gossip galore [updated]

this has been going around via email,  passed on to me by peque gallaga who notes how kris aquino keeps cropping up in the history (thanks, pq ;).   small the world from rizal to ninoy to erap to gloria, and convoluted the network of romantic and racy links, how juicy!

UPDATE:  so far i have received one correction, indicated by [ALLCAPS].   see comments.

Beyond Six Degrees of Separation

A true Pinoy saint is how Rizalistas regard Dr. Jose Rizal who was the brother of Maria Rizal Mercado who was the mother of Mauricio Rizal Cruz who was the father of Ismael Arguelles Cruz who was the first husband of writer Chitang Guerrero-Nakpil who is the mother of Miss International Gemma Cruz who is the wife of Antonio Araneta who is the cousin of Judy Araneta who is the mother of Mar Roxas who is the reported boyfriend of Korina Sanchez who was once the girlfriend of Noynoy Aquino who was once the boyfriend of Bernadette Sembrano who was once romantically- linked to Vic Sotto who was once romantically- linked to Kris Aquino…

…who lived with Philip Salvador who is the brother of Alona Alegre who was the girlfriend of Romeo Vasquez who was a very special friend of Vilma Santos who was the wife of Edu Manzano who was the husband of Maricel Soriano who was the girlfriend of William Martinez who is the brother of Albert Martinez who is the husband of Liezl Sumilang who is the daughter of Romeo Vasquez who was the husband of Amalia Fuentes who is the aunt of Aga Muhlach…

…who was the boyfriend of Aiko Melendez who was the wife of Jomari Yllana who is the boyfriend of Pops Fernandez who was the wife of Martin Nievera who was the boyfriend of Jackie Lou Blanco who is the daughter of Pilita Corrales who has a son with Eddie Guttierez who is the husband of Annabelle Rama who is the mother of Ruffa Guttierez who is the half-sister of Tonton Guttierez who is the son of Liza Lorena and the half-brother of Ramoncito Guttierez who is the estranged husband of Lotlot de Leon who is the adopted daughter of Nora Aunor who was a very special friend of Joseph Estrada who is the father of Jude Estrada who is a very special friend of Dranreb Belleza who is the son of Bernard Belleza who was (NOT) the husband of Divina Valencia who was the movie partner of Jess Lapid who is the uncle of Lito Lapid who lived with Melanie Marquez who is the sister of Joey Marquez who lived with Kris Aquino…

…who reportedly almost eloped with Robin Padilla who is the cousin of Zsa Zsa Padilla who lives with Dolphy who lived with Alma Moreno who lived with Rudy Fernandez who is the husband of Lorna Tolentino who is the stepmother of Mark Anthony Fernandez who was the boyfriend of Claudine Barretto who is the sister of Marjorie Barretto who is the estranged wife of Dennis Padilla who is a close friend of Randy Santiago who is the brother of Raymart Santiago who reportedly courted Kris Aquino…

…who is the daughter of Ninoy Aquino who is the brother of Lupita Aquino-Kashiwahara who was the wife of Cesar Concio who is the husband of Charo Santos who is the sister of Milette Santos who is the wife of Edgar Mortiz who was the boyfriend of Vilma Santos who is the wife of Ralph Recto who is the brother of Plinky Recto who is the sister of Ramon Recto who was once rumored to be a very close friend of Lotlot de Leon who is the adopted daughter of Christopher de Leon who is the brother of Melissa de Leon who was a very special friend of Joey Marquez who lived with Alma Moreno who is the cousin of LJ Moreno who was the girlfriend of Diether Ocampo who was once reported as the boyfriend of Andrea Bautista who is the sister of Bong Revilla…

…who was romantically linked to Gretchen Barretto who was photographed being kissed by John Estrada who was the husband of Janice de Belen who has a son with Aga Muhlach who is the husband of Charlene Gonzales who is the daughter of Bernard Bonnin who was the husband of Elvira Gonzales who is [NOT] the [LEGAL] wife of Pepito Vera-Perez who is the brother of Marichu “Manay Ichu”Vera-Perez who is the estranged wife of Manong Ernie Maceda and the sister of Gina de Venecia who is the wife of Joe de Venecia who used to preside over the Lower House of Congress which used to be presided by Ramon Mitra who was the father of Raul Mitra who is the husband of Cacai Velasquez who is the sister of Regine Velasquez who is the reported girlfriend of Ogie Alcasid who is a close friend of Janno Gibbs who is the husband of Bing Loyzaga who is the sister of Joey Loyzaga who was the boyfriend of Gretchen Baretto who lives with Tonyboy Cojuangco who is the cousin of Kris Aquino…

