Philippines
Duterte is playing both sides
The Philippines national election looms in May 2022. Sitting President Rodrigo Duterte is running to become a senator, while his daughter is campaigning to be vice-president to…
Philippines: diagnosing the infodemic
The Philippines is less than a year away from its national elections in May 2022, and an estimated 5.8 million first-time voters (aged 18–23) are expected to join around 63…
Filipino migrants are agents of change
The Philippine labour diaspora is one of the largest in the world with around 9 million people or 10 per cent of the population working overseas, and sending massive remittances …
Ressa’s prize for resilience underscores the need for press freedom
“Aren’t you guys getting tired of this?” A beaming Maria Ressa asked while sandwiched between four police escorts after being arrested in Manila. The throng of smartphone-filming…
The Duterte double
On 25 August, Rodrigo Duterte announced his intention to seek the second-highest post in the Philippines government in next year’s elections. “I will run for vice president,”…
Duterte’s back-down on US forces in Philippines
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has finally put an end to uncertainty regarding the fate of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) between the Philippines and the United States…
The politics of PacMan
Boxer and Philippine senator Manny Pacquiao knows how to pick his fights. For weeks, the champ has engaged President Rodrigo Duterte in a word war.
First, Pacquiao jabbed Duterte…
Whatever happened to the South China Sea ruling?
Five years ago on this day, an international tribunal in a landmark ruling dismissed Beijing’s claim to much of the South China Sea. The Permanent Court of Arbitration at The…
Philippines: Aquino’s death marks another democratic turning point
With the passing of former Philippine President Benigno Aquino III, the country’s political future becomes even more uncertain in the run-up to an election next year. …
How strong is Duterte the strongman?
The 2016 presidential race in the Philippines looked like the perfect time for Rodrigo Duterte to come to power. The country was coming off of Noynoy Aquino’s soft and ineffectual…