Sunday, June 28, 2009

Japan, S.Korea in united stance against N.Korea


South Korea and Japan "will never tolerate" a nuclear-armed North Korea, South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak said on Sunday after talks with Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso.

Lee and Aso agreed to press North Korea to abandon its nuclear programme amid Pyongyang's continued sabre-rattling, and called for China to play a greater role in persuading its ally to disarm, they said in a news conference.

"During the talks, we confirmed that we will never tolerate a nuclear-armed North Korea," Lee told reporters.

"Through implementing UN resolution 1874, we need to show North Korea that they will gain nothing by obtaining nuclear weapons," Lee said, referring to UN sanctions against Pyongyang for its recent nuclear and missile tests.

Aso said: "We agreed to strengthen cooperation between Japan, South Korea and the United States, and agreed on the need to deepen cooperation with China."

China, North Korea's main ally, has always favoured cautious diplomacy toward Pyongyang, wary of any moves that could push the isolated regime to collapse and potentially send millions of refugees streaming over its border.

The summit came as Pyongyang has stepped up its confrontational rhetoric amid global suspicions that Kim Jong-Il's administration is preparing to fire more missiles and stage a military exercise off the North's east coast.

Regional tension spiked after North Korea on May 25 carried out its second nuclear test, followed by missile launches.

North Korea has also abandoned six-party talks on its nuclear disarmament, which involved the two Koreas, the United States, China, Russia and Japan.

Lee and Aso discussed the idea of holding five-party talks excluding Pyongyang, "with an aim of making progress in the six-party talks," Aso said.

Tokyo and Seoul have led the push in East Asia against the North's increasingly antagonistic stance, in which Pyongyang has repeatedly warned of a military confrontation.

North Korea has vowed to build more nuclear bombs and to start a new weapons programme based on uranium enrichment in response to the UN sanctions.

The North Sunday renewed its verbal offensive, threatening to bolster its nuclear deterrence against the United States, a close ally of South Korea and Japan.

"We will strengthen our nuclear deterrence further for our self-defence to cope with outright US nuclear threats and nuclear war attempts," Pyongyang's ruling communist party newspaper Rodong Sinmun said.

Rodong said the North's nuclear drive could be justified by the "US introduction of nuclear weapons into South Korea," despite the denial by Seoul and Washington that there are US nuclear weapons on South Korean soil.

Lee's one-day trip to Tokyo was part of regular "shuttle summit diplomacy," a system that sees the leaders visit each other twice a year for talks on issues including diplomatic and economic matters.

Lee and Aso also agreed to hold a senior-official level meeting on July 1 to resume stalled negotiations on a bilateral free trade deal.

"The bilateral free trade agreement should be completed," Lee said, adding that "South Korea will fight protectionism" amid a global recession.

The South Korean president also said that he had asked Aso "to give Korean residents in Japan the right to vote in local assembly elections."

The majority of Korean residents in Japan are descendants of forced labourers brought to Japan during during its colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula in the first half of the 20th century.


Agence France-Presse
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Friday, June 26, 2009

Swine flu death in Solano County

A 53-year-old Solano County man with a confirmed case of H1N1 has died, according to Solano County health authorities. His death is the first in the county involving a person with the virus.

“We are saddened by this man’s death,” said Solano Public Health Officer Dr. Ronald Chapman. “He had no other identified major health conditions.”
Health officials declined to release his city of residence or his identity to protect patient confidentiality. Chapman and other officials said that even though most of the H1N1 cases in the state have been mild or moderate, all can be deadly and everyone should remain vigilant.

There have been at least 16 deaths with H1N1 infection in California to date, and at least 110 deaths in the United States. “Unfortunately, similar to regular seasonal flu which kills an estimated 36,000 people in the United States each year, we anticipate that we will see more illnesses and deaths from this novel H1N1 virus,” said Dr. Chapman.
There have been 11 confirmed cases to date in Solano County, and just one in Napa County. Due to the high demand on laboratory services, only cases involving hospitalizations and fatalities are being laboratory tested.

Solano health authorities said Thursday a vaccine for the novel H1N1 virus is currently in production with expected distribution in fall 2009.
Today, health authorities recommend:

• Washing hands regularly with soap and water;

• Coughing or sneezing into sleeve or elbow;

• If you have flu-like symptoms, staying home from school or work for at least seven days from the onset of symptoms or until fully recovered, whichever is longer; and

• Contacting your health care provider if you or your family member has flu-like symptoms.

from
http://www.napavalleyregister.com/articles/2009/06/25/news/local/doc4a4424555131b816427140.txt
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Wednesday, June 24, 2009

DOH: Low-level flu outbreak in Metro Manila


MANILA, Philippines - Health Secretary Francisco Duque III confirmed yesterday there is now a “low-level community outbreak” of Influenza A(H1N1) virus in Metro Manila, even as 28 individuals were added to the list of cases in the country, raising the total to 473.

Duque said those affected by the low-level outbreak are mostly areas in Quezon City, Parañaque City and Manila.

But he clarified that there is no “huge clustering of cases” in any community in the metropolis.

He maintained that a majority of the schools with confirmed cases were situated in these cities.

“You can put it this way: where are the schools where you already have school community transmission beyond second level? But it is still a very limited number (of cases), therefore it’s just a low-level transmission,” he said.

As of June 19, the Department of Health (DOH) had recorded a total of 81 cases in Quezon City, 44 cases in Manila, 21 in Parañaque and 15 in Makati City.

Three more schools have reported confirmed cases of the contagion, raising the total to 22. These are the Holy Spirit in Cubao and in Fairview, both in Quezon City, St. Mary’s College in Caloocan City and St. Paul’s College in Makati.

