80 more for stressed workers, then what?

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filipino globe
hong kong / manila edition
Volume 1 Issue 8
www.filglobe.com
June 2007
No end in sight to OFW woes as surging peso hits home
Investors are cheering as Philippine
stocks climb to record highs and the
economy surges ahead at the fastest
pace in 17 years.
But the booming growth is also
driving the peso, which is eroding
the income of Filipinos like Hazel
Gonzales, who depends on money
sent home from her husband working
as a mechanic in Kuwait.
“The effect on us is really big,” she
said.
While her husband has been
remitting the same portion of his
salary, the stronger peso means she is
receiving 18 per cent less than when
he arrived in Kuwait in November.
“It is good for the Philippines,
because it is a signal that the
economy is doing well,” she said.
$80 more
for stressed
workers,
then what?
“But for us, it means that my
husband’s remittance, which used
to be, for example, 15,000 pesos
[US$324] is now down to 12,000
pesos [US$259].”
Gonzales and her two children
have had to cut down on spending,
including dining out, and her twoyear-old son switched to a cheaper
brand of infant formula.
But she said she looks at the silver
lining: An improving economy could
mean better local wages that would
allow her husband to come home. “I
told him, if the peso continues to rise,
he should just come home. Maybe
salaries here would also improve,”
she said.
“In a strange way, we are being
punished for our own success,” said
a briefing paper by the National
Economic Development Authority, a
government agency.
Photo: Paolo Sandino
Migrant groups lament ‘piece meal’
approach to long-running wage issue
Jose Marcelo in Hong Kong
The government has increased the
minimum wage for foreign domestic
helpers for the third successive year,
the $80 pay rise bringing the level to
$3,480 for all contracts signed on or
after June 6.
The latest adjustment brought the
minimum wage to its highest level in
four years, although still below the
benchmark $3,670 in 2003 before a
levy imposed on employers reflected
in a $400 wage cut for domestic helpers.
The government raised the minimum wage by $50 in 2005 and $80
last year.
A government spokesman told Filipino Globe the review mechanism
that determines the minimum wage
is an elaborate and time-tested process that has been in place since the
1970s.
It involves several branches of government and takes into account economic indicators gathered by its Census and Statistical Department.
“It is meant to protect the welfare
INSIDE
It’s the price of a Big Mac
over just several days off,
laments one worker
2
Cost of shrinking dollar 4
Editorial
22
of our foreign domestic workers,” she
said.
Philippine labor attaché Romy
Salud, among the representatives
from labor-sending countries invited
by Hong Kong officials to a meeting
on the eve of the announcement, said
they were told the minimum wage
had been increased nine times and cut
just twice over the years.
Since 1973 there have been 22 adjustments to the minimum wage for
foreign domestic workers with nine
increments of not less than 10 percent, she added.
There have been two reductions –
once in 1999 at the height of the Asian
CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
The Legco building towers over domestic workers on their day off. The wage issue has festered since 2003.
2
news
filipino globe
June 2007
‘It’s the price of a Big Mac
over just several days off’
Gilda M Bernal talks to the very people for whom the wage rise means a lot – or a lot less
A
delina Asuncion, a foreign
domestic worker in Lai King,
was cleaning the toilet when
her lady employer banged on the
door and shouted “Lina, you will get
$80 more pay every month so make
sure the toilet is very clean, or else
no $80.”
Instead of saying thanks,
Asuncion shrugged off the news
of an additional pay, as well as her
employer’s threat and muttered to
herself “what’s $80 going to buy
me except for one McDonald meal
every Sunday? Ano yan, extra bayad
para malinis ko ang maruming
banyo?”
Many foreign domestic workers
in Hong Kong share Asuncion’s
sentiment over the government’s
recent wage increase of $80 for the
more than 200,000 workers in Hong
Kong.
“It’s an insult to us,” Eni Lestari,
spokesperson of the Asian Migrants
Coordinating Body, told Filipino
Globe.
AMCB is a group of domestic
workers from the Philippines,
Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka and
Nepal.
Lestari said the 2.4 per cent
increase now makes the minimum
allowable wage $3,480, still $190
short of the amount in 2003 levels
that they have been demanding.
In 2003, the government slashed
the minimum wage of $3,670 by
$400. It also slapped a $400 monthly
levy on the employers of domestic
workers.
“We want a significant increase,
we want what was taken from us in
2003,” Lestari said.
“Eighty dollars is not
commensurate to the amount of work
that we do, the hours that we work,
and even our contribution to the
Hong Kong society.”
economic crisis and the other in 2003
when the Hong Kong economy reeled
in the aftermath of the Sars epidemic,
she said.
Labor leaders and militant Filipino
groups have decried what they described as the “piece meal” approach
to the wage issue and have called for
its return to the pre-Sars level.
The pay rise, they claim, will do
little to lift their financial well-being,
especially at a time when they are
feeling the pinch of the appreciating
peso.
But Salud is taking a more pragmatic approach to the issue.
“It’s a damn-if-you-do, damn-ifyou-don’t situation for me,” he said.
“Sabihin mo na masaya ako, sasabihin bakit hindi ipinaglaban ng mas
mataas,” he said.
“Kapag sinabi ko naman na hindi
ako masaya, sasabihin ng iba na
binigyan na nga kayo hindi pa kayo
Dumaguete
The city council has
appropriated an additional
P5 million to fund a special
program for health services in
Dumaguete.
Mayor Agustin Perdices
requested for the amount in
stressing the importance of
public health, which he said is
often overlooked as a factor in
development and progress.
Perdices said the past year’s
budgetary allocation for health
services was only P3.5 million,
compared with public education
which was P12 million.
He asked for the additional
appropriation in support of the
government’s national health
insurance program.
Meanwhile, starting on August
15, the traffic management
office will enforce traffic rules
and regulations inside Silliman
University particularly along
Hibbard Avenue.
Pampanga
A queue forms outside a money exchange
shop in Central. With stagnant wages,
migrants have seen proceeds from the
remittances shrink.
BY THE NUMBERS
$3,670
Pre-Sars minimum salary of domestic
helpers that migrant groups want restored
While workers feel shortchanged
by the wage increase, the Hong Kong
Employers of Domestic Helpers
Association think otherwise.
“We disagree with the recent
wage increase,” says Joseph Law,
chairman of the association. “It
was done preemptively and was not
justified.”
Law said there was no strong
“
We want a
significant
increase, we want
what was taken
from us in 2003
ENI LESTARI
AMCB spokesperson
economic indicators that would back
up the government’s action to raise
the salary of domestic workers.
He said domestic workers received
an increase of $50 and $80 in 2005
and 2006, even if local workers did
not receive any.
“We believe that this year’s wages
should be frozen,” Law said, adding
the association will submit a proposal
to the government to stop the yearly
review of minimum wages.
“The annual review is not
necessary. Unless there are indicators
like a strong GDP growth that
translates to a better life for the
employers and local workers, then
that would justify a review,” he said.
Asuncion is not sold on the idea.
“Even if the increase is only enough
to buy one McDo meal on my day
off, it’s better than not to have any
meal at all,” Asuncion says.
Hong Kong salaries remain highest in region
FROM PAGE 1
ANGBANSA
masaya. “But this is the way I look
at it: Binigyan ka, pasalamat ka. After
all, they need not do that.
“What I’m saying is, if they have
given an increase, siguro sensitive rin
sila sa needs ng mga manggagawa at
meron silang ginagawa for the welfare of the workers.
“On that aspect alone, medyo okay
na sa akin.”
The government spokesman said
the minimum wage is regularly reviewed in light of Hong Kong’s economic and employment situation as
reflected through a basket of economic indicators, including income movement, price change and labor market
situation.
She added the review is done annually with the next review set to commence early next year.
Salud was told that consultations
are also done with sectors of society
during the review process.
No Philippine representative is part
of the consultation, although Salud
Labbat Romy Salud: I give them
the benefit of the doubt.
was quick to point out that the decision on who to invite – like anywhere
else in the world – is the prerogative
of the host government.
Salud also said he is not doubting
the sincerity of the process.
“In capsule, they told us that they
gathered a lot of data, matrix and indicators and according to that study,
itong amount na ito ang dapat ibigay,”
said Salud.
“I give them the benefit of the
doubt.
“I’m sure pinag-aralan yan. Ang
Hong Kong kasi hindi naman ito ang
tipo ng bansa na diktador na sasabihin
ganito lang ang gusto ko or sasabihin,
‘wala.’ Iba naman ang kinalalagyan
nating sitwasyon dito.”
Despite the fluctuations in the minimum wage, Hong Kong salaries remain the highest among all major destinations for Filipin domestic helpers
in Asia and the Middle East.
Labor officials also announced that
contracts signed on or before June 5 at
a wage level on or above the previous
minimum wage of $3,400 per month
will still be processed, provided the
applications reach the Immigration
Department on or before July 3.
This is to allow employers enough
time to complete the processing of the
papers before submitting them to the
department, it said.
Acting governor Joseller Guiao
has denied a request from
governor-elect Eddie Panlilio
to postpone the bidding of
infrastructure projects.
Guiao said in a letter to
Panlilio, there was no valid
reason that the bidding should
be postponed, considering the
project for bidding has been
posted at the provincial bulletin
and in Phil-G-EPS website.
Earlier, Panlilio in a letter,
asked Guiao to defer the
scheduled bidding saying
that, “yours is no more than a
caretaker administration”.
Panlilio also warned Guiao,
saying that, “you are duty
bound to prepare for the orderly
transfer of authority of the
incoming governor and should
not do acts which you ought
to know, would embarrass
or obstruct the policies of his
successor.”
Davao
The Southern Philippines
Development Authority has
entered into an agreement
with the Housing and Urban
Development Coordinating
Council to fast-track the sale
of its three properties occupied
by informal settlers.
SPDA Administrator
Zamzamin Ampatuan said the
HUDCC agreed to pay for the
properties on behalf of the
squatters and facilitate the
Community Mortgage Program
for the communities.
Ampatuan said his agency is
hoping the sale of the property
in Sasa will be processed,
followed the properties in
Catitipan, Malagamot and
Panacan.
He said the three properties
covered by the agreement
have an aggregate value of
about P200 million.
filipino globe
June 2007
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4
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filipino globe
June 2007
Measures eyed amid peso rise
Financial experts say OFWs can cope with situation by investing and saving more
Egay Serrano in Manila
Measures are being contemplated by
Philippine finance officials to soften
the impact of a strong peso against the
dollar which has greatly alarmed the
country’s small and medium exporters and the business sector in general.
However, no clear government intervention is yet in sight to help OFW
families cope with the diminishing
value of their dollar income.
A government report last week
showed the economy grew 6.9 per
cent in the first quarter, accelerating
from a revised 5.5 per cent in the previous three months, and faster than
the 5.7 per cent prediction in a survey
by an international news agency.
Expecting the peso to continue appreciating, Finance Secretary Margarito Teves said the governmentowned Development Bank of the
Philippines announced that it is working on a US$1 billion facility to help
guard exporters from losses resulting
from fluctuations in the exchange
rate.
On Friday, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas deputy governor Nestor Espenilla Jr confirmed proposals are being
considered to lift some of the more restrictive provisions governing bonds,
equity securities and investment and
derivative instruments – all meant
to make it easier for people to remit
foreign currency, such as US dollars,
outward.
Most financial consultants say that
the best option for overseas workers
in getting more out of their foreign
currency incomes still remain within
themselves through a strict regimen
of maintaining consistent savings levels.
According to the World Bank, the
Philippines ranks fifth globally in
terms of remittances received from its
overseas workers.
The World Bank report was based
on 2004 figures, with India reported
to have received US$22 billion, China US$21 billion, Mexico US$18 billion, France US$13 billion and the
Philippines US$12 billion.
Most of the remittances from OFWs
come from the US, Saudi Arabia,
Canada, Italy, the United Kingdom,
Japan, the United Arab Emirates,
Hong Kong, Singapore, and Taiwan.
Lito Gagni, business columnist for
Business Mirror advised OFWs to
channel part of their remittances to
development activities and to promote
a culture of saving among OFWs and
their families.
He said relatives of OFWs in Hong
Kong may inquire with Manila-based
banks regarding the unit investment
trust fund, a mutual fund promoted by
local banks that requires a minimum
investment of only P5,000.
OFWs can also join the Small Investor Program for small investors
being offered by the Philippine Stock
Exchange, he said.
PNB Riyadh
chief proposes
preferential
remittance rates
Zamboanga
Government troops tracking
down the whereabouts
of abducted Italian priest
Fr Giancarlo Bossi in
Zamboanga’s Sibugay province
have invited “some people” who
could help shed light leading
to the recovery of the hostage
missionary.
Maj Gen Nehemias Pajarito,
chief of the Army’s 1st Infantry
Division, said they are tapping
all available resources to
recover Fr Bossi the soonest
time possible.
“We invited them not for
questioning. We invited
people who we believe know
something,” Pajarito said in a
phone interview.
Fr Bossi, 57, was seized by at
least 10 gunmen some of whom
wearing bonnets last Sunday
in Barangay Hilal while on his
way to celebrate a mass in the
nearby village of Bulawan.
Benguet
Swimming pools with hot water
established by private investors
in recent years in this town
adjacent to Baguio City have
started as an attraction to local
and foreign tourists, according to
outgoing municipal mayor Jose
Baluda.
He said that the increase of
tourists only started early this
year as a result of the ecotourism campaign of President
Chito Manuel in Jeddah
This may yet be an idea whose time
has come.
Usman Navarro (below), PNB
country manager in Saudi Arabia,
is proposing preferential rates
for OFWs as a way to help boost
flagging incomes of their families as
a result of a surging peso.
“Kung ako ang nasa kapangyarihan
magbibigay ako ng preferential rates
or special rates sa mga OFWs.
“Say dagdag na piso sa bawat
dollar na iri-remit or if the
government is feeling generous kahit
dalawang piso pa. Wala yang mga
harana’t gitara na iyan kung gusto
talaga ng gobyerno na matulungan
ang mga OFW,”
Navarro told Filipino
Globe.
The earning
capacity of Saudi
OFWs has been
reduced by at least 15
per cent vis-à-vis the
dollar exchange rate.
In January the riyal to peso rate is 1
to 13.45, now it is 1 to 11.56. Last
year Filipinos in the Kingdom used
to enjoy good rates anywhere from
13.60 to 13.80 for their riyal.
The situation of OFWs in the
Middle East is that whatever the
exchange rate, they must remit to
their families back home.
“Hindi puwedeng hindi magremit kasi hindi naman nila kasama
pamilya nila. Yung may malaking
suweldo puwede mag-adjust to cover
for the shortfall.
“Yun naman may fixed
remittance apektado talaga ang mga
beneficiaries nila,” said Navarro.
He said lowering service charges
on remittances by the government
wouldn’t fly because Philippine
banks have foreign partners in their
operations abroad.
Navarro said he had explained this
to Ambassador Antonio Villamor.
And when asked what he would
recommend, Navarro suggested
preferential rates for OFWs.
“Ang gobyerno puro lamang
ANGBANSA
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
over the past five years in this
western part of the Cordillera
mountain ranges in northern
Luzon.
Before the advent of these
swimming pools, the main
attraction of the town had
been the world-famous Asin
hotsprings and the Brown
Madonna on the Rock cave
chapel.
The economic program
is called “One Town, One
Product”.
Bacolod
Not all are cheering the explosive rise of the peso as the economy continues to climb on the back of increased
remittances, surging investment and stronger fundamentals. OFWs are hurting from reduced dollar proceeds.
pampapuri ng puri, pero hindi rin
magbigay ng accommodation sa mga
OFWs. Pa-raffle ng jeep at kung
anu-ano pang pakulo, parang panguuto lamang ang mga yan” Navarro
lamented.
Navarro said the preferential rates
can be done because all remittances
through legal channels are reported
to Bangkol Sentral ng Pilipinas. In
fact, PNB got an award from BSP
for having the highest reported
remittance for three consecutive
years, he said.
“We are borrowing millions from
the World Bank with interest. Ang
galing sa OFWs libre, estimated at
between $10 to $12 billion annually.
If we can give them special rates
mas lalaki pa ang dollar inflows and
would maximize their remittances,”
Navarro said.
April remittances hit US$1.2b
Remittances of overseas
Filipino workers (OFWs) in April
reached US$1.2 billion, the 12th
consecutive month that it hit the
US$1 billion level.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
said the April 2007 remittance
figure is higher than the US$899
million last year but lower than the
previous month’s US$1.3 billion.
This brought January to April
OFW remittances to US$ 4.7
billion, 26.1 per cent higher than
last year.
The central bank is targeting
US$14 billion in OFW remittances
target this year.
It said increased remittances
through the channels or the banks
were the result of OFWs’ easier
access to remittance centers
abroad after the establishment of
more tie-ups between local banks
and remittance companies and
other financial institutions abroad.
“The launch of the BSP’s OFW
portal in March 2007, which
provides access to websites of
major commercial banks, has
helped further enhance the
transparency of banks’ remittance
services and investment products,
which in turn has encouraged
competition among banks,” he
said.
“This initiative has allowed
overseas Filipinos and their
beneficiaries to shop for more
efficient service providers and the
most competitive services.”
The Bacolod Information
Technology Focus Team
of the city government is
preparing notes for the Asian
Summit for Information and
Communications Technology
Leaders on June 27 in Cebu
City.
BITFC head and councilor
Jocelle Batapa-Sigue said
Bacolod needs to present its
favorable investment climate
for the ICT sector in the
region.
Sigue said “while four
call centers [Teletech,
Teleperformance, Global
Options and People’s Support]
are now operating in Bacolod
with another one [Convergys]
now renovating a structure
to open next month, the city
needs to invite more ICT
investors to participate in the
the forum.
filipino globe
June 2007
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June 2007
June 2007
Preslyn’s long wait nears end as High Court sets August 7 hearing
Jose Marcelo in Hong Kong
After a five-month wait, Hong
Kong’s High Court is set to
hear on August 7 the appeal of
Filipina domestic helper Preslyn
Catacutan against a six-month
prison sentence for a theft
conviction.
A defense team made up of
former magistrate Achton Bond
as lead counsel and barrister
Ivy Tong will try to overturn
Preslyn’s conviction for two
counts of theft handed down
by Eastern Court magistrate
Winston Leung last December
10.
In one of the most publicised
cases involving a Filipino in
the territory last year, Leung
found the 30-year-old mother
of three from Dumaguete guilty
of stealing three photos and a
letter from Jacky Cheung while
working as a maid in the Canto
pop star’s household.
Bond, who according to
Preslyn has over 30 years of
experience in law practice, will
represent Filipina maid in the
trial pro bono under the Hong
Kong government’s Legal Aid
program.
Tong worked free of charge
in preparing the Filipina maid’s
successful appeal for bail before
the High Court last January.
Preslyn has spent the past
five months waiting for a copy
of the transcript of the Eastern
Court trial and applying for free
legal aid which the Hong Kong
government granted in March.
Bond, Preslyn said, had
“
The decision
dismayed
Filipinos and
sparked a sharp
reaction from the
Hong Kong public
started preparations for the trial
by noting down the maid’s own
account of the incidents which
he plans to compare with the
transcript of the three-day trial
held before Leung’s court.
Leung had thrown out
Preslyn’s defense that she took
the photos as souvenirs and with
Cheung’s consent.
He said in his decision that the
domestic helper took the items
with their “commercial value”
in mind and with an intent to
sell.
Preslyn had spent seven weeks
in jail before being granted bail
and has around nine more weeks
to serve if she loses her appeal.
She is currently staying at the
consulate’s Foreign Workers
Evacuation Center.
The decision dismayed the
Filipino community and sparked
a sharp reaction from the Hong
Kong public, which variously
described the jail term as too
harsh and “discriminatory”.
Her supporters put in money
towards her defense fund.
Preslyn ... getting ready.
Salud seeks probe of ‘big scam’
Labor attache asks Hong Kong authorities to look into dealings of certain agencies
Jose Marcelo in Hong Kong
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Romy Salud has furnished Hong Kong with documents of complaints.
Philippine labor attaché Romy Salud has
asked the Hong Kong government to look
into the dealings of SAR-based agencies recruiting Filipina domestic helpers for jobs in
Canada and the United Kingdom.
Salud has expressed alarm over mounting
complaints about exorbitant and unregulated
fees collected by some agencies from maids
seeking jobs in these two countries – a matter
he raised during a meeting with assistant labor
commissioner Fong Hai on June 7.
More disturbing, Salud said, are reports of
maids being scammed of large amounts by
Filipino recruiters claiming to work for these
agencies.
“I’ve asked the labor commissioner kung
ano ang regulations ng Hong Kong government on these agencies recruiting Pinays for
jobs in Canada and UK and collecting various
amounts,’’ said Salud.
“For Hong Kong, [the cap is] 10 per cent
of their first salary but that is for Hong Kong
workers. Pero kung lalabas ka ng Hong Kong
for another job destination, are they imposing
the same policies?
“That is what I’m trying to find out and that
is one thing I think is needed.”
Upon the request of the Hong Kong labor
department, Salud has furnished its officials
with copies of the complaints filed at the consulate by seven maids who have been unable
to collect refunds from agencies – the amount
ranging from HK$13,000 to HK$27,000.
Salud has also forwarded an official communication to the Hong Kong labor office
seeking clarification on the SAR’s policies regarding these agencies, along with other pertinent documents like the advertising materials
put out by the HK-based firms.
“The recruitment is being done openly,”
said Salud. “There are agencies whose dealings are above board, but papaano iyong mga
ibang hindi. Iyon ang malaking problema.”
Salud, who is barely two months into his
posting in Hong Kong, said the laws require
these agencies to obtain accreditation from
the consulate but admits: “I don’t think all of
them have it.”
The Hong Kong labor department has a
firmer control of these agencies, Salud said,
since it is the agency tasked with their licensing – the reason he sought its support on the
matter.
According to the complainants, it is not uncommon for some agencies to collect a huge
down payment and compel maids to cough up
more before their applications are processed.
Some job-seekers never even get to leave.
“Madami hindi nakakaalis, I think, dahil why
else would they be seeking refunds,” Salud
said.
“Iyong ibang kababayan katin, nakauwi na
sa Pilipinas hindi pa nakakakuha ng refund.
Nag-file na ng kaso ‘yung isa with the Iloilo
National Labor Relations Office,’’ he added.
“Nagbayad raw s’ya ng HK$23,000 sa isang
agency sa Pilipinas with a tie-up sa isang
agency dito.”
Worse, scrupulous individuals have also
taken advantage of the high interest in Canada
and UK jobs to scam Filipino maids of thousands of dollars by posing as recruiters allied
with these agencies.
“Iyong iba naman kasi nating mga kababayan, ang daling nagtitiwala at nagbibigay ng
kanilang pera,” said Lita Catimon, a longtime
domestic helper from Repulse Bay. “Ang masaklap pa, mga kababayan rin natin ang nanloloko sa kapwa nila Pilipino.”
Salud added: “Marami rin nagbibigay ng
pera sa mga kapwa Pilipina na recruiter daw,
pagkatapos dini-deny naman ng agency.”
Filipina workers ‘taking risks in Guangzhou’
The mainland city of
Guangzhou has become the
new destination for a rapidly
growing number of foreign
domestic workers, a report
in the Chinese-language
newspaper Apple Daily said.
The newspaper estimated that
there are now around 1,000
foreign maids in the booming
city even if Chinese authorities
have yet to open its domestic
helpers market to foreigners.
Most of the foreign household
helpers are believed to be
Filipinas who previously
worked in Hong Kong and
Singapore, lured across the
border by salaries at par with
those in the territory.
The paper put the average
salary for foreign maids in
Guangzhou at HK$3,200, just
below the Hong Kong minimum
wage. Demand for foreign
domestic helpers is reportedly
high among the new rich in the
mainland that some agencies
are openly distributing flyers
in Guangzhou’s streets seeking
clients.
One agency in the Tianhe
District, the paper said, even
boasts that it can immediately
find a foreign maid for
customers. Chinese families are
reportedly charged HK$4,500
for foreign maids hired through
the agencies.
The paper, however, said that
foreign domestic helpers cannot
enjoy protection from the
government in case of disputes
with their employers since their
employment is illegal.
Applicants are advised to
inquire with the National
Ministry of Personnel.
For advertising inquiries
Bob Waterfield (Hong Kong) 9470 2764
Ricky Sumallo (Philippines) 0917 539 0486
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7
8
news
filipino globe
June 2007
Pinoys lose $17,000 on e-tickets
Group preparing documents for police complaint after falling prey to latest scam
Jose Marcelo in Hong Kong
A group of aircraft engineers which
lost close to HK$20,000 and a vacationing family left stranded for days
in Hong Kong are the latest victims of
an e-ticket scam preying on members
of the Filipino community.
Jayton Coronel, president of the
Aviation Professionals Association of
the Philippines, said 27 tickets which
he and his group had purchased last
month from a Macau-based travel
agent were declared invalid when they
checked with the budget airlines.
It was the same story for a family of three from the Philippines who
sought the help of consulate officials
when they failed to board their flight
home after their return tickets were
not honored at the airport.
According to vice-consul Val
Roque, the new head of the consulate’s Assistance to Nationals section,
the three tickets were also obtained by
a relative in Hong Kong from Hong
Kong-based agents.
The family was forced to purchase
one-way tickets for home days later.
“The reason we came out is to
stop these agents from fooling more
people and at the same time warn our
kababayans about this scam,” said
Coronel, 36, an aircraft engineer who
has been working at the Hong Kong
Airport for over a year.
Coronel said his group was in the
process of putting together pertinent
documents to back a police complaint
about the matter.
Coronel said the tickets, valued
at HK$17,500, were sold to them
at $800 each by a Filipina domestic
helper who claimed she was acting as
a go-between for a travel agent based
in Macau.
“Siyempre gusto rin naming makamura, at matutulungan pa namin
‘yong babae na lumapit sa amin,” he
said.
Efforts to claim refunds from the
agents have been in vain, Coronel
said.
The head of the airline’s Hong Kong
operations was out of the country and
Getting ready to step out to the Arrival Hall at Chek Lap Kok airport after
retrieving my bag from the baggage
carousel, I was met by a slim, neatly
dressed customs officer.
“Philippines?” he asked.
I nodded, and was swiftly directed
to an enclosed area where I was to
have my bag examined by an X-ray
machine.
Nothing wrong about that – except
that this was not the first time this has
happened to me in Hong Kong. Never mind if most of the time all I was
carrying was a bloody knapsack just
half the size of my daughter Abigail’s
schoolbag.
The first time, I just ignored it. I was
bothered when it happened again, but
I kept my peace. The third time? Well,
I just had to say my piece.
As I waited in a queue for my turn
for inspection, with another customs
officer applying some liquid on my
bag from a strip, perhaps for better
Iloilo
The legislative branch of the
Iloilo City government is now
gearing to have its office
transformed into a wi-fi zone.
Incoming vice-mayor Jed
Patrick Mabilog said he is
working on it and hopefully it
will be realised in the next three
months.
Mabilog said the idea is to
make the council updated
on the latest technology
and have access to various
resources available in the
Internet to better improve their
performance in the council.
“They can check the web
for possible information that
can support their proposed
ordinances,” he said.
Mabilog said he will also
initiate paperless transactions
except for documents that
should be signed by the city
mayor, councilors, vice mayor
and other city officials.
Palawan
The tourism industry in Palawan
has fully recovered from the
ill-effects of kidnappings in 2001
carried out by the Abu Sayyaf
bandits.
Felisa Torres, president of the
Puerto Princesa City Tourism
Council, said income from the
local tour industry continued to
rise after the incident, this year
almost reaching its peak.
Travelers are being advised to deal directly with airlines and licensed
travel agents amid a rise in complaints about invalid online tickets.
BY THE NUMBERS
27
Tickets bought by the group from a Macau
travel agent which have gone sour
unavailable for comment when Filipino Globe tried to get the carrier’s
side on the issue.
The complainants have rued the lack
of warning from the airlines and the
absence of an accessible system that
could help customers verify whether
their tickets are valid or not.
Customer service hotlines posted by
the airlines on its web site are usually
either busy or left unanswered.
An official who refused to be identified because he is not authorised
to speak on behalf of the company
advised travelers to buy their tickets
from licensed travel agents in Hong
Kong or directly online.
Licensed Hong Kong travel agents
are required to post bonds which authorities can draw from in the event of
irregular transactions.
Agents preying on Filipinos in the
territory have been described as “flyby-night” operators which use the
online ticketing system of airlines to
produce e-tickets used for the scam.
