Context Dispatch

The Court of Appeals (CA) has ordered the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) and the Land Bank of the Philippines to pay Hacienda Luisita Inc. a total of P28.49 billion for the 4,500 hectares of sugarcane land taken by the government and distributed under its agrarian reform program.

Far Eastern University (FEU) has approved an additional equity investment of P11.4 million in Higher Academia, Inc. (HAI), a non-sectarian educational institution based in San Fernando, Pampanga. This move increases FEU's ownership in HAI to 51 percent, solidifying its majority stake. 

In back-to-back anti-drug operations, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) intercepted a total of P34.8 million worth of illegal drugs—shabu and ecstasy—at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and Port of Clark. A foreign passenger was arrested, and multiple criminal charges are being pursued in connection with the seizures.

Former President Rodrigo Duterte, through his defense counsel Nicholas Kaufman, has petitioned the International Criminal Court (ICC) to transfer his custody to a third country that is a signatory to the Rome Statute and willing to host him. Duterte faces charges of crimes against humanity related to his bloody war on drugs. According to various media reports, the petition, filed with the ICC, named the country, but it was redacted to avoid premature publicity. Kaufman argued Duterte is not a flight risk and that the host country would ensure compliance with ICC rules. The prosecution has yet to respond to the request.

Alas Pilipinas, the Philippines’ national women’s volleyball team, took its frustration on New Zealand, dismissing the Volley Fens in three straight sets as competitions resumed Wednesday at the 2025 AVC women’s Volleyball Nations Cup in Hanoi, Vietnam.