the censei report (vol. 2, no. 20, may 21-27, 2012)

54
Center for Strategy, Enterprise & Intelligence provides expertise in strategy and management, enterprise development, intelligence, Internet and media. For subscriptions, research, and advisory services, please e-mail [email protected] or call/fax +63-2-5311182. Links to online material on public websites are current as of the week prior to the publication date, but might be removed without warning. Publishers of linked content should e-mail us or contact us by fax if they do not wish their websites to be linked to our material in the future. NATION TECHNOLOGY WORLD Strategic Analysis and Research by the CENTER FOR STRATEGY, ENTERPRISE & INTELLIGENCE Volume 2 - Number 20 May 21-27, 2012 Ombudsman: Corona circulated money in 82 dollar accounts ~ GMA7 online news headline Defense: Corona dollar accounts just three, not 82 ~ GMA7 online news headline POINT & CLICK You can access online research via the Internet by clicking phrases in blue BUSINESS CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY cenSEI T H E Report 14 Growing All the Rice We Need Whether or not rice self-sufficiency is coming, we must shore up food security The geography lesson: The real reason the Philippines imports its staple The NFA’s P100-billion problem: A costly way to make rice affordable Food insecurity: Civil society questions government food policy Throwing it away: If we didn’t waste so much rice, we’d have enough 4 Just When You Think Recovery Is Here Amid positive signs in the world economy, renewed fears of euro zone meltdown, hard landing in China, and a U.S. fiscal crunch underscore the imperative for contagion containment, fiscal reform and economic rebalancing. Brace yourself 24 Will the Bangsamoro Substate Bring Peace? The proposed autonomous entity might be the start of a road to peace, if it isn’t sidetracked in tricky political terrain Decades of strife: A history of failed agreements, stalled talks — and war 34 Death By Gainful Employment There are two million work-related deaths a year, more than half of them in Asia. Governments and companies must take action Dying on the job: Whether by accident, illness or stress, work eventually kills 46 The High-Tech Way to Cut You Up From laser scalpels to surgical robots, operating equipment are reducing pain, blood and recovery time From trephination to transplants: A brief history of surgery When operations go viral: Social media gives surgical learning

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Center for Strategy, Enterprise & Intelligence publishes The CenSEI Report, strategic analysis and research on national, business and global issues.

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

Center for Strategy Enterprise amp Intelligence provides expertise in strategy and management enterprise development intelligence Internet and mediaFor subscriptions research and advisory services please e-mail reportcenseisolutionscom or callfax +63-2-5311182 Links to online material on public

websites are current as of the week prior to the publication date but might be removed without warning Publishers of linked content should e-mail us or contact us by fax if they do not wish their websites to be linked to our material in the future

NATION

TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

Strategic Analysis and Research by the CENTER FOR STRATEGY ENTERPRISE amp INTELLIGENCE

Volume 2 - Number 20 bull May 21-27 2012

Ombudsman Corona circulated money in 82 dollar accounts~ GMA7 online news headline

Defense Corona dollar accounts just three not 82~ GMA7 online news headline

POINT amp CLICK

You can access online research via the Internetby clicking phrases in blue

BUSINESS

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

cenSEIT H E

Report

14 Growing All the Rice We NeedWhether or not rice self-sufficiency is coming we must shore up food securitybull The geography lesson The real reason the Philippines imports its staplebull The NFArsquos P100-billion problem A costly way to make rice affordablebull Food insecurity Civil society questions government food policybull Throwing it away If we didnrsquot waste so much rice wersquod have enough

4 Just When You Think Recovery Is HereAmid positive signs in the world economy renewed fears of euro zone meltdown hard landing in China and a US fiscal crunch underscore the imperative for contagion containment fiscal reform and economic rebalancing Brace yourself

24 Will the Bangsamoro Substate Bring PeaceThe proposed autonomous entity might be the start of a road to peace if it isnrsquot sidetracked in tricky political terrainbull Decades of strife A history of failed agreements stalled talks mdash and war

34 Death By Gainful EmploymentThere are two million work-related deaths a year more than half of them in Asia Governments and companies must take actionbull Dying on the job Whether by accident illness or stress work eventually kills

46 The High-Tech Way to Cut You UpFrom laser scalpels to surgical robots operating equipment are reducing pain blood and recovery timebull From trephination to transplants A brief history of surgerybull When operations go viral Social media gives surgical learning

We Apologize For Our TardinessFor the past three weeks The CenSEI Report has been delayed by a day in transmission We apologize for this failing for which we offer no excuses just mea culpas The Center for Strategy Enterprise amp Intelligence and our corps of writers and editors are having the inevitable teething problems of any new enterprise But while our timing leaves much to be desired wersquod like to think that any extra hours spent working on The CenSEI Report is time well spent in making every article paragraph sentence link and image greatly informative insightful and even imperative for you our readers

Still we are a weekly publication and there is no better time to be read than early on Monday to get a fresh perspective on the weekrsquos major developments and concerns For the current Report we range across some weighty national and international issues from the global economy shaken by fears of euro meltdown and China slowdown to the death of workers including more than a million Asians every year Clearly urgent action especially from government and business leaders is needed on both fronts to save lives and livelihoods

Here at home we follow up our story last week on rising hunger with another Nation assessment of the rice self-sufficiency program begun in 2008 as the FIELDS initiative for the Philippines to produce all the staple we consume by 2013 Also a life-and-death concern the Nation section casts a legal eye on the proposed Bangsamoro substate being negotiated with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front with greater autonomy than the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) agreed with the Moro National Liberation Front in 1996 Letrsquos hope both rice and peace initiatives bear positive and lasting fruit in the months ahead

While the developments covered in every issue of The CenSEI Report have made news in the weeks before we wrote about them in fact the rationale for tackling these concerns are not the headlines they generated but the humans they affect This week they include the billions of job-holding or -seeking people across the planet the 95 million Filipinos each polishing off 308 grams of rice daily on average and the tens of thousands of government soldiers and separatist rebels in deadly face-off plus the hundreds of innocents caught in their crossfire in the cities and fields of Mindanao

With such import in every article our editors and writers do not hesitate to heavily revise drafts to sharpen strategic focus and argument insert more information-rich links and offer useful action recommendations All within our tight deadlines of course as best we can

4cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

New Dangers Emerge forthe Fragile World RecoveryWatch out for loan default in Greece fiscal crunchin America and sharp slowdown in ChinaBy Ricardo Saludo

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index

REPORT CARD

Australia 00China 08Euro Area 03France 06Germany 04Japan 09Korea 15Mexico 10Spain 09UK 10US 01

Real GDP increase 2011-11 actual and 2012-13 forecastIMF WORLD ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

Projections2010 2011 2012 2013

World Output 53 39 35 41 Advanced Economies 32 16 14 20 United States 30 17 21 24 Euro Area 19 14 -03 09 Germany 36 31 06 15 France 14 17 05 10 Italy 18 04 -19 -03 Spain -01 07 -18 01 Japan 44 -07 20 17 United Kingdom 21 07 08 20 Canada 32 25 21 22 Other Advanced Economies 58 32 26 35 Newly Industrialized Asian Econo-mies

85 40 34 42

Emerging and Developing Econo-mies

75 62 57 60

Developing Asia 97 78 73 79 China 104 92 82 88 India 106 72 69 73 ASEAN-5 70 45 54 62

Tables by The Conference Board and IMF World Economic Outlook page 2

5

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

STRATEGY POINTSImproving world economic prospects face new threats Greece default sharp China slowdown and the 2013 US fiscal crunch

Like the IMF get ready for a painful costly and messy meltdown in Europe with contagion effects on Asian trade and finance

Governments and lenders must balance fiscal austerity for investor confidence and the peoplersquos need for growth and jobs

Facebookrsquos mammoth initial public offering of shares last Friday raised

$184 billion mdash Americarsquos second-largest IPO after Visarsquos $1965 billion in 2008 mdash and valued the social networking website at $104 billion 23rd in stock market capitalization The next day its 56 owner and founding CEO Mark Zuckerberg 28 married his girlfriend of nearly a decade 27-year-old medicine graduate Priscilla Chan at his Palo Alto home

Whatrsquos wrong with this picture For billions of people across the planet including many of some 850 million exchanging messages visages and images on Facebook their own economic prospects are anything but the bubbly expectations of those who bought the stock at 422 times its latest quarterly earnings per share

For the more than 230 million Facebookers in Europe things got decidedly tougher the past week with the feared exit by debt-strapped Greece from the euro currency Most of the 36 million Greeks on Facebook may interrupt their browsing to join the rest of the countryrsquos 107 million people in

emptying their bank accounts before their euros are converted to drachmas

The rest of Europe will sink deeper into recession as bank lending and private investment further contracts and the euro plummets in value hitting consumer buying power That would put the brakes on the rest of the world economy just when China is showing signs of a slowdown and the US while doing better than expected faces a sharp fiscal crunch with tax breaks ending and drastic spending cuts due in 2013

So is the Facebook IPO the last party before another global slump Letrsquos hear it from the world economyrsquos watchers at its main financial trouble-shooting shop the International Monetary Fund For its annual spring meetings with its sister institution the World Bank on April 21 in Washington the IMF published an update of its World Economic Outlook report

In its executive summary the WEO said ldquoweak recovery will likely resume in the major advanced economies and activity is expected to remain relatively solid in

6cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

most emerging and developing economies However the recent improvements are very fragilerdquo Translation Wersquore making progress but wersquore not out of the woods Or as investment bank Morgan Stanleyrsquos Global Economic Forum puts it the global expansion is ldquobumpy below-par and brittlerdquo

The Fund expects ldquothe reacceleration of activity during the course of 2012 to return global growth to about 4 in 2013rdquo That would be back to last yearrsquos pace after slowing to a projected 35 this year Advanced economies crawling at 15 in 2012 could speed up to 2 next year while emerging and developing nations see expansion dip from 625 in 2011 to 575 this year then climb to 6 next

Containing contagion But that was before Greece rekindled fears of financial contagion last week It set new elections on June 17 after this monthrsquos polls failed to produce a coalition government to implement tough austerity measures in exchange for bailout loans Without the credit the country would default on loans exacerbating Europersquos crisis and possibly triggering a new global contagion If that happens predicts the Fundrsquos WEO that could shave 2 off world economic output this year and next

The European Commissionrsquos European Economic Forecast for spring had a first chapter titled ldquoThe EU Economy From Recession to a Slow Recoveryrdquo expressing hopes of a turnaround mdash with a big if ldquoGoing forward based on the assumption that the euro area will successfully handle crisis-related challenges a return of confidence over the course of 2012 is expectedrdquo That now boils down to Greece staying in the zone and the European Union

ratifying and carrying out its March 2 fiscal commitment treaty

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde has had no illusions about the challenge of staving off recession and financial meltdown Last week she told The Telegraph newspaper of London referring to Greece exiting the euro zone ldquoIt would be extremely expensive and not just in Greece extremely expensive and hardrdquo She said the Fund is getting ready just in case ldquoWe at the IMF had to be technically prepared for anything because it is our jobrdquo she explained

No wonder the former French finance minister and head of international law firm Baker amp McKenzie had been pushing for increased rescue money for the Fund as a ldquoglobal firewallrdquo against future crises Ahead of the IMF-World Bank meetings Lagarde made a last-ditch call for $400 billion in additional resources for the Fund down from an initial target of $600 billion before the US refused to join the capital-raising exercise By meetingrsquos end the Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies agreed to more than double IMF resources by more than $430 billion

ldquoThe firewall is a recognition that you need a global safety net not just a

Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Thof IMF policy committee with IMF MGlobal consensus for medium-term

7

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

European regional safety netrdquo explained Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Thanam Shanmugaratnam chairman of the Fundrsquos policy-making International Monetary and Finance Committee (IMFC) on the sidelines of the meetings He also lauded a ldquoa joining of minds on the criticality of medium-term sustainability We have to think creatively about policies which can help to get growth going without compromising on market confidencerdquo That means he said ldquomoving away from short-term stimulus thinking to thinking how we can recreate the basis for growth a few years from nowrdquo

Bear in the China shop Besides new troubles in the euro zone another recent worry in business circles is Chinarsquos economic slowdown As

reported by Reuters last Friday Chinarsquos State Information Center a government think tank estimated that in the second quarter the economy had decelerated to 75 the slowest since the midst of the global recession in the first quarter of 2009

Attributed to ldquoproperty tightening measures and weakening global demandrdquo the slowdown was still in line with the official GDP growth target No matter analysts like DailyFinancecom were quick to blog

warnings like ldquoChinarsquos Economic Slowdown Foreshadows Trouble for the USrdquo Besides watchers of the American economy oil futures traders also saw reason for gloom in Greecersquos woe and China slow

Top global bond investment company PIMCO joined leading banks Citigroup JP Morgan Chase Bank of America Goldman Sachs and Switzerlandrsquos UBS in cutting China growth forecasts PIMCO adjusted its projection to 75 the lowest annual rate in 13 years and the lower end of banksrsquo revised forecasts A day after the China think tank estimate Bloomberg reported that Goldman Sachs also trimmed its 2012 forecast five percentage points less to 81

In a survey of 21 economists conducted by Bloomberg last week the median forecast for China growth was 82 the slowest since 76 in 1999 and a full percentage point down from last yearrsquos 92 clip Many see third-quarter growth picking up on the expectation that the government would further ease interest rates But pumping more renminbi into the economy may not help much if bad loans hold back lending and businesses donrsquot have profitable reasons to boost production and invest

Bank lending is stagnant says Xiang Songzuo chief economist for the giant China Agricultural Bank in the Christian Science Monitorrsquos ldquoWhy Chinarsquos economy may be heading for a hard landingrdquo The May 17 story notes that industrial production grew 93 last month the slowest since the global slump Speaking to Bloomberg former IMF expert Xiang Zhiwei now Hong Kong-based chief economist of Nomura Holdings cited ldquobad trade production and [foreign direct investment] datardquo with FDI falling for six months in a row

harman Shanmugaratnam chairman Managing Director Christine Lagardeaction and global firewall IMF video

New risks for a fragile world recovery

8cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Meanwhile Bloomberg reported elsewhere exports and imports grew 49 and 03 sharply down from consensus projections of 85 and 105 respectively ldquoA very weak economy at this pointrdquo Zhang concludes adding that reducing bank reserve requirement ratios isnrsquot enough ldquoas it helps loan supply rather than demandrdquo His prescription more infrastructure spending and interest-rate cuts

America picks up pace If Europe and China are worrisome the United States is showing signs of slightly better-than-expected progress Take this May 9 presentation by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Compared with past recoveries from deep recessions the current US rebound is ldquomutedrdquo reports Chicago Fed senior economist William Strauss with just 21 growth in the past year The economy is forecast to grow ldquobelow trend this year and slightly above trend in 2013rdquo

Even with that slower-than-usual recovery 18 million jobs were added in the past 12 months and unemployment has dropped by 19 percentage points since the 2009 peak And more jobs are expected with solid manufacturing growth Indeed factory output has risen strongly in the past 33 months recovering nearly three-quarters of the production decline during the recession

Inflation is up a sign of economic and spending pickup However inflation-adjusted oil prices are lower than their 1980 high while gas prices are sharply down and energy expenditures are below the historical average Thus the Federal Reserve can hold interest rates down without spiking inflation

Argentinarsquos BBVA shares the upbeat outlook of many other international banks watching the American economy While it sees ldquomixed signals on the strength and sustainability of

Nomura Hong Kong economist Zhang Zhiwei cites dropping China trade production and investment and urges stronger monetary and fiscal measures to boost growth Bloomberg

9

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

the recoveryrdquo first-quarter data support its expectation of more robust growth through the year BBVA reports that the 29 surge in consumer spending in the first quarter mdash the fastest since late 2006 mdash offset weakness elsewhere in the economy

Notably BBVA differed a bit from the Chicago Fed in noting a manufacturing slowdown in the first quarter But the prognosis for the year remains decent with 23 growth projected Contributing to GDP growth for the first time since the 2008-09 recession is the residential investment with several housing-related industries also showing slightly positive movements Among them fabric and textile mills household and institutional furniture and paint One more plus sector growth in services is helping offset some job losses in industry especially with cutbacks in mining and energy

The coming US fiscal cliff So wherersquos the brittle side in the American economic picture Like Europe the crack in the glass is a fiscal one the market-imposed imperative to reduce public deficits and debt At the stroke of midnight on December 31 the current regime of Bush-era middle-class tax breaks the 2011-12 payroll tax cut and growth-spurring budgetary spending turns into a pumpkin so to speak Add to the expiring state largesse the expected decline in defense outlays as waves of US troops come home from Afghanistan

How big is this removal of tax cuts and forced budget reductions Most economists estimate their combined value at 35 of GDP including $12 trillion in legislated spending cuts under the Democratic-Republican deal to raise the federal debt ceiling last August But Morgan Stanleyrsquos April 13 report ldquoHow Big Is the Fiscal

WHATrsquoS AHEAD FOR AMERICAThe Conference Board Forecasts 2011 Actual and 2012-13 Projections

2012 2013 2011 2012 2013

I Q II Q III Q IV Q I Q II Q ANNUAL ANNUAL ANNUAL

Real GDP 22 17 23 24 26 25 17 22 24Real Consumer Spending 29 24 25 27 26 23 22 23 24Housing Starts Mil Units 069 072 074 077 077 081 061 073 082Real Capital Spending -21 59 65 68 67 78 88 52 67Net Exports Bil lsquo00$ -4101 -4043 -3980 -3865 -3751 -3608 -4136 -3997 -3505

actual value

Table by The Conference Board

New risks for a fragile world recovery

10cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Cliff in 2013rdquo puts it at 5 Either way for an economy growing at less than 3 a reduction of 35-5 in state-funded demand would tip America into recession

Most forecasters believe that the US Congress will pass legislation to spread the fiscal pain over a longer period than all together on New Yearrsquos Day But that is not a sure thing especially in the fractious aftermath of national elections in November Even if another bipartisan deal is struck a substantial portion of the tax and spending squeeze will still be felt in 2013 making Morgan Stanley analysts wonder why many economists expect next yearrsquos growth to be faster than this year

Moreover they may be forgetting why those tax cuts and federal spending have to go in the first place market pressure to right Washingtonrsquos fiscal ship whose shakiness already led Standard amp Poorrsquos to downgrade US sovereign credit to below triple-A over a year ago If Congress puts off the January fiscal Armageddon without putting a credible deficit-and-debt reduction program

in its place the dollar and the governmentrsquos credit rating and costs will pay the price with negative impact on the economy

Hence Morgan Stanley expects some ldquomeaningfulrdquo budgetary and tax tightening next year ldquoan expiration of the payroll tax cut some rejigged spending cuts and other miscellaneous measures to lead to about a 15 of GDP fiscal tightening in 2013rdquo That forecast would pare one percentage point off next yearrsquos baseline expansion But even this mild scenario demands a big if that Democrats and Republicans after being hopelessly occupied before elections would find the time and inclination to enact the needed legislation between mid-November and the Christmas break as they did in 2010

Austerity and bailout fatigue But more than partisan politics the bigger difficulty in balancing fiscal reform and growth is the citizenryrsquos general unwillingness to sacrifice for balanced budgets whether they are cash-strapped Greeks or debt-ridden Americans ldquoPeople are saying lsquoAusterity austerity mdash

Former investment banker Michael Milken interviewing economist Nouriel Roubini People say lsquoAusterity austerity mdash wherersquos the growthlsquo Milken InstituteYouTube

11

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

WHERE ASIA SELLS

IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 pages 6 and 41

Correlation of Exports to China with Chinarsquos Exports to Asian Selected Economies

05

04

03

02

01

00

-01

2006-112000-05

New

Zea

land

Hon

g Ko

ng S

AR

Philip

pine

s

Aust

ralia

Thai

land

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Indo

nesi

a

Sing

apor

e

Kore

a

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Share of Exports Linked to Demand from Europe

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

Sing

apor

e

Thai

land

Kore

a

Chi

na

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Indo

nesi

a

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Philip

pine

s

In percent of exports linked to demand outside Asia In percent of GDP

12cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

New risks for a fragile world recovery

where is growthrsquordquo says economist Nouriel Roubini in his May 3 Milken Institute interview The New York University professor who famously predicted the 2008 US financial crisis thinks that due to this austerity fatigue ldquoeither this year or next Greece is highly likely to default on its debt and exit the eurozonerdquo (On the other hand he also mentions bailout fatigue in countries like Germany tired of paying billions for financial rescues)

In his Project Syndicate article ldquoGreece Must Exitrdquo Roubini spells out what he believes is the only way forward for Athens ldquoGreece is stuck in a vicious cycle of insolvency lost competitiveness external deficits and ever-deepening depression The only way to stop it is to begin an orderly default and exit coordinated and financed by the European Central Bank the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (the lsquoTroikarsquo) that minimizes collateral damage to Greece and the rest of the eurozonerdquo He sets out an ugly but in his view unavoidable scenario of managing Greek default And if that horror story whets onersquos appetite for more try ldquoGet Ready for the Spanish Bailoutrdquo

What about America Will it bite the bullet Or will it too become a ldquotrain wreckrdquo as Roubini says of Europersquos fiscal landscape in his talk with former investment banker Michael Milken If so will the American economy tank not to mention the worldrsquos And what is Asia to do in the continuing economic malaise in big markets

That is the subject of the IMFrsquos Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 subtitled ldquoManaging Spillovers and Advancing Economic Rebalancing The report assesses the likely impact on Asia of the Westrsquos economic and financial troubles and recommends measures to address it The Fund also urges measures to rebalance the regionrsquos economies away from export dependence and toward greater reliance on domestic consumption and investment spending for economic growth

In a world of turmoil that is exactly the formula to keep Asia growing

GROWING ASIA

Real GDP Change in 2011 and 2012-13 Forecast 2011 2012 2013

Industrial Asia -02 22 20 Australia 20 30 35 Japan -07 20 17 New Zealand 14 23 32East Asia 82 73 80 China 92 82 88 Hong Kong SAR 50 26 42 Korea 36 35 40 Taiwan Province of China 40 36 47South Asia 71 68 72 Bangladesh 61 59 64 India 71 69 73 Sri Lanka 82 75 70ASEAN 46 52 60 Brunei Darussalam 19 32 16 Cambodia 61 62 64 Indonesia 65 61 66 Lao PDR 83 84 71 Malaysia 51 44 47 Myanmar 55 60 59 Philippines 37 42 47 Singapore 49 27 39 Thailand 01 55 75 Vietnam 59 56 63Emerging Asia 74 69 75

source IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 page 5

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        1. Page 3 Off
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 2: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

We Apologize For Our TardinessFor the past three weeks The CenSEI Report has been delayed by a day in transmission We apologize for this failing for which we offer no excuses just mea culpas The Center for Strategy Enterprise amp Intelligence and our corps of writers and editors are having the inevitable teething problems of any new enterprise But while our timing leaves much to be desired wersquod like to think that any extra hours spent working on The CenSEI Report is time well spent in making every article paragraph sentence link and image greatly informative insightful and even imperative for you our readers

Still we are a weekly publication and there is no better time to be read than early on Monday to get a fresh perspective on the weekrsquos major developments and concerns For the current Report we range across some weighty national and international issues from the global economy shaken by fears of euro meltdown and China slowdown to the death of workers including more than a million Asians every year Clearly urgent action especially from government and business leaders is needed on both fronts to save lives and livelihoods

Here at home we follow up our story last week on rising hunger with another Nation assessment of the rice self-sufficiency program begun in 2008 as the FIELDS initiative for the Philippines to produce all the staple we consume by 2013 Also a life-and-death concern the Nation section casts a legal eye on the proposed Bangsamoro substate being negotiated with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front with greater autonomy than the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) agreed with the Moro National Liberation Front in 1996 Letrsquos hope both rice and peace initiatives bear positive and lasting fruit in the months ahead

While the developments covered in every issue of The CenSEI Report have made news in the weeks before we wrote about them in fact the rationale for tackling these concerns are not the headlines they generated but the humans they affect This week they include the billions of job-holding or -seeking people across the planet the 95 million Filipinos each polishing off 308 grams of rice daily on average and the tens of thousands of government soldiers and separatist rebels in deadly face-off plus the hundreds of innocents caught in their crossfire in the cities and fields of Mindanao

With such import in every article our editors and writers do not hesitate to heavily revise drafts to sharpen strategic focus and argument insert more information-rich links and offer useful action recommendations All within our tight deadlines of course as best we can

4cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

New Dangers Emerge forthe Fragile World RecoveryWatch out for loan default in Greece fiscal crunchin America and sharp slowdown in ChinaBy Ricardo Saludo

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index

REPORT CARD

Australia 00China 08Euro Area 03France 06Germany 04Japan 09Korea 15Mexico 10Spain 09UK 10US 01

Real GDP increase 2011-11 actual and 2012-13 forecastIMF WORLD ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

Projections2010 2011 2012 2013

World Output 53 39 35 41 Advanced Economies 32 16 14 20 United States 30 17 21 24 Euro Area 19 14 -03 09 Germany 36 31 06 15 France 14 17 05 10 Italy 18 04 -19 -03 Spain -01 07 -18 01 Japan 44 -07 20 17 United Kingdom 21 07 08 20 Canada 32 25 21 22 Other Advanced Economies 58 32 26 35 Newly Industrialized Asian Econo-mies

85 40 34 42

Emerging and Developing Econo-mies

75 62 57 60

Developing Asia 97 78 73 79 China 104 92 82 88 India 106 72 69 73 ASEAN-5 70 45 54 62

