offending spouse appears in two marital certificates. However, such prima facie evidence may be rebutted by ‘substantial evidence.’

Thus, the prima facie validity of the marriage certificate of Imelda’s first marriage to Sato was effectively overthrown by the certification of the Local Civil Registrar, stating that it did not issue the certificate; in fact, no marriage license had been applied for. This rebuttal was sufficient to overcome the prima facie presumption and to justify the acquittal of the accused.

Third, the Lapira ruling adopts a liberal view on the civil aspects of marriage. It noted that the alleged first marriage of Imelda to Sato was nonexistent, and the subsequent marriage to Jimmy was solemnized in a civil ceremony. Because no sacramental union was celebrated, the Church had no reason to interfere. The acquittal of Lapira of bigamy was a purely civil action.

DRAWING FROM JUSTICE HERNANDO’S RULING in Pulido, Justice Caguioa in Lapira clarified that: first, a judicial declaration of nullity of a prior void marriage is no longer necessary to secure an acquittal in a prosecution for bigamy; second, the prima facie validity of the contents of a marriage certificate may be rebutted by a certification by the Local Civil Registrar that no marriage certificate was issued; and third, a prior declaration of nullity is nonetheless necessary to enable any of the erstwhile spouses to remarry.

These principles recognize that while our courts are duty-bound to defend the inviolability of marriage, they cannot-and should not-impose the heavy criminal penalties based on a marital bond that, from the very beginning, was nothing but a phantom. Indeed, our civil institutions cannot protect a covenant that never was.

These latest decisions do not transgress the constitutional protection of the sanctity of marriage as an ‘inviolable social institution.’ Likewise, they do not infringe upon the Catholic Church’s doctrine of marriage as a sacrament because the ecclesiastical aspects were untouched.

To conclude, the defense of a void ab initio marriage without prior court declaration balances our constitutional reverence for matrimony with the demands of criminal justice. Moreover, our jurisprudence harmonizes the strictures of temporal law with the rhythms of divine justice: guarding the sacred rings of a valid marriage, while freeing the innocent from the shackles of a void union.

Around 500 residents, farmers and fisherfolk in Bulacan on Monday waded through floodwaters to protest corruption in ‘flood-control projects.’

They are also opposing the reclamation initiative that reportedly ‘worsened’ the flooding in the province.

The flooding in Bulacan-known as one of the most flood-prone areas in the country-as well as in other provinces, is caused by the southwest monsoon, or ‘habagat,’ which is being enhanced by Tropical Depression Pilandok.

Led by the anti-corruption alliance Kilos Bulacan, members of the fishers’ group Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya), the farmers’ group Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), and the rural-based group Anakpawis marched through the City of Malolos to hold the protest on Monday.

Their action coincides with National Heroes’ Day.

According to KMP Chairperson Danilo Ramos, also a Malolos resident, the province’s residents ‘have long endured the repeated flooding caused by these useless, anomalous flood-control projects.’

‘While corrupt officials and big corporations plunder the public funds and our environment, ordinary people suffer,’ Ramos emphasized in a statement.

‘We demand justice in the form of genuine mitigation measures, accountability, and appropriate compensation for this systematic disaster that caused unmeasurable losses,’ he noted.

Meanwhile, Pamalakaya Vice Chairperson Ronnel Arambulo noted that the reclamation project, New Manila International Airport (NMIA), in Barangay Taliptip, Bulakan, Bulacan, has led to ‘critical risks of flooding and subsidence, threatening its long-term viability.’

Pamalakaya cited a study by the nongovernment organization Global Witness, which warns that ‘rising sea levels and storm surges could render the airport unusable within decades.’

The group also pointed out that the 2,500-hectare project displaced almost 1,000 fishing families in Barangay Taliptip and uprooted over 600 mangrove trees.

‘The protest launched by residents, farmers, and fishermen in Bulacan is timely. We once again call for justice and accountability for all those involved in the anomalous and botched flood control, as well as the widespread plunder of nature that is submerging communities,’ Arambulo remarked.

Echoing these sentiments, Anakpawis Coordinator Glo Fernandez urged the Bulacan provincial government to heed their constituents’ call for an ‘immediate solution’ against flooding.

‘It has been more than a year since the anomaly in flood control broke out. But until now, many sectors remain vulnerable to flooding,’ said Fernandez.

