IN SIMPLE ceremonies May 15 in Makati City, Senator Francis Pangilinan
led the launch of the new quarterly magazine Liberal Philippines along
with 100 guests from what may be termed as the greater "liberal
family." In his brief remarks, Pangilinan hailed the birth of
Liberal Philippines as an important event for liberals and allied
groups alike. "This is a good and laudable undertaking,"
the senator said.
The maiden issue of Liberal Philippines is a gathering of sorts for
liberal personalities in the country: Liberal Party (LP) President
Butch Abad writes about the ongoing debate on Charter-change, while
Rep. Neric Acosta discusses how a Liberal president would address
the Mindanao problem. The magazine's cover story is focused on the
free trade versus fair trade discourse. Two LP officials, Trade Sec.
Mar Roxas and former Senator Bobby Tañada present their views
on a controversial issue.
"Liberal Philippines is born out of the desire of liberals in
this country to communicate effectively with one another and with
the thousands of affiliates and friends in government, academe, business
and the media," says Editor-in-Chief Jonathan Malaya.
The new quarterly is a joint project of all Philippine liberal organizations,
reflecting the dynamism of liberalism in this South East Asian nation.
The participating groups are the Liberal Party of the Philippines
(LP), the Kabataang Liberal ng Pilipinas (Kalipi), the Liberal Caucus
of Congressional Staff (LCCS), the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats
(CALD), the National Institute for Policy Studies (NIPS) and the Philippine
Office of the Friedrich-Naumann-Foundation.
The magazine is delivered free of charge to liberal affiliates in
government, academe, business and the media. It is also available
online at www.liberal-philippines.com.
Those interested to receive a free copy may send an email to editor[at]liberal-philippines[dot]com
or call tel. 8403728/29.