…who is the daughter of Cory Aquino who is the aunt of Mikee Cojuangco who is the wife of Dodot Jaworski who is the son of Robert Jaworski who is the husband of Evelyn Bautista who is the daughter of Ramon Revilla who is the father of Bong Revilla who was romantically linked to Ruffa Mae Quinto who was the girlfriend of Dingdong Avanzado who was the boyfriend of Rachel Alejandro who is the daughter of Hajji Alejandro who lived with Rio Diaz who is the sister of Gloria Diaz who was the wife of Bong Daza who is a close friend of Bong Bong Marcos who is the son of Ferdinand Marcos who was the husbandof Imelda Marcos who is the mother of Imee Marcos who lived with Tommy Manotoc who was the husband of Miss International Aurora Pijuan who is the mother of TJ Manotoc who is the half-brother of Borgy Manotoc…

…who was rumored to have been intimate with Vina Morales who was romantically-linked to Robin Padilla who is the brother of Rustom Padilla who lived with Carmina Villaruel who lives with Zoren Lagaspi who is the brother of Kier Legaspi who is the father of the eldest child of Marjorie Baretto who is the sister of Claudine Barretto who is the wife of Raymart Santiago who is the brother of Rowell Santiago who was the movie partner of Sharon Cuneta who is the niece of Helen Gamboa who is the wife of Tito Sotto who is the brother of Vic Sotto who has a son with Connie Reyes who was a close friend of Helen Vela who was the mother of Princess Punzalan who was the wife of Willie Revillame who has a daughter with Becbec Soriano who is the sister of Maricel Soriano who is the aunt of Meryll Soriano who is the estranged wife of Bernard Palanca who was the boyfriend of Rica Peralejo who was once rumored as the girlfriend of Piolo Pascual who appeared in many movies as the love interest of Judy Ann Santos who was once the movie partner of Mikey Arroyo who is the son of Mike Arroyo who is the husband of Gloria Arroyo.

Saint. Heroes. Actors. Crooks.
Small world.
From Rizal to Ninoy to Erap to Gloria.
Yes, from a saint to a hero to an actor/thug to Gloria.
Small world, indeed.
And watch for the rest of their stories.

abu sayyaf: kidnap-for-homeland

ces drilon was in and out in nine days.    the red cross workers swiss andreas notter, italian eugenio vagni and filipina jean lacaba have been in the hands of the abu sayyaf since jan 15, that’s two months and 10 days today and still no release in sight.

as it turns out, this is no ordinary abu sayyaf venture pala.   hindi ito tulad noong kay ces na kidnap-for-money raket, na even if the government was adamant kuno na hindi sila nagbabayad ng ransom, ever, kuno, still they didn’t stop the drilon family from paying up in the millions of bucks.

the red cross hostage-taking is different, radically different.   it is, so far, no less than a kidnap-for-homeland gimik.

INDANAN, Sulu: The Abu Sayyaf is not demanding a ransom for the release of three volunteers of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) whom the group abducted on January 15.

Abu Ali, a senior leader within the Abu Sayyaf, told The Manila Times that what they want is an independent Bangsamoro homeland.

“I would like to announce to all our Muslim brothers in the Philippines that what we are doing is not for our self-vested interest but for the interest of the Muslim ummah [community] in order to give them freedom as a Bangsamoro people as well as their right to self-determination,” Ali said.

further, according to ding gagelonia atmidfield :

… a reliable source told luwaran.com/net that the ASG has already released their demands to the government for the release of the three staff of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) kidnapped in Sulu on January 15.

The ASG demands are: 1) For the military to pull out their troops in the entire province of Sulu; and 2) For the government to declare Jolo as an open port between Malaysia and Sulu to boast the economic development of the people of Western Mindanao.

tugon ng red cross, at balik ng abu sayyaf:

A representative of the Red Cross who asked not to be identified and who was with Gordon in Mindanao said the organization could give millions of pesos in livelihood assistance to Sulu so that the peace would be restored in that province.

But Abu Ali said they would not sacrifice their lives if they are only after livelihood assistance.

“If we are only fighting for our livelihood, we might as well lay down our arms and turn into businessmen or farmers to earn a living. But that is not our motive but rather we are fighting for our homeland,” he pointed out.

When asked why they must kidnap Red Cross volunteers, Ali said that is the only way his group can gain attention, especially from the Philippine government.