Among the schools that suspended classes due to several cases were Assumption College in Makati City; Maria Montessori School of Quezon City along Visayas Avenue, Lagro High School in Quezon City; Colegio de Santa Rosa in Makati; Claret School of Quezon City.

Classes were also suspended at the Manila Central University (MCU) in Caloocan City.

The suspension at MCU occurred when an employee was found infected with the virus.

The University of Santo Tomas suspended more colleges after a case was confirmed at one of the engineering colleges in the Roque Ruano building.

Classes were suspended until June 29 for all engineering students at the Ruano building.

Classes were already suspended last Monday for students of the College of Nursing, College of Medicine and College of Rehabilitation Science that hold classes at the St. Martin de Porres.

As of Tuesday night, the number of students found positive of A(H1N1) at the University of the Philippines has rose from four to seven.

UP Diliman Vice Chancellor Betsy Enriquez, however, said there will be no suspension of classes.

In the Cordillera region, cases have risen to 47, six of which have already been confirmed positive while 15 others are still awaiting results.

Authorities temporarily suspended classes in Sta. Rosa, Laguna after 11 people, mostly elementary and high school students, were found positive for the virus.

But town mayor Arlene Arcillas said there is no outbreak in her area of responsibility and that all the patients were responding positively to treatment.

“But numbers wise, the situation is not yet alarming. What may be alarming is if you are given statements that schools are affected. But if you are looking at the total number of public and private schools, you have anywhere around 40,000 while the number of affected schools is only 22. That’s a minuscule percent of total number of schools,” he said.

Community outbreak pertains to the fourth level of transmission of A(H1N1). This is declared when health authorities can no longer trace those who could have contracted the virus from the index case, the second-generation case and the third-generation case, respectively.

According to DOH Undersecretary Mario Villaverde, contract tracing is done “only if you know the index case.”

“But in some cases, it’s very difficult to do it if you see third generation cases. So the best thing to do is to shift to mitigation so you just look for those who are ill,” he said.

The DOH is now finalizing its guidelines for the shift of its anti-A(H1N1) strategy from containment to mitigation where the DOH would no longer do contact tracing.

Instead, management and treatment will be provided to the infected individuals, particularly those who have underlying conditions like diabetes, hypertension, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disorders and those who are pregnant, immuno-compromised, above 60 and below five years old.

Villaverde said that community-level transmission is declared “by school or by community” just like what has been done in barangay Hilera in Jaen, Nueva Ecija in the past weeks.

Duque said the new cases involved “16 males and 12 females and their ages ranged from seven months to 49 years old.

“All of these cases are Filipinos with no history of travel to any affected country. All contacts in the household and in workplace of these particular patients are being monitored and are now in quarantine,” he said.

Of the 473 cases, a total of 400 or 85 percent have already fully recovered.

DOH links up with Smart

In an effort to strengthen its fight against the virus, DOH yesterday tied up with Smart Communications Inc.

Under the project, Smart has assigned Hotline 155 on its Smart and Talk N’ Text-powered mobile phones where subscribers could access information about the virus. This line will be available from Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Ramon Isberto, head of Smart’s Public Affairs Group, said subscribers could get information by simply dialing 155. Each call will be charged P6.50 per minute.

Isberto said that although the hotline has been designed to address inquiries on the virus, “it is envisioned as an information channel on other pressing outbreaks or diseases as determined by the DOH.”

“Smart has been deploying its mobile technology and communications solutions in aid of government agencies involved in emergency preparedness and disaster response.

“This time, it’s even more vital considering that we are talking about a global outbreak and the effects can already be seen nationwide,” he said.

Duque said the project would give a big boost to the awareness campaign of the DOH against the pandemic.

“We have given them all relevant information on the novel virus that they will need because they would be manning the hotline. However, when tougher questions come up, they will be referring the callers to the DOH-Health Emergency Management Service Operations Center,” he added.

No drastic measures yet

Meanwhile, Malacañang said it is not yet contemplating on implementing drastic measures earlier prepared to contain the spread of A(H1N1) in the country.

Deputy presidential spokesman Gary Olivar added that President Arroyo will also have to do some “social distancing” and limit physical contact —such as shaking hands —with other people to comply with World Health Organization (WHO) protocols, as well as to prevent her from getting the virus from infected persons.

Mrs. Arroyo is currently on a state visit in Brazil after visiting Japan, among the many countries in the world where there are cases of infections.

The WHO and the DOH have recommended “social distancing” and quarantining for persons coming from such countries.

The President is expected to arrive in the country during the weekend.

Olivar said Mrs. Arroyo and her party are fully aware of the health procedures they would have to undertake.

“We are confident they’d (presidential party) be properly looked after when they come back here,” Olivar told a news briefing.

“Obviously there would be a proper advice to be given at that time based on the assessment on where they been and the various risks involved,” he added.

Dr. Asuncion Anden, head of the National Center for Health Promotion of the DOH, said Mrs. Arroyo and members of her delegation would have to go through the health screening at the airport.

When asked what steps the President must take upon her arrival, Anden said: “She should have to observe herself for any respiratory conditions, signs and symptoms. I’m sure the President will be adequately briefed on this.”

“I think the President will behave responsibly in cognizance of responsibilities to public health issues on one hand and also to her office and to those she serves,” Olivar said.

Anden suggested that it would be prudent for Mrs. Arroyo to wash or sanitize her hands as often as possible during public engagements to prevent from being infected by others with the deadly virus.