Tables by The Conference Board and IMF World Economic Outlook page 2

5

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

STRATEGY POINTSImproving world economic prospects face new threats Greece default sharp China slowdown and the 2013 US fiscal crunch

Like the IMF get ready for a painful costly and messy meltdown in Europe with contagion effects on Asian trade and finance

Governments and lenders must balance fiscal austerity for investor confidence and the peoplersquos need for growth and jobs

Facebookrsquos mammoth initial public offering of shares last Friday raised

$184 billion mdash Americarsquos second-largest IPO after Visarsquos $1965 billion in 2008 mdash and valued the social networking website at $104 billion 23rd in stock market capitalization The next day its 56 owner and founding CEO Mark Zuckerberg 28 married his girlfriend of nearly a decade 27-year-old medicine graduate Priscilla Chan at his Palo Alto home

Whatrsquos wrong with this picture For billions of people across the planet including many of some 850 million exchanging messages visages and images on Facebook their own economic prospects are anything but the bubbly expectations of those who bought the stock at 422 times its latest quarterly earnings per share

For the more than 230 million Facebookers in Europe things got decidedly tougher the past week with the feared exit by debt-strapped Greece from the euro currency Most of the 36 million Greeks on Facebook may interrupt their browsing to join the rest of the countryrsquos 107 million people in

emptying their bank accounts before their euros are converted to drachmas

The rest of Europe will sink deeper into recession as bank lending and private investment further contracts and the euro plummets in value hitting consumer buying power That would put the brakes on the rest of the world economy just when China is showing signs of a slowdown and the US while doing better than expected faces a sharp fiscal crunch with tax breaks ending and drastic spending cuts due in 2013

So is the Facebook IPO the last party before another global slump Letrsquos hear it from the world economyrsquos watchers at its main financial trouble-shooting shop the International Monetary Fund For its annual spring meetings with its sister institution the World Bank on April 21 in Washington the IMF published an update of its World Economic Outlook report

In its executive summary the WEO said ldquoweak recovery will likely resume in the major advanced economies and activity is expected to remain relatively solid in

6cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

most emerging and developing economies However the recent improvements are very fragilerdquo Translation Wersquore making progress but wersquore not out of the woods Or as investment bank Morgan Stanleyrsquos Global Economic Forum puts it the global expansion is ldquobumpy below-par and brittlerdquo

The Fund expects ldquothe reacceleration of activity during the course of 2012 to return global growth to about 4 in 2013rdquo That would be back to last yearrsquos pace after slowing to a projected 35 this year Advanced economies crawling at 15 in 2012 could speed up to 2 next year while emerging and developing nations see expansion dip from 625 in 2011 to 575 this year then climb to 6 next

Containing contagion But that was before Greece rekindled fears of financial contagion last week It set new elections on June 17 after this monthrsquos polls failed to produce a coalition government to implement tough austerity measures in exchange for bailout loans Without the credit the country would default on loans exacerbating Europersquos crisis and possibly triggering a new global contagion If that happens predicts the Fundrsquos WEO that could shave 2 off world economic output this year and next

The European Commissionrsquos European Economic Forecast for spring had a first chapter titled ldquoThe EU Economy From Recession to a Slow Recoveryrdquo expressing hopes of a turnaround mdash with a big if ldquoGoing forward based on the assumption that the euro area will successfully handle crisis-related challenges a return of confidence over the course of 2012 is expectedrdquo That now boils down to Greece staying in the zone and the European Union

ratifying and carrying out its March 2 fiscal commitment treaty

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde has had no illusions about the challenge of staving off recession and financial meltdown Last week she told The Telegraph newspaper of London referring to Greece exiting the euro zone ldquoIt would be extremely expensive and not just in Greece extremely expensive and hardrdquo She said the Fund is getting ready just in case ldquoWe at the IMF had to be technically prepared for anything because it is our jobrdquo she explained

No wonder the former French finance minister and head of international law firm Baker amp McKenzie had been pushing for increased rescue money for the Fund as a ldquoglobal firewallrdquo against future crises Ahead of the IMF-World Bank meetings Lagarde made a last-ditch call for $400 billion in additional resources for the Fund down from an initial target of $600 billion before the US refused to join the capital-raising exercise By meetingrsquos end the Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies agreed to more than double IMF resources by more than $430 billion

ldquoThe firewall is a recognition that you need a global safety net not just a

Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Thof IMF policy committee with IMF MGlobal consensus for medium-term

7

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

European regional safety netrdquo explained Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Thanam Shanmugaratnam chairman of the Fundrsquos policy-making International Monetary and Finance Committee (IMFC) on the sidelines of the meetings He also lauded a ldquoa joining of minds on the criticality of medium-term sustainability We have to think creatively about policies which can help to get growth going without compromising on market confidencerdquo That means he said ldquomoving away from short-term stimulus thinking to thinking how we can recreate the basis for growth a few years from nowrdquo

Bear in the China shop Besides new troubles in the euro zone another recent worry in business circles is Chinarsquos economic slowdown As

reported by Reuters last Friday Chinarsquos State Information Center a government think tank estimated that in the second quarter the economy had decelerated to 75 the slowest since the midst of the global recession in the first quarter of 2009

Attributed to ldquoproperty tightening measures and weakening global demandrdquo the slowdown was still in line with the official GDP growth target No matter analysts like DailyFinancecom were quick to blog

warnings like ldquoChinarsquos Economic Slowdown Foreshadows Trouble for the USrdquo Besides watchers of the American economy oil futures traders also saw reason for gloom in Greecersquos woe and China slow

Top global bond investment company PIMCO joined leading banks Citigroup JP Morgan Chase Bank of America Goldman Sachs and Switzerlandrsquos UBS in cutting China growth forecasts PIMCO adjusted its projection to 75 the lowest annual rate in 13 years and the lower end of banksrsquo revised forecasts A day after the China think tank estimate Bloomberg reported that Goldman Sachs also trimmed its 2012 forecast five percentage points less to 81

In a survey of 21 economists conducted by Bloomberg last week the median forecast for China growth was 82 the slowest since 76 in 1999 and a full percentage point down from last yearrsquos 92 clip Many see third-quarter growth picking up on the expectation that the government would further ease interest rates But pumping more renminbi into the economy may not help much if bad loans hold back lending and businesses donrsquot have profitable reasons to boost production and invest

Bank lending is stagnant says Xiang Songzuo chief economist for the giant China Agricultural Bank in the Christian Science Monitorrsquos ldquoWhy Chinarsquos economy may be heading for a hard landingrdquo The May 17 story notes that industrial production grew 93 last month the slowest since the global slump Speaking to Bloomberg former IMF expert Xiang Zhiwei now Hong Kong-based chief economist of Nomura Holdings cited ldquobad trade production and [foreign direct investment] datardquo with FDI falling for six months in a row

harman Shanmugaratnam chairman Managing Director Christine Lagardeaction and global firewall IMF video

New risks for a fragile world recovery

8cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Meanwhile Bloomberg reported elsewhere exports and imports grew 49 and 03 sharply down from consensus projections of 85 and 105 respectively ldquoA very weak economy at this pointrdquo Zhang concludes adding that reducing bank reserve requirement ratios isnrsquot enough ldquoas it helps loan supply rather than demandrdquo His prescription more infrastructure spending and interest-rate cuts

America picks up pace If Europe and China are worrisome the United States is showing signs of slightly better-than-expected progress Take this May 9 presentation by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Compared with past recoveries from deep recessions the current US rebound is ldquomutedrdquo reports Chicago Fed senior economist William Strauss with just 21 growth in the past year The economy is forecast to grow ldquobelow trend this year and slightly above trend in 2013rdquo

Even with that slower-than-usual recovery 18 million jobs were added in the past 12 months and unemployment has dropped by 19 percentage points since the 2009 peak And more jobs are expected with solid manufacturing growth Indeed factory output has risen strongly in the past 33 months recovering nearly three-quarters of the production decline during the recession

Inflation is up a sign of economic and spending pickup However inflation-adjusted oil prices are lower than their 1980 high while gas prices are sharply down and energy expenditures are below the historical average Thus the Federal Reserve can hold interest rates down without spiking inflation

Argentinarsquos BBVA shares the upbeat outlook of many other international banks watching the American economy While it sees ldquomixed signals on the strength and sustainability of

Nomura Hong Kong economist Zhang Zhiwei cites dropping China trade production and investment and urges stronger monetary and fiscal measures to boost growth Bloomberg

9

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

the recoveryrdquo first-quarter data support its expectation of more robust growth through the year BBVA reports that the 29 surge in consumer spending in the first quarter mdash the fastest since late 2006 mdash offset weakness elsewhere in the economy

Notably BBVA differed a bit from the Chicago Fed in noting a manufacturing slowdown in the first quarter But the prognosis for the year remains decent with 23 growth projected Contributing to GDP growth for the first time since the 2008-09 recession is the residential investment with several housing-related industries also showing slightly positive movements Among them fabric and textile mills household and institutional furniture and paint One more plus sector growth in services is helping offset some job losses in industry especially with cutbacks in mining and energy

The coming US fiscal cliff So wherersquos the brittle side in the American economic picture Like Europe the crack in the glass is a fiscal one the market-imposed imperative to reduce public deficits and debt At the stroke of midnight on December 31 the current regime of Bush-era middle-class tax breaks the 2011-12 payroll tax cut and growth-spurring budgetary spending turns into a pumpkin so to speak Add to the expiring state largesse the expected decline in defense outlays as waves of US troops come home from Afghanistan

How big is this removal of tax cuts and forced budget reductions Most economists estimate their combined value at 35 of GDP including $12 trillion in legislated spending cuts under the Democratic-Republican deal to raise the federal debt ceiling last August But Morgan Stanleyrsquos April 13 report ldquoHow Big Is the Fiscal

WHATrsquoS AHEAD FOR AMERICAThe Conference Board Forecasts 2011 Actual and 2012-13 Projections

2012 2013 2011 2012 2013

I Q II Q III Q IV Q I Q II Q ANNUAL ANNUAL ANNUAL

Real GDP 22 17 23 24 26 25 17 22 24Real Consumer Spending 29 24 25 27 26 23 22 23 24Housing Starts Mil Units 069 072 074 077 077 081 061 073 082Real Capital Spending -21 59 65 68 67 78 88 52 67Net Exports Bil lsquo00$ -4101 -4043 -3980 -3865 -3751 -3608 -4136 -3997 -3505

actual value

Table by The Conference Board

New risks for a fragile world recovery

10cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Cliff in 2013rdquo puts it at 5 Either way for an economy growing at less than 3 a reduction of 35-5 in state-funded demand would tip America into recession

Most forecasters believe that the US Congress will pass legislation to spread the fiscal pain over a longer period than all together on New Yearrsquos Day But that is not a sure thing especially in the fractious aftermath of national elections in November Even if another bipartisan deal is struck a substantial portion of the tax and spending squeeze will still be felt in 2013 making Morgan Stanley analysts wonder why many economists expect next yearrsquos growth to be faster than this year

Moreover they may be forgetting why those tax cuts and federal spending have to go in the first place market pressure to right Washingtonrsquos fiscal ship whose shakiness already led Standard amp Poorrsquos to downgrade US sovereign credit to below triple-A over a year ago If Congress puts off the January fiscal Armageddon without putting a credible deficit-and-debt reduction program

in its place the dollar and the governmentrsquos credit rating and costs will pay the price with negative impact on the economy

Hence Morgan Stanley expects some ldquomeaningfulrdquo budgetary and tax tightening next year ldquoan expiration of the payroll tax cut some rejigged spending cuts and other miscellaneous measures to lead to about a 15 of GDP fiscal tightening in 2013rdquo That forecast would pare one percentage point off next yearrsquos baseline expansion But even this mild scenario demands a big if that Democrats and Republicans after being hopelessly occupied before elections would find the time and inclination to enact the needed legislation between mid-November and the Christmas break as they did in 2010

Austerity and bailout fatigue But more than partisan politics the bigger difficulty in balancing fiscal reform and growth is the citizenryrsquos general unwillingness to sacrifice for balanced budgets whether they are cash-strapped Greeks or debt-ridden Americans ldquoPeople are saying lsquoAusterity austerity mdash

Former investment banker Michael Milken interviewing economist Nouriel Roubini People say lsquoAusterity austerity mdash wherersquos the growthlsquo Milken InstituteYouTube

11

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

WHERE ASIA SELLS

IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 pages 6 and 41

Correlation of Exports to China with Chinarsquos Exports to Asian Selected Economies

05

04

03

02

01

00

-01

2006-112000-05

New

Zea

land

Hon

g Ko

ng S

AR

Philip

pine

s

Aust

ralia

Thai

land

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Indo

nesi

a

Sing

apor

e

Kore

a

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Share of Exports Linked to Demand from Europe

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

Sing

apor

e

Thai

land

Kore

a

Chi

na

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Indo

nesi

a

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Philip

pine

s

In percent of exports linked to demand outside Asia In percent of GDP

12cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

New risks for a fragile world recovery

where is growthrsquordquo says economist Nouriel Roubini in his May 3 Milken Institute interview The New York University professor who famously predicted the 2008 US financial crisis thinks that due to this austerity fatigue ldquoeither this year or next Greece is highly likely to default on its debt and exit the eurozonerdquo (On the other hand he also mentions bailout fatigue in countries like Germany tired of paying billions for financial rescues)

In his Project Syndicate article ldquoGreece Must Exitrdquo Roubini spells out what he believes is the only way forward for Athens ldquoGreece is stuck in a vicious cycle of insolvency lost competitiveness external deficits and ever-deepening depression The only way to stop it is to begin an orderly default and exit coordinated and financed by the European Central Bank the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (the lsquoTroikarsquo) that minimizes collateral damage to Greece and the rest of the eurozonerdquo He sets out an ugly but in his view unavoidable scenario of managing Greek default And if that horror story whets onersquos appetite for more try ldquoGet Ready for the Spanish Bailoutrdquo

What about America Will it bite the bullet Or will it too become a ldquotrain wreckrdquo as Roubini says of Europersquos fiscal landscape in his talk with former investment banker Michael Milken If so will the American economy tank not to mention the worldrsquos And what is Asia to do in the continuing economic malaise in big markets

That is the subject of the IMFrsquos Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 subtitled ldquoManaging Spillovers and Advancing Economic Rebalancing The report assesses the likely impact on Asia of the Westrsquos economic and financial troubles and recommends measures to address it The Fund also urges measures to rebalance the regionrsquos economies away from export dependence and toward greater reliance on domestic consumption and investment spending for economic growth

In a world of turmoil that is exactly the formula to keep Asia growing

GROWING ASIA

Real GDP Change in 2011 and 2012-13 Forecast 2011 2012 2013

Industrial Asia -02 22 20 Australia 20 30 35 Japan -07 20 17 New Zealand 14 23 32East Asia 82 73 80 China 92 82 88 Hong Kong SAR 50 26 42 Korea 36 35 40 Taiwan Province of China 40 36 47South Asia 71 68 72 Bangladesh 61 59 64 India 71 69 73 Sri Lanka 82 75 70ASEAN 46 52 60 Brunei Darussalam 19 32 16 Cambodia 61 62 64 Indonesia 65 61 66 Lao PDR 83 84 71 Malaysia 51 44 47 Myanmar 55 60 59 Philippines 37 42 47 Singapore 49 27 39 Thailand 01 55 75 Vietnam 59 56 63Emerging Asia 74 69 75

source IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 page 5

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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Page 3: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

4cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

New Dangers Emerge forthe Fragile World RecoveryWatch out for loan default in Greece fiscal crunchin America and sharp slowdown in ChinaBy Ricardo Saludo

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index

REPORT CARD

Australia 00China 08Euro Area 03France 06Germany 04Japan 09Korea 15Mexico 10Spain 09UK 10US 01

Real GDP increase 2011-11 actual and 2012-13 forecastIMF WORLD ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

Projections2010 2011 2012 2013

World Output 53 39 35 41 Advanced Economies 32 16 14 20 United States 30 17 21 24 Euro Area 19 14 -03 09 Germany 36 31 06 15 France 14 17 05 10 Italy 18 04 -19 -03 Spain -01 07 -18 01 Japan 44 -07 20 17 United Kingdom 21 07 08 20 Canada 32 25 21 22 Other Advanced Economies 58 32 26 35 Newly Industrialized Asian Econo-mies

85 40 34 42

Emerging and Developing Econo-mies

75 62 57 60

Developing Asia 97 78 73 79 China 104 92 82 88 India 106 72 69 73 ASEAN-5 70 45 54 62

Tables by The Conference Board and IMF World Economic Outlook page 2

5

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

STRATEGY POINTSImproving world economic prospects face new threats Greece default sharp China slowdown and the 2013 US fiscal crunch

Like the IMF get ready for a painful costly and messy meltdown in Europe with contagion effects on Asian trade and finance

Governments and lenders must balance fiscal austerity for investor confidence and the peoplersquos need for growth and jobs

Facebookrsquos mammoth initial public offering of shares last Friday raised

$184 billion mdash Americarsquos second-largest IPO after Visarsquos $1965 billion in 2008 mdash and valued the social networking website at $104 billion 23rd in stock market capitalization The next day its 56 owner and founding CEO Mark Zuckerberg 28 married his girlfriend of nearly a decade 27-year-old medicine graduate Priscilla Chan at his Palo Alto home

Whatrsquos wrong with this picture For billions of people across the planet including many of some 850 million exchanging messages visages and images on Facebook their own economic prospects are anything but the bubbly expectations of those who bought the stock at 422 times its latest quarterly earnings per share

For the more than 230 million Facebookers in Europe things got decidedly tougher the past week with the feared exit by debt-strapped Greece from the euro currency Most of the 36 million Greeks on Facebook may interrupt their browsing to join the rest of the countryrsquos 107 million people in

emptying their bank accounts before their euros are converted to drachmas

The rest of Europe will sink deeper into recession as bank lending and private investment further contracts and the euro plummets in value hitting consumer buying power That would put the brakes on the rest of the world economy just when China is showing signs of a slowdown and the US while doing better than expected faces a sharp fiscal crunch with tax breaks ending and drastic spending cuts due in 2013

So is the Facebook IPO the last party before another global slump Letrsquos hear it from the world economyrsquos watchers at its main financial trouble-shooting shop the International Monetary Fund For its annual spring meetings with its sister institution the World Bank on April 21 in Washington the IMF published an update of its World Economic Outlook report

In its executive summary the WEO said ldquoweak recovery will likely resume in the major advanced economies and activity is expected to remain relatively solid in

6cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

most emerging and developing economies However the recent improvements are very fragilerdquo Translation Wersquore making progress but wersquore not out of the woods Or as investment bank Morgan Stanleyrsquos Global Economic Forum puts it the global expansion is ldquobumpy below-par and brittlerdquo

The Fund expects ldquothe reacceleration of activity during the course of 2012 to return global growth to about 4 in 2013rdquo That would be back to last yearrsquos pace after slowing to a projected 35 this year Advanced economies crawling at 15 in 2012 could speed up to 2 next year while emerging and developing nations see expansion dip from 625 in 2011 to 575 this year then climb to 6 next

Containing contagion But that was before Greece rekindled fears of financial contagion last week It set new elections on June 17 after this monthrsquos polls failed to produce a coalition government to implement tough austerity measures in exchange for bailout loans Without the credit the country would default on loans exacerbating Europersquos crisis and possibly triggering a new global contagion If that happens predicts the Fundrsquos WEO that could shave 2 off world economic output this year and next

The European Commissionrsquos European Economic Forecast for spring had a first chapter titled ldquoThe EU Economy From Recession to a Slow Recoveryrdquo expressing hopes of a turnaround mdash with a big if ldquoGoing forward based on the assumption that the euro area will successfully handle crisis-related challenges a return of confidence over the course of 2012 is expectedrdquo That now boils down to Greece staying in the zone and the European Union

ratifying and carrying out its March 2 fiscal commitment treaty

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde has had no illusions about the challenge of staving off recession and financial meltdown Last week she told The Telegraph newspaper of London referring to Greece exiting the euro zone ldquoIt would be extremely expensive and not just in Greece extremely expensive and hardrdquo She said the Fund is getting ready just in case ldquoWe at the IMF had to be technically prepared for anything because it is our jobrdquo she explained

No wonder the former French finance minister and head of international law firm Baker amp McKenzie had been pushing for increased rescue money for the Fund as a ldquoglobal firewallrdquo against future crises Ahead of the IMF-World Bank meetings Lagarde made a last-ditch call for $400 billion in additional resources for the Fund down from an initial target of $600 billion before the US refused to join the capital-raising exercise By meetingrsquos end the Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies agreed to more than double IMF resources by more than $430 billion

ldquoThe firewall is a recognition that you need a global safety net not just a

Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Thof IMF policy committee with IMF MGlobal consensus for medium-term

7

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

European regional safety netrdquo explained Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Thanam Shanmugaratnam chairman of the Fundrsquos policy-making International Monetary and Finance Committee (IMFC) on the sidelines of the meetings He also lauded a ldquoa joining of minds on the criticality of medium-term sustainability We have to think creatively about policies which can help to get growth going without compromising on market confidencerdquo That means he said ldquomoving away from short-term stimulus thinking to thinking how we can recreate the basis for growth a few years from nowrdquo

Bear in the China shop Besides new troubles in the euro zone another recent worry in business circles is Chinarsquos economic slowdown As

reported by Reuters last Friday Chinarsquos State Information Center a government think tank estimated that in the second quarter the economy had decelerated to 75 the slowest since the midst of the global recession in the first quarter of 2009

Attributed to ldquoproperty tightening measures and weakening global demandrdquo the slowdown was still in line with the official GDP growth target No matter analysts like DailyFinancecom were quick to blog

warnings like ldquoChinarsquos Economic Slowdown Foreshadows Trouble for the USrdquo Besides watchers of the American economy oil futures traders also saw reason for gloom in Greecersquos woe and China slow

Top global bond investment company PIMCO joined leading banks Citigroup JP Morgan Chase Bank of America Goldman Sachs and Switzerlandrsquos UBS in cutting China growth forecasts PIMCO adjusted its projection to 75 the lowest annual rate in 13 years and the lower end of banksrsquo revised forecasts A day after the China think tank estimate Bloomberg reported that Goldman Sachs also trimmed its 2012 forecast five percentage points less to 81

In a survey of 21 economists conducted by Bloomberg last week the median forecast for China growth was 82 the slowest since 76 in 1999 and a full percentage point down from last yearrsquos 92 clip Many see third-quarter growth picking up on the expectation that the government would further ease interest rates But pumping more renminbi into the economy may not help much if bad loans hold back lending and businesses donrsquot have profitable reasons to boost production and invest

Bank lending is stagnant says Xiang Songzuo chief economist for the giant China Agricultural Bank in the Christian Science Monitorrsquos ldquoWhy Chinarsquos economy may be heading for a hard landingrdquo The May 17 story notes that industrial production grew 93 last month the slowest since the global slump Speaking to Bloomberg former IMF expert Xiang Zhiwei now Hong Kong-based chief economist of Nomura Holdings cited ldquobad trade production and [foreign direct investment] datardquo with FDI falling for six months in a row

harman Shanmugaratnam chairman Managing Director Christine Lagardeaction and global firewall IMF video

New risks for a fragile world recovery

8cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Meanwhile Bloomberg reported elsewhere exports and imports grew 49 and 03 sharply down from consensus projections of 85 and 105 respectively ldquoA very weak economy at this pointrdquo Zhang concludes adding that reducing bank reserve requirement ratios isnrsquot enough ldquoas it helps loan supply rather than demandrdquo His prescription more infrastructure spending and interest-rate cuts

America picks up pace If Europe and China are worrisome the United States is showing signs of slightly better-than-expected progress Take this May 9 presentation by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Compared with past recoveries from deep recessions the current US rebound is ldquomutedrdquo reports Chicago Fed senior economist William Strauss with just 21 growth in the past year The economy is forecast to grow ldquobelow trend this year and slightly above trend in 2013rdquo

Even with that slower-than-usual recovery 18 million jobs were added in the past 12 months and unemployment has dropped by 19 percentage points since the 2009 peak And more jobs are expected with solid manufacturing growth Indeed factory output has risen strongly in the past 33 months recovering nearly three-quarters of the production decline during the recession

Inflation is up a sign of economic and spending pickup However inflation-adjusted oil prices are lower than their 1980 high while gas prices are sharply down and energy expenditures are below the historical average Thus the Federal Reserve can hold interest rates down without spiking inflation

Argentinarsquos BBVA shares the upbeat outlook of many other international banks watching the American economy While it sees ldquomixed signals on the strength and sustainability of

Nomura Hong Kong economist Zhang Zhiwei cites dropping China trade production and investment and urges stronger monetary and fiscal measures to boost growth Bloomberg

9

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

the recoveryrdquo first-quarter data support its expectation of more robust growth through the year BBVA reports that the 29 surge in consumer spending in the first quarter mdash the fastest since late 2006 mdash offset weakness elsewhere in the economy

Notably BBVA differed a bit from the Chicago Fed in noting a manufacturing slowdown in the first quarter But the prognosis for the year remains decent with 23 growth projected Contributing to GDP growth for the first time since the 2008-09 recession is the residential investment with several housing-related industries also showing slightly positive movements Among them fabric and textile mills household and institutional furniture and paint One more plus sector growth in services is helping offset some job losses in industry especially with cutbacks in mining and energy

The coming US fiscal cliff So wherersquos the brittle side in the American economic picture Like Europe the crack in the glass is a fiscal one the market-imposed imperative to reduce public deficits and debt At the stroke of midnight on December 31 the current regime of Bush-era middle-class tax breaks the 2011-12 payroll tax cut and growth-spurring budgetary spending turns into a pumpkin so to speak Add to the expiring state largesse the expected decline in defense outlays as waves of US troops come home from Afghanistan

