MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

has ordered the strengthening of the

country's maritime security and domain awareness as tensions between the Philippines and
China escalate over territorial disputes.

Marcos signed Executive Order 57 on March 25 "to comprehensively tackle" the cross cutting
issues that impact the country's national security, sovereignty, sovereign rights, and maritime
jurisdiction over its extensive maritime zones.

"Despite efforts to promote stability and security in our maritime domain, the Philippines
continues to confront a range of serious challenges that threaten not only the country's
territorial integrity, but also the peaceful existence of Filipinos, including their fundamental right
to live in peace and freedom, free from fear of violence and threat," read the document, a copy
of which was made available on Sunday.

The issuance of the order came after Marcos said the Philippines will implement
countermeasures against "illegal, coercive, aggressive, and dangerous attacks" by the China
Coast Guard and the Chinese maritime militia.

Marcos earlier said the Philippines will "not be cowed into silence, submission, or
subservience" following the latest confrontation between Chinese and Philippine vessels near
Ayungin Shoal.

China blocked and used water cannons to disrupt another resupply mission to troops stationed
at BRP Sierra Madre.

Beijing claims nearly the entire South China Sea, dismissing claims from other countries,
including the Philippines, and an international court ruling that found its assertions to have no
legal basis.

Relations between Manila and Beijing have deteriorated under Marcos as he deepens defense
ties with the United States and pushes back against China's attacks against Filipino troops. —
Gaea Katreena Cabico
MANILA, Philippines — Climate change is causing heat waves to slow to a crawl, exposing
humans to extreme temperatures for longer than ever before, a study published in Science
Advances said Friday.

While previous research has found climate change is causing heat waves to become longer,
more frequent and more intense, the new paper differed by treating heat waves as distinct
weather patterns that move along air currents, just as storms do.

For every decade between 1979 to 2020, researchers found heat waves slowed down by an
average of five miles (eight kilometers) an hour per day.

“If a heatwave is moving slower, that means heat can stay in a region longer, so that has
effects on communities,” senior author Wei Zhang of Utah State University told AFP.

The researchers divided the world into three-dimensional grid cells and defined heat waves as
a million square kilometer zones where temperatures reached at least the 95th percentile of
the local historical maximum temperature. They then measured their movement over time in
order to determine how fast the hot air was moving.

They also used climate models to determine what the results would have looked like absent
human-caused climate change, and found manmade factors loomed large.

“It’s pretty clear to us that a dominant factor here to explain this trend is anthropogenic forcing,
the greenhouse gas,” said Zhang.

The changes have accelerated in particular since 1997 and in addition to human causes,
weakening upper atmospheric air circulation may play a part, the paper said.

The duration of heat waves also increased, from an average of eight days at the start, to 12
days during the last five years of the study period.

“The results suggest that longer-traveling and slower-moving large contiguous heat waves will
cause more devastating impacts on natural and societal systems in the future if GHG keep
rising and no effective mitigation measures are taken,” the authors wrote.

Zhang said he was worried by the disproportionate impacts on less-developed regions.

“In particular, cities that don’t have enough green infrastructure or not many cooling centers for
some folks, in particular for the disadvantaged population, will be very dangerous,” he warned.
MANILA, Philippines — The heat index in eight areas in the country is forecast to reach
dangerous levels today, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and
Astronomical Services Administration.

PAGASA said the heat index could range between 42 and 44 degrees Celcius in several
areas, including Metro Manila.

The dangerous heat index level is also forecast in Calapan in Mindoro; Puerto Princesa and
Aborlan in Palawan;
Roxas City and Mambusao in Capiz and Iloilo City and Dumangas in Iloilo.

The heat index reached 47 degrees in Appari in Cagayan on Friday and an even higher 48
degrees in Roxas City last Wednesday.

Under this level, heat cramps and heat exhaustion are likely, with heat stroke probable with
continued exposure.

PAGASA advised the public to limit time spent outdoors or wear protective clothing when
outside and drink plenty of water.

PAGASA officially declared the start of the dry season in the country on March 22 with the
termination of the northeast monsoon.

State weather forecasters said the effect of the El Niño phenomenon will continue to be felt
alongside the drier season, with higher temperatures expected in the months of April and May.

PAGASA said that easterlies are still affecting the eastern section of the country.

Partly cloudy skies with isolated rainshowers due to the easterlies or localized thunderstorms
are expected over Metro Manila and the rest of the country.
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. has officially declared July
17 as “National Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) Day,” to promote health awareness
across the country, according to the Presidential Communications Office (PCO).

Through Proclamation No. 511 signed on March 27, Marcos highlighted the importance of
cardiopulmonary resuscitation in saving lives during emergencies like heart attacks or near
drownings.

“There is a need to instill and continuously promote health consciousness among Filipinos by
equipping them with the necessary information, knowledge, behavior, and skills to respond to
health emergencies, including bringing CPR in every home as an emergency procedure,”
Marcos said in a press release issued on Saturday.

