PHILIPPINES AND UNITED STATES OFF LARGEST - EVER JOINT MILITARY DRILLS

PHILIPPINES AND UNITED STATES OFF LARGEST - EVER JOINT MILITARY DRILLS

@Jackie San

MANILA, PHILIPPINES: The Philippines and the United States launched their largest-ever joint military exercises on Tuesday, as the longstanding allies seek to counter growing Chinese assertiveness in the region.

Nearly 18,000 troops are taking part in the annual exercises dubbed Balikatan, or "shoulder to shoulder" in Filipino, which for the first time will include a live-fire drill in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims almost entirely.

The drills follow Monday's conclusion of a three-day Chinese military exercise that simulated targeted strikes and a blockade of self-ruled, democratic Taiwan, which Beijing considers part of its territory.

Balikatan will include military helicopters landing on a Philippine island off the northern tip of the main island of Luzon, nearly 300 kilometres (180 miles) from Taiwan, and the retaking of another island by amphibious forces.

It will be the first time the exercises have been held under President Ferdinand Marcos, who has sought to strengthen ties with the United States after his predecessor Rodrigo Duterte trashed the alliance.

"In order for us to protect our sovereign territory, we really have to drill and exercise how we are going to retake an island that's been taken away from us," Philippine exercises spokesman Colonel Michael Logico told reporters after the opening ceremony at a military camp in Manila.

In recent months, Manila and Washington have agreed to restart joint maritime patrols in the South China Sea and struck a deal to expand the US forces' footprint in the Philippines, which has infuriated China.

US troops will be allowed to use an additional four Philippine military bases under the pact, including a naval base not far from Taiwan.

The Philippines' proximity to the island could potentially make it a key US partner in the event of a Chinese invasion.

At a joint news conference Tuesday, both armies did not address questions about the Taiwan tensions and a possible role for the Philippines if China invaded Taiwan.

News of the expanded base access had prompted China to accuse the United States of "endangering regional peace and stability".

"Countries in this part of the world must uphold strategic independence and firmly resist the Cold-War mentality and bloc confrontation," China's ambassador to Manila, Huang Xilian, said last week.

About 12,200 American, 5,400 Filipino and just over 100 Australian soldiers will participate in the two weeks of Balikatan exercises -- about twice as many as last year.

About 50 leftwing protesters staged a rally outside the opening ceremony venue, calling on the Philippine government to scrap the exercises.

As part of the exercises, troops will stage an amphibious landing on the western island of Palawan, the closest Philippine landmass to the Spratly Islands, where Beijing and Manila have rival claims.

The Americans will also use their Patriot missiles, considered one of the best air defence systems in the world, and the HIMARS precision rocket system, which has helped Ukrainian forces fighting the Russian invaders.

The two armies originally planned to fire live rounds at sea off the northern province of Ilocos Norte, about 355 kilometres from Taiwan's south coast, but later on had to move it further down the South China Sea, Philippine Army Major-General Marvin Licudine said.

The original site was "not sufficiently prepared" for unloading the needed equipment, he added.

The new venue is less than 300 kilometres east of the Chinese-held Scarborough Shoal.

The exercises will enhance "tactics, techniques and procedures across a wide range of military operations," said Philippine military spokesman Colonel Medel Aguilar.

Soon after the opening ceremony in Manila, the Philippine defence and foreign ministers will jointly meet their US counterparts in Washington. 

>>>READ MORE ARTICLE HERE<<<

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2019/12/the-philippines-big-issues-corruption.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/03/condemns-chinas-aggressive-laser-use.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/03/another-attack-in-philippines-aparri.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/03/philippine-governor-and-five-others.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/03/thailand-hot-guy-event-cancelled-after.html

@Jackie San

Gunung Aso Lokasi Terbaik Melakukan Pendakian Di Kumamoto Jepun

  

https://youtu.be/CsIfgvkqXpg

>>>MORE VIDEO JUST CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS<<<

  

MAN GETS ANGRY AFTER BEING TOLD OFF FOR SMOKING AT EATERY - SHAH ALAM

MAN GETS ANGRY AFTER BEING TOLD OFF FOR SMOKING AT EATERY  - SHAH ALAM

@Jackie San

SHAH ALAM, SELANGOR - A video of a man who went aggressive after being told off for smoking at a restaurant by a teenager has gone viral on social media.

