Santosh Digal

For the authorities, informal settlements are to blame for flooding in the capital. Over the next few months, residents will be relocated to new areas on the outskirts of Manila without transport links to the centre. Economically crucial middle class residents are also being affected by the relocation. “Don’t demolish the housing of the poor without an adequate relocation plan,” bishops say. “The real problem is joblessness.”

Church and Catholic organizations provide food to the flood affected population. So far a total of 1.6 million spent. Archbishop of Manila: "Do not just pray for the flood victims, we must comfort them and help them start over."

Fr. Michael Sinnot was released this morning at 4.25. MILF crucial in his release. Manila and Dublin say they paid no ransom. The priest says the kidnappers had simply wanted money.

After release, the priest speaks of his 31 days of captivity. The kidnappers would never have killed him they were just looking for the ransom. Fr. Sinnott wants to stay in the Philippines.

UN pressures induce Filipino lawmakers to resume discussion over the existing Reproductive Health Bill, which calls for the use of contraceptives and abortion pills to control the birth rate. The Church calls for natural methods of family planning, educating the population to a culture of responsibility and love.

The head of Gabriel Canizares, who was kidnapped on 20 October, was found this morning in Jolo (Sulu, Mindanao) near a petrol pump. The body is still missing. Church concerned about the life of Fr Sinnott calls for dialogue with the kidnappers and warns about the risk of military operations for the liberation of the missionary.

Nabil Tan, a Muslim and vice governor of the Autonomous Region of Mindanao, speaks of his experience as a student in a Catholic institution. For him, sharing and respect for different religions is one of the keys to the peace process.

Group of Franciscan nuns and Catholic organizations provide 70 families in Payatas landfill an alternative to poverty, giving them land for only 0.20 euro per week.

Poverty among the main causes. Bishop Ongtioco: you have to "motivate" the parents to recognize the importance of education for their children's lives. Distance learning programs to help those who drop out continue their studies.

The Church calls on the government to find a solution for the five million poor who have lived for years in sub standard housing, without basic services.

$ 2 million demanded. The priest is shown smiling in a video shot on 22 October.

The new typhoon, the fourth in a month, has already left one person dead and two missing. Over 70% of the population lives below the poverty line. In Manila alone over 1.4 million people at risk of epidemics and infections.