Spratly Islands: Young and Restless Patriots Shout "Kalayaan ...Atin Ito!"

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang of China was strongly dissatisfied by what the group of young Filipinos protesters had done at the so called Zhongye Dao Island in the South China Sea and reiterated that China has indisputable sovereignty over the Spratly islands. It urged the Philippines to withdraw its personnel and facilities from the illegally-occupied Chinese island, and never do anything that may harm regional peace and stability as well as China-Philippines relations.

“About 50 protesters, most of them students, reached Pagasa island in theSpratly archipelago on Saturday in a stand against what they say is Beijing's creeping invasion of the Philippine exclusive economic zone, said Eugenio Bito-onon, the island's mayor.

The protesters, led by a former naval commander, proudly displayed their banner containing the words "Kalayaan Atin Ito" (Kalayaan - meaning 'Freedom', the name of the island chain in the Spratlys which the Philippines controls - This Is Ours). The students wanted to highlight the growing Chinese encroachment on the islands. Government and military officials had tried to prevent the group from sailing to the disputed waters, citing security and safety reasons after a storm in the South China Sea earlier.

"Our peaceful and legal patriotic voyage will never be dependent on what china will do. Our objective is to bring to the attention of the world the invasion and militarization done by China inside our EEZ and ECS at the Kalayaan Island Group Municipality. If the world will see what we are seeing, surely China will lose all legal battle at the ITLOS and will face world sanctions if it defies the result of the arbitration."

Miss Philippines Wins Miss Tourism Queen of the Year International 2015

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Congratulations to Leren Mae Bautista for winning the Miss Tourism Queen of the Year International 2015 on December 31,2015 at the Putrajaya Marriot Hotel, Grand Ballroom in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The Philippines has totally proven its supreme reign at beauty pageant competitions when it once again bagged another award before the year 2015 ended. Fresh from our win of Miss Universe courtesy of the lovely Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach, we again revel in delight hearing about another win of our fellow Filipino.

The candidate from Laguna, Philippines was already another favorite even before the top 12 finalists were announced. Belarus, Bolivia, China, Uganda, Malaysia, Portugal, Lithuania, Iceland, Dominican Republic, Mongolia, India and the Philippines made it to the list.

The Miss Tourism Queen of the Year International (formerly known as Queen of the Year International) is unique beauty pageant that showcases the gems of the respective participating nation. The first ever Miss Tourism Queen of the Year International was staged in Kuala Lumpur, the City of Lights in 1993.

Like a diamond, the pageant unfolds the brilliance and magnificence of its distinctiveness and grace of a perfect woman. Miss Tourism Queen of the Year International is an international world class event that honours the exceptional women of today, women who gracefully uphold the epitome of beauty, poise, good moral character and personality.

Iglesia Ni Cristo and their Guinness World Records

Wazzup Pilipinas!

While others were counting down to end 2015, thousands of Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) members gathered in the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan to break three Guinness World records.

The organizers of the INC New Year festivities on January 1 claimed around 100,000 in attendance to welcome 2016 to break the former record of Norway for having the largest fireworks display when the clock struck 12. The fireworks display lasted for almost an hour and was composed of about 700,000 pieces.

The organizers of the event, led by lawyer Glicerio Santos IV, chief operating officer of the Maligaya Development Corp. who is also the INC chief legal counsel, said the fireworks display is part of an annual two-day New Year’s Eve event that will feature concerts by internationally acclaimed artists Arnel Pineda and apl.de.ap as well as various local talents.

“Aside from wanting to win new distinctions for our country, we also want to provide an alternative to celebrating the new year other than the usual personal use of firecrackers and the indiscriminate firing of guns, both of which often lead to serious injuries—and in some cases, tragic accidental deaths,” the lawyer said.