A Twitter user @bckupacc99 who uploaded the 47-second video said the man clad in a green-collared T-shirt started to get angry when he was told off over his action.

He said the elderly man came to his table and started scolding and questioning him for telling him off.

"What kind of officer are you? Even the employees at this restaurant did not dare reprimand me," the man said before an argument broke between them.

The argument was then resolved by another individual who was at the scene to prevent the matter from getting worse.

The teenager said he told the man off because he did not want to risk the health of those around him as a baby could have been in the restaurant too.

The video went viral on Twitter and received 814,000 views, 8,435 retweets and 11,300 likes.

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry in a tweet said it was notified of the incident and was grateful for the concern shown by the teenage boy.

>>>READ MORE ARTICLE HERE<<<

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2019/06/extremely-intelligent-people-do-these.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2018/11/9-tips-how-to-get-healthy-hair-from.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2019/01/what-is-pneumonia-httpswww.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2019/08/haze-is-traditionally-atmospheric.html

@Jackie San

Learn How To Set Up TG/DTA Apparatus Easily In Laboratory

  

https://youtu.be/m-btsepvRBg

>>>MORE VIDEO JUST CLICK HERE<<<

  

SQUARING THE CIRCLE OF SAME-SEX MARRIAGE IN JAPAN COUNTRY

SQUARING THE CIRCLE OF SAME-SEX MARRIAGE IN JAPAN COUNTRY

@Jackie San

Japan doesn’t tend to do social change quickly — or in public.

It’s all the more unusual a recent confluence of events that has brought a discussion on the acceptance of the LGBTQ community to the fore. After an aide to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida made a homophobic comment in a meeting with reporters, the prime minister has been pushing a bill aimed at preventing discrimination against the LGBTQ community — a legislative fig leaf ahead of the Group of Seven summit in May, where the host, Japan, will be the only member that doesn’t permit same-sex marriage.

Supporters hope the bill would then pave the way for a discussion on the recognition of such relationships, and later, marriage. Somewhat surprisingly for a conservative country, polling shows a rapid shift in public opinion in favor of same-sex partnerships. Just eight years ago, opinion was divided roughly 50/50; now, nearly two-thirds say they support marriage equality.

With the G7 set for Kishida’s home constituency of Hiroshima — an event that might be the unpopular leader’s crowning moment in office — the comments by his aide have been an opening for opposition lawmakers, who’ve put the prime minister in the hot seat.

It’s undeniable that there is much opposition to same-sex unions within the broad church of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. It’s not even clear if the premier will be able to pass his legislation, as important as those potential protections would be to LGBTQ citizens. But the corner that Kishida’s been backed into might just provide him with an opportunity to do something bigger.

Some 65% of the Japanese population live in areas which have LGBTQ partnership systems, nonlegally binding recognition that enables couples to receive equal treatment in housing and healthcare. Pressured by the environmental, social and corporate governance investing movement large companies including Sony Group and Toyota Motor are also adjusting their benefit policies to match. But recognizing marriage itself remains distant, with a major sticking point: Article 24 of the U.S.-written Constitution, which states:

Marriage shall be based only on the mutual consent of both sexes and it shall be maintained through mutual cooperation with the equal rights of husband and wife as a basis.

Opinion is divided on whether reform of the Constitution is actually required to legalize same-sex unions. While the language might seem unambiguous, proponents argue that other parts of the text, such as the anti-discrimination clause in Article 14, provide more than enough justification. Others have different goals, argues Gon Matsunaka, the head of Pride House Tokyo, who calls the perceived need to change the Constitution a misunderstanding. “Some people try to make this issue constitutional, because they want to change the Constitution for a different reason, in the guise of marriage equality,” he says.

Indeed, opponents may also argue for the necessity of constitutional reform precisely in the hopes of holding it up — the document has never been amended since taking effect in 1947, and even the late Shinzo Abe couldn’t realize his dream of doing so. Abe’s position was that the Constitution doesn’t allow same-sex marriage, though it was not among the articles he sought to change. True to fashion, the Kishida government has avoided declaring a stance one way or the other.