‘Both politicians involved in the anomalous flood control and the big corporations that destroyed the environment must be held accountable,’ she stressed.

Heavy rainfall is expected in 18 provinces in Luzon on Monday due to the southwest monsoon, or ‘habagat,’ which is being enhanced by Tropical Depression Pilandok, the state weather bureau reported.

Based on its 5 a.m. heavy rainfall outlook, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said heavy to intense rains, or around 100 to 200 millimeters (mm) of rainfall, is expected to drench the following areas this Monday:

Ilocos Norte

Ilocos Sur

La Union

Abra

Pangasinan

Benguet

Zambales

Bataan

Tarlac

Pampanga

‘Numerous flooding events are likely, especially in areas that are urbanized, low-lying, or near rivers. Landslide likely in moderate to highly susceptible areas,’ Pagasa said.

Meanwhile, moderate to heavy rains, or around 50 to 100 mm of rainfall, are expected over the following areas:

Batanes

Apayao

Kalinga

Ifugao

Mountain Province

Nueva Vizcaya

Nueva Ecija

Bulacan

Under this condition, localized flooding is possible mainly in urbanized, low-lying or riverside areas, and landslides may occur in highly susceptible areas.

‘Forecast rainfall may be higher in mountainous and elevated areas, the weather bureau said, noting that impacts in some areas may be worsened by significant antecedent rainfall

Pagasa advised the public disaster risk reduction and management offices in the mentioned areas to take all necessary measures ‘to protect life and property.’

In a separate weather advisory on Monday morning, Pagasa reported that Tropical Depression Pilandok had slightly intensified while moving almost stationary over the Philippine Sea east of extreme Northern Luzon.

The tropical depression is expected to exit the Philippine area of responsibility by Wednesday evening or early Thursday morning.

Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon has relieved a maintenance chief following reports of delayed response to calamities, as heavy rains continued to trigger flooding across Metro Manila and several other parts of Luzon.

In an Aug. 29 memorandum, Dizon ordered engineer Loreto Balena Jr. relieved as maintenance chief of the Las Piñas-Muntinlupa District Engineering Office.

Dizon cited Balena’s ‘unsatisfactory performance, lack of urgency, and delayed response to calamities’ as grounds for his removal.

Balena was directed to complete an inventory of his office’s properties, finish and sign pending documents and deliverables, and turn over official records and other papers.

Sen. JV Ejercito, meanwhile, urged the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to complete unfinished flood control projects before starting new ones, saying incomplete infrastructure could worsen the country’s vulnerability to flooding.

‘For practical reasons, we need to close the gaps so that mitigating or solving flood control would be effective,’ Ejercito, chair of the Senate finance committee, told DZBB on Sunday.

‘Close the gaps, complete the unfinished flood control projects. No new projects. Finish what needs to be finished,’ he added.Ejercito’s call came amid renewed scrutiny of the government’s multibillion-peso flood control program and concerns over unfinished or poorly implemented projects.

He also pushed for the proposed Masterplan for Infrastructure National Development, which he said would provide a long-term framework for infrastructure planning that would survive changes in administrations.

The proposed measure would integrate flood control with transportation, housing, water, energy, utilities and other major infrastructure, rather than allowing projects to be planned and implemented separately.

Ejercito said the government should prioritize the country’s 10 most flood-prone areas and use a 30- to 50-year framework to guide major infrastructure investments.

He said long-term planning could also strengthen accountability by giving projects clear objectives, timelines, and costs, and help prevent corruption by ensuring that projects form part of a coherent national plan.

Rain volume

The warnings came as Metro Manila was placed under a red rainfall warning by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) at 12:10 p.m. on Sunday.

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said the metropolis had 186 millimeters of rain in 23 hours from 9 a.m. on Saturday to 8 a.m. on Sunday, based on data from the Pagasa Science Garden Station in Quezon City. A millimeter of rain amounts to a liter of water on a flat area.

Serious flooding remained possible in low-lying and flood-prone areas.

The MMDA said it was deploying mobile pumps, clearing clogged drains and waterways, and dredging and removing debris and garbage from drainage inlets as part of its flood mitigation efforts.

Classrooms damaged

The prolonged rains have also taken a toll on schools.

The Department of Education said 9,869 classrooms had been damaged by the combined effects of the ‘habagat’ (southwest monsoon) and tropical cyclones Luis, Maymay, Neneng, and Obet.

