2000 in the Philippines

Incumbents

• President: Joseph Estrada
• Vice President: Gloria Macapagal Arroyo
• Senate President:
• * until July 12: Blas Ople
• * July 12 – November 13: Franklin Drilon
• * starting November 13: Aquilino Pimentel Jr.
• House Speaker: Manuel Villar
• Chief Justice: Hilario Davide
• Philippine Congress: 11th Congress of the Philippines

  Events

January

• January 6 – A Parañaque City court convicts Hubert Webb and five others and sentences them to life imprisonment in connection to a family massacre case in the city in 1991.
• Mid-January – Government authorities exhume skeletal remains of at least 60 victims killed by the New People's Army in the 1980s from a mass grave in Cagayan de Oro City.
• January 28 – early February – Widespread floods caused by continuous torrential rains in northeastern Mindanao affects villages in Caraga Region and the provinces of Misamis Oriental, Davao del Norte and Compostela Valley, and leaves at least 17 deaths, thousands homeless, and millions worth of damages in crops and property.

  February

• February 2 – A Caloocan City court convicts three Filipino-Chinese men and a Filipino woman and sentences them to death regarding their involvement in illegal drug trafficking. The suspects were arrested in an entrapment operation in a motel in the city in 1999.
• Early February – Government authorities discover at least 50 another skeletal remains, belonging to the victims believed to be massacred by the NPA in the mid-1980s, in three mass graves in Cagayan de Oro City.
• February 23 – March 7 – Mayon volcano in Albay erupts, with the most violent occurred, February 28–March 1; its status is raised to the highest, Alert Level 5, on February 24 due to its hazardous explosions with pyroclastic and lahar flows that affected parts of the province, with several thousands evacuated even outside identified danger zones.
• February 25–27 – Series of bombings occurred in Mindanao, prior to Pres. Estrada's six-day visit to the island, targeting buses and a radio station. Incidents are blamed on the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which had broken talks from the president.
• *February 25 – In what would be the single deadliest bombing incident in the island, an explosion, allegedly by the terrorists, occurred inside two passenger buses aboard a ferry boat Our Lady of Mediatrix in Ozamis City, killing at least 45 people and injuring more than 100. Another bus bombing in Rizal, Zamboanga del Norte kills 5, while a bus-bombing attempt was discovered in Cagayan de Oro City.
• *February 27 – Seven people are injured in a bombing of radio station DXMS in Cotabato City.

  March

• March 16 – MILF rebels led by Commander Bravo attack and occupy Kauswagan, Lanao del Norte and later clash with Government troops, with more than 40 rebels, 9 soldiers and 2 civilians die in the fighting until the town is abandoned by the guerrillas and is retaken by the troops on March 18; the incident is one of the attacks occurred in several municipalities in the Lanao provinces.
• March 20 – Abu Sayyaf Group rebels seize more than 50 people in Basilan, including a Roman Catholic priest as well as teachers and students from two schools in Sumisip and Tuburan towns; some of them are held hostage for months.
• March 21 – Pres. Estrada, in his visit in Kauswagan, Lanao del Norte, declares an all-out war against the MILF in Mindanao following rebel attacks in Lanao provinces as a warning to the separation of an Islamic state; ended July 12.

  April

• April 2 – Five MILF rebels and a soldier are killed in a clash in Matungao, Lanao del Norte.
• April 8 – Government troops launch an attack on Camp Belal, a MILF camp in Munai, Lanao del Norte, with 16 rebels and a soldier reportedly killed.
• April 12 – At least 69 people are killed when an unlicensed, overloaded wooden ferryboat ML Annahada heading for Tawi-Tawi and Malaysia capsized at sea after leaving a port in Jolo, Sulu, with more than a hundred others missing and feared dead.
• April 19 – Air Philippines Flight 541 explodes and crashes into a coconut plantation in Island Garden City of Samal, killing all 131 people on board. It is considered as the country's worst aviation accident in history, with fatality count surpassing those from another plane crash in 1998.
• April 22 – Military troops launch an assault against extremist Muslim rebel group Abu Sayyaf in Camp Abdurajak on Basilan Island, in an attempt to rescue the hostages who have been held captive for a month; three soldiers and 25 rebels are reportedly killed in the attack; they capture the main rebel camp in the island on April 28.
• April 23 – ASG gunmen seized 21 people including 10 tourists and 11 resort workers, two of them Filipinos, from the resort island of Sipadan, Malaysia. Victims are brought to the Jolo in the southern Philippines; hostage crisis lasts for more than three years.

