Born On A Cusp

I like keeping tabs on what sorts of news from the Philippines find space in Delhi’s papers. Coverage is rare, definitely. In days when papers here do cover the Philippines, it will most likely be of something strange. Or else, when Philippine presidents come for a state visit, which is equally uncommon.

Today’s Times of India has something on the Philippines: a report from the wires about how deadly volcanoes scattered across the archipelago (such as Mayon, the one photographed above) are luring foreign tourists.

Mayon volcano, for example, is one of the most active of the 300 volcanoes in Philippine territory. It is located in the province of Albay, south of the capital Manila.

Mayon is known for its mix of beauty (a perfect cone) and danger (violent eruptions recorded in the last four centuries.)

In a particularly violent eruption in early 19th century, Mayon buried alive more than a thousand people and erased the entire Cagsawa village off the map. Left in the eruption’s aftermath is the church belfry (photographed here).

The report says the Philippine government is exploring ways of turning these “dormant monsters” into prime tourist attractions and moneymakers. They better do it right. For these sights are truly some of the most fascinating out there.

The global climate crisis takes center stage as the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the winners for the Nobel Peace Prize for 2007: the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and Albert Arnold (Al) Gore Jr.

The IPCC, a United Nations panel, and Gore, former vice president of the United States, are being awarded the prestigious prize for their efforts in promoting knowledge about climate change and the role that destructive human activity plays.

In announcing the winners, the Nobel Committee emphasised the link between climate change and human security. It said: “Extensive climate changes may alter and threaten the living conditions of much of mankind. They may induce large-scale migration and lead to greater competition for the earth’s resources. Such changes will place particularly heavy burdens on the world’s most vulnerable countries. There may be increased danger of violent conflicts and wars, within and between states.”

The IPCC is a panel of scientists that is considered as the top authority on global warming. Gore, meanwhile, has reinvented himself as an environmental campaigner since losing the US presidency to George W. Bush in 2000; he recently won an Oscar award for his documentary, ‘An Inconvenient Truth.’

Although the entire process of selecting Peace Prize winners is shrouded in utmost secrecy, there has been widespread expectation that this year’s awardee would be associated with the issue of climate change.

As Burma’s military junta crushed the historic people’s marches in Rangoon in the past two weeks, one of the reported casualties was Japanese journalist, Kenji Nagai. Nagai, 50, is described by colleagues as a ‘swashbuckling’ freelance journalist who brought home news from the world’s hot spots. Now his death has brought Burma closer to the minds of the Japanese.

In this youtube clip, Nagai — in a pair of short trousers and casual footwear — is seen running as soldiers start firing at the crowds. Nagai is then pushed to the ground by a soldier, and then shot at close range in the chest as he waved his camera in what seemed like a desperate attempt to identify himself as a journalist.

What prompted me to this video clip was the blog of Howie Severino, my favourite Filipino documentary filmmaker. Howie was recently visiting in the so-called Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia — Burma, Thailand, and Laos — and had met with a Burmese journalist who gave him eye-witness accounts of the carnage. Howie’s friend says Rangoon’s streets were now empty of demonstrators, “and an eerie peace of the dead has descended.” Soldiers are searching homes for journalists who have been the source of information, pictures, and video about the protest demonstrations.

But how much of what is going on inside the country can the junta keep hidden?

Late last year, a video clip of the pompous wedding of the junta leader’s daughter found its way to youtube. The wedding — set against the backdrop of a country where poverty is massive — showed the general’s daughter literally dripping with diamonds, she and her husband treating guests to hundreds of litres of champagne, and, as reports would later surface, receiving gifts worth millions and millions of dollars.

That was in November 2006, and some people say it might have helped trigger the restiveness of the people of Burma.

But Burma’s military government keeps its grip in power — United Nations envoys, Asean and whoever else’s “outraged” statements, and youtube, notwithstanding.

A young couple died in the southeastern part of what is now Turkey some 8,000 years ago. Their tomb was found a few days ago in what is being called an “extraordinary archaeological discovery.”

The head of the team said “an illness or a crime of love” may have been the cause of their death.

The archaeologists are thrilled with their find. They may yet end up unearthing more as they continue with their work which started in 2001; the team’s objective is to rescue as many artifacts as they can before the area is flooded by a huge dam being built in the area. The main site is 120 metres in diameter and four metres high, dating back to the Neolithic era.

American television seems to be giving Filipinos a lot of headache these past several days.