The syndicates, sources from the
travel industry said, have been able to
print out copies of the e-ticket before
the online booking system can reject
the fraudulent credit cards used for
the transaction.
Copies of the e-tickets are then presented to victims who often find out
too late that their tickets either have
no return trips or altogether invalid.
Tell me if this is pure coincidence as I’m told
Gabby Alvarado in Hong Kong
ANGBANSA
exposure, I glanced back and saw all
these other people happily heading
out, without a word from the customs
officer who had stopped me.
Why was I singled out for this inspection?
Was it because I am a Filipino and,
therefore, suspected of 1) carrying
pirated DVDs intended for sale in
Central; 2) having in my possession
more than the maximum three packets of Marlboro Lights every returning Hong Kong resident is allowed to
bring in; 3) being a courier of illicit
drugs; or 4) all of the above?
Could my smelly bagoong and dinuguan pose serious threats to society?
I approached the customs officer
and, with all the calm I could muster,
asked for an explanation.
Startled to see this little punk stand
up to a representative of the Hong
Kong government, he tried to disabuse
me of what he must have thought to
be a case of paranoia or an overblown
sense of persecution.
No, he said, I wasn’t targeted for
inspection because I was a Filipino.
They didn’t have enough X-ray machines to go through the baggage of
all arriving passengers, so they just
randomly select a few. As luck would
have it, I was one of those. He said the
same thing happens in airports and
customs checks everywhere in the
world. And were he asked to undergo the same procedure in the United
States, for example, he said he would
gladly do so.
I, too, have no problem with that.
I’m no troublemaker and I try to abide
by the rules of every country I visit.
But that wasn’t the point.
At Chek Lap Kok, I am always
asked if I come from the Philippines
before customs officials haul me in
for so-called random inspection. If I
answered I was Japanese, Korean or
Swede, would they let me be on my
way without any trouble? Couldn’t
they simply ask: Excuse me (never
mind the sir), can you please move
over there to have your bag checked?
No mention whatsoever of whether I
was flying in from Timbuktu or TawiTawi. That would eliminate that uneasy feeling of being discriminated
against.
I would like to think this is all a
misunderstanding.
I admire this city. It provides care
and employment to its elderly and the
handicapped. There is respect for law
and order, and transportation is efficient. It strives to have clean air and a
healthy environment.
It gives Filipino domestic helpers
and professionals opportunities to
earn money and – perhaps even more
important – a home away from home.
Thanks to Hong Kong, ukay-ukay
business flourishes in the Philippines
and our kids are now only a short hop
away from Disneyland. But a prosperous metropolis that advertises itself as
Asia’s World City needs to show more
sensitivity to visitors. Especially firsttimers whose impression of Hong
Kong may be shaped by their experiences – and the people they encounter
– at the airport.
Tourist-related businesses
have recovered their losses by
60 per cent since 2004 and in
2005, the recovery was placed
at 90 per cent, reaching almost
100 per cent in 2006, Torres
added.
“We implemented a series
of marketing strategies,
promotional campaigns and
others to various sectors
until we got the support and
opportunities we needed.
Finally, we have fully recovered
and we hope no kidnapping
incident occurs again.”
Pangasinan
A bemedalled FilipinoAmerican soldier who served
the United States Army
and died while on a military
operation in Iraq was given a
hero’s burial here.
Given a US military hero’s
internment was Sgt Richard V
Correa,25.
US military personnel
came over to give full military
honors to their comrade,
whose body was intered at the
Lingayen municipal cemetery.
His casket, draped in the
American flag, arrived in his
parents’ home in Lingayen,
was originally scheduled for a
three-day wake.
But his father, Ricardo
Primicias, 71, said the wake
was extended for another
day at the request of the
U.S. embassy. Primicias, a
businessman, was a member
of the 1971 Constitutional
Convention.
news
filipino globe
MJ’s smile
brings tears
to worried
mother’s eyes
June 2007
MJ Sultan may
soon be moved
into a ward as
his condition
continues to
improve.
Weeks of anxiety give way to relief as
liver boy finally shows real progress
Jose Marcelo in Hong Kong
The first time Sally Sultan saw a smile
crease the face of her son MJ in the
three weeks that he has spent at the
Intensive Care Unit of Queen Mary
Hospital, tears inevitably flowed.
“Nawawalan na po kami ng pagasa
noong una dahil kung ilang linggo,
palagi lang po s’yang nakahiga roon
at hindi halos gumagalaw,” said Sally.
“Kaya noong una po namin s’yang
makita na tumawa, hindi ka po puwedeng hindi maiyak.”
Three-year-old Muhammad Jamail
Sultan is still under observation almost a month after undergoing liver
transplant, but all signs have been
encouraging, according to Filipino
surgeon Vanessa de Villa. “His condition is improving,” de Villa, also
an assistant professor at Hong Kong
University, said.
“Wala na s’yang lagnat, we’ve removed all the drains in his body and
his liver is functioning normally. Even
the condition that causes the yellowing in his body is back to normal.
“In fact, we’re hoping to transfer
him to the ward soon.”
The doctors’ only concern now is
MJ’s difficulty in taking in food, de
Villa said.
“Hindi pa rin po ma-tolerate ang
milk,” Sally told Filipino Globe onJune 11. “Under observation pa rin po
s’ya.”
De Villa said: “We’re monitoring
the situation. We don’t know if it’s be-
cause matagal s’yang hindi kumakain
or dahil matagal s’yang nakahiga, but
we’re hoping it will improve soon.”
Signs of a recovery have brought
cheer to the Sultan family, who
waited over two years for MJ’s liver
transplant and had to overcome one
setback after another since arriving in
Hong Kong in late April.
The difficulty of putting together
the HK$800,000 deposit required for
the operation set back the surgery date
for a couple of weeks. A lump was
also found on MJ’s liver and a cyst on
Rowena Barcelo, who was donating a
part of her liver to her nephew.
9
“Talaga pong dumaan kami sa
pinakamaliit na butas ng karayom,”
said Sally. “Muntik nang hindi matuloy ang operasyon dahil nga po sa nakitang bukol sa liver ni MJ at sa sister
ko na si Rowena.”
They were finally cleared as the
surgery finally went ahead on May
15. But MJ, diagnosed with biliary
atresia just months after he was born,
has spent almost a month in ICU as
costs piled up and the Sultans’ hopes
faded.
Then one morning, Sally said, MJ’s
condition made a turn for the better.
“Ngayon po, palagi na s’yang tumatawa at naglalaro na rin ng mga colors. Wala na rin po iyong pangangati
n’ya at iyong yellow po sa mata n’ya,
ngayon light yellow na lang,” Sally
said.
“Sana po, tuloy-tuloy na ang kanyang recovery.”
Barcelo, who spent six days at the
hospital after the procedure, has been
given the go-signal to return home.
Sally said she has a long list of
people to thank on behalf of MJ, the
third child from an indigent Filipino
family to undergo liver transplantation at Queen Mary with the help of
de Villa.
Liver transplantation is still not performed in Philippine hospitals.
The Islamic Union of Hong Kong
has led the fund raising drive among
members of the Muslim community
that raised over HK$100,000 for MJ’s
operation. Sally’s husband, Jamail,
who sells rice porridge along Blumentritt Street in La Loma, Quezon City,
is a Muslim from Lanao del Sur.
Several other charitable individuals in the territory have pitched in
to complete the deposit required at
Queen Mary.
10
news
filipino globe
June 2007
Nursing schools face crunch
Explosive enrollment growth threatens to overwhelm system, trade group warns
The country’s more than 400 nursing
schools are about to explode, with a
staggering 632,108 students enrolled
for 2007-2008, up 145,875 or 30 per
cent from the 486,233 enlisted last
year, the Trade Union Congress of the
Philippines has warned.
“There is no question nursing
schools nationwide are being overwhelmed by the big surge in enrollment,” TUCP spokesperson Alex
Aguilar said.
“Now more than ever, regulators
must be extra vigilant, and see to it
that nursing students are kept away
from substandard schools,” Aguilar
said.
Aguilar urged the Commission on
Pro-patient
measure
fuels debate
over state of
health care
Higher Education to step up the policing of nursing schools nationwide to
shield parents and students from the
proliferation of so-called “diploma
mills.”
“We must stress that regulators are
duty-bound to safeguard the hopes of
tens of thousands of Filipino families
to produce a nurse practitioner who
will eventually lead them to greener
pasture,” Aguilar said.
“The burden is on regulators -- for
them to protect and nurture the dreams
of a better life of every Filipino family that now has a member in nursing
school,” he added.
Aguilar also urged regulators to
guard the integrity of the nursing eli-
gibility examination.
He warned that unless the Professional Regulation Commission and
the Board of Nursing prepare adequately, they risk being overwhelmed
in the months ahead by the surge in
the number of graduates taking the licensure examination.
Already, a record 78,797 fresh nursing graduates took the June 11 licensure test. This does not include some
11,000 nursing graduates who voluntarily retook two parts of the examination after they were affected by last
year’s leak-marred testing. The next
examination will be in December.
Last month, TUCP bared that the
number of Filipino nurses seeking
employment in the United States
nearly doubled in the first quarter.
According to the labor group, a total
of 5,076 Philippine-educated nurses
sought jobs in America by taking for
the first time the NCLEX administered by the US National Council of
State Boards of Nursing from January
to March this year.
This marked an increase of 2,365
or 87 percent compared to the 2,711
Filipino nurses who took the NCLEX
for the first time in the first quarter of
2006.
The NCLEX refers to the National
Council Licensure Examination for
registered nurses or licensed practical/vocational nurses.
June 2007
ANGBANSA
South Cotabato
The Department of Education
has opened a facility that
will lead the promotion of
culture-sensitive education for
indigenous people here and the
neighboring areas.
Luz Almeda, DepEd region
12 director, said the facility,
dubbed Center for Indigenous
People’s Education, was
established to facilitate the
full implementation of the
program, which pushes for
a more holistic and culturesensitive approach in educating
indigenous people.
The center, located in DepEd
South Cotabato compound,
was established through the
assistance of the Australian
government-funded Basic
Education Assistance for
Mindanao project.
Almeda said the facility is
managed by DepEd-South
Cotabato.
Davao
Hospital operators
say the measure
will hurt their ability
to improve their
facilities, which
would adversely
affect the quality of
health care in the
long run.
The urgency to create a new
special drug court in this city
was raised anew by Regional
Trial Court Branch 17 Judge
Renato Fuentes to resolve
the problem on the ballooning
number of drug cases pending
in his sala.
Fuentes said the
establishment of a new drug
court will require a P2 million
budget to pay for the salaries of
12 employees and the logistics
Edgar Serrano in Manila
“Pasa load”, a popular term among
texters and cell phone users, is now
a buzz word among legislators and
government policy makers; this
simply means passing the burden for
patients who cannot afford to pay
for their hospital bills to the private
health facilities owners through the
recently signed Republic Act No
9439.
The Patient’s Illegal Detention
Act signed into law by President
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on April
27 prohibits hospitals from detaining
patients for non-payment of hospital
bills. The law which was principally
sponsored by Senators Manuel Villar,
Sergio Osmeña III and Pia Cayetano
also imposes a prison term of up
to six months or fine of as much as
P50,000 for employees of medical
institutions who are found guilty of
violating the measure.
RA 9439 states that “patients who
have fully or partially recovered
and who already wish to leave the
hospital or medical clinic, but are
financially incapable to settle, in
part or in full, their hospitalization
expenses including professional fees
and medicines, shall be allowed to
leave the hospital.
It also states that in case of a
deceased patient, “the corresponding
death certificate and other documents
required for interment and other
purposes shall be released to any of
his surviving relatives requesting the
same.”
In lieu of the obligation of the
patient, a promissory note could be
secured by either a mortgage or a
guarantee of a co-maker, who would
be jointly liable with the patient’s
unpaid medical bill.
Asked about the formulation of the
implementing rules and regulation,
Department of Health Undersecretary
Alex Padilla said the meetings with
concerned sectors started before May
ended and it will take at least one
month to finalize the implementing
filipino globe
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for the new courtroom.
Fuentes, former executive
judge of RTC, said they
have been asking for the
establishment of additional drug
courts from Congress but their
plea remains unheard.
“Cebu has three drug courts,
Cagayan de Oro has two, Metro
Manila had four while Davao has
only one despite the fact that the
city is bigger compared to other
cities,” Fuentes said in batting
for the move.
Batanes
rules. The law will be in force 15
days after the publication of the
rules.
However, some hospital owners
view the measure as a class
legislation directed against the
private health facilities.
Philippine Hospital Association
president Dr Tiburcio Macias said
that “on average, only one out of
10 indigent patients who promise to
pay their hospital bills after release
actually honor their obligations”.
Private hospital owners also said
that unlike the tax incentives given to
business establishments incorporated
in the law that gave discounts to
senior citizens, sponsors of Republic
Act No 9439 did not include tax
credits or tax breaks for hospitals
that may incur heavy losses due to
patients’ unpaid hospital bills.
The PHA is concerned that this law
will breed abuse wherein patients
will avoid payment of their bills.
“
The lack of
payments would
translate to a
dearth of funds
for medicine,
equipment
and salaries of
employees
DR RUSTICO JIMENEZ
PHAP spokesman
PHAP spokesman Dr Rustico
Jimenez said his group is against RA
9439 because of its long-term effects
that will harm the poor people more
than the rich saying that sources of
funds should be identified for poor
patients who are unable to pay their
hospital bill.
Jimenez added private hospitals
needed sources of funds to pay for
medicines, equipment and salaries of
their employees and the law would
unduly penalize private hospitals
without addressing their problems.
The lack of payments by patients
would translate to a dearth of funds
for medicine, equipment and salaries
of employees, he said.
Jimenez earlier said many hospitals
had a lot of problems with unpaid
bills since only about one in 10
patients who issued promissory
notes actually honored these while
others give fictitious names or
addresses.
The Ivatans have expressed
optimism that the rehabilitation
marks for the seawall here
which was destroyed by
typhoon Igme in 2004 will be
completed before the year
ends.
Governor Vicente S Gato
said the P11.5 million fund for
the project’s completion was
released after representations
with Public Works and
Highways Secretary
Hermogenes Ebdane last
year.
The seawall, when
completed, will not only protect
the residential, commercial
and government building in
the adjacent areas but will
also serve as strolling and
viewing lane for tourists and
local residents.
Engr Aniceto T Alviso said
the original structural design
costing about P10 million had
to be changed.
11
12
news
filipino globe
June 2007
Land reform to get extension
Malacanang backs urgent bill seeking 10-year grace period for program
President Arroyo has certified as urgent a bill seeking a 10-year extension of the Comprehensive Agrarian
Reform Law.
The law, which took effect in 1988,
expires next year.
Agrarian Reform Secretary Nasser
Pangandaman announced the move
during the celebration of the 19th
anniversary of the Comprehensive
Agrarian Reform Program.
Pangandaman said the 10-year extension would allow the government
to fully cover the remaining two mil-
lion hectares still to be placed under
reform that will benefit an additional
two million farmers.
Seven million hectares have already
been placed under reform since 1988,
benefiting about four million farmers.
The reform program support services have created 500,000 jobs in infrastructure, Pangandaman said.
The program envisions “to make
the countryside economically viable
for the Filipino family by building opportunities toward lasting peace and
sustainable rural development.”
Arroyo has said that land ownership
can end poverty in developing countries like the Philippines.
She handed out awards to outstanding stakeholders who have contributed to the successful implementation
of the land reform program
Leading the awardees was Nelson
Taladhay Sr of Masiag Agrarian Reform Community (ARC) in Bagumbayan, Sultan Kudarat.
The other awardees were Kenkram
Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries MultiPurpose Cooperative of Isulan, Sultan
Kudarat as the Progressive ARB Organization;
Kenkram Mapantig ARC of Isulan
as the Outstanding Agrarian Reform
Community; and the Del Carmen Irrigators’ Association of President
Roxas, Cotabato as the Outstanding
CARP Irrigators Association.
Also cited were foreign donor-countries and financial institutions that
have supported the implementation of
land reform, including the Japan Bank
for International Cooperation, and the
Asian Development Bank.
Iloilo takes
wraps off
new P8b
airport
Iloilo province has opened its
doors to world air traffic with
the inauguration of an P8 billion
international airport.
The airport sits on a 188-hectare
straddling Sta. Maria and Cabatuan
towns.
President Gloria MacapagalArroyo, who led the opening of
the air terminal, described the new
airport as a “shining example of
the best that is still to come for all
the Filipino people” as the country
continues to break loose from its
“lethargic economic legacy.”
She said the new airport is a
“symbol of our collective will and
the people’s support.”
She praised the Ilonggos for
their steadfast commitment to the
project despite the magnitude of the
challenges posed by lack of funds.
Plans for the upgrading of the
Iloilo airport started in 1997 when
the whole of Southeast Asia was
reeling from the effects of the
financial crisis gripping the region.
But with “concerted efforts and
the faith of all the Ilonggos, we
concentrated on completing it (Iloilo
International Airport) on time,” she
added.
“We broke the back of our lethargic
economic legacy via a combination
of tough fiscal measures and equally
difficult political decisions to make
more revenue.”
She was referring to the expanded
value added tax law which raised the
tax on goods and services from 10
percent to 12 per cent.
The additional taxes enabled the
government to raise funds needed
to implement vital physical and
infrastructure projects, including the
Iloilo international airport.
Arroyo assured the Ilongos that
her administration would continue
to focus on pro-growth, pro-trade
and pro-investment strategies “that
will lift our people from poverty
and make the Philippines a real
investment destination.”
“And with this Iloilo airport here,
Iloilo is also in contention as a major
investment destination,” Arroyo
added.
ANGBANSA
Dumaguete
Advocates are urging various
sectors and other stakeholders
in Negros Oriental to unite and
strengthen efforts to fight the
global problem on child-labor.
The call was made during
another forum held here in
celebration of this year’s World
Day Against Child Labor, which
focuses on the agriculture
sector where the vast majority
of child laborers in the
Philippines are engaged in.
A study by the National
Statistics Office showed an
estimated 53 per cent of the
country’s working children
in the Philippines are in the
agriculture sector, said Ismael
Trasmonte of the International
Labor OrganizationInternational Programme on the
Elimination of Child Labor.
Worldwide, 70 per cent of
the working children are in
agriculture, representing over
132 million child workers.
Cagayan
With eyes brightening up,
Gloria Caronan, made an initial
account of the ulang harvest
from the 800 square meter
fishpond of farmer-cooperator
Marlo Pagulayan at Barangay
Cabasan here.
A retiree and balikbayan from
Toronto, Canada, Caronan, was
one of the participants during
the harvest Field Day.
She was awed by what
she saw in the ulang or
giant freshwater prawn
(macrobrachium rosenbergil)
grown at the Farm Level Ulang
Grow-out Verification Project.
“At 20 to 30 pieces a kilo, the
harvest is good considering
that the stocks were fed with
indigenous feeds supplemented
by only five bags of commercial
prawn feeds for five months
culture period,” Caronan said
during a presentation.
Iloilo
The forbidding image of the police is being transformed in a remote town in Ilocos through its ‘Pulis Ko,
Teacher Ko’ program. As a result, they have endeared themselves to the local population.
Police trade guns for chalk and board
The police in Region 1 are making a
difference in the lives of the people
in the rural areas of Ilocos through
its novel program called “Pulis Ko,
Teacher Ko”.
Started in remote Bagulin, La Union
last school year, “Pulis Ko, Teacher
Ko” was conceived by Police Regional Director Chief Supt Leopoldo
Bataoil to also address the problem of
insurgency.
Less than a year after it was
launched in a very limited way, “Pulis
Ko, Teacher Ko” is making headway
in gaining the confidence of the rural
folk, said Bataoil
Implemented in a wider area in the
region as the new school year has just
started, the program is being waged in
insurgency-affected areas where the
police are maintaining detachments.
There, policemen who are graduates in bachelor of science in elementary education would lay down their
firearms for a while in order to hold
chalks, erasers and lesson plans.
Bataoil said the program reflects the
human side of the Philippine National
Police.
“The message is very clear,” he
said.
“It [“Pulis Ko, Teacher Ko”] will re-
verberate far and wide – that the PNP
is not after all just running after the
criminal elements or enforcing laws
to the letter but also reaching out to
the people who would like to live in
peace and providing whatever assistance that we can provide,” he said.
Bataoil said that under the program,
which is in coordination with the Department of Education, policemen
with education degrees can pinch-hit
in schools lacking in teachers.
He said that when he scanned the
personnel files of policemen, he
found out that many are education
graduates.
Lot owners or their children
will be priority in terms of
employment at the New Iloilo
Airport of Development Project
in Sta Barbara-Cabatuan towns
in Iloilo province.
Iloilo third disttrict
congressman Arthur Defensor
who was with President Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo when she
inaugurated the new airport
said that it has been agreed
that the lot owners or their
children would be given priority
in employment provided that
they are qualified for the
positions.
“I hope the Department
of Transportation and
Communications and the Air
Transportation Office would
honor this commitment,” said
Defensor, who was reelected
for his third and last term.
Cabatuan Mayor Ramon
Yee said that he expects his
constituents to be able to get
employment in the new airport.
filipino globe
June 2007
13
14
news
filipino globe
June 2007
Battle on to save coconut trees
P30m earmarked for fight against pest threatening to wipe out industry in 3 years
The Department of Agriculture has
earmarked P30 million from the Coconut Industry Investment Fund to
fund a massive program to eradicate
an invasive plant pest that threatens
to wipe out the US$760 million coconut industry in three years unless it is
contained soon.
To fight the pest, known as the coconut hispine beetle, from spreading
further and causing more tree deaths,
Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap
also ordered the Philippine Coconut
Authority to immediately release
P350,000 for the insecticide treatment
of more than 75,000 infected palms in
18 of the country’s 79 coconut-producing provinces.
Yap said an inter-agency action
team, which was created to draw up
and implement plans to contain the
spread of the coconut leaf beetle, has
also drawn up a pest control project,
while a P1.5 million pilot biological
control project funded through the
department’s biotechnology program
will also be carried out soon.
Under the program, a biological
control laboratory will be established
with well-trained action teams in every
region to mass produce and use local
natural enemies against the coconut
leaf beetle. “We expect non-infected
areas and islands to be protected from
this coconut leaf beetle through effective quarantine and information dissemination about the pest,” Yap said.
“We cannot take this threat lightly
because the coconut leaf beetle could
cause considerable damage to our coconut industry if left untreated,” he
added.
Yap said the infestation needs to be
contained immediately because the
coconut industry is now on recovery mode, having been the worst hit
by the spate of super typhoons that
devastated Bicol in the last quarter of
2006. “This is why, I have asked the
CIIF to look for at least P30 million to
fund a comprehensive survey, information drive and eradication program
to rid our coconut industry of this
pest,” he said.
The coconut leaf beetle has infested
more than 70,000 tall and 5,000 small
coconut trees or 700 hectares of coconut plantation, and an undetermined
number of ornamental plants.
CIIF Oil Mills group president and
chief executive Danilo M Coronacion
said these pests are native to Papua
New Guinea and Indonesia and were
brought to the Philippines in 2004.
Legazpi
ANGBANSA
City mayor Noel Rosal has
renewed his investment
advocacy program to the
Bicolano association in
America, with an assurance
that this city is still alive and
recovered from last year’s
typhoons Reming and Seniang.
Rosal said the forthcoming
convention of the Bicol National
Association of America on June
26 and 27 is the best forum for
business promotion.
“The visit of BicolanoAmericans is an opportunity for
us, specially our local business
sector, to introduce a new
investment partnership,” Rosal
said.
“After five months, we
were able to rehabilitate our
infrastructure facilities and
restored business operations,”
he said.
He urged hotel owners and
operators to innovate unique
service strategies.
Dagupan
Tons upon tons of milkfish
(bangus) from western
Pangasinan are continuously
being unloaded by trucks here
since a massive fish kill broke
out in the towns of Anda and
Bolinao.
City agriculture officer Emma
Molina said that trucks bringing
in milkfish to the Dagupan fish
market arrive day and night.
She said the milkfish being
AND THE WINNERS ARE ...
Loren Legarda, Noynoy Aquino and Gringo Honasan were among 10 senators proclaimed by the Commission on elections. At this writing, activist
soldier Antonio Trillanes had secured the 11th slot in last month’s senatorial election. The poll also marked the second staging of absentee voting.
Nine killed,
5 hurt as bus
explodes in
Davao town
Nine people died and five others were
wounded when a passenger bus exploded in Bansalan town in Davao del
Sur, a police official said.
Chief Superintendent Andres Caro,
director of the PNP regional office in
Southern Mindanao, said the explosion occurred at around 6 pm inside
a Weena bus while it traversed the
town’s public market, near Apo Hardware.
Security forces immediately responded and cordoned the blast site.
Bomb experts have been dispatched
to the area to conduct post blast investigation.
On Wednesday, government forces
intercepted a car bomb in Surralah
t)own, also in the province. The car
bomb was supposed to be detonated
either in Koronadal, Tacurong and
Cotabato cities and Esperanza town.
Say good bye to gasoline and fumes
Roberto V Celis was in his fifties
when he began developing an
invention.
Now 73, Celis looks back on how
he got his start on his baby, called
“hydrogasifier”, which uses water
as supplemental fuel for all kinds of
internal combustion engines that use
gasoline, diesel, natural gas, hybrid
or bio-fuel, thus eliminating deadly
pollutants from spreading into the
atmosphere.
“It utilises the hot exhaust gases
from the engine to dissociate water
into hydrogen and oxygen gases that
are immediately introduced into the
combustion chamber to completely
burn the fuel,” Celis said.
Celis said that when he
perfected the development of the
“hydrogasifier” as an anti-pollution
device, it turned out also as an engine
enhancer, increasing power of the
vehicle and at the same time cutting
down fuel consumption.
“It was just marvelous and I was
surprised to this unexpected bonus
to my invention which would benefit
the Filipinos and the whole world,”
he said.
“Fuel saved from gas or diesel is
from 30 to 50 percent and that is a lot
of savings,” he added.
Using the “hydrogasifier” would
save the Philippines some US$2
billion of fuel annually, he said.
Celis said that carbon emission
is near zero during a series of
laboratory tests by the Land
Transportation Office “that makes
this device a potential carbon
eliminator to prevent global warming
that’s threatening man’s health.”
To prove his invention works
perfectly, Celis installed the device to
test its effectiveness in a Ceres Liner
Bus, a Jeep Star Bus, and jeepney
operated by Ryan Transport Services,
all based in Bacolod City last March
and came up with the following
results: the 174 horsepower the Ceres
Buses increased to 199 hp, while
emission from 9.6k down to 0.21k,
cutting down emission by 94 percent;
A Pajero installed with
“hydrogasifier” saved fuel by 40 per
cent in city driving, and by as much
as 87 percent in highway driving,
Celis said.
He said a 1994 Toyoto Corolla car
using the device saved fuel by 50
percent in highway driving and up to
30 per cent in city driving.
”It is my humble contribution
to the world in containing global
warming which is threatening man’s
existence,” Celis said.
”I do believe that my invention
can contribute greatly in conserving
energy and reduce global warming in
response to the 1997 Kyoto Protocol
on Climate Change, wherein the
World Bank will pay us US$20 per
ton on carbon emission reduction.”
unloaded here are of good
quality but were observed to be
below their marketable sizes.
Dagupan is the usual
destination of milkfish and
other aqua-marine products
produced in the coastal areas of
Pangasinan.
But there are big fish cage
owners in Bolinao and Anda
who are bringing their products
directly to Manila.
Anda and Bolinao are the
biggest milkfish producers in
Pangasinan.
Baguio
City mayor Reinaldo Bautista,
Jr has assured residents
and tourists the on-going
rehabilitation of national and city
roads and adjacent drainage
canals with linear length of
more than five kilometers will
enhance the mountain resort’s
safety during the coming rainy
months.
Bautista said he recognises
the great inconvenience of
hundreds of motorists and
commuters.
“In the long run, their
sacrifices will be repaid by
better roads and canals
especially in the rainy months of
July and August.”
The diggings and certain
corrective measures to existing
concrete pavements are
mostly being undertaken in the
all-weather Quirino Highway
in barangay Irisan as well
as in Kisad Road, Pucsusan
Barangay area, Abanao
extension.
news
filipino globe
Estrada graft
hearing: both
sides confident
about outcome
Oral arguments presented in ousted
president’s long-running legal saga
The Sandiganbayan heard on Friday
the oral summation of the final arguments on the plunder and perjury cases of former president Joseph Estrada
(below), with both the prosecution
and the defense panels expressing
confidence about winning the yearslong legal battle.
