Around 1,000 students and environmental activists joined the launching dubbed "Iwas Paputoxic" (avoid toxic firecrackers). The Philippines is mainly Roman Catholic, but the celebrations draw on ancient superstitions and Chinese traditions in which the noise is meant to drive away evil spirits and bring good luck in the coming year.Adding to the danger of the fireworks, there are over 1.2 million unlicensed firearms in the Philippines and some of those are used in the festivities. Photo courtesy: AFP