How big is this removal of tax cuts and forced budget reductions Most economists estimate their combined value at 35 of GDP including $12 trillion in legislated spending cuts under the Democratic-Republican deal to raise the federal debt ceiling last August But Morgan Stanleyrsquos April 13 report ldquoHow Big Is the Fiscal

WHATrsquoS AHEAD FOR AMERICAThe Conference Board Forecasts 2011 Actual and 2012-13 Projections

2012 2013 2011 2012 2013

I Q II Q III Q IV Q I Q II Q ANNUAL ANNUAL ANNUAL

Real GDP 22 17 23 24 26 25 17 22 24Real Consumer Spending 29 24 25 27 26 23 22 23 24Housing Starts Mil Units 069 072 074 077 077 081 061 073 082Real Capital Spending -21 59 65 68 67 78 88 52 67Net Exports Bil lsquo00$ -4101 -4043 -3980 -3865 -3751 -3608 -4136 -3997 -3505

actual value

Table by The Conference Board

New risks for a fragile world recovery

10cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Cliff in 2013rdquo puts it at 5 Either way for an economy growing at less than 3 a reduction of 35-5 in state-funded demand would tip America into recession

Most forecasters believe that the US Congress will pass legislation to spread the fiscal pain over a longer period than all together on New Yearrsquos Day But that is not a sure thing especially in the fractious aftermath of national elections in November Even if another bipartisan deal is struck a substantial portion of the tax and spending squeeze will still be felt in 2013 making Morgan Stanley analysts wonder why many economists expect next yearrsquos growth to be faster than this year

Moreover they may be forgetting why those tax cuts and federal spending have to go in the first place market pressure to right Washingtonrsquos fiscal ship whose shakiness already led Standard amp Poorrsquos to downgrade US sovereign credit to below triple-A over a year ago If Congress puts off the January fiscal Armageddon without putting a credible deficit-and-debt reduction program

in its place the dollar and the governmentrsquos credit rating and costs will pay the price with negative impact on the economy

Hence Morgan Stanley expects some ldquomeaningfulrdquo budgetary and tax tightening next year ldquoan expiration of the payroll tax cut some rejigged spending cuts and other miscellaneous measures to lead to about a 15 of GDP fiscal tightening in 2013rdquo That forecast would pare one percentage point off next yearrsquos baseline expansion But even this mild scenario demands a big if that Democrats and Republicans after being hopelessly occupied before elections would find the time and inclination to enact the needed legislation between mid-November and the Christmas break as they did in 2010

Austerity and bailout fatigue But more than partisan politics the bigger difficulty in balancing fiscal reform and growth is the citizenryrsquos general unwillingness to sacrifice for balanced budgets whether they are cash-strapped Greeks or debt-ridden Americans ldquoPeople are saying lsquoAusterity austerity mdash

Former investment banker Michael Milken interviewing economist Nouriel Roubini People say lsquoAusterity austerity mdash wherersquos the growthlsquo Milken InstituteYouTube

11

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

WHERE ASIA SELLS

IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 pages 6 and 41

Correlation of Exports to China with Chinarsquos Exports to Asian Selected Economies

05

04

03

02

01

00

-01

2006-112000-05

New

Zea

land

Hon

g Ko

ng S

AR

Philip

pine

s

Aust

ralia

Thai

land

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Indo

nesi

a

Sing

apor

e

Kore

a

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Share of Exports Linked to Demand from Europe

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

Sing

apor

e

Thai

land

Kore

a

Chi

na

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Indo

nesi

a

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Philip

pine

s

In percent of exports linked to demand outside Asia In percent of GDP

12cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

New risks for a fragile world recovery

where is growthrsquordquo says economist Nouriel Roubini in his May 3 Milken Institute interview The New York University professor who famously predicted the 2008 US financial crisis thinks that due to this austerity fatigue ldquoeither this year or next Greece is highly likely to default on its debt and exit the eurozonerdquo (On the other hand he also mentions bailout fatigue in countries like Germany tired of paying billions for financial rescues)

In his Project Syndicate article ldquoGreece Must Exitrdquo Roubini spells out what he believes is the only way forward for Athens ldquoGreece is stuck in a vicious cycle of insolvency lost competitiveness external deficits and ever-deepening depression The only way to stop it is to begin an orderly default and exit coordinated and financed by the European Central Bank the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (the lsquoTroikarsquo) that minimizes collateral damage to Greece and the rest of the eurozonerdquo He sets out an ugly but in his view unavoidable scenario of managing Greek default And if that horror story whets onersquos appetite for more try ldquoGet Ready for the Spanish Bailoutrdquo

What about America Will it bite the bullet Or will it too become a ldquotrain wreckrdquo as Roubini says of Europersquos fiscal landscape in his talk with former investment banker Michael Milken If so will the American economy tank not to mention the worldrsquos And what is Asia to do in the continuing economic malaise in big markets

That is the subject of the IMFrsquos Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 subtitled ldquoManaging Spillovers and Advancing Economic Rebalancing The report assesses the likely impact on Asia of the Westrsquos economic and financial troubles and recommends measures to address it The Fund also urges measures to rebalance the regionrsquos economies away from export dependence and toward greater reliance on domestic consumption and investment spending for economic growth

In a world of turmoil that is exactly the formula to keep Asia growing

GROWING ASIA

Real GDP Change in 2011 and 2012-13 Forecast 2011 2012 2013

Industrial Asia -02 22 20 Australia 20 30 35 Japan -07 20 17 New Zealand 14 23 32East Asia 82 73 80 China 92 82 88 Hong Kong SAR 50 26 42 Korea 36 35 40 Taiwan Province of China 40 36 47South Asia 71 68 72 Bangladesh 61 59 64 India 71 69 73 Sri Lanka 82 75 70ASEAN 46 52 60 Brunei Darussalam 19 32 16 Cambodia 61 62 64 Indonesia 65 61 66 Lao PDR 83 84 71 Malaysia 51 44 47 Myanmar 55 60 59 Philippines 37 42 47 Singapore 49 27 39 Thailand 01 55 75 Vietnam 59 56 63Emerging Asia 74 69 75

source IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 page 5

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

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Page 4: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

5

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

STRATEGY POINTSImproving world economic prospects face new threats Greece default sharp China slowdown and the 2013 US fiscal crunch

Like the IMF get ready for a painful costly and messy meltdown in Europe with contagion effects on Asian trade and finance

Governments and lenders must balance fiscal austerity for investor confidence and the peoplersquos need for growth and jobs

Facebookrsquos mammoth initial public offering of shares last Friday raised

$184 billion mdash Americarsquos second-largest IPO after Visarsquos $1965 billion in 2008 mdash and valued the social networking website at $104 billion 23rd in stock market capitalization The next day its 56 owner and founding CEO Mark Zuckerberg 28 married his girlfriend of nearly a decade 27-year-old medicine graduate Priscilla Chan at his Palo Alto home

Whatrsquos wrong with this picture For billions of people across the planet including many of some 850 million exchanging messages visages and images on Facebook their own economic prospects are anything but the bubbly expectations of those who bought the stock at 422 times its latest quarterly earnings per share

For the more than 230 million Facebookers in Europe things got decidedly tougher the past week with the feared exit by debt-strapped Greece from the euro currency Most of the 36 million Greeks on Facebook may interrupt their browsing to join the rest of the countryrsquos 107 million people in

emptying their bank accounts before their euros are converted to drachmas

The rest of Europe will sink deeper into recession as bank lending and private investment further contracts and the euro plummets in value hitting consumer buying power That would put the brakes on the rest of the world economy just when China is showing signs of a slowdown and the US while doing better than expected faces a sharp fiscal crunch with tax breaks ending and drastic spending cuts due in 2013

So is the Facebook IPO the last party before another global slump Letrsquos hear it from the world economyrsquos watchers at its main financial trouble-shooting shop the International Monetary Fund For its annual spring meetings with its sister institution the World Bank on April 21 in Washington the IMF published an update of its World Economic Outlook report

In its executive summary the WEO said ldquoweak recovery will likely resume in the major advanced economies and activity is expected to remain relatively solid in

6cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

most emerging and developing economies However the recent improvements are very fragilerdquo Translation Wersquore making progress but wersquore not out of the woods Or as investment bank Morgan Stanleyrsquos Global Economic Forum puts it the global expansion is ldquobumpy below-par and brittlerdquo

The Fund expects ldquothe reacceleration of activity during the course of 2012 to return global growth to about 4 in 2013rdquo That would be back to last yearrsquos pace after slowing to a projected 35 this year Advanced economies crawling at 15 in 2012 could speed up to 2 next year while emerging and developing nations see expansion dip from 625 in 2011 to 575 this year then climb to 6 next

Containing contagion But that was before Greece rekindled fears of financial contagion last week It set new elections on June 17 after this monthrsquos polls failed to produce a coalition government to implement tough austerity measures in exchange for bailout loans Without the credit the country would default on loans exacerbating Europersquos crisis and possibly triggering a new global contagion If that happens predicts the Fundrsquos WEO that could shave 2 off world economic output this year and next

The European Commissionrsquos European Economic Forecast for spring had a first chapter titled ldquoThe EU Economy From Recession to a Slow Recoveryrdquo expressing hopes of a turnaround mdash with a big if ldquoGoing forward based on the assumption that the euro area will successfully handle crisis-related challenges a return of confidence over the course of 2012 is expectedrdquo That now boils down to Greece staying in the zone and the European Union

ratifying and carrying out its March 2 fiscal commitment treaty

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde has had no illusions about the challenge of staving off recession and financial meltdown Last week she told The Telegraph newspaper of London referring to Greece exiting the euro zone ldquoIt would be extremely expensive and not just in Greece extremely expensive and hardrdquo She said the Fund is getting ready just in case ldquoWe at the IMF had to be technically prepared for anything because it is our jobrdquo she explained

No wonder the former French finance minister and head of international law firm Baker amp McKenzie had been pushing for increased rescue money for the Fund as a ldquoglobal firewallrdquo against future crises Ahead of the IMF-World Bank meetings Lagarde made a last-ditch call for $400 billion in additional resources for the Fund down from an initial target of $600 billion before the US refused to join the capital-raising exercise By meetingrsquos end the Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies agreed to more than double IMF resources by more than $430 billion

ldquoThe firewall is a recognition that you need a global safety net not just a

Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Thof IMF policy committee with IMF MGlobal consensus for medium-term

7

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

European regional safety netrdquo explained Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Thanam Shanmugaratnam chairman of the Fundrsquos policy-making International Monetary and Finance Committee (IMFC) on the sidelines of the meetings He also lauded a ldquoa joining of minds on the criticality of medium-term sustainability We have to think creatively about policies which can help to get growth going without compromising on market confidencerdquo That means he said ldquomoving away from short-term stimulus thinking to thinking how we can recreate the basis for growth a few years from nowrdquo

Bear in the China shop Besides new troubles in the euro zone another recent worry in business circles is Chinarsquos economic slowdown As

reported by Reuters last Friday Chinarsquos State Information Center a government think tank estimated that in the second quarter the economy had decelerated to 75 the slowest since the midst of the global recession in the first quarter of 2009

Attributed to ldquoproperty tightening measures and weakening global demandrdquo the slowdown was still in line with the official GDP growth target No matter analysts like DailyFinancecom were quick to blog

warnings like ldquoChinarsquos Economic Slowdown Foreshadows Trouble for the USrdquo Besides watchers of the American economy oil futures traders also saw reason for gloom in Greecersquos woe and China slow

Top global bond investment company PIMCO joined leading banks Citigroup JP Morgan Chase Bank of America Goldman Sachs and Switzerlandrsquos UBS in cutting China growth forecasts PIMCO adjusted its projection to 75 the lowest annual rate in 13 years and the lower end of banksrsquo revised forecasts A day after the China think tank estimate Bloomberg reported that Goldman Sachs also trimmed its 2012 forecast five percentage points less to 81

In a survey of 21 economists conducted by Bloomberg last week the median forecast for China growth was 82 the slowest since 76 in 1999 and a full percentage point down from last yearrsquos 92 clip Many see third-quarter growth picking up on the expectation that the government would further ease interest rates But pumping more renminbi into the economy may not help much if bad loans hold back lending and businesses donrsquot have profitable reasons to boost production and invest

Bank lending is stagnant says Xiang Songzuo chief economist for the giant China Agricultural Bank in the Christian Science Monitorrsquos ldquoWhy Chinarsquos economy may be heading for a hard landingrdquo The May 17 story notes that industrial production grew 93 last month the slowest since the global slump Speaking to Bloomberg former IMF expert Xiang Zhiwei now Hong Kong-based chief economist of Nomura Holdings cited ldquobad trade production and [foreign direct investment] datardquo with FDI falling for six months in a row

harman Shanmugaratnam chairman Managing Director Christine Lagardeaction and global firewall IMF video

New risks for a fragile world recovery

8cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Meanwhile Bloomberg reported elsewhere exports and imports grew 49 and 03 sharply down from consensus projections of 85 and 105 respectively ldquoA very weak economy at this pointrdquo Zhang concludes adding that reducing bank reserve requirement ratios isnrsquot enough ldquoas it helps loan supply rather than demandrdquo His prescription more infrastructure spending and interest-rate cuts

America picks up pace If Europe and China are worrisome the United States is showing signs of slightly better-than-expected progress Take this May 9 presentation by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Compared with past recoveries from deep recessions the current US rebound is ldquomutedrdquo reports Chicago Fed senior economist William Strauss with just 21 growth in the past year The economy is forecast to grow ldquobelow trend this year and slightly above trend in 2013rdquo

Even with that slower-than-usual recovery 18 million jobs were added in the past 12 months and unemployment has dropped by 19 percentage points since the 2009 peak And more jobs are expected with solid manufacturing growth Indeed factory output has risen strongly in the past 33 months recovering nearly three-quarters of the production decline during the recession

Inflation is up a sign of economic and spending pickup However inflation-adjusted oil prices are lower than their 1980 high while gas prices are sharply down and energy expenditures are below the historical average Thus the Federal Reserve can hold interest rates down without spiking inflation

Argentinarsquos BBVA shares the upbeat outlook of many other international banks watching the American economy While it sees ldquomixed signals on the strength and sustainability of

Nomura Hong Kong economist Zhang Zhiwei cites dropping China trade production and investment and urges stronger monetary and fiscal measures to boost growth Bloomberg

9

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

the recoveryrdquo first-quarter data support its expectation of more robust growth through the year BBVA reports that the 29 surge in consumer spending in the first quarter mdash the fastest since late 2006 mdash offset weakness elsewhere in the economy

Notably BBVA differed a bit from the Chicago Fed in noting a manufacturing slowdown in the first quarter But the prognosis for the year remains decent with 23 growth projected Contributing to GDP growth for the first time since the 2008-09 recession is the residential investment with several housing-related industries also showing slightly positive movements Among them fabric and textile mills household and institutional furniture and paint One more plus sector growth in services is helping offset some job losses in industry especially with cutbacks in mining and energy

The coming US fiscal cliff So wherersquos the brittle side in the American economic picture Like Europe the crack in the glass is a fiscal one the market-imposed imperative to reduce public deficits and debt At the stroke of midnight on December 31 the current regime of Bush-era middle-class tax breaks the 2011-12 payroll tax cut and growth-spurring budgetary spending turns into a pumpkin so to speak Add to the expiring state largesse the expected decline in defense outlays as waves of US troops come home from Afghanistan

How big is this removal of tax cuts and forced budget reductions Most economists estimate their combined value at 35 of GDP including $12 trillion in legislated spending cuts under the Democratic-Republican deal to raise the federal debt ceiling last August But Morgan Stanleyrsquos April 13 report ldquoHow Big Is the Fiscal

WHATrsquoS AHEAD FOR AMERICAThe Conference Board Forecasts 2011 Actual and 2012-13 Projections

2012 2013 2011 2012 2013

I Q II Q III Q IV Q I Q II Q ANNUAL ANNUAL ANNUAL

Real GDP 22 17 23 24 26 25 17 22 24Real Consumer Spending 29 24 25 27 26 23 22 23 24Housing Starts Mil Units 069 072 074 077 077 081 061 073 082Real Capital Spending -21 59 65 68 67 78 88 52 67Net Exports Bil lsquo00$ -4101 -4043 -3980 -3865 -3751 -3608 -4136 -3997 -3505

actual value

Table by The Conference Board

New risks for a fragile world recovery

10cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Cliff in 2013rdquo puts it at 5 Either way for an economy growing at less than 3 a reduction of 35-5 in state-funded demand would tip America into recession

Most forecasters believe that the US Congress will pass legislation to spread the fiscal pain over a longer period than all together on New Yearrsquos Day But that is not a sure thing especially in the fractious aftermath of national elections in November Even if another bipartisan deal is struck a substantial portion of the tax and spending squeeze will still be felt in 2013 making Morgan Stanley analysts wonder why many economists expect next yearrsquos growth to be faster than this year

Moreover they may be forgetting why those tax cuts and federal spending have to go in the first place market pressure to right Washingtonrsquos fiscal ship whose shakiness already led Standard amp Poorrsquos to downgrade US sovereign credit to below triple-A over a year ago If Congress puts off the January fiscal Armageddon without putting a credible deficit-and-debt reduction program

in its place the dollar and the governmentrsquos credit rating and costs will pay the price with negative impact on the economy

Hence Morgan Stanley expects some ldquomeaningfulrdquo budgetary and tax tightening next year ldquoan expiration of the payroll tax cut some rejigged spending cuts and other miscellaneous measures to lead to about a 15 of GDP fiscal tightening in 2013rdquo That forecast would pare one percentage point off next yearrsquos baseline expansion But even this mild scenario demands a big if that Democrats and Republicans after being hopelessly occupied before elections would find the time and inclination to enact the needed legislation between mid-November and the Christmas break as they did in 2010

Austerity and bailout fatigue But more than partisan politics the bigger difficulty in balancing fiscal reform and growth is the citizenryrsquos general unwillingness to sacrifice for balanced budgets whether they are cash-strapped Greeks or debt-ridden Americans ldquoPeople are saying lsquoAusterity austerity mdash

Former investment banker Michael Milken interviewing economist Nouriel Roubini People say lsquoAusterity austerity mdash wherersquos the growthlsquo Milken InstituteYouTube

11

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

WHERE ASIA SELLS

IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 pages 6 and 41

Correlation of Exports to China with Chinarsquos Exports to Asian Selected Economies

05

04

03

02

01

00

-01

2006-112000-05

New

Zea

land

Hon

g Ko

ng S

AR

Philip

pine

s

Aust

ralia

Thai

land

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Indo

nesi

a

Sing

apor

e

Kore

a

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Share of Exports Linked to Demand from Europe

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

Sing

apor

e

Thai

land

Kore

a

Chi

na

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Indo

nesi

a

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Philip

pine

s

In percent of exports linked to demand outside Asia In percent of GDP

12cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

New risks for a fragile world recovery

where is growthrsquordquo says economist Nouriel Roubini in his May 3 Milken Institute interview The New York University professor who famously predicted the 2008 US financial crisis thinks that due to this austerity fatigue ldquoeither this year or next Greece is highly likely to default on its debt and exit the eurozonerdquo (On the other hand he also mentions bailout fatigue in countries like Germany tired of paying billions for financial rescues)

In his Project Syndicate article ldquoGreece Must Exitrdquo Roubini spells out what he believes is the only way forward for Athens ldquoGreece is stuck in a vicious cycle of insolvency lost competitiveness external deficits and ever-deepening depression The only way to stop it is to begin an orderly default and exit coordinated and financed by the European Central Bank the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (the lsquoTroikarsquo) that minimizes collateral damage to Greece and the rest of the eurozonerdquo He sets out an ugly but in his view unavoidable scenario of managing Greek default And if that horror story whets onersquos appetite for more try ldquoGet Ready for the Spanish Bailoutrdquo

What about America Will it bite the bullet Or will it too become a ldquotrain wreckrdquo as Roubini says of Europersquos fiscal landscape in his talk with former investment banker Michael Milken If so will the American economy tank not to mention the worldrsquos And what is Asia to do in the continuing economic malaise in big markets

That is the subject of the IMFrsquos Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 subtitled ldquoManaging Spillovers and Advancing Economic Rebalancing The report assesses the likely impact on Asia of the Westrsquos economic and financial troubles and recommends measures to address it The Fund also urges measures to rebalance the regionrsquos economies away from export dependence and toward greater reliance on domestic consumption and investment spending for economic growth

In a world of turmoil that is exactly the formula to keep Asia growing

GROWING ASIA

Real GDP Change in 2011 and 2012-13 Forecast 2011 2012 2013

Industrial Asia -02 22 20 Australia 20 30 35 Japan -07 20 17 New Zealand 14 23 32East Asia 82 73 80 China 92 82 88 Hong Kong SAR 50 26 42 Korea 36 35 40 Taiwan Province of China 40 36 47South Asia 71 68 72 Bangladesh 61 59 64 India 71 69 73 Sri Lanka 82 75 70ASEAN 46 52 60 Brunei Darussalam 19 32 16 Cambodia 61 62 64 Indonesia 65 61 66 Lao PDR 83 84 71 Malaysia 51 44 47 Myanmar 55 60 59 Philippines 37 42 47 Singapore 49 27 39 Thailand 01 55 75 Vietnam 59 56 63Emerging Asia 74 69 75

source IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 page 5

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

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36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

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42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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    2. Page 13
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      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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            25. Page 52
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Page 5: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

6cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

most emerging and developing economies However the recent improvements are very fragilerdquo Translation Wersquore making progress but wersquore not out of the woods Or as investment bank Morgan Stanleyrsquos Global Economic Forum puts it the global expansion is ldquobumpy below-par and brittlerdquo

The Fund expects ldquothe reacceleration of activity during the course of 2012 to return global growth to about 4 in 2013rdquo That would be back to last yearrsquos pace after slowing to a projected 35 this year Advanced economies crawling at 15 in 2012 could speed up to 2 next year while emerging and developing nations see expansion dip from 625 in 2011 to 575 this year then climb to 6 next

Containing contagion But that was before Greece rekindled fears of financial contagion last week It set new elections on June 17 after this monthrsquos polls failed to produce a coalition government to implement tough austerity measures in exchange for bailout loans Without the credit the country would default on loans exacerbating Europersquos crisis and possibly triggering a new global contagion If that happens predicts the Fundrsquos WEO that could shave 2 off world economic output this year and next

The European Commissionrsquos European Economic Forecast for spring had a first chapter titled ldquoThe EU Economy From Recession to a Slow Recoveryrdquo expressing hopes of a turnaround mdash with a big if ldquoGoing forward based on the assumption that the euro area will successfully handle crisis-related challenges a return of confidence over the course of 2012 is expectedrdquo That now boils down to Greece staying in the zone and the European Union

ratifying and carrying out its March 2 fiscal commitment treaty

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde has had no illusions about the challenge of staving off recession and financial meltdown Last week she told The Telegraph newspaper of London referring to Greece exiting the euro zone ldquoIt would be extremely expensive and not just in Greece extremely expensive and hardrdquo She said the Fund is getting ready just in case ldquoWe at the IMF had to be technically prepared for anything because it is our jobrdquo she explained

No wonder the former French finance minister and head of international law firm Baker amp McKenzie had been pushing for increased rescue money for the Fund as a ldquoglobal firewallrdquo against future crises Ahead of the IMF-World Bank meetings Lagarde made a last-ditch call for $400 billion in additional resources for the Fund down from an initial target of $600 billion before the US refused to join the capital-raising exercise By meetingrsquos end the Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies agreed to more than double IMF resources by more than $430 billion

ldquoThe firewall is a recognition that you need a global safety net not just a

Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Thof IMF policy committee with IMF MGlobal consensus for medium-term

7

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

European regional safety netrdquo explained Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Thanam Shanmugaratnam chairman of the Fundrsquos policy-making International Monetary and Finance Committee (IMFC) on the sidelines of the meetings He also lauded a ldquoa joining of minds on the criticality of medium-term sustainability We have to think creatively about policies which can help to get growth going without compromising on market confidencerdquo That means he said ldquomoving away from short-term stimulus thinking to thinking how we can recreate the basis for growth a few years from nowrdquo

Bear in the China shop Besides new troubles in the euro zone another recent worry in business circles is Chinarsquos economic slowdown As

reported by Reuters last Friday Chinarsquos State Information Center a government think tank estimated that in the second quarter the economy had decelerated to 75 the slowest since the midst of the global recession in the first quarter of 2009

Attributed to ldquoproperty tightening measures and weakening global demandrdquo the slowdown was still in line with the official GDP growth target No matter analysts like DailyFinancecom were quick to blog

warnings like ldquoChinarsquos Economic Slowdown Foreshadows Trouble for the USrdquo Besides watchers of the American economy oil futures traders also saw reason for gloom in Greecersquos woe and China slow

Top global bond investment company PIMCO joined leading banks Citigroup JP Morgan Chase Bank of America Goldman Sachs and Switzerlandrsquos UBS in cutting China growth forecasts PIMCO adjusted its projection to 75 the lowest annual rate in 13 years and the lower end of banksrsquo revised forecasts A day after the China think tank estimate Bloomberg reported that Goldman Sachs also trimmed its 2012 forecast five percentage points less to 81

In a survey of 21 economists conducted by Bloomberg last week the median forecast for China growth was 82 the slowest since 76 in 1999 and a full percentage point down from last yearrsquos 92 clip Many see third-quarter growth picking up on the expectation that the government would further ease interest rates But pumping more renminbi into the economy may not help much if bad loans hold back lending and businesses donrsquot have profitable reasons to boost production and invest