Olivar said such hand sanitizing would not be taken as an affront during these times.

He said the country’s situation is different from Mexico where the government earlier temporarily shut down its operations to stop the spread of the virus.

He pointed out that the fatalities in Mexico due to the virus numbers by the hundreds while Philippines only had one death that was accompanied by the victim’s other serious health conditions.

“If we compare the situation (between Mexico and the Philippines), I think the difference is very, very big,” he said. Anden said Secretary Duque has already been designated the lead crisis manager of the situation and at present, all measures he has been implementing are working.

“We have to take our cue from the DOH,” Olivar said. “They continue to stay on top of the situation and if they have not recommended an action as drastic as emergency powers or anything like that, that has to be because in their professional assessment as public health professionals, that drastic action is not needed at this time.”

Anden stressed the need for government and private offices to undertake measures to prevent the spread of the virus like sanitation procedures. – Artemio Dumlao, Ed Amoroso, Dennis Carcamo, Paolo Romero, Katherine Adraneda - By Sheila Crisostomo (Philstar News Service, www.philstar.com)

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Monday, June 22, 2009

Besieged Somali leader declares state of emergency

MOGADISHU (AFP) - – Somalia's president, clinging to power by his fingertips in his Mogadishu palace, on Monday declared a state of emergency in a bid to contain a deadly six-week-old insurgent offensive.

Sharif Sheikh Ahmed's announcement came amid growing talk of fresh foreign military action to flush out hardline Islamist groups, less than six months after Ethiopia ended a two-year intervention which failed to do just that.

The measure should have little impact on the ground in a country plagued by chaos since 1991 and over which Sharif's forces have no control but could facilitate his administration's request for foreign military assistance.

"As of today, the country is under a state of emergency," Sharif said at press conference in the capital, during a brief lull in fighting that has killed at least 300 people nationwide since May 7.

The president said the government had decided to announce the emergency "after witnessing the intensifying violence across the country."

According to a presidential aide, the decree still has to be approved by parliament to be officially effective. It was not immediately clear where and when the national assembly would convene.

On Monday, the African Union reiterated its concern and gave its blessing to Somalia's appeal for foreign backing.

AU Commission Chairman Jean Ping said the Somali government "has the right to seek support from AU members states and the larger international community."

On Sunday, the secretary general of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference called for urgent international action to suppress the assault that has also displaced 130,000 civilians.

"It has become inevitable that the international community should intervene immediately to support the transitional government, re-establish order and lighten the suffering of innocent civilians," Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu said.

The previous day, Somalia's parliament speaker had launched a desperate appeal for foreign assistance, less than six months after neighbouring Ethiopia put an end to it's ill-fated military intervention.

"The government is weakened by the rebel forces. We ask neighbouring countries -- including Kenya, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Yemen -- to send troops to Somalia within 24 hours," Sheikh Aden Mohamed Nur told reporters.

Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga said after a meeting in Nairobi Monday with his Somali counterpart Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke that he supported a foreign military solution but stopped short of committing his own troops.

"There is also need to provide military assistance to deal with the situation in Somalia," he said.

In 2006, Ethiopia invaded Somalia to remove an Islamist rebellion led by Sharif and Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys.

When it pulled out earlier this year, having failed to stabilise the country and significantly strengthen the internationally backed transitional government, Ethiopia warned it could return at any time should hardliners threaten to take control.

But Ethiopian Communications Minister Bereket Simon reacted to the Somali speaker's call Saturday by insisting that his country would not make its move without international backing.

Ethiopian troops were reported to have beefed up their presence at the border with western Somalia in recent days.

On May 7, an unprecedented anti-government offensive was launched by the Shebab, a hardline armed group suspected of ties to Al-Qaeda, and Hezb al-Islam, a more political movement led by Aweys, Sharif's ally-turned-foe.

The fighting has focused on central regions, where Sharif's Islamic Courts Union is well represented, and Mogadishu, where he has owed his survival mainly to the protection of African Union peacekeepers.

The Somali security minister, a lawmaker and the Mogadishu police chief were killed in three successive days last week, drawing a barrage of international condemnation.



by Yahoo news
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Six dead, 76 hurt in Washington metro crash


WASHINGTON (AFP) - – One subway train slammed into another during the evening rush hour killing six people and injuring 76 in the worst accident in the history of Washington's subway system, officials said.

Hundreds of emergency responders from around the region rushed to the chaotic scene in the northeast section of the US capital where one train rammed into a stationary train from behind, leaving part of one train crumpled atop the other.

"There are already four confirmed fatalities," Washington Mayor Adrian Fenty told a hastily arranged press conference. "This would be the deadliest accident in the history of our metro train transit system."

Fire Chief Dennis Rubin said at least 76 people were hurt, including two with life-threatening injuries.

Television images showed at least two carriages of one train had lifted off the ground and mounted the other train, partially crushing at least one carriage below on an above-ground section of the popular Red Line train route.

Rescue teams were seen stretchering injured passengers down the tracks and using equipment to cut through the carriages' outer shell in an effort to get to those inside the train, as emergency crews searched for more dead and wounded.

The collision occurred at 5:02 pm (2102 GMT) near the Fort Totten Metro station close to the District of Columbia's border with the state of Maryland, said Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) general manager John Catoe, who offered his condolences to the families of those who died.

One of those who died, a woman, was the operator of the second train that rammed into the first as it awaited orders to proceed along the tracks, Catoe said.

"The next train came up behind it and for reasons we do not know plowed into the back of the train, he added.

"To the families of those who are injured, our deep heartfelt pain is with you, and we will do whatever we can to help through this process."