In theory, reinterpreting the Constitution may be possible. After all, a straight reading of Article 9 would also seem to prohibit the country’s Self-Defense Forces, effectively the nation’s military, which exist nonetheless. There’s also the possibility that the courts rule in favor on one of the many challenges introduced by those opposed to the current laws. A Supreme Court decision that backed up the rulings some lower judiciaries have handed down — that a lack of recognition for gay marriage violates the current Constitution — might well be the fastest method.

But such a style of decision-making, in which unelected judges reinterpret an unchanged document rather than leaving it up to lawmakers and the people, is the wrong road to go down. It seems a stretch to suppose that something written by occupying U.S. forces intended to confer same-sex marriage rights at a time when every American state still had anti-sodomy laws. Cabinet reinterpretations of Article 9 have been of existential necessity, but the very existence of its armed forces is still opposed by major opposition parties, who hew to the pacifist intentions of the Constitution’s creators.

Instead, this is the perfect chance to square an eight-decade old circle and bring the debate into the open. Consider how one formerly conservative country went about things: Ireland became the first country in the world to legalize marriage equality through popular vote in 2015. That move was put into place by a constitutional convention, a cross-party assembly of politicians and citizens established by the government to consider how to tackle growing constitutional issues.

Kishida can’t just snap his fingers and declare a referendum. He could, however, advocate for the establishment of a similar body — and bring the debate further into the open. In formerly Catholic Church-run Ireland, the acceptance of same-sex relationships has become near-total, in large part thanks to the comprehensive community debate the referendum triggered.

Of course, the average age of the population skews much younger in Ireland than in Japan. All the more reason, then, to endorse a measure to might bring young people out to vote — with 90% of under-20s saying they support equality in one poll. It might also encourage participation in the legislative process and perhaps help arrest a declining turnout rate.

A majority of Lower House lawmakers favor change, though they can’t quite agree on what parts; even the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, which doesn’t back revision, favors “future-oriented constitutional discussion.” Ruling party members who don’t support marriage equality might be persuaded to back change in order to break the eight-decade taboo on altering the document: An LDP-backed slate of revising Article 24 and Article 9 to recognize the existence of the broadly popular Self-Defense Forces could be sold to a suspicious public.

As head of the LDP, Kishida has pledged to seek to constitutional reform and has also said more discussion on the subject of equality is needed. Even a failed attempt at constitutional reform would invigorate such talk. Changing the Constitution might be taboo in Japan. But like same-sex marriage, it need not be.

>>>READ MORE ARTICLE HERE<<<

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2021/07/why-muscular-men-are-gay.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2021/04/lgbt-culture-in-philippines.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2021/04/why-married-man-bisexual.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2021/04/big-issues-in-philippines.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2019/06/11-reasons-straight-people-have-sex.html

@Jackie San

Learn Set Up Apparatus For Characterization Analysis For Your Own Resear...

 

 https://youtu.be/-6-43MnKRkg

>>>MORE VIDEO JUST CLICK HERE<<<

  

LGBTQ + 'FAMILYSHIP' SYSTEMS EXPAND IN JAPAN AMID ABSENCE OF NATIONAL LAW

LGBTQ + 'FAMILYSHIP' SYSTEMS EXPAND IN JAPAN AMID ABSENCE OF NATIONAL LAW

@Jackie San

It’s been less than a decade since the first common-law partnership system was introduced in Japan.

In the time since, hundreds of municipalities across the country have followed suit, offering a way to recognize same-sex couples in the eyes of the local governments. Still, Japan is the only one of the Group of Seven countries that has not legalized same-sex marriage or established a ban on discrimination of LGBTQ+ individuals at the national level, a difference that is looming over the upcoming G7 meeting in Hiroshima this month.

There are at least 271 municipalities across Japan that have partnership systems according to Marriage for All Japan. But what’s not so common — yet growing — is the number of municipalities that have installed “familyship” systems.

Such systems add recognition of same-sex partners’ children as family members, enabling access to public services typically offered to married couples and families, such as being treated as family at hospitals, when applying for public housing or dropping kids off at school.

At least 40 municipalities have established familyship systems so far. Together, partnership and familyship systems have come to cover over 65% of Japan’s population in less than a decade.