Special Prosecutor Dennis Villa-Ignacio said they are confident that Estrada will be convicted based on the
testimonies of their vital witnesses
and the evidence they presented to the
court.
“We are very confident that Estrada
will be convicted after we have presented our memorandum which consists of two volume,” Villa-Ignacio
said.
The defense panel expressed optimism that Estrada will be acquitted
based on the merits of the case.
Estrada, during an interview, said:
“I feel that I will be acquitted. As far
as legality is concerned, there is no
case.
“Maybe, it’s all about politics.
However, I strongly believe that the
Sandiganbayan will give me justice.”
In a one and a half hour oral summation, the prosecution presented to the
graft court their pieces of evidence to
refute the defense panel’s claims.
Villa-Ignacio laid down issues on
the jueteng money, tobacco excise
tax, sale of Belle shares, which he
allegedly said benefited the deposed
president.
He also reminded the graft court
about the existence of the Jose Velarde account, which Clarissa Ocampo
testified that Estrada signed 15 documents under that name.
State prosecutor Julio Olaguer,
during the summation of the perjury
charge against Estrada, said the deposed president made false declarations in his statements of asset, liabilities and net worth.
But the defense panel denied all the
allegations, asserting that the prosecution failed to prove Estrada’s guilt
beyond reasonable doubt.
Estrada’s lawyer Estelito Mendoza, during their three-hour rebuttal,
pointed out that pieces of evidence
presented by the prosecution panel
are all “voluminous
and baseless.”
He said the ousted
leader did not benefit from the alleged
diversion of tobacco
excise tax and the sale
of the Belle shares.
He also asserted
that it is not true that Estrada is “Jose
Velarde”, as testified by Ocampo.
Lawyers Rene Saguisag and Jose
Flaminiano also delivered further rebuttal of the charges against Estrada.
The seven-hour trial ended after
defense lawyers declined to rebut the
closing arguments presented by defense lawyers.
The Sandiganbayan is expected to
make a ruling not less than 60 days.
However, Villa-Ignacio said it could
be longer than that period depending
on the complexities of the cases to be
decided.
Estrada arrived at 8:30 am at the
Sandiganbayan building along Commonwealth Avenue, Quezon City
with more than 25 police escorts and
bodyguards.
Reyes urges Asean climate watch
Environment and Natural Resources
Secretary Angelo Reyes said it’s
about time that the Asean countries
conducted a regular “greenhouse gas
inventory” to further strengthen the
government’s hand in dealing with
emissions that contribute to climate
change.
“Such an inventory would enable
us to know the generators and the
amount of our greenhouse gases,
and to come up with interventions
that can mitigate these gases,” Reyes
said.
He noted that human activities
are releasing too much greenhouse
gases such as carbon dioxide into
the atmosphere, putting people’s
health at risk and degrading the
environment.
In a speech delivered for him
by Undersecretary Demetrio
Ignacio, Reyes said the government
“recognises the need to have a more
credible, sustained and improved
quality of greenhouse gas emissions
data in Southeast Asia which can be
effectively accessed.”
“As a signatory to United Nations
Framework on Climate Change, we
are required to undertake and submit
our greenhouse gas inventory.
Through this meeting, our country
will gain knowledge on the available
tools, techniques and strategies on
how to enhance our inventory of
greenhouse gases such as carbon
dioxide and methane,” Reyes said.
For advertising inquiries
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(852) 2918 8248, email: [email protected]
June 2007
15
16
news
filipino globe
June 2007
Fiery US Pinay takes ’em on
Filipino-American
columnist stands
her ground and
emerges as a
conservative icon
Steven Knipp in Washington DC
Quick, take 30 seconds to think of
some of the foremost conservative
media figures in the United States.
If the image that immediately pops
into your mind is that of pasty, pudgy,
mostly well past 50-year-old males,
don’t feel bad. You’re not the only
one. The likely names and images that
most people conjure up include middle aged men like Bill O’Reilly, Sean
Hannity, Fred Barnes, Newt Gingrich
or Rush Limbaugh.
Yet, one of America’s best-known
conservative political commentators is
neither pudgy nor pasty: She is petite,
pretty, well under 50, and could never
be called pasty. Her name is Michelle
Malkin, and though her newspaper
columns appear in some 150 American newspapers, and her blogs attract
nearly 400,000 readers, and she’s a
regular guest on nationwide television, few Americans know that the
writer whom the esteemed The New
York Times has called a “firecracker”
is a Filipino-American.
Whether you agree with her views
or not – and many people don’t – Malkin has carved a name for herself, as
well as a unique position in American
media.
The 36-year-old Malkin was born
in Philadelphia to Philippine immigrants. Her father was a doctor, her
mother a schoolteacher. She grew up
in a small town in southern New Jersey. At Holy Spirit High School, she
was an editor of the school newspaper. Initially, she wanted to be a concert pianist and enrolled in Oberlin
college, a school well-known for its
fine music department. But she later
changed her major from music to
English, and again was soon writing
for Oberlin’s student newspaper.
It was while at university that Michelle met her future husband, Jessie,
who later won a Rhodes scholarship
to study in Oxford.
After graduating in 1992, Michelle
began her career as a reporter for a
small newspaper in Los Angles. A
year later, she married Jessie and the
couple moved to Seattle, where Michelle joined the Seattle Times.
Eight years ago, she moved to
Washington DC to join a conservative
think-tank.
By 2004, she had her first blog up
and running, and from that point, career has soared to a point where she
Michelle Malkin’s
views have put her
on the spot, but she
is not shy to defend
them. Below: one
of her controversial
books.
June 2007
Iloilo
President Arroyo said creditors
are coming to the country to
fund various projects, drawn by
the stable and strong economy.
She attributed the state of
the economy to the passage
of revenue measures by the
Senate during the leardership
of Ilonggo Senator Franklin M
Drilon.
Arroyo said the economy has
reached a level of maturity with
the strongest fundamentals in
revenue generation.
She thanked the lawmakers
for helping stabilise the
economy by making tough
decisions to raise revenue.
With the investors coming in,
Arroyo said her government
will focus on pro-growth,
pro-trade and pro-investment
strategies that will lift the
people from poverty and make
the Philippines a preferred
investment destination.
has become a cultural icon for America’s conservatives but a pariah for
many American liberals.
A strong supporter of the right to
bear arms, she claims she owns a gun
herself.
In addition to her two websites, her
weekly newspaper columns, and her
frequent television appearances, Malkin is also the author of three books.
All three have been highly controversial, and all have brought her equal
parts of fame and infamy.
Her first book, published in 2002,
was Invasion: How America Still Welcomes Terrorists, Criminals and Other Foreign Menaces to Our Shores.
It is a detailed indictment of illegal
immigration and Malkin’s views of
the consequences, both economic and
social, for the US.
Her second tome, entitled In Defense of Internment, was even more
controversial, because it defended
the infamous incarceration of more
than 100,000 American citizens of
Japanese descent after Japan attacked
Pearl Harbor in December 1941.
Although she claims that the US
government’s imprisonment of Japanese Americans in remote internment
camps during World War II was justified, not a single Japanese-American
was ever found to have been disloyal
to their country. Despite this fact,
Malkin has been a strong advocate of
the government using racial profiling
for Muslim Americans, as an efficient way to root out possible terrorist
groups operating in the US. The book
sold well enough to get on The New
York Times best-seller list.
Malkin’s latest book, Unhinged:
BY THE NUMBERS
400,000
Readers taking to Michelle Malkin’s blogs
for their daily fill of her conservative views
Exposing Liberals Gone Wild, was
published in 2005. When reviewing
it, Publishers Weekly said: “Malkin
uses extremist bloggers and air-headed celebrities as exemplars of the left,
cherry-picking the most egregiously
tasteless examples of ill-conceived
commentary or inflammatory behavior to bolster her case that liberals, as
a whole, have gone off their rockers.
Right-wingers looking for affirmation
will enjoy.”
She has never been afraid to call
people names, and in turn she herself has been labeled everything from
“mean spirited” to a “battle-axe”.
The Washington Post called her “hard
right”. One Asian-American website
called her “The Radical Right’s Asian
Pit bull.”
(Filipino Globe made several attempts to contact her, but she did not
return calls seeking comment).
Malkin, who has two small children, has not been afraid to criticise
the Philippines either and was quick
to do so when Manila decided to remove its small military contingent in
Iraq, in a column.
She has long been a critic of rappers and hip hop singers who litter
their songs with four-letter words,
and whose lyrics routinely demean
women, an issue on which, for once
at least, she has received support from
both right and left wingers.
Long supportive of President Bush’s
war in Iraq, Malkin is one of very
few bloggers or Washington Beltway
writers who has actually been brave
enough to visit Iraq, spending a week
with a US Army unit in Baghdad.
But with the president’s popularity falling every week, both houses of
Congress now in Democratic control,
and the likelihood that a Democrat
will win the White House in 2008, it
appears that the influence of conservative figures is fast fading. As America begins to move back towards the
political center, Michelle Malkin’s
many fans and followers may fade
away as well.
Yet her strongest supporters insist
that only a fool would underestimate
this fiery Filipino-American flamethrower.
Steven Knipp is a Washington DC
journalist formerly based in Asia
“exploitation of
immigrant RNs by
unscrupulous US
employers” and
called for better
enforcement of
immigration laws.
They have thrown their support
behind the case of the workers,
who they say were brought to New
York under false pretenses and
denied the rights guaranteed by
their employment contract.
When the nurses resigned,
they were sued by their employer
and accused of professional
misconduct.
On March 22, 10 of the nurses
were indicted in Suffolk County
Supreme Court on charges of
endangering their patients. The
nurses’ employment attorney was
also indicted for conspiracy.
They all pleaded not guilty.
The nurses had been hired
through a recruitment agency to
work at a specific nursing home on
Long Island.
When they arrived in the US, they
discovered, to their dismay, they
actually were working for another
agency.
Over a period of months, the
nurses said, the agency refused to
pay them according to the terms of
their contracts.
The Cebu City government will
start giving out P2,000 next year
as annual financial assistance to
the elderly.
Mayor Tomas Osmeña
said P1,000 will be given on
the senior citizens’ birthdays
and another P1,000 during
Christmas.
Councilor Rodrigo Abellanosa,
who heads the Office of the
Senior Citizens Administration,
head, said the city government
came up with the idea early this
Twice in the past six months, Harvard University has been the scene of some of the Filipinos’ proudest moments, thanks to Baldomero Olivera and Oscar Tan.
Filipinos shine at Harvard,
do their countrymen proud
Not one school, nor one group, but an entire nation basks in their success, writes Gilda M Bernal
year and has started working on
the details.
Abellanosa said he is
coordinating with barangay
captains to come up with a list of
senior citizens in the city.
The list will be purged because
many of the elderly have already
passed away.
Abellanosa said the list will
be updated to include senior
citizens who were not registered
before.
Zambales
Some 300 indigent children
aged one to 10 have benefited
from the feeding program
launched by Mayo Production,
a non-government organization
composed of artists and event
organizers, at Barangay
Naugsol.
Andrea Muehlhan, Mayo
Production chairman, and
participants in the Miss GayOlongapo visited the remote
village to bring food and packs
of goodies for the children
mostly, Aetas.
The group also distributed
groceries and rice packs to
more than 50 poor families in
the village.
Muehlhan said the feeding
program is a quarterly project of
the organization.
Mayo Production produces
events such as the Dragon
Boat Regatta in Zambales, Miss
Gay-Tropical and Miss Gay
Victoria-Cebu.
17
TNTs take
a blow as
immigration
bill stalls
ANGBANSA
Cebu
Major associations back nurses in battle with employer
A group of Filipino health workers
is being backed by two major US
nurses associations in a legal
battle with their employer.
The 26 workers – 25 nurses
and one physical therapist – have
been sued by their employer after
they accused it of violating their
employment contract.
The American Nurses Association
and the New York State Nurses
Association condemned the
news
filipino globe
A Filipino biologist eclipsed all other
scientists around the world when he
was named Scientist of the Year by
the distinguished Harvard Foundation
in the United States.
Meanwhile, a Filipino lawyer went
on stage to address the graduating
class of the elite Harvard Law School
earlier this month.
Baldomero Olivera and Oscar
Franklin Tan are on top of two different worlds, in their own chosen
careers, but they share two things in
common.
First, they raised the Philippine colors on the pedestal when they “conquered” the prestigious US institution, reaping honors not many before
them have done.
Second, they are both graduates
of the University of the Philippines,
considered as Harvard’s equivalent in
our country.
Olivera, currently working as distinguished professor at the University
of Utah received recognition as a
scientist with his breakthrough research on the venomous conus marine snails, found in Philippine tropical waters.
His team identified dozens of neurotoxins that are now wildly used in
scientific research. Olivera has been
in the University of Utah faculty since
1970.
He earned his chemistry degree,
summa cum laude, from UP and his
doctoral degree at the California Institute of Technology.
Tan, on the other hand, earned a
double-major degree in management
engineering/economics, cum laude,
from Ateneo de Manila University.
After graduating in the top 10 of
his class at the UP College of Law in
2005, he applied to the Harvard Law
School for his masteral degree and
made the cut.
Harvard is known to not accept
fresh law graduates for its masteral
“
We ... shall
flavor this earth,
whether we be
vodka, wine,
champagne,
pisco sour, piña
colada ... or
lambanog
OSCAR FRANKLIN TAN
Addressing Harvard graduates
program, one of the toughest to get
into.
To be chosen to deliver the speech
on behalf of the 700 American and
foreign graduates was no mean feat
for Tan.
No less than former Harvard student and Microsoft founder Bill Gates
was the guest speaker in the graduation rites.
In his speech, Tan emphasised that
everyone is a “citizen of the world”,
encouraging the graduates to break
the narrow sense of nationalisms of
individual nationalities. “We of the
Class of 2007 shall flavor this earth,
whether we be vodka, wine, champagne, pisco sour, piña colada, caipirinha, tequila, sake, jagermeister, raki,
Irish stout, Ugandan Warabi, or Philippine lambanog,” Tan said.
As a proud Filipino, he ended his
speech to a predominantly Western
audience by saying “Maraming salamat po, at mabuhay kayong lahat”.
Husband charged in Canada caregiver’s slay
Jose Murillos in Vancouver
A jobless Filipino immigrant in Canada has been charged in the death of
his wife who had gone missing last
month.
Orlando Mangaoang, 46, worked
in a poultry farm outside Richmond
until he was diagnosed with a heart
ailment.
He has since been jobless and receives disability pension.
His wife, Editha, 41, disappeared
on May 8, and her decomposing body
was found on May 23 wrapped inside
a box in a parking lot in Richmond,
according to a report in Canada’s online news The Province.
The report described Editha as a
hard-working mother who juggled
three jobs as nanny and caregiver to
pay the family’s bills. She also regularly went to the River Rock Casino.
The Mangaoang couple have four
children aged 13, 15, 16 and 21. They
were present, together with other
family members when their father
was charged with first-degree murder
at the Richmond provincial court.
The report did not say how Editha
was killed.
Police said the slim, five-foot-two,
woman was the family’s sole breadwinner.
“We’re all shocked,” said Pablito
Roque, husband of Editha’s cousin
Grace Roque.
Shiela Farrales of the Philippine
Women Center in British Columbia
said violence is a problem because
immigrants face intense pressures.
“The majority of our community are
live-in caregivers,” she said. “Sponsor families are essentially strangers.
Domestic workers struggle to survive.
We’re stuck in low-income jobs.
“Women are more vulnerable to
physical and domestic abuse. One of
the effects is violence against women.
This is a tragic result. When we hear
of abuse and even killings ... it causes
us to organise our own community
with more urgency, she said.
“It’s hard to hear that one of our
Filipino women has died.”
Editha was reported to have left the
Mangaoang home on May 8 to go
to the River Rock Casino but casino
authorities said they have reviewed
all their surveillance video from that
night and Editha did not seem to have
shown up.
Manaoang was remanded into custody.
Hopes of a secure life in the US for
thousands of Filipino illegal immigrants have been dashed after a bill
granting legal status to 12 million illegal immigrants failed a key test in
the US Senate.
This killed its best chance of passage, dealing a blow to President
George W. Bush.
Top Democratic Senator Harry Reid
(below) withdrew the landmark and
controversial bill after members voted
not to move it towards a final vote.
Only 45 members of the 100 seat
Senate voted to limit further debate
on the measure, 15 short of the total
needed for it to proceed. 50 senators
voted against.
“It’s a sad day for our kababayans,”
Filipino immigrant activist Val Solis
said, referring to the tens of thousands
of nationals, known as TNTs (tago ng
tago), forced to go underground to remain in the country.
Reid forced the vote, saying that
the Senate needed to pass the bill and
move on to debating energy reform
and the war in Iraq.
But Republicans complained his
maneuver would not allow them
enough time to offer amendments to
the legislation, a key second term priority for Bush.
Reid pledged to carry on working to
pass an immigration reform bill, but
added: “we are finished with this for
the time being.”
“We are very
close, at some
point we are going to do this.”
Prospects for
an immigration
deal
making
it through the
Senate however appeared uncertain,
given antipathy to the measure from
conservatives, pressure of other business and partisan fighting between
Republicans and Democrats.
The looming 2008 congressional
and presidential elections also mean
that unless the measure is brought up
soon, it will get caught up in a political maelstrom.
Reid also warned that Bush should
pressure Republicans to vote for the
bill, saying the president’s time in the
White House was running out.
“He has a relatively short piece of
time to help us with this piece of legislation,” Reid said.
“Let’s have President Bush work
with us on this. I want to work with
him. I don’t say that very often.
Republican leader Mitch McConnell meanwhile complained: “I think
we are giving up on this bill too
soon.”
The immigration “grand bargain”
was reached last month by a fragile
bipartisan coalition of senators and
the White House, and is aimed at
bringing undocumented workers out
of the shadows, establishing a meritbased points system for future immigrants and a low-wage temporary
worker program.
It includes a border security crackdown, punishments for employers
who hire illegal immigrants and an
attempt to wipe out a backlog of visa
applications. from those qualified to
enter the country.
18
news
filipino globe
June 2007
UAE grants amnesty to illegals
The United Arab Emirates cabinet has
agreed to grant a three-month amnesty
to all illegal foreigners in the country.
It has also given them the opportunity to legalise their status or leave
the country without penalty, the Department of Foreign Affairs reported.
“The decision of the UAE cabinet,
chaired by His Highness Sheik Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum,
Vice-President and Prime Minister of
the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, aimed
to ensure that all legal workers would
enjoy the full and appropriate benefits
relating to their salaries, health care
and housing,” acting head of post Vicente Vivencio Bandillo of the Philippine consulate general in Dubai, UAE
said in his report to the DFA.
He said the cabinet had already directed the ministries of interior and
labor to work together to take the
necessary steps to implement the decision.
“Hours after the news about this
amnesty came out in the leading
newspapers, the consulate received
numerous phone calls from Filipinos
asking about the amnesty,” he said.
Some have even started to appear at
the consulate to inquire and apply for
travel documents,” Bandillo said.
He also said the decision of the host
government would surely benefit a
significant number of Filipinos in the
UAE who arrived with visit visas but
news
filipino globe
June 2007
19
Rome embassy to slash all fees charged to Filipinos
President Arroyo has ordered the
Department of Foreign Affairs to
lower all fees being charged by the
Philippine Embassy in Rome to
overseas Filipino workers in Italy.
The President issued the directive
during a a recent visit to Italy, where
she held meetings with the Filipino
eventually stayed in the country illegally. “It would also benefit as well
those who could not leave the country for fear of being apprehended by
immigration authorities or could not
afford to pay the fines or penalties for
overstaying,” he added.
Foreign Affairs spokesman Claro
Cristobal said the amnesty program
would not be immediately implemented because the guidelines are yet
to be established.
Children in
tow, Saudi
Pinays finally
return home
An amnesty by the Saudi government
has allowed long-standing illegal
workers to return to the Philippines
without prosecution.
The repatriaties incluided several
women, who have given birth
in the kingdom and chose to go
underground for fear of being caught
and deported.
One was Norma Namla who left
Cotabato City 10 years ago and
braved the Middle East to clean a
stranger’s house for little pay.
On her return, four little ones
tagged along, all of whom she had
during her troublesome decade in a
foreign land.
Namla was among several Filipino
mothers from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
who arrived Wednesday afternoon
after they were granted amnesty for
overstaying in the country.
With her were her two sons, aged 6
and 5, and two daughters, aged 4 and
1, all worn out by the long ride but
kept awake by the surrounding fuss
over their homecoming.
“Life is very hard there. I do not
intend to go back there ... We’ll just
stay here and I’ll send my kids to
school,” Namla told the Philippine
Daily Inquirer, speaking in Pilipino
while struggling to pacify her
youngest child with her Filipino
husband, also working in Saudi.
A domestic helper in her first
seven months until she was forced
to leave for lack of pay, the 38-yearold was among 100 female migrant
workers and 38 children flown home
on Wednesday after they availed of
an amnesty the Saudi government
offered for two months until the end
of May.
Migrant Workers’ Affairs
Undersecretary Esteban Conejos Jr.
explained that Wednesday’s batch of
Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs)
were able to come home after the
Saudi government granted them
amnesty even while the two-month
program was intended only for
Filipino Muslims who had stayed
beyond their time of pilgrimage
within and outside the period of
the Hajj, the Muslim pilgrimage to
Mecca.
Some 750 OFWs, including
Wednesday’s deportees, had rushed
to the Philippine consulate this
month after “some enterprising
Filipino” spread the news that the
Saudi government had granted
a general amnesty to all foreign
workers with immigration violations
there, Conejos said.
community. “I have ordered the
DFA to lower passport renewal rates
from the present 65 euros to only 50
euros, and the reduction of fees for
affidavits and notarisation from 32
euros to only 25 euros,” she said.
Arroyo also announced the
decision of the Italian government
Philippines
secures top
jobs in Spain
oil-gas firm
to automatically grant an Italian
driver’s license to all Philippine
driver’s license holders.
She said this is the result of her
negotiations with the Italian Prime
Minister and President during her
visit here on June 26 last year.
“This will open up more
opportunities for Filipino workers
in Italy especially in the transport
services,” she said.
Arroyo said the Philippine
government would continuously seek
benefits such as these from countries
hosting Filipino workers.
“This is in recognition of your
huge contribution to the Philippine
economy,” the President said.
Overseas Filipino workers in
Italy have remitted some US$600
million out of the US$13 billion total
overseas remittances last year.
There are some 200,000 Filipinos
in Italy.
opportunities.
Tionloc, in his report, said that his
office found the TRSA’s employment
terms and conditions acceptable and
favorable.
The labor office, he said, subsequently approved the request of
TRSA to recruit 45 engineers from
the Philippines.
The labor attaché also reported that
the office in Madrid is continuously
networking with various Spanish
firms especially in the engineering
and heavy industries sector with projects in the Middle East in a bid to cor-
ner more high-end jobs.
He further said that his post is also
closely monitoring the developments
in Spain’s maritime sector in view of
the programs of the Spanish government to shift to the use of liquefied
natural gas and expand its national
fleet through tie-ups with LNG and
chemical carriers worldwide.
Brion said that the labor office in
Madrid has started networking with
Spain’s maritime sector to seek employment opportunities that could be
made available for Filipino seafarers,
port and other maritime workers.
TRSA is Spain’s biggest
construction and
engineering company in the
gas and oil sectors.
Company to hire 45 Filipino engineers for senior
jobs for its construction projects in the country
and for its development ventures overseas
The Philippine Overseas Labor Office in Madrid has secured high-end
and better-paying jobs for overseas
Filipino workers from the largest
Spanish engineering and construction
company, the Department of Labor
and Employment said.
Labor and Employment Secretary
Arturo D Brion, citing a report from
Madrid-based Labor Attache Ramon
T Tionloc, Jr, said that the Tecnicas
Reunicas, SA (TRSA) has sought the
POLO’s approval for the recruitment
of 45 Filipino engineers from the
Philippines.
TRSA is the largest Spanish engineering and construction company in
the oil and gas sector with existing
and forthcoming projects in various
countries worldwide.
The company was recently awarded
by the Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) the construction of the
phenolics facilities project which will
be implemented by Saudi Kayan Petrochemical Co. in Al-Jubail.
Aside from constructing the facili-
“
High-end jobs
ensure better
pay and other
employment
conditions for our
workers
ARTURO BRION
Labor secretary
ties, TRSA will also carry out the engineering design, procurement, and
the management of the project.
Brion said the labor office in Madrid negotiated with the TRSA to get
the jobs for highly skilled Filipino
engineers, adding that the effort is in
line with the government’s aim to find
high-end jobs.
“High-end jobs ensure better pay
and other employment conditions that
promote the welfare of OFWs,” he
said.
“This has been the main consideration of the labor attaches during a
web conference they conducted recently as a group.”
Brion also said that the Labor Attaches manning the 34 labor offices
situated in locations with high concentration of OFWs worldwide have
been alerted during the conference to
pay closer attention to labor markets
that can offer high-end employment
Former welder executed for murder
A 41-year-old former welder who
worked at an auto shop in Riyadh
yesterday became the fifth Filipino
executed since President Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo took office in
2001.
She had pledged to increase efforts
to prevent the execution of overseas
Filipino workers who end up on
death row abroad.
Also executed yesterday in Jizan
was Yemeni Yassin ibn Saleh Abdu
Ahmed. He was found guilty of
killing a Saudi with a pickax during
an attempted robbery.
An Interior Ministry statement
posted by the Saudi Press Agency
said Reynaldo Cortez was beheaded
yesterday morning at an undisclosed
location in Riyadh. He was found
guilty of the 2002 murder of a
Pakistani driver.
Philippine Ambassador to Saudi
Arabia Antonio Villamor said the
execution took place between 8.30
and 9 a.m.
Cortez left behind a wife and six
children in Guagua, Pampanga.
The family of the murder victim
had declined a 100,000 riyals blood
money deal that had been offered
with the help of the Philippine
missions in the Kingdom and in
Pakistan where the family lives.
Cortez claimed he was defending
himself from sexual assault when he
stabbed the driver to death.
Villamor said he phoned the
office of the governor of Riyadh
in an attempt to request a stay of
execution.
He said a protocol officer referred
him to the execution team but the
ambassador said by the time he got
in contact with them the prisoner had
already been beheaded.
A Filipino national who regularly
visited Cortez in prison for the past
five years said that he last talked with
Cortez on Tuesday night.
He said Cortez asked him to
collect money from a former inmate
for laundry and tea-serving services
he had provided as a side job in
prison.
The source said that Cortez didn’t
seem to be aware that his execution
would take place the following
day, but that in many previous
conversations Cortez seemed to be
prepared for the worst.
According to the Philippine
Department of Foreign Affairs there
are 33 OFWs on death row outside
of the Philippines, including two
women.
DFA confirms release
of Nigeria hostages
The Department of Foreign Affairs
on finally confirmed the abduction
and same-day release of two Filipino
seamen in Nigeria.
DFA Undersecretary for Migrant
Workers Affairs Esteban Conejos
(right), in an interview, quoted the
report of the consular team in Lagos
who are helping in the efforts to
secure the release of another Filipino
seaman who was kidnapped May 25.
He said the report is “sketchy” and
only confirms two things: That two
Filipinos were abducted on June 3
and were released four hours later.
“That’s all we know. We don’t
know other details, including
their names or the names of their
abductors,” he said,
adding that because the
victims are seamen, the
Philippine embassy in
Nigeria does not have
any of their records.
On the other hand,
Conejos said the release of the
Filipino seaman still in captivity,
who worked on a tugboat, is still
being negotiated by Nigerian
authorities.
He said the seaman was kidnapped
while working on an oil rig in
Layelsa State.”
Contact has been established and
negotiations are already ongoing,”
he said.
20 June 2007
filipino globe
focus
editorial & features
filipino globe
June 2007
21
It’s messy and deadly,
but it’s a democracy
and we’re living in it
Saudi Arabia is home to more than 800,000 overseas Filipino workers, including about 250 permanent residents.
Pinoys give Saudis gift of blood
The observation has often been made
that Filipinos could sometimes, and
in some ways, be strange.
In their home turf, even a
congressman’s driver acts as if
discipline is for the birds. In other
climes, however, the best trait of the
race emerges to make his countrymen
and government proud, not only
on Independence Day, wherein his
valor in the battlefield preceding was
extolled with justifiable pride, but in
more quotidian ways that nonetheless
confirm the generosity of his true
character.
We are certainly most happy to
hear that overseas Filipino workers
in Saudi Arabia have launched a
blood donation campaign for Saudi
citizens.
