Not long after the assassination of peace consultant Randy Echanis on August 10th, another activist is killed under the Duterte Regime. Zara Alvarez, a 39-year old paralegal for human rights… Continue reading "Philippines: Under the Duterte government, being red-tagged is a death sentence"
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will announce on Monday, 17th August the fate of this year’s general elections. Originally set for the 19th of September, it is now unclear whether this… Continue reading "New Zealand: Should the election be pushed back to a later date?"
New Zealand was once hailed as a ‘global exemplar’ in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. While the rest of the world struggled to contain their own outbreaks, the country… Continue reading "New Zealand: The re-emergence of COVID-19 has made this election a lot closer"
Only a few weeks after the passage of the Anti-Terrorism Law, the expected crackdown on anti-government activists has stepped up. The draconian legislation would give the Executive unprecedented powers, including… Continue reading "Philippines: Heightening fascism is slowly unraveling, weeks after the passage of the Anti-Terror Law"
On August 5th, Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield announced to New Zealanders that community transmission of COVID-19 in the country is “a matter of when, not if”. The revered public… Continue reading "New Zealand: I hate to admit it, but Gerry Brownlee has a point"
Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic afflicting tens of thousands of Filipinos, the officials of national insurance company – PhilHealth – are showing symptoms of a disease long familiar to the country,… Continue reading "Philippines: PhilHealth is ailing with a virus called ‘corruption’ and it is facing near demise"
This week, mainstream media revealed that personal details of New Zealand’s 18 active COVID-19 cases had been leaked. A data breach of this scale is embarrassing for the Government and… Continue reading "New Zealand: the National Party are deliberately sabotaging the government’s COVID-19 efforts"
The Member for Rotorua, Todd McClay, who is also a senior member of the National Party, took to social media to lambast the Coalition Government for using his electorate as… Continue reading "New Zealand: National’s Todd McClay crying crocodile tears over Rotorua quarantine facilities"
After 23 days of having no new COVID-19 cases, being hailed as the envy of the rest of the world, New Zealanders were shocked to hear that there were two… Continue reading "New Zealand: What Chris Bishop’s “COVID tourists” saga revealed about the National Party"
![Protesters march on the streets of the capital city, Manila, to express opposition against the proposed Anti-Terrorism Bill. [Photo from PAMALAKAYA Web]](https://thedefiant.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/104216495_747982836004215_7166561714749197461_o.jpg)
“Attack of the Clones” isn’t just the title of the 2002 release of the Star Wars franchise, it has also become the reality for many activists under the Duterte administration.… Continue reading "Philippines: Even before the Anti-Terrorism Bill is signed into law, the online crackdown of activists has already begun"