“No matter how loud we shout and cry even everyday, still the Philippine government would not listen to us.”

tugon ng muslim oppositionist lawyer adel tamano:

Tamano told The Manila Times that “enough is enough” for Abu Sayyaf and all these kidnappings should stop once and for all as it has dragged the names of peace-loving Muslim Filipinos. He also sent a message to the Abu Sayyaf that if they are fighting in the name of Islam and for the sake of Bangsamoro people, they must not perpetrate kidnapping at the expense of the innocent.

so it’s not true that the abu sayyaf guys are not asking for anything in return for the release of the hostages.   what’s true is that the palace chooses to ignore the kidnappers’ demand-for-homeland — it is simply not talked about, because how preposterous, how outrageous, how priceless?

instead the afp, on orders no doubt of the president or the-defense-secretary-who-would-be-president, has, with the help of visiting american technology, tracked down the whereabouts of the kidnappers and hostages and thrown a military cordon around the area, i suppose to limit the abu’s movements while the troops await the order to attack and rescue.   rescue and attack?

meanwhile of course civil society and the international red cross have been calling for a peacefully negotiated release of the hostages.   senator dick gordon, chair of the philippine red cross, had been negotiating with the abu via cellphone and the abu had agreed to release one hostage if the military would pull out from the area.   instead there was a firefight last march 16 — the abu say the afp started it, but the afp will neither confirm nor deny (tulad ng kano) — and nothing to show but dead and wounded on both sides, buti na lang the hostages were not harmed.

no wonder gordon is fit to be tied.    it doesn’t help, or maybe it does, that major general juancho sabban, commander of what seems a failed attack-and-rescue operation, has taken off for a week to speak at a columbia conference on anti-terrorism *lol*.   seriously though, what’s up with ourmilitary?   haven’t they been training all these last 8 years with the visiting american forces?   why  then do they continue to be such dismal failures at stopping the abu sayyaf, among other terrorist groups, and ending the reign of terrorism in sulu?

the latest is this abu sayyaf ultimatum:

Muslim militants holding captive three Red Cross workers in the southern Philippines have threatened to behead one of the hostages if government troops do not move out of their jungle hideouts by the end of the month, officials said Wednesday.

The latest threat was issued by Abu Sayyaf rebel leader Albader Parad on Monday as the military stepped up a blockade to prevent food and supplies from reaching the guerrillas in the hinterland of Indanan town on Jolo island, 1,000 kilometres south of Manila.

tugon ng militar:

Lt. Gen. Nelson Allaga, commander of military forces overseeing the operations in Sulu, said security forces will continue to maintain its presence in Indanan town and is closely working with Kasim and Sakur Tan, the provincial governor, who heads the government task force in-charge of securing the safe release of the hostages.

“We will maintain our presence in Indanan town,” he said, adding, any withdrawal of troops could pave the way for terrorists to escape and consolidate their forces.”

Tan also rejected Abu Sayyaf demands for a military pull out. “That is tantamount to surrendering the whole town to terrorists. I will not allow that to happen,” he said.

say naman ni afp spokesperson lt. col. ernesto torres over dzbb radio:

“Mahirap mag-rely sa kanilang sinasabi. They are asking for something in exchange for the freedom of the ICRC workers. Vinavalidate natin kung saan galing yung mga demand na ganiyan. Medyo malaki po yung hinihingi nila,” Torres said.

“Assuming it [demand] is true, ay parang pinullout natin yung tropa sa Sulu, which is not possible,” he added.

[It will be hard to rely on what they are saying. They are asking for something in exchange for the freedom of the ICRC workers. We are still verifying whether they are indeed making the demand. But assuming it is true, they are asking too much because it will be like pulling out our troops from the entire province.]

Torres said they also doubt that the Abu Sayyaf will fulfill its part of the “bargain” because last week, the bandits reneged on its agreement to release one of the ICRC volunteers after government forces repositioned its troops in Indanan town.

Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC) chair Senator Richard Gordon last Saturday said Abu Sayyaf commander Albader Parad “is now asking for two-thirds” of Jolo – a larger portion of the island than originally agreed upon.

He said Parad also wanted the pullout of the armed barangay guards, which was not covered by the original agreement. Parad’s supposed demands are likely to be rejected by officials and the military, Gordon said.

so this crisis is not what djb over at FV says it is:

The months-long Red Cross hostage situation in Sulu is evolving into a major crisis as the government looks increasingly unable to do anything at all about it. It’s Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s ransom paying habits running right smack into the firm and unbending policy of the International Red Cross NEVER to pay ransoms in these terrorist kidnapping cases.

indeed, if it were money the abu sayyaf wants, the crisis would have long been resolved through a pay-up from some pocket or another, matapos lang, kahiyaan na.   but it’s not money that the abu want this time.   it would  seem na nag-evolve na ang abu sayyaf.   a la MILF, looking for a homeland, na ang drama nila.

interesting, di ba?   who kaya is behind this change-of-politics ng abu sayyaf?  what are the implications for the peace talks and the MILF’s campaign for a bangsamoro homeland?   will/can the MILF ignore the new abu sayyaf or will/can there be a joining of forces?

gma and her defense-secretary-who-would-be-president teodoro must be praying very hard na magbago sana ang isip at mag-settle na lang for millions of pesos ang abu sayyaf in aid of a dramatic rescue of the three humanitarian workers.   for the sakes of the three, i pray so too.

draft 2008 CA ruling acquits smith

today’s manila times exclusive is the biggest bummer yet.   and then, again, maybe not.