National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) officials were on the scene and had launched an investigation into the crash.

Dozens of stunned passengers, safely evacuated from the train, were standing by the train tracks close to the collision site, or were being helped down off the other carriages by rescue workers.

For passenger Abra Jeffers, the crash was a harrowing welcome to the nation's capital, where he was heading home from his first day of work Monday.

"I was on the train that got hit. I thought it was an explosion," Jeffers, 25, told AFP. "I thought it was like the train bombings in London. There was smoke and dust everywhere."

Train passenger Jody Wickett told CNN she was texting a friend when she was sent hurtling through the air of the subway car.

"We felt like we hit a bump and about five or 10 seconds later, the train just came to a complete halt and we went flying," Wickett said.

"I went in there to try and help and (there was) debris and people pinned under and in between the two cars. We were just trying to get them out and help them as much as possible, pulling back the metal and whatnot," she said.

"Some we couldn't, some we could, until an emergency crew got there."

Metro carries an average of some 800,000 people a day in and out of the nation's capital, and is divided into five lines criss-crossing the city and traveling deep into the neighboring states of Maryland and Virginia.

On the January 20 inauguration of President Barack Obama, more than 1.5 million people used Washington's public transportation system to see the swearing-in.

But many Metro officials have been urgently calling for more funds to repair the aging system, warning it was coming under increasing strain.

Mayor Fenty warned of huge delays to commuter traffic, including non-Metro train services along the heavily traveled East Coast corridor near Washington.

The last major train crash in the United States was in September, when 25 people were killed when the conductor of a train in Los Angeles was sending text messages on his mobile phone while in charge of a commuter train.

The deadly collision in Chatsworth, north of Los Angeles, also injured 134 people and was the worst train accident in the United States in some 15 years.


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1st flu death reported in RP

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Health (DOH) reported yesterday the country’s first death from Influenza A(H1N1), a 49-year-old mother who was known to have other pre-existing illnesses.

The latest total count of infected cases nationwide soared to 445 after 17 more were recorded yesterday. The good news, however, is that out of the total cases, 374 have fully recovered.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said that based on the autopsy report, the viral infection was not the primary cause of the death, but rather “congestive heart failure secondary to acute myocardial infarction aggravated by severe pneumonia – either bacterial, viral or both.”

“This one is a very interesting case. It embodies several high-risk and pre-disposing factors that accelerated the death (of the patient). It is in line with what we have been saying for several weeks, that complicated cases will be encountered,” Duque noted at a press conference.

Aside from congestive heart disease, the patient was found to have tuberculosis, enlarged liver, kidney and spleen, tumor in the uterus and tyromegaly or goiter.

The patient was not even in the DOH’s records of suspected and confirmed A(H1N1) cases and had no history of travel to countries that have the virus.

According to Duque, the patient came home from work with a cough last June 17 and developed fever, cold and chills the following day so she did not report for work.

On June 19, the patient was no longer able to take her breakfast and suddenly experienced difficulty in breathing. She died even before the doctor called by her family arrived.

The next day, the brother notified Duque about the incident and throat swab samples were collected from the patient.

The specimens tested positive for A(H1N1).

“Given the available information, we cannot conclude that the death is due to A(H1N1). But in other countries which have reported A(H1N1) deaths, a majority have pre-existing medical conditions. We condole with the family of the patient as we mourn her untimely death,” Duque, who was a friend of the patient’s brother, said.

He assured the public that the patient no longer poses a threat to those who might attend her wake because the virus dies when the host-body perishes.

The DOH had advised the household contacts of the patients to observe self-quarantine while it is checking with others who could have come in close contact with her.

Duque said the husband had manifested symptoms ahead of the patient but he tested negative for the virus when examined. The patient’s son, mother, sister and brother have not developed flu-like symptoms.

With this development, the health secretary said that the DOH will be “more aggressive in targeting segments of patients with high vulnerability to fatal flu complications and who should be the ones to receive the most care and attention by healthcare professionals.”

Malacañang immediately stepped into the picture and urged the public not to panic.

Deputy presidential spokeswoman Lorelei Fajardo said the victim was considered a “high-risk” case and health authorities still consider her infection as mild.

“I think our DOH officials are on the right track by giving more attention to the high-risk patients,” Fajardo said.

“There’s nothing to be alarmed about. Again we just need to be prepared and that’s what we’re doing right now,” she added.

Scary projection

Although the health department is doing its best to prevent the virus from spreading, one of its officials estimated that around 22.5 million Filipinos may be afflicted with it, considering the way it has been spreading.

Dr. Lyndon Lee Suy, head of the agency’s Emerging and Re-Emerging Infectious Disease Program, told the panel of South Cotabato Rep. Arthur Pingoy that the virus could affect 25 percent of the population estimated to be at least 90 million.

“When you talk about projection, with the 25 percent attack rate, we can say that we are expecting 25 percent of the population to be affected with influenza A(H1N1),” he told Parañaque Rep. Roilo Golez.

Suy, however, did not specify any time frame for the spread of the disease.

Dr. Vito Roque, head of the surveillance unit of the DOH National Epidemiological Center, acknowledged that the current trend of the virus is steadily increasing, as evidenced by the day-to-day monitoring of cases.

Muntinlupa City Rep. Ruffy Biazon said the first casualty of A(H1N1) virus should be thoroughly studied by the health department to determine if a new strain had indeed claimed the life of the victim.

“The first A(H1N1) death in the country should be fully investigated by the DOH in order to determine if it was caused by a new strain of the virus or if the victim simply had a weaker physical condition,” he said.

