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LOOKING BACK AT THE FUTURE OF PHILIPPINE WRITING

Written by National Artist for Literature Bienvenido Lumbera. First published in Philippine Graphic, January 1968. ONLY the very naive or the very cynical would try to predict the future course of Philippine literature. There are only the weekly magazines or the occasional books as...

THE PETRON SELLOUT

The sale of the national oil company to a foreign corporation betrays the national interest, endangers the country’s security, and sticks of graft and corruption. Petron Corporation is unquestionably the most valuable corporate asset of the Philippine government—the most precious gem in the country’s...

China’s Difference Engine: Changing the configuration of the world

How did China make the leap from being one of Asia’s poorest nations to becoming a global economic behemoth—all in a little more than six decades? In 2013, China emerged as the primary engine of global economic growth, officially surpassing the contribution rate of...

Toward stability, not strain: What really matters in China–Philippines relations

I’ve been in the Philippines for over four months now. It’s been busy. Some days mean seven back-to-back meetings, but what sticks with me isn’t the schedule. It’s the people. Ordinary Filipinos are warm, sincere, and kind. The smiles, the handshakes—they remind me why...

Getting to know China’s technological DNA

Possessing one of the oldest civilizations in the world, China’s 5,000-year-old history is a tapestry of transformation—from an ancient, agrarian society (8,000 to 10,000 years ago) to becoming the world’s low-cost, manufacturing nexus (mid-20th century), all the way to attaining global, high-tech, superpower...

EXPOLIARIVM: The expatriate life of Juan Luna’s famous painting

While examining the archives of the Biblioteca Nacional de España, I encountered an albumen photograph labelled “Sala de pintura y escultura at the Exposition Universelle of 1889 in Paris.” The image is attributed to Juan Laurent—one of the most important photographers working in late...

Random Pickings

Managing public health and economy under the COVID-19 pandemic

Like the rest of the world, everything in San Pablo City ground to a halt when it was struck by the COVID-19 pandemic. This...

The education of Mayor Arman R. Dimaguila Jr.

He regards education as “the greatest equalizer.” And today, not yet 50 years old, Walfredo “Arman” Dimaguila, son of a municipal electrician and a...

The Supreme Court: Facing 2019

    Restraint in favor of government. I came upon this sort of “watchword” on the morning of Jan. 16 while on my way to a meeting...

House passes Bangsamoro Organic Law

Ratified at last! These were the three words uttered by the Committee on Information of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s Central Committee after learning that...