Draft ruling acquits Smith
CA justice wrote ponencia before retiring in 2009
By Jomar Canlas, Reporter

The Court of Appeals could have overturned the conviction of American soldier Daniel Smith long before his rape victim “Nicole” came out with an affidavit recanting her previous story, virtually clearing Smith of her charge of sexual abuse.

The Manila Times obtained the 55-page draft ruling written by appellate court Justice Agustin Dizon who handled the Subic rape case. In it, he wrote that Smith was innocent “beyond reasonable doubt.”

Dizon, who retired on June 27, 2008, said Smith should have been acquitted based on the technical and substantive aspects of the case.

The document has been attached to the records of the case on Dizon’s request. The case has been raffled off and is now pending before Court of Appeals Justice Monina Arevalo-Zenarosa.

The Dizon paper was not released, though, as the Court of Appeals’ division members did not sign it because of time constraints.

A source who is familiar with the development-but had asked anonymity-told The Times that Court of Appeals Justice Celia Librea-Leagogo, the senior member of the 17th Division, did not sign the Dizon draft ruling or ponencia as she needed at least two months to review the case. Dizon was the division’s junior justice at that time.

The document reached the chambers of Leagogo in May last year, a month before Dizon retired.

The source described Leagogo as “meticulous” about the Dizon ponencia and fearful of going against public opinion and putting the Court of Appeals in a bad light.

But even before Dizon retired, Leagogo had inhibited herself from handling the case, as she happened to be a friend of one of Smith’s lawyers. Leagogo was replaced by Justice Apolinario Bruselas.

The chairman of the appellate court’s 17th Division at that time was Justice Regalado Maambong, who neither expressed concurrence or dissent on the ruling. Maambong took a leave of absence and left for Israel. He was replaced by Justice Vicente Veloso, who also recused himself from deciding on the Dizon paper as he, too, was a friend of one of Smith’s lawyers.

Causes of delay

These developments delayed the signing of the draft decision and forced the 17th Divison to look for other members. Meanwhile,time had run out for Dizon, as he was reaching retirement age.

The case was raffled anew, with Associate Justice Juan Enriquez coming in as the new member of the court’s Special Division. Enriquez, however, took the tack the others had taken for the same reason that one of Smith’s counsels was his friend. He was replaced by Justice Hakim Abdulwahid.

With the subsequent raffle of the case, the new ponente replacing Dizon was Zenarosa, with Justices Mariano del Castillo and Apo­linario Bruselas as members.

The US Marine’s appeal has been pending before the Court of Appeals for more than two years now, stalled by the inhibition and retirement of justices assigned to handle the case.
Smith was convicted of rape and sentenced to serve 40 years in the Philippines on December 4, 2006.

Technical acquittal

In the Dizon ponencia, the justice pointed out that Smith could not be found guilty beyond reasonable doubt for rape as the information on the charge sheet filed by the lawyers of Nicole showing “force and intimidation” appeared questionable.

Force and intimidation are elements in the commission of the crime of rape under Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code.

“Rape is committed by having carnal knowledge of a woman under of the following circumstances: [1] by using force and intimidation; [2] when the woman is deprived of reason or otherwise unconscious.”

The prosecution filed the information on the basis of force and intimidation, but Justice Dizon noticed that the evidence presented was “intoxication,” which is interpreted as “deprived of reason or otherwise unconscious.”

Dizon reasoned that “intoxication” as defined under Article 15 of the Revised Penal Code is an “alternative circumstance,” which means that it could either be aggravating or mitigating to the crime.

But the justice wrote that “intoxication” could not be equated with “unconsciousness” or vice-versa.

This line of reason gave rise to doubt whether or not Nicole was “unconscious” or “intoxicated.” It will be recalled that Nicole admitted getting drunk with Smith.

As a rule under the Article III, Section 14, paragraph 2 of the 1987 Constitution on the Bill of Rights, the accused has to be informed of the charges filed against him.