Spearheaded by the Philippine
embassy, the “Dugo Ko, Alay Ko”
program was successfully held at the
embassy venue with Saudi royalty in
attendance.
The blood-letting campaign is an
expression of “gratitude of Filipino
migrant workers and expatriates
for being welcome to be part of the
kingdom’s economic development
and progress”, according to embassy
officials.
PRESSBOX
comment
FT
Ocampo
Waxing poetic, Ambassador
Antonio Villamor continues: “The
concept of the gift of blood as gift
of life freely given by the Filipino
community for the benefit of the
Saudi people, particularly those in
urgent need of blood transfusion, was
finally agreed upon.”
Figures from the Migrant Workers
Affairs Office show that there are
846,350 Filipinos in Saudi Arabia,
composed of 823,700 contract
workers and 250 permanent
residents. The total includes 22,400
undocumented workers.
Despite the unabated repatriation of
those without proper documentation,
a lot of precious blood are still
available for Saudis.
Which would, in some way, seem
to prove that outside their country,
Filipinos are good law-abiding and
charitable citizens.
The elections are over, well, almost.
As of this writing, the 12th slot in
the Magic 12 is still up for grabs. We
might yet have a father-son team in
the senate, to complement a motherson and sister-brother tandems.
As the wags would say, “onli in da
Pilipins”.
We cannot help thinking that the
recent election in France took only a
day to proclaim the winner, the day
immediately following the actual
voting.
And I am also reminded of
Aristotle, who proclaimed that he
will never give Athenian democracy
another chance to murder philosophy.
Fresh in his mind was the beloved
Socrates, of whom it was said “has
no equal in the past, and has no equal
in the present.”
Aristotle shook the dust off his feet
and hied to Macedonia to tutor the
future Alexander the Great.
Speaker Joe de Venecia should not
give up his dream for a parliamentary
government despite the arrogant
statements of some celebrityobsessed senators.
A Western friend who knows the
Philippines well recently remarked,
“Filipinos are their own worst
enemies.”
I didn’t know whether to feel
insulted or to wag my head sadly and
say, “Maybe we are.”
This was during a discussion about
our messed-up political system. I
later thought of a rebuttal (I’m slow
to react), which I wanted to e-mail
him but decided it wasn’t worth the
effort.
My belated (unsent) retort was:
“We may have a messy political
system, an obstreperous electorate,
some murderous politicians and
military thugs, as well as an
irresponsible media, but we’re still
living in a democracy, albeit flawed.
“Wasn’t it Winston Churchill who
said that democracy is ‘the worst
form of government except for all
those other forms that have been
tried from time to time’?”
One might perhaps compare ours to
that other flawed democracy, Taiwan.
That island-nation’s politicos have
a colorful reputation for staging
regular punch-ups in their parliament
to stop opposition members from
speaking.
There was a chair-throwing
episode in 1990, and in 1993 a
legislator whacked his opponent on
the head with his large cellphone.
A female legislator was reported
to have suffered “bites on her hand
and abrasive wounds in her private
parts”. Another woman member of
parliament poured tea over a male
oppositionist who had slapped her.
During a debate last year about
transport links with the mainland, an
irate Democratic Progressive Party
member stuffed a written proposal
into her mouth. Oppositionists
grabbed her by the hair to make her
spit it out. This year, in January,
some 50 parliamentarians engaged in
a brawl, hurling shoes at the speaker.
Recently, I learned that these
rambunctious spectacles are probably
staged, with the reason given that the
Taiwanese consider them an effective
means of expressing political
frustration.
Is there a lesson here for us
Pinoys? Indeed, wouldn’t it be better
for us to engage in freaky fracas like
the Taiwanese do than to engage in
black propaganda in the media and
shooting political opponents dead?
Perhaps we really are our own
worst enemies and must hang our
heads in shame over our turbulent
election campaigns and sluggish
vote-counting, Namfrel and Comelec
notwithstanding. (It seems votecounting is speedier in some African
countries.)
Political killings have placed us on
a ranking with Iraq. But at least we
haven’t become like Burma, whose
military junta arbitrarily renamed
the country Myanmar and has kept
the winner of their 1990 election in
detention for 12 years.
Though some fringe elements
would be happy if we shed the
PINOYDIMSUM
observations
Isabel T
Escoda
Spanish colonial inheritance linking
us with King Felipe and renamed the
country Maharlika (which smacks
too much of the late unlamented
Ferdinand), that hasn’t been a top
priority, thankfully.
Instead, we’ve been slogging
away trying to make a go of the
messy political process which was
America’s legacy.
Witnessing Hongkongers hold their
regular rallies for universal suffrage
(while keeping the memory of the
Tiananmen massacre alive each June
4th), can we smugly boast that ours
is a better system which allows one
person one vote?
Perhaps we should ponder the
words of that wise man in Manila,
Antonio Abaya, who wrote: “Why
are Malaysia and post-Suharto
Indonesia able to hold open, orderly
and free elections, more or less
according to international standards,
“
We’ve been
slogging away
trying to make a
go of the messy
political process
while we, who have had a longer
tutelage in Anglo-Saxon democracy
(since 1905, under the Americans)
are increasingly less able to do so?”
Elections in those countries are
not marked by voter intimidation,
cheating and 117 dead bodies of
candidates, supporters, voters and
electoral officials killed in electionrelated violence (289 in 2004).
Abaya points to the “endemic chaos
and anarchy”, particularly in Lanao,
which makes him think it should be
renamed “Sierra Lanao “or “Lanao
de la Somalia.”
Why are Pinoys so unruly and
undisciplined at home, but lawabiding when living abroad?
Experts blame the growth in recent
years of political dynasties whose
members know that the Rule of Law
is easily subverted by the palakasan
system.
Latest reports from Manila say
53 women have been elected to the
House.
Dare I hold high (chauvinistic)
hopes that, like determined
disciplinarian housewives, they’ll
be able to clean up the mess, impose
order and ensure good governance?
22
forum
filipino globe
TINGINNAMIN
Double whammy for OFW families
Think of a deadlier combination.
Chances are, you won’t top this:
stagnant wages and a runaway peso.
It’s not a pretty situation to be
in, and we are seeing its ugly
implications in the typical OFW
family.
Where it used to get by on a fixed
remittance (and even end up with
a few thousand pesos to spare), the
OFW family is now getting at least
18 per cent less proceeds from the
money sent by their loved ones
abroad.
The maths is simple enough. The
peso has racheted up against the US
dollar – and many other currencies
– to a point where nothing can be
done to keep pace short of a radical
increase in wages.
Which is why the additional $80
that our workers will receive from
this month will fail to make a dent.
Which is also why nothing else
will do except a return to pre-Sars
wages if we are to start turning things
around for our families back home.
Ordinarily, we should be cheering a
surging peso because it’s one sign of
the strength of our economy.
By pumping money home (to
the tune of nearly US$13 billion
last year), we have been partly
responsible for it.
That’s putting it mildly
Neda, the national economic thinktank, is more blunt, saying we have
become victims of our own success.
Financial experts are offering all
kinds of solutions to mitigate the
impact of the double whammy– from
increased savings to diversified
investment.
For many of us, however, neither is
an option.
SULATLETTERS
May magandang dahilan kung
bakit kakaunti ang bumoto sa
overseas absentee voting.
Una na rito ang kawalan ng
interes nating mga OFWs sa
proseso. Wika nga ng iba, may
mas importante tayong iniisip.
Pangalawa ang kakulangan
ng impormasyon tungkol sa
kandidato at ang kawalan na
rin ng inisyatibo ng mga ito na
magsadya rito.
Ngunit hindi ibig sabihin na
walang silbi ang OAV. Hindi
ako pabor sa napabalitang
gustong tanggalin na ito ng ating
mga pulitiko dahil wala naman
daw itong naging magandang
resulta. Dapat bigyan ng
pagkakataon ang OAV. Matagal
din namang ipinaglaban nating
mga OFWs ang karapatang
lumahok sa eleksyon.
Sara Torneo
Shatin
Mag-dadalawang taon na po
ako sa Hong Kong at nais ko
pong magpatuloy ng aking SSS
contribution.
Meron po akong naiwang
utang sa SSS sa Pilipinas na
natigil po ang pagbabayad nang
umalis ako sa aking trabaho
para magpunta ng Hong Kong.
Nais ko pong malaman kung
ano ang dapat kong gawin sa
dalawang bagay na ito.Sana
matulungan po ninyo akong
maipahatid ito sa kinauukulan.
Jennifer
Hunghom
Hindi na bale sanang mahuli
sa akto, mas masakit kung
dumarating na lang sa iyo
ang notice mula sa Transport
Department ukol sa demerits sa
lisensya mo.
Mas mainam nang mahuli ng
pulis dahil matatandaan mo ito at
tuloy makakapag-ingat ka.
Wala tayong laban sa mga
kamera na nakatutok sa mga
kalsada at kumukuha sa akto ng
driving violation.
Tahimik ito at di mo pa nga
makita. Hindi mo rin alam na
nauubos na pala ang puntos mo
at malapit nang masuspinde and
linsensya mo.
Ang payo ko sa kapwa driver:
isipin lagi na may nagmamatyag
sa atin.
Meron man pulis o wala, hindi
tayo lulusot kay Big Brother.
John-John Pobre
City One, NT
June 2007
Trahedya ng Pinay sa
isang dako ng Africa
Nakatutuwa ang nalathalang
balita na sa bansang Gresya ay
kinikilala ang talino ng mga
Pilipinong marine engineers at
ang mga seaman.
Halos lahat ng shipping
companies ay nakararami ang
bilang ng mga nagtatrabahong
kababayan.
Noong umiinom ako sa Edsa
Central sa isang ordinaryong
inuman ay may nakatabi
akong isang seaman, si Rolly.
Naikuwento niyang inaayos
niya ang dalawang lote sa may
Taguig. Isang “housing project”
ng gobyerno. Kinakailangang
bakuran at patayuan na ng bahay
batay sa alituntunin ng proyekto sa
pabahay.
Maugong noon ang nangyaring
“oil spill” sa Iloilo at may kaso ang
inhinyerong piloto na diumano’y
bihasa sa pagbibiyahe ng mga
kemikal sa barko at hindi sa
langis. Kinukuwestiyon din ang
lisensiya ng piloto na paso na
yata. Pinupuna ni Rolly ang ating
awtoridad tungkol dito at doon
nagsimula ang aming mahabang
usapan sa harap ng bumubulang
serbesa. Ang iniinom niya ay Red
Horse at ako nama’y pale pilsen.
Pero ang kuwento ni Rolly
bilang seaman ang sumugat sa
aking kamalayan noong dumaong
sila sa isang bayan sa Africa.
Magsasaya sana sila ng kapwa
Pilipinong seaman ng gabing iyon.
Nagulat sila na ang mga naging katebol nila ay pawang mga Pilipina.
Nagtataka sila kung bakit sa
bahagi ng mundo na iyun ay doon
pa napadpad ang mga babaeng
kababayan.
Sa kuwento ng mga kababayan
ay hindi nila akalain na sa
Africa sila masasadlak. Hawak
ng kanilang amo ang kanilang
passport at hindi sila makakatakas.
Akala nila ay sa Europe sila
bibigyan ng trabaho ng nagrekrut
sa kanila.
May pinag-aralan at magaganda
sila at posibleng napasakamay
sila ng isang sindikato ng human
traffickers na nagbebenta ng mga
sex slaves sa Africa. Kamakailan
ay nalathala na sa ating pahayagan
ang krimeng ito na isang malaking
industriya mula sa Pilipinas
patungong Africa.
lingkod-bayan
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Antonio
Nasira ang gabi nina Rolly na
mag-aliw at magsaya ng araw na
iyon. Tinamaan sila ng matinding
awa sa mga babaeng kababayang
masaklap ang sinapit. Nasabi tuloy
ni Rolly, “Hindi bale kung mga
prosti sila na lumipat ng trabaho,
pero mga disente ito at may pinagaralan.”
Hindi nila ginalaw ang
magagandang kababayan. Sa
halip ay nag-inuman na lamang
sila habang ikinukuwento ang
masaklap na sinapit pagdaong sa
Africa.
Kinabukasan, kagigising pa lang
ni Rolly sa barko ay napansin
niyang maraming nakabalot na
pagkaing inihahanda ang kasama.”
Saan mo dadalhin ‘yan?” tanong
ni Rolly.
“Nangako ako na bibigyan ko ng
pagkain ang ating mga kababayan
kagabi,” sagot ng kapwa seaman.
Dala ng awa sa mga babae
ay pinagsikapang ibahagi ang
saganang pagkain sa barko.
“Nandiyan na sila sa port at
hinihintay ako. Ito lamang ang
ating magagawang mabuti sa
kanila.”
Sumagi sa isip ni Rolly ang
nangyari kagabi, sa halip na magaliw sila ay napasan sa kanilang
balikat ang problema ng mga
kababayang biktima ng isang
sindikato.
Tunay na talamak pa rin ang
ilegal rekruter at ang sindikato
ng human traffickers sa bansa.
Dapat ay parusang bitay ang
ilapat sa kriminal na akibidad na
ito na nagwawasak ng maraming
kinabukasan.
Masakit ang pangyayaring
ang mga kababaihang may
pinag-aralan pa ang naloloko at
nasasadlak sa hindi nila gustong
trabaho.
Sana’y hindi na maulit ang
naranasang ito ni Rolly sa Africa.
Maraming Pilipina sa ibang bansa ang patuloy na nasasadlak sa
sex slavery. Sila’y kadalasan biktima ng ilegal na rekruter.
Executive EDITOR: Rex Aguado PUBLISHING CONSULTANT Philip Evardone ADVISERs Therese Necio-Ortega, Prof Dr Maurice Teo BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Ricky Sumallo
CORRespondents Eddie Alinea (Manila), Celeste Terrenal (Manila), Terrie Fucanan (Manila), Chito Manuel (Jeddah). Rick Sumallo (New Jersey), Loi Liwanag (Los Angeles)
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Bernie Domantay, AccessPoint (Philippines) Josephine Miranda (Philippines), TJ Badon-Doble (Philippines), Bob Waterfield (Hong Kong)
EDITORIAL BOARD Rex Aguado, Philip Evardone, Prof Dr Maurice Teo CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Beting Laygo Dolor, Teo Antonio, Chito Manuel, Danny Vibas, Dante Vino
Filipino Globe is published once a month by Apex Services (HK) Ltd, Suite 1905, Lippo Centre Tower 2, Queensway, Admiralty, Hong Kong, telephone (852) 2918 8248, email [email protected]. No part of this publication
may be reproduced without the written permission of the publishers. Printed by Premier Printing Group, Yuen Long, New Terrories, Hong Kong
23
June 2007
$212.50
$212.50
$212.50
$212.50
$212.50
$212.50
$297.50
$212.50
$212.50
$212.50
$212.50
SSS CONTRIBUTION SCHEDULE
All OFW members
Salary
bracket
Q: What is the procedure for
those with valid work permits
in Macau to come and work in
Hong Kong?
A: Household service workers
working in Macau and planning to
work in Hong Kong are required
to return to the Philippines first,
since the Employment Ordinance
of Hong Kong requires that the
worker should be deployed from
his/her country of origin.
Skilled workers, on the other
hand, must inquire from the
Labor Department about the
procedures of deployment since
labor importation of this kind is
undertaken on a case-by-case
basis.
Q: Could you give us more
details about the plan to
consolidate the pre-departure
training for OFWs.
A: There is yet no official
pronouncement on this matter.
Send your questions to Filipino Globe,
Suite 1905, Lippo Centre Tower 2,
Queensway, Admiralty, Hong Kong or
send an e-mail to [email protected]
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
Compensation
range
(pesos)
4,750 – 5,249.99 5,250 – 5,749.99 5,750 – 6,249.99
6,250 – 6,749.99 6,750 – 7,249.99 7,250 – 7,749.99
7,750 – 8,249.99
8,250 – 8,749.99
8,750 – 9,249.99
9,250 – 9,749.99
9,750 – 10,249.99
10,250 – 10,749.99
10,750 – 11,249.99
11,250 – 11,749.99
11,750 – 12,249.99
12,250 – 12,749.99
12,750 – 13,249.99
13,250 – 13,749.99
13,750 – 14,249.99
14,250 – 14,749.99
14,750 and over
Comparative schedule
Before Now
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
Art exhibit
salutes nation’s
birthday
The community is invited to
Estilo, an art and photography
exhibit featuring works of
Filipino artists organized as
part of our celebration of the
109th anniversary of Philippine
independence.
The exhibit, which is ongoing at
the Consulate, will run until
July 7, 2007.
The community is also invited
to attend our regular postarrival orientation seminars
held in cooperation with Filipino
organizations in Hong Kong.
Watch out for announcements
on local television and radio
shows.
Before
Now
Monthly
salary
credit
(pesos)
5,000
5,500
6,000
6,500
7,000
7,500
8,000
8,500
9,000
9,500
10,000
10,500
11,000
11,500
12,000
12,500
13,000
13,500
14,000
14,500
15,000
Before
Now
470
520
705
780
940
1,040
517
572
752
832
987
1,092
564
624
799
884
1,034 1,144
611
676
846
936
1,081 1,196
658
728
893
988
1,128 1,248
New
monthly
contributions
(pesos)
520
572
624
676
728
780
832
884
936
988
1,040
1,092
1,144
1,196
1,248
1,300
1,352
1,404
1,456
1,508
1,560
Before
Now
1,175
1,222
1,269
1,316
1,363
1,410
1,300
1,352
1,404
1,456
1,508
1,560
Flexi Fund
Contributions must not be less than P200 a month
PHILIPPINE CONSULATE GENERAL
14/F UNITED CENTRE, 95 QUEENSWAY, ADMIRALTY
Hotlines: 9155-4023 (Consular), 6080 8323 (Labor), 6345 9324 (OWWA),
Trunkline: 2823 8501 Fax: 2866 9885
Working hours and statutory holidays
The Consulate is open from 9 am to 4 pm, Sundays to Thursdays,
except during the following holidays:
1 July Hong Kong SAR
Establishment Day
26 September Chinese
Mid-Autumn Festival
1 October China National Day
19 October Chung Yeung
Festival
1-2 November All Saints’
and All Souls’ Day
30 November Bonifacio Day
22 December Chinese Winter
Solstice Festival
24-25 December Christmas Day
30 December Rizal Day
Note:
Other holidays may be declared
by the Philippine government
24
special feature
filipino globe
June 2007
HAMON NG BALAGTASAN
25
ISANG PAPUGAY SA LAHI AT KULTURANG PILIPINO
Dapat ba o hindi tayo
mangibang-bansa?
Sa halip isulong ating kaunlaran,
Inuna’y sarili nilang kapakanan.
Kaya’t ang pag-unlad, bigong
panagimpan, nabaon ang bansa sa
hirap at utang.
Sa tala-talaksan na pamilyang dukha,
ang ekonomiya’y di pa lumalaya;
habang sa gobyerno, korups’yo’y
malala, kanya-kanya sila ng mithi’t
adhika; daming Pilipinong mga
manggagawa, ang magtatrabaho sa
dayuhang bansa.
Michael M Coroza and Teo T Antonio in Manila
U
nang itinanghal ang Balagtasang ito sa
auditorium ng Konsulado ng Pilipinas sa
Hawaii noong ika-17 ng Oktubre 2003 sa
pagtataguyod ng Filipino and Philippine
Literature Program ng Department of
Hawaiian and Indo-Pacific Languages and Literature
ng University of Hawaii at Manoa.
Gumanap na Lakandiwa sa pagtatanghal na ito si
Virgilio S. Almario (Rio Alma), Pambansang Alagad ng
Sining para sa Literatura.
Nagtanggol sa panig ng dapat si Teo T. Antonio.
Nagtanggol sa panig ng di-dapat si Michael M. Coroza.
Itinanghal pa ito nang ilang ulit sa iba’t ibang lugar at
okasyon sa Pilipinas sa pagitan ng 2003 at 2006.
Pinakahuli ang naganap noong ika-4, 5, 25, at 26 ng
Pebrero 2006 sa Luneta at sa Baywalk bilang bahagi
ng “Saganang Ani 2006” programa sa pagdiriwang
ng Buwan ng Sining sa Pilipinas na itinaguyod ng
National Commission for Culture and the Arts.
Gumanap bilang Lakandiwa sa nasabing mga
pagtatanghal si Vim Nadera.
Isang nilinang na anyo ng sining ng pagtatalo ang
Balagtasan nitong bungad ng siglo dalawampu bilang
parangal sa kinikilalang Prinsipe ng Tulang Tagalog na
si Francisco Balagtas.
Mula nang maitanghal sa Instituto de Mujeres ang
“Bulaklak ng Lahing Kalinis-linisan” nina Jose Corazon
de Jesus at Florentino Collantes, dalawang kinilalang
Hari ng Balagtasan, noong ika-6 ng Abril 1924, naging
tradisyon ang Balagtasan sa entablado sa mga
pistang bayan sa buong kapuluan at sa malawakang
pagsasahimpapawid sa radyo kinalaunan.
Bilang nilinang na tradisyon na nagtatampok
sa husay sa pagtutugma’t sukat, pangangatwiran
at pananalinghaga ng mga makatang kalahok sa
pagtatalo, malakas ang hatak ng Balagtasan sa mga
manonood dahil naisasangkot ang huli sa kritikal na
LAKANDIWA
(Rio Alma)
Sa lahat ng nariritong natitipong
karamihan, akong si Rio Alma po,
magalang na nagpupugay. Ang
bubuksan natin ngayon ay minanang
Balagtasan na ang ugat ay ang
duplong katutubong kalinangan.
At ang paksang ihahandog ay dapat
n’yong mapakinggan, ito’y ukol sa
maraming nawalay sa Inang Bayan.
Dapat ba o hindi dapat Pilipino
ay sumugba, magtrabaho sa ibang
bansa sa paghanap ng pag-asa?
Kung ang ating bansa ngayo’y may
krisis sa ekonom’ya, hukbo-hukbong
manggagawa, lumilikas sa tuwi na.
Sa gipit na kalagayan, panganib ay
binabaka, kumakapit sa patalim, ang
puhuna’y pagdurusa.
Iba’y nagdomestik helper, kahit titser
ang titulo. Sa Italya, Japan, Hong
Kong, sa Saudi ay nagtrabaho.
Iba’y cultural dancer o singer na
sintunado, may nagweyter, nagjanitor,
sa konstraks’yo’y inhinyero.
Pilipinong manggagawa, mayro’n
namang umasenso, at mayro’n ding
nadesgrasya’t umuwi na bulilyaso.
proseso ng pagtimbang sa magkatunggaling katwiran
na masiste at matalinghagang inilalahad ng mga
nagtatalong makata sa entablado. Kaya nga hindi
kataka-taka na sa Olympic Stadium pa idinaraos
noong dekada dalawampu at tatlumpu ang mga
pagsasagupang patula nina Jose Corazon de Jesus at
Florentino Collantes.
Ang paglikha at pagtatanghal namin ng Balagtasan
ay isang maláy at may malasakit na hakbang namin
upang mapanatiling buháy ang tradisyong Balagtasan.
Tulad ng mga naunang Balagtasan na sinulat
nina Jose Corazon de Jesus, Florentino Collantes,
Emilio Mar. Antonio, at maging nina Benigno Ramos
at Julian Cruz Balmaceda, at Amado Hernandez,
iniiwasan naming makanal sa mga paksang de-kahon
o romantiko na naging palasak sa mga Balagtasang
namayani sa himpapawid noong dekada pitumpu
hanggang sa mga huling taon ng huling dekada
ng siglo dalawampu. Tinitiyak naming ang aming
pinagtatalunan ay napapanahong usaping pambansa
– panlipunan, etikal, politikal. Ang Balagtasang
tampok dito ay isang halimbawa. Noong magtanghal
kami sa Hawaii, may isang Amerikanong lumapit sa
amin habang naghihintay kami ng oras ng palabas.
Tinanong kami kung kami raw ba ang mga guwardiya
sa lugar na iyon.
Marahil naliligaw ang nasabing Amerikano. Ang
hindi niya alam, kami pala ang panonoorin niyang
magtatanghal ng Balagtasan.
Pasalamat na lamang siya at wala sa nakahandang
salin sa Ingles ng aming batayang iskrip, na ipinakita
sa madla sa pamamagitan ng overhead projector
(para sa kapakanan ng mga manonood na hindi
nakauunawa ng Pilipino), ang mga pabersong
patutsada namin sa kaniya. Takang-takang
humahalakhak ang mga manonood na Pilipino kung
sino ang Amerikanong aming tinutukoy.
Ang makatang magtatalo, hihimayin
itong paksa, kung dapat o hindi
dapat dumayo sa ibang bansa,
manggagawang Pilipino, magtrabaho’t
sumalunga. Sa marahas na panganib
silang kawal ng paggawa.
Ang makatang Mike Coroza ang
titindig na makata, palakpakan lamang
natin sa paghagkis na patula.
PANIG NG DI-DAPAT
(Michael M Coroza)
Sa bansa po nati’y maraming mahirap:
kung walang trabaho, mahirap
maghanap. Kung mayroon naman,
mahirap tumatag; politiko’y hirap na
maging matapat, empleyado’y hirap
na laging magsipag, ng kapitalista’y
hirap magpabundat.
Sa gitna ng ating mga kahirapan,
Sa pag-asa tayo’y hindi nagkukulang.
Kahit na hikahos at lugmok ng buhay,
nakangingiti rin at nagtatawanan.
Marahil sa mata ng mga dayuhan,
Isang lahi tayong dapat ay sa mental.
At dahil nga tayo ay gipit sa k’warta’t
gobyerno ay walang sapat na
programa, upang mamamaya’y
lumasap-ginhawa, daming kababayan
ang nahahalina, nangingibang-bansa
para lang kumita, kahit pa mawalay sa
baya’t pamilya.
Ngunit ang mahirap tanggapin sa
dibdib, silang manggagawang sa
ati’y umalis upang magtrabaho’y
napain sa lupit ng mga banyagang
ang tingi’y maliit sa katulad nating
dating nakapiit sa bakal na kamay ng
konkistadores.
Sioson, Contemplacion, Maga,
Balabagan, ang sinapit ninyo ay
tandang marawal. Ngunit sige pa rin
sa pamamasukan, sa ibayong-dagat
si Juana’t Juan. Sabi ng gobyerno,
“bagong bayani” raw, ngunit ang
totoo’y kinakasangkapan.
Lakandiwang mahal, panig ko po’y
ito: sa pagtatrabaho sa dagat-ibayo
Nitong Pilipino’y tumututol ako.
Pagkat hindi patas ang tingin
ng mundo, sapagkat tiwali ang
atinig gobyerno, itong Filipino’y
naaagrabyado!
LAKANDIWA
Ngayong atin pong narinig ang
LAKANDIWA
Saglit munang aawatin ang dalawang
nagtatalo, sa kanilang umaalab,
umapoy na argumento.
Ang ‘nilahad na katwiran, hinimay
ang puno’t dulo, at ugat ng paghihirap
nitong bansang Pilipino. Nilinaw rin
na maraming dinanas ng nagsidayo
na maraming Pilipino sa kamay ng
dayong amo.
At yayamang nais nating maunawaan
nang labis, ang katwiran ng dalawa na
makatang nagtatagis, hahayaan natin
silang linawin ang bawat panig,
at suriin ang kanilang argumento at
matuwid. Si Coroza’t si Antonio sa
kanilang huling tindig, ay marapat
kamanyangan, sa palakpak ay ihatid.
PANIG NG DI-DAPAT
Paslit mang uhugin, pag iyong
tinanong, kung ano ang kanyang
pinakaambisyon, malamang sa hindi,
ang magiging tugon: Mag-nurse kung
babae, kung lalaki’y doktor, at sa
Saudi, US, Australia, Singapore,
ibig na gugulin, lahat ng panahon.
makatang Mike Coroza, na tutol na
magtrabaho, Pilipinong nakibaka
Sa labas ng ating bansa’t nalalagas
ang pag-asa, ang dignidad ay dinusta’t
ang natamo’y pagdurusa. Ngayon
naman ay pakinggan ang makatang
kumokontra, makatang Teo Antonio,
palakpakan natin sana.
Saudi, K’wait? Kung sa Pilipinas
kumayod mang labis, kahit sampung
taon, dila ay lalawit.
