Avoid southern Philippines: West

New Zealander shot dead

MANILA, July 27, (Agencies): Western governments are warning their citizens against travelling to nearly all of the southern third of the Philippines, citing the rising threats of terror attacks and kidnappings by Islamist militants.

Fresh alerts from Britain, Canada and Australia were released this week after President Rodrigo Duterte extended military rule across the southern region of Mindanao until the end of the year to combat the militants.

The Canadian advisory on Monday warned against visiting any part of Mindanao except for Davao, the biggest city in the south.

“There is a serious risk of terrorist attacks and kidnappings in this region,” the Canadian government said.

It also cautioned that people should only visit Davao, where the bombing of a crowded night market last year claimed 15 lives, if it was essential.

Mindanao comprises roughly a third of the Philippine territory and is home to 20 million people.

The region has endured decades of conflict, with Muslim separatists and communists waging deadly rebellions, and a small group of Islamic militants known as the Abu Sayyaf running a lucrative kidnap-for-ransom operation from there.

Western governments have long

cover-up of information related to a U.N. peacekeeping mission and a former defence minister is already lined up to take her place, media said.

A spokeswoman at Inada’s office on Thursday declined to comment on whether she would resign, which was first reported by broadcaster NHK.

Inada had launched an investigation into media reports that defence officials had tried to hide logs showing worsening security in South Sudan, where Japanese troops were taking part in a U.N.-led peacekeeping operation.

Inada will resign after Friday’s publication of the results of the investigation to take responsibility for the affair, according to NHK.

Inada, a protege of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, had denied reports of involvement in the cover-up but had advised against travelling to parts of Mindanao, but the fresh alerts are more extensive as they warn against visiting almost the whole region.

The new advisories reflect growing concerns that the Islamic State group’s influence is rising in Mindanao.

Gunmen who have pledged allegiance to IS occupied Marawi, the main Muslim city in the southern Philippines, in May and security forces have been unable to dislodge them despite fierce battles that have claimed more than 600 lives.

Duterte initially imposed martial law across Mindanao immediately after the fighting erupted in Marawi.

Warned

The British government advisory, released on Tuesday, warned terrorists were “very likely” to carry out attacks anywhere in the Philippines, including the capital of Manila.

It said the most acute threat was in the south, and warned against travelling through nearly all of Mindanao.

The British advisory said the threat of kidnappings and terrorism also loomed over the central city of Dumaguete and nearby Siquijor island, both tourist areas.

The Australian government warning largely echoed those issued by Britain and Canada.

In a July 18 advisory that warned

been expected to be replaced in a cabinet reshuffle likely early next month because of the scandal, and a series of missteps that critics say contributed to a plunge in support for Abe. (RTRS)

Japan DP chief steps down:

The head of Japan’s reeling main opposition party announced her resignation on Thursday, less than a year after becoming the first woman to lead the group.

Renho, a former model and TV anchor, took the reins of the Democratic Party (DP) last September in a landslide party election victory.

But her brief spell was dogged by controversy throughout and she was unable to capitalise on scandal-hit Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s falling popularity.

In particular Renho -- who goes by one name -- has been unable to shake off citizenship questions arising from her mixed

This photo taken on July 25, 2017 shows people relaxing in a former bomb shelter to escape the hot weather in Wuhu, China’s eastern Anhui province. Parts of China have seen record temperatures in recent weeks, in what has been a torrid

summer so far for much of the country. (AFP)

against travelling to Mindanao, the US embassy in Manila said it had “credible information” that terrorists also planned to conduct kidnappings on the tourist islands of Palawan, Cebu and Bohol in 2017.

Meanwhile, police have arrested the suspected gunman in the fatal shooting of a New Zealander on a central Philippine island, officials said Thursday. Another suspect is being sought.

One of two men on a motorcycle shot dead Simon Rawlinson, 63, in Biliran island’s capital town of Naval on Wednesday, said Senior Police Officer Jimmy de Lima. The perpetrators took Rawlinson’s bag containing money, a laptop and the victim’s documents, he added.

Rawlinson, a long-time resident of nearby Maripipi island, was in Naval for a trip to the market when attacked.

De Lima said a witness led police to the suspected gunman, a local farmer. Found in the suspect’s house were a pistol, bullets and clothes he was seen wearing on CCTV footage during the shooting. The motorcycle driver is still at large.

After taking the bag, the gunman approached Rawlinson who was sprawled on the sidewalk and fired a third shot, hitting him in the head, de Lima said, raising doubt about robbery as a motive for the attack.

Taiwanese-Japanese parentage.

It emerged just ahead of her election as party leader that she had never officially given up her Taiwan citizenship, even though Japan does not allow adults to hold dual nationality.

The Japan-born Renho apologised at the time, but issues surrounding her former Taiwan status deriving from her father’s origins on the island, a former Japanese colony, refused to go away.

Last week, she tried to put the matter to rest by showing official documents proving she now only has Japanese citizenship, but reportedly remained under fire within the party for mishandling the issue. (AFP)

“I made the decision to resign,” she said at a press conference Thursday, without offering specific reasons, though she said the citizenship controversy was not a factor in stepping down.

Her centre-left party -- formerly known as the Democratic Party of Japan -swept to power in 2009, ousting the long dominant conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).

But it was booted from office in late 2012 by the resurgent LDP following a series of mis-steps and policy flip-flops, along with criticism over its handling of the Fukushima nuclear crisis.

Though still the largest opposition force, it has seen its position in parliament wane further, and was recently stung by a poor performance in local elections for the Tokyo assembly.

It has also been unable to take advantage of growing disapproval of Abe’s ruling LDP, which has been hit by a series of scandals.

Renho first came to national prominence in the 1980s as a model and later TV newscaster, reporting from the earthquake-devastated city of Kobe in 1995.

The one-time journalist earned the nickname “Hissatsu” (shoot-to-kill) for her style of grilling bureaucrats over public waste, in a country where the media are often criticised for pulling their punches. (AFP)