Bank lending is stagnant says Xiang Songzuo chief economist for the giant China Agricultural Bank in the Christian Science Monitorrsquos ldquoWhy Chinarsquos economy may be heading for a hard landingrdquo The May 17 story notes that industrial production grew 93 last month the slowest since the global slump Speaking to Bloomberg former IMF expert Xiang Zhiwei now Hong Kong-based chief economist of Nomura Holdings cited ldquobad trade production and [foreign direct investment] datardquo with FDI falling for six months in a row

harman Shanmugaratnam chairman Managing Director Christine Lagardeaction and global firewall IMF video

New risks for a fragile world recovery

8cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Meanwhile Bloomberg reported elsewhere exports and imports grew 49 and 03 sharply down from consensus projections of 85 and 105 respectively ldquoA very weak economy at this pointrdquo Zhang concludes adding that reducing bank reserve requirement ratios isnrsquot enough ldquoas it helps loan supply rather than demandrdquo His prescription more infrastructure spending and interest-rate cuts

America picks up pace If Europe and China are worrisome the United States is showing signs of slightly better-than-expected progress Take this May 9 presentation by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Compared with past recoveries from deep recessions the current US rebound is ldquomutedrdquo reports Chicago Fed senior economist William Strauss with just 21 growth in the past year The economy is forecast to grow ldquobelow trend this year and slightly above trend in 2013rdquo

Even with that slower-than-usual recovery 18 million jobs were added in the past 12 months and unemployment has dropped by 19 percentage points since the 2009 peak And more jobs are expected with solid manufacturing growth Indeed factory output has risen strongly in the past 33 months recovering nearly three-quarters of the production decline during the recession

Inflation is up a sign of economic and spending pickup However inflation-adjusted oil prices are lower than their 1980 high while gas prices are sharply down and energy expenditures are below the historical average Thus the Federal Reserve can hold interest rates down without spiking inflation

Argentinarsquos BBVA shares the upbeat outlook of many other international banks watching the American economy While it sees ldquomixed signals on the strength and sustainability of

Nomura Hong Kong economist Zhang Zhiwei cites dropping China trade production and investment and urges stronger monetary and fiscal measures to boost growth Bloomberg

9

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

the recoveryrdquo first-quarter data support its expectation of more robust growth through the year BBVA reports that the 29 surge in consumer spending in the first quarter mdash the fastest since late 2006 mdash offset weakness elsewhere in the economy

Notably BBVA differed a bit from the Chicago Fed in noting a manufacturing slowdown in the first quarter But the prognosis for the year remains decent with 23 growth projected Contributing to GDP growth for the first time since the 2008-09 recession is the residential investment with several housing-related industries also showing slightly positive movements Among them fabric and textile mills household and institutional furniture and paint One more plus sector growth in services is helping offset some job losses in industry especially with cutbacks in mining and energy

The coming US fiscal cliff So wherersquos the brittle side in the American economic picture Like Europe the crack in the glass is a fiscal one the market-imposed imperative to reduce public deficits and debt At the stroke of midnight on December 31 the current regime of Bush-era middle-class tax breaks the 2011-12 payroll tax cut and growth-spurring budgetary spending turns into a pumpkin so to speak Add to the expiring state largesse the expected decline in defense outlays as waves of US troops come home from Afghanistan

How big is this removal of tax cuts and forced budget reductions Most economists estimate their combined value at 35 of GDP including $12 trillion in legislated spending cuts under the Democratic-Republican deal to raise the federal debt ceiling last August But Morgan Stanleyrsquos April 13 report ldquoHow Big Is the Fiscal

WHATrsquoS AHEAD FOR AMERICAThe Conference Board Forecasts 2011 Actual and 2012-13 Projections

2012 2013 2011 2012 2013

I Q II Q III Q IV Q I Q II Q ANNUAL ANNUAL ANNUAL

Real GDP 22 17 23 24 26 25 17 22 24Real Consumer Spending 29 24 25 27 26 23 22 23 24Housing Starts Mil Units 069 072 074 077 077 081 061 073 082Real Capital Spending -21 59 65 68 67 78 88 52 67Net Exports Bil lsquo00$ -4101 -4043 -3980 -3865 -3751 -3608 -4136 -3997 -3505

actual value

Table by The Conference Board

New risks for a fragile world recovery

10cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Cliff in 2013rdquo puts it at 5 Either way for an economy growing at less than 3 a reduction of 35-5 in state-funded demand would tip America into recession

Most forecasters believe that the US Congress will pass legislation to spread the fiscal pain over a longer period than all together on New Yearrsquos Day But that is not a sure thing especially in the fractious aftermath of national elections in November Even if another bipartisan deal is struck a substantial portion of the tax and spending squeeze will still be felt in 2013 making Morgan Stanley analysts wonder why many economists expect next yearrsquos growth to be faster than this year

Moreover they may be forgetting why those tax cuts and federal spending have to go in the first place market pressure to right Washingtonrsquos fiscal ship whose shakiness already led Standard amp Poorrsquos to downgrade US sovereign credit to below triple-A over a year ago If Congress puts off the January fiscal Armageddon without putting a credible deficit-and-debt reduction program

in its place the dollar and the governmentrsquos credit rating and costs will pay the price with negative impact on the economy

Hence Morgan Stanley expects some ldquomeaningfulrdquo budgetary and tax tightening next year ldquoan expiration of the payroll tax cut some rejigged spending cuts and other miscellaneous measures to lead to about a 15 of GDP fiscal tightening in 2013rdquo That forecast would pare one percentage point off next yearrsquos baseline expansion But even this mild scenario demands a big if that Democrats and Republicans after being hopelessly occupied before elections would find the time and inclination to enact the needed legislation between mid-November and the Christmas break as they did in 2010

Austerity and bailout fatigue But more than partisan politics the bigger difficulty in balancing fiscal reform and growth is the citizenryrsquos general unwillingness to sacrifice for balanced budgets whether they are cash-strapped Greeks or debt-ridden Americans ldquoPeople are saying lsquoAusterity austerity mdash

Former investment banker Michael Milken interviewing economist Nouriel Roubini People say lsquoAusterity austerity mdash wherersquos the growthlsquo Milken InstituteYouTube

11

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

WHERE ASIA SELLS

IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 pages 6 and 41

Correlation of Exports to China with Chinarsquos Exports to Asian Selected Economies

05

04

03

02

01

00

-01

2006-112000-05

New

Zea

land

Hon

g Ko

ng S

AR

Philip

pine

s

Aust

ralia

Thai

land

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Indo

nesi

a

Sing

apor

e

Kore

a

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Share of Exports Linked to Demand from Europe

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

Sing

apor

e

Thai

land

Kore

a

Chi

na

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Indo

nesi

a

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Philip

pine

s

In percent of exports linked to demand outside Asia In percent of GDP

12cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

New risks for a fragile world recovery

where is growthrsquordquo says economist Nouriel Roubini in his May 3 Milken Institute interview The New York University professor who famously predicted the 2008 US financial crisis thinks that due to this austerity fatigue ldquoeither this year or next Greece is highly likely to default on its debt and exit the eurozonerdquo (On the other hand he also mentions bailout fatigue in countries like Germany tired of paying billions for financial rescues)

In his Project Syndicate article ldquoGreece Must Exitrdquo Roubini spells out what he believes is the only way forward for Athens ldquoGreece is stuck in a vicious cycle of insolvency lost competitiveness external deficits and ever-deepening depression The only way to stop it is to begin an orderly default and exit coordinated and financed by the European Central Bank the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (the lsquoTroikarsquo) that minimizes collateral damage to Greece and the rest of the eurozonerdquo He sets out an ugly but in his view unavoidable scenario of managing Greek default And if that horror story whets onersquos appetite for more try ldquoGet Ready for the Spanish Bailoutrdquo

What about America Will it bite the bullet Or will it too become a ldquotrain wreckrdquo as Roubini says of Europersquos fiscal landscape in his talk with former investment banker Michael Milken If so will the American economy tank not to mention the worldrsquos And what is Asia to do in the continuing economic malaise in big markets

That is the subject of the IMFrsquos Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 subtitled ldquoManaging Spillovers and Advancing Economic Rebalancing The report assesses the likely impact on Asia of the Westrsquos economic and financial troubles and recommends measures to address it The Fund also urges measures to rebalance the regionrsquos economies away from export dependence and toward greater reliance on domestic consumption and investment spending for economic growth

In a world of turmoil that is exactly the formula to keep Asia growing

GROWING ASIA

Real GDP Change in 2011 and 2012-13 Forecast 2011 2012 2013

Industrial Asia -02 22 20 Australia 20 30 35 Japan -07 20 17 New Zealand 14 23 32East Asia 82 73 80 China 92 82 88 Hong Kong SAR 50 26 42 Korea 36 35 40 Taiwan Province of China 40 36 47South Asia 71 68 72 Bangladesh 61 59 64 India 71 69 73 Sri Lanka 82 75 70ASEAN 46 52 60 Brunei Darussalam 19 32 16 Cambodia 61 62 64 Indonesia 65 61 66 Lao PDR 83 84 71 Malaysia 51 44 47 Myanmar 55 60 59 Philippines 37 42 47 Singapore 49 27 39 Thailand 01 55 75 Vietnam 59 56 63Emerging Asia 74 69 75

source IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 page 5

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

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Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
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      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 6: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

7

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

European regional safety netrdquo explained Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Thanam Shanmugaratnam chairman of the Fundrsquos policy-making International Monetary and Finance Committee (IMFC) on the sidelines of the meetings He also lauded a ldquoa joining of minds on the criticality of medium-term sustainability We have to think creatively about policies which can help to get growth going without compromising on market confidencerdquo That means he said ldquomoving away from short-term stimulus thinking to thinking how we can recreate the basis for growth a few years from nowrdquo

Bear in the China shop Besides new troubles in the euro zone another recent worry in business circles is Chinarsquos economic slowdown As

reported by Reuters last Friday Chinarsquos State Information Center a government think tank estimated that in the second quarter the economy had decelerated to 75 the slowest since the midst of the global recession in the first quarter of 2009

Attributed to ldquoproperty tightening measures and weakening global demandrdquo the slowdown was still in line with the official GDP growth target No matter analysts like DailyFinancecom were quick to blog

warnings like ldquoChinarsquos Economic Slowdown Foreshadows Trouble for the USrdquo Besides watchers of the American economy oil futures traders also saw reason for gloom in Greecersquos woe and China slow

Top global bond investment company PIMCO joined leading banks Citigroup JP Morgan Chase Bank of America Goldman Sachs and Switzerlandrsquos UBS in cutting China growth forecasts PIMCO adjusted its projection to 75 the lowest annual rate in 13 years and the lower end of banksrsquo revised forecasts A day after the China think tank estimate Bloomberg reported that Goldman Sachs also trimmed its 2012 forecast five percentage points less to 81

In a survey of 21 economists conducted by Bloomberg last week the median forecast for China growth was 82 the slowest since 76 in 1999 and a full percentage point down from last yearrsquos 92 clip Many see third-quarter growth picking up on the expectation that the government would further ease interest rates But pumping more renminbi into the economy may not help much if bad loans hold back lending and businesses donrsquot have profitable reasons to boost production and invest

Bank lending is stagnant says Xiang Songzuo chief economist for the giant China Agricultural Bank in the Christian Science Monitorrsquos ldquoWhy Chinarsquos economy may be heading for a hard landingrdquo The May 17 story notes that industrial production grew 93 last month the slowest since the global slump Speaking to Bloomberg former IMF expert Xiang Zhiwei now Hong Kong-based chief economist of Nomura Holdings cited ldquobad trade production and [foreign direct investment] datardquo with FDI falling for six months in a row

harman Shanmugaratnam chairman Managing Director Christine Lagardeaction and global firewall IMF video

New risks for a fragile world recovery

8cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Meanwhile Bloomberg reported elsewhere exports and imports grew 49 and 03 sharply down from consensus projections of 85 and 105 respectively ldquoA very weak economy at this pointrdquo Zhang concludes adding that reducing bank reserve requirement ratios isnrsquot enough ldquoas it helps loan supply rather than demandrdquo His prescription more infrastructure spending and interest-rate cuts

America picks up pace If Europe and China are worrisome the United States is showing signs of slightly better-than-expected progress Take this May 9 presentation by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Compared with past recoveries from deep recessions the current US rebound is ldquomutedrdquo reports Chicago Fed senior economist William Strauss with just 21 growth in the past year The economy is forecast to grow ldquobelow trend this year and slightly above trend in 2013rdquo

Even with that slower-than-usual recovery 18 million jobs were added in the past 12 months and unemployment has dropped by 19 percentage points since the 2009 peak And more jobs are expected with solid manufacturing growth Indeed factory output has risen strongly in the past 33 months recovering nearly three-quarters of the production decline during the recession

Inflation is up a sign of economic and spending pickup However inflation-adjusted oil prices are lower than their 1980 high while gas prices are sharply down and energy expenditures are below the historical average Thus the Federal Reserve can hold interest rates down without spiking inflation

Argentinarsquos BBVA shares the upbeat outlook of many other international banks watching the American economy While it sees ldquomixed signals on the strength and sustainability of

Nomura Hong Kong economist Zhang Zhiwei cites dropping China trade production and investment and urges stronger monetary and fiscal measures to boost growth Bloomberg

9

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

the recoveryrdquo first-quarter data support its expectation of more robust growth through the year BBVA reports that the 29 surge in consumer spending in the first quarter mdash the fastest since late 2006 mdash offset weakness elsewhere in the economy

Notably BBVA differed a bit from the Chicago Fed in noting a manufacturing slowdown in the first quarter But the prognosis for the year remains decent with 23 growth projected Contributing to GDP growth for the first time since the 2008-09 recession is the residential investment with several housing-related industries also showing slightly positive movements Among them fabric and textile mills household and institutional furniture and paint One more plus sector growth in services is helping offset some job losses in industry especially with cutbacks in mining and energy

The coming US fiscal cliff So wherersquos the brittle side in the American economic picture Like Europe the crack in the glass is a fiscal one the market-imposed imperative to reduce public deficits and debt At the stroke of midnight on December 31 the current regime of Bush-era middle-class tax breaks the 2011-12 payroll tax cut and growth-spurring budgetary spending turns into a pumpkin so to speak Add to the expiring state largesse the expected decline in defense outlays as waves of US troops come home from Afghanistan

How big is this removal of tax cuts and forced budget reductions Most economists estimate their combined value at 35 of GDP including $12 trillion in legislated spending cuts under the Democratic-Republican deal to raise the federal debt ceiling last August But Morgan Stanleyrsquos April 13 report ldquoHow Big Is the Fiscal

WHATrsquoS AHEAD FOR AMERICAThe Conference Board Forecasts 2011 Actual and 2012-13 Projections

2012 2013 2011 2012 2013

I Q II Q III Q IV Q I Q II Q ANNUAL ANNUAL ANNUAL

Real GDP 22 17 23 24 26 25 17 22 24Real Consumer Spending 29 24 25 27 26 23 22 23 24Housing Starts Mil Units 069 072 074 077 077 081 061 073 082Real Capital Spending -21 59 65 68 67 78 88 52 67Net Exports Bil lsquo00$ -4101 -4043 -3980 -3865 -3751 -3608 -4136 -3997 -3505

actual value

Table by The Conference Board

New risks for a fragile world recovery

10cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Cliff in 2013rdquo puts it at 5 Either way for an economy growing at less than 3 a reduction of 35-5 in state-funded demand would tip America into recession

Most forecasters believe that the US Congress will pass legislation to spread the fiscal pain over a longer period than all together on New Yearrsquos Day But that is not a sure thing especially in the fractious aftermath of national elections in November Even if another bipartisan deal is struck a substantial portion of the tax and spending squeeze will still be felt in 2013 making Morgan Stanley analysts wonder why many economists expect next yearrsquos growth to be faster than this year

Moreover they may be forgetting why those tax cuts and federal spending have to go in the first place market pressure to right Washingtonrsquos fiscal ship whose shakiness already led Standard amp Poorrsquos to downgrade US sovereign credit to below triple-A over a year ago If Congress puts off the January fiscal Armageddon without putting a credible deficit-and-debt reduction program

in its place the dollar and the governmentrsquos credit rating and costs will pay the price with negative impact on the economy

Hence Morgan Stanley expects some ldquomeaningfulrdquo budgetary and tax tightening next year ldquoan expiration of the payroll tax cut some rejigged spending cuts and other miscellaneous measures to lead to about a 15 of GDP fiscal tightening in 2013rdquo That forecast would pare one percentage point off next yearrsquos baseline expansion But even this mild scenario demands a big if that Democrats and Republicans after being hopelessly occupied before elections would find the time and inclination to enact the needed legislation between mid-November and the Christmas break as they did in 2010

Austerity and bailout fatigue But more than partisan politics the bigger difficulty in balancing fiscal reform and growth is the citizenryrsquos general unwillingness to sacrifice for balanced budgets whether they are cash-strapped Greeks or debt-ridden Americans ldquoPeople are saying lsquoAusterity austerity mdash

Former investment banker Michael Milken interviewing economist Nouriel Roubini People say lsquoAusterity austerity mdash wherersquos the growthlsquo Milken InstituteYouTube

11

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

WHERE ASIA SELLS

IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 pages 6 and 41

Correlation of Exports to China with Chinarsquos Exports to Asian Selected Economies

05

04

03

02

01

00

-01

2006-112000-05

New

Zea

land

Hon

g Ko

ng S

AR

Philip

pine

s

Aust

ralia

Thai

land

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Indo

nesi

a

Sing

apor

e

Kore

a

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Share of Exports Linked to Demand from Europe

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

Sing

apor

e

Thai

land

Kore

a

Chi

na

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Indo

nesi

a

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Philip

pine

s

In percent of exports linked to demand outside Asia In percent of GDP

12cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

New risks for a fragile world recovery

where is growthrsquordquo says economist Nouriel Roubini in his May 3 Milken Institute interview The New York University professor who famously predicted the 2008 US financial crisis thinks that due to this austerity fatigue ldquoeither this year or next Greece is highly likely to default on its debt and exit the eurozonerdquo (On the other hand he also mentions bailout fatigue in countries like Germany tired of paying billions for financial rescues)

In his Project Syndicate article ldquoGreece Must Exitrdquo Roubini spells out what he believes is the only way forward for Athens ldquoGreece is stuck in a vicious cycle of insolvency lost competitiveness external deficits and ever-deepening depression The only way to stop it is to begin an orderly default and exit coordinated and financed by the European Central Bank the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (the lsquoTroikarsquo) that minimizes collateral damage to Greece and the rest of the eurozonerdquo He sets out an ugly but in his view unavoidable scenario of managing Greek default And if that horror story whets onersquos appetite for more try ldquoGet Ready for the Spanish Bailoutrdquo

What about America Will it bite the bullet Or will it too become a ldquotrain wreckrdquo as Roubini says of Europersquos fiscal landscape in his talk with former investment banker Michael Milken If so will the American economy tank not to mention the worldrsquos And what is Asia to do in the continuing economic malaise in big markets

That is the subject of the IMFrsquos Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 subtitled ldquoManaging Spillovers and Advancing Economic Rebalancing The report assesses the likely impact on Asia of the Westrsquos economic and financial troubles and recommends measures to address it The Fund also urges measures to rebalance the regionrsquos economies away from export dependence and toward greater reliance on domestic consumption and investment spending for economic growth

In a world of turmoil that is exactly the formula to keep Asia growing

GROWING ASIA

Real GDP Change in 2011 and 2012-13 Forecast 2011 2012 2013

Industrial Asia -02 22 20 Australia 20 30 35 Japan -07 20 17 New Zealand 14 23 32East Asia 82 73 80 China 92 82 88 Hong Kong SAR 50 26 42 Korea 36 35 40 Taiwan Province of China 40 36 47South Asia 71 68 72 Bangladesh 61 59 64 India 71 69 73 Sri Lanka 82 75 70ASEAN 46 52 60 Brunei Darussalam 19 32 16 Cambodia 61 62 64 Indonesia 65 61 66 Lao PDR 83 84 71 Malaysia 51 44 47 Myanmar 55 60 59 Philippines 37 42 47 Singapore 49 27 39 Thailand 01 55 75 Vietnam 59 56 63Emerging Asia 74 69 75

source IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 page 5

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
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    3. Page 33
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      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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            25. Page 52
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                2. Page 6
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                        2. Page 7
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 7: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

8cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Meanwhile Bloomberg reported elsewhere exports and imports grew 49 and 03 sharply down from consensus projections of 85 and 105 respectively ldquoA very weak economy at this pointrdquo Zhang concludes adding that reducing bank reserve requirement ratios isnrsquot enough ldquoas it helps loan supply rather than demandrdquo His prescription more infrastructure spending and interest-rate cuts

America picks up pace If Europe and China are worrisome the United States is showing signs of slightly better-than-expected progress Take this May 9 presentation by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Compared with past recoveries from deep recessions the current US rebound is ldquomutedrdquo reports Chicago Fed senior economist William Strauss with just 21 growth in the past year The economy is forecast to grow ldquobelow trend this year and slightly above trend in 2013rdquo

Even with that slower-than-usual recovery 18 million jobs were added in the past 12 months and unemployment has dropped by 19 percentage points since the 2009 peak And more jobs are expected with solid manufacturing growth Indeed factory output has risen strongly in the past 33 months recovering nearly three-quarters of the production decline during the recession

Inflation is up a sign of economic and spending pickup However inflation-adjusted oil prices are lower than their 1980 high while gas prices are sharply down and energy expenditures are below the historical average Thus the Federal Reserve can hold interest rates down without spiking inflation

Argentinarsquos BBVA shares the upbeat outlook of many other international banks watching the American economy While it sees ldquomixed signals on the strength and sustainability of

Nomura Hong Kong economist Zhang Zhiwei cites dropping China trade production and investment and urges stronger monetary and fiscal measures to boost growth Bloomberg

9

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

the recoveryrdquo first-quarter data support its expectation of more robust growth through the year BBVA reports that the 29 surge in consumer spending in the first quarter mdash the fastest since late 2006 mdash offset weakness elsewhere in the economy

Notably BBVA differed a bit from the Chicago Fed in noting a manufacturing slowdown in the first quarter But the prognosis for the year remains decent with 23 growth projected Contributing to GDP growth for the first time since the 2008-09 recession is the residential investment with several housing-related industries also showing slightly positive movements Among them fabric and textile mills household and institutional furniture and paint One more plus sector growth in services is helping offset some job losses in industry especially with cutbacks in mining and energy

The coming US fiscal cliff So wherersquos the brittle side in the American economic picture Like Europe the crack in the glass is a fiscal one the market-imposed imperative to reduce public deficits and debt At the stroke of midnight on December 31 the current regime of Bush-era middle-class tax breaks the 2011-12 payroll tax cut and growth-spurring budgetary spending turns into a pumpkin so to speak Add to the expiring state largesse the expected decline in defense outlays as waves of US troops come home from Afghanistan

How big is this removal of tax cuts and forced budget reductions Most economists estimate their combined value at 35 of GDP including $12 trillion in legislated spending cuts under the Democratic-Republican deal to raise the federal debt ceiling last August But Morgan Stanleyrsquos April 13 report ldquoHow Big Is the Fiscal

WHATrsquoS AHEAD FOR AMERICAThe Conference Board Forecasts 2011 Actual and 2012-13 Projections

2012 2013 2011 2012 2013

I Q II Q III Q IV Q I Q II Q ANNUAL ANNUAL ANNUAL

Real GDP 22 17 23 24 26 25 17 22 24Real Consumer Spending 29 24 25 27 26 23 22 23 24Housing Starts Mil Units 069 072 074 077 077 081 061 073 082Real Capital Spending -21 59 65 68 67 78 88 52 67Net Exports Bil lsquo00$ -4101 -4043 -3980 -3865 -3751 -3608 -4136 -3997 -3505

actual value

Table by The Conference Board

New risks for a fragile world recovery

10cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Cliff in 2013rdquo puts it at 5 Either way for an economy growing at less than 3 a reduction of 35-5 in state-funded demand would tip America into recession

Most forecasters believe that the US Congress will pass legislation to spread the fiscal pain over a longer period than all together on New Yearrsquos Day But that is not a sure thing especially in the fractious aftermath of national elections in November Even if another bipartisan deal is struck a substantial portion of the tax and spending squeeze will still be felt in 2013 making Morgan Stanley analysts wonder why many economists expect next yearrsquos growth to be faster than this year

Moreover they may be forgetting why those tax cuts and federal spending have to go in the first place market pressure to right Washingtonrsquos fiscal ship whose shakiness already led Standard amp Poorrsquos to downgrade US sovereign credit to below triple-A over a year ago If Congress puts off the January fiscal Armageddon without putting a credible deficit-and-debt reduction program

in its place the dollar and the governmentrsquos credit rating and costs will pay the price with negative impact on the economy

Hence Morgan Stanley expects some ldquomeaningfulrdquo budgetary and tax tightening next year ldquoan expiration of the payroll tax cut some rejigged spending cuts and other miscellaneous measures to lead to about a 15 of GDP fiscal tightening in 2013rdquo That forecast would pare one percentage point off next yearrsquos baseline expansion But even this mild scenario demands a big if that Democrats and Republicans after being hopelessly occupied before elections would find the time and inclination to enact the needed legislation between mid-November and the Christmas break as they did in 2010