PANIG NG DAPAT
(Teo T Antonio)
Makakaya mo bang ang sanlaksang
dukha, mga anak nila’y bigyan ng
biyaya? Sa ating gobyerno kung
aasang lubha, ay dilat ang mata’t
hungkag ang sikmura. Sinusuong
nilang hukbong manggagawa,
Maraming tiisin sa banyagang lupa.
Ako’y nagpupugay na isang makata
Sa overseas workers sa mundo’y
dumagsa. Totoong maraming Pinoy
na dinusta, ila’y malalagim, tinamong
tadhana. Sa Kuwait, Hong Kong, sa
Saudi’y malala, laksang kabuktuta’t
libong alipusta.
Sa banyagang amo, kung minsa’y
malupit, dinaranas nila’y dusa
at hinagpis, na katulad noon sa
konkistadores, na bakal ang kamay
na iyong binanggit. At sa hirap
ngayo’y sarili mong bibig, ang siyang
nagbagsak sa piniling panig.
Pero pag sinuri ang minulang ugat,
May krisis ang ating ekonom’yang
payat. Daming Pilipinong kusang
lumilikas, hanap ay pag-asa sa
ibayong dagat. Sangkaterbang
supling sa bubong na butas, walang
edukasyon, wasak ang pangarap.
Kung nangangarap mang sila’y
magtrabaho, sa dayuhang bansa
upang umasenso, sa sariling pawis
itayong totoo, ang magandang bukas
na hindi dehado. Dahil ang pagsulong
at ikot ng mundo, hindi hihintaying
tumunganga tayo.
Panganay na anak sa daming kapatid,
ang ina at ama’y malala ang sakit;
masisisi mo bang sa hirap tumawid,
Tinungo ang Japan, Hong Kong,
PANIG NG DI-DAPAT
Kung hindi man baliw ay
nabubulagan, yaong magsasabing
“
Ang paksang
ihahandog ay dapat
n’yong mapakinggan,
ito’y ukol sa maraming
nawalay sa Inang
Bayan
pang totoo, sa mga imported, lokal
na produkto. Tama po, talagang
naghihirap tayo, pagkat ang
gobyerno’y kontra-Pilipino.
Sa halip gamutin, sugat na malubha
Na idinaraing ng bayang kawawa,
Ang gobyernong ito’y ano’ng
ginagawa? Imbes ipatupad, reporma
sa lupa, imbes na pondohan,
negosyong pambansa, kuntentong
mag-eksport ng mga alila.
di hirap ang bayan. Sapagkat
saanman ibaling ang tanaw, daming
nagugutom, daming nauuhaw.
Ngunit ang solusyon, katoto
kong mahal, di ang iyong ibig na
pandarayuhan.
Pangingibang-bansa ay hinihikayat
ng gobyernong ito sapagkat panlunas
sa mga problemang di nito maharap.
At ang pobreng bayang sawa na sa
hirap, napaniniwalang ito ang pangampat, ngunit ang totoo ay dayap sa
sugat.
Turuan ang taong magbalik sa bukid,
ang mga tanima’y lagyan ng patubig;
Mga pangisdaan – dagat, ilog, batis –
Ay panatilihing buhay at malinis;
bigyan ng puhunan ang cottage
industries, lokal na produkto’y babaan
ang buwis.
Mas’werteng gobyernong wala nang
gagawin, kundi ang hintayin, dolyar
na darating. Habang Pilipinong
nawalay sa giliw, pamilya’t katoto
ay inaalipin, ng pangungulila,
pangamba’t panimdim, sa bayang
kaiba ang simoy ng hangin.
Ang dapat na bigyan ng pribilehiyo’y
lokal na negosyo’t hindi ang sa dayo.
Tingnan mo nga ngayo’t mahal
PANIG NG DAPAT
Di masama, katalo ko, ang mangarap
Na isulong ang patubig ay umunlad.
Lokal na produkto, sikaping umangat,
Pinoy na negosyo’y tangkiliking
ganap. Reporma sa lupa’y ganap
na matupad, upang ang trabaho sa
bansa’y lumawak.
Pero di gobyerno itong nang-aakit,
lahat magtrabaho, sa bansa’y umalis.
Sapagkat marami nang Pinoy
ang gipit, kahit sa patalim sila’y
kumakapit. Masisisi mo bang pagasa’y makamit, iwasang magdildil ng
asin sa bukid?
Habang itong bansa’y utang dito’t
doon, ngayon ay umabot halos isang
trilyon; Sa IMF-World Bank laging
nakatuon, ang ating gobyerno sa
utang nabaon. Kaya malulubog ang
pagkakataon, sa halip na tayo’y sa
utang umahon.
Madaling magsabi, madaling
mangarap. Pero ekonom’ya’y tagilid
na ganap. Noo’y may pork barrel,
CDF ang tawag, na pondo sa bansa
tungo sa pag-unlad. Pero ito’y balong
unahang maglimas, at sariling bulsa,
unang binubundat.
Iyang politika sa kaliwa’t kanan,
Mga politikong naghalal ay bayan,
Sa paano’y doon kikita ng dolyar,
sapagkat naroon, mithing katuparan
ng pagiging tao’t pangarap sa buhay,
wala ngang masama, ngunit
kahihiyan, at napakalaking
kabalintunaang, “Para ka umunlad,
lisanin ang bayan.”
At silang sa ating bayan ay lumayo,
ilan lang talaga ang nakatatagpo
Ng pagtatagumpay, ang marami’y
bigo. Umuuwing bitbit ay
pagkasiphayo, sapagkat biktima ng
mga baligho, at lisyang pagtingin sa
kulay at dugo.
Di lingid sa lahat ang kinasapitan,
ng maraming Pinoy sa pandarayuhan:
daming nagahasa, dami ng binitay,
nang hindi natiyak kung may
kasalanan. Isang guro ng Math sa
New York, pinatay ng salaring galit sa
di-kababayan.
Masarap isiping Pinoy ang nagwagi,
pag may nagtagumpay na isang
kalahi, sa ibayong dagat na pastulang
lunti. Subalit magnilay, sandaling
magsuri: sa nangakakuha ng ginto sa
gusi, ilan pa ang sadyang may balak
umuwi?
Sa pagtatrabaho sa ibayong dagat
nitong Pilipino, ako’y hindi payag.
Sa sariling bayan dapat mamulaklak
At pakinabangan ang talino’t lakas.
Pagkat kailangan ng lalong paglingap
Nitong bayan natin, sintang Pilipinas.
PANIG NG DAPAT
Di ka na uhugin, iya’y iyong alam
at sadyang alam mo ang maraming
bagay. May Pilipinong nars na
binigyang-dangal ng bansang
Singapore sa kabayanihan. Siya ay
nahawa sa alagang may SARS,
Inuwi sa bansang malamig na
bangkay.
May domestik helper doon po sa
Hong Kong, ang alagang bata, iniwas
mabundol, ng isang sasakyan na
dumadaluhong. ‘Niligtas ang bata
kahit maparool, at namatay siyang
bayaning nagtanggol sa dayuhang
bansa, giting ay ‘minuhon.
Di ka masisisi, aking katunggali,
kung makabayan man ang adhika’t
mithi. Sa loob at labas ng bayan ‘tang
sawi, kasakima’y siyang nangyayaring
hari. Ang maraming dukha ay
nalulugami, ilang mayayaman ang
namumunini.
Kaya lamang tayo ay gipit sa ngayon,
Sa Asya’y kulelat ang ating
pagsulong. Huwag mong pigilan sa
pagkakataon, mga kababayan na nais
sumulong. Di lang sa “sansubong
kanin” imumuhon, ang paninindigang
dalisay na apoy.
Huwag kang malungkot, huwag
padadaig, sa sigwa ng alon na
napakabilis. At sa pamamangka’y
tatagan ang katig, kusang mararating,
mithing ninanais. Pumakabila man sa
ibayong tubig, ng pambansang dangal
ating ititindig.
Noon, Pilipino’y sa EDSA ‘binuwal,
poder ng pangulong sa laya’y
sumakal. Sumunod, EDSA DOS,
pangulo’y tinanggal, na noo’y
nasalang sa impeachment trial.
Pasalamat tayo’t payapang natanghal,
ang paghihimagsik nitong
mamamayan.
LAKANDIWA
Inilahad ng dalawang makatang
nagtatalo, ang maselan na usapin sa
kanilang argumento. Ang makatang si
Coroza, hinimay nang todo-todo,
problema ng Pilipino na dumayo’t
nagtrabaho. Samantala’y nilarawan
ng makatang si Antonio, ang krisis sa
ekonom’ya nitong bansang Pilipino.
Nilinaw at nagliwanag sa ating puso’t
isipan, na malala ang problema,
manggagawang nandayuhan. Ngunit
higit na malalala, kumunoy ng
kahirapan, na ngayon ay dinaranas ng
pambansang kabuhayan.
Ang makatang si Coroza’t si Antonio
na naglaban. sa tradisyong Balagtasan,
dapat nating palakpakan.
Michael M Coroza is an assistant
professor, Department of Filipino
School of Humanities, Ateneo de
Manila University.
Teo T Antonio is a journalist
and retired government official.
Antonio writes a regular column
in Filipino Globe.
26
community
filipino globe
June 2007
Al Vicente
pursues love
affair with the
written word
T
of the of the Philippine consul
general’s official residence in Midlevels, surrounded by an extensive
collection of books and other
publications he has amassed in his
tours of duty around the world.
“With the volume of work that
we do here in Hong Kong, there’s
hardly any time to indulge in what
you would call your own passions,”
Vicente said.
“But I try to find time as often as
I can.”
Writing, it dawned on Vicente
early, was his preordained path. As
a college junior and editor of his
school paper at the Northern Luzon
Teachers College in Laoag City
in 1967, he won a national essay
writing contest and his work got as
far as the world finals in Japan.
He went down that road after
college, his works finding print in the
old Philippine Free Press, Graphic
and Focus magazines and Nick
Joacquin’s Asia Philippines Leader.
But something always got in the
way of him turning his passion into
a career.
In 1972, Vicente found himself on
the cusp of breaking into journalism
as a cub reporter at the defunct
Philippines Herald. Fate, though,
had other plans.
“Natanggap na ako,” he laughs
now. “But the day that I was
supposed to report, na-declare ang
Martial Law.
At home, ConGen Al Vicente indulges one of his passions. He has an extensive library worthy of his craft.
“Pagdating ko roon, naka-padlock
na ang Herald.”
Years spent writing for a
publication put out by the Marcostime Population Center Foundation
were some of the most fulfilling of
his life. However, he soon found
himself at the crossroads, again,
when he passed the Foreign Service
Officer Examination in 1983.
“
Writing is my
first love ... It has
had that hold on
me since I was
young
CONGEN AL VICENTE
On his enduring passion
The move to the diplomatic service
has opened up a whole new world
for Vicente, who has taken whatever
he can from his postings overseas
to soak in the culture and pursue his
passion.
There were the frequent trips to the
American Film Institute during his
stint in Washington, weekends when
he watched four festival movies in
a row in Bangkok, and free time
spent unearthing treasures from the
most obscure bookstores in Madrid,
Brussels and Bangkok.
“The best thing to do when you’re
abroad is to soak in the atmosphere
of the place and immerse yourself
in the culture and take advantage of
what you can get, culture-wise,” he
said.
“In fact, when I was leaving my
post in Washington, one of the
community members said, ‘Well,
we’ll always remember Al, because
he’s one guy who wants to read
books and likes good movies. I’ve
always cultivated that in the places
where I’ve been assigned.”
His time in Hong Kong has been
no different.
“The few evenings that I have
vacant, I rush out and go, for
example, to shows of the performing
arts. Or go to the Hong Kong Arts
Center where they show movies that
are making the rounds of festivals
around the world,’’ he said. “You just
have to find out what it offers.”
American author John Updike
ranks at the top of his list, but he
can get his fill of good reading from
a wide array of publications, from
Harper to the New Yorker to Atlantic
to the Rolling Stones magazine, even
from Playboy which, he says, has
an outstanding collection of short
stories.
“I have a lot of favorites, but I’ll
never forget what my teacher in
literature once told me. She said that
the source of all writing would be,
number one, the Bible and, number
two, Shakespeare,” he said. “All the
rest doon nagmumula.”
As for his own writing, it has been
pushed to the back seat, but not
totally shelved.
He once enrolled in a journalism
class at Lyceum and, during his
time at the Manila office after his
posting in Bangkok, took up a course
in creative writing at De La Salle,
which he hopes to finish in due time.
“I’ve finished the academic part
of it just before coming to Hong
Kong, and I only have to write my
thesis. And since I’m abroad most
of the time, they’ve given me a little
leeway,” he said.
“I’ve chosen to write short stories
for my thesis, and I’ve been getting a
lot of material from my Hong Kong
life, like the lives and experiences of
our domestic helpers here. I just have
to find time and sit down and write it
one day.”
Not your usual diplomat, Roque draws on a sense of adventure
Gilda M Bernal in Hong Kong
Val Simon Roque (right) is not your
typical diplomat. He bikes, he hikes,
he ventures into photography and
most of all, he is fascinated by long
train rides that make him more of an
adventurer than a public servant.
But don’t be fooled by
appearances. This bespectacled
man of 29 is every inch what he
claims to be – he started out as a
junior officer in the Department of
Foreign Affairs in Manila and now,
he is a vice-consul at the Philippine
Consulate in Hong Kong.
“As an adventurous person, I
see each tour of duty with a sense
of newness and a different set of
challenges ... I find these very
appealing,” Roque told Filipino
Globe.
With a high sense of adventure
and patriotism, Roque embarks
on his new role supervising the
Assistance to Nationals section.
He said that he agreed to be
considered in the DFA shortlist
for Hong Kong because it is
a challenging post that offers
“great opportunities to serve our
kababayans”.
“It also allows young officers
to gain in-depth knowledge and
experience in ATN, which I believe,
is the most important pillar of our
foreign policy,” Roque adds.
ATN handles requests for
assistance from overseas workers in
Hong Kong. The coordination is not
limited to facilitating repatriation,
mediation and conciliation, legal
advice and counseling, prison
visitation and monitoring of cases
in court.
Roque brings to the fore his
experience in DFA, where he
community
June 2007
27
LET FREEDOM RING
It has taken a back seat but has never
been shelved, writes Jose Marcelo
he biggest irony of Al
Vicente’s life is that something
never failed to turn up to keep
him from a writing career. If it was
not Martial Law preempting his
break into mainstream journalism,
it was an unplanned detour into the
diplomatic service forever steering
him into a different course.
But none of these, it turned out, can
extinguish the flames of his lifelong
love affair with the written word.
“Writing is my first love,” said
the Philippine consul general from
his spacious office in Admiralty. “It
has had that hold on me since I was
young, and it has always been in the
back of my mind.”
Vicente has been in the foreign
service for over two decades, but
not totally uprooted from his one
passion.
His love for literature, which
in turn stoked his interest in film
adaptations of classic writings, has in
fact served as his break from myriad
duties as head of one of the busiest
Philippine posts overseas.
When not meeting dignitaries or
giving speeches or attending to the
needs of almost 150,000 Filipinos in
the territory, Vicente is most likely
stalking the latest bestsellers in an
Admiralty bookstore or checking
out films on show in a literary film
festival somewhere.
Or, perhaps, spending a tranquil
evening of reading in the study
filipino globe
became the assistant director at the
Office of American Affairs.
His interest in East Asia will also
push him to study Hong Kong’s
culture home to more than 120,000
Filipino workers.
Hong Kong is Roque’s first
posting abroad. To prepare for the
role, he consulted colleagues in
DFA who once served in Hong
Kong, including Acting Assistant
Secretary Doy Lucenario.
“I also continue to prepare myself
psychologically for the demands of
the job by constantly praying for
guidance and wisdom,” Roque adds.
Born in Cebu City, Roque is
fluent in Cebuano and Pilipino, and
understands a bit of Ilocano. He can
also speak Nihongo, having learned
the language in Tokyo while on a
scholarship program.
He believes that being in Hong
Kong will expose young officers
like him to the hard realities of the
foreign service.
“The challenging conditions in
these posts compel young officers to
be street-smart and to quickly learn
how to handle difficult cases and
situations,” he said. “We also learn
to be resourceful and be actionoriented community leaders.”
INDEPENDENCE DAY IMAGES
It was a mix of
culture and pop
entertainment as
Filipinos in Hong
Kong celebrated
Independence
Day. Outdoors
and in, the
celebration had
the trappings of a
fiesta, complete
with a bazaar, a
parade and a gala
dinner. The crowd
lapped up Mitch
Valdez (below,
middle) in the main
event in Chater
Garden, organised
by the Philippine
Association of
Hong Kong. It
seems everyone
turned up,
including newly
elected senator
Loren Legarda
who had herself
snapped with
PAHK chairman
Mike Ranola.
28
community
filipino globe
PICTUREGALLERY
Jerylee Cristobal (center),
owner of Lee Trading Co in
Liksang Plaza, Tsuen Wan,
receives the “Suking Tindahan”
Award for the month of April
2007 from Duds Esquillo (left)
and Baba Gozum (right), sales
managers for 1528 SMART
and PLDT (HK) Remittance,
respectively. Runners-up are
Manong Manang in Kwan
Yick Building, Kennedy Town;
Filmart 2 in City Garden
Shopping Centre, North Point;
Rainbow in Planet Square,
Hunghom; and Connections Co
in Liksang Plaza, Tsuen Wan.
June 2007
29
My coffee maker makes more grief than coffee. What to do?
Q
Willie Nepomuceno does Elvis Presley during a fund-raising show by the UP Alumni
Association Hong Kong. UP president Emerlinda Roman was the guest of honor.
Adan Magnaye talks to an American art buff
behind the making of The Migrant Collective
L
home, health & beauty, stars & sports
filipino globe
Budding Pinay theater: the story so far
ike many foreigners in Hong
Kong, Sarabeth Berman is
struck by the peculiar “Sunday
life” in Central – that one day of the
week when the city is transformed
by the joyful hum and chatter of
mushrooms of Filipino domestic
helpers on overpasses, in streets and
public buildings.
The fiesta atmosphere – women on
blankets and flattened carton boxes
sharing their lunch and merienda,
playing cards, doing their nails and
having fun without kids to care for
or household chores to think of
– made an impression on the Boston,
Massachusetts native.
So was the sight of Filipinas
enthusiastically rehearsing dances,
singing songs and creating skits
– sometimes in preparation for
contests, often just for fun.
“It was this passion and energy
that struck me when I first arrived
in Hong Kong in September 2006,”
says Berman.
It is a phenomenon not seen
even in the famous Central Park in
New York, the city which houses
Columbia University, where 23-yearold Berman took up Urban Studies
and Performing Arts.
One Sunday, she spotted a group
of Filipinas near the pier rehearsing
a dance that had a political overtone.
She approached the women and was
greeted by “what I have come to
know as a constant in Filipino culture
– hospitality.” One of the women was
Joy Pigao, who would later become a
part of The Migrant Collective.
A month later, Berman went
to a competition at the Boys and
Girls Club in Wan Chai and was
overwhelmed by the sight of an
auditorium filled with Filipino
domestic helpers, sharing their
stories through song, dance and skit.
“It was there that the idea for The
Migrant Collective was born: These
women were talented, committed and
had stories that needed to be told,”
says Berman, who works for the
Hong Kong Academy of Perfoming
Arts.
Together with Pigao, Thelma Unite
and Analyn Aryo, full-time domestic
helpers all but with a love for the
arts, Berman produced The Migrant
Collective.
They did not have difficulty
assembling a cast of 14 amateur
actors willing to play the role of a
lifetime, committing their days off to
rehearsals and baring their soul while
life
June 2007
speaking a foreign language.
The Migrant Collective, shown
at the Fringe Club Theater on June
3 for the benefit of Care@Unite
Foundation, is in English, Berman
explains, because it is not only for
a Filipino audience but foreigners,
Hong Kong employers and “people
who know very little about the
experience of being an OFW and
DH.”
The result is a relevant show that
is both funny and touching – a Pinoy
zarzuela directed by an American
and made in Hong Kong, bayanihanstyle.
One of the first-time actors is Girlie
Marfil, the 2006 Smartone Miss
Barkadahan winner from Malabon.
She had the audience in stitches
when, in one video clip, she candidly
talked of how she spent an entire
month’s pay to get her one-toothed
father a full set of dentures, and then
sent the family a digital camera so he
can have his picture taken – that way
she can see his new Close-up smile.
In the play, though, Girlie was
Ate Vi and Ate Guy rolled into one,
playing a domestic helper saying
goodbye to her tearful ward so she
can return home and care for her
ailing mother.
Stories like Girlie’s, and the
familiar struggles and heartaches of
OFWs in Hong Kong, make `The
Migrant Collective’ an endearing
show.
Filipino Globe caught up with
Berman during a break in rehearsal
to ask her about `The Migrant
Collective’ and what the experience
has taught the young director.
FG: How different is `The
Migrant Collective’ from other
plays? Have you done anything
similar before?
SB: This play is very unique. It
comes out of a truly communal
process. The script was developed
through the rehearsal process.
Everything in the script is a
reflection of these women’s stories,
letters, writings, journal entries
and discussions. Analyn Aryo, an
accomplished writer, compiled the
stories during her free time. This play
reveals the lives of these women. The
good. The bad. And the real.
The play does not have one
storyline but instead is a collection of
stories, poems, vignettes and video
clips that expose the women’s lives.
I have done plays like this before,
in which we create the play during
During rehearsals, the
participants take their
roles to heart. But it’s not
all work. There’s also time
for play ( below).
“
I have been
amazed with the
stories and the
camaraderie of
the women
SARABETH BERMAN
HK Academy of the Performing Arts
the rehearsal process and do not
begin with a script in hand. Last year,
as a student at Columbia University,
I created a play with women in New
York City who had just been released
from prison. Together, we wrote a
show about their lives.
FG: How did you assemble your
cast? Was there an audition?
SB: As I became involved in
the Filipino community, I met
some instrumental people in this
project, specifically Thelma Unite, a
singer and founder of Care@Unite
Foundation. We decided to work
together to produce this show. We
sought out funding and built the
incredible cast of women.
Thelma and Joy Pigao’s friends
were invited to participate and those
who could make the commitment are
now in the show.
The cast is doing this work
voluntarily, out of the joy for
performing and telling their stories.
There were no auditions, the women
just had to make a commitment to
the show and show up for rehearsal
every week.
FG: What did you learn from
staging the play?
I have learned much about Filipino
culture and the incredible strength
it takes to move here and work to
provide for the family. I am grateful
to the cast of The Migrant Collective
for being so generous with their
stories and opening up about what
life is like for them.
FG: Any experience during
the production that made an
impression on you?
SB: I have been amazed with the
stories and the camaraderie of the
women. They have quickly become
good friends and are very supportive
of each other.
FG: The Migrant Collective
is in English. Aren’t you afraid
that the message could be lost in
translation or that the Filipino
actors might have difficulty
bringing the script to life?
SB: Yes, I think the language
barrier is difficult. We have tried to
include a bit of Tagalog from the
songs, but for the most part the play
is in English. It makes it harder for
the actors to relate to the text because
it is a second language.
But they are doing a great job.
With frequent breakdowns,
my coffee maker makes
more grief than coffee these
days. Please make me
understand what’s going on and
help me figure out what to do
and how best to do it.
Tim Corpus
Hong Kong
A
Modern drip coffee makers
are a surprisingly simple
device. Manufacturers have had
25 years to hone their designs,
so these coffee makers are pretty
straightforward once you open
them up.
When you pour in cold water,
it flows from the bucket through
the hole in the bottom of the
DIYBOB
do it yourself
ROBERT
LUNARIA
bucket and into the orange tube.
The water then flows through the
one-way valve into the aluminum
tube in the heating element, and
then partially up through the black
tube. This all happens naturally
because of gravity.
When you turn on the switch,
the heating element starts heating
the aluminum tube, and eventually
the water in the tube boils. When
the water boils, the bubbles
rise up in the black tube. What
happens next is exactly what
happens in a typical aquarium
filter: The tube is small enough
and the bubbles are big enough
that a column of water can ride
upward on top of the bubble.
The water flows out the end
of the black tube to drip into the
coffee.
There is no mechanical pump
of any type and really no moving
parts (except for the moving
portion of the one-way valve).
This makes coffee machines
extremely reliable
But take note: the power cord
or on/off switch can go bad. In
either of these cases, it’s best to
get a pro to replace it or buy a
new coffee maker – replacing it
improperly can lead to a fire.
The one-way valve can get
clogged open or closed. You
can usually fish out the debris
that causes this problem with a
toothpick.
The tubes can get clogged with
calcium. This is especially true of
the aluminum heating tube. The
normal way to solve this problem
is to run vinegar through the
machine once, and then run two
batches of water through to clean
out the vinegar.
There are two problems that are
nearly impossible to fix – failure of
one of the heat-sensitive switches
and failure of the heating coil
Because it’s nearly impossible
to get replacement parts, you
probably have to buy a new coffee
maker.
Send your questions or comments to
[email protected]
With creative
touch, you can
home in on the
great outdoors
Building extensions to catch the sun, air and
everything good outside takes little more than
imagination, writes Debbie Sebastian-Ty
P
eople are increasingly bringing
their daily lives outdoors. You
could do so, as well, and make
the best out of your choice for an
outdoor space.
The basic design of Filipino houses
has changed little in a hundred years,
but construction techniques and
refinements have evolved.
“Nowadays, it’s easier to
do outdoor extensions as an
afterthought. They need not be
part of the original plan,” Manila
architect Paolo Lanuza says.
The outdoors can be tapped
through a deck, patio or porch,
among others.
A deck is an intermediate space
between the controlled environment
of a house and the raw elements
outdoors. Since a deck can expand
the living area of a house it is
important to consider traffic patterns
in your planning.
Avoid paths that cross through
activity areas, and arrange for them
to be as direct as possible. A deck
can accentuate a good feature of
your home and minimize the bad
ones. It can conceal a fuel tank, or
be designed around a tree. Decks
are great for hiding ugly foundation,
service meters, or old concrete
patios.
The right material can make all
“
Nowadays,
it’s easier to
do outdoor
extensions as an
afterthought
PAOLO LANUZA
Architect
the difference in creating a beautiful,
long-lasting deck.
Companies that specialise in patios
are seeing an enormous increase in
elaborate outdoor living spaces, and
decorative concrete and stone are
quickly emerging as the new material
of choice for patio today.
The number of different uses for
patios lead to a number of different
building methods and materials. The
first major distinction in building
materials is the use of a prefabricated
concrete material or natural stone. As
with any choice, there are pros and
cons to each material.
Prefabricated concrete comes in
an almost endless number of shapes,
sizes, and colors. These are generally
referred to as concrete pavers. They
are similar to brick pavers and are
sometimes grouped together, but are
much stronger and longer lasting
than a typical brick paver.
For porches, the size you need
depends on how much you intend
to use it. A four-foot deep covered
porch will protect your house and
doorway from the elements, but
you’ll need at least six feet of depth
to comfortably sit on your porch, and
a porch should be eight to ten feet to
accommodate a small dining table
and four chairs or benches around it.
The length and height of your
porch should also be in balance with
your home.
Don’t let the porch overwhelm
the home’s architectural features.
Similarly, don’t make your porch too
small, or it will look like an addition.
The direction the porch faces is an
important consideration and depends
on where you live.
From patios to
porches and
decks, your
choice for
catching the
outdoors can
only be limited
by your sense
of style. Cost is
another matter.
30
your health
filipino globe
June 2007
When is the best time to
deal with hemorrhoids?
I
Taking the vegetarian route does not mean giving up on protein. Legumes and dried beans are good sources of protein.
How legumes became
the meat of the matter
They’re not quite protein powerhouses, but they pack
just as much punch and they cost much, much less
W
hether you want to
save money or take the
vegetarian route, food
experts agree that dried beans and
legumes are the best and cheapest
alternatives to meat products.
While dried beans and legumes
contain protein of lower biological
value than meat, the total protein
value of such foods when eaten
with cereal protein, such as rice,
is comparable to that of meat and
costs less, according to the Food
and Nutrition Research Institute
of the Department of Science and
Technology.
Most beans are eaten fresh, but
they can also be canned, frozen, or
dried. Eating a variety of foods will
give you the complete protein your
body needs, the institute says.
Legumes have the additional
nutritional benefit of being low in fat
and high in fiber, especially soluble
fiber.
They are also good sources of iron
and B complex vitamins. Soybean
products like tofu, and vegemeat
are also good substitutes for animal
protein foods.
However, the institute says that
these meat substitutes contain nonheme iron, which has to be taken
with some animal protein or vitamin
C-rich foods for better absorption.
