The Roman Catholic church on Thursday said it has sufficient support in the Philippine congress to defeat a controversial family planning bill promoting sex education and the use of contraceptives.

`The bishops are confident they have the numbers,` said Maria Fenny Tatad, executive director of the church lobby group Bishops-Legislators Caucus of the Philippines.

Manila airport workers have been banned from wishing travelers a Merry Christmas, a newspaper said Thursday.

The warning was issued by airport general manager Alfonso Cusi who claimed the polite yuletide greeting was a `not so subtle way of asking for money` from arriving passengers, the Manila Standard Today reported on its front page.

A total of 127 Filipino seamen are being held hostage aboard seven vessels hijacked by pirates off the Somalia coast this year, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday.

The figure includes 19 Filipinos who were among the 25-member crew of the Saudi super-tanker Sirius Star seized by pirates Saturday, department officials said.

A total of 127 Filipino seamen are being held hostage aboard seven vessels hijacked by pirates off the Somalia coast this year, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday.

The figure includes 19 Filipinos who were among the 25-member crew of the Saudi super-tanker Sirius Star seized by pirates Saturday, department officials said.

A journalist and radio show host who frequently criticised corruption was shot dead in the Philippines on Monday, local radio reported.

Aristeo Padrigao, who worked for a radio station in Gingoog City on the southern island of Mindanao, had just dropped his daughter at school when a gunman on a motorbike shot him in the face, Radio Nation reported.

MANILA, Oct 22, 2007 (AFP) - Jailed former Philippine president Joseph Estrada on Monday asked his successor Gloria Arroyo for a full pardon after he was sentenced to life for massive corruption, his lawyer said.

'In the highest national interest, to which president Estrada is always willing to subordinate his own, we appeal to your excellency to grant him full, free and unconditional pardon,' lead lawyer Jose Flaminiano said in a letter to Arroyo.

MANILA, Oct 22, 2007 (AFP) - FBI and Australian investigators were Monday helping Philippine detectives investigate a bomb attack on a Manila shopping mall which left 11 dead, police said.

Other international forensic experts have also been called in to assist with the probe of Friday's bombing of the Glorietta mall in the Makati financial district, Manila police chief Director Geary Barias said.

MANILA, Oct 21, 2007 (AFP) - The toll from a deadly bomb blast in a Manila shopping mall has risen to 11 after another body was found in rubble at the ravaged building and an injured man died in hospital, officials said Sunday.

A 23 year-old woman was found buried in the basement of the Glorietta shopping mall in Manila's financial district of Makati late Saturday, said councillor Jun-jun Binay who is overseeing the recovery efforts.

MANILA, Oct 21, 2007 (AFP) - Within minutes of Friday's deadly bomb blast in a Manila shopping mall the text messages started circulating in this SMS- obsessed Southeast Asian nation.

In a country that thrives on rumour and gossip the messages all shared a common theme: it was the work of either rogue or loyalist elements within the military.

There was no mention of the communist and Muslim insurgencies which have plagued the country for more than 30 years.

MANILA, Oct 20, 2007 (AFP) - Father Pierre Tritz may not be a household name in France but in the Philippines he is as well known as the late Mother Teresa for his work among Manila's army of street children.

His Educational Research and Development Assistance Foundation (ERDA) has become one of the best known non-government organisations (NGOs) in the Philippines educating more than 200,000 poor street children since it was founded in 1974.

MANILA, Oct 20, 2007 (AFP) - Military explosives were used in a huge bomb blast at a Manila shopping mall that left nine dead and 113 injured, Philippine police said Saturday.

Evidence collected from the Glorietta mall blast site indicates that the bomb 'contained RDX, the main chemical component of C4,' the police said in a report to President Gloria Arroyo.

In the Philippines C4 explosive is only used by the military.

The report was delivered at a top-level security meeting between the President and her security advisers at police headquarters in Manila.

MANILA, Oct 19, 2007 (AFP) - A huge bomb ripped through a shopping mall in the Philippine capital's financial district Friday, killing eight people and wounding 70, police and rescue workers said.

Panicked shoppers ran out of the Glorietta mall in the Makati district of Manila as smoke billowed out of the building shortly after noon.

Manila police chief Geary Barias said the blast killed eight people and wounded at least 70 others.

'There may be more people inside,' he told reporters.

MANILA, Oct 19, 2007 (AFP) - The death toll from a massive bomb blast Friday at a Manila shopping mall rose to eight with at least 70 others injured, police said.

'There may be more people inside,' said Manila police chief Geary Barias, who released the updated toll.

'The ceilings are damaged and may collapse.'

Bomb debris carpeted a 200 square metre (2,153 square foot) area, he added.

MANILA, Oct 19, 2007 (AFP) - A bomb ripped through a shopping mall in the Philippines capital's financial district Friday, killing four people, police and rescue workers said.

Panicked shoppers ran out of the Glorietta mall in the Makati district of Manila as smoke billowed out of the building and police rushed in.

