President Aquino Call all Filipinos to Unite & lay down one's life to defend the country from threats of the sovereignty and security

115th Philippine Independence Day 2013. With the cooling down of nationalism in the Philippines President Aquino calls all Filipinos to Unite & lay down one's life to defend the country from threats of the sovereignty and security.

Aquino on Independence Day: Follow Bonifacio

It's Independence Day, and President Benigno Aquino gives this annual ritual a twist. Unlike presidents before him, Aquino takes the celebration to the shrine of a hero for the poor.

For the first time, President Benigno Aquino leads the 115th Independence Day rites at Liwasang Bonifacio.

It's a shrine devoted to Andres Bonifacio, the hero who led the armed revolution against Spain.

The Palace says it's a recognition of Bonifacio's role in history. The country marks Bonifacio's 150th birth anniversary this year.

Watch the video here http://bit.ly/19uryDT

Aquino says Filipinos should follow Bonifacio's example. He calls for courage and love of neighbor.

BENIGNO AQUINO III, PHILIPPINE PRESIDENT: Maliwanag po ang pahiwatig ng kanyang tindig: Karangalan ang magtaya ng buhay para sa bayan; taas-noo nating maipagmamalaki ang mga naiambag natin para sa kalayaan. Kasabay nito, tila mapanghamon din ang titig ni Bonifacio: Ikaw, Pilipino, ano na ang nagawa mo para sa iyong bandila at kapwa? (It's clear in his posture: It's honor to lay down one's life for the country; we take pride in our contributions to promote our freedom. At the same time, Bonifacio's gaze poses a challenge: You, Filipino, what have you done for your flag and your neighbor?)

Aquino says this in the face of protests over government services.

In Tutuban, Bonifacio's birthplace, militant groups denounce Philippine independence as fake. They downplay the government's economic gains.

A day before this, the National Statistics Office reports more Filipinos are jobless in April compared to the same period last year. This, despite a stellar 7.8 percent growth in the country's economy.

PATERNO ESMAQUEL, REPORTING: One hundred and fifty years ago, Andres Bonifacio fought to uplift the plight of the masses. But the same issues hound the poor to this day, posing a challenge for the Philippine government.

Aquino says ending poverty is everyone's responsibility.

BENIGNO AQUINO III, PHILIPPINE PRESIDENT: Huwag sana tayong maghintay pa ng tatlondaang taon, o ng tatlong dekada, o kahit ng tatlong taon, bago tayo magpasyang magbuklod para maging malaya tayo mula sa gutom, kahirapan, o anumang banta sa ating soberenya't seguridad. Hindi tama na mapahaba pa ang pagtitiis ng mga Pilipino ni isang minuto. (Let us not wait for 300 years, or 3 decades or even 3 years before we come together in order to free ourselves from hunger, poverty or whatever threats to our sovereignty and security. It is not right to prolong the suffering of Filipinos by another minute.)

Today, Independence Day, Bonifacio, the hero of the masses, shines above other heroes from that era – a fitting symbolism for Aquino, whose stellar economic numbers have yet to trickle down to the working man.

Paterno Esmaquel, Rappler, Manila.

With report from – Rappler.com

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Philippines files racism complaint against Hong Kong (Nations of Slaves); AFC Malaysia no Complain yet

Philippine Azkals Football Team. FILE PHOTO

Philippines files racism complaint against Hong Kong football fans

The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) has asked FIFA to investigate allegations that Filipino supporters and players were subject to racist abuse during last week's friendly in Hong Kong, officials said.

The Azkals won the match, 1-0, but home fans pelted the players and their supporters, many of them women and children, with water bottles and other debris after the match.

The complaint was filed Tuesday after reports of "physical and racist abuse against Philippine players and supporters," PFF General Secretary Ed Gastanes said in a statement.

A representative of the Asian Football Confederation in Kuala Lumpur said Thursday that it had not received any formal complaint and would only be able to investigate or take action if asked to do so by the Philippines or FIFA. The official declined to be identified, citing protocol.

He said he did not have information of any previous racism complaints in Asia. The latest incident comes as FIFA has toughening punishments for racial abuse.

The complaint contains statements from Filipino fans who said they were called "slaves" and that Hong Kong fans threw bottles at them and booed the Philippine national anthem.

The Hong Kong Football Association last week condemned inappropriate behavior and said it was investigating the incidents. Spokesman Benny Chan said that the HKFA has a "zero-tolerance" approach to racism.

A reporter for the Philippine Daily Inquirer who covered the June 4 match, Cedelf Tupas, said last week that Hong Kong fans were jeering and taunting the Filipinos, including calling their country a "slave nation."

Tupas said that the hostility intensified after the Philippines scored in the second half. By then, spectators were throwing bottles and juice cartons at the Filipino fans and later the players, Tupas said, adding that others made obscene gestures.

The Filipino fans, who were mostly women and children, made up about 10 percent of the crowd of 4,500.

Some in the southern Chinese city still hold a grudge against the Philippines since a Manila hostage-taking incident in 2010, in which eight Hong Kong tourists were killed in a bungled police rescue. The Hong Kong government has maintained a travel warning for the Philippines since the incident.

Filipinos are also looked down upon in Hong Kong because more than 100,000 of them work as domestic helpers, toiling long hours taking care of children and doing chores for middle-class families for low pay.

With report from INQUIRER Sports 

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