It estimates that about three-fourths
cup of cooked mongo or one cup
raw peanuts, for example, may be
substituted for a serving of fish or
meat.
Based on the latest nationwide
nutrition survey conducted by the
institute, Filipino consumption of
dried beans, legumes, and nuts of
10 grams per capita per day has not
“
Legumes can also
slow down our
feeling of hunger,
which translates to
less food intake
GOVERNMENT RESEARCH
On health benefits of legumes
changed from 1982 to 2003. Black
beans are one type of legumes. It is
medium-sized, black skinned and
oval-shaped with an earthy sweet
flavor. It is most often used in soups,
beans and rice and many Mexican
and Latin American dishes.
Another good source of protein is
kidney beans, also called Mexican
red beans. It has a strong flavor and
soft texture. Kidney beans are most
often used in soups,salads and chili
rice.
Garbanzo beans, or chickpeas, are
one of the most popular legumes in
the country. It is often used in a local
dish called “menudo.”
Another type of legumes is pinto
beans, the medium-sized oval-shaped
beans with a spotty beige and brown
color. It has an earthy flavor and
powdery texture. After cooking,
pinto beans turn from a spotty color
to brown.
Black-eyed bean is another source
of good protein. It has a creamy color
with a black dot. It has a sharp flavor
and smooth texture. Black-eyed
beans are served as a side dish or
with rice.
Another popular type of legumes
are the lentils. These are a lensshaped seeds found in the fruit pods
of an annual herb usually grown in
southwestern Asia. Lentils are used
in side dishes and stews.
Apart from being a good source of
protein and cheap alternative to meat
products, legumes also maintain
weight and prevent risk for diabetes
mellitus.
The viscosity and fibrous structure
of legumes slow down digestion and
the release of glucose in the blood.
And because glucose is released
slowly, it will not be easily stored in
the body, thereby maintaining normal
weight.
As a good source of dietary fiber,
legumes can also slow down our
feeling of hunger that translates to
less intake of food.
It also prevents the re-absorption of
bile acids in our liver.
Bile acids are converted to
cholesterol in the liver and goes
to our blood and increase serum
cholesterol responsible for
developing plaques in our arteries.
Legumes can also prevent cancer
because its dietary fiber contents are
fermented in the large intestine or
colon into short-chain fatty acids.
f you’re having anal discomfort,
it’s possible that you have
hemorrhoids.
It’s one of those conditions people
are reluctant to discuss with anyone
outside the family other than their
doctor because it’s gross or dyahe to
talk about.
But let’s get it into focus. After
all, this can hamper the “fit to work”
result in a medical exam, until the
doctor has done something about it
for good.
Max Veracruz, writing in from
Hong Kong, wants to know the best
time to deal with the problem for
good.
We asked Dr Jojo Melendres,
a surgical specialist at the
Mandaluyong Medical Center, to tell
us more about what we all know as
almuranas.
Dr Melendres writes:
It is estimated that half of all of us
by age 50 will develop hemorrhoids.
Pregnant women, and people who
strain forcefully because of hard
stools are more at risk.
Hemorrhoids are like the varicose
veins found on legs of many people
– only in a more private place, the
anus. Veins around the anal opening
get filled with blood and remain
dilated, forming fleshy masses your
fingers can appreciate best when
washing after defecation.
Hemorrhoids can be classified
based on size and characteristics.
If you can’t see (nor feel) anything
from the outside of your anal
opening, then you’re sure not to have
any hemorrhoid worse than Grade 2
internal hemorrhoid.
Grade 3 is when your fingers do the
manual pushing of the hemorrhoids
back into the anus.
Grade 4 is when any maneuver
fails to return the hemorrhoids back
inside your anus. Complications
arise when when the fleshy mass
becomes painful and swollen – called
“thrombosed hemorrhoids”.
The procedure for dealing with
hemorrhoids by your doctor is
straightforward.
It starts with an interview in which
the symptoms are assessed.
After the interview comes the
physical examination. The doctor
will insert his gloved, lubricated
finger into your anus in a procedure
that is quick and easy. He will feel
for any abnormalities within his
reach.
Patients can relax lying on the table
to their left side, or simply kneel and
bend forward on top of a table. Any
painful point inside the anus will be
noted down.
Some hemorrhoids can be readily
felt, others are not. Bleeding can be
lakbayan
filipino globe
February
June 2007
31
Water-cabanas line the foot
of a cliff. Below, another
view of Club Noah Isabelle
as a natural haven for
marine life and wild flora.
HEALTHTALK
what the doctor says
Dr Jun
Amigo
seen at times during the procedure.
Patients with anal complaints
undergo visualisation from within
using a foot-long rigid tube, a bit
fatter than the usual Pentel Pen.
Never fear, as your doctor will
have prepared you well before any
endoscopic, or internal, examination.
Treatment for hemorrhoids
depends on the grade, or whether it is
of the internal or external type.
There are quick office treatments
like rubber band ligation, or injection
of chemical agents (for Grades 1 and
2, Internal type).
In these instances, patients go
home immediately after.
Surgery is recommended for severe
cases. Again, they are made painless
during the procedure, then controlled
with pain relievers after.
How about the expense? The
procedure can be cheaper than
a mobile phone, but the price of
neglect can be enormous. Grades
1 and 2 are actually treated
conservatively (before any surgery).
“
The procedure
can be cheaper
than a mobile
phone but the
price of neglect is
enormous
Dietary modification is best
for early hemorrhoids by making
you strain less when defecating
(thus reducing the impingement or
pressure in the blood vessels there).
The secret is on lots of fruits and
vegetables plus lots of water (10
glasses a day).
These will make the stools bulky
and soft – a lot easier to pass through
the anus.
Immersing one’s butt to a warm
basin of water for 10 minutes twice
a day can relieve those with soreness
of the fleshy masses, or even reduce
their size.
Try the creams for experience, but
for as long as conservative measures
fail, or symptoms persist, anytime is
a good time to see the doctor
[email protected]
If you have questions about health, send them to us and we
will try our best to answer them with expert opinion. With
Dr Jun Amigo, chief surgical resident at the Mandaluyong
Medical Center, as moderator, this forum will feature
specialists on the chosen topic. Please note that this is not
intended as a medical consultation and readers are strongly
advised to see their doctor for proper advice. To contact
us, please visit our website www.filglobe.com and click on
“[email protected]” to send your queries.
Island sanctuary shelters nature’s best
Tess Mauricio takes
a look at Club Noah
Isabelle’s efforts to
balance tourism
with preservation
B
lessed with an abundance
of nature’s offerings, Club
Noah Isabelle in Palawan is
a magnificent destination for one’s
ultimate paradise holiday.
True to its name, Club Noah
Isabelle is an island sanctuary, an
array of rare marine life, flowering
plants and fruit-bearing trees, and
exotic animals. Visitors can chill out
and relax from the pressures of work
and escape for a romantic weekend,
or experience the adventures they
have always dreamed of.
Located on the northeastern region
of Palawan on the main cove of
Apulit Island in Taytay Bay, this
paradise resort is transparent on its
obligation to protect and preserve the
environment.
Together with Japan’s Toba
Aquarium, one of the largest in the
world, Club Noah Isabelle devised a
three-point system to serve as a guide
for the growth of Northern Palawan,
particularly Taytay Bay.
The system comprises the
conservation of the ecosystem and
biological diversity, holistic and
sustainable development, and ecotourism.
With the primary goal of
safeguarding the flora and fauna
of the region’s wildlife, they have
integrated this structure to a series of
studies and action plans that would
lead them closer to their goal.
As part of the agreement with
Toba Aquarium, the Department
of Tourism, the Department of
Environment and Natural Resources
and Club Noah Isabelle in 1993,
10 per cent of the resort’s income
goes to an Environment Guarantee
Fund, which ensures the active
management of the island’s
ecosystem, particularly for the
islands of Apulit, Silanga, and
Quimbaludan. This 10 per cent is
devoted to the maintenance of the
marine biology research and the
construction of a Marine station on
the island-resort.
Part of this contribution comes
from what visitors pay for
accommodations.
Club Noah Isabelle sticks to its
vision “Man and Nature living
together in harmony”. It is to
promote the place as a tourist
destination, at the same time
maintain its natural beauty.
Because of its commitment to the
environment, the resort enforces
policies to maintain the ecological
balance. One of these is the strict
prohibition of the gathering,
collection and removal of shells and
corals from their natural setting.
Part of the ecological practices
that prioritise the preservation and
protection of the ecosystem is a
conservation program for marine and
terrestrial creatures that ranges from
“
Club Noah sticks
to its vision ‘Man
and Nature
living together in
harmony’
birds to reptiles such as pheasants,
mouse deer, dugongs, sharks, turtles
and more. This action is for future
generations to enjoy and witness all
the wonders of nature.
Also, Club Noah Isabelle together
with Toba, maintains its help
and support to the LGUs or local
government units in educating the
locals to get them more involved in
the cause.
Aside from its pledge to nature,
the resort gives importance to the
community. More than 70 per cent
of Club Noah Isabelle’s employees
are from Palawan. They properly
incorporate business matters with
the local culture, values, ideologies
and aspirations. They give full
partnership to the communities
and respect every aspect of their
relationship. This policy adds
significantly to the economy of the
area.
Club Noah Isabelle boasts facilities
for marine and sports activities so
visitors can get active.
Adventurers may choose from
Club Noah Isabelle’s wide selection
of activities such as snorkeling,
diving, kayaking, water-skiing,
fishing or windsurfing. For nonadventurers who like to go gushy,
they can do island visits on a motor
yacht. It provides an opportunity
for visitors to view the island in a
different angle.
This facility also serves as a rest
place for swimmers exploring the
reef system around the bay. Later in
the day, the deck offers an ideal point
to watch the sunset.
Interestingly, island hopping in
Club Noah Isabelle is one of its chief
attractions. The surrounding islands
of Apulit, where Club Noah Isabelle
is located, are just as much as the
experience every visitor can get in
Club Noah Isabelle itself.
There are sanctuaries in Apulit
Island such as Puerto del Sol and The
Caves, which are perfect for divers
and spelunkers. Visitors can also go
to Noa-Noa or Isla Blanca by boat
just a few minutes away from the
resort. Other islands to visit around
Apulit are Dinot Rocks, home to
multi-colored corals, Abalone Island,
Small Silanga, Silanga Channel,
and Nabat, perfect for lunches and
snorkeling.
For first-time visitors, Club Noah
Isabelle offers a special type of
accommodation, the water-cabañas.
The cabañas are located over the
water and attached to land via a
short alley. The resort has 50 watercabañas. Each cabaña has its own
balcony where you can sit back and
unwind with all the luxuries of room
service.
Aside from the marine and sports
facilities, the resort has conference
rooms for business meetings, bars
and restaurants with countless feasts
and musical performances, a grotto
for spending a few moments in
prayer or meditation and a clinic
manned by two professional nurses
24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The journey to Club Noah Isabelle
starts with a 90-minute flight from
Manila on the 19-seater planes of
SeaAir, which has a daily service to
Cesar Lim Rodriguez Airport in the
town of Sandoval. Transfers from
Sandoval to Club Noah Isabelle
will also take another 90 minutes. It
consists of a 30-minute jeepney ride
to Tamisan Jetty and a 60-minute
boat ride to the resort.
32
lakbayan
filipino globe
From one
Pahiyas to the
next, Lucban
just can’t wait
June 2007
N
using kiping and other things such
as rice cakes, beautiful and rare
flowers and ferns, suman, fruits
and vegetables, native lanterns,
rice grains and rice stalks and even
lechon.
Pahiyas San Isidro Festival attracts
tourists and visitors from different
areas of the country and abroad.
The affable locals open their
homes and welcome the thousands of
visitors.
The crowd waits for the procession
of “gigantes” or giant mannequins
and carabao-led carriages. Visitors
and locals join the parade and are
allowed to get anything from the
houses’ decorations as they pass by.
Lucban is outstanding for its
luscious food. Famous for the
Lucbanins are pancit Lucban,
Lucban longanisa, atsara, pinangat,
espasol, kalamayhati, tamales, tinapa
and more. It’s always a must-buy for
tourists and visitors.
Lucban is one of the most visited
places in Quezon province especially
during summer. It has been tagged
as the summer capital in Southen
Tagalog for its pleasing and cold
weather.
Legend has it that five men
found Lucban, Quezon during the
16th century: Marcos Tigla, Lucas
Guimba, Lucas Galandang, Lucas
Nanawa and Antonio Manduman.
A year later, people went to this
town not only to enjoy its weather
but also to see its interesting places.
One particular site is the church,
built in 1630 by order of Kapitan
Lucas Martin.
In 1732, the church was razed
by a huge fire. It was rebuilt years
later and has remained a tourist
destination to this day.
The Pahiyas San Isidro Festival
began centuries ago as a gift-giving
“
33
Tunay na kakaiba ang Candelaria, Zambales kahit huwag nang banggitin ang paraisong ito. Ulat ni Adan Magnaye
S
Photos:
George Tapan
The National
Geographic Society
has described
Lucban’s Pahiyas
as ‘a visual feast’
and ‘one of the most
artistic and colourful
festivals in the
whole world’
February
June 2007
Anong meron sa Potipot Island? Wala
These native
girls as much
a part of the
festivities as
anyone else
down below
as traditional
the procession
passes by.
The festival comes around in May, but the town
is leaving nothing to the last minute in making
sure next year’s event will be another success
o sooner had the festival
ended than the town of
Quezon began building up
for the next one.
May 15 is always an exceptional
time for the town when the people
from the old streets of Lucban
celebrate the Pahiyas San Isidro
Festival in honor of San Isidro
Labrador, as a thanksgiving
celebration for a bountiful harvest.
This annual event is one of the
Philippines’ best harvest festivals.
The National Geographic Society
has described Lucban’s Pahiyas as
“a visual feast” and “one of the most
artistic and colourful festivals in the
whole world”.
Every year, various activities are
lined up engaging Lucbanins with
preparations.
This festival is a splendid display
as every street, and all houses are
creatively wrapped in elaborate
decorations made from kiping.
Kiping is a wafer-thin leaf-shaped
rice tortilla dyed in a variety of
colors. Colors commonly used for
kiping are pink, yellow, and green
and are perfectly matched with the
harvested fruits of the locals.
Kiping is used to create
chandeliers, huge paper fans,
and flowers placed in front of the
participating house. The anticipation
is incomplete without this kiping.
This is usually compared to tacos
of Spain but making this décor takes
a lot of time and involves many
steps.
After the festival, the kipings are
cooked and eaten as rice chips.
Another thing to see are the floats
that are also seen in other towns
of Quezon such as in Candelaria,
Tayabas, Sariaya, Tiaong, and
Lucena City.
These floats are also decorated
lakbayan
filipino globe
ritual by the natives of Lucban to
the Franciscan missionaries. Fr Juan
de Placencia continued the practice
of offering the year’s harvest to the
Spanish friars as thanksgiving for
ample harvest.
The next parish priest, Fr Diego de
Oropesa, carried on the ritual until it
became a tradition for the Lucbanins.
During construction of the wooden
church in 1595, the locals were asked
to bring their harvest to the church.
It was believed that the farmers
must do this rite in order to avoid bad
luck, drought and famine.
But this is actually done to
celebrate the feast of San Isidro
Labrador, patron saint of farmers.
As a result, they were showered with
many blessings and harvest through
the years.
Being highly creative, Lucbanins
found ways to make their religious
offerings to San Isidro Labrador
more appealing and artistic. This
started with simple designs and crafts
from the farm. After some time,
people thought of presenting their
harvest in front of their houses where
the priest would come and bless
them.
Each year, the route of the
priest blessing the harvest vary
for everyone to get a chance to
participate.
The Pahiyas San Isidro Festival
has evolved into a religious
and cultural event of national
significance and become a famous
tourist attraction. It has become the
pride not only of Lucbanins but all
Quezonians for consistently keeping
the culture and religion alive.
Small wonder that the natives can
hardly wait for the next festival to
come around.
The Pahiyas is both a showcase of bountiful harvest and a ritual of thanksgiving for a bumper year. Through the years, it has evolved into a festival with national significance.
ummer uli sa Pilipinas.
Tagaktak ang pawis mo sa
sobrang init. Kahit nakaupo ka
lang at walang ginagawa, papawisan
pati alak-alakan mo.
Karaniwan nang naglalaro mula
32 hanggang 36 degrees ang
temperatura sa Metro Manila.
Humahataw pa ng 39 degrees sa
ibang lalawigan. Pakiramdam
mo nilalagnat ka araw-araw. Pag
tanghaling tapat para kang nakaharap
sa pugon.
Anong magandang gawin sa mga
pagkakataong ito maliban sa kumain
ng matamis na halo-halo at pumasok
sa malamig na sinehan? Pumunta
sa beach siyempre. Pero saan?
Tuwing buwan ng Abril at Mayo
parang langgam na nagkukumpulan
ang mga Pinoy sa mga beach
resort at swimming pool. Lalo pa
pag weekend. Halos wala kang
mapaglagyan. Kung meron man,
hindi ka makalayo sa paglangoy at
siguradong may tatamaan ang siko
mo.
Buti na lang meron pang mga
beach na ngayon lang unti-unting
nadidiskubre ng mga Pinoy at mga
dayuhan. Gaya ng Potipot Island
doon sa Candelaria, Zambales.
Simple lang pero kaaya-aya. Hindi
masikip, mandin ay tahimik at
walang gulo. Maputi at makinis ang
buhangin sa pasigan. Maiisip mo
tuloy meron pa palang kapirasong
langit sa Pinas.
Bitbit ang pamilya, humayo ako
patungo sa halos dulo ng Zambales.
Limang oras na lakbayin mula
Maynila at dadaan sa mga lalawigan
ng Bulacan, Pampanga at Bataan
bago matunton ang Candelaria.
Kasama na dito ang shortcut sa Subic
Freeport Zone at bypass patungong
bayan ng San Narciso sa Zambales.
Sa layo ng biyahe, kung hindi ka
lang matiyaga baka tumigil ka na sa
isa sa daan-daang beach resort na
madaraanan – gaya ng White Rock
o Baloy sa Olongapo. Di kasi nga
napaliligiran ng asul na tubig ng
South China Sea ang Zambales at
ang mga dalampasigan nito ay tunay
na naggagandahan.
At mahigit isang oras bago ka
dumating sa Candelaria, puwede
ka nang huminto sa bayan ng San
Antonio para kumuha ng bangka
patungo sa higit na kilalang Capones
Island. Tanyag ang pulong ito
dahil sa kanyang lumang-lumang
lighthouse at beach.
Upang matunton ang Potipot
Island, kailangang tumuloy muna
sa alinmang resort sa mga barrio ng
Sinabacan at Uacon sa Candelaria.
Tanaw ang maliit na pulo mula
sa baybayin. Wala pang sampung
minuto makakatawid na ang
sinasakyang bangka. Singkwenta
pesos ang singil balikan bawat katao.
Ano ba ang meron sa Potipot
Island? Sagot: Wala. At ito ang
maganda dito. Walang kainan,
walang videoke bar, walang sarisari store, walang tulugan. Ni
wala ngang banyo at palikuran.
Samakatuwid, walang gulo, hindi
maingay at walang nakatambak
na basura. Tanging ang mahinhing
alon ng dagat at tinig ng mga taong
nagkakatuwaan ang maririnig mo.
Napaliligiran ang pulo ng malililim
na puno. Walang mga gusali ngunit
may mga nilumot na sementadong
pundasyon – tanda na may mga
Walang tulugan, walang palikuran, walang restoran. Punong-puno ng katahimikan at tunay na purong paraiso ang Potipot Island. Ibaba: ang pamilyang Magnaye.
Photos: Adan Magnaye
taong nagtangkang i-develop ang
lugar bago nila inabandona ang
plano. Tunay na pagkaputi-puti at
pino ang buhangin, maligamgam at
payapa ang alon ng tubig.
Puwera sa paliligo, maaari ring
mag-diving sa paligid ng Potipot
Island at sa mga karatig nitong pulo.
“Parang maliit na Boracay. Mas
madali pang puntahan at mura,”
sabi ng isang bisita na galing pa sa
Taytay.
Tunay na maipagmamalaki
ang Potipot Island ng mga tagaCandelaria. Katangi-tanging
yaman ng isang matandang
bayang kinatatayuan ng maraming
bahay Kastila at ekta-ektaryang
“
Ano ba ang
meron sa Potipot
Island? Sagot:
Wala. At ito ang
maganda dito
manggahan.
Kakatwa na dito sa Candelaria
karamihan sa apelyido ng mga tao ay
nagsisimula sa letrang `E’.
Ecunar. Ecalve. Elefane. Eclevia.
Ebuen. Edquilang. Elegido. Echipare.
Elamparo. Escala. Edrada. Edusada.
Egalla. Edara. Encio. Ednalino.
Ebbay. Si Eloy’s na lang ang kulang.
Yung iba naman itinodo na: Pati
pangalan nagsisimula din sa letrang
`E’. Gaya nina Eclarino Edquid at
Ebilane Ednave.
Dito din isinilang at lumaki si
Hermogenes Ebdane, kalihim ng
Department of Public Works and
Highways.
Sa tanong kung bakit ganoon, isa
lang ang maisasagot ko: Ewan.
Pero may nakapagbulong sa
aking tubong Candelaria na ito
ay nagsimula noong panahon ng
mga Kastila. Para daw madaling
malaman ng mga mestiso kung saang
lupalop galing ang mga sinasakupan,
ang mga Pilipino ay binigyan ng
mga pangalan na ayon sa kanilang
tinitirhang lugar. Coding, Spanishstyle.
Kaya kung gusto mong maranasan
saglit ang mabuhay sa isang tahimik
na pulo, kumain ng matamis na
mangga at magkaroon ng kaibigan
o katipan na nagsisimula sa letrang
`E’ ang apelyido, subukan mong
pumasyal sa Candelaria.
34
money matters
filipino globe
June 2007
It pays to get the right partner,
or company, for your venture
W
hy not start a small
business with a group
composed of a co-worker
or several others while you work
overseas? It makes time fly faster
and more financially productive.
With a pool of funds from your
co-investors, you can start a small
informal business that will either
service other OFWs in your host
country, or the local market for their
needs of products and services.
I noticed on my overseas travels
that during their off-day, OFWs were
active in a sideline.
Whether in Saudi Arabia, Hong
Kong, Taiwan or Singapore, a lot
of trading takes place where OFWs
gather.
You can embark on a small export
service idea where you purchase
items that can be re-sold in the
Philippines through your friends or
relatives who will have the time to
do the selling, or you may become
part of an existing business that will
take up the task.
Some of those possible items
for export are clothing materials,
jewelries, perfumes, household
appliances, decorative accessories,
bath towels or popular foodstuffs like
confectioneries, to name a few.
OFWWISE
be your own boss
Herbie
Sancianco
Shipping can be done through
the door-to-door delivery service
companies, or a business partner who
is going home for a short vacation.
Conversely, you can undertake a
small import trading service where
you buy from the Philippines items
that can be sold in your host country.
Your Philippine purchaser can
organise a group of products on your
shopping list and ship them to you by
seafreight on an LCL (less container
load) arrangement.
Basically, you would want to bring
in items such as food ingredient
mixes (example for kare-kare mix),
dried fruits like the world famous
dried mangoes, bottled food products
from your nata de coco to peanut
butter, health supplements, handicraft
items, packaged nuts, packaged dried
fish, or condiments. As a result, you
can either import them to manage a
Filipino store, or to supply one.
But before you get under way, I
strongly suggest that you do a small
backyard survey to determine what
type of opportunity is available for
you to start a small business on,
how much capital will be needed,
how you will go about its business
management and development,
and what will be its commercial
profitability outlook.
The results of that informal study
will provide you with data which
will establish the kind of personal
confidence that will enable you to
move forward and succeed.
If you think the idea is sound but
perhaps overwhelming, then I also
strongly recommend that you have a
partner in the venture.
That partner should provide you
with an added sense of security for
the various decisions that you may
need to make in developing the
business in your operating area.
Herbie Sancianco is a professor in
the graduate school for continuing
education, De La Salle College of
St Benilde, Manila
June 2007
35
Bayawan tuba-tuba nurseries in full swing
Production of tuba-tuba (jathropa)
and rubber in Bayawan City in
southern Negros Oriental is in full
swing in 14 nursery sites.
The local government has
allocated P15 million for the
project.
Tuba-tuba nurseries are located
in the villages of Calamtukan,
Tabuan, Kalomboyan, Minaba,
Narra, Nangka, Tayawan, Banga,
Villasol, Manduaw, Bugay, Dawis,
Banay-banay and Aliis.
Bayawan City has planted
124 hectares to jathropa and
Farmers pick cucumber seedlings from a harvest. The Dagupan hatchery will propagate seedlings for supply to so-called sea ranches. Right: a sea cucumber delicacy.
Cucumber hatchery under way
Country’s first such facility eyes mass commercial production for export markets
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The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic
Resources is building the country’s
first commercial hatchery for sea cucumber for raising of the commodity
nationwide.
This marks the country’ first effort
to boost the production of this commodity, which ranks eighth among
the Philippine fishery exports today.
The sea hatchery is under construction at the 24-hectare National
Integrated Fisheries Technology Development Center in Dagupan City,
where the country’s Philippine Bangus Center is also located.
Dr Westly Rosario, executive director of the National Fisheries Research Development Institute, said
the hatchery will further boost export
of dried processed meat of this sea
animal called “beche-de-mer” or “trepang”, which has already made the
“
We have to
go beyond
identification. It
is a must that we
produce seedlings
WESTLY ROSARIO
Fisheries research chief
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Philippines the world’s second largest exporter of this commodity after
Indonesia.
“Beche-de-mer” is a valuable commodity not only as a delicacy in many
Chinese markets but also as a raw material in chemical preparations.
A multimillion-dollar industry,
“beche-de-mer” earned US$1 million
in 1992 and US$7 million in 2001.
Prices of dried meat in the US is
US$180 to US$250 per kilogram from
local processors to intermediaries.
Rosario said the commercial hatchery is different from the one put up for
experimental purposes by the University of the Philippines Marine Science
Institute, which operates a laboratory
in Bolinao, Pangasinan.
The first commercial hatchery for
sea cucumber is being put up with
the help of the World Fish Center, the
Australian Centre for International
Agricultural Research and UP.
“Today, what we are doing is just
the identification of existing sea cucumber species. We have to go beyond identification. It is a must that
we have to produce seedlings,” Rosario said.
He said using technology from
Australia, the country would be able
to produce sea cucumber juveniles
that could be disseminated in various
coastal areas of the country and stimulate a new but now popular method
of raising fish called sea ranching.
When completed, the commercial
hatchery for sea cucumber can produce at least 50,000 juveniles a year,
that would be released to the seashore
and harvested for a certain period using sea ranching technology.
Sea cucumber is a good material
for sea ranching because, based on its
behavior, it can travel just one to two
meters a day, or about one kilometer
a year.
Rosario said Filipino scientists will
be trained by Australian experts on
fishery projects in New Caledonia and
Australia.
They will study the behavior of
sea cucumber and write a protocol
for raising the animal in commercial
quantities for Filipino fish farmers.
Rosario said this would mark the
first time in the Philippines that sea
cucumber would be cultured.
Areas targeted for raising sea cucumber are Pangasinan, particularly
Bolinao and the Hundred Islands;
Zambalez, Palawan and Sulu archipelago which are rocky and sandy.
More than 60 coastal municipalities
in 14 regions of the country depend on
sea cucumber fishery for livelihood.
Sea cucumber is found in shallow
waters inhabiting wide seagrass beds,
soft bottom areas, and reefs.
another 100 hectares to rubber.
Environment Secretary Angelo
Reyes will visit Bayawan City to
inspect the projects.
Charlie Fabre, community
environment and natural
resources officer, said Reyes
would also visit the threehectare tuba-tuba nursery of
Representative Herminio G.
Teves in Sitio Datag, Barangay
Maglinao, Basay, where 300,000
seedlings of tuba-tuba are ready
for planting.
Reyes will then lead the
ceremonial planting of tuba-tuba
in Datag.
Tuba-tuba is an alternative
ingredient in the production of
biodiesel fuel.
The 300,000 tuba-tuba
seedlings will be planted in the
open denuded timberland areas
of Bayawan.
The areas have been identified
through the city’s forestland use
plan, which has recently received
technical expertise from the
Department of Environment and
Natural Resources.