Of the total, 5,731 classrooms sustained minor damage, 2,055 suffered major damage, and 2,083 were totally damaged, according to the latest DepEd situation report as of 8 a.m. Sunday.

Central Luzon had the highest number of affected classrooms and schools, with 3,732, followed by Region I with 2,746 and the Cordillera Administrative Region with 1,266.

DepEd estimated that P280 million would be needed for minor repairs, P1 billion for major repairs, and P5.2 billion for reconstruction.

Cordillera technocrats are pushing to revive a regional governing body for the preservation of the country’s rice terraces, as calls grow for a comprehensive master plan to protect the World Heritage-listed landscape from abandonment, climate change and deteriorating infrastructure.

The Cordillera Regional Development Council is studying a draft resolution urging President Marcos to establish a Cordillera Rice Terraces Commission, which would oversee the conservation of rice terraces across the region.

The proposed commission would replace the Ifugao Rice Terraces Commission, which was created in 1994 to oversee the preservation and restoration of the terraces but was abolished in 1999. Its responsibilities were later transferred to the Banaue Rice Terraces Task Force, which was dissolved in 2002, leaving the provincial government of Ifugao to take the lead in conservation efforts.

The proposed body would also cover rice terraces outside Ifugao, including those in Mountain Province.

The Batad, Bangaan, Mayoyao, Hungduan and Nagacadan rice terraces in Ifugao were collectively inscribed on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization World Heritage List in 1995.

The terraces remain notable for their indigenous engineering, in which water collected from forested areas at the upper portions of the mountains is channeled through traditional irrigation systems to successive rice paddies, locally called ‘payao.’

‘The establishment of the Cordillera Rice Terraces Commission is crucial for stopping the deterioration of the terraces,’ the draft resolution says. It adds that the body could help revitalize indigenous knowledge and sustainable farming practices while enabling younger generations to continue traditional agriculture.

The proposal comes as urban planner and architect Felino Palafox recently pitched to Malacañang a comprehensive master plan for Banaue and other municipalities where the Ifugao rice terraces are located.

During a meeting with Marcos last week, Palafox offered to prepare a Comprehensive Urban, Environmental, Infrastructure, and Economic Development Master Plan for Banaue and the Rice Terraces Municipalities of Ifugao.

His proposal goes beyond repairing damaged terrace walls and irrigation systems, focusing also on the terraces’ role in the local economy and the engineering interventions needed to preserve them.

It argues that the terraces are deteriorating partly because the communities maintaining them can no longer earn enough from farming to sustain their livelihoods.

Palafox estimated that 25 percent to 35 percent of the terraces have been abandoned or irreversibly damaged, citing population decline and environmental pressures, including extreme weather that has damaged the ancient stone and earthen terrace walls.

The proposal, cosigned by the Ifugao provincial government and Polish entrepreneur Maciej Podhajski, also cited low farm incomes as a reason residents leave the province, threatening the workforce needed to maintain the terraces.

Palafox placed the typical farmer’s annual income at about P50,000, which he described as insufficient to sustain a livelihood.

Ifugao officials have been reviewing the proposal and have yet to make their comments public.

Protecting culture

Former Ifugao Rep. Teodoro Baguilat Jr. said any master plan must address the needs of the communities that continue to maintain the terraces and grow heirloom rice.

‘We must protect and nurture the watershed,’ Baguilat said.

He said the government should subsidize farmers and provide livelihood support, rehabilitate irrigation systems and strengthen programs that preserve indigenous knowledge.

Ifugao communities follow a traditional rice culture that governs planting schedules and the maintenance of the terraces.

Baguilat also called for mechanisms that would allow farmers and local communities to benefit from tourism revenues generated by the terraces.

Often described as 2,000 years old, the Ifugao terraces have been the subject of archaeological research suggesting that some of the structures may have been built or significantly expanded only several hundred years ago, possibly in response to pressures brought by Spanish expansion into the Cordillera.

The terraces remain a living agricultural landscape, sustained not only by stone and earth structures but also by indigenous knowledge and communal practices passed down through generations.

Ifugao had a population of 208,668, according to the latest available census data. The Philippine Statistics Authority reported that in 2024, the province was the second-fastest growing economy in the Cordillera, accounting for 7.5 percent of the region’s gross domestic product, estimated at P28.24 billion.

