US Senate Confirms Trump-Backed Fil-Am to Federal Appeals Court

Patrick Bumatay

Over the objections of California’s Democratic senators, the Senate on Tuesday confirmed Patrick Bumatay, a conservative, openly gay Filipino American prosecutor to the Ninth Circuit Appeals Court (See Inquirer.net for story).

US Senate Committee OKs Resolution to Free De Lima, Drop Charges vs. Ressa

A US Senate panel has approved a resolution urging the Philippine government to free detained Senator Leila de Lima and drop all charges against Rappler CEO Maria Ressa (See Inquirer.net for story).

Hundreds of Filipinos Trying to Leave Crisis-Hit Lebanon

Hundreds of Filipinos, most of them female domestic workers, flocked to their embassy in Lebanon Thursday to sign up for free repatriation from the crisis-hit country (See GMA News for story).

Mactan Cebu Airport Wins Int'l Architecture Award

The Philippines' Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) Terminal 2 won the World Architecture Festival’s Completed Buildings-Transport category, edging out Singapore's JewelChangi Airport, Hong Kong West Kowloon Station, Sydney Australia's Barangaroo Ferry Wharf, and several other structuresbeating transport stations in other countries (See ABS CBN News for story). 

PH Youths With Disabilities Win Big in S. Korea It Competition

Filipino youths with disabilities came home with a set of medals from an information technology (IT) competition in South Korea. Four students from Philippine public high schools participated in the Global IT Challenge for Youth with Disabilities (GITC) in Busan from November 25 to 29 (See ABS CBN News for story).. 

PH Lowest in Reading Comprehension Among 79 Countries

Among 79 participating countries and economies, the Philippines scored the lowest in reading comprehension in the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), according to the results released Tuesday (See Philstar for story).

Filipinos in US Still Top Contributors to PH Economy

Filipinos in the United States continue to be the biggest source of contributions to the Philippine economy, the top official of the Commission on Overseas Filipinos disclosed at a recent forum at the Philippine Consulate (See Inquirer.net for story).

Fil-Am girl cast as first black lead in NYC Ballet’s ‘Nutcracker’

Charlene Nebres (SAB Photo)

Charlotte Nebres, age 11, of Madison, New Jersey is breaking barriers as the first black Marie, the young heroine of “George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker,” at New York City Ballet. It’s a milestone for the production, which dates to 1954. Nebres studies ballet at the prestigious School of American Ballet (See Inquirer.net for story).