A member of the rescue teams inside the mall told AFP four people have been confirmed dead. Local television said at least 45 other people were injured.

Police initially blamed the noon time blast on a gas leak at a restaurant inside the mall.

MANILA, Oct 19, 2007 (AFP) - An explosion that killed four people at a shopping mall in the Philippine capital on Friday was 'probably caused by a bomb,' national police chief Avelino Razon told AFP.

Police initially blamed the noon time blast on a gas leak at a restaurant inside the Glorietta mall in Manila's financial district Makati.

However, Razon said: 'From our assessment this is not what was initially reported as LPG (liquefied petroleum gas).

MANILA, Oct 19, 2007 (AFP) - Three people were killed in the Philippine capital on Friday when a fuel tank explosion ripped through a shopping mall in the financial district of Makati, police said.

Panicked noontime shoppers ran out of the Glorietta mall as smoke billowed out of the building and police rushed in to investigate, witnesses said.

'Our initial report is that it was an accidental explosion of LPG (liquefied petroleum gas),' said Manila police chief Geary Barias.

He said the gas tank apparently exploded at a restaurant inside the mall.

MANILA, Oct 19, 2007 (AFP) - An explosion apparently caused by a fuel tank ripped through an upscale shopping mall in the main Philippine financial district of Makati in the capital Manila on Friday, police said.

Panicked shoppers ran out of the Glorietta mall as smoke billowed out of the building and police rushed in to investigate, witnesses said. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

MANILA, Oct 15, 2007 (AFP) - Al-Al Qaeda-linked extremists under military siege in the Philippines have obtained fresh funding through the popular video-sharing website YouTube, police said Monday.

But they said they had so far prevented the Abu Sayyaf group, responsible for some of the worst terror attacks in the Philippines, from using the funds to launch fresh bombing attacks in the country.

MANILA, Oct 13, 2007 (AFP) - Imelda Marcos glides across the highly polished wooden floor of her modest apartment with a carefully manicured hand outstretched, and apologises for being late.

At 78, the former first lady of the Philippines still carries herself with the style and grace that once captivated world leaders from the Kremlin to the White House.

The eyes sparkle and a quick scan of her face shows not a wrinkle or line despite her years.

WASHINGTON, Oct 11, 2007 (AFP) - A Christian missionary who worked as a clown at an orphanage in the Philippines was charged with child pornography and other offenses, a court source said Thursday.

Paul Carlock, a 57-year-old former police officer, worked as 'Klutzo the Clown' alongside his wife dressed as 'Smilee' at for about a decade birthdays, hospitals and partish parties.

In June Carlock went to the Philippines without his wife to work as a clown and missionary at an orphanage where he was known from prior work, according to police documents.

MANILA, Oct 11, 2007 (AFP) - Airbus' extra-large A380 jetliner flew into the Philippines on a test flight Thursday to show it can be flown to existing runways in Asia, company officials said.

The A380 flew from Melbourne to the Manila international airport, landing smoothly with room to spare and taxiing to a parking area without a hitch despite its larger size.

'The landing had no troubles at all, absolutely no problem,' said test pilot Peter Chandler at a press conference afterward.

MANILA, Oct 10, 2007 (AFP) - A Filipino electrician kidnapped by Nigerian gunmen was freed unharmed Wednesday, ending a 13-day ordeal, the foreign department said.

Albert Bacani, along with a Colombian co-worker who was also seized, were found by Nigerian authorities near Port Harcourt and were turned over to their employer, Italian petrochemical firm Saipem, it said.

'They are in good condition and now in the custody of their Saipem employers and undergoing full medical evaluation,' department spokesman Claro Cristobal said.

BUSAN, South Korea, Oct 9, 2007 (AFP) - When film-maker Jim Meer Libiran turned his camera on the mean streets of Manila's slums, he almost set off a turf war between rival gangs.

But with determination and a few hot meals, he was able to convince the young gang-bangers to stop beefing and try acting instead.

'I told them that this could be a way out of their situation,' Libiran says. 'To get this film made I had to become a gang leader myself. And I offered them lots of food.'

BEIJING, Oct 8, 2007 (AFP) - China may send a team of food-safety experts abroad for the first time after Filipino children fell ill from eating Chinese-made milk candies, state media said Monday.

The special team will be sent to the Philippines if necessary to assist a government investigation there into the candies, the China Daily reported, citing a commerce ministry spokesman.

KIDAPAWAN CITY, Philippines, Oct 5, 2007 (AFP) - A child was killed and 32 people injured Friday in two bomb blasts in the southern Philippines, the military said.

The bombings occurred within minutes of each other in Kidapawan City on Mindanao island.

The first bomb exploded under a minibus on a crowded street in the commercial district of the city.

Minutes later another bomb, planted by the roadside, exploded nearby, local brigade army commander colonel Pedro Soria told AFP.

KIDAPAWAN CITY, Philippines, Oct 5, 2007 (AFP) - A child was killed and 26 people injured Friday in two bomb blasts in the southern Philippines, the military said.