The Department of Health will take charge of organizing and implementing yearly initiatives
and programs for the National CPR Day.

The PCO said that all government agencies must actively participate, and non-government
organizations and private sectors are encouraged to join in too. — Kristine Daguno-
Bersamina
The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) announced that the PhilHealth Member Portal
can now be accessed through the eGovPH Super App for “hassle-free” and “accessible”
information. PhilHealth said it collaborated with the Department of Information and Communications
Technology (DICT) towards readily available information for all its members.
“The eGovPH or e-Government Philippines is a mobile application that simplifies transactions between
the government and citizens,” PhilHealth said.
PhilHealth said eGovPH has been used by other government agencies like the Social Security System
(SSS), Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), PAG-IBIG, and local government units among
others.
"PhilHealth's inclusion in the eGovPH Super App is integral to the Agency's digital transformation
journey. This is definitely one of our urgent priorities as we continuously improve our services and make
them within reach by more and more Filipinos who are gravitating towards online transactions,”
PhilHealth President and CEO Emmanuel R. Ledesma, Jr. said.
The state health insurer advised the members to first download the eGovPH mobile app on Google Play
Store or App Store, sign up by putting in personal information, then a One-Time Password (OTP) code
will be received by the given contact number to verify the details. After the steps, the individual can
verify the account through the registered email address.
PhilHealth said through the application, its members can access their membership profile, contribution
history, and registered Konsulta provider.
The Department of Health (DOH) on Sunday, March 31, reminded the public to “be kind” on April Fool’s Day by
keeping jokes light and steering clear of health and death topics.

“First, do no harm,” DOH said in a statement released by Officer-In-Charge (OIC) Assistant Secretary
and Deputy Spokesperson Dr. Albert Domingo. “Always be kind to each other,” DOH added.

While the Health Department acknowledged that in many cultures, April 1st, often called “April Fool's
Day” is a day when there is an outbreak of pranks or jokes, the agency reminded that April Fool’s Day
humor should respect sensitivities.

“The DOH urges all would-be pranksters to please avoid jokes related to illness, disease, and other
physical or mental conditions; most especially about the loss of life,” DOH said. “Doing so adds to
stigma we want less of,” the agency added.

DOH added that April Fool’s Day humor could be “considerate and wholesome fun.”
The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) on Saturday said it mandated local manning
agencies, accredited shipping principals and employers to ensure the implementation of the
seafarers’ right to refuse to serve on vessels plying high-risk and war-like sealanes,
particularly the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
In a department order dated March 21, the DMW laid down the guidelines for the observance
of the International Transport Workers Federation and International Bargaining Forum
designation of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden as “high-risk areas” and “war-like zones”
(WLZs).

The manning agencies were also told to ensure that matters related to the high-risk and war-
like zones had been explained to the seafarers prior to their deployment, and that those who
will invoke their right to refuse sailing in said areas or zones would be safely repatriated.

“Consider the provision of additional compensation/bonuses and security measures like

maritime security escorts and/or security personnel onboard, on top of those mandated,” the
agency said.
“Report the scheduled passage of ships and those Filipino seafarers on-board in the said
areas/zones as a significant event in the OFW (overseas Filipino workers) Welfare
Monitoring System upon their deployment,” it added.
The DMW also asked the employers to consider diverting their routes to avoid the Red Sea,
the Gulf of Aden and their surrounding areas or waters altogether.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the Philippines would implement unspecified
“countermeasures” to China’s “aggressive and dangerous attacks” against Filipino troops and
fishermen in the West Philippine Sea.
In a strongly worded statement on Thursday, Mr. Marcos said he had given directives to the
Department of National Defense (DND) and concerned government agencies to counter
actions by the China Coast Guard (CCG) and its maritime militia in the West Philippine Sea,
waters within the country’s 370-kilometer exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

His remarks followed the March 23 water cannon attack on a Philippine Navy supply boat,
Unaizah May 4 (UM 4), that wounded three sailors who were headed to the BRP Sierra
Madre, a military outpost at Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal.
Ayungin is about 200 km (120 miles) from Palawan, and more than 1,000 km from China’s
nearest major landmass, Hainan Island.
China claims nearly the entire South China Sea, including the West Philippine Sea. But this
expansive historical claim was nullified by the arbitral tribunal in 2016. Beijing has refused
to recognize the arbitral award.

“Over the succeeding weeks, there shall be implemented by the relevant national government
agencies and instrumentalities a response and countermeasure package that is proportionate,
deliberate, and reasonable in the face of the open, unabating, and illegal, coercive,
aggressive, and dangerous attacks by agents of the China Coast Guard and the Chinese
Maritime Militia,” Mr. Marcos said in a statement.

Asked if he could provide details of the countermeasures, DND spokesperson Arsenio

Andolong said he was “not privy to the directives of the President or the recommendations”
by security officials to Mr. Marcos.
“The meeting was conducted in private,” Andolong said.
Presidential Communications Office Secretary Cheloy Velicaria-Garafil said the
countermeasures “will be made public in due time.”