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By JOHNNA VILLAVIRAY GIOLAGON  NEW BATAAN, Compostela Valley—As heart-wrenching as the devastation, is the survivors will to rise from the rubbles of what was once their homes. “BABANGON TAYO! NEW BATAAN” is prominently painted on a mud-stained wall near the municipal hall. Their needs  are  so simple and they can even afford to share in

By IMEE CHARLEE DELAVIN and MARVIC MASAGCA THE streets of shopping haven Divisoria in Manila are again jammed as the Christmas season among Catholics in the country starts Sunday and the shopping frenzy escalates. After all, Divisoria has a wide range of goods to offer—from clothes, footwear, jewelry to toys and school and office supplies,

By RALPH ANGELO TY THE Elsie Gaches Village (EGV) in Muntinlupa is the country’s only comprehensive residential facility for people with mental and learning disabilities. But it only accepts patients who are homeless or without families. But even with the policy in place, the facility operated by the Department of Social Welfare and Development is

Text and photos by EIMOR SANTOS Students his age would be waking up before sunrise and rushing to school at 7 a.m., but 17-year-old Paolo Lorenzo de Jesus starts class any time he wants. In their home in Pandi, Bulacan, De Jesus reads his books when he is in the mood and takes recess and

Text and video by EIMOR SANTOS SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga—Two years ago, a big change happened in this small village. It transformed into a special place for persons with disabilities (PWDs). In 2010 Barangay Sindalan launched the Alternative Learning System for Differently Abled Persons (ALS-DAP) to educate PWDs in the village and nearby places. ALS-DAP uses

By JOHNNA VILLAVIRAY GIOLAGON
BAGA-IR Panaggulan was on his boat that sunny day of Sept. 8, 2008, fishing in the Pulangi River in Bukidnon in Mindanao when he saw a boatload of soldiers armed for combat. Baga-ir, then 28, hurriedly paddled to shore. He asked his wife Zaida to pack their clothes and get ready to run.

WHEN panic and confusion brought by massive floodings and destruction set in, government units sometimes disregard procedure and standards to ensure the safety of persons with disabilities. This video discusses the special needs of PWDs during emergencies.

For the deaf community in the Philippines, there has been a lack of action from the government in providing for their need and right to information, communication and education, among others. Bills pending in Congress hope to address this.

By MA. KATRINA ENRIQUEZ
IN the age of the World Wide Web, accessibility does not merely refer to physical spaces. Web designers Rene Orense and Julius Serrano talk about the principles, techniques and features that make websites and online content accessible to persons with disabilities.

THE UAAP men’s basketball games has ended while the NBA regular season finally opened on Oct. 30. In all these events, a group of basketball players watch on, cheering their favorite teams even as the itch to play grows. But competitions and chances for them to play are scarce, and not everyone knows about their existence. Compared to the more “popular” forms of basketball, wheelchair basketball in the Philippines is in a slump.

By KARLOS MANLUPIG DAVAO CITY—The frail looking Italian priest wears an indigenous bandana called tubaw and is known for speaking gently regardless of whom he is talking to: Peasants, indigenous people, or government forces in the plains and hills of North Cotabato.

By VERA Files The country's young interior designers have taken up the challenge of creating living spaces for persons with disabilities, and devised rooms that are PWD-friendly.

By KHRYSTA IMPERIAL RARA
ENVIRONMENTAL and animal welfare groups seeking to rehabilitate and return 25 dolphins to the Solomon Islands say they will appeal the court decision allowing the re-exportation of the animals to Singapore.

Four years ago, Congress passed a law granting privileges to persons with disabilities. But certain sectors questioned the law, which is why it has not been fully implemented.

By KHRYSTA IMPERIAL RARA
ENVIRONMENT and animal welfare groups filed yesterday a petition against the Philippine government to prevent the issuance of a permit to re-export to Singapore 25 dolphins presently being kept and trained at the Ocean Adventure Park in Subic.

By PABLO A. TARIMAN
IN her short but fruitful life, filmmaker Marilou Diaz Abaya (1955-2012) lived and breathed music which was also an integral part of all her film output.

By VERA Files WHEN it comes to disaster preparedness, Filipinos can learn valuable lessons from a seemingly unlikely group: Persons with disabilities (PWDs) at the Tahanang Walang Hagdanan compound in Cainta, Rizal.

By ARTHA KIRA PAREDES BANGUED, Abra—The filing of certificates of candidacy for local positions last week signals the approaching election season, and for inmates at the Abra Provincial Jail (APJ), this could mean one thing: Freedom.