“The first few hundred cases were considered mild. But this death might be the start of the stronger cases, hence the DOH should take extra effort in containing the virus,” added Biazon.

During the initial stage of the briefing, Golez showed disappointment over the absence of Duque and warned the representatives of DOH about its logistical capability.

“I know that Secretary Duque is busy, but this is a very important matter. I am going to ask the policies and budgetary concerns of the agency.”

But Suy defended his boss’ absence. “The secretary is currently attending an emergency meeting regarding H1N1.”

Still wreaking havoc

But while the bureaucracy is neck-deep in its efforts to control the spread of the virus, several other cases have been recorded all over the country, prompting schools to suspend classes.

In Metro Manila, St. Scholastica’s College in Manila and St. Paul College-Makati had suspended classes for 10 days starting yesterday due to A(H1N1). Classes for pre-school, elementary and high school students will resume at both schools on July 1 when school facilities have already been subjected to disinfection.

Reedley International School in Libis, Quezon City and Rosary Hills International School in Kaybiga in Caloocan City also suspended classes yesterday.

Dr. Teresita Domalanta, of the Department of Education National Capital Region, said classes were also suspended in La Salle Greenhills, San Juan; Don Bosco Technical Institute, the St. Bernadette School and the Southridge-PAREF School in Mandaluyong City.

Adamson University-Manila suspended classes at all levels but only for five days with one confirmed case of A(H1N1). Classes will resume on June 25.

The University of Santo Tomas in España, Manila had suspended classes for a number of courses housed in its St. Martin de Porres Building.

Among the UST colleges that had suspended their classes for 10 days are the Colleges of Nursing, Medicine and Rehabilitation Sciences.

University of Cebu in Mandaue City had three confirmed cases that resulted in some 600 nautical course students being quarantined.

Two cases were reported at Karangalan Elementary School in Cainta, Rizal while 11 persons, including nine students, were reportedly infected in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, leading to the suspension of classes in at least six schools.

Six of the infected students were from Sta. Rosa Central School and three from Canossa Academy School.

Nazareno said the patients are now being treated and are responding well to medication.

Classes were also suspended at the Sacred Heart College in Tacloban City after a Grade IV pupil was monitored with the viral infection.

City health officer Dr. Jaime Opinion reported that it is monitoring 163 individuals who were exposed to persons confirmed with the virus.

Two of the three cases in Eastern Visayas are residents of Tacloban. The other, a 44-year-old seaman, is from Catbalogan, Samar.

The three are now confined at the Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center, the hospital designated by the DOH for treatment of persons infected with the virus.

However, not everything is lost in the fight against A(H1N1).

Dr. Rio Magpantay, DOH director in Central Luzon, yesterday said that the panic triggered by the outbreak has already died down after 53 out of 55 cases in San Fernando, Pampanga have recovered.

“I think the panic dissipated after people found out that those stricken with A(H1N1) fully recovered within three to four days,” Magpantay told The STAR.

He said swab samples were taken over the weekend from 32 students of schools in Camiling, Tarlac and another 30 people in Bulacan, Hagonoy and Guiguinto in Bulacan after they manifested flu-like symptoms.

Results on the swab laboratory tests were still being awaited as of yesterday.

He said of the total 55 confirmed cases so far in Central Luzon, 27 were in Guiguinto and Bulacan in Bulacan, 26 in Jaen, Licab, Lupao and Cabanatuan City in Nueva Ecija, and one each in Angeles City and Floridablanca in Pampanga.

The only two victims still recovering from the virus are from Bulacan, while the rest fully recovered in three to four days.

Magpantay said that the DOH is now less preoccupied with tracing the contacts of the cases and has zeroed in on containing the spread of existing cases.

“We have enough supply of Tamiflu and all our patients took the medication for their recovery,” he said.

He said the panic that initially ensued from the emergence of the new flu ailment has died down, attributing this to media reports that stressed the mild nature of A(H1N1) in the country.

“Reports that the victims readily recovered in three to four days has somehow taken away the worry of people,” he added. – With reports from Dennis Carcamo, Ding Cervantes, Miriam Desacada, Arnell Ozaeta, Delon Porcalla, Dino Balabo, Paolo Romero, Rainier Allan Ronda - By Sheila Crisostomo (Philstar News Service, www.philstar.com)

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Sunday, June 21, 2009

11 bodies from Air France disaster identified: officials


SAO PAULO (AFP) - – Eleven of the 50 bodies recovered from an Air France jet that plunged into the Atlantic three weeks ago have been identified by fingerprints and dental records, Brazilian officials said Sunday.

The bodies were identified as "10 Brazilians and one foreigner," officials in the northeastern Brazilian state of Pernambuco said in a statement.

Five of the Brazilians were male, the other five were female and the foreigner was male, it added.

The officials, part of a task force that also includes Brazilian police and forensic specialists conducting autopsies in the city of Recife, did not give further details about those identified.

They said the families of the identified Brazilians had been visited personally Friday and Saturday by police officers who broke the news.

The embassy of the foreigner who was identified was also notified.

A special morgue in Recife has received 49 of the 50 bodies recovered from the crash site 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) off Brazil's northeast coast. The 50th body was due to be delivered by ship on Monday.

There were 228 people from 32 countries onboard the airliner, which went down June 1 off the coast of Brazil on a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris. The cause of the disaster -- the worst in Air France's history -- was not known.

Seventy-two French citizens, 59 Brazilians, 26 Germans and passengers from 29 other countries were on the flight.

Identification was initially being attempted using fingerprints, scars, surgical or dental characteristics, and tattoos on the bodies.