36
celebrity
filipino globe
June 2007
Lucy Torres tanggap ang sinapit ni Goma sa eleksyon
Danny Vibas in Manila
Buong-pusong tinanggap ni Lucy
Torres-Gomez (kanan) ang hindi
pagpasok ng kanyang mister na si
Richard Gomez sa senatorial race
nitong nagdaang eleksiyon.
Ayon kay Lucy, wala naman daw
silang magagawa kung iyon ang
hatol ng nakararami. Para sa kanila,
ginawa naman nila ang nararapat
para sa isang malinis at honest na
pangangampanya.
“There’s really nothing to feel bad
about,” sabi ni Lucy. “Because from
the start naman, we were just hoping
and not expecting anything big to
happen.
“Ang gusto lang naman namin is to
present what Goma’s intentions were
and they were very good intentions,”
aniya.
“Si Goma naman, he’s a very
principled man at alam ko na he has
already accepted what has happened.
One thing good about Goma is he’s a
good sport and he knows how to take
things as a man. Kaya sa nangyari, it
was all part of being a a good sport
na rin. Sa isang labanan naman, may
nananalo at may natatalo.”
Marami ang nakasaksi sa
matinding suporta na ibinigay ni
Lucy sa kanyang asawa during the
campaign period.
“As a wife, I am always obliged to
support my husband kahit na ano pa
ang pasukan niya. Kung nasaan ang
mister ko, nandoon din ako dapat.
As his wife, siguro naman nakita nila
kung gaano ko nabigyan ng suporta
ang mister ko.
“Naging eye opener naman daw
para sa kanya ang mga oras at araw
na ginugol nya sa pangangampanya.
It was not an easy thing to do, but it
was an experience for me. First time
ko kasing nagawa na magligid halos
sa buong bansa and it really opened
my eyes sa maraming bagay sa
mundo,” aniya.
“This experience alone, isang eyeopener sa amin ni Goma. Na there
are so many people out there who
need help and guidance sa everyday
living nila.
“We just wish na yong mga
nahalal na mga senador will do
what they promised sa maraming
sumuporta sa kanila.Keep their
promises para walang madismaya, di
ba?” sabi ng misis ni Richard.
The couple resumed their normal
lives soon after the election. Hindi
sila nahiya at naasiwang dumalo sa
showbiz affairs. Halimbawa dumalo
sila sa surprise birthday party para sa
ina ni Regine Tolentino na si Regina
Maristela ilang araw lang pagkatapos
ng eleksyon. Malapit si Lucy kay
Regine dahil isa si Regine sa judges
sa Shall We Dance? na hino-host ni
Lucy sa ABC 5 tuwing Linggo ng
gabi.
Ilang linggo lang din pagkatapos
ng eleksyon, tumanggap si Lucy ng
bagong woman’s show sa QTV 11
– ang Sweet Life na sa late afternoon
ipinapalabas mula Lunes hanggang
Biyernes.
Si Richard naman ay naghahanda
ng gumanap sa isa sa mga ilulunsad
pa lang na soap opera ng GMA 7
kung saan naging identified na siya
bilang aktor at TV host nitong mga
nakaraang taon.
Bago siya kumandidato ay isa siya
sa mga host ng Sunday showbiz talk
show na S-Files na nang lumaon
ay pinalitan ng Showbiz Central at
nilagyan ng bagong hosts.
Ruffa-Yilmas
saga takes
more twists
and turns
It’s on again off again as estranged
couple continue to fight for each other
Danny Vibas in Manila
The noise from the soured marriage
of Ruffa Gutierrez to Muslim Turkish
millionaire Yilmas Bektas may have
either died down by the time you are
reading this or may still be bubbling
like a soap opera of endless twists
and turns.
Ruffa may be crying one day in a
seeming effort to hide some truths
about why she decided to stay away
from her husband in distant Istanbul,
Turkey.
She may even stop accepting his
calls from Istanbul for a day or two,
but would be burning the wires with
him on the third and succeeding
days.
He may denounce her as traitor and
call her Brutus (the Shakespearean
character who killed his best friend
Julius Caesar), hint that she is a
hypocrite – and Yilmas really pulled
off all of these in just a matter of
days – but she simply shrugs off all
the name calling and reasons out that
he is “just being emotional” about
their separation.
She could even lie for him and
accuse a broadsheet columnist
like Dolly Anne Carvajal of the
Philippine Daily Inquirer of
practising poor journalism for
quoting a story from a Turkish
newspaper that describes Yilmas as
“the son of a druglord”. (ABS-CBN
2’s Middle East bureau chief later
reported that Yilmas’ father, Muhittin
Bektas, is described in Turkish media
as “an alleged drug smuggler”.)
Ruffa has never admitted that after
Yilmas got dangerously wounded
from a gunfight sometime last year,
he was jailed for seven months,
according to reports. Two people
died during the gunfight. Later, the
court granted temporary freedom to
Yilmas based on the testimony of
11 witnesses (as required by Islamic
law).
The Turkish press branded the
shootout as “The Bloody Gunfight
of the Little Godfathers.” Turkish
newspapers identified another person
in the incident as Onur Ozbizerdik,
supposedly a grandson of mob
boss Dundar Kilic. The case is still
ongoing.
Yilmas has already denied to ABSCBN News that he and his family are
connected in any way to organised
crime.
He said they are into shipping,
construction, real estate, jewelry, and
even media. (Ruffa once bragged
that Yilmas bought for her Turkey
Fashion TV.)
Ruffa is still very much in the
Philippines, as of press time. If a
showbiz career really matters to
her, she would have to go on loving
Yilmas from afar.
She has just been named as the
permanent replacement of Kris
Aquino as a host of ABS-CBN
2’s The Buzz where she began as
a pinch-hitter in mid-April when
Kris gave birth prematurely to her
first baby with Purefoods star cager
James Yap.
For as long as Ruffa stays put in
The Bektases in happier times. At their 2003 wedding, Yilmas and Ruffa had Dolly Ann’s mother, Inday
Badiday, as one of the principal sponsors. Today, that happy moment is hard to imagine.
“
Annabelle
seems to be
painfully aware
that her only
daughter remains
passionately in
love with Yilmas
the Philippines, her irrepressible
mother, former starlet Annabelle
Rama, would be happy as happy as a
loquacious parrot.
Annabelle seems to be painfully
aware that her only daughter remains
passionately in love with Yilmas –
despite her earlier proclamation that
hurting women seems to be part of
Muslim Turkish culture and that she
couldn’t bear to go back to Istanbul
and live there again with Yilmas.
Annabelle has been very cautious
against badmouthing Yilmas – but
not Dolly Anne.
On GMA 7 Sunday afternoon talk
Showbiz Central (which replaced S-
Files), Annabelle called Dolly Anne
“boba,” “bruhilda”, accused her of
begging money from her, and buying
the services of callboys.
And while Annabelle was
mouthing all of those, the supposedly
expert talk show host Pia Guanio
did not bother to stop Annabelle
nor question her right to badmouth
Dolly Anne whose late mother, the
acknowledged “Queen of Showbiz
Talk Shows” Inday Badiday (also
fondly known then as Ate Luds), was
actually one of the principal sponsors
at the Christian wedding of Ruffa
and Yilmas at The Fort four years
ago.
Dolly Anne, in one of her columns,
has hinted at Pia’s incompetence as a
host, though she did not categorically
stated Pia’s name.
The columnist has not expressed
any intention to sue either Annabelle
or Showbiz Central, where she once
appeared as a guest in a feature
called Central Jury whose function
was to interrogate a controversial
guest on the hot seat.
Incidentally, Ruffa’s younger
brother, Raymond, the twin of GMA
7 heartthrob Richard, is one of the
hosts of Showbiz Central, the other
being the unapologetic gay John
Lapus.
filipino globe
June 2007 37
38
celebrity
filipino globe
June 2007
Vicky wants Osang to languish in jail
Vicky Belo wants bold actress
Rosanna Roces (right) to
languish in jail – even as the
latter was recently issued a
warrant of arrest by a Makati
judge for failure to show up in two
scheduled hearings of a libel case
filed against her
by the famous doctor.
(She eluded arrest, though,
when the cops went to her
residence in Quezon City.)
Yes, that’s the truth – even if the
high profile beauty specialist has
told the media recently that she
wants to revive her friendship with
Osang.
Soon after
the Court of
Appeals
announced the
dismissal of the
libel case filed
by Belo against
Osang, the famous doctor’s
equally famous lawyer, Raymond
Fortun, practically boasted: “This
would only be a two-week respite
at the most for Rosanna Roces.
She will be back as an accused
for the crime of libel in no time.”
The statement almost certainly
means he has not been asked by
his client to withdraw the
criminal case against Osang
despite the client’s well-publicised
desire to be friends again with the
defendant.
Belo said one condition for
forgiving Osang is the latter’s
reconciling first with her former
manager, Lolit Solis, who
happens to be Belo’s close friend.
It is not well known that the libel
case filed by the beauty doctor
against Osang was both
civil and criminal.
Philippines
eyes foreign
markets for
local films
Raul Acedre in Manila
Kris Aquino is all over the place as one of the country’s top product endorsers.
Tears for Belo
as Kris joins
rival firm as
its endorser
Danny Vibas in Manila
For advertising inquiries
Bob Waterfield (Hong Kong) 9470 2764
Ricky Sumallo (Philippines) 0917 539 0486
TJ Badon-Doble (Philippines) 0928 502 0379
Josephine Miranda (Philippines) 0920 951 6917
filipino globe
the OFW newspaper
1905 Lippo Centre Tower 2
Queensway, Admiralty, Hong Kong
(852) 2918 8248, email: [email protected]
Vicki Belo, beauty doctor to the
stars, was not able to hold back her
tears during an interview with her
about Kris Aquino’s transfer to a
beauty company directly competing
with Belo Medical Group which Kris
used to endorse.
The beauty doctor said she could
stop Kris from leaving but it was
their friendship that she would
sorely miss. The two high-profile
women have been good friends for
almost 13 years. “You can find many
endorsers but you cannot find many
good friends. So our friendship is
more important than endorsing,” the
tearful Belo said.
She said Kris informed her of her
decision to sign up an endorsement
contract with Facial Care Centre in
early June.
“She texted me a week ago, a very
nice, kind text telling me that she
was going to sign up with Facial
Care so alam ko na and I think that’s
really wonderful that she’s respectful
enough to be able to tell me [about
it],” Belo said.
She said Kris assured her that her
transfer was not about Belo. She
said Kris believes her further stay
as BMG endorser would no longer
bring good outcome.
“She texted me … also in the text
that I did not do anything to her or
she did not do anything to me and
that was not the reason we parted but
we parted because of circumstances
that were beyond our control,” Belo
said.
Despite this, Belo is still hoping
that they would remain friends.
“She makes me laugh. She makes
me happy. The years that we have
been together was really good. So, of
course I’ll miss her,” she said.
Belo and Aquino’s friendship was
tested when the alleged James YapHope Centeno relationship came out
in the open. Hope was a receptionist
at the Belo beauty clinic at Morato
Ave, Quezon City where James used
to go for facials and body scrubs.
On May 31, in a closed-door
meeting, Kris signed an endorsement
contract with Facial Care Centre.
She was accompanied by her
business manager, Boy Abunda.
Only a handful of officers and staff
of the beauty company was around
to witness the event. No media or
outsiders were invited.
Kris now joins Cherie Gil, Carmi
Martin, and Cristina Gonzales as
endorsers of Facial Care Centre. The
TV host-actress will be endorsing
refirm treatment, the latest trend in
facial rejuvenation.
Meanwhile, Kris has returned to
the Deal or No Deal? on ABS-CBN
2. It’s actually her only show before
she went on maternity leave.
June 2007
39
Remember the boy? Now meet the man
Former youth entertainer Isko
Moreno (right) is a pure example of
extreme poverty to success.
Indeed, skinny Francisco
Damacosog, who lived and breathed
hunger and pain since his early
childhood in one of the toughest
sides of Tondo, rose from being a
dance and sing That’s Entertainment
teenage talent of German Moreno to
become Manila’s vice-mayor in his
late 20s.
He was discovered by a talent
Danny Vibas
celebrity
filipino globe
The Philippines is targeting overseas
markets for its entertainment
industry, drawing on millions of
expatriate Filipinos who hanker for
local fare.
The initiative follows the
appointment of Vicente del Rosario
as presidential consultant on the
entertainment industry.
Press Secretary Ignacio R.
Bunye said Del Rosario, a film
producer himself, would submit his
recommendations on addressing
piracy and advancing the cause of
good quality films.
He is also expected to give a
blueprint of the plan to tap overseas
markets.
Bunye said Del Rosario would
help in the fight against corruption
as the entertainment
industry is a
powerful medium
for communicating
the right values,
particularly for the
young and vulnerable
sectors of society.
This is in support of President
Arroyo’s call for a broad-based
national initiative against graft and
violence, stressing the need to call on
“cultural role models,” to help bring
under control the glorification of
violence in movies and television.
Arroyo (above) said Del Rosario
would also act as a “rainmaker”,
because he personally knows some
foreign producers who could be
invited to invest in the industry.
Arroyo said the Philippines has
become investment-friendly and
encourages investments in the laborintensive entertainment industry.
This would help bring about 10
million jobs until the end of her term
in 2010.
To help the local entertainment
industry, she suggested tapping
the 3.5 million Filipinos in the
United States and Indonesia, which
are considered strong markets for
Filipino movies and entertainers.
The government has implemented
measures to help drive the
entertainment industry.
These include lowering the
amusement tax from 30 per cent to
15 per cent, and the creation of the
Videogram Regulatory Board, the
predecessor of the Optical Media
Board), that have both helped curb
film piracy.
manager who saw a handsome
kid beyond the dirt and difficult
circumstances that surrounded him.
His discoverer brought him to TV
host-actor Kuya Germs who took
Isko under his wings and opened the
wonderful world of showbusiness to
his eyes.
But Isko was not so successful in
the youth-oriented TV program and
was not given the opportunity for
marked roles that would pave way to
stardom.
Having saved
a little to make
himself and
his family
comfortable, Isko
thought of going
back to school in
the ’80s because
showbiz is not a
lifetime career.
He started in politics as a Manila
councilor, learning the ropes of the
trade in a hard way.
Having had difficulties
expresssing himself in English,
Isko often suffered humiliation and
embarrassment whenever his critics
ganged up on him in the session hall.
His colleagues could see nothing
extraordinary in the youthful, goodlooking boy who was once featured
near-naked in a poster.
But no amount of cruely could
stop him as he went on to finish
college with a public administration
major at the Pamantasan ng Lunsod
ng Maynila while serving as an
alderman.
Now, he is a sophomore law
student at the University of the
Philippines, where he hopes to learn
more about good governance and law
administration.
One can now notice the absence
of sheepishness in him as he has
become eloquent in expressing his
ideas, courtesy of his diligence and
continuous learning process.
Now that’s young man done good.
40
celebrity
filipino globe
June 2007
Judy Ann
open to idea
of living in
with Ryan
Actress says it will be a kind of trial
marriage if they are really compatible
Danny Vibas in Manila
Judy Ann Santos is turning out to
be not as conservative as we have
thought her to be.
Well, she now says that she is
open to the idea of living in with
Ryan Agoncillo before eventually
marrying him, if it would turn out
that they are highly compatible.
No, she is not saying she will do
it soon. She is simply saying she is
open to the possibility.
Pwede siguro kung ipagpapaalam
ako ni Ryan sa mommy ko! quipped
Juday about living-in with her actor
boyfriend of two years.
She actually considers living-in
a kind of trial marriage, which she
feels is better than plunging into a
marriage that may last only a few
years, if not only a few months.
Juday is alluding to her
contemporaries, some of whom
she considers as dear friends, who
figured in short-lived marriages
– and who had grand, much talked
about weddings.
Her manager, tabloid columnist
Alfie Lorenzo, is more receptive to
the idea of living-in than Juday’s
mommy Carol most likely is, which
is why she quipped about Ryan’s
having to ask permission from her
mom should they decide to live in.
Alfie has also reminded her that
most showbiz marriages in which
the woman earns more than the man
don’t last long. We all know that
since Juday started in showbiz way
Both Judy Ann and Ryan (above, right) are aware of the big gap between
their earnings. Otherwise, they believe everything else is equal.
ahead of Ryan, she earns more than
he does. That seems to be another
reason Juday has become receptive
to living in with Ryan.
She would like to know how they
would handle the imbalance in their
earnings.
Ryan is, of course, aware of the gap
in their earnings and once sweetly
quipped: “I cant fault her for earning
much more than most everybody
does. It’s not her fault that she has
always been a hardworking person.”
Meanwhile, to celebrate Juday’s
29th birthday on May 11, she
and Ryan, along with a bunch
of close friends, went diving at
Tubbataha Reef in Palawan. Juday
went unchaperoned by her Kuya
Jeffrey Santos (who was busy then
campaigning to be a councilor in
Caloocan – but eventually lost).
The trip gave rise to talk that she
might be pregnant soon. She insists
that she is not likely to get pregnant
that soon, although she says it should
not shock people if she turns out to
be pregnant one day since she has
already turned 29.
“I am really old enough to get
pregnant. And I believe I am even
already emotionally and financially
prepared to become a mother,” she
said. Actually, she has been playing
mother to adopted daughter Yohan,
who calls her mommy and Ryan
daddy.
Soon after coming back from
Palawan, they resumed taping their
second ABS-CBN show as a pair,
Ysabella, in which she portrays a
chef.
Their first TV show together was
Krystala, also on the Kapamilya
Network, and it was there that Ryan
must have taken a good look at
Juday.
filipino globe
June 2007 41
42
celebrity
filipino globe
June 2007
Yoko Ono remembers last night with John Lennon
John Lennon wanted to go home
to see his son rather than go out for
dinner on the night he was killed
outside his New York apartment, his
widow Yoko Ono (right) said.
“We were returning from the
studio, and I said: ‘Should we
go and have dinner before we
go home?’ and John was saying,
‘No, lets go home
because I want to
see Sean before he
goes to sleep.’
“And it was like
he wasn’t sure if
we would get home
before he [Sean] went to sleep and
he was concerned about that.”
Ono, 74, made the revelation
27 years after Lennon’s death in a
taped BBC interview.
She said Lennon uttered no dying
words when he was shot and killed
by deranged fan Mark Chapman.
Ono also said that when she
became pregnant with Sean shortly
after the couple reunited in 1975
following a two-year separation,
she let Lennon decide whether she
should have the baby or abort it.
“I thought that I should let John
decide whether to keep it or not.
We’d just got back together and I
became pregnant very soon, and
I didn’t know if it was the right
moment to have a child.”
After AJ, is a Pinoy Idol far off?
Laura Perez looks back on Tabaldo’s stint and how it has opened doors for him
S
oon after American Idol
proclaimed Jordin Sparks
as its Season 6 winner, its
controversial judge, Simon Cowell,
was asked about who he thought was
the best singer, disregarding votes
and popularity ratings.
Simon said that without taking
anything from Jordin Sparks or Blake
Lewis who placed second, Melinda
Doolittle was the best singer. Earlier,
Simon admitted he had a “soft spot”
for Melinda and Lakisha Jones,
another black finalist, that he dared
kiss the latter on national television
to show his support. Sadly, it proved
to be a kiss of death for Lakisha
eventually lost.
At the start of Season 6, the
Asian community was abuzz with
excitement when they saw Adrian
Joseph “AJ” Tabaldo and Paul
Kim in the Top 24. Each year feels
like getting closer and closer to
that dream – an Asian becoming
America’s new singing idol with a
record contract worth US$1 million.
That hope was kindled in Season 3
when two hot Filipinas from Hawaii
– Jasmine Trias and Camille Velasco
– made it to the Top 12. Eventually,
Jasmine ended up number three. In
Season 5, another Filipino American,
Jose “Shay” Penala, became a semifinalist.
But could an Asian be the next
American Idol? Or would that be an
oxymoron?
As we analyze the odds, let us
start with the show’s meanest
judge, Simon Cowell, who is a hard
nut to crack. Getting a positive
comment from him is like trying to
draw water from a rock. So when
he complimented AJ Tabaldo on
his rendition of “Feelin’ Good”, a
lot of people thought AJ must be
something.
The normally acerbic Simon said:
“That was nearly very good. You did
something right. You did something
different. And you were strangely
comfortable with it.”
In season 5, Simon called Sway
Penala’s falsetto performance of
Reasons “pimpy.” Simon found
“absolute zero originality” in the
Filipino contestant’s Overjoyed,
a Stevie Wonder hit. Still, that is
nothing compared to Simon’s usual
“Utterly horrendous” and putdowns
like “You have the personality of a
candle.”
On the other hand, Paula Abdul
could not find enough superlatives
to praise AJ so she just settled with
“You have a real real real real real
good voice.”
Randy Jackson who remains
unmoved by even the most
applauded performance, dismissing
In his element, AJ Tabaldo has proven that the show’s hard-boiled
judges (below) are not too tough to crack after all.
them with “I don’t know dawg, it
just didn’t work for me” was equally
impressed with 22-year-old AJ,
saying it showed off his skills. His
boyish charm must have had an
effect on the judges, too, aside from
being a natural on stage.
Eight years in their church choir
and all the gigs at St Joseph High
School must have honed his talent.
His self-confidence got an added
boost when he got invited to do the
opening act for movie stars like
Gabby Concepcion and Christopher
de Leon while he was in his teens.
He had also sung the National
Anthem during professional boxing
tournaments on HBO.
So when AJ voted off after two
rounds, soon after Korean Paul
Kim, the audience including the
judges were shocked. Paula Abdul,
teary-eyed as she watched Sanjaya
Malakar elbowed AJ out, stood
up and reminded televiewers that
American Idol is a singing contest,
not a popularity contest.
Many view American idol as more
of a popularity contest than a singing
competition. The show’s voting
process is controversial because
better singers get eliminated while
poorer singers remain. Somebody
can vote countless times for the same
contestant.
AJ said some vote just to go
against the judges’ choice and
support the underdogs.
“At the end of the day, you could
be the greatest singer and still go
home. People like me who have been
voted off and have been praised by
the judges, I feel like I’m going to
be okay. There’s going to be another
opportunity out there and hopefully,
the doors keep opening.”
AJ said that he wondered if he
could have stayed longer if he got a
little bit more exposure at the start
of the show and a chance to create
a larger fan base. “I think I was a
little under-advantaged but I feel
very proud that I got this far based
on talent alone without a back story,
without the early exposure.”
This was AJ’s fifth attempt to get
in. Once he made it to the first round.
Then he was able to perform in front
of the producers. This season, he was
able to audition before Randy, Paula
and Simon.
AJ would usually come the night
before the audition to be the first in
line. His parents slept outside with
him. He said he had lost count of
the hours and days he stood there
waiting since he was 12, when he
started trying out. He saw a number
of Filipinos who lined up, some
obviously good but got rejection
slips, nevertheless.
He was one of the approximately
100,000 who auditioned in seven
states this year. Anyone from 16 to
28 who is eligible to work in the
US can audition. “I loved the star
treatment,” AJ said, referring to the
glitz and glamour of staying in a
Beverly Hills hotel for almost two
months and being driven around
by a chauffer. He is grateful for the
media exposure that American Idol
afforded him as a semifinalist, and
the opportunities that opened up
afterwards.
AJ is aware that Season 3 runnerup Jasmine Trias is doing well as a
recording artist and actress in the
Philippines .
“I am currently working with
interested producers on a future
album and I’m all set to try my
luck in the Philippines ,” he said,
saying he will have to learn how to
speak Tagalog. Born in America,,
he considers English as his first
language. He has not been to Manila
yet although his Filipina mother
often goes home with his father, a
Filipino-Portuguese who grew up in
Arizona.
palakasan
filipino globe
June 2007
43
TAKEFIVE
Parents visit Paris
Paris Hilton’s parents visited the
socialite in prison yesterday and
were told she’s cold and sleep
deprived in jail.
Rick and Kathy Hilton paid
their first visit to Hilton’s Twin
Towers Correctional Facility
home in Downtown Los Angeles
and spent 30 minutes chatting
to Paris through visiting-room
glass.
Her worried mom told
reporters outside the prison: “It’s
tough in there. It’s cold ... She
really hasn’t had much sleep.”
But Kathy admits she’s happy
that her daughter is roughing it
out: “She was very happy. She
wants to just do her time and
pay her debt to society.”
Clooney makes list
George Clooney is celebrating
after making Forbes magazine’s
Celebrity 100 list for the first
time.
The Oscar-winning Ocean’s
Thirteen star debuts at No 40
on the new list, which will be
announced in full later this
week.
Based on the fame and “clout”
of Hollywood’s hottest stars, the
Celebrity 100 list is an annual
list of Tinseltown’s biggest
movers and shakers.
Not all stars will be celebrating
when the new list is announced,
however – funnyman Jim
Carrey, who previously topped
the list a couple of years ago,
doesn’t appear on the new
countdown.
Blow to Letterman
The man accused of conspiring
to kidnap David Letterman’s son
has escaped from prison and
may be armed.
Kelly A Frank broke out of
Montana State Prison in the
Deer Lodge Valley with 22year-old fellow
inmate William
Willcutt over
the weekend,
according to
officials. The pair
is believed to
have escaped in
a truck.
Prison warden Mike Mahoney
says: “We have intelligence that
leads us to believe these guys
may be armed.”
In 2005, Frank was accused of
conspiring to kidnap Letterman’s
then-infant son.
Smith lover’s doubts
Anna Nicole Smith’s former
lover believed her fatal
collapse from an accidental
drug overdose was a big act
to escape her daughter’s DNA
test.
Larry Birkhead was fighting
the model’s then-boyfriend
Howard K Stern at the time over
paternity of baby Dannielynn
and he admits he was skeptical
of Smith’s medical emergency
when news broke from Florida
in February.
He tells talk-show host Larry
King, “I was in a dentist chair
with half of my mouth numb.
And I just remember looking
up at the screen. I think there
was supposed to be some kind
of decision on where the DNA
tests would come down.
KG Canaleta
dunks his way
to record for
three-peats
KG Canaleta flashes a
three-finger salute after his
unprecedented three-peat .
“
Malaking pressure
ang nawala sa
akin noong nawala
si Kelly [Willam]
KC CANALETA
On his toughest opponent for the title
Air21 high-flyer shows his stuff in
towering PBA All-Star Week triumph
Celeste Maring in Manila
S
a kanyang Afro look,
nararamdaman agad na hindi
ordinaryong player si KG
Canaleta.
Isa siyang basketball player na
kayang patindigin ang balahibo ng
mga manonood.
Ganito ang kanyang ginawa nang
kumamada ang Air21 high-flyer ng
wala pang katumbas na three-peat
bilang hari ng slamdunk sa 2007
PBA All-Star Week na ginawa sa La
Union, Pangasinan.
Muli, itinaga ni Canaleta
ang kanyang estado bilang
pinakamahusay na dunker ng
liga makaraang talunin sina Jay
Washington, Kelly William, Arwind
Santos, Ronald Tubid, Aaron Aban
at Gabby Espinas nang kanyang
pahangain ang manunood sa
artistikong slam dunks.
Makaraang itala ang an All-Star
record, ang dating UE Warrior ay
tila hindi na interesado pang sumali
sa event sa susunod at mas pipiliing
maglaro sa All-Star Game.
“I might be beaten, my clean
record would get glitch. Probably, I
would try the three-point shootout
next time or hopefully I would finally
make it to the All-Star Game,” sabi
ni Canaleta.
Ilang slam dunk contests, kasama
na ang sa abroad, ang napanalunan
ni Canaleta. Kasama sa kanyang
napanalunan niya ang slam dunk
competition sa Malaysia at sa
Philippine Basketball League,
Nakakamanghang windmill
sidewinder ang ipinamalas ng 6-4
na si Canaleta upang makuha ang
panalo. Lumundag si Canaleta
malapit sa may free-throw line at
lumipad at nilagpasan ang volunteer
para sa one-hander.
Napakadali ng panalo para kay
Canaleta habang ang kanyang mga
kalaban ay pumalpak sa kanilang
mga slams.
Si Kelly Williams, ang
pinakamalapit na karibal ni Canaleta,
ay hindi nakapasok sa eliminasyon
nang mabigo ang Sta Lucia prized
Fil-Am na maisagawa ang kanyang
tangkang between-the-legs jam.
“Malaking pressure ang nawala sa
akin noong nawala si Kelly,” sabi ni
Canaleta.
“Lack of knowing the rules,”
pahayag naman ni Williams.
Nakakuha si Canaleta ng
perpektong marka na 40 puntos sa
tatlo sa limang slams.
