Philippines Times

MANILA, July 20 (Xinhua) -- Over 3 million foreign tourists have visited the Philippines in the first half of this year, according to the Philippines' Department of Tourism (DOT) data released Wednesday night.

Philippine Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia-Frasco said the Southeast Asian country recorded 3,000,079 international visitor arrivals from Jan. 1 to June 19, reflecting the "continued robust recovery" of

MANILA, July 20 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines' overall balance of payments (BOP) posted a deficit of 606 million U.S. dollars in June, lower than the 1.6-billion-dollar BOP deficit recorded a year ago, according to the Philippine central bank data released Wednesday night.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said the BOP deficit in June reflected outflows arising mainly from the national government's net foreign

(New York) - Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines face bias-motivated violence and discrimination in their daily life, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The authorities should repeal the country's colonial-era laws that criminalize consensual same-sex conduct and pass comprehens

(Johannesburg) - The Zambian government should make comprehensive efforts to clean up the contaminated former lead mine in Kabwe, the capital of Zambia's Central province, Environment Africa and Human Rights Watch said today. The organizations released a video in which yo

The Northern Sea Route cuts transportation times to Asia's biggest economy by 30%

A Russian tanker loaded with crude is heading through Arctic waters to China as Moscow seeks to expand the use of the Northern Sea Route in the face of Western sanctions, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

The Aframax-class tanker Pri

(Austin, Texas) - Texas laws rewriting election rules in Harris County, which includes Houston, create unnecessary barriers for voters and improperly single out the state's largest Black population, Human Rights Watch said today.

Governor Greg Abbott signed two measures into law in June 2023, as the state legislative session ended. One, Senate Bill 1750, eliminates Harris County's nonpartisan election administrat

The Government is partnering with Fonterra to cut coal use at its dairy factories, delivering massive emissions reductions, and future-proofing New Zealand trade and exports.  

Fonterra has committed to undertaking a complex range of projects to cut coal use across six manufacturing sites - resulting in approximately 2.1 million tonn

As many countries around the world are facing threats from deadly extreme heat, public health officials should ensure pregnant people are considered among those most at risk. Journalists and others investigating public health responses to the heat waves should also monitor that pregnancy health is considered.

Many studies have shown that ex

Advocates have canceled a regional gathering of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) activists in Indonesia's capital, Jakarta, in response to harassment and death threats from Muslim conservatives.

The ASEAN SOGIE Caucus, a regional organization based in the Philippines,

The UK Government will soon roll out the red carpet to host Mohammed Bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, despite the country's grave human rights abuses both at home and abroad.

Chief among the subjects expected to be discussed is the UK's pursuit of a Free Trade Agreement with the Gulf Cooperation Council, where Sau

(Bangkok) - The Cambodian government has stepped up harassment and arbitrary arrests of members and activists from the opposition Candlelight Party (CLP) ahead of national elections slated for July 23, 2023, Human Rights Watch said today. The authorities should stop targeting the opposition, immediately drop all baseless charges, and release all those

JEERS TO the media's lack of comprehensive follow-up on the drug war under the Marcos administration. As president-elect, Marcos assured focus on prevention and rehabilitation in continuing his predecessor's crackdown on drugs. But after a year in office, news coverage has not checked how the president has delivered on this promise, as their reports are mostly limited to listing casualty counts and other drug war data

MANILA, July 19 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) maintained its gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast for the Philippines at 6 percent for this year and 6.2 percent for 2024, according to an updated ADB report released on Wednesday.

"Robust investment and private consumption drove growth by 6.4 percent year on year in the first quarter of 2023, supported by rising employment, expanding product

The Local Government Official Information and Meetings Amendment Bill has passed its third reading today. The Bill makes important changes to how information is shared by councils under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act.

"The Bill will improve natural hazard information provided in land information memoranda, known as LIMs," Kieran

The Government's Business Payment Practices Bill, which will reduce the stress and costs to small businesses of long payment wait times, passed its third reading today.

"This new transparency regime will encourage larger businesses to improve their payment times, which are a significant problem for many small businesses," Minister for Sm

(Kyiv, July 19, 2023) - A Russian cruise missile strike on Lviv in western Ukraine on July 6, 2023, struck a residential apartment complex in violation of the laws of war

(Tunis) - The Tunisian police, military, and national guard including the coast guard have committed serious abuses against Black African migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers, Human Rights Watch said today. Documented abuses include beatings, use of excessive force, some cases of torture, arbitrary arrests and detention, collective expu

Support for tourism in Aotearoa New Zealand has increased according to new research, Tourism Minister Peeni Henare said today.

The research shows that 89% of New Zealanders agree that tourism is good for New Zealand, up from 83% a year ago, and there is strong recognition amongst New Zealanders of tourism's positive impact o

Meeting of the Group of Friends of the Nelson Mandela Rules.

Vienna, 18 July 2023 - "In the eyes of many people, prisons may seem low on the list of priorities during crisis - but prisoners matter," said Ms. Ghada Waly, Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) at a gathering of the Group of Friends of the Nelson Mandela Rules.*  

In her

A range of new community initiatives will benefit from funding to maintain and promote the use of New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL), Minister for Disability Issues Priyanca Radhakrishnan has announced.

Six projects will receive a total of $175,241 for national and community-based projects that will be