By Atty. Lysander Castillo Marine Protected Areas are declared to protect the existing biodiversity and the integrity of the marine ecosystem in the area. How can the setup help the Philippines deal with the South China Sea issue? An environmental expert explains. The maritime and territorial tug-of-war between states bordering the South China Sea, beyond… Read More

The new Duterte administration has promised to bring change to energy sectors and constituencies around the Philippines, committing to energize the whole country and provide reliable, efficient sources of Energy. Today, two months since the President’s inauguration, it is time to look at the Duterte government’s first steps in implementing this agenda, and better understand… Read More

As an organization that strives to cultivate political awareness and continuous civic engagement through our advocacy, Democracy Watch Philippines organized a voter education and information campaign in the past year to educate the youth and other stakeholders through our partnership with the COMELEC and the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV). Despite the apparent success of the 2016… Read More

By Sheila Crisostomo (The Philippine Star) MANILA, Philippines – Nine in 10 Filipinos do not want to go back to manual elections, according to a survey conducted last month by Pulse Asia Research Inc. In a press briefing organized by Democracy Watch, Pulse Research director Ana Maria Tabunda said 88 percent of 1,200 respondents covered by… Read More

by Angelica Mangahas and Luke Lischin  In his first State of the Nation Address, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte spoke a great deal about peace—peace that can be attained by “vigorously” addressing the historical injustices experienced by the (the predominantly Muslim and multi-ethnic population of Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago), by indigenous Filipinos, and by other marginalized groups. He… Read More

Dindo Manhit, President of the Stratbase-Albert del Rosario Institute (ADRi) for Strategic and International Studies Image Source: The Philippine Star The Philippine electoral landscape—once notoriously marred by slow manual counting, rotational blackouts, vote rigging, and gun violence—has drastically improved. The continued adoption of the automated polling system, particularly the Vote Counting Machine or VCM (formerly… Read More

The complexities of the West Philippine Sea and South China Sea disputes encompass not only the legal and geopolitical challenges faced by the Philippines and China, but also they extend to the environmental damage wrought by destructive fishing and construction practices in the contested areas. Yet, despite the importance of the preserving the health of… Read More