If those failed, DNA tests were to be carried out in a Brazilian police laboratory in Brasilia based on samples taken from relatives.

After bodies were identified, they were to be released to the families for burial, the statement said.

The Brazilian officials said they were still waiting for records and other information to identify bodies of foreigners.

"The lack of premortem data explains the small number foreigners identified," they said in the statement.

Brazilian authorities leading the search for bodies and debris have fading hopes of finding any more remains. On Saturday, a sophisticated plane with on-board radar that found the first traces of the downed plane was taken off the operation.

A separate French operation looking for the plane's black boxes was continuing, with a French military nuclear submarine scouring the crash zone.

It was trying to detect homing beacons that are expected to fade within a week.


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10 killed, 100 hurt in Iran unrest – state TV

TEHRAN -- At least 10 people were killed in the latest unrest to shake Iranian capital, state television said on Sunday, as the opposition kept up its defiance of Iran's Islamic rulers over the disputed election.

Opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi fired off an unprecedented criticism of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after police clashed with thousands of protestors on Saturday in the capital, swept up in the worst unrest since the Islamic revolution 30 years ago.

State television said that 10 people were killed and more than 100 wounded in riots and clashes in Tehran on Saturday.

It also reported that several people were killed when rioters torched a mosque, but it later said there were no deaths from the incident.

Last week, state media reported that at least seven people had been killed and many more wounded in the post-election violence and protests that have shaken the country since last Saturday.

Mousavi, who is leading the massive wave of public opposition to the June 12 vote that returned hardliner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power, accused the country's rulers of "cheating" and warned of a dangerous path ahead if the crackdown on demonstrators continued.

He unleashed his broadside against Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's all-powerful supreme leader, after police, firing tear gas and water cannon, clashed with thousands of protestors who defied an ultimatum from Khamenei for an end to their street protests.

World leaders have voiced mounting alarm over the unrest, which has severely jolted the pillars of the Islamic regime and raised concerns over the future of the regional Shiite Muslim powerhouse.
Iran has fired back, accusing foreign governments of meddling.

"We call on the Iranian government to stop all violent and unjust actions against its own people," said United States President Barack Obama, who has appealed for dialogue with Tehran after three decades of severed ties.

"The Iranian government must understand that the world is watching."

Mousavi, a former prime minister who was defeated by Ahmadinejad in the presidential election, lashed out at Khamenei in an unprecedented challenge to the man who has ruled over Iran for 20 years.

In his first public appearance since the vote, Khameini on Friday ruled out any election fraud and warned that opposition leaders would be responsible for "blood, violence and chaos" if there was no end to protests that have engulfed Tehran and other cities over the past week.

But the moderate Mousavi, 67, reiterated his demand for a new election after official results showed he had lost to the incumbent by a landslide.

"If this huge volume of cheating and changing the votes... which has hurt people's trust, is presented as the very evidence of the lack of cheating then it will butcher the republican aspect of the system and the idea that Islam is incompatible with a republic will be proven," Mousavi said.

He warned in a statement on the website of his newspaper Kalameh that if people were unable to defend their rights peacefully "there will be dangerous ways ahead."

Khamenei, who last week ordered a probe into allegations of electoral fraud, had insisted in his Friday sermon on the legality of Ahmadinejad's victory.

Thousands of demonstrators had braved tear gas and water cannon to assemble in Enghelab Square in the heart of the capital on Saturday, witnesses said.

The foreign media has been barred from covering such events as part of tight restrictions imposed since the unrest was unleashed last Saturday.

A suicide bomber also struck a key regime monument -- the mausoleum of revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in south Tehran -- killing himself and wounding three people, two of them foreigners, state media reported.

"The robocops beat us up badly," one protestor told AFP. "Men and women were beaten up... My whole body is bruised."

Another witness said: "Lots of guards on motorbikes closed in on us and beat us brutally.”

"As we were running away the Basiji (Islamic militiamen) were waiting in side alleys with batons, but people opened their doors to us trapped in alleys," the witness said.

Since the protests began, scores of prominent political activists, including reformist leaders, former government officials and journalists, have also been rounded up by the authorities.

In the latest arrests, Jila Bani Yaghoub and Bahman Ahmadi Amouie, who worked for a variety of reformist newspapers, were arrested on Saturday, said Issa Saharkhiz, himself a reformist journalist.

The head of Iran's security council, Abbas Mohtaj, on Saturday delivered a stern warning to Mousavi, whose supporters have been turning out wearing scarves and headbands in green, his campaign color.
"Should you provoke and call for these illegal rallies you will be responsible for the consequences," he said.

Iran's electoral watchdog, the 12-member Guardians Council, said on Saturday it was ready to randomly recount up to 10 percent of the ballot boxes from the election, state television reported.

Karim Sadjadpour of US-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said the "previously sacred red lines" were being challenged in Iran -- where 60 percent of the population were born after the 1979 revolution.

"It is unprecedented that people would begin to openly challenge Khamenei's legitimacy as supreme leader, and indeed question the legitimacy of the institution of the supreme leader," he said in an interview posted on the website of the US Council of Foreign relations.



By Jay Deshmukh
Agence France-Presse
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Metro Manila urged to prepare for big quake

Experts say 7-8 magnitude tremor highly probable

MANILA, Philippines —The “big quake” feared to hit Metro Manila could happen anytime.

This may be a doomsday prediction, but Arjun Kartoch, head of the Emergency Services Branch of the United Nation’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, is the bringer of bad news this time, a decade after it was first predicted by seismic experts.

He re-issued the warning that an earthquake with a magnitude of about 7 to 8 on the Richter scale would hit the nation's capital region.