  May

• May 3:
• *Four ASG hostages, including a Roman Catholic priest and 3 teachers are killed during an operation which soldiers rescued 15 another hostages. They are the only casualties among the victims who were kidnapped in March.
• *Twenty-one soldiers and a CAFGU member are killed in an encounter between government troops and the MILF in Matanog, Maguindanao, in what would be the biggest single battle loss suffered by the government during the war.
• May 4:
• *The ILOVEYOU computer virus, originating from the country, is released by a student, spreading quickly throughout the world and damaging around 45 million computers worldwide.
• *A firefight between secessionist MILF and three government soldiers occurs in the Lanao del Sur–Maguindanao provincial boundary, when rebels allegedly occupied a highway; ends with the capture of the MILF–BIAF headquarters on May 7, with 108 rebels and 3 Marine soldiers died within two days.
• May 6 – Six persons are killed and 37 others are wounded in separate bus explosions in Surigao and Butuan cities.
• May 16 – An explosion in Glorietta Mall in Makati injures 13 persons.
• May 21 – An explosion and a stampede in SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City kills 1 person and injures at least 11 others.
• May 25:
• *A Philippine Airlines Flight 812 is hijacked by a man, later identified as Augusto Lakandula, just before its landing at Manila. The suspect, who robbed passengers and attempted to jump out of the plane while in Antipolo, is found dead in a forest in Real, Quezon at night.
• *Philippine peso closes to ₱43.40 per US dollar, the lowest since October 1998.
• Late May – At least 33 MILF rebels and three government soldiers die in a clash in Marogong, Lanao del Sur.

  June

• June 21 – The PBCom Tower, the tallest building in the country upon its completion, opens.
• June 27 – Fourteen are killed when armed men, allegedly from the NPA, ambushed a convoy of military medical personnel in Jones, Isabela.

  July

• July 1 – Televangelist Wilde Almeda and 11 other preachers from Jesus Miracle Crusade are abducted by ASG bandits as they went to a rebel camp in Jolo, Sulu. They are rescued on October 2 after being held hostage.
• July 2 – A Philippine Air Force aircraft crashes into the Sulu Sea, off Cagayancillo, Palawan, after experiencing engine failure on its takeoff, killing 11 of the 12 people on board including an Armed Forces of the Philippines official and a provincial governor.
• July 9 – AFP captures from the MILF its main camp, Camp Abubakar in Maguindanao, after a week-long military attack, as part of a campaign against Moro insurgency in Mindanao.
• July 10 – At least 218 people are killed, about 700 are missing and presumed dead, and about 800 shanties are buried in a collapse of a dumpsite, destabilized by torrential rains caused by tropical cyclones, in Payatas, Quezon City.

  August

• August 11 – A clash between the police and a religious cult locally known as Tadtad in Pangantucan, Bukidnon results in deaths of at least 16 cult members and 4 others.

  October

• October 4 – Luis Singson exposes Pres. Estrada's alleged links to illegal gambling; followed by a privilege speech of Sen. Teofisto Guingona in Senate.
• October 18 – An impeachment complaint is filed by the opposition groups, with House of Representatives, against Pres. Estrada.

  November

• November 13 – The House of Representatives votes to impeach Pres. Estrada, with impeachment case filed against him regarding his alleged links to illegal gambling.

  December

• December 7 – Impeachment trial against Pres. Estrada begins at the Senate; the first for an Asian head of state. Its last day would be on Jan. 16, 2001; trial aborted, Jan. 17.
• December 25 – At least 45 people died when a bus falls into a ravine after being hit by another bus in Bansalan, Davao del Sur.
• December 30 – Multiple terrorist bombings in Metro Manila occurs on Rizal Day, killing 22 people and injuring more than 120 others.

