The Philippines: An Overview

Photo from: Google

This may seem like paradise to some, but paradise is far from reality in the Philippines.  


The Philippines, a Pacific-Asian country, is inhabited by 96 million people and the press is partly free.  The Philippines was originally under Spanish rule for many centuries, then U.S. control in 1898, and finally, on July 4, 1946, won independence.  The government of the Philippines is republic. The capital is Manila and the country is comprised of 80 provinces and 120 chartered cities.  The legal system is a mix of civil, common, Islamic, and customary law.  The current president (the 15th president) is Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III (pictured below) and he has been president since June 30th 2010.  Next election: May 2016.
  

Photo from: Google

The economy of the Philippines is 47th largest in the world and the country uses "pesos" as their unit of currency.  The country went from being agriculturally based to becoming recently industrialized and "dependent on the services and manufacturing sector."  

Economy Statistics (GDP- purchasing power parity):

Photo from: Economy Watch

So far this year, there have been two murders of journalists and many attempts, and that's only written journalists.  There have also been radio journalist deaths as well.  In 2011, there were four deaths of journalists.  Communication in the Philippines can be broken into telephone, broadcast media, and Internet.  

Communication in the Philippines (click to enlarge):

Photo from: CIA.gov

Lastly, the Philippines biggest "rival" is China due to a dispute of sovereignty by both countries over Scarborough Reef and Spratly Islands.   The tension has slightly been eased over recent years, but, according to CIA.gov,  there is no official "code of conduct," so there are still many hidden and long-ingrained biases between the two countries.