In 2021, Adachi became the first ward in Tokyo to begin a familyship system alongside its partnership system.

Satoko Nagamura, director of Kodomap, a nonprofit supporting and connecting LGBTQ+ people with or looking to have children, was among those who had pushed for the enactment of both familyship and partnership systems in the ward.

Nagamura and her partner provided some of the 300 opinions received by Adachi Ward following public outcry over comments by a local politician who stated the ward would “cease to exist” if rights of sexual minorities were legally protected.

The introduction of the familyship system has changed the landscape significantly for parents like her, Nagamura said.

“The administration recognized us as a legitimate group and provided us with support, creating a sense of security and peace of mind,” she said. “So I think it became easier to live there than harder to live there. There are many different types of people living in the community, but now we have a place to go if we have issues (regarding families).”

Naomi Iizuka, the new director of Adachi’s Diverse Society Promotion Division, agreed that the establishment of the system has had a large impact.

“It was a big moment because these are things that these individuals struggled with for a long time and were finally able to do what comes as a normal privilege for others,” she said.

The hundreds of comments received by the ward ultimately led to an opinion exchange meeting, which highlighted that there was strong support for the extended recognition of families and not just couples, Iizuka said.

Haru Ono is co-chair of Nijiiro Kazoku, a nonprofit organization that serves as a network for LGBTQ+ families across Japan.

Ono and her partner, who have three children from previous marriages, are recognized as partners by Tokyo’s Setagaya Ward, which was the first to enact a partnership system in Japan alongside Shibuya Ward in 2015. Setagaya installed its familyship policy just last year.

In preparing to recognize her children as both her’s and her partner’s, Ono found that while Setagaya’s system allows those considered legal adults to be certified as a couple’s children, the broader system enacted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government does not.

The introduction of these systems have certainly made life easier for Ono and her family, but she is one of many who recognize their inadequacies. Without the backing of a national law, same-sex couples are left without rights provided to heterosexual couples such as tax deductions, joint custody and being able to be legally deemed a parent in all circumstances despite not having a blood relation, as well as protection against discrimination.

“We can prove our relationship at least to the ward office, and in that sense things have improved a lot,” Ono said. “However at the same time, the lack of guarantee is still an issue.

“Of course we’re grateful for the systems, and in the absence of law, local governments are doing their best, but the (central) government needs to have a proper discussion.”

In the fight for legal protection at the highest level, Ono has gone as far as becoming one of 13 couples from across Japan to file lawsuits against the government.

Couples like Ono and her partner are taking action, she said, while lawmakers are still stuck on yearslong consideration of a bill aimed at promoting “understanding” of the LGBTQ+ community, rather than action on behalf of it. That is, despite over 64% of people in Japan already saying they favor recognizing same-sex marriage.

“In the current state, it seems like they can’t even have a discussion yet,” she said.

While many municipalities have introduced systems to recognize same-sex couples and families, partly as a way to draw people to or keep them in the area amid Japan’s declining birthrate, the delay in legal action at the national level feels disconnected from the reality where Japan’s marriage rate is declining and the divorce rate is higher than in past decades, said Hokkaido University associate professor Hyunjoo Naomi Chi, who studies minority communities in East Asia, including Japan’s LGBTQ+ population and related public policy.

“People have different ideas of what a family should be,” Chi said. “There’s no one right family and yet, in Japan unfortunately, the system doesn’t allow for those families to become families.”

While there is little action at the national level, resulting in the details of the systems being left up to each municipality, Chi said the heightened awareness is still a positive outcome for Japan’s LGBTQ+ community.

“Now there’s 60% coverage, that’s more than half, right? And now, municipalities are understanding that there is a demand to at least recognize people as a family and as partners,” Chi said. “It’s always best to be more visible, and the only way you can raise awareness is if people actually meet these people in their same community.”

