Text and photos by JAKE SORIANO THE message of the estimated 12,000 “angels with wings” dancing to the beat of Taylor Swift’s pop hit “Shake It Off” was a simple one: awareness, acceptance and inclusion of persons with autism in society. “What we want is for the Philippines to be autism-OK,” said Autism Society of
FOLLOWING complaints, budget carrier Cebu Pacific now aims to be more sensitive to the needs of passengers with disabilities. At the company’s request, National Council on Disability Affairs (NCDA) Acting Executive Director Carmen Zubiagalast week led in the orientation of flight cabin staff and reservation officers of the airline. “Discussed during the seminar workshops were
COTABATO City — Every municipality in Maguindanao is expected this year to have an office for persons with disabilities (PWDs), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) here said. The provincial board unanimously approved last month an ordinance directing local governments to create a Persons with Disability Affairs Office (PDAO) down to the municipal
Text and photos by JAKE SORIANO PERSONS with disabilities (PWDs) are now guaranteed the best market for their products and services: the government. The signing last year of the implementing rules and regulations of Executive Order 417 or the Economic Independence Program for PWDs, is key to providing sustainable livelihoods for PWDs, say advocates. “PWDs are
By JAKE SORIANO COTABATO City – Persons with disabilities (PWDs) in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) who still have not registered should do so now, an election coalition said. While nationwide voters’ registration is set until October 31 this year, the schedule is tighter for those within the ARMM because of the looming
Text and photos by JAKE SORIANO COTABATO City – Her arrival, like her life, remains a mystery. One day she just appeared in the streets of Upi, a town in Maguindanao roughly an hour’s drive away from here. She was homeless, filthy, in tattered clothes. No one knows where she is from, or who her family
By JAKE SORIANO JULIET Lara has dystonia, a chronic neurological illness that affects her muscle movement. “Nanginginig yung katawan ko pag hindi ako nakakainom ng gamot (My body shakes when I fail to drink my medicine),” she said. Even though dystonia impairs her ability to perform everyday activities, Juliet cannot secure a person with disability
By JAKE SORIANO COTABATO CITY– Lack of information dissemination, accessibility of polling centers, and security are some of the major issues raised by groups promoting the rights of voters with disabilities in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). In a dialogue here between government agencies and nongovernment organizations a year and a half away
By JAKE SORIANO HUMAN trafficking is a “big concern” in Mindanao, and will be firmly addressed by the proposed Bangsamoro in the south, one of the drafters of the law creating the autonomous political entity said. The Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), a crucial piece of legislation in the peace deal between the Philippine government and
BY JAKE SORIANO WHEN President Benigno S. Aquino III delivered his inaugural address on live television in June 2010, he said people know how it feels to have a government that is “bulag at bingi.” Television screens had no insets for sign language interpreters then, and deaf Filipinos had to wait for the transcript of the