Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has approved the closure of the tourist destination of Boracay for up to six months after saying the waters off its famed white-sand beaches had become a "cesspool" due to overcrowding and development.
In this March 12, 2018, photo, foreign tourists sunbathe at a beach on Boracay island, central Aklan province, Philippines. Philippine officials say the president has approved the closure of Boracay island, the country's most famous beach resort, for up to six months after he said it has turned into a "cesspool." (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
Duterte approved the total shutdown of Boracay as a tourist destination starting April 26 in a Cabinet meeting Wednesday night after extensive discussions of its impact, including ways to help about 17,000 workers who may be displaced, tourism undersecretary Frederick Alegre said Thursday.
"This is not about profit, it's about the political will to deal with years of neglect of the environment," Alegre said. "We need to act swiftly to save the island and avert its further deterioration."
Last February, Duterte said Boracay's water has turned into a "cesspool" with human waste being discharged into the sea.
More than 2 million tourists visited Boracay last year to enjoy its powdery beaches, spectacular sunsets and festive nightlife, generating about 56 billion pesos ($1 billion) in revenue. But the influx of tourists, neglected infrastructure and growth of resort establishments and poor settlements have threatened to turn Boracay into a "dead island" in less than a decade, according to a government study.
The island can only sustain 30,000 people but teems with 70,000 at any time, including 50,000 residents and daily arrivals of about 20,000 tourists, Alegre said.
Hundreds of settlers have also illegally built homes and structures in forests and protected wetlands over the years, officials said.
Only about 47 percent of the hundreds of establishments are connected to the island's main sewerage treatment plant, with many of the rest possibly maintaining crude septic tanks and others discharging their waste directly into the sea, Alegre said.
FILE - In this Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017, file photo, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte addresses the troops during the 82nd anniversary celebration of the Armed Forces of the Philippines in suburban Quezon city northeast of Manila, Philippines. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, File)
Parts of the 1,000-hectare (2,471-acre) island in central Aklan province could re-open earlier than six months if sewage containment and treatment systems could be built earlier and beach resorts comply with environmental regulations, he said.
Philippine Airlines said it would reduce flights en route to airports serving as a gateway to the small island, about 315 kilometers (196 miles) south of Manila.
Deputy Executive Secretary Menardo Guevarra said emergency calamity funds would be used to help workers at tourist establishments affected by Boracay's temporary closure.
About 17,000 are employed in Boracay's tourist establishments, and 10,000 to 12,000 others benefit from the bustling tourism business.
A similar decision was made in Thailand where Maya Bay, on Phi Phi Leh island in the Andaman Sea, will be closed for four months starting in June.
Many Thai marine parks close for part of the year but the release of the Leonardo DiCaprio movie, "The Beach," in 2000 made picturesque Maya Bay so popular it stayed open year-round. It averages 200 boats and 4,000 visitors daily, but recent surveys found the area's coral reefs and sea life damaged or gone.
Other Thai destinations ruined by mass tourism, Koh Yoong in the Phi Phi island chain and Koh Tachai in the Similan Islands National Park, have been off-limits to tourists permanently since mid-2016.
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine forces killed an Abu Sayyaf militant, who had been implicated in past beheadings, including of 10 Filipino marines and two kidnapped Vietnamese, in a clash in the south, police officials said Friday.
Philippine police, backed by military intelligence agents, killed Nawapi Abdulsaid in a brief gunbattle Wednesday night in the remote coastal town of Hadji Mohammad Ajul on Basilan island after weeks of surveillance, security officials said.
Abu Sayyaf is a small but violent armed Muslim group, which has been blacklisted by the United States and the Philippines as a terrorist organization for ransom kidnappings, beheadings, bombings and other bloody attacks.
It has been considerably weakened by battle setbacks, surrenders and infighting, but remains a security threat particularly in the southern Philippines, home to minority Muslims in the predominantly Roman Catholic nation.
Abdulsaid, who used the nom de guerre Khatan, was one of several Abu Sayyaf militants who aligned themselves with the Islamic State group.
A confidential police report said that Abdulsaid had been implicated in at least 15 beheadings in Basilan, including of 10 Philippine marines in Al-Barka town in 2007 and two of six kidnapped Vietnamese sailors near Sumisip town in 2016. The Vietnamese were seized from a passing cargo ship.
He was also involved in attacks against government forces in 2022 and a bombing in November that killed two pro-government militiamen and wounded two others in Basilan, the report said.
Abdulsaid was placed under surveillance in February, but police forces couldn't immediately move to make a arrest because of the “hostile nature” of the area where he was eventually gunned down, according to the report.
On Monday, Philippine troops killed the leader of another Muslim rebel group and 11 of his men blamed for past bombings and extortion in a separate clash in a marshy hinterland in Datu Saudi Ampatuan town in southern Maguindanao del Sur province, the military said.
Seven soldiers were wounded in the clash with the members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters.
The Abu Sayyaf and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters are among a few small armed groups still struggling to wage a separatist uprising in the southern Philippines.
The largest armed separatist group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, signed a 2014 peace pact with the government that eased decades of sporadic fighting.
Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebel commanders became parliamentarians and administrators of a five-province Muslim autonomous region in a transition arrangement after signing the peace deal. They are preparing for a regular election scheduled for next year.
FILE - In this handout photo provided by the Philippine Army 6th Infantry Division, recovered firearms from suspected members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters are seen after a gunbattle with Philippine troops at Datu Saudi Ampatuan town in Maguindanao del Sur province, southern Philippines, on April 22, 2024. Philippine forces killed an Abu Sayyaf militant, who had been implicated in past beheadings, including of 10 Filipino marines and two kidnapped Vietnamese, in a clash in the south, police officials said Friday, April 26. (Philippine Army 6th Infantry Division via AP, File)
Philippine police kill an Abu Sayyaf militant implicated in 15 beheadings and other atrocities
Philippine police kill an Abu Sayyaf militant implicated in 15 beheadings and other atrocities
In this handout photo provided by the Philippine Army 6th Infantry Division, recovered firearms from suspected members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters are seen after a gunbattle with Philippine troops at Datu Saudi Ampatuan town in Maguindanao del Sur province, southern Philippines on Monday April 22, 2024. Philippine troops killed the leader of a small Muslim rebel group and eleven of his men blamed for past bombings and extortion in a clash in the country's south, military officials said Tuesday. (Philippine Army 6th Infantry Division via AP)