Austerity and bailout fatigue But more than partisan politics the bigger difficulty in balancing fiscal reform and growth is the citizenryrsquos general unwillingness to sacrifice for balanced budgets whether they are cash-strapped Greeks or debt-ridden Americans ldquoPeople are saying lsquoAusterity austerity mdash

Former investment banker Michael Milken interviewing economist Nouriel Roubini People say lsquoAusterity austerity mdash wherersquos the growthlsquo Milken InstituteYouTube

11

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

WHERE ASIA SELLS

IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 pages 6 and 41

Correlation of Exports to China with Chinarsquos Exports to Asian Selected Economies

05

04

03

02

01

00

-01

2006-112000-05

New

Zea

land

Hon

g Ko

ng S

AR

Philip

pine

s

Aust

ralia

Thai

land

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Indo

nesi

a

Sing

apor

e

Kore

a

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Share of Exports Linked to Demand from Europe

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

Sing

apor

e

Thai

land

Kore

a

Chi

na

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Indo

nesi

a

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Philip

pine

s

In percent of exports linked to demand outside Asia In percent of GDP

12cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

New risks for a fragile world recovery

where is growthrsquordquo says economist Nouriel Roubini in his May 3 Milken Institute interview The New York University professor who famously predicted the 2008 US financial crisis thinks that due to this austerity fatigue ldquoeither this year or next Greece is highly likely to default on its debt and exit the eurozonerdquo (On the other hand he also mentions bailout fatigue in countries like Germany tired of paying billions for financial rescues)

In his Project Syndicate article ldquoGreece Must Exitrdquo Roubini spells out what he believes is the only way forward for Athens ldquoGreece is stuck in a vicious cycle of insolvency lost competitiveness external deficits and ever-deepening depression The only way to stop it is to begin an orderly default and exit coordinated and financed by the European Central Bank the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (the lsquoTroikarsquo) that minimizes collateral damage to Greece and the rest of the eurozonerdquo He sets out an ugly but in his view unavoidable scenario of managing Greek default And if that horror story whets onersquos appetite for more try ldquoGet Ready for the Spanish Bailoutrdquo

What about America Will it bite the bullet Or will it too become a ldquotrain wreckrdquo as Roubini says of Europersquos fiscal landscape in his talk with former investment banker Michael Milken If so will the American economy tank not to mention the worldrsquos And what is Asia to do in the continuing economic malaise in big markets

That is the subject of the IMFrsquos Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 subtitled ldquoManaging Spillovers and Advancing Economic Rebalancing The report assesses the likely impact on Asia of the Westrsquos economic and financial troubles and recommends measures to address it The Fund also urges measures to rebalance the regionrsquos economies away from export dependence and toward greater reliance on domestic consumption and investment spending for economic growth

In a world of turmoil that is exactly the formula to keep Asia growing

GROWING ASIA

Real GDP Change in 2011 and 2012-13 Forecast 2011 2012 2013

Industrial Asia -02 22 20 Australia 20 30 35 Japan -07 20 17 New Zealand 14 23 32East Asia 82 73 80 China 92 82 88 Hong Kong SAR 50 26 42 Korea 36 35 40 Taiwan Province of China 40 36 47South Asia 71 68 72 Bangladesh 61 59 64 India 71 69 73 Sri Lanka 82 75 70ASEAN 46 52 60 Brunei Darussalam 19 32 16 Cambodia 61 62 64 Indonesia 65 61 66 Lao PDR 83 84 71 Malaysia 51 44 47 Myanmar 55 60 59 Philippines 37 42 47 Singapore 49 27 39 Thailand 01 55 75 Vietnam 59 56 63Emerging Asia 74 69 75

source IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 page 5

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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    3. Page 33
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      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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            1. Page 4 Off
            2. Page 6
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            25. Page 52
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                2. Page 6
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                        2. Page 7
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 8: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

9

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

the recoveryrdquo first-quarter data support its expectation of more robust growth through the year BBVA reports that the 29 surge in consumer spending in the first quarter mdash the fastest since late 2006 mdash offset weakness elsewhere in the economy

Notably BBVA differed a bit from the Chicago Fed in noting a manufacturing slowdown in the first quarter But the prognosis for the year remains decent with 23 growth projected Contributing to GDP growth for the first time since the 2008-09 recession is the residential investment with several housing-related industries also showing slightly positive movements Among them fabric and textile mills household and institutional furniture and paint One more plus sector growth in services is helping offset some job losses in industry especially with cutbacks in mining and energy

The coming US fiscal cliff So wherersquos the brittle side in the American economic picture Like Europe the crack in the glass is a fiscal one the market-imposed imperative to reduce public deficits and debt At the stroke of midnight on December 31 the current regime of Bush-era middle-class tax breaks the 2011-12 payroll tax cut and growth-spurring budgetary spending turns into a pumpkin so to speak Add to the expiring state largesse the expected decline in defense outlays as waves of US troops come home from Afghanistan

How big is this removal of tax cuts and forced budget reductions Most economists estimate their combined value at 35 of GDP including $12 trillion in legislated spending cuts under the Democratic-Republican deal to raise the federal debt ceiling last August But Morgan Stanleyrsquos April 13 report ldquoHow Big Is the Fiscal

WHATrsquoS AHEAD FOR AMERICAThe Conference Board Forecasts 2011 Actual and 2012-13 Projections

2012 2013 2011 2012 2013

I Q II Q III Q IV Q I Q II Q ANNUAL ANNUAL ANNUAL

Real GDP 22 17 23 24 26 25 17 22 24Real Consumer Spending 29 24 25 27 26 23 22 23 24Housing Starts Mil Units 069 072 074 077 077 081 061 073 082Real Capital Spending -21 59 65 68 67 78 88 52 67Net Exports Bil lsquo00$ -4101 -4043 -3980 -3865 -3751 -3608 -4136 -3997 -3505

actual value

Table by The Conference Board

New risks for a fragile world recovery

10cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Cliff in 2013rdquo puts it at 5 Either way for an economy growing at less than 3 a reduction of 35-5 in state-funded demand would tip America into recession

Most forecasters believe that the US Congress will pass legislation to spread the fiscal pain over a longer period than all together on New Yearrsquos Day But that is not a sure thing especially in the fractious aftermath of national elections in November Even if another bipartisan deal is struck a substantial portion of the tax and spending squeeze will still be felt in 2013 making Morgan Stanley analysts wonder why many economists expect next yearrsquos growth to be faster than this year

Moreover they may be forgetting why those tax cuts and federal spending have to go in the first place market pressure to right Washingtonrsquos fiscal ship whose shakiness already led Standard amp Poorrsquos to downgrade US sovereign credit to below triple-A over a year ago If Congress puts off the January fiscal Armageddon without putting a credible deficit-and-debt reduction program

in its place the dollar and the governmentrsquos credit rating and costs will pay the price with negative impact on the economy

Hence Morgan Stanley expects some ldquomeaningfulrdquo budgetary and tax tightening next year ldquoan expiration of the payroll tax cut some rejigged spending cuts and other miscellaneous measures to lead to about a 15 of GDP fiscal tightening in 2013rdquo That forecast would pare one percentage point off next yearrsquos baseline expansion But even this mild scenario demands a big if that Democrats and Republicans after being hopelessly occupied before elections would find the time and inclination to enact the needed legislation between mid-November and the Christmas break as they did in 2010

Austerity and bailout fatigue But more than partisan politics the bigger difficulty in balancing fiscal reform and growth is the citizenryrsquos general unwillingness to sacrifice for balanced budgets whether they are cash-strapped Greeks or debt-ridden Americans ldquoPeople are saying lsquoAusterity austerity mdash

Former investment banker Michael Milken interviewing economist Nouriel Roubini People say lsquoAusterity austerity mdash wherersquos the growthlsquo Milken InstituteYouTube

11

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

WHERE ASIA SELLS

IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 pages 6 and 41

Correlation of Exports to China with Chinarsquos Exports to Asian Selected Economies

05

04

03

02

01

00

-01

2006-112000-05

New

Zea

land

Hon

g Ko

ng S

AR

Philip

pine

s

Aust

ralia

Thai

land

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Indo

nesi

a

Sing

apor

e

Kore

a

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Share of Exports Linked to Demand from Europe

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

Sing

apor

e

Thai

land

Kore

a

Chi

na

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Indo

nesi

a

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Philip

pine

s

In percent of exports linked to demand outside Asia In percent of GDP

12cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

New risks for a fragile world recovery

where is growthrsquordquo says economist Nouriel Roubini in his May 3 Milken Institute interview The New York University professor who famously predicted the 2008 US financial crisis thinks that due to this austerity fatigue ldquoeither this year or next Greece is highly likely to default on its debt and exit the eurozonerdquo (On the other hand he also mentions bailout fatigue in countries like Germany tired of paying billions for financial rescues)

In his Project Syndicate article ldquoGreece Must Exitrdquo Roubini spells out what he believes is the only way forward for Athens ldquoGreece is stuck in a vicious cycle of insolvency lost competitiveness external deficits and ever-deepening depression The only way to stop it is to begin an orderly default and exit coordinated and financed by the European Central Bank the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (the lsquoTroikarsquo) that minimizes collateral damage to Greece and the rest of the eurozonerdquo He sets out an ugly but in his view unavoidable scenario of managing Greek default And if that horror story whets onersquos appetite for more try ldquoGet Ready for the Spanish Bailoutrdquo

What about America Will it bite the bullet Or will it too become a ldquotrain wreckrdquo as Roubini says of Europersquos fiscal landscape in his talk with former investment banker Michael Milken If so will the American economy tank not to mention the worldrsquos And what is Asia to do in the continuing economic malaise in big markets

That is the subject of the IMFrsquos Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 subtitled ldquoManaging Spillovers and Advancing Economic Rebalancing The report assesses the likely impact on Asia of the Westrsquos economic and financial troubles and recommends measures to address it The Fund also urges measures to rebalance the regionrsquos economies away from export dependence and toward greater reliance on domestic consumption and investment spending for economic growth

In a world of turmoil that is exactly the formula to keep Asia growing

GROWING ASIA

Real GDP Change in 2011 and 2012-13 Forecast 2011 2012 2013

Industrial Asia -02 22 20 Australia 20 30 35 Japan -07 20 17 New Zealand 14 23 32East Asia 82 73 80 China 92 82 88 Hong Kong SAR 50 26 42 Korea 36 35 40 Taiwan Province of China 40 36 47South Asia 71 68 72 Bangladesh 61 59 64 India 71 69 73 Sri Lanka 82 75 70ASEAN 46 52 60 Brunei Darussalam 19 32 16 Cambodia 61 62 64 Indonesia 65 61 66 Lao PDR 83 84 71 Malaysia 51 44 47 Myanmar 55 60 59 Philippines 37 42 47 Singapore 49 27 39 Thailand 01 55 75 Vietnam 59 56 63Emerging Asia 74 69 75

source IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 page 5

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

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Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        1. Page 3 Off
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                2. Page 6
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 9: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

10cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Cliff in 2013rdquo puts it at 5 Either way for an economy growing at less than 3 a reduction of 35-5 in state-funded demand would tip America into recession

Most forecasters believe that the US Congress will pass legislation to spread the fiscal pain over a longer period than all together on New Yearrsquos Day But that is not a sure thing especially in the fractious aftermath of national elections in November Even if another bipartisan deal is struck a substantial portion of the tax and spending squeeze will still be felt in 2013 making Morgan Stanley analysts wonder why many economists expect next yearrsquos growth to be faster than this year

Moreover they may be forgetting why those tax cuts and federal spending have to go in the first place market pressure to right Washingtonrsquos fiscal ship whose shakiness already led Standard amp Poorrsquos to downgrade US sovereign credit to below triple-A over a year ago If Congress puts off the January fiscal Armageddon without putting a credible deficit-and-debt reduction program

in its place the dollar and the governmentrsquos credit rating and costs will pay the price with negative impact on the economy

Hence Morgan Stanley expects some ldquomeaningfulrdquo budgetary and tax tightening next year ldquoan expiration of the payroll tax cut some rejigged spending cuts and other miscellaneous measures to lead to about a 15 of GDP fiscal tightening in 2013rdquo That forecast would pare one percentage point off next yearrsquos baseline expansion But even this mild scenario demands a big if that Democrats and Republicans after being hopelessly occupied before elections would find the time and inclination to enact the needed legislation between mid-November and the Christmas break as they did in 2010

Austerity and bailout fatigue But more than partisan politics the bigger difficulty in balancing fiscal reform and growth is the citizenryrsquos general unwillingness to sacrifice for balanced budgets whether they are cash-strapped Greeks or debt-ridden Americans ldquoPeople are saying lsquoAusterity austerity mdash

Former investment banker Michael Milken interviewing economist Nouriel Roubini People say lsquoAusterity austerity mdash wherersquos the growthlsquo Milken InstituteYouTube

11

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

WHERE ASIA SELLS

IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 pages 6 and 41

Correlation of Exports to China with Chinarsquos Exports to Asian Selected Economies

05

04

03

02

01

00

-01

2006-112000-05

New

Zea

land

Hon

g Ko

ng S

AR

Philip

pine

s

Aust

ralia

Thai

land

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Indo

nesi

a

Sing

apor

e

Kore

a

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Share of Exports Linked to Demand from Europe

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

Sing

apor

e

Thai

land

Kore

a

Chi

na

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Indo

nesi

a

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Philip

pine

s

In percent of exports linked to demand outside Asia In percent of GDP

12cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

New risks for a fragile world recovery

where is growthrsquordquo says economist Nouriel Roubini in his May 3 Milken Institute interview The New York University professor who famously predicted the 2008 US financial crisis thinks that due to this austerity fatigue ldquoeither this year or next Greece is highly likely to default on its debt and exit the eurozonerdquo (On the other hand he also mentions bailout fatigue in countries like Germany tired of paying billions for financial rescues)

In his Project Syndicate article ldquoGreece Must Exitrdquo Roubini spells out what he believes is the only way forward for Athens ldquoGreece is stuck in a vicious cycle of insolvency lost competitiveness external deficits and ever-deepening depression The only way to stop it is to begin an orderly default and exit coordinated and financed by the European Central Bank the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (the lsquoTroikarsquo) that minimizes collateral damage to Greece and the rest of the eurozonerdquo He sets out an ugly but in his view unavoidable scenario of managing Greek default And if that horror story whets onersquos appetite for more try ldquoGet Ready for the Spanish Bailoutrdquo

What about America Will it bite the bullet Or will it too become a ldquotrain wreckrdquo as Roubini says of Europersquos fiscal landscape in his talk with former investment banker Michael Milken If so will the American economy tank not to mention the worldrsquos And what is Asia to do in the continuing economic malaise in big markets

That is the subject of the IMFrsquos Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 subtitled ldquoManaging Spillovers and Advancing Economic Rebalancing The report assesses the likely impact on Asia of the Westrsquos economic and financial troubles and recommends measures to address it The Fund also urges measures to rebalance the regionrsquos economies away from export dependence and toward greater reliance on domestic consumption and investment spending for economic growth

In a world of turmoil that is exactly the formula to keep Asia growing

GROWING ASIA

Real GDP Change in 2011 and 2012-13 Forecast 2011 2012 2013

Industrial Asia -02 22 20 Australia 20 30 35 Japan -07 20 17 New Zealand 14 23 32East Asia 82 73 80 China 92 82 88 Hong Kong SAR 50 26 42 Korea 36 35 40 Taiwan Province of China 40 36 47South Asia 71 68 72 Bangladesh 61 59 64 India 71 69 73 Sri Lanka 82 75 70ASEAN 46 52 60 Brunei Darussalam 19 32 16 Cambodia 61 62 64 Indonesia 65 61 66 Lao PDR 83 84 71 Malaysia 51 44 47 Myanmar 55 60 59 Philippines 37 42 47 Singapore 49 27 39 Thailand 01 55 75 Vietnam 59 56 63Emerging Asia 74 69 75

source IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 page 5

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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            25. Page 52
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Page 10: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

11

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

New risks for a fragile world recovery

WHERE ASIA SELLS

IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 pages 6 and 41

Correlation of Exports to China with Chinarsquos Exports to Asian Selected Economies

05

04

03

02

01

00

-01

2006-112000-05

New

Zea

land

Hon

g Ko

ng S

AR

Philip

pine

s

Aust

ralia

Thai

land

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Indo

nesi

a

Sing

apor

e

Kore

a

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Share of Exports Linked to Demand from Europe

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

Sing

apor

e

Thai

land

Kore

a

Chi

na

Taiw

an P

rovi

nce

of C

hina

Indo

nesi

a

Japa

n

Mal

aysi

a

Philip

pine

s

In percent of exports linked to demand outside Asia In percent of GDP

12cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

New risks for a fragile world recovery

where is growthrsquordquo says economist Nouriel Roubini in his May 3 Milken Institute interview The New York University professor who famously predicted the 2008 US financial crisis thinks that due to this austerity fatigue ldquoeither this year or next Greece is highly likely to default on its debt and exit the eurozonerdquo (On the other hand he also mentions bailout fatigue in countries like Germany tired of paying billions for financial rescues)

In his Project Syndicate article ldquoGreece Must Exitrdquo Roubini spells out what he believes is the only way forward for Athens ldquoGreece is stuck in a vicious cycle of insolvency lost competitiveness external deficits and ever-deepening depression The only way to stop it is to begin an orderly default and exit coordinated and financed by the European Central Bank the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (the lsquoTroikarsquo) that minimizes collateral damage to Greece and the rest of the eurozonerdquo He sets out an ugly but in his view unavoidable scenario of managing Greek default And if that horror story whets onersquos appetite for more try ldquoGet Ready for the Spanish Bailoutrdquo

What about America Will it bite the bullet Or will it too become a ldquotrain wreckrdquo as Roubini says of Europersquos fiscal landscape in his talk with former investment banker Michael Milken If so will the American economy tank not to mention the worldrsquos And what is Asia to do in the continuing economic malaise in big markets

That is the subject of the IMFrsquos Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 subtitled ldquoManaging Spillovers and Advancing Economic Rebalancing The report assesses the likely impact on Asia of the Westrsquos economic and financial troubles and recommends measures to address it The Fund also urges measures to rebalance the regionrsquos economies away from export dependence and toward greater reliance on domestic consumption and investment spending for economic growth

In a world of turmoil that is exactly the formula to keep Asia growing

GROWING ASIA

Real GDP Change in 2011 and 2012-13 Forecast 2011 2012 2013

Industrial Asia -02 22 20 Australia 20 30 35 Japan -07 20 17 New Zealand 14 23 32East Asia 82 73 80 China 92 82 88 Hong Kong SAR 50 26 42 Korea 36 35 40 Taiwan Province of China 40 36 47South Asia 71 68 72 Bangladesh 61 59 64 India 71 69 73 Sri Lanka 82 75 70ASEAN 46 52 60 Brunei Darussalam 19 32 16 Cambodia 61 62 64 Indonesia 65 61 66 Lao PDR 83 84 71 Malaysia 51 44 47 Myanmar 55 60 59 Philippines 37 42 47 Singapore 49 27 39 Thailand 01 55 75 Vietnam 59 56 63Emerging Asia 74 69 75

source IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 page 5

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

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44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

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            20. Page 42
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            24. Page 50
            25. Page 52
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                1. Page 4 Off
                2. Page 6
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                        2. Page 7
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Page 11: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

12cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

New risks for a fragile world recovery

where is growthrsquordquo says economist Nouriel Roubini in his May 3 Milken Institute interview The New York University professor who famously predicted the 2008 US financial crisis thinks that due to this austerity fatigue ldquoeither this year or next Greece is highly likely to default on its debt and exit the eurozonerdquo (On the other hand he also mentions bailout fatigue in countries like Germany tired of paying billions for financial rescues)

In his Project Syndicate article ldquoGreece Must Exitrdquo Roubini spells out what he believes is the only way forward for Athens ldquoGreece is stuck in a vicious cycle of insolvency lost competitiveness external deficits and ever-deepening depression The only way to stop it is to begin an orderly default and exit coordinated and financed by the European Central Bank the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (the lsquoTroikarsquo) that minimizes collateral damage to Greece and the rest of the eurozonerdquo He sets out an ugly but in his view unavoidable scenario of managing Greek default And if that horror story whets onersquos appetite for more try ldquoGet Ready for the Spanish Bailoutrdquo

What about America Will it bite the bullet Or will it too become a ldquotrain wreckrdquo as Roubini says of Europersquos fiscal landscape in his talk with former investment banker Michael Milken If so will the American economy tank not to mention the worldrsquos And what is Asia to do in the continuing economic malaise in big markets

That is the subject of the IMFrsquos Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 subtitled ldquoManaging Spillovers and Advancing Economic Rebalancing The report assesses the likely impact on Asia of the Westrsquos economic and financial troubles and recommends measures to address it The Fund also urges measures to rebalance the regionrsquos economies away from export dependence and toward greater reliance on domestic consumption and investment spending for economic growth

In a world of turmoil that is exactly the formula to keep Asia growing

GROWING ASIA

Real GDP Change in 2011 and 2012-13 Forecast 2011 2012 2013

Industrial Asia -02 22 20 Australia 20 30 35 Japan -07 20 17 New Zealand 14 23 32East Asia 82 73 80 China 92 82 88 Hong Kong SAR 50 26 42 Korea 36 35 40 Taiwan Province of China 40 36 47South Asia 71 68 72 Bangladesh 61 59 64 India 71 69 73 Sri Lanka 82 75 70ASEAN 46 52 60 Brunei Darussalam 19 32 16 Cambodia 61 62 64 Indonesia 65 61 66 Lao PDR 83 84 71 Malaysia 51 44 47 Myanmar 55 60 59 Philippines 37 42 47 Singapore 49 27 39 Thailand 01 55 75 Vietnam 59 56 63Emerging Asia 74 69 75

source IMF Regional Economic Outlook Asia Pacific April 2012 page 5

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

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Page 12: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

13

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Business

SBMA upbeat on lsquoSubic BPO Cityrsquo projectSubic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto V Garcia shared his positive outlook for the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the region recently as he address more than 200 graduating students of Olongapo Citys AMA College

Banking on the infrastructure projects within the freeport zone Garcia said that his management team has made plans to establish a BPO City inside Subic You are lucky he assured the graduates because there are lots of jobs waiting for you in the Subic Freeport

Further explanation from Garcia revealed that the future of BPO and Information Technology businesses in general has become very promising for the Philippines especially after it overtook India as the call center capital of the world The planned Subic BPO City seeks to capitalize on the rising trend and is poised to create jobs for more than 20000 IT-BPO workers by 2016 In fact PLDTs Vitro Data Center was recently launched in the area to help spur the local growth of the IT and BPO industry

The developments in Subic are only part of a concentrated effort by the government through the Department of Science and Technology Information and

Communications Technology Office to aim for a higher 2016 revenue target from the IT-BPO industry ndash raising it from $25 billion to $274 billion

PH conglomerates post higher Q1 profitsImproved economic activity in the country during the first quarter of 2012 appears to have boosted several of the Philippines leading conglomerates Last month Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings Inc was optimistic about its profits for this year due to a rising consumer demand for its varied products Accordingly the companys first quarter net income rose 767 to ₧491 billion in comparison to compared to ₧278 billion during the first quarter of 2011

Similarly Gotianun family-led Filinvest Development Corp (FDC) posted a consolidated net income of ₧121 billion in the first quarter of 2012 61 higher than the ₧114 billion from first quarter numbers last year FDCs real estate business accounted for 51 of the total revenues

Meanwhile GT Capital Holdings flagship of tycoon George Ty registered a net income of ₧13 billion in the first quarter of this year an increase of 505 from 2011 numbers

Lopez Holdings Corp ndash with a 603 economic interest in ABS-

CBN and 466 in First Philippine Holdings Corporation as of December 2011 ndash experienced a first-quarter net income increase of 192 to ₧263 billion compared to ₧902 million recorded during the same period last year However ABS-CBN itself posted a staggering profit drop of 69 for the first three months of 2012

Shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines to hire at least 10000 workersSouth Korean Shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries amp Construction-Philippines Inc (HHIC) through HHIC president Jin Kyu Ahn has announced that it is planning to hire at least 10000 more workers this 2012 for its shipyard in Zambales Subic Bay Freeport Zone The company has about 20000 local employees currently The Hanjin official noted that the promised jobs would clearly benefit the Philippine economy and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers and much needed revenue to the Philippine government

According to the Maritime Industry Authority the Philippines is the worldrsquos fourth-largest shipbuilding country The arrival of foreign shipbuilders such as HHIC in the country is a major factor that has spurred the growth of this industry at the same time that overseas Filipino workers are in demand in foreign shipyards

14cenSEI

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Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
          1. Button 15
            1. Page 4 Off
            2. Page 6
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            22. Page 46
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            24. Page 50
            25. Page 52
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                1. Page 4 Off
                2. Page 6
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                24. Page 50
                25. Page 52
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                        2. Page 7
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 13: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

14cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

NATION

In Pursuit of Rice Self-Sufficiency by 2013Promised pursued and probably attainable but at what costBy Joanne Angela B Marzan

ersquoll achieve rice self-sufficiency after 2013 so beginning 2014

Next year we anticipate nakulangin tayo konti na lang [Next year we anticipate the shortfall to be minimal] Well start to export next year Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told the ABS-CBN news channel in a May 4 report posted on the abs-cbn news website

In fact Secretary Alcala mentioned in a May 9 press conference of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that the countryrsquos production target of palay (paddy rice) is ldquoon trackrdquo at 399 million metric tons (MMT) for the 1st quarter and 385 MMT for the 2nd quarter for a combined 784 MMT for the first semester of the year This means that the country has reached 42 of its 1846 MMT palay production target for the year

