Daily News Highlights – April 19, 2015 Edition

An exploratory team led by former Agrarian Secretary Hernani Braganza, working with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP), submitted to Malacañang last week a report aimed at resuming on the last year of the Aquino administration the long-stalled peace talks.

“The NDFP has made a proposal for a long-term ceasefire and time-bound negotiations of 6 months for each of the following of the substantive items: 1. social and economic reforms, 2. political and constitutional reforms and 3. end of conflict and disposition of forces,” NDFP chief political consultant Jose Maria Sison confirmed to Rappler in an e-mail on Friday, April 17.

Read more on Rappler.

Last month was the hottest March worldwide since record keeping began in 1880, and the first three months of 2015 also set a new heat record, US government scientists said Friday.

“During March, the average temperature across global land and ocean surfaces was 1.53 Fahrenheit (0.85 Celsius) above the 20th century average,” said the report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Read more on Rappler.

Siblings Mark Darrell, 6, and Mark Daniel Veloso, 12, want to become police officers when they grow up. Their reason is simple: they want to help their mother Mary Jane Veloso, who was arrested and sentenced to death for unwittingly smuggling illegal drugs into Indonesia. 

“Palayain si mama (Save our mother). Save my future!” This is the statement handwritten on papers held by the two Veloso boys during a press conference on Saturday, April 18, 2015. 

Read more on Rappler.

Saudi Arabia pledged on Saturday, April 18, to cover the entire $274 million in humanitarian aid sought by the UN for conflict-torn Yemen, where a Saudi-led coalition has been bombing Shiite rebels for 3 weeks.

The United Nations says hundreds of people have died and thousands of families fled their homes in the war, which has also killed 6 Saudi security personnel in border skirmishes.

Read more on Rappler.

Recorded in video by animal rights group Network for Animals (NFA), the horse-fighting derby allegedly took place on May 16, 2014 – one of dozens of horse-fighting events that take place in Mindanao provinces every year. This is in violation of Republic Act No 8485 or the Animal Welfare Act of 1998 which prohibits horse fights and the maltreatment of horses. 

Aggressive campaigning has led two governors – Jose Zubiri of Bukidnon and Emmylou Taliño-Mendoza of North Cotabato – to ban horse-fighting events in 2014. But insiders say those who make big bucks from horse-fighting have changed tactics to avoid the law.

Read more on Rappler.

Filipinos still prefer television (TV) over all platforms when it comes to viewing media content, the Nielsen Global Digital Landscape Survey revealed.

Consistent with consumers in other Southeast Asian countries, video programming still generates its biggest audiences on TV screens in the Philippines, with 75% of viewers in the country saying bigger is better in terms of screen size.

Read more on Rappler.

Planning to watch Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr step on the scale in Las Vegas? Bring your wallet. Entrance to the mega-fight’s weigh-in, which will be held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Friday afternoon, will come at a cost of $10, ESPN reports. 

Why are they charging for the weigh-in? Read more on Rappler.

Hailing from Dublin, The Script – made up of Danny O’Donoghue, Mark Sheehan, and Glen Power – admitted that Manila is one of the best tour stops they have ever made at their Manila concert, Friday, April 17. It was their third time around, and they even promised to be back soon.

Here are some of the highlights from that unforgettable evening, in photos and video.

Aside from enjoying the view and taking a dip in the waters of beautiful beaches, do you like walking barefoot and feeling the sand on your toes? Not all amazing beaches are equally amazing for your feet, so Rappler lists of some beautiful and barefoot-friendly beaches.

See these beautiful beaches on Rappler.

Prince William’s new baby, due later this month, will join the long line of second children born one step from the throne – the so-called spare to the heir. 

Assuring the dynasty’s continuity should the first line fail, the spare can often end up inheriting the throne, as has happened in recent history. But experience shows the younger can often be more wayward and the elder more dutiful.

Here is a look at 6 generations of “spares” and the life that comes the way of a royal number two.