>>>READ MORE ARTICLE HERE<<<

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2021/04/big-issues-in-philippines.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2021/04/why-married-man-bisexual.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2021/04/lgbt-culture-in-philippines.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2021/07/why-muscular-men-are-gay.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2021/10/same-sex-marriage-in-cuba.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2022/12/two-indonesian-soldiers-get-7-months.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/02/transgender-men-win-appeal-over-status.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/03/thailand-hot-guy-event-cancelled-after.html

@Jackie San

Travel Alone To Mount Aso To Mount Nakadeka With JR Old Train June 2023

  https://youtu.be/N0Kqi1X2rgo

>>>MORE VIDEO JUST CLICK HERE<<<

  

ZERO-EMISSIONS SHIPS USING NEW FUELS TO GET SAFETY GUIDELINES - JAPAN

ZERO-EMISSIONS SHIPS USING NEW FUELS TO GET SAFETY GUIDELINES - JAPAN 

@Jackie San

The government plans to devise safety guidelines for ammonia- and hydrogen-fueled ships to promote zero-emissions vessels that do not emit greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide.

The guidelines will be established to prevent accidents involving such ships and provide guidance to reduce production costs by standardizing equipment. The government aims to formulate the guidelines in fiscal 2025 or later.

The Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry established a public-private council for the decarbonization of the shipping industry last year. Working with shipping and shipbuilding companies, the council is expected to begin developing new types of ships fueled by ammonia and hydrogen, which are the focus of international competition.

However, ammonia and hydrogen have different issues to be tackled than those for the existing heavy fuel oil, because no international safety standards exist for such fuels.

For example, burning ammonia produces nitrous oxide, which has a greenhouse effect greater than that of CO2. Although technologies to suppress that effect have been established to a certain extent, there is room for improvement.

The government plans to specify operational procedures and safety measures for fuel transfers to ships and delineate danger zones for fuel leakage, while referencing guidelines for liquefied natural gas-fueled ships that were established in 2013.

The guidelines will also stipulate precautions to be taken during nighttime fuel transfers; cargo loading, transporting and unloading; and passenger boarding and disembarking.

>>>READ MORE ARTICLE HERE<<<

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2022/02/set-to-annoucne-easing-of-strict-border.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2022/04/starts-military-drill-on-disputed.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/01/japan-and-united-states-talk-on.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/03/seoul-prove-north-korea-fires-2.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/04/dont-blame-women-japan-birth-drive.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/04/china-deploys-warships-near-taiwan.html

@Jackie San

Keindahan Gunung Aso Salah Satu Gunung Berapi Yang Aktif Di Negara Jepun

  https://youtu.be/F2RzwEtw5Ng

>>>MORE VIDEO JUST CLICK HERE<<<

  

MALAYSIA MEDIA MUST VERIFY INFORMATION BEFORE PUBLISHING NEWS - FAHMI SAYS

MALAYSIA MEDIA MUST VERIFY INFORMATION BEFORE PUBLISHING NEWS - FAHMI SAYS

@Jackie San

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (May 1, 2023): Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzi has urged members of the media to always verify information and sources before publishing any news to avoid any untoward issues.

Fahmi on his Facebook page had reposted Datuk Seri Siti Nurhaliza Taruddin’s message denying fake news linking her to a political event in Kedah.

“This fake news has been spreading since yesterday (Saturday) and has become slander that has spread far to various communities, some have even believed it and some have turned it into political fodder.

“Friends in the media are reminded to always verify information and sources before publishing news so that issues like this do not arise. Legal action can also be taken by enforcement agencies in case of any violations,” said Fahmi.

Earlier, Siti Nurhaliza in her Instagram story said that irresponsible parties had created a fake Facebook account using her name and spread statements regarding her presence at a ceremony in Kedah claimed to be a political event.

The statement was then used by an entertainment portal to be used as a news item titled ‘Siti Nurhaliza tak sangka rumah terbuka jadi majlis politik’ (Siti Nurhaliza didn’t expect an open house would become a political event) which was published yesterday.

“Who is the smart person who edited this fake news, used my Facebook name and forwarded it everywhere, convincing people that this is a real post? This is fake.

“Enough of all this. I am a singer, I entertain everyone. This is the month of Syawal, the month to strengthen ties, not to spread fake news,” she said in the Instagram post.

>>>READ MORE ARTICLE HERE<<<

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/02/petros-sarawak-wins-pscs-for-two.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/02/allowance-for-mps-confims-cut-in.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/03/cops-slammed-after-arresting-schoolboys.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/03/malaysias-civil-space-still-obstructed.html

@Jackie San