Meanwhile President Benigno Simeon C Aquino echoed this promised milestone to the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attending the 45thAnnual Meeting in Manila from May 2-5 2012 But not before taking a swipe at the previous administration

During his ADB speech President Aquino said ldquoRice imported at inflated cost by the government was rotting away in rented warehousesrdquo and then proudly announced that through the reforms implemented by his administration the Philippines is ldquoless than a year away from being a net exporter of ricerdquo should the weather cooperate

STRATEGY POINTSThe Department of Agriculture is optimistic that by 2014 one of President Aquinos agricultural milestones of rice self-sufficiency would finally be attained even as some wonder whether this target can be achieved with middling economic growth and a rapidly growing population

A couple of papers from Philippine Institute for Development Studies have examined the countrys historic rice self-sufficiency policies and blame them for causing soaring rice prices that threaten the food security of the poorest sectors of society

Rice self-sufficiency is a most worthy goal but not at the expense of food security

ldquoW

rdquo

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

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38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

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40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

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42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

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44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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Page 14: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

15

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Whether its Agriculture Secretary Alcala you want to hold to his promise of rice self-sufficiency by 2014 or President Aquino to his promise of rice self-sufficiency within a year of his speech to the ADB Board of Governors in May it would look as if the goal is seen as eminently doable if not practically a fait accompli

And with all that we would now like to ask whether rice self-sufficiency is

in fact worth all the fuss

To put things in some perspective the Philippines might be the worlds largest importer of rice but its not as if the Philippines doesnt produce a lot of rice In fact according to the table below from

ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo by Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio of the National Statistics Coordination Board in 2008 the Philippines produced the eighth-most rice in the world

13 In this video clip President Aquino expounds on the accomplishments of his administration during the 45th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of GovernorsABS-CBN

Country 2008 (in tonnes) RankChina 193354180 1India 148770000 2Indonesia 60251000 3Bangladesh 46742000 4Viet Nam 38725100 5Myanmar 32573000 6Thailand 31650600 7Philippines 16815500 8Brazil 12061500 9Japan 11028800 10

2008 TOP 10 PRODUCERS OF RICE PADDY

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and

Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
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Page 15: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

16cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

According to statistics from the afore-mentioned article provided in the table above in 1980 the Philippines exported the third-largest quantity of rice in Southeast Asia after Thailand and Myanmar In fact up until 1992 the Philippines was still rice self-sufficient enough to be a net exporter of rice

The problem is that in 1993 the Philippinesrsquo rice consumption fueled by an ever-growing population started to overtake its production In 2008 the Philippines imported 25 million metric tons of rice highest in the world fueled by both its fast-growing population and a global food crisis

For all the progress the country has made and is making in rice production one noted agriculturist believes that President Aquinorsquos ldquoreiteration of the policy of self-sufficiency in rice is a political strategy and not a poverty strategyrdquo

According to Dr Emil Q Javier president of the National Academy of Science and Technology rice self-sufficiency will not be

achieved because of ldquoour still unresolved population management policy as well as the relative slow rise in family incomesrdquo

At a March Department of Agriculture symposium about ldquoBroad-based Strategies for Food Security and Changing World Food Marketsrdquo Dr Javier posited that ldquo until such time that our economy consistently attains high growth rates like our neighbors diversification of food preference from rice to other food commodities associated with increasing incomes will be relatively slow Thus total effective demand of rice will continue to rise in the intermediate futurerdquo

Politics and rice have always gone together The historical relationship between politics and rice was discussed in the July 2005 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) discussion paper Rice and Philippine Politics by Ponciano S Intal Jr and Marissa C Garcia

The study said that rice has been a ldquopivotal political commodity since the Commonwealthrdquo for rice has become

ASEAN EXPORTER

ASEAN Country

1970 (in tonnes)

Rank 1980 (in tonnes)

Rank 1990 (in tonnes)

Rank 2000 (in tonnes)

Thailand 1047460 1 2762920 1 3557820 1 5282160Viet Nam 18479 5 33300 4 1624000 2 3476980Myanmar 640964 2 653100 2 213600 3 251400Singapore 33859 4 13342 5 1964 4 4105Cambodia 177688 3 - - - - 4860Philippines - - 256390 3 2 6 224Malaysia 70 6 - - 57 5 63Indonesia - - 10003 6 - - 196Brunei Darussalam

- - - - - - F

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

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38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

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40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

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42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

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44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

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Page 16: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

17

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

S OF RICE MILLED

Rank 2005(in tonnes)

Rank 2006 (in tonnes)

Rank 2007 (in tonnes)

Rank 2008 (in tonnes)

Rank

1 6043550 1 5996420 1 7408300 1 8672450 12 5250000 2 4642000 2 4558000 2 4735170 23 180000 3 71180 R 3 358500 3 40924 R 35 82239 4 67070 4 74872 4 13607 44 1384 R 7 3444 R 5 1170 R 5 4299 R 56 75 R 8 1370 R 6 68 R 7 1298 R 68 1531 6 1157 7 54 8 860 77 42280 5 907 8 336 6 429 8- - F - 369 R 9 - - 14 R 9

Source ldquoRice Self-Sufficiency or Rice Security Some Statistics on Rice and Exportsrdquo Aug 8 2011 posted in ldquoStatistically Speakingrdquo Dr Romulo A Virola and Mark C Pascasio National Statistics Coordination Board

A matter of geographyHow did the Philippines which has long been in the forefront of rice research with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Laguna become the worldrsquos top importer of rice A 2006 study ldquoWhy Does the Philippines Import Rice Meeting the challenge of trade liberalizationrdquo published by the IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) offered an interesting if not very obvious answer to its self-posed question The main reason it turns out might not owe so much to bad politicians corruption incompetence or laziness as it might to basic geography

ldquoExporters occupy river deltas with lots of land in general and lots of land suitable for rice in particular These countries are all located in mainland Southeast Asia Thailand Vietnam Cambodia and Myanmarrdquo the study explained The Philippines for its part is an island nation without any major river deltas one of a number of similarly configured Asian nations who have been historical rice importers ndash Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia and Sri Lanka

In addition the IRRI and PhilRice study also defended the Filipino farmer

ldquoSome may think the Filipino farmer is simply backward and cannot produce rice efficiently But a detailed survey of farmers in the various rice bowls of Asia found that Filipino farmers were among the leaders in reducing insecticide use and have progressed farther in mechanizing land preparation and postharvest operations than their counterparts in any other developing Asian country except Thailandrdquo the study claimed

the ldquostaple food and calorie source for majority of the population especially in the low-income groupsrdquo As such the study continued a strong relationship between rice and politics can be seen throughout the countryrsquos history The

report claimed that the price of rice has been a ldquosignificant determinant in election results since the 1950srdquo

However the study also criticized the governmentrsquos use of ldquoprice intervention

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        3. Page 33
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Page 17: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

18cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

instrumentsrdquo which has favored rice farmers over consumers The shift to high nominal protection rates results in higher domestic prices for rice to benefit producers while lower nominal protection rates imply low domestic prices that would favor consumers

ldquo[R]eliance by the Philippine government primarily on price instruments to achieve its rice objectives and to protect farmer and consumer interests has not resulted in any substantial improvements in rice production In fact the shift to rice protection since the 1980s has failed to stabilize domestic rice prices and has effectively penalized the poorer householdsrdquo

lsquoObsolete and increasingly untenablersquo A more recent PIDS Policy Notes reiterated that the countryrsquos rice self-sufficiency policies are ldquoobsolete and increasingly untenablerdquo

A May 2011 PIDS Policy Notes brief ldquoPutting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food securityrdquo by Roehlano Briones and Danileen Kristel Parel assailed the countryrsquos special treatment of rice since 1994 as approved by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through the granting of a Quantitative Restriction (QR) on rice imports to protect rice farmers has led to higher prices of rice which affect the poorest of the poor

The WTO defines QR as ldquospecific limits on the quantity or value of goods that can be imported (or exported)

during a specific time periodrdquo The PIDS study explained that the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to set

The NFArsquos ₧100-billion problemThe National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated to guarantee ldquothe food security of the country and the stability of supply and price of the staple grain-ricerdquo As such NFA is the government agency tasked to ensure that rice supply remains affordable for the Filipino amidst soaring rice prices

Perhaps it should come as no surprise then that according to a recently released 2009 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) the NFA lost more than P100 billion in 10 years trying to balance food security with stable prices as reported in a May 18 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Inquirer report said ldquoHuge rice imports and a policy of buying high selling low and storing long have resulted in the National Food Authority losing more than ₧100 billion in a span of 10 yearsrdquo

In 2008 alone COA said that the NFA suffered its biggest net loss of ₧3220 billion due to the global

13 GROSS REVENUES AND EXPENSES

900008000070000600005000040000300002000010000

0

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Gross Revenues

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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Page 18: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

19

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

annually the volume of rice to be imported by the country while taking into consideration a recommendation by an inter-agency committee

The countryrsquos QR on rice will however expire on June 30 2012 The PIDS study believes that it was about time the country lifted the

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

Debt

13 13

food crisis In 2009 the NFA lost ₧2642 billion its second biggest loss ever In 2006 the NFA lost ₧1097 billion ₧666 billion in 2003 ₧647 billion in 2004 ₧512 in 2005 ₧428 billion in 2000 ₧412 in 2002 ₧289 in 2007 and finally ₧175 billion in 2001

For its part the Inquirer report said that the NFA told the COA that ldquoits policy of buying high selling low and storing long which is causing the rice trading agency to operate at a loss was part of its social mandate to help farmers and ensure the countryrsquos security and stability in its staple foodrdquo The NFA also said that it has continuously appealed to the government to ldquoincrease the selling price of rice in order to reduce its loss or at least allow it to break evenrdquo but these requests have fallen on deaf ears

Meanwhile the May 2011 Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes

Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security by Roehlano M Briones and Danileen Kristel C Parel also considered the NFArsquos policy of lsquobuy high sell lowrsquo as the main reason for the ldquofinancial hemorrhagerdquo plaguing the agency

PIDS however also mentioned other reasons for the NFArsquos big losses some of which include ldquooperational inefficiencies such as low stock turnover poor financial management information system overstaffing and administrative costs policy constraints and bureaucratic processes and weak equity baserdquo

The figures below (left) illustrate the NFArsquos gross revenues vis-agrave-vis expenses from 1994-2009 and a comparison of the NFArsquos net worth and debt over the same period (right)

Source Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Policy Notes Putting Rice on the Table rice policy the WTO and food security

OF THE NFA NET WORTH AND DEBT OF THE NFA (IN MILLIONS)

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Expenses

Net

Wor

th a

nd D

ebt o

f the

NFA

(milli

on p

esos

)

160000140000120000100000

80000600004000020000

0-20000-40000-60000-80000

-100000-120000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Net Worth

20cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

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36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

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42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        1. Page 3 Off
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        3. Page 33
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Page 19: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

20cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

rice-importation limit in order to make rice more affordable to consumers

ldquoThis study recommends against negotiating a further extension of the special treatment for rice under the WTO After 2012 the rice QR should be tariffied that is importation is liberalized subject to payment of custom duties This eliminates the problem of setting up a fair efficient and credible allocation of the import quotardquo the PIDS brief proposed

The authors attribute the high cost of self-sufficiency to the countryrsquos lack of comparative advantage in rice production and argue that under import liberalization farmers would shift to

other crops where the country does have comparative advantage

The PIDS proposal might be falling on deaf ears as NFA administrator Lito Banayo admitted in a May 15 Philippine Star article that negotiations for the extension of the QR on rice have begun ldquoWe need to find out if we can get the support of countries we are negotiating with for the extension of the special treatment on ricerdquo Banayo said He added that ongoing negotiations were in preparation for the June 22 meeting with the WTO Council for Trade in Goods

Additionally the report added that in October 2011 Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said that the country would offer

The Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 aims to 1 Produce at least 2111 and 2249 million tons of palay by end of 2013 and 2016 2 Maintain per capita rice consumption at 120 kgyear and 3 Increase production of non-rice staples by 35 annually Non-rice staples include white corn cassava and sweet potato

A three-pronged approach is designed by the government in order to achieve self-sufficiency in food staples

1 Increasing and sustaining the gains in production2 Mechanizing and reducing post harvest losses 3 Managing consumption

More specifically the interventions identified by the government to increase production are1 Development and maintenance of irrigation systems2 Increase farmersrsquo access to quality seeds

3 Research amp Development and promotion of appropriate technologies4 Extension and farmers education5 Development of upland rice-based farming systems

Meanwhile enabling mechanisms are to be implemented to help reach the self-sufficiency target These are 1 Reforming the National Food Authority2 Accessibility of credit3 Crop insurance4 Safeguard irrigated rice from conversion

The budgetary requirement needed to achieve 100 self-sufficiency in food staples by 2016 is set at ₧14194 billion Of this amount ₧9747 billion or 69 has been allocated for irrigation ₧1854 billion or 13 for farm mechanization and postharvest loss reduction ₧1769 billion or 12 for research development and education ₧4 billion or 3 for regulatory policy formulation and seed buffer stocking and

The Aquino administrationrsquos road to self-sufficiency in food staples

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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                        2. Page 7
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 20: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

21

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

lower tariffs for rice imports to convince other countries to agree on a QR extension From the current 40 duty imposed on rice imports within the minimum access volume (MAV) of 350000 metric tons Secretary Alcala said that the tariff would be lowered to 35 Meanwhile rice imports beyond the MAV are imposed a huge 50 tariff

The perils of rice import restrictions A March 2011 Australian National University Working Paper in Trade and Development ldquoFood Security vs Food Self-Sufficiency The Indonesian Caserdquo by Peter Warr also discusses the perils of promoting rice-importation restrictions as a policy for achieving self-sufficiency in an Indonesian setting

Up until the early 2000s Indonesia was the worldrsquos largest importer of rice In 2004 the Indonesian government imposed an import-restriction policy similar to the Philippines which led to a 28 increase in domestic rice prices in relation to world market prices in 2006 According to the study thehigher cost of rice prices resulted in a 25 increase in poverty incidence in Indonesia

ldquoThe argument being advanced here is not that Indonesiarsquos self-sufficiency policy is a bad idea but that protection policy (the import ban) as an instrument of achieving it results in unnecessary social costs and places food self-sufficiency into

₧425 billion or 3 for balance fertilization and sustainable agriculture

In President Benigno Aquino IIIrsquos 2012 budget message he announced that the Department of Agriculture (DA) got the biggest budget increase 536 from a budget of ₧352 billion in 2011 to ₧541 billion in 2012 making it the fifth-largest department in government

Meanwhile the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) Agriculture Cluster a program under thecivil-society initiative Social Watch Philippines is concerned that the government is placing too much focus on irrigation which has led to infrastructure getting the biggest share in the DArsquos 2012 budget

ldquoWhile it supports the budget increase the ABI Agriculture Working Group raises cautionin the over-emphasis to irrigation projects -- NIA [National Irrigation Authority] in particular--- without first the benefit of an inventory of its assets and

assessment of its accomplishments particularly in the last three years when its budget had risen to significant levels in an effort to mitigate the rice crisis in 2008rdquo the press release prepared by the Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) said

The ABI Agriculture Working Group reiterated that while they are one with the government in believing that the ldquomain driver in propelling rice production is irrigationrdquo findings coming from the Commission of Audit [COA] raises doubt over NIArsquos capability to implement large scale irrigation projects

As an example the ABI Agriculture Working Group said that in a 2009 COA audit report COA failed to ldquovalidaterdquo about 93 of ldquoNIArsquos Property Plant and Equipment (including irrigation canals and laterals) under its General Fund amounting to ₧ 64237 billion due to accounting deficiencies inadequate subsidiary records and non-reconciliation of inventory reports with accounting recordsrdquo

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

22cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

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                        2. Page 7
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Page 21: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

22cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

conflict with the goals of food security and poverty reductionrdquo the study argues

For Warr a more sustainable strategy for attaining self-sufficiency is the promotion of ldquoimproved agricultural productivityrdquo which he explains ldquoreduces imports by raising agricultural output but does so without raising the domestic price of food and so without creating a conflict between the goals of higher levels of self-sufficiency on the one hand and food security and poverty reduction on the otherrdquo

Hence if we examine closely the governmentrsquos food self-sufficiency banner program Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap 2011-2016 much emphasis has been given to increasing rice productivity

Admittedly much attention has been given to rice and rightly so For the average Filipino rice is needed to satisfy hunger and for the government rice self-sufficiency would be a source of national pride

While we laud the government for wanting to achieve rice self-sufficiency what is important is that food security should not suffer in pursuit of this goal Put

Waste not want notldquoEvery Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily which is equivalent to 33 kilograms per yearrdquo according to an article ldquoThat Rice You Throw Awayrdquo published in the April ndash June 2012 edition of Rice Today magazine from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (p27)

ldquoWith 94 million people and 9 grams of wasted rice per day the total wastage is 308000 tonshellip or 36 percent of the 2011 rice importsrdquo the IRRI article explains The price tag for the rice wastage is a whopping ₧23 million (US$535000) every day or about ₧83 billion a year ldquoenough to feed 3 million peoplerdquo

Meanwhile the 2011 study Global Food Losses and Food Wastes by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said that about 13 of food produced or about 13 billion tons is lost or wasted globally every year

It comes as no surprise however that based on the study industrialized countries waste more than developing countries ldquoWe estimate that the per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North-America is 95-115 kgyear while this figure in Sub-Saharan Africa and SouthSoutheast Asia is only 6-11 kgyearrdquo said the report

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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Page 22: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

23

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

another way it would be most ironic if attaining rice self-sufficiency were to cause more hunger and poverty for the Filipino

In a nutshell what really matters is that there is enough rice for everyone to afford The rest is well just caramelized topping on the biko

In pursuit of rice self-sufficiency by 2013

In connection with this FAO also studies the causes of food losses and waste in middle to high-income countries as well as in developing nations In the middle to high-income countries food losses and waste can be attributed to ldquoconsumer behaviour as well as to a lack of coordination between different actors in the supply chainrdquo

ldquoFood can be wasted due to quality standards which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance At the consumer level insufficient purchase planning and expiring lsquobest-before-datesrsquo also cause large amounts of waste in combination with the careless attitude of those consumers who can afford to waste foodrdquo the FAO report explained

The same cannot be said for developing countries though The FAO identifies ldquofinancial managerial and technical limitations in harvesting techniques

storage and cooling facilities in difficult climatic conditions infrastructure packaging and marketing systemsrdquo as the main reasons of food losses and waste in low-income countries

ldquoGiven that many smallholder farmers in developing countries live on the margins of food insecurity a

reduction in food losses could have an immediate and significant impact on their livelihoodsrdquo the FAO report stressed

In response to alarming data on food losses and wastage the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the Save Rice Save Lives campaign The campaign

ldquoencourages Filipinos to lsquoEat their rice rightrsquomdashthe right amount and no leftoversrdquo

Above is one of the advocacy materials producedby PhilRice

13 Save Rice Save Lives advocacy TVC by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) YouTube

24cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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Page 23: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

24cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS

The lsquoNewrsquo Bangsamoro Governance Entity

By Atty John Carlo Gil M Sadian

Can this newly proposed solution to the Moro problem finally bring peace to the Land of Promise

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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Page 24: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

25

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

STRATEGY POINTSThe prospects for peace in Mindanao got a boost in late April when the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front announced an agreement in principle on several decision points including the establishment of a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

The devil might still be in the details as implementation of decision points related to the new proposed political entity -- eg revenue-sharing and the expansion of Sharirsquoah law -- will still be subject to negotiation

late April news emerged of a ldquobreakthroughrdquo in the 15-year-

old peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) The ldquobreakthroughrdquo revolves around a document ldquoGPH-MILF Decision Points on Principlesrdquo that mentions ldquoa new autonomous political entityrdquo that would ultimately replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) This comes two months after lead negotiators from both sides expressed pessimism about concluding negotiations in the near future

It should be remembered that in March chief government negotiator Marvic Leonen warned both GPH and MILF panels that the peace process was already on the verge of reaching a ldquostalematerdquo because of both partiesrsquo disagreement on what constitutes ldquogenuine autonomyrdquo as it had been made apparent by MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal that what they want is a Muslim sub-state distinct from the already autonomous ARMM

Thus the sudden turn of events after the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks in Malaysia is indeed a welcome development in the ailing peace process especially after the Aquino administration refused to order military operations against rogue MILF members who ambushed a military contingent in Basilan in October

But we should not get ahead of ourselves and hail this development at face value considering the bump that the GPH suffered in the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Muslim Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) three years ago when the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the governmentrsquos attempt to give life to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) that should have replaced the ARMM

In

26cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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Page 25: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

26cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Decades of separatist rebellion and peace negotiation

Prior to the ill-fated MOA-AD the government had already forged a number of agreements with Muslim secessionist groups most significant of which was the Muammar Gaddafi-sponsored Tripoli Agreement which the Marcos dictatorship signed with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1976 While this laid down the framework for future negotiations its express recognition of ldquothe sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo divided the Muslim separatist movement with MILF breaking away from the MNLF in 1996

Later on the revolutionary government of Corazon Aquino took over the task of implementing the Tripoli Agreement under a newly-crafted Constitution which mandated the creation of an autonomous region in the Muslim areas of Mindanao Implementing this constitutional mandate Republic Act 6734 called for a plebiscite in 13 provinces and 9 cities out of which only the provinces of Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu and Tawi-Tawi voted favorably When the Ramos administration finally inked the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF in 1996 exploratory talks with the breakaway MILF was just being started By 1999 this would collapse under the Estrada administrationrsquos all-out war policy against the largest rebel group in the country MILF only to be reversed by the Arroyo Administrationrsquos policy of reaching out to all rebel groups in the country

Seven years of on-and-off talks with the MILF finally reached a ldquobreakthroughrdquo when the government announced that the peace panels of the GPH and the MILF finally agreed on a draft accord on the Ancestral Domain Aspect of the Tripoli Agreement (MOA-AD) scheduled for signing on August 5 2008

Challenged by the provinces of North Cotabato Zamboanga del Norte Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Zamboanga Iligan and Isabela the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government vis-agrave-vis the BJE together with the method for its implementation was nullified by the Supreme Court on the ground that ldquothe Constitution does not recognize any state within this country other than the Philippine State much less does it provide for the possibility of any transitory status to prepare any part of Philippine territory for independencerdquo

Breakthrough The three-year impasse that followed the junking of the MOA-AD was marred with violence as clashes between government troops and rebel forces escalated It was during the 27th Round of Exploratory Talks that new hope sprung forth as a document entitled ldquoDecision Points on Principlesrdquo surfaced with much enthusiasm from both sides Under this document a ldquonew autonomous political entityrdquo governed by a ldquoministerial form of governmentrdquo shall be introduced as a replacement for the current ARMM This

new setup would be introduced during ldquoa transition periodrdquo through the ldquoinstitution of transitional mechanismsrdquo under the new entity

One of the most special aspects of this new entity is its ldquopower-sharing and wealth-sharingrdquo rights vis-agrave-vis the national government with an accompanying power to ldquoto create its own sources of revenuerdquo ie to tax The existing Sharirsquoah courts would also be strengthened by expanding their

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
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            25. Page 52
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                2. Page 6
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Page 26: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

27

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

jurisdiction and giving them ldquocompetence over the Sharirsquoah justice systemrdquo The document also mentions ldquobasic rightsrdquo ought to be afforded the ldquocitizens residing in the new political entityrdquo

Considering that the 10 decision points are vague declarations regarding the new entity we cannot yet assess whether it can survive any constitutional challenge similar to that successfully posed against its predecessor Nonetheless as the points have been made public it might be a good idea to consider them carefully in thehope that they not suffer the same fate as befell the BJE

Compliance with the existing legal framework Implementation of these Ten Points would of course need to comply with the existing legal framework under Philippine law most important of which is the Constitution Section 18 Article X of the fundamental law explicitly provides that the power to create an autonomous region rests in Congress subject to the favorable vote of the people through a plebiscite Thusthe ARMM Organic Act (RA 6734) created the ARMM out of the four provinces that favorably voted in the plebiscite called by Congress in 1989 Another plebiscite was held under the ARMM Expansion Act (RA 9054) with only one other province and one city opting to join the ARMM

A ldquonew Bangsamoro political entityrdquo should it replace the ARMM must comply not only with the Constitution but also with the ARMM Organic Act as amended by RA 9054 In addition to this any attempt to create the entity must not require any amendment to the Constitution for it to be effective

It should be remembered that the main reason that the Supreme Court struck down the MOA-AD was because of the governmentrsquos commitment to the MILF that the necessary constitutional amendments would be made to implement the MOA-ADrsquos provisions Justice Conchita Carpio Morales saw this as outright illegal considering that the executive branch of government which has no power whatsoever to propose any amendment to the Constitution was then trying to guarantee something that it does not even have the power to do by itself For the new entity to survive any constitutional challenge its creation should not be based on any commitment on the part of the government to touch the Constitution

The 10 points which were signed by both Leonen and Iqbal laid down the general principles to guide the negotiations until the signing of a final peace pact Here are the Ten Decision Points (in bold) each followed by comments

Decision Point No 1 The Parties recognize Bangsamoro identity and the legitimate grievances and claims of the Bangsamoro people

The first decision point concerns the recognition of a ldquoBangsamoro identityrdquo Whatever identity that is would heavily depend on how most of the country would accept a radical change in the image of Muslim Filipinos According to Philippine Council on Islam and Democracy (PCID) director Amina Rasul implementation of Decision Point 1 means ldquothe whole nation will now have to look at fellow citizens in Muslim Mindanao and accept that Philippine history books have sold a story that is different from realityrdquo