One cannot be charged with one offense on this particular element- force and intimidation-of the crime while presenting another element, intoxication.

“In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall be presumed innocent until the contrary is proved, and shall enjoy the right to be heard by himself and counsel, to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him, to have a speedy, impartial, and public trial, to meet the witnesses face to face, and to have compulsory process to secure the attendance of witnesses and the production of evidence in his behalf,” the law says.

Substantive acquittal

Doubt was inculcated in the mind of Dizon as to the factual circumstances of the crime of rape between Nicole and Smith.

Dizon was not convinced that Nicole was raped at all.

He said that the use of force applied to Nicole was not apparent because she herself went to the vehicle voluntarily.

Smith alone allegedly committed the rape, without the participation of the other US soldiers inside the van.
The justice wrote that either way, the issues of “force and intimidation” and “unconsciousness” via “intoxication” could not be appreciated because such amount of evidence could convince him to convict Smith.

Dizon wrote that Nicole was not deprived of reason after all, since she was aware of the details surrounding the crime because at that exact moment she was drunk but not totally unconscious.

Hence, he decided to draft a ponencia, on the front page of which ruled that Smith should be acquitted and that justice must be served to all regardless of sex, race or creed.

Zenarosa ponencia

The Times source said that Zenarosa vowed to issue her ruling before her retirement in August.

Several appellate court justices who talked to The Manila Times on condition of anonymity said that most of them support the acquittal of Smith on the basis of the Dizon’s draft.

The justices said they have seen several lapses in the conviction made by Makati Regional Trial Court Judge Benjamin Pozon.

Their statements on the Dizon paper were confided to The Times by the Court of Appeals justices even before the March 12, 2009 affidavit of desistance manifested by Nicole to the appellate court.

nicole did not recant

what a shocker naman talaga.   it was bad enough hearing, first, that she had fired her lawyer evalyn ursua AND that she had left for the u.s., of all places.   it got progressively more scandalizing as the news trickled out that she had settled with smith for a hundred thou php and *omgwtf* that she had recanted *gasp*!

a day later i’m clearer about that 100k — it’s in compliance naman pala with the court order that found smith guilty of rape and liable to nicole for civil (50K php) and moral (50K php) damages, so that’s fine.   whether she left or she stayed, she had that money coming to her.   in my book she deserved more, and if she did get more, then good for her.

i’m also clearer about the so-called recantation, which is not a recantation at all — shame on everyone who calls it so.   nicole did not recant.    to recant would have been to deny now her original testimony.   to recant would have been to say now that it was all a lie, she wasn’t drunk, she remembers it all, the sex was consensual.   SHE SAID NOTHING OF THE SORT.

at most nicole ruminates on old questions raised by the defense at the trial.   she acknowledges that under the influence of alcohol she may have behaved inappropriately — which may have led smith to think that she wanted sex.   also she considers the defense line that if smith had intended to rape her he would not have so openly carried her out of the club into the van for all the world to see, so maybe he thought it was consensual?

so she behaved inappropriately under the influence of mixed drinks — but she also says, so did others in the club where there was a lot of kissing and hugging going on,  and, i’m sure, dirty dancing, and no one else got raped.    i think smith was just really horny and on white arrogant macho mode — youdon’tmesswithmeandgetawaywithitshit — never mind that the girl clearly was so drunk she couldn’t walk straight, much less do anything of her own volition.   the affidavit only makes this clearer.

finally she asks, if i was so drunk why did i suddenly become un-drunk when they dumped me on the sidewalk?   aba, kahit sino yata mahihimasmasan, matatauhan, pag biglang nagbago ang takbo ng mga pangyayari, from private to public, from warm to cold, from sounds to silence.   her alcohol-drowned mind was on party mode, even the van was on party mode, with music and cheering and clapping.   when she was dumped, the music stopped, the party was over, she’s suddenly alone, lying on a public sidewalk — the semento must have felt cold to her naked butt, and people were gathering around, someone was calling her a bitch, time to come to her senses, a matter of self-defense, of survival, what a rude awakening.

so, again, that affidavit wasn’t a retraction, rather, an affirmation, by which account, smith is no less guilty of rape.    let’s give nicole credit for managing to please smith’s camp — enough to acquire a u.s. visa perhaps — but without recanting.   that took some smarts.   good for us.

i’m sorry she’s gone but she has her own life to live, her own karma to work out.   if she were my daughter, like susan i would let her go, even insist on it.   obviously she has a karmic connection with america (american soldiers in particular).   until (like any fil-am) she works that out, she cannot be expected to do more for inang lupa than she has already done for the anti-vfa campaign.   mabuhay si nicole.