13 SF cops arriving for joint
training with PNP
THIRTEEN members of the San Francisco Police District (SFPD)
are arriving in Manila for a one-week "exchange training" with personnel of the
Philippine National Police on counter-terrorism, defense and security, and law
enforcement.
Consul general Marciano Paynor in San Francisco said the SFPD
Police Exchange Training (PET) delegation, the largest so far to visit the
country, includes a number of female officers and will be headed by Lt. Eric
Quema. The contingent will undergo training through symposiums and seminars and
on tactical skills in crime scene investigation, officer safety and terrorism.
Paynor said PET was conceptualized eight years ago by SFPD
officers with Filipino roots. "As part of the program, PNP officers have also
sent delegations to San Francisco to train with the SFPD," he said.
Paynor said that the consulate tendered a send-off luncheon
in honor of the SFPD personnel last Jan. 8 at the Philippine Center in San
Francisco. – Anthony Ian Cruz
Bill filed to legalize
abandonment of children
ADMINISTRATION Rep. Eduardo Zialcita has filed a bill seeking
to stop abortion and child abuse by legalizing the abandonment of children whose
parents have given up hope of raising them.
House Bill 3227 which Zialcita also calls "The Safe Haven Act
or The Moses Law" permits parents to entrust the custody of their babies, who
are up to two months old, to any hospital, medical emergency facility, police or
fire station and other government agencies.
The "unwanted" babies will then be taken into the custody the
Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). The parents will not be
required to give their names to the recipient of the child.
While the bill protects parents from arrest, Zialcita said it
does not prevent the DSWD or any person allowed by law or custom to request a
law enforcement agency to prosecute any violation of the Revised Penal Code or
other laws.
Zialcita said he filed the bill "to address the moral
degeneration of society as a result of the tragedies caused by abortion, child
abuse, neglect and other forms of anti-life and anti-child acts."
The bill allows parents six months to change their mind and
reclaim custody by proving the child is theirs. Those with no proof will have to
undergo investigation which will also confirm if they are capable of caring for
the child.
Zialcita said a national registry of infants shall be
established "to guard against any possibility on the abuse of the provisions of
this measure, and at the same time improve government’s response to cases of
missing children." He said the registry will use the missing-children website of
the National Bureau of Investigation posting online timely information about
each infant received. – Wendell Vigilia
Manero release under review
THE Department of Justice is making a final review of the
pending release of convict Norberto Manero who shot dead Italian priest Tullio
Favali then ate his brains in North Cotabato in the 70s.
Manero, with his brothers Edilberto and Elpidio, all members
of the Ilaga vigilantes in Mindanao, were convicted of killing Favali whom they
suspected of being a communist sympathizer.
Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez said he will make an
announcement within this week.
Manero was originally sentenced for 40 years but his jail
term was shortened to 24 years by President Fidel Ramos. President Joseph
Estrada gave him conditional pardon in 2000 but withdrew it after it was
discovered that Manero was still facing a kidnap and double-murder case in
Sarangani.
Gonzalez said that he wants to see the statements supposedly made by some
priests that they no longer object to Manero’s release. "That is very important.
That has an impact on the public. Considering the number of credits given to
him, he has already served his term. There were three of them and the two
brothers have already been released. He was left behind because he was
supposedly the leader and his notoriety preceded him," he said. –
Evangeline de Vera