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        3. Page 33
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Page 27: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

28cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

It should be kept in mind that the

creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same

lsquoautonomous regionrsquo mandated

by Section 15 Article X of the

Constitution

There should not be any legal issue regarding the adoption of this Decision Point because it requires no legislation whatsoever The task of the government here involves information dissemination and media conditioning to paint a whole new image of the Moro people to the rest of the country

Decision Point No 2 The Parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Parties will work for the creation of a new autonomous political entity in place of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

This according to leading peace process luminary Judge Soliman Santos is the ldquomost significant consensus point substance-wiserdquo as it would lead to a ldquoqualitatively higher form of self-determinationself-governance than the level of the ARMMrdquo This is so because at the onset the Muslim rebellion is really based on their demand for self-determination and the decades-old problem rests in the fact that both the government and the rebel forces fail to agree on what kind of self-determination best fits the region

Rasul believes that ldquoThe previous MILF demand for a sub-state in place of the present autonomous region was poisoned from the first as the term evoked visions of an independent Bangsamoro nation within the Philippinesrdquo This is probably the reason why the Supreme Court itself

rejected the sub-state proposed in the botched MOA-AD that introduced the ldquoassociativerdquo relationship between the Philippine government and the BJE

The negotiating panels must take care not to risk another adverse Supreme Court ruling should the resulting entity be challenged in the High Court especially with the MILFrsquos insistence that such entity would still be a ldquosub-staterdquo Iqbal himself admitted that ldquo[Just like] the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity [the] sub-state new autonomous political entity [as termed by the government] are descriptions not specific namesrdquo He also stressed that

ldquoThe Muslim sub-state in essence is a form of federal staterdquo

In any case it should be kept in mind that the creation of a new entity to replace the ARMM must still be the same ldquoautonomous regionrdquo mandated by Section 15 Article X of the Constitution that would exist ldquowithin the framework of this Constitution and the national sovereignty as well as territorial integrity of the Republic of the Philippinesrdquo

Decision Point No 3 The Parties agree to the continuity of negotiations in the context of agreed documents

This simply means both the GPH and the MILF agrees to adopt the previous documents signed in previous negotiations This of course excludes the ill-fated MOA-AD

Decision Point No 4 The Parties agree that the new autonomous

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

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Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 28: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

29

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

ARMM BJE The New EntityCreation RA 6734 ldquoComprehensive

Compactrdquo to be signed after the MOA-AD takes effect

Not mentioned

Form of government

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Presidential-type with the governor as executive

Parliamentary

Relationship with the National Government

Autonomy Association Autonomy

Taxation Allowed Not mentioned AllowedJurisdiction of Shairsquoa courts

Personal family and property laws

Not mentioned Expanded

THE ARMM VS THE BJE VS THE NEW BANGSAMORO AUTONOMOUS POLITICAL ENTITY

political entity shall have a ministerial form of government

The present setup in the ARMM was established by the ARMM Organic Act which provided a system of government similar to a presidential system with clear separation of powers between the executive (regional governor) and the legislature (regional assembly) Although the Constitution provides no specific instruction as to the form of government in autonomous regions established by Congress the decision as to the adoption of a ministerial form government for the new entity must still emanate from Congress as the sole body empowered to create any autonomous region in the country

While such provision in the peace pact may not require any constitutional amendment still the peace panel which is under the executive department may not be in a position to commit a ministerial form of government for the new entity This was the same mistake made in the MOA-AD when

the peace panel committed to something that only Congress can do

Decision Point No 5 The Parties agree to the need for a transition period and the institution of transitional mechanisms in order to implement the provisions of the agreement

Logically there needs to be a transition period during which the ARMM would pass on to the new entity its powers and responsibilities This matter however should just be considered as vague propositions considering that Congress would be the one with a final say on how the transition would be facilitated

Decision Point No 6 There will be power-sharing and wealth-sharing between the National Government and the new political entity In the matter of power-sharing the National Government will have its reserved powers the new political

source TCR compilation

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

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44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

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Page 29: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

30cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

entity will have its exclusive powers and there will be concurrent powers shared by the National Government and the new political entity

The parties agree that the following matters are reserved for the competence of the National Government

a Defense and external securityb Foreign policyc Common market and global traded Coinage and monetary policye Citizenship and naturalizationf Postal service

This list is without prejudice to other powers which the Parties may agree to reserve to the National Government in the course of the negotiation

National Government retains control (without prejudice to other powers which may be agreed on in future negotiations) over defense and external security foreign policy common market and global trade coinage and monetary policy citizenship and naturalization postal service

Consistent with the constitutional mandate of devolution of powers to local governments there is nothing new with Decision Point No 6 considering that Article IV of the ARMM Organic Act itself established a system of devolution of powers to the ARMM Nonetheless whatever ldquoexclusive powersrdquo would be delegated to the new entity depend on what Congress would be willing to grant Note the Decision Pointrsquos express reservation of powers to the national

government on matters concerning (a) Defense and external security (b) Foreign policy (c) Common market and global trade (d) Coinage and monetary policy (e) Citizenship and naturalization and (f) Postal service The ARMM Organic Act actually has a much more exhaustive enumeration of reserved powers to the national government

Decision Point No 7 The Parties agree that wealth creation (or revenue generation and sourcing) is important The Parties also acknowledge the power of the new political entity to create its own sources of revenue subject to limitations as may be agreed upon by the parties and to have a just share in the revenues generated through the exploration development or utilization of natural resources

Revenue-generation is also not a new concept as Article X of the ARMM Organic Act already grants such power to the ARMM In fact the present setup is that a province or cityrsquos total collections of national taxes are distributed 30 to the province or city

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

32cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

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Page 30: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

31

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

30 to the regional government and 40 to the national government Each province or city automatically retains its share then remits the 70 to the regional government which after deducting its share remits the balance to the national government on a monthly basis Whether the new entity would demand a larger piece of the pie remains to be seen in the course of the negotiations

Decision Point No 8 The Parties recognize the need to strengthen the Sharirsquoah courts and to expand their jurisdiction over cases The new political entity shall also have competence over the Sharirsquoah justice system

Although this is not a political issue legal problems would most likely arise from this decision point Judge Santos argues that expanding the jurisdiction of the Sharirsquoah courts ldquomay entail a constitutional amendment since the 1987 Constitution Art X Sec 18 refers to lsquothe basic structure of government for the region consisting of the executive department and legislative assemblyrsquo and

allows for lsquothe special courts with personal family and property law jurisdiction consistent with the provisions of this Constitution and national lawsrsquordquo Plus it ldquoalso goes to the core of the Islamic aspiration since Sharirsquoah is Islamic law where there is among others no principle of inviolable separation of Church and State but on the contrary the integration of religion and politicsrdquo

This decision point would certainly be contentious because of the contrast between the constitutional mandate of a secular government and the religious character of Islamic law How a concession could be achieved would certainly be a challenge to the peace panels

Decision Point No 9 The Parties agree to the creation of (third party) monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which may utilize competencies already available in existing mechanisms eg International Contact Group (ICG) International Monitoring Team (IMT) Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)

This is also already in effect as part of both partiesrsquo desire to minimize clashes between the military and rebel forces While there have been countless alleged violations of ceasefires over the years Amina Rasul believes that the existing mechanisms have been relatively successful ldquoas shown by its track record prior to the war over the MOA-AD in 2008rdquo

Decision Point No 10 In addition to basic rights already enjoyed the following rights of all citizens residing in the new political entity bind the legislature executive and

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

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judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

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Page 31: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

32cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

judiciary as directly enforceable law and are guaranteed

a Right to life and to inviolability of onersquos person and dignityb Right to freedom of expression and of religion and beliefsc Right to privacyd Right to freedom of speeche Right to express political opinion and pursue democratically political aspirationsf Right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate meansg Right of women to meaningful political participation and protection from all forms of violenceh Right to freely choose onersquos place of residence and the inviolability of the homei Right to equal opportunity and non-discrimination in social and economic activity and public service regardless of class creed disability gender or ethnicityj Right to establish cultural and religious associationsk Right to freedom from religious ethnic and sectarian harassment andl Right to redress of grievances and due process of law

These rights already constitutionally recognized were included in the decision

points to highlight the demand of the Moros for equal treatment with non-Moros Rasul found it interesting ldquothat enjoyment by the Bangsamoro of human rights already accorded to all citizens by Philippine law had to be part of the 10 decision pointsrdquo

The prospect for peace This latest attempt by the government to woo the MILF into signing a peace deal is commendable But the peace negotiators should keep in mind that more than just appeasing the dominant rebel group they owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that every ethnic group in Mindanao enjoy the rights that they deserve under the protection of one government A half-baked solution may just result in a peace deal with one group only to find another splinter group breaking away because they did not agree with the deal their fellow rebels signed with the government It may just be another MNLF-MILF breakaway scenario in the making

Whether these decision points provide the bases for settling the Moro rebellion will be determined only when a final peace pact based on its provisions is signed We can only hope that this administration does not commit the same mistake its predecessor made three years ago with the junked MOA-AD mdash or any of the other mistakes in dealing with the Moro separatist movement over the past 40 years

The new Bangsamoro governance entity

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        3. Page 33
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                        1. Page 5 Off
                        2. Page 7
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 32: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

33

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Nation

DepEd to train science teachers on K to 12 programThe Department of Education is set to train science high school teachers to increase their skills and proficiency in teaching Science Mathematics and English in preparation for the K to12 program of the agency which will be implemented in June Secretary Armin Luistro said that the training of science high school teachers is important in order to achieve the national goal to produce globally competitive and science and technology-oriented graduates

The K to 12 program of the Aquino administration was conceptualized to upgrade and provide better education to students enrolled in the public schools by adding two more years in high school and a universal kindergarten education Luistro noted that the program includes skills development courses and special interest subjects that will help in the career direction of the student

DOJ DFA urge Senate to review Vienna Convention on diplomatic immunityDepartment of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima asked the Senate to review the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunities following the failure of the Philippine government to prosecute a Panamanian diplomat accused of abusing a Filipina De Lima added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in close coordination

with the Panamanian government to prosecute Erick Schck of the Panama Maritime Authority The Senate committee on foreign relations is already investigating the alleged escape of Schck upon invoking his diplomatic immunity

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations states that all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents It also provides under Article 31 number 1 A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State

Corona to testify in his impeachment trial on May 22Chief Justice Renato Corona will take the witness stand on Tuesday at the continuation of his impeachment trial on May 22 and will be the last witness to be presented by the defense Trial has been temporarily postponed until then to give Corona and his lawyers enough time to study the voluminous documents including those recently presented by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales Presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile has assured that Corona will be respected and given due courtesy as he testifies

Earlier during the week the Ombudsman testified and was qualified as a hostile witness by the defense after she revealed some alleged 82 dollar bank accounts purportedly belonging to the chief magistrate contained in an unsigned report that she claimed to have been sent by the Anti-Money Laundering Council The defense

was quick to deny the existence of these dollar accounts andsaid that these were all fabricated Also private citizen Harvey Keh was presented by the defense as another hostile witness because of the complaint which he and former Representative Risa Baraquel recently lodged before the Office of the Ombudsman against the Chief Justice Senator-judges questioned Keh for his act of impropriety in allegedly trying to influence the impeachment court when he sent documents to the presiding officer

Nuclear-powered lsquofast-attackrsquo US submarine docks in SubicAmid tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes at the South China Sea a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the Philippines and docked at the Subic Bay in Zambales The arrival of the USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is a regular port call and will only involve restocking of its provisions and rest and recreation for its crew members

The Department of National Defense said that the arrival of the US submarine has nothing to do with the tension between the Philippines and China However militant groups condemned the docking of the US submarine saying that it is in violation of Philippine laws It is provided in Article II Section 8 of the Constitution that the Philippines consistent with the national interest adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory

34cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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Page 33: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

34cenSEI

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Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

WORLD

By Victoria Fritz

Dying for WorkIn Asia over 11 million people die each year from work-related factors which should be a cause for alarm

STRATEGY POINTSAccording to the International Labor Organization at least 11 million people in Asia die every year due to hazardous work conditions but more specific numbers by country are hard to come by

A possible reason for the dearth of specific information might be that many if not most workers in Asia are either undocumented in formal settings or totally undocumented in the informal sector

Guidelines have been put in place to improve working conditions and minimize injuries and mortality due to occupational hazards as drawn up at a regional and global level but implementation is still weak

May tragedy struck in Butuan Cityin Agusan del Norte

Mindanao when at least 17 stay-in workers who were sleeping in an upper floor of a garments factory were killed in a fire The fire and the resulting deaths engendered a customary round of reaction stories after the fact if little outrage and anguish outside the general region

However many other little known cases of occupational death and disease are happening all over Asia

As reported by The Guardian in April Ramesh Makwani has silicosis which is an incurable disease and one that is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis It is contracted through the inhalation of fine dust which settles in the lungs Makwani developed silicosis by cutting and polishing gems the main industry in his village in Gujarat India He says that once you are in that job you are no longer able to marry since ldquothe girls know you will be dead in your 30srdquo

IN

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

Dying for work

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

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Page 34: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

35

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The Guardian report also discusses the cases of two apparent victims of cadmium poisoning in China Meantime in China Wang Fung-ping from the south suffered kidney failure from cadmium poisoning She worked in a factory making batteries It took her seven years to get diagnosed ndash but her case is still not officially recognized as an occupational disease barring treatment or compensation The former supervisor of another battery factory Xiao Hong has now been diagnosed as suffering from excessive cadmium levels After three years of working in the battery factory he started to feel the effects sore throat nose infections dizziness and headaches He worked there for a total of 15 years He said nobody warned them of the risks

In 2008 the International Labor Organization estimated that in Asia more than 11 million people die each year due to unhealthy working conditions This comprised more than half of the estimated 2 million deaths per year globally So itrsquos not disproportionate in relation to the global count given that as of 2011 60 of

the world population lives in Asia per the United Nations Population Fundrsquos ldquoState of the World Population in 2011rdquo But itrsquos still a staggering number

According to the World Health Organization occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace focusing on the primary prevention of hazards Risk factors can lead to cancers accidents musculoskeletal diseases respiratory diseases hearing loss circulatory diseases stress related disorders and communicable diseases among others

The Asia Monitor Resource Center a nonndashgovernment organization based in Hongkong which focuses on labor concerns released a report in April this year warning of an epidemic of worker deaths from unhealthy working conditions as reported by CNN in late April AMRC called the ILO figure conservative and based on mathematical projections from existing data in industrialized countries as it criticized the lack of official records in developing Asian countries

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36cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

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38cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

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40cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

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42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

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44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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Page 35: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

36cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Sectors 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

Garments 2 242 29 211 14 373 2 269 1 208Brick 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0Oher Manufacturing

1 6 1 0 0 0 2 130 0 0

Construction 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Total 3 248 31 211 14 373 5 399 3 208

Due to a lack of info the AMRC resorted to developing reports from individual countries Countries selected for this report are Cambodia China India Indonesia Philippines and Thailand

The AMRC report collates its key findings in the Introduction section as follows

1 Underreporting and lack of data -- In all six countries chosen there was a lack of clear and credible data In the Philippines data is gathered arbitrarily every four years In India there were discrepancies and the figures reported were too low to reflect reality on the ground Chinarsquos official figures were said to be just the tip of the iceberg Data gathered in Cambodia were neither comprehensive nor reflective of the situation with reporting mechanisms being relatively new

2 Lack of coverage and implementation of the law -- Most laws do not cover all workers since many of the workers are in the informal sector Likewise implementation is weak since there is an overlapping of roles while at the same time equipment training and personnel are insufficient

3 Underreporting of occupational diseases -- In both the case of occupational accidents and diseases the figures are grossly underestimated

4 Difficulty obtaining compensation -- There is immense difficulty in getting just compensation

Some data and case studies from four of the countries in the report illustrate further the key findings

Cambodia Women garment workers

at risk

In the Occupational Safety and Health Status Report fromCambodia the paper noted that figures related to occupational health are reported on a limited levelcoming only from companies that are registered with the National Social Security Fund

The table below shows a much higher number of occupational injuries among women workers in the various industries in Cambodia

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 4

OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES BY INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA 2001-2005

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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Page 36: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

37

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Name of Factory No of Workers Fainting1 MampV International Manufacturing Ltd 1632 Huey Chuen (Cambodia) Corp Ltd 2363 King Hah Garment 2864 Eda Enterprise Co Ltd 365 Zhen Thai Garment Pte Ltd 3096 Ghim Li (Cambodia) Pte Ltd 1397 Hard Enterprise (Cambodia) Co Ltd 648 King Fashion Garment Co Ltd 288

In 2010 the number of occupational injuries jumped to 6068 of which 5878 involved women

Garments manufacturing is one of the top industries in Cambodia and many of the injuries occur there Most cases involve fainting due to overwork and poor working conditions ldquowith plenty of chemical agentsrdquo that have not been checked for safety (page 5) Due to the low wages workers are forced to work overtime

The table above shows the number of workers fainting in select companies from a Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training Report in June 2011

According to the status report this data as revealed only after pressur e from many ldquoconcerned parties and insistence from workers unions and also buyersrdquo is

applied (page 6) For other industries data is not made public

To better illustrate the occupational health situation in garments factories the report discusses a specific case of fainting in

one such factory On October 20 2011 25-year-old Chan Tongheng fainted while working at Sangwoo Co Ltd Upon arriving in the workplace she noticed the smell from the fabric combined with stench from the toilet in an altogether hot and stuffy environment Not feeling well she then asked to take leave from work

FAINTING INCIDENTS IN GARMENT COMPANIES IN CAMBODIA JANUARY - JUNE 2011

Source OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Bronh Sopheana and Choeung Theany Page 5

13

A woman being helped out after fainting in a factory in Cambodia (photo from OSH Status Report ndash Cambodia Appendix I page 16)

Dying for work

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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            1. Page 4 Off
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                2. Page 6
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 37: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

38cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

to rest While she was walking back she fainted and was brought to the hospital Other workers also started fainting In total 33 workers fainted that day out of a total of 1000 workers The factory is hot with little ventilation and the stench from the toilet plus the toxic fumes from the fabric combine to create very unhealthy conditions

China Great difficulty getting compensation

from work-related disease

In China the report written by Becky Fund and Francine Chan states that there is great difficulty in obtaining compensation from work related diseases This can be seen in

the case of Mr Ng (page 10) who worked in a leather factory in Dongguang He suffers from leukemia due to benzene poisoning In the hospital he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and identified as a potential case of occupational disease He approached his employer to demand compensation But the employer refused Mr Ng had to overcome many difficulties to claim his rights The employer did not provide necessary evidence on the use of toxic chemicals in the factory In the end the employer paid for the treatment but not Mr Ngrsquos salary and other expenses during treatment Mr Ng was even forced to sign an agreement with the employer to reduce the cost of living payments to be paid out When they complained to government agencies

Others20Forestry

38

Mining26

Transportation93

Construction319

ManufacturingIndustry316

PERCENTAGE OF WORK ACCIDENTS BY SECTOR IN INDONESIA 2010

Source ldquoMurders that still take place at workrdquo Status of OSH in Indonesia 2011 Muchamad Darisman page 3

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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            1. Page 4 Off
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                1. Page 4 Off
                2. Page 6
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Page 38: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

39

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

they were even discouraged to pursue their complaint

Indonesia Death rates high underreported

In Indonesia workplace death rates are high and underreported The figures reported reflect only workplace accidents of employees who are members of the government social security agency PT Jamsostek Of nearly 100 million Indonesia workers there are only nine million are members of Jamostek The great majority are from the informal sector

Among workers in the formal sector the following pie depicts the percentage

of work-accidents by sector as reported by Jamostek

Philippines Figures gathered intermittently

In the Status Report from the Philippines ldquoResponses to Challenges in Occupational Health and Safety in the Philippinesrdquo written by Noel Colina of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development the conclusion is the same - there is dearth of information Figures for the number of deaths due to occupational hazards is gathered intermittently every few years or so The paper cited the Department of Labor and Employmentrsquos (DOLE) attached agency Occupational

Total Men and Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Total 178 302 170 115Mining and Quarrying 0 28 5 0Manufacturing 21 64 24 53Electricity Gas and Water Supply

22 21 25 26

Construction 40 13 4 0Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

29 84 48 1

Hotels and Restaurants 5 1 10 0Transport Storage and Communications

16 37 36 17

Financial Intermediation 1 0 2 1Real Estate Renting and Business Activities

44 46 14 14

Education 0 3 2 0Health and Social Work 1 2 0 1Other Community Social and Personal Service Activities

3 0

DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES DUE TO OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS 1999-2008

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 2

Dying for work

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        3. Page 33
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Page 39: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

40cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Major Industry Group 2003 2007All Industries 55413 47235Mining and Quarrying 1350 51Manufacturing 35956 26284Electricity gas and Water Supply 1112 526Construction 149 370Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods

5241 4342

Hotels and Restaurant 2195 1697Transport Storage and Communications 3828 6176Financial Intermediation 594 700Real Estate Renting and Business Activities 761 2926Real Estate and Renting 121 137Business Activities 640 2789Call Center Activities na 1175Private Education Services 2694 2204Health and Social Work except Public Medical Dental and Other Health Activities

839 1233

Safety and Health Center as the source of the figures though that table itself is not available online

Thailand No clear policy to monitor enforcement of labor laws

In the case of Thailand there are 24-25 million workers in the informal sector and only 8-10 million in the formal sector out of a total population of 65 million The status report limited itself only to workers in the formal sector For the year 2009 the Office of Workmenrsquos Compensation Fund under the Ministry of Labor reported a total of 149436 cases of occupational injury

The three industries with the highest incidence were

1 Metal goods production2 Trading 3 Construction

Again all these figures refer only to the formal sector which is about one-third the size of the informal sector

Certain factors prevent employees with work-related injuries from accessing the benefits assured by the Workmenrsquos Compensation Act such as workersrsquo ignorance of the law fear of confronting superiors and of being laid off and telling the truth to doctors and ignorance about available services among other reasons Employers also fail to inform the workers of their rights and do not arrange annual physical exams The government also has ldquono clear and serious

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY INDUSTRY GROUP 2003 AND

Source ldquoReport on Invisible Victims of Development ndash Workersrsquo Health and Safety in Asiardquo OSH Status Report ndash Philippines page 3

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 40: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

41

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

policy to follow and monitor enforcement of the lawrdquo

The writers of the report Voravidh Charoenloet and Somboon Srikomdokcare

of the Council of Work and Environment-Related Patients Network of Thailand (WEPT) observed that ldquowe are doubtful of the capability readiness and adequacy of medical and healthcare personnel and

From a global perspective the leading causes of work-related death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer This is according to a paper by the Disease Control Priorities Project (DCP2) which is a joint effort by several agencies to assess disease control priorities and related endeavors to inform health policymaking in developing countries It is a project of the World Bank in cooperation with the World Health Organization the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among other groups

According to DCP2 people in the developing world bear more than 80 percent of the global burden of occupational disease and injury

Some diseases such as lead poisoning no longer a cause for concern developed countries remain a major problem in the rest of the world

In developing countries workers are often exposed to known hazards such as silica and asbestos These hazards are no longer faced by workers in developed countries Ironically workers from developing countries still face them despite the widespread knowledge about the risks and preventive measure

Important differences that exist between developing and developed country workforces

bull About 70 of developing countriesrsquo economically active population works in agriculture

bull The informal workforce in developing countries (self-employed household-based unpaid labor

and independent service workers such as street vendors) may contribute up to 60 of the gross domestic product

The migrant workforce estimated at 120 million and increasing worldwide is often poorly protected from occupational hazards and at great risk of contracting silicosis tuberculosis and HIVAIDS which have been linked to workplace housing and economic factors

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that among the worldrsquos 27 billion workers at least 2 million deaths per year are attributable to occupational diseases and injuries However data for estimating nonfatal illness and injury are not available in most developing countries

According to the World Health Organization the leading occupational causes of death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed by unintentional injuries and lung cancer Although the WHO assessment only accounts for 40 percent (800000) of the ILO-estimated 2 million deaths findings showed that unintentional injuries caused 312000 deaths globally per year for the worldrsquos 27 billion workers compared to 6000 deaths per year for 150 million workers in the United States Deaths are clustered primarily in the agricultural construction and mining sectors Occupational injuries alone account for more than 10 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lostor healthy years of life lost whether to disability or premature death and 8 of unintentional injuries worldwide

Leading causes of work-related death

Dying for work

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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Page 41: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

42cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

support systems in the clinics to provide proper diagnosis and treatment services for work-related casesrdquo

The World Health Organization has proposed broad guidelines to address this situation In May 2007 it held the Sixtieth World Health Assembly and issued a document outlining its ldquoWorkersrsquo Health Global Plan of Action 2008-2017rdquo

It recognized among other things that ldquolarge gaps (still) exist between and within countries with regard to the health status of workers and their exposure to occupational risksrdquo and that ldquo(S)till only a small minority of the global workforce has access to occupational health servicesrdquo

It also recognized that ldquo(I)ncreasing international movement of jobs products and technologies can help to spread innovative solutions for prevention of occupational hazards but can also lead to a shift of that risk to less advantaged groups The growing informal economy is

often associated with hazardous working conditions and involves such vulnerable groups as children pregnant women older persons and migrant workersrdquo

The objectives for its Global Plan of Action on Workersrsquo Health 2008-2017 were set as follows

1 Devise and implement policy instruments on workersrsquo health

National policy frameworks for workersrsquo health should be formulated and objectives and actions for workersrsquo health should be integrated into national health strategies