But although he was sure that the quake would occur, he did not cite a specific timeframe for the event.

He made this announcement on the sidelines of the four-day Second Session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, which started Tuesday to assess strategies to reduce disaster losses around the planet.

During Tuesday’s taping of the BBC show, “World Debate,” hosted by Nik Gowing at the Centre International de Conférences de Genève here, Kartoch provided a picture of magnitude of the tragedy.

On the infrastructure side, buildings (hospitals, schools, establishments) and residential houses would collapse, he said, apparently simulating the impact of the quake based on urban congestion, population and buildings’ quake resistance.

“You gonna have 16,000 buildings destroyed. You gonna have … 150,000 who are injured,” said Kartoch.

Gowing noted that in that “tragedy,” millions of residents of Metro Manila—with an 18 million population—would be displaced.

Kartoch said Senator Loren Legarda and officials of the Philippine government attending the biennial global meeting should prepare for the worst.

Legarda was invited to join the debate as Asia-Pacific’s regional champion for disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation, which put premium on mitigating measures prior to the occurrence of disasters over the current emphasis on post-disaster response such as relief and rehabilitation measures.

The forum, to be broadcast on July 4 to about 80 million global viewers, had Legarda with the other panelists—Kartoch, Guido Bertolaso, head of Italy's Civil Protection Agency, and Edward Borodzicz, professor of risk management at Portsmouth Business School in the United Kingdom.

Kartoch did not cite a specific study, but was quoting data culled over the years by the UN OCHA whose mission has been to mobilize and coordinate effective humanitarian action during complex emergencies and natural disasters, said Emmanuel de Guzman.

“Risk reduction is very good and useful, but it should not stop at the point (of disaster),” said Kartoch, who was skeptical of the risk reduction strategy.

Legarda noted that the prediction had been discussed for 10 years now.

“Thank God, the earthquake did not happen,” she said, informing Kartoch that “preparedness is being done (and) we are prepared for that to the limits of our capabilities and resources.”

She said it was unrealistic to relocate now “hundreds of thousands or millions of people” that could be affected.

“But I believe that risk can be reduced,” she said, pointing out that investing in disaster preparedness and risk reduction by building safe hospitals, safe infrastructures, and second, by having risk assessment studies in local government units were essential in mitigating the quake’s impact.

“Why build housing projects on earthquake faultlines … at the foot of mountains where there could be landslides … in coastal areas where there are rising sea levels and where there could be storm surges?” she asked.

The senator said that “investment in risk is an investment in lives, not a cost.” She cited Albay province’s investment in mangroves and preemptive evacuation in times of typhoons, and China’s $3 billion investment in flood control which averted $12 billion in losses.

“It’s everybody’s business—international, national, local government units and communities all rolled into one. Not one sector should be (solely) responsible,” she said.

De Guzman, UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) advisor for Asia-Pacific, confirmed the coming quake, but was unsure when the catastrophic disaster would strike.

“The big earthquake is certainly coming. The question is when? No one can tell. It can happen today, tomorrow, or next year. But certainly there will be an earthquake,” De Guzman, who previously worked with the Office of Civil Defense of the NDCC, told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

On July 16, 1990, an earthquake with a 7.8 Ms (surface-wave magnitude) struck Northern Luzon, producing a 125 km-long ground rupture that stretched from Dingalan, Aurora, to Kayapa, Nueva Vizcaya, as a result of strike-slip movements along the Philippine Fault Zone and the Digdig Fault.

It killed an estimated 1,621 people, with most of the fatalities located in Central Luzon and the Cordillera region.

But amidst the latest warning, Legarda expressed optimism that the country could still prepare for an earthquake.

She said this was precisely the reason why the UNISDR was pushing for the institutionalization of the DRR, integrating them into the national, regional and local development policies and plans of countries.

Legarda, as chair of the Senate committee on health, held an emergency meeting on Wednesday with officials of the Arroyo administration here to assess the preparedness of Metro Manila and institute measures to mitigate the impact of the quake on both population and infrastructure.

“These should be done immediately, within the next 30 days,” she said. “We must have a 30-day prescription of what can be done. It’s doable.”

She also invited to the meeting international experts on disaster mitigation such as Turkey and Bangladesh, which has championed community empowerment in drastically arresting disaster fatalities and losses.

“We must learn their best practices for possible application in the Philippines in the light of the OCHA doomsday prediction,” she said.

Besides Glenn J. Rabonza, executive director of the National Disaster Coordinating Council; Bernaditas Muller, the country’s main negotiator for climate change adaptation; and select officials of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, Department of Health and Department of Science and Technology are attending the DRR second global session.

In an interview, Legarda said the national government, including local government units in Metro Manila, should immediately assess public edifices such as hospitals and schools in terms of their structural integrity to withstand such a massive tremor.

The senator said the government should set in place a “metrowide and contingency planning” to prepare for the quake.

Legarda said she would ask the DOH to check the bed capacity of all hospitals in the capital region, and for the Department of Public Works and Highways to ensure the safety of commuters and motorists by assessing the quake-resistance of overpasses, bridges, flyovers and roads.

“Condemned buildings, including school dormitories, must be identified immediately, so that residents can be relocated to suitable areas,” she said.

“In the event of a strong earthquake, the public should be assured of a steady supply of potable water,” she said, stressing that “lifelines” should continue to be accessible to the public such as communication, roads and safe transportation system.

Legarda also pointed the need to check the stability of billboards, which dotted major roads in Metro Manila.

