1 March 11-17, 2021
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA EDITION
www.pnewstoday.com
THE PREMIER FILIPINO-AMERICAN NEWSPAPER IN THE U.S. SINCE 1961
Vol. 60 No. 31 March 11-17, 2021
NEWS AND VIEWS YOU TRUST
ASIAN HATE CRIMES IN HISTORIC LEVEL Police unresponsive? PHL, US band to protect Pinoys
PHL, US team up to protect Pinoys over rising hate crimes
By ALFRED GABOT, Editor in Chief and SUNITA SOHRABJI, EMS Contribu�ng Editor
SAN FRANCISCO/WASHINGTON – Anti-Asian hate crimes and threats have reached historic levels during the pandemic, sowing fears among Asian Americans in different areas in the United States even as the Biden administration assured it will do its best to stem the tide of the rising hate crimes. Asian American leaders, including Filipinos, noted a a survey of police departments in 16 major U.S. cities, the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, a research office at Cal State San Bernardino, which found a total of 122 anti-Asian hate crimes last year — a 149% increase from the 49 in 2019. Page 9
More signs Philippines in cusp of a depression By Be�ng Laygo Dolor, Editor MANILA – Unless the economy recovers substantially this March, the Philippines will likely see another quarter of negative growth, all but guaranteeing that the country has entered into a much-feared depression. Unlike a recession – defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth – which is relatively easy to recover from, a depression – defined as four consecutive quarters of negative
gross domestic product (GDP) – is a much harder rut to rise out of. In other words, recessions are mild downturns, even considered as normal by economists, but depressions are a severe and sustained shrinking of an economy. Official figures from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) released over the weekend stated that four million Filipinos were out of work in the Page 8
CALBAYOG AMBUSH. Calbayog City Mayor Ronald Aquino and four others died in an ambush in the city purportedly by policemen. His van peppered with bullets is shown a�er the incident. See details on page 3.
Robredo, UN heat up over Calabarzon, Calbayog killings By Claire Morales True
MANILA – The debate between President Rodrigo Duterte and Vice President Maria Leonor Robredo over recent killings in the country like the murder of the Calbayog City mayor and nine activists during raids in the Calabarzon region continues to heat up.
“The Filipino people deserve better than this murderous regime,” said Robredo as she denounced the killings. Malacanang fumed over Robredo’s statements, challenging her to probe her claims. At least six died in Rizal province, two in Page 9
PHL virus cases top 600,000; curfew up, kissing, hugging in public banned by cops By Jeanne Michael Penaranda MANILA — The Philippines recorded 2,886 Covid-19 case on March 11, the highest number since October 24 last year, bringing the total to 603,308 as
vaccinations against the disease continue for the second week with Sinovac and AztroZeneca vaccines from China and United Kingdom. Page 8
WASHINGTON/MANILA – The Philippine Embassy in Washington D.C. continues to engage American authorities to protect Filipinos amid the alarming rise in anti-Asian violence in the United States. Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez said the State Department already received their note verbale requesting immediate assistance to strengthen the protection of Asians, including Filipinos and Filipino-Americans in the country. A letter has been also sent to the US Senate, which was followed by a Senate committee hearing that probed on the reported hate crimes against people of Asian descent since the start of the pandemic. “Maganda naman ang mga sagot ng FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) dahil sila ay gumagawa ng puwede nilang gawin para matigil itong hate crimes so marami silang mga agents na naspread out all over the US (The response of the FBI is good and they are already taking Page 8
Calbayog mayor, 4 others die in ambush
Duterte praises Sen. Go, ‘his successor?’ VIEWS & COMMENTS
SHOWBIZ
SPORTS
Parents can get up to $3600 fully refundable tax credit per child
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GM Wesley So turns US citizen, says he loves PHL
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