National action plans on workersrsquo health should be developed and coordinated among relevant ministries and other major national stakeholders As the WHO puts it ldquoMeasures need to be taken to minimize the gaps between different groups of workers in terms of levels of risk and health status Particular attention should be paid to high-risk sectors of economic activity and to the underserved and vulnerable working populations such as younger and older workers persons

Still only a small minority

of the global workforce

has access to occupational

health services

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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Page 42: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

43

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

with disabilities and migrant workers taking account of gender aspectsrdquo

2 Protect and promote health at the workplace

ldquoThe assessment and management of health risks at the workplace should be improved by defining essential interventions for prevention and control of mechanical physical chemical biological and psychosocial risks in the working environmentrdquo the global plan of action recommends ldquoProtecting health at the workplace also requires enacting regulations and adopting a basic set of occupational health standards to make certain that all workplaces comply with minimum requirements for health and safety protection ensuring an appropriate level of enforcement strengthening workplace health inspection and building up collaboration between the competent regulatory agencies according to specific national circumstancesrdquo it continues by way of elaboration

3 Improve the performance of and access to occupational health services

Aside from resolving that ldquoBasic occupational health services should

be provided for all workers including those in the informal economy small enterprises and agriculturerdquo the plan also calls for integrating the development of occupational health services into national health strategies health-sector reform and plans for improving health-systems performance setting targets for increasing the coverage of occupational health services for the working population and creating mechanisms for pooling resources and financing the delivery of occupational health services

4 Provide and communicate evidence for action and practice

The WHO global plan calls on governments to develop systems for surveillance of workersrsquo health with the objective of identifying and controlling occupational hazards This includes establishing national information systems developing capability to estimate occupational burden of diseases and injuries creating registries of exposure to major risks and occupational accidents and diseases and improving reporting and early detection of said accidents and diseases ldquoResearch on workersrsquo health needs to be further strengthened by framing special research agendas giving it priority in national research programs and

Dying for work

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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Page 43: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

44cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

grant schemes and fostering practical and participatory researchrdquo the plan advises

5 Incorporate workersrsquo health into other policies

The global plan of action states that ldquoMeasures to protect workersrsquo health should be incorporated in economic development policies and poverty reduction strategies The health sector should collaborate with the private sector in order to avoid international transfer of occupational risks and to protect health at the workplace Similar measures should be incorporated

in national plans and programmes for sustainable developmentrdquo

In the mad scramble for jobs and economic development we should be reminded that the goal of improving onersquos quality of life is not the exclusive province of people with the capital to launch business ventures but rather a common objective for all who work in them The mad scramble for economic growth is claiming lives of victims who are quickly forgotten if noticed at all and governments need to mobilize to identify problem areasand industries

Dying for work

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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    4. Page 45
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                          1. Button 21
                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 44: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

45

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET World

Ratko Mladics war crimes trial postponed over evidenceThe war crimes trial of Ratko Mladic ndash once dubbed as the Butcher of Bosnia and the Beast of the Balkans ndash has come to a halt due to the failure of the prosecutors to disclose 7000 pages of evidence to the defense Mladics lawyers have asked for six months to process the lengthy material

In order to quickly establish a new starting date for the trial presiding judge Alphons Orie said judges would have to first analyze the scope and full impact of the error The postponement occurred on the second day of the trial when prosecutors submitted evidence alleging that Mladic had orchestrated the 1995 massacre of over 7000 Muslim men and boys at the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia

During the first day of the trial Mladic appeared defiant and jaunty applauding the judges and even giving them a thumbs-up He also taunted a survivor of the Srebenica massacre by making a throat-slitting gesture in her direction after which the presiding judge called a recess and ordered an end to inappropriate interactions

Ex-Bosnian Serb commander Mladic is facing 11 charges ofwar crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the 1992-

1995 Bosnian conflict He denies the charges

3 boats held by North Korean gunmen China saysLast Thursday the Chinese state news media reported that North Korean gunmen had seized three Chinese fishing boats on the Yellow Sea The mariners are said to be demanding a ransom for the release of the 29 Chinese sailors aboard the boats Murky details and conflicting accounts have left the Chinese people seeking details about the kidnapping

The Beijing News stated that the boats were intercepted on May 8 and quoted one of the shipsrsquo owners Zhang Dechang as confirming that he had spoken over the phone to a kidnapped sailor and that the North Korean captors were demanding around $189000 ndash an amount that was reduced to $142000 in later reports The origin of the three Chinese fishing boats is also been unclear as was the level of involvement of the North Korean government with the abduction

The situation threatens to aggravate relations between North Korea and China one of the Norths few remaining allies and an important source of aid for the impoverished land Sources say that China had earlier this week been pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test

The news came after China Japan and South Korea announced a strengthening of ties as a reaction to North Koreas refusal to stop its plans for nuclear testing in addition to working towards a Free Trade Agreement

Francois Hollande takes oath as Frances presidentLast Tuesday Francois Hollande became the President of France following a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in central Paris He is the European countrys first Socialist leader in more than 15 years ever since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995 Ousting incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy Hollande was elected earlier this month

Disappointed French citizens did not appreciate Sarkozys handling of Frances economy ndash which under his watch has suffered from high unemployment and low growth President Holland has promised to fight financial speculation and open a new path in Europe while at the same time acknowledging that he has inherited huge government debt

As part of President Hollandes fulfillment of his campaign promises the French government announced a hefty 30 pay cut for him and his cabinet last Thursday He has also pledged to withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
    2. Page 13
    3. Page 33
    4. Page 45
      1. Button 14
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        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 45: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

46cenSEI

T H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Technology Brings the Cutting Edge to Cutting ToolsA review of the latest innovations in surgical instrumentsBy Tanya L Mariano

STRATEGY POINT

Todayrsquos surgical tools are becoming smaller smarter and less invasive effectively shortening procedures and recovery times and improving overall patient outcomes

Did you know that Neolithic man (around 7000 BC) used to cut circular

holes on the skulls of living people using flint scrapers No doubt a very bloody very unpleasant experience for the patient whose chances of survival were slim

Today brain surgery can be performed without having to crack open the skull video cameras as tiny as a grain of sand can be inserted into the body to peer inside in lieu of cutting patients open and sophisticated robots enable surgeons to

TECHNOLOGY

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
    2. Page 13
    3. Page 33
    4. Page 45
      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
          1. Button 15
            1. Page 4 Off
            2. Page 6
            3. Page 8
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            6. Page 14
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            22. Page 46
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            25. Page 52
              1. Button 16
                1. Page 4 Off
                2. Page 6
                3. Page 8
                4. Page 10
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                22. Page 46
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                  1. Button 19
                    1. Page 5 Off
                    2. Page 7
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                    22. Page 53
                      1. Button 20
                        1. Page 5 Off
                        2. Page 7
                        3. Page 9
                        4. Page 11
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                        6. Page 17
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                        19. Page 47
                        20. Page 49
                        21. Page 51
                        22. Page 53
                          1. Button 21
                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 46: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

47

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

make very precise movements And just as important if not more the procedures are shorter along with the recovery times less pain is inflicted and survival rates are higher

From the crude apparatuses of old surgical instruments have evolved into sophisticated and increasingly accurate equipment For instance researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed an endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser ldquoscalpelrdquo that is so accurate it can remove damaged or diseased tissue without affecting healthy cells the usual victims of collateral damage in most medical operations whether done by scalpel or laser as reported by a press release from The Optical Society a US-based scientific organization dedicated to advancing the study of light

The entire probe package is thinner than a pencil at 96 millimeters in circumference and 23 millimeters in length and can be attached to large endoscopes The laser emits pulses of light 200 quadrillionth of a second (a femtosecond) in duration powerful yet short enough to ldquospare surrounding tissuerdquo

Says principal investigator Adela Ben-Yakar ldquothe system is ready to move into commercializationrdquo but will need at least five years of clinical testing before a viable device gets FDA approval for use on humans The prototype has been tested only on pigs

The project was presented at the recently concluded Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO 2012) organized by The Optical Society and held in San Jose California from May 6-11

An endoscopic device fitted with a femtosecond laser that is so accurate it does not damage healthy cells Developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin

Source ldquoMedical lsquoLightsabersrsquo Laser Scalpels Get Ultrafast Ultra-Accurate and Ultra-Compact Makeoverrdquo April 23 2012

The Optical Society

Other recent technological innovations in the field of surgery include

DistalMotion the mechanical surgical robot While endoscopic and robotic surgeries bring many benefits there are still some drawbacks reports Medgadget an independent medical technology journal Endoscopic surgery which involves inserting a small camera called the endoscope and long surgical tools into the body through small incisions or natural bodily orifices ldquolacks fine precision due to the rigid nature of the tools Moreover because the surgeon is basically operating a lever (the beam being the surgical instrument and the

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
    2. Page 13
    3. Page 33
    4. Page 45
      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
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        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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            1. Page 4 Off
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            22. Page 46
            23. Page 48
            24. Page 50
            25. Page 52
              1. Button 16
                1. Page 4 Off
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                    1. Page 5 Off
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                      1. Button 20
                        1. Page 5 Off
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                          1. Button 21
                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 47: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

48cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

trocar being the fulcrum) the surgeonrsquos movements are actually operating in opposite directionrdquo Because of this extensive training in the use of such equipment is required

Robotic surgery on the other hand while addressing the precision limitation of endoscopy does not provide tactile feedback when coming into contact with tissue and can be very big and very expensive The da Vinci robot one of the most widely used costs $18 million and weighs over half a ton according to The Economist (the article also mentions another robotic surgery device called the Raven which runs on open software and is lighter and cheaper at $250000)

Ricardo Beira a student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland hopes to bring the best of robotic and endoscopic surgeries together by creating a completely mechanical system

According to a news report on the universityrsquos website Beira first articulated the idea in his thesis and eventually founded tech startup DistalMotion to develop the device which consists of small joysticks that control the operation of surgical tools attached to the end of a metal arm

It allows for seven degrees of freedom in the replication of the surgeonrsquos hand movements provides force feedback to the surgeon because of its mechanical nature and is approximately one-tenth the cost of other surgical robots because it omits the sophisticated electronic components usually present in other robotic systems

A video camera as small as a grain of salt Endoscopes themselves are getting cheaper and tinier as small as a grain of salt and cheap enough to manufacture that they can be disposed of after one use lowering the risk of infection due to poorly sanitized reusable instruments

Ricardo Beira founder of DistalMotion has created a mechanical system that combines the best of robotic surgery and endoscopy

Source ldquoDistalMotionrsquos Surgical Tool Combines the Best of Robotic and Endoscopic Surgeryrdquo Scott Jung April 6 2012 as published in Medgadget

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
    2. Page 13
    3. Page 33
    4. Page 45
      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
          1. Button 15
            1. Page 4 Off
            2. Page 6
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            25. Page 52
              1. Button 16
                1. Page 4 Off
                2. Page 6
                3. Page 8
                4. Page 10
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                  1. Button 19
                    1. Page 5 Off
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                      1. Button 20
                        1. Page 5 Off
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                          1. Button 21
                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 48: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

49

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

A brief history of surgerySurgery has come a long way from the days when procedures were more likely to hurt than help you and surgeons seemed more like butchers than highly skilled medical professionals

The earliest form of surgery is said to be trephination a Neolithic practice of cutting circular holes in the skull by means of flint tools according to a slideshow presentation by British public service broadcaster Channel 4

The ancient Greeks and Romans were also expert doctors and surgeons with the Greeks said to be able to mend broken bones without causing deformity and the Romans removing polyps from the nose and goiters from the neck Galen was the most famous surgeon during Roman times and his influence carried over into the next millennia

Indiana University provides a photo collection taken from John Stewart Milnersquos ldquoSurgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Timesrdquo of surgical instruments believed to have been available to Hippocrates considered the ldquofather of medicinerdquo and still used until the late Roman Empire

In England from the mid-1500s to the mid-1700s barber-surgeons were the primary practitioners of surgeries While physicians treated patients with drugs barber-surgeons amputated limbs extracted teeth and performed bloodletting The United Company of Barber-Surgeons was dissolved in 1745

Anesthetics to numb the pain were first used in the 1840s and by the 1890s surgeon Joseph Listerrsquos methods of sanitation and disinfection (he would spray carbolic acid also known as ldquophenolrdquo to disinfect the operating

theater and doused wound dressings with it) became widely adopted

And while Scottish bacteriologist and later Nobel Prize winner Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928 it wasnrsquot until the 1940s that antibiotics were effectively applied in the field of medicine to prevent post-operative infections

The 1980s saw the mainstreaming of heart transplant surgery and the advent of minimally invasive surgery a technique that involves making smaller than usual incisions in the body which combined with the use of very small video cameras that could be inserted into the body has revolutionized the way surgeries are performed

Bone drills used by ancient Greek and Roman surgeons

Source Indiana University

From the Neolithic practice of cutting holes into a living personrsquos head the era of the barber-surgeons in England in the 1500s to the dawn of modern medicine this slideshow by UKrsquos Channel 4 tracks the milestones in surgery

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
    2. Page 13
    3. Page 33
    4. Page 45
      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
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            1. Page 4 Off
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            25. Page 52
              1. Button 16
                1. Page 4 Off
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                  1. Button 19
                    1. Page 5 Off
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                    15. Page 37
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                    20. Page 49
                    21. Page 51
                    22. Page 53
                      1. Button 20
                        1. Page 5 Off
                        2. Page 7
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                        4. Page 11
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                        6. Page 17
                        7. Page 19
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                        18. Page 43
                        19. Page 47
                        20. Page 49
                        21. Page 51
                        22. Page 53
                          1. Button 21
                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 49: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

50cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Created by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration in Germany in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering and Awaiba GmbH the new camera has a resolution of 62500 pixels and measures just one cubic millimeter making it possibly the smallest complete video camera in the world Instead of the usual fiber-optic cable the new endoscope transmits images via an electrical cable

Reports gizmag ldquoIts creators believe it could be used not only in medicine but also in fields such as automotive design where it could act as an aerodynamic replacement for side mirrors or be used to monitor drivers for signs of fatiguerdquo It is expected to be on the market by 2013

A rib opener that prevents tissue trauma One person who is convinced

that many surgical tools have changed little is Charles Pell co-founder of Physcient a startup that develops smarter surgical equipment that prevent tissue trauma Pell observes that many tools found in the modern surgical tray still resemble those in use even during the Egyptian times Even in todayrsquos surgeries ribs are still cracked open using a conventional steel tool 75-year-old design that causes significant tissue damage which then leads to a longer and more painful recovery

In this video from TEDMED 2011 Pell presents a new handheld robotic tool that will gently pry open a patientrsquos ribs and will not tear at the tissues that are in the way

Stretchable electronic sensors for the heart There is a new tool in development that could cut from over an hour to just a few minutes the time it takes to map electrical trouble spots in the hearts of

Source ldquoDisposable endoscopic camera is the size of a grain of saltrdquo Ben Coxworth March 10 2011 gizmag

German engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have created a disposable endoscopic camera measuring one cubic millimeter roughly the size of a grain of salt

Speaking at TEDMED 2new surgical tools that

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
    2. Page 13
    3. Page 33
    4. Page 45
      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
          1. Button 15
            1. Page 4 Off
            2. Page 6
            3. Page 8
            4. Page 10
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            6. Page 14
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            11. Page 24
            12. Page 26
            13. Page 28
            14. Page 30
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            16. Page 34
            17. Page 36
            18. Page 38
            19. Page 40
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            22. Page 46
            23. Page 48
            24. Page 50
            25. Page 52
              1. Button 16
                1. Page 4 Off
                2. Page 6
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                25. Page 52
                  1. Button 19
                    1. Page 5 Off
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                    22. Page 53
                      1. Button 20
                        1. Page 5 Off
                        2. Page 7
                        3. Page 9
                        4. Page 11
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                        20. Page 49
                        21. Page 51
                        22. Page 53
                          1. Button 21
                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 50: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

51

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

people who suffer from atrial fibrillation reports Technology Review John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne created the stretchable silicon electronics that made it possible to create a device fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors that can make many electrical readings at once instead of just one at a time like traditional balloon catheters do

The device itrsquos been reported has performed well in animal tests that mimic the disorder which affects over two million people in the US and is found in 15 of stroke victims The condition which is caused by electrical problems in the heart tissue surrounding the pulmonary vein triggers the upper chambers of the heart to quiver rather than beat The drugs used to treat it have serious side effects so an appealing alternative is correction via surgery which entails mapping the source of the electrical problem with the use of

probes and then ablating which means heating and damaging the tissues causing the problem

Makers of the device are conducting animal tests for more complicated arrhythmias in the heart ventricles However it could take a few years before it becomes available on the market if the FDA requires clinical trials

Non-invasive neurosurgery using sound waves Researchers in Switzerland reported in 2009 the successful treatment of 10 patients using an image-guided completely non-invasive procedure that involves high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) a world first

According to a June 22 2009 news release from the University of Zurich the clinical study conducted by the team from the Magnetic Resonance Center of

011 Charles Pell founder of Physcient discusses creating prevent tissue trauma

Source video uploaded to YouTube by tedmed November 30 2011

A new kind of catheter fitted with hundreds of thousands of sensors could cut down the mapping time of electrical trouble spots in atrial fibrillation sufferers from over an hour to just a few minutes effectively improving patient outcomes

Source ldquoA Stretchy Sensing Tool for Surgeryrdquo Katherine Bourzac Technology Review Massachusetts Institute of

Technology March 7 2011

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
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                2. Page 6
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                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 51: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

52cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

the University Childrenrsquos Hospital Zurich ldquosucceeded in proving the safety and efficacy of this revolutionary surgical method which permits fully non-invasive brain interventions even on an out-patient basisrdquo

HIFU is already used to treat uterine fibroids and prostate gland tumors but technical difficulties made it previously impossible to use it on an intact skull The new system combines the HIFU system called ExAblate 4000 developed by InSightec and a 3 Tesla high field GE Magnetic Resonance Scanner

Magnetic resonance imaging is used throughout the procedure for real-time

planning and monitoring The ultrasound beams are then aimed at and applied to a three- or four-millimeter target inside a patientrsquos brain

The entire procedure lasts a few hours is performed without anesthesia and patients are awake and conscious throughout the operation

With surgical tools becoming smaller smarter and less invasive patient outcomes are significantly improving These innovations have not made it to the mainstream yet but already they hold out plenty of promise for the hope that ldquogoing under the kniferdquo will no longer be as scary as it sounds

A patient prepped to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging-guided non-invasive brain surgery using high-intensity focused ultrasound

Source ldquoSuccessful neurosurgery with transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasoundrdquo University of Zurich news release June 22 2009

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
    2. Page 13
    3. Page 33
    4. Page 45
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        1. Page 3 Off
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        3. Page 33
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            25. Page 52
              1. Button 16
                1. Page 4 Off
                2. Page 6
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                25. Page 52
                  1. Button 19
                    1. Page 5 Off
                    2. Page 7
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                      1. Button 20
                        1. Page 5 Off
                        2. Page 7
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                          1. Button 21
                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 52: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

53

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

The open operating room Social media demystifies surgeriesOn May 9 2012 at the Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX neurosurgeon Dr Dong Kim performed the first brain surgery broadcast live over social media site Twitter as reported on online storytelling platform Storify The patient was a 21-year-old female with an angioma in her right temporal lobe The hospital posted photos and videos throughout the procedure such as this one of the patientrsquos MRI scan

Previously the hospital made history on February 21 2012 when cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Michael P Macris performed the first live-tweeted open heart surgery

Apart from social media websites live streaming videos of surgeries are also helping dispel the air of mystery surrounding surgical procedures and increasing public awareness of diseases

For instance in March 2011 orthopedic surgeon Dr James Crutcher moderated a webcast of a knee-replacement procedure performed by fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr Sean Toomey at the Swedish Orthopedic Institute

MRI scan of the patient in the first live-tweeted brain surgery at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in Houston TX

Source Memorial Hermann North-west Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
    2. Page 13
    3. Page 33
    4. Page 45
      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
          1. Button 15
            1. Page 4 Off
            2. Page 6
            3. Page 8
            4. Page 10
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            6. Page 14
            7. Page 16
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            10. Page 22
            11. Page 24
            12. Page 26
            13. Page 28
            14. Page 30
            15. Page 32
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              1. Button 16
                1. Page 4 Off
                2. Page 6
                3. Page 8
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                6. Page 14
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                12. Page 26
                13. Page 28
                14. Page 30
                15. Page 32
                16. Page 34
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                24. Page 50
                25. Page 52
                  1. Button 19
                    1. Page 5 Off
                    2. Page 7
                    3. Page 9
                    4. Page 11
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                    6. Page 17
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                      1. Button 20
                        1. Page 5 Off
                        2. Page 7
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                        22. Page 53
                          1. Button 21
                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 53: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

54cenSEIT H E

Report

CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY

Websites like ORLive are also a gold mine of information for both professionals and patients The surgical broadcast company hosts live and on-demand videos of surgical procedures and product innovations Visit their YouTube channel for direct access to available videos

One of the many photos of the open-heart operation uploaded to Twitter

Source Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital

Cutting edge tools A review of the latest innovations in surgical instruments

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
    2. Page 13
    3. Page 33
    4. Page 45
      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
          1. Button 15
            1. Page 4 Off
            2. Page 6
            3. Page 8
            4. Page 10
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              1. Button 16
                1. Page 4 Off
                2. Page 6
                3. Page 8
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                6. Page 14
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                  1. Button 19
                    1. Page 5 Off
                    2. Page 7
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                      1. Button 20
                        1. Page 5 Off
                        2. Page 7
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                        5. Page 15
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                        21. Page 51
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                          1. Button 21
                            1. Page 54 Off
Page 54: The CenSEI Report (Vol. 2, No. 20, May 21-27, 2012)

55

The cenSEI Report bull May 21-27 2012

NEWS ON THE NET Technology

Facebook IPO a jackpot for backers and insidersWith a $38 IPO price and a total valuation soaring past $100 billion social networking giant Facebooks IPO is set to raise around $16 billion and well is on its way to being the largest ever in the technology industrys history It is the third largest ever in terms of US IPOs behind the $197 billion raised by Visa in 2008 and the $181 billion raised by automotive company GM

Though the IPO was said to have fallen short of the hype surrounding it during its first day of trade last Friday the modest outcome still generated billions of dollars for Facebook

Facebook backers and insiders some of whom are now billions richer include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel Russian tycoon Yuri Milner and Facebook co-founders Eduardo Saverin Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz U2 singer Bono ndash whose 15 percent stake in the social network had analysts speculating that he could soon be the worlds wealthiest musician ndash gained as well though not as much as reports had predicted

Microsoft is also cashing in on a 16 percent stake in Facebook that it had snapped up five years ago for what was then an exorbitant $240 million The small

stake is now worth about $125 billion Microsoft plans to recoup its initial investment in Facebook through the sale of $249 million worth of company stock though it will hold on to 262 million shares

Light-powered bionic eye invented to help restore sightA revolutionary new retinal implant powered by light has been invented by scientists at the Stanford University in California Currently similar implants need to be powered by a battery

In fact a clinical trial being carried out at the Oxford Eye Hospital and Kings College in London is testing the viability of one such device ndash a wafer-thin chip surgically implanted behind the retina with a fine cable running behind the ear to a special control unit However this new device uses a special pair of goggles to beam near infrared light straight into the eye

Stanford researchers have also said that their study could be a step forward in eliminating the need for complex electronics and wiring Though the light-powered bionic eye has yet to be tested on humans the potential is astounding A fully integrated implant such as this promises the restoration of useful vision through taking advantage of natural eye movements that play a crucial role in visual processing

In the same vein this week two quadriplegic women fitted with the Braingate2 Neural Interface System ndash a small electronic implant placed on the surface of the brain ndash were reported to be able to control body movement using just their thoughts

Twitter joins Do Not Track gives users privacy optionIts official According to US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten the micro-blogging service is participating in ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo a Mozilla Internet privacy feature launched last year for Firefox webs browser users

Through Do Not Track users can block third-party cookies which may be used to conjecture Internet users personal information and online activity In a blog post Mozilla Public Policy Chief Alex Fowler said that the company is excited that Twitter now supports ldquoDo Not Trackrdquo and global user adoption rates continue to increase which signifies a big step forward

The move further cements the widening differences between privacy advocates such as Twitter and Mozilla and the likes of Facebook and Google ndash both huge companies with business models built on targeted advertising through the collection and analysis of user information

  1. Button 13
    1. Page 3 Off
    2. Page 13
    3. Page 33
    4. Page 45
      1. Button 14
        1. Page 3 Off
        2. Page 13
        3. Page 33
        4. Page 45
          1. Button 15
            1. Page 4 Off
            2. Page 6
            3. Page 8
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              1. Button 16
                1. Page 4 Off
                2. Page 6
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                  1. Button 19
                    1. Page 5 Off
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                    15. Page 37
                    16. Page 39
                    17. Page 41
                    18. Page 43
                    19. Page 47
                    20. Page 49
                    21. Page 51
                    22. Page 53
                      1. Button 20
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                        2. Page 7
                        3. Page 9
                        4. Page 11
                        5. Page 15
                        6. Page 17
                        7. Page 19
                        8. Page 21
                        9. Page 23
                        10. Page 25
                        11. Page 27
                        12. Page 29
                        13. Page 31
                        14. Page 35
                        15. Page 37
                        16. Page 39
                        17. Page 41
                        18. Page 43
                        19. Page 47
                        20. Page 49
                        21. Page 51
                        22. Page 53
                          1. Button 21
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