“We should examine their capacities (hospitals and schools), identify evacuation centers like open areas, basketball courts, multipurpose halls that can serve as evacuation centers,” she said.

Legarda said the citizens had a pivotal role to play.

“We should encourage communities and families to have contingency plans,” she said, adding:

“What should families do when they are separated? Where should they go? The contingency planning should be up to the family unit, the basic unit of society.”

Even before sessions resume on July 27, Legarda will conduct consultation hearings to mitigate the impact of earthquake as predicted by UN OCHA.

A study in seismic hazard assessment of Metro Manila was published in 2000 in the Bulletin of Seismological Society of America.

The study was conducted by Alan R. Nelson and Stephen F. Personius of the Geologic Hazards Team, Central Region US Geological, and Rolly E. Rimando, Raymundo S. Punongbayan, Norman Tuñgol, Hannah Mirabueno and Ariel Rasdas of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.

The study across the northern part of the west Marikina Valley fault, which lay only 10 km east of central Manila, indicated a recurrence interval of 200-400 years for magnitude 6-7 earthquakes on the fault, it said.

It said that a recent assessment of the earthquake hazard posed by crustal faults in cities such as Los Angeles and Seattle, and the economic and human loss resulting from recent damaging earthquakes in Northridge, California, and Kobe, Japan, highlighted the need for evaluating potentially active crustal faults in urban areas.

Manila is similarly subject to earthquakes on nearby crustal faults, as well as earthquakes on more distant plate-boundary faults (such as Philippine fault to the east of Manila).

The study did not accurately determine the time of each faulting event or determine specific earthquake recurrence intervals, but said that “empirical relations between rupture lengths and magnitudes of historic earthquakes in similar tectonic environments also argue for earthquakes of magnitude 6-7 on the Marikina Valley fault system.”

The NDCC said that government has been preparing for the very strong quake.

Rabonza noted the intensification of earthquake preparedness drills following the recent tremor in Indonesia that killed more than 5,000 persons.

But Renato Solidum Jr., director of Phivolcs, said government was using earthquake strength of magnitude 7.2 from the Valley Fault System (formerly known as the Marikina Valley Fault System) "for planning purposes."

If the government failed to prepare, a quake with such magnitude would affect around 38 percent of residential buildings, 14 percent of high-rise buildings and 35 percent of public buildings in the metropolis, he had said.



By Michael Lim Ubac
Philippine Daily Inquirer
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Friday, June 19, 2009

The world’s highest-paid athletes


Eight months on the shelf after knee surgery put a severe dent in his prize money, and killed his overseas appearance fees. One of his main sponsors walked away a year before their agreement was set to expire.

Yet Tiger Woods remains sports’ highest earner with an annual income two and a half times larger than his closest competitor. The world’s top golfer made $110 million during the past 12 months and is the best-paid sportsman for the eighth straight year.

Woods’ knee injury caused his prize money to drop to $5 million from $25 million, but his overall earnings only fell $5 million thanks to an expansion of Woods’ non-playing financial empire.

PepsiCo launched Gatorade Tiger last year in March with claims that it “helps focus your mind and your body.” Woods receives a cut of sales for the four flavors sold under his name. When General Motors’ problems caused Buick to terminate its $8 million a year deal with Woods one year early, the Woods camp moved quickly to sign a deal with AT&T to put the phone company’s brand on his golf bag in Buick’s place.


Nike is by far Woods’ biggest benefactor with an annual payday of more than $30 million for the golfer. Woods profits from the success of the company’s golf division, and last year sales for Nike Golf hit a record $725 million. Woods’ most lucrative new endeavor is his golf course design business. Last year he announced plans for a third course to be built in Mexico. His other courses in Dubai and North Carolina are currently under construction.

Our list of the highest-paid athletes looks at earnings derived from salaries, bonuses, prize money, endorsements and licensing income between June 2008 and June 2009 and does not deduct for taxes or agents’ fees. Overall, the top 20 earned $789 million, down 1 percent from last year. The cutoff to make the list was $30 million.

Drop-offs from last year include boxer Floyd Mayweather (has not fought since December 2007), NFL players Ben Roethlisberger and Dwight Freeney (both made the 2008 list after inking contracts with big signing bonuses) and Formula One driver Fernando Alonso (just missed the cut).

The highest-ranking of the four newcomers to the list is boxer Manny Pacquiao who earned $40 million over the last year, tied for the sixth most. Pacquiao cemented his claim as the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter with convincing knockouts of Oscar De La Hoya in December and Ricky Hatton in May. The two blockbuster fights garnered more than 2 million pay-per-view buys in the U.S. and earned Pac-Man $30 million combined.

Pacquiao’s massive popularity in his native Philippines is why companies like Nike and San Miguel beer have signed him to endorse their products. Pacquiao intends to use that popularity to run for political office when his ring career is over.

Our 20 highest earners have a very international flavor with Pacquiao one of eight non-Americans on the list. Finnish Formula One driver Kimi Raikkonen earned $45 million over the past year, tied for second on our list with hoop legends Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. Right behind that trio is global icon David Beckham who earned $42 million playing for the Los Angeles Galaxy and AC Milan, while shilling for Adidas, Giorgio Armani and Motorola.

Notable omission: the entire NFL, which didn’t place anyone in the top 20 despite being the world’s richest sports league. The league’s salary cap keeps a lid on individual player salaries, and few players outside of Peyton Manning collect big endorsement deals. The top NFL earner during the past 12 months was Oakland Raiders cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha who made $22 million, mainly as a result of the three-year, $45 million contract he signed in February.

By Kurt Badenhausen, Forbes.com
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