The proposed commission and master plan are aimed at addressing the intertwined challenges of conservation, livelihood, tourism and climate resilience-while keeping the terraces a living part of Ifugao culture rather than simply preserving them as a heritage site.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday called on Filipinos to not just remember the nation’s heroes but also embody their courage and keep the flame of patriotism alive.

In his message in commemoration of National Heroes’ Day, Marcos said the public must renew their ‘solemn duty’ to carry forward the nation for which the heroes fought and sacrificed.

‘Our forebears won our freedom, defended our dignity, and laid the foundations of the Republic we cherish,’ he said.

‘We honor them best by embodying their courage, keeping the flame of patriotism alive, and becoming the citizens our country needs,’ the president said.

He noted that the heroes’ spirit lives on those who choose to ‘serve, care and contribute to a cause greater than oneself.’

These can be seen in soldiers and first responders who risk their lives to keep everyone safe, Marcos said.

‘We recognize it in our teachers, health workers, farmers, fisherfolk and overseas Filipinos who sustain our families and communities,’ he said.

‘We find it in every citizen who helps a neighbor, protects the vulnerable, and works honestly for the common good,’ Marcos added.

The president also hoped for Filipinos to continually prove themselves worthy of the liberty the heroes have fought for and build a country that future generations will proudly inherit.

Heavy traffic has been observed on sections of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx), while the Libtong Exit in Meycauayan, Bulacan was temporarily closed on Monday.

This is due to flooding caused by the southwest monsoon or ‘habagat.’

In its 9 a.m. traffic advisory, the NLEx Corporation said traffic remains heavy along the NLEx-Candaba Viaduct, Tulaoc (San Simon, Pampanga), and the southbound lane of the San Simon Interchange due to continuous heavy rainfall or flooding on local roads.

‘Motorists approaching San Simon Northbound and San Simon Southbound may take the San Simon Exit and re-enter NLEx via the San Simon Entry as an alternative route to avoid the flooded section,’ the corporation said in the advisory.

‘The San Fernando Southbound Entry is temporarily closed due to heavy traffic in San Simon caused by water buildup,’ it added.

NLEx Corp. also noted that southbound motorists who want to return to the northbound lane may use U-turn slots before the Tulaoc Overpass and before the San Simon Interchange.

Patrol officers are on-site to assist motorists and manage the traffic situation in the areas, said the NLEx Corp.

Meanwhile, light traffic was continuously seen on the following NLEx roads:

Balintawak (northbound and southbound)

Valenzuela (northbound and southbound)

Meycauyan (northbound and southbound)

Bocaue (southbound)

San Simon Interchange (northbound)

Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway Concepcion entry and exit ramp

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) earlier reported that 18 provinces in Luzon are forecast to experience heavy rainfall this Monday due to the habagat enhanced by Tropical Depression Pilandok.

The weather bureau said Pilandok had slightly intensified while moving almost stationary over the Philippine Sea east of Extreme Northern Luzon.

The tropical depression is currently carrying a maximum sustained wind speed of 55 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center (up from 45 kph from the Sunday evening bulletin), and gustiness of up to 70 kph (up from 55 kph). Pagasa said Pilandok is expected to exit the Philippine area of responsibility by Wednesday evening or early Thursday morning.

The number of families affected by heavy rains brought by the southwest monsoon or habagat in Calabarzon since the first week of August has risen to 305,959, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) reported on Sunday (Aug. 30).

The affected families are from 965 barangays across the provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon.

The agency said the number of families who evacuated from their homes began increasing again on Aug. 29 due to heavy rains, particularly in Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal.

Based on the latest reports from local governments, 7,074 families were still staying in 161 evacuation centers across the region as of noon Sunday.

Rizal had the highest number of operating evacuation centers with 72, followed by Cavite with 58, Laguna with 24 and Batangas with seven.

As of Aug. 30, the DSWD office in Calabarzon had distributed 260,072 family food packs to affected families.

A standard DSWD family food pack contains six kilograms of rice, canned goods such as corned beef, tuna, and sardines, as well as sachets of coffee or chocolate malt drink. It is intended to provide a family of five with food for two days.

The assistance was provided not only to families who evacuated but also to those who remained in their homes but were affected by heavy rains and flooding.