The bombings occurred within minutes of each other in Kidapawan City on Mindanao island.

The first bomb exploded under a crowded minibus killing an eight-year-old girl and injuring more than a dozen people, local brigade army commander colonel Pedro Soria told AFP.

He said a second bomb, planted at the side of the road near to the vehicle, exploded a few minutes later.

MANILA, Oct 4, 2007 (AFP) - A Philippine communist leader said Thursday a Dutch court's decision to release him from custody while under investigation for two killings in his homeland supports his claims of innocence.

Jose Maria Sison, who has lived in self-imposed exile in the Netherlands since 1987, is accused of ordering the killings of two people in his party.

Police arrested him in August in the central Dutch town of Utrecht.

MANILA, Oct 4, 2007 (AFP) - Makers of hit US television series 'Desperate Housewives' have apologised for a slur against Filipino medical workers that caused an uproar in the Southeast Asian country.

The apology was sent to Philippine broadcaster ABS-CBN's bureau in the United States and aired in the Philippines on Thursday following protests by the Manila government.

MANILA, Oct 4, 2007 (AFP) - A newer fleet, more destinations and alliances are in the works as Philippine Airlines spreads its wings after coming out of receivership on Thursday, officials said.

The Securities and Exchange Commission said it has released the flag carrier from managerial supervision, nine years after coming within a day of being liquidated amid massive debts in the midst of the Asian financial crisis.

LOS ANGELES, Oct 3, 2007 (AFP) - The producers of 'Desperate Housewives' apologized to the Philippines government Wednesday for questioning the training of Philippine doctors in the season premiere of the ABC television series.

'The producers of 'Desperate Housewives' and ABC Studios offer our sincere apologies for any offense caused by the brief reference in the season premiere,' they said in a statement.

'There was no intent to disparage the integrity of any aspect of the medical community in the Philippines,' they said.

MANILA, Oct 4, 2007 (AFP) - Makers of the hit US television series 'Desperate Housewives' have apologized for a slur against Filipino medical workers that caused uproar here.

The apology was sent to Philippine broadcaster ABS-CBN's bureau in the United States and aired here Thursday by its cable news channel, ANC, following protests by the Manila government.

'The producers of the show and ABC studios offer our sincere apology for any offence caused by the brief reference in the season premier,' ANC quoted the statement as saying.

MANILA, Oct 3, 2007 (AFP) - The Philippine government is to seek an apology from the producers of the hit US television series 'Desperate Housewives' for a racial slur against Filipino medics, the Philippine Daily Inquirer said on its web site Wednesday.

The officials cited a recent episode where actress Teri Hatcher, who plays Susan Mayer, asked whether the person attending to her during a medical consultation 'can I check those diplomas because I want to make sure that they're not from some med school in the Philippines.'

MANILA, Oct 3, 2007 (AFP) - The Philippines has issued a nationwide dengue fever alert after recording more than 4,000 cases in the second week of September, the health department said Wednesday.

It said it had recorded 24,689 cases of the mosquito-borne disease in all since January with 283 deaths.

The head of the National Epidemiology Center, Eric Tayag, said in the statement that he expected a sharp increase in the number of cases in September and October.

'It's during this period that we expect the disease to proliferate due to the wet weather,' he said.

THE HAGUE, Oct 3, 2007 (AFP) - A Dutch court on Wednesday rejected a prosecution appeal against the release of Philippine communist leader Jose Maria Sison, accused of being involved in murders in the Philippines.

The ruling means that Sison will remain free during the Dutch police investigation into his alleged involvement in the murders of several political associates in the Philippines.

The appeals court said 'the prosecution file lacks enough concrete clues that Sison can be directly linked to the assassinations which is needed to prosecute him as a perpetrator'.

MANILA, Oct 3, 2007 (AFP) - The success of Lenovo's laptop computers proves China-made products can be among he world's best brands, the firm's Asia Pacific president said here Wednesday.

'People say great products don't come out of China,' said David Miller at a conference of the Management Association of the Philippines.

Yet Lenovo's 'Thinkpad' computers were being used all over the world in Formula 1 racing, NBA basketball and in other high-profile events, he said.

Miller credited this success to innovation and to what he called 'worldsourcing.'

MANILA, Oct 3, 2007 (AFP) - A Philippine customs officer got the shock of her life when a routine search of a box supposedly containing clothing turned out to be a consignment of deadly scorpions and spiders.

The Philippine postal service said Wednesday it has launched an investigation into the consignment, which was sent from Hong Kong to an address in suburban Manila.

According to local media reports the box was destined for a man named Herman Sayo and sent by his wife.

MANILA, Oct 3, 2007 (AFP) - Philippine President Gloria Arroyo said Wednesday she had Beijing's support after cancelling a telecoms deal with China after a flurry of corruption charges.

The Philippines scrapped a 330 million dollar contract for a state-run Chinese firm to develop a broadband network for the Philippine government amid allegations of bribes, kickbacks and over-pricing.