  Television

Sports

• January 31 – The Welcoat House Paints won the third straight PBL title in the 1999-2000 2nd Yakult-PBL Challenge Cup after beating Ana Water Dispenser in Finals Game 3 58-56.
• February 11 – 13 The Philippines hosting the 2000 Asian Beach Volleyball Championship held from February 11 to 13, 2000 in Pasay, Philippines
• June 11 – The Alaska Milkmen won their third PBA All-Filipino crown in the last five years with a 4-1 series victory over Purefoods TJ Hotdogs. The title-conquest was their 10th championship.
• June 27 – The Welcoat Paint Masters won their fourth straight title of the Philippine Basketball League after they beaten the Shark Energk Drink at The 2000 PBL Chairman's Cup held at Makati Coliseum
• August 6 – The 2000 ABC-PBA All-Star Game is the All-Star game was held on August 6, 2000 at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
• August 24 – 27 – The Philippines hosts the 2000 FIVB World Grand Prix at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
• September 12 – 17 – Dagupan City was hosting the 2000 Asian Junior Women's Volleyball Championship was held in Dagupan City.
• September 15 – October 1 – The Philippines participated in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia by sending a delegation of 20 members. But all of the athletes lost in the said event and did not home their medals.
• September 15 – The San Miguel Beermen claim their 14th PBA crown by winning against Sta. Lucia Realtors in five games. The Realtors were on their first finals appearance since joining the league in 1993.
• November 25 – The San Juan Knights defeated Negros Slashers, 104-91 in Game Six, at the San Juan Gym for their first MBA national title.
• December 20 – The San Miguel Beermen retains the PBA Governors Cup title and captured their 15th PBA crown, defeating Purefoods TJ Hotdogs in their finals series, four games to one

  Births

• February 1 - Carlos Edriel Yulo, gymnast
• February 26 – Alexa Ilacad, actress
• March 1 – Nikki Samonte, model and singer
• March 2 – Bianca Umali, actress and dancer
• March 12 – Sabrina Man, actress
• April 21 – Taki Saito, actress, performer, host
• June 13 - Prince Tuano Carlos, Junior Basketball Player Of De La Salle Zobel & De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde
• July 15 – Edward Barber, actor
• July 22 – Kaori Oinuma, housemate and actress
• August 3 – Kira Balinger, actress
• August 21 – Kate Valdez, actress
• November 28 – Jacob Rica, actor and model

  Deaths

• January 22 – Teddy "Boy" Locsin, Sr., journalist.
• February 6 – Oscar Aldaba, Mayor of San Teodoro, Oriental Mindoro.
• February – Max Buan, journalist.
• February 22 – Francisco "Kitch" Ortego, Jr., journalist.
• March 20 – Ramon Mitra, Jr., Filipino statesman, diplomat, and a pro-democracy activist; House Speaker
• April 8 – Alfredo Alcala, Filipino comic book artist
• April 11 – Salvador Lazo Lazo, Filipino prelate of the Roman Catholic Church
• May 3 – Rhoel Gallardo, C.M.F., Catholic priest
• May 12 – Cipriano Bautista, Filipino politician
• May 15 – Roberto Benedicto, Filipino lawyer and Founder of Philippines Daily Express, BBC, RPN and IBC
• May 28 – Francisco Vestil, Filipino basketball player
• June 11 – Sarah Jane Salazar, Filipino AIDS activist and educator
• July 2
• *Salvatore Socrates, Governor of Palawan.
• *Maj. Gen. Santiago Madrid, Chief of the AFP Western Command.
• September 27 – Pablo Cuneta, Filipino politician, former Mayor of Pasay City and father of Sharon Cuneta
• September 29 – Maningning Miclat, Filipino poet and painter
• November 24 – Bubby Dacer, Publicist
• December 4 – Tito Arévalo, Filipino actor and musician

  Deaths unknown

• Valeriano Abello
• Jun Aristorenas, Filipino actor, director, dancer, producer and writer