Samantala, si Willie Miller pa
rin ang pinakamabilis sa obstacle
race, si Dondon Hontiveros naman
ang bagong three-point king sa PBA
All Stars Skills event na ginanap sa
Pacoy Ortega Gym ng mahangin
ngunit mainit na bayang ito.
Nakamit ni Willie Miller ang
back-to-back title sa obstacle race
nang tapusin nito ang course sa
pinakamabilis na oras na 30 segundo
para talunin si Gary David ng isang
segundo lamang.
Inagaw naman ni Dondon
Hontiveros ng San Miguel ang
titulo sa three-point shootout mula
kay Wiliam Antonio na nasibak sa
preliminary round pa lamang.
Umiskor si Hontiveros ng 16puntos sa unang round at 16-puntos
din sa finals upang talunin sina David
(14 points), Willie Miller (15) at
Mark Caguioa ng Ginebra (12).
Naghari naman si Dennis Miranda
ng Sta. Lucia sa trick shot ng
tanging siya lang ang nakagawa ng
360 degree layup para talunin sina
Ranidel de Ocampo ng Air21 at
Ronald Tubid ng Barangay Ginebra
sa finals.
Tuloy-tuloy ang panalo ng atubiling kampeon sa body building
Maituturing na isang atubiling
kampeon si Meriza de Guzman.
Sa tikas at ganda ng
pangangatawan ni Meriza (kanan),
marami ang nag-aakala na matagal
na itong lumalahok sa bodybuilding
competitions.
Pero, taliwas dito, bagito pa
lamang ito sa sport.
Sa kanyang unang kompetisyon
sa women’s bodybuilding, kinuha
ni Meriza De Guzman ang overall
title sa Japan-American Invitational
US Armed Forces Bodybuilding
Championships na ginawa sa
Yokosuko, Japan.
Pawang mga beterano sa
kompetisyon ang pinabagsak
ni Meriza kabilang, na ang
ilang overall champions at
palagiang first placers sa women
bodybuilding.
Bunga ng ipinamalas ni
Meriza, naging inspirasyon siya
ng maraming kababaihan sa
Japan, kabilang na ang Filipino
community.
“I think my efforts paid off. With
all the support I am getting from
family, friends and the Filipino
community, I am very proud to be a
Filipino,” wika ni Meriza.
Sa ngayon, si Meriza ay isa sa
pinaka-popular na Filipina sa US
armed forces bases sa Kanto Plain
region sa Japan.
Kahit pa ipinanganak si Meriza
sa Chicago, Illinois, halos 13 taon
siyang nanirahan
sa Pilipinas simula
ng dumating
siya sa bansa
at manirahan sa
Malibay, Pasay.
Sa lugar na ito
siya nagtapos ng elementarya at
high school.
Bata pa lamang, habang nagaaral sa St Mary’s Academy,
kinakitaan na ng hilig sa iba’t ibang
sports si Meriza.
Katunayan, aktibo siya sa
volleyball, gymnastics, at
cheerleading. Nang bumalik sila
sa Estados Unidos noong 1991,
tinapos niya ang 11th at 12th
grade sa Oxnard, California.
Makaraan ang dalawang taon
nagpatala siya sa US Navy
at nagtrabaho bilang hospital
corpsman.
Nagsimulang mag-workout si
Meriza nang madestino siya sa
Japan dalawang taon na ang
nakakaraan,
“I decided to work out because
I wasn’t comfortable weighing
130 lbs at 4’11” and it has been
three years after I gave birth to my
daughter Alexa,” wika ni Meriza.
Hindi niya inisip na maging isang
bodybuilder o sumali sa anumang
kompetisyon.
Sa halip ang nais lamang niya ay
magbawas ng timbang.
Gayunman, maganda ang
naging iskor ni Meriza sa Navy
Standard Physical Testing na
naging inspirasyon niya upang
lalong magpursigi na pagandahin
pa ang katawan.
“I started to get good results
a year later. I started to see
definitions and muscle mass that
made me work harder,” ayon
kay Meriza, fitness trainer na
sertipikado ng Cooper Institute.
Dahil sa ganda ng katawan
ni Meriza, kinumbinsi siya ng
kanyang mga kaibigan na sumali
sa kompetisyon sa bodybuilding.
“They told me that I have the
potential for competition,” dagdag
ni Meriza”
Celeste Maring
44
palakasan
filipino globe
June 2007
Nagsalita na ang mala-aserong kamao ni ‘Boom Boom’
Celeste Maring in Manila
Iniuukit na ng boxing sensation na si
Rey “Boom Boom” Bautista (kanan)
ang pangalan bilang isa sa pinakamahusay na boksingero ng bansa
na maaaring sumunod sa yapak ni
Manny Pacquiao.
Walang dudang humahanga ang
mga Pilipino na mahilig sa boksing
kay Bautista dahil sa lakas, husay
at karisma na bitbit nito sa tuwing
aakyat sa ring. Mala-asero ang kamao ni Bautista (23-0, 17KO) at ipinakita nito na may natural siyang abilidad sa loob ng ring. Kamakailan
ay ipinamalas na naman niya ang
kanyang husay nang ibigay kay Ar-
gentinian Sergio “Rocky”
Medina ang unang kabiguan sa 28 na laban.
Aminado si Bautista na
nahirapan siya sa laban,
pero ang tanging nagbigay sa kanya ngg determinasyon ay ang hangarin
niyang maiangat ang kanyang pamilya sa kahirapan.
”Hindi ako maaaring sumuko,”
sabi ni Bautista. “Naalala ko ang
hirap namin nang ako ay lumalaki,
mahirap lang kami. Naaalala ko ang
aking mga magulang, ang kanilang
paghihirap na dapat kong suklian.
Hindi ko sila maaaring pabayaan,”
wika ni Baturista.
Napabilang si Medina sa
mga biktima ni Bautista na
pawang mga world class na
boksingero kasama na sina
dating WBO bantamweight
champion Gerardo “Locomotora” Espinoza, IBF bantamweight king Rafael Marquez,
undefeated prospect Jose Miguel
Aguiniga (dalawang ulit) contender
Genaro Garcia, Mauricio Martinez,
Cruz Carbajal at Jorge Lacierva.
Sa panalo ng 20-anyos na si Bautista, nakasungkit ito ng mandatory shot upang makalaban si World
Boxing Organization champ Daniel
Ponce De Leon.
Naniniwala ang boxing promoter
na si Tony Aldeguer na mahirap na
kalaban si De Leon dahil sa lawak
ng karanasan nito.
Gayunman, sinabi ni Aldeguer na
maganda ang ipinakita ni Bautista sa
laban, hindi lamang sa lakas at husay sa boksing kundi pati na rin sa
determinasyon.
Ngunit, ayon mismo kay Bautista,
kahit na maganda ang kanyang record, marami pa siyang kinakailangang matutunan. Ang mga nakalaban ni Bautista ay metikulosong
pinili upang maiangat ang husay at
kumpiyansa ng Filipino boxer.
Sa ngayon ay nahahawi na ang
landas sa pagtutuos nina Bautista
at De Leon sa nakatakdang “World
Cup” ng Golden Boy Promotions na
nakatakda sa Setyembre. Ngayon pa
lamang ay may pangako na sa sarili
si Bautista.
“Kukunin ko ang titulo. Maghahanda ako nang husto. Alam ko na
magaling si Ponce De Leon, pero
paghahandaan ko siya. Kukunin ko
ang championship, “ sabi nito.
Pangunahing atraksyon ang laban
ni Bautista kay De Leon sa World
Cup. Ngayon pa lamang ay marami
na ang humuhula na ang laban ang
tatapos sa giyera ng dalawang boksingero na kapuwa kilala sa dikitang
laban,
Si De Leon ay may record na 31-1
at may 28 KOs.
Mahigpit ang
hamon sa
bagong Seaba
champion
Nahaharap sa radikal na pagbabago
ang koponan para sa Beijing Games
Celeste Maring in Manila
M
aaaring nakuha ng
Philippine basketball
team ang korona sa 7th
Southeast Asian Basketball Men’s
Championship sa Bangkok, Thailand,
pero wala pang dahilan para
magdiwang ang lahat.
Sa halip, alam ng lahat – mga
player, opisyal at iba pang miyembro
ng pambansang koponan – na mas
matindi ang laban at problemang
kanilang kinahaharap.
Para sa opisyal na kasama ng
RP team, walang dapat ipagsaya sa
panalo.
“We didn’t even have the game to
beat Chinese-Taipei. Now we have
two months to get to that level,” sabi
ni Reyes.
“Essentially, we’re basically
cramming,” dagdag niya.
Pagkatapos na pabagsakin ng
RP team ang Thailand, may mga
proposisyong kinakailangang
baguhin ang ilang aspeto sa koponan
upang lumakas pa ang pambansang
koponan.
Isa sa mga nakikita ay ang
pagtanggal ng foreign trips sa
Belgrade at Qatar .
Sa halip sasabak na lamang
ang koponan sa siyam na araw na
kompetisyon sa William Jones Cup
sa Taiwan na lalahukan ng China,
Korea, Chinese-Taipei at Japan.
Lumutang din ang pangalan nina
Willie Miller ng Alaska, Kelly
Williams ng Sta Lucia at Gabe
Norwood, isang Fil-Am mula
sa George Mason University na
posibleng madagdag sa national
team.
Habang isinusulat ito ay
nakatakdang magpulong sina
PBA chairman Ricky Vargas,
Commissioner Noli Eala, Samahang
Basketbol ng Pilipinas executive
director Patrick Gregorio, RP team
manager Robert Non at coach Chot
Reyes para balasahin ang pinal
na komposisyon ng pambansang
koponan na pupuna sa Tokushima,
Japan upang sumali sa Fiba-Asia
Men’s Championship sa Hulyo 28Agosto. 5.
Ayon kay Reyes, kabilang sa mga
lumutang na problema ng RP team
ay ang mabagal na simula, hindi
makadepensa sa mabilis na opensa,
masamang outside shooting at
mabagal na ball movement.
“We’re not necessarily saying that
players had to be changed,” pahayag
naman ni Eala.
“But if there’s a need to augment
the lineup, especially if we have
players not performing as expected,
then this should be considered.”
“I think that would be a more
attractive tournament,” dagdag nito.
“We all have to realise the
imperativeness of change within the
team which ran roughshod over the
Seaba competition by an average
margin of 38.5 points,” aniya pa.
“Although winning restores
our confidence after Tehran, this
is not the time to celebrate or be
complacent,” paliwanag ni Eala.
“There’s still much room for
improvement, especially in
the scouting of opponents, the
strengthening and conditioning of the
players, and the composition of the
coaching staff.
Sapaw ang kalaban
sa RP team sa
nakaraang Seaba
tournament sa
Thailand, kung
saan nagpakitang
gilas ang mga
reinforcements.
Samantala, iginiit
ng mga opisyales
ng baketball sa
bansa na hindi
dapat isantabi
ang mga problema
ng pambansang
koponan.
“
If there’s a need
to augment the
lineup, especially
if we have players
not performing as
expected, then
this should be
considered
NOLI EALA
On potential changes to the team
“While I don’t want to secondguess coach Chot, the training
program, I feel, needs to be more
focused on areas of weaknesses
which I don’t think would be
addressed by the planned trips to
Belgrade and Qatar,”
sabi ni Eala. “A balance has to be
struck.”
Inihayag naman ng kanunombra
lamang sa SBP na tatlong
pangunahing problema ang sinusuri
ng mga opisyal ng pambansang
koponan – ang pangangailangan ng
foreign trips at ang pagkundisyon
ng koponan – mental preparedness,
conditioning, at total team effort.
“There should be no superstar in
this team,” wika niya .
“Everybody should accept the role
assigned to him.”
Isa lamang ang natitiyak sa
ngayon – malaki ang pagbabagong
magaganap sa pambansang koponan
kahit pa nakaamba na ang Olympics
sa Beijing.
At hindi titigil and mga opisyal
ng basketbol hanggang hindi
naipapatupad ang pagbabago.
filipino globe
June 2007 45
46
filipino globe
NBA Finals:
Are the Spurs
ready
wrap
Venustorising
up
thethe
title?
from
water
Rodel Almazan in New York
For all intents and purposes, the
NBA Finals are over and the Spurs
are champions once more.
Or are they?
After the Spurs’ 103-92 pounding
of the Cleveland Cavaliers in San
Antonio in Game 2, the drama is
down to two questions: Are the
Spurs this good? Or are the Cavs
so bad any number of Western
Conference teams would run
roughshod over them?
The answer is somewhere in
between; and certainly isn’t enough
to capture the imagination of the
general public.
But unless something unusual
happens in the rest of the series,
they’re finished playing in San
Antonio.
The Spurs figure to win at least two
of the three in Cleveland this week
for their fourth title in nine years and
third in five.
The latter is the more impressive
part and will force us to start
looking at the trio of Tim Duncan,
Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker
historically.
Parker continued his track on the
Finals’ Most Valuable Player award
with 30 points on Sunday, following
his 27 points and 7 assists in the 8576 Game 1 win. The score of neither
game really reflects how much
Parker dominated with his quickness
with the ball and getting his hands on
so many others.
But that’s only because Duncan,
already a three-time MVP winner
in the Finals and now widely
considered the best power forward
in NBA history (if not quite one of
the top five big men), continued his
quiet dominance with 23 points,nine
rebounds and eight assists in Game 2.
As always, he does what is
necessary to win in his inimitably
smooth and unspectacular manner at
both ends of the floor.
The wild card, however, is
Ginobili, who finished Sunday’s
game with 25 points, six rebounds,
three steals and two assists while
palakasan
June 2007
Now, see
what you
may miss at
the US Open
Not even LeBron
James’ yeoman’s
job could stop
the Cavs from a
rout by the Spurs
in Game 2 of the
NBA Finals.
“
I’m fortunate
that Manu is all
about team and
doesn’t moan
and groan
about coming
off the bench
GREGG POPOVICH
Spurs coach on his star player
squelching the Cavs’ furious rally
with a 4-point play and only 2:24
left in the game. While Parker’s
game has grown every year since he
began and Duncan is somewhere in
between death and taxes for every
opponent, Ginobili is the one who
makes them special.
The Argentine’s wiry strength
at 210 pounds on his 6-6 frame is
magnified by his inalterable energy,
radar for the ball at both ends of the
floor, and amazing shooting ability
from any angle.
Many believe he should have
been the Finals MVP in 2005 after
the Spurs beat the Pistons, but he
didn’t earn the media votes because
of the way commissioner David
Stern had been gloating over the
internationalism of the Spurs.
But that’s just a minor detail in
this story. What is far more relevant
to the Spurs’ growth is the way
taskmaster coach Gregg Popovich
incorporated both Ginobili and
Parker to fit a system that is now
far more explosive offensively and
brilliant defensively.
“I’m fortunate because Manu is all
about team and doesn’t moan and
groan about coming off the bench,”
Popovich said. “With the arrival of
Tony (2001) and Manu (2002), the
biggest change was for me probably;
I had to let up control.
Tim Duncan and Tony Parker whoop it up after conspiring on a basket. The Spurs’ mascot flags the rout.
Overmatched and underperforming as a team
Simply put, Tim Duncan, Tony
Parker, and Manu Ginobili were
unstoppable.
And despite his numbers,
LeBron James wasn’t much of
a factor. The Cavs obviously
needed more than the yeoman’s
effort of one man. It needed
them all.
The final score, 103-92, was
semi-respectable, but the Spurs
had the game in
their pocket until
they got careless
– or was it bored?
– in the fourth
quarter.
The Cavs made
a move late
(too late) but never mounted a
serious threat.
The Spurs played well enough
to assert their superiority, but
poorly enough to put a burr
under Pop’s saddle.
When Duncan was allowed
to work against Zydrunas
Ilgauskas one-on-one in the
pivot, he hit a difficult jump hook
and also had the ball stripped by
the Z-man.
As advertised, Ilgauskas
did a yeoman’s job on both
sequences. However, after the
turnover (Duncan’s only one
of the game), Duncan stepped
farther away from the basket
and received the ball in the
vicinity of the foul line.
From there, he could face up
Ilgauskas, thereby minimising
the big fellow’s edge in size and
reach while capitalising on Z’s
limited ability to move laterally.
It could be a dream match: Tiger vs
Lefty.
But it might as well remain a
dream. And so it seems even before
the start of the 107th US Open on
Thursday at Oakmont that events are
conspiring to prevent what almost
everyone in the gallery and the press
tent wants most.
Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer
gave golf one of its most compelling
dramas in the same sleepy corner
of Western Pennsylvania 45 years
ago, and the pundits have been
touting another iconic showdown
since Phil Mickelson outclassed the
best field of the year in the Players
Championship.
Even though many of the same
people have said the same things
several times before, this was
supposed to be when Lefty would
give every duffer watching on his
couch what he craves, a real rival for
Tiger Woods.
“What Phil did at the Players
makes him the favorite for the U.S.
Open, without a doubt, in front
of Tiger,” said Johnny Miller, the
outspoken NBC commentator who
carved his own slice of history at
Oakmont by shooting 63 in the final
round to capture the 1973 US Open.
“To me, he’s the guy to beat ...
If he drives it with that cut he was
hitting at the Players, he probably
will win the Open.”
Of course, that was before
Mickelson went to Oakmont for one
of those marathon practice sessions
he has utilised so well in winning
three majors since 2004 and tweaked
his left wrist while hitting chip shots
from the deep USGA rough.
Doctors have told him a shot of
cortisone he took early last week
should heal the injury before he
reaches the first tee, but the problem
has disrupted his usual detailed
preparation and the work he has been
doing with new instructor Butch
Harmon.
“The timing isn’t the best because
I really wanted to play at Memphis,”
said Mickelson, who has said he
performs best in majors after playing
the week before but was forced to
withdraw from the Stanford St Jude
Championship last week.
There is no certainty that Woods
will bring his “A” game to Oakmont,
either, although he has a pretty good
track record of being able to ramp it
up when he needs it, even when not
playing with his best stuff.
Much of the magic he had while
winning nine times in 12 strokeplay events through the Wachovia
Championship seems to have
deserted the best player in the world
recently, as he tied for 37th in the
Memorial Championships.
Tiger and Lefty ... may be, may be not.
dibersyon
June 2007
filipino globe
BUHAYPALAD
ARIES Mar 21-Apr 19
LIBRA
You should be feeling
excited and positive
about life. Mars is still
zooming through your
sign, giving you the energy to tackle
just about any project. You’ll be
impatient to begin, but you should
not dive in too quickly. Mars will give
you a sexy glow, ideal for attracting
new love or for enhancing romance.
A full moon has just
appeared in your
short-travel sector and
will still be exerting
a strong influence through the
weekends. If you get an invitation
to a friend’s house or have a home
outside the city, make getting out
of town a priority. You desperately
need some time for yourself.
TAURUS
SCORPIO
Apr 21-May 20
Oct 23-Nov 22
June will be all about
money and lucky
you, you will have the
golden touch on just
about every front. This will truly
be the best financial month you’ve
seen in ages, and with an elegant
and rare alignment of planets
shaping up, you have the ability to
pull off one stunning coup.
GEMINI May 21-Jun 20
SAGITTARIUS
This could be a
pivotal month in many
ways. You are now in
birthday month, so with
the Sun in the same position in the
sky as it was at your birth, you’ll be
feeling stronger, more positive, and
more enthusiastic than ever. If you
have had any health difficulties,
you’ll start to feel better now.
You’ll be on a natural,
all-time high. The full
moon in Sagittarius
will be busy boosting
your confidence. Despite your fears
that nothing would turn out, you
are seeing now that to the contrary,
just about everything in your life is
moving in a positive direction and
staying the course.
CANCER
CAPRICORN
Nov 23-Dec 22
Dec 21-Jan 19
You will be working
hard as the month
opens, getting projects
done and delighting in
checking finished items off your todo list. While pressure will be high
for the first four days of June, after
that you’ll be able to chill out. Soon
you’ll feel quite accomplished for all
you have achieved.
This would be an ideal
month to make an
attempt to reinvent
yourself in some
way. Producers of supermarket
items that we buy do this all the
time. Shampoo to canned peas,
toothpaste to frozen diet dinners, it
seems all products scream “New!
Improved! Try me!”
LEO Jul 21-Aug 21
AQUARIUS
You have been through
the mill, but the good
news is that you are
close to feeling relief.
You only have to get through June,
July, and August, and you will be
finished, for Saturn, the taskmaster
planet that has been touring Leo
since July 2005, will finally move
on.
June will be just made
for travel, friends, fun,
and relaxation. You’ve
walked over a long
difficult road lately, and very soon
you will be able to breathe free. It
will be a well-deserved break for
you in the company of family and
your closest friends.
VIRGO Aug 22-Sep 22
PISCES
You may be excited to
see the mover’s truck
pull up in front of your
place to help you take
your things to a brand new address.
If you are moving, you’ve chosen
one of the best points of the year to
do so. You might now move into a
beautiful new space, one with big
closets and even a great view.
Your career will be
taking off like a rocket.
You will be fussed over
and feeling in demand,
and at least one, if not more offers
will be on the table. This will be very
evident at the start of June when
your name will be on everyone’s
lips. A new opportunity that you’ve
always dreamed about is here.
USEFUL NUMBERS
Philippine Consulate
2823 8500
2866 6975
Labour Hotline
9102 0840
Immigration
2824 6111
Police/Fire/Hospital
999
Labour Department
2717 1771
Labour Tribunal
2717 1771
Airport assistance
2861 3980
Int’l Social Services
2836 3598
Caritas Filipino Serv
2526 4249
2147 5988
Bethune House
2721 3119
Bayanihan Center
2817 8928
Asian Migrant Center
2312 0031
Mission for Fil Mig
2522 8264
Unifil Hong Kong
2522 8264
Race Relations Unit
2835 1579
Fil Mig Work Union
2915 9468
ANGSISTE
Sep 23-Oct 22
During most of June,
you’ll be intent on
finishing up loose
ends. You won’t want
to socialise too much – for that,
you’ll have July – so while the
pressure is on to finish up tasks,
you will have to hunker down. You
would do well to work in solitude,
behind closed doors.
Jun 20-Jul 21
47
KATUWAANLANG
Wish we said these things ourselves
Men are like bank accounts.
Without money, they don’t
generate interest.
Anonymous
People ask me what I’d most
appreciate getting for my eightyseventh birthday. I tell them, a
paternity suit.
George Burns, US actor and
comedian, who lived to be a
hundred
Energizer Bunny arrested, charged
with battery.
Newspaper headline
People always ask me, ‘Were you
funny as a child?’ Well, no, I was an
accountant.
Ellen DeGeneres, US actress and
TV personality
I told my doctor I broke my leg
in two places. He told me to stop
going to those places.
Henny Youngman, American
humorist
A woman is an occasional pleasure,
but a cigar is always a smoke.
Groucho Marx, cigar-chomping
US actor and comedian
Men should be like Kleenex
– soft, strong and disposable.
Anonymous
If your wife wants to learn to
drive, don’t stand in her way.
Anonymous
“Money is better than poverty, if
only for financial reasons
Woody Allen, US actor and film
director
Everybody wants to go to
heaven, but nobody wants to die.
Anonymous
He who laughs last didn’t get it.
Anonymous
LARONGSUDOKU
Jan 20-Feb 18
Feb 19-Mar 20
Pinakamainit na laro ngayon, hamon sa kakayahang mag-isip at magbilang. Punuin ang mga square ng
numero mula 1 hanggang 9 na hindi umuuulit. May dalawa kayong tsansa para hamunin ang sarili. Suko?
Tingnan ang sagot sa aming internet edition (www.filglobe.com).
YOURDIARY
Current exhibition
Estilo: An Art Exhibit,
showcasing Hong Kongbased Filipino artists,
Philippine consulate, 1-6
pm until July 7.
June 17
Foundation Day and
Awarding, Dakilang Ina, 2-6
pm, St John’s Cathedral,
Central. Brenda 9439 7853.
Philippine Cultural
Academy Dance Ensemble
Centre, Kennedy Town,
1-6 pm.
induction, Empire Hotel,
Wanchai, 1-4 pm. Grace
9341 2029.
Bileg ti Sto Domingo HK
Chapter Miss BSTDA 2007
coronation, Bayanihan
June 21
Book Reading, Philippine
Consulate General,
Admiralty, 6.30 pm. Mida
6083 4110.
July 2
Marinduque Migrant
Workers Association
monthly meeting, Wanchai
Park, from 9 am. Jo 9533
7303, Abeth 6090 4725.
EXCHANGE RATES
July 8
Alamanda Addu Overseas
Foreign Association Singing
Contest, Scorpio Lounge.
Ping 9104 1733.
Hong Kong dollar
July 3
Free cooking class, 3-5
pm,1/f Southorn Mansions,
Luard Road Wanchai.
Riza 2732 7337
Send your activities and
programs for publication
to [email protected]
5.90
British pound
91.20
Saudi riyal
12.29
Canadian dollar
43.33
Euro
61.93
Australian dollar
38.94
Japanese yen
38.15*
Singapore dollar
30.01
US dollar
46.11
*per 100 yen
Above rates are for reference purposes only.
Please check with your bank for actual rates.
shoot, show & tell
filipino globe
the big picture
June 2007
48
AUSSIE PRIDE
Sydney Harbor glows under the glare of city lights. Rarely will you find a photo of this world famous skyline without two equally world famous icons, the Sydney Harbor Bridge (above) and the
Opera House. Australia is home to a growing number of Filipino expatriates who started migrating in droves to the ‘Lucky Country’ with the easing of immigration laws more than 20 years ago.
Take a hike, you might even discover our country
W
ho doesn’t have memories
of that childhood
elementary school
tradition, the field trip? On the
one hand, it provided an escape
from classrooms. On the other, it
often involved going to less than
enthralling places.
Sure, a trip to the zoo was
interesting, though it might have
sometimes seemed like occupants
of one animal house were being
visited by members of another. But
excursions to historical sites?
We could all think of other places
we’d rather be than inside a dark,
musty building staring vacantly
at dusty display cases, waiting
desperately for something interesting
to happen ... the teachers morphing
into ninja, outer space aliens
explosively invading, anything.
I don’t know about you, but my
field trips to numerous national
monuments, shrines and museums
left a profound impression on me,
one best summed up by the words
“old” and “dump.” Boring class field
LIGHTERSIDE
view from home
Alan C Robles
in Manila
[email protected]
“
Sometimes
there are
hecklers,
but there are
admirers, too
trips may have spoiled history as a
subject for generations of Filipinos.
Fortunately, people like Ivan ManDy
are working hard to undo the
damage.
Ivan, a 28-year old Filipino-
Chinese, has a nominal job helping
run the family’s trading company.
But his heart is really in his Other
Job – streetwalking.
That’s what he calls leading
people around Manila’s historic
neighborhoods. They walk hours
on end, navigating narrow, often
filthy streets, enduring the clammy
heat and polluted air, dodging the
occasional crazed jeep and calesa.
Sounds like fun, but you’ll pass,
right?
Actually, this is one field trip
where people pay to join and groups
– equal parts foreigners and locals
– are often packed (although the limit
is 15 people, recently 30 suddenly
showed up). His tours have been
mentioned in The Lonely Planet.
President Arroyo’s daughter quietly
joined one group, bringing only
one guard and making herself so
inconspicuous Ivan didn’t even
realize who she was until later.
Ivan turns Philippine history
– something we thought we left
safely buried and forgotten in our
schoolbooks – into places with
stories. Who knew about the graceful
plaza in Binondo? The notorious
red light district further down?
Ivan’s tours reconquer Manila’s
streets, giving them back their lost
identities. In one tour, you eat your
way through Chinatown, striving
to keep up as Ivan stuffs your head
with stories and your stomach with
noodles, fried siopao and dumplings,
He also leads groups around
Intramuros, Mendiola, the Chinese
cemetery, and the art deco
architecture of the University Belt.
Sometimes there are hecklers, but
there are admirers, too. One old
Chinese man watching Ivan work his
group said: “He’s a really sharp kid.”
Started as a hobby, Ivan’s
tours have become a growing
business with its own website,
oldmanilawalks.com.
Our boring history books tell
us Magellan “discovered” the
Philippines in 1521. Five centuries
later, there’s still time for you to
discover your own country.
PHOTOESSAY
Show us your flash for
photography by giving us
the big picture of the Filipino
expat’s life. Photos must be
accompanied by a caption
of not more than 100 words,
describing the event or
circumstances behind them.
Or tell us an interesting
anecdote or observation in
not more than 500 words and
share them with the world.
Each photo or essay entitles
its owner HK$200 and
becomes the property of
Filipino Globe. Photos should
have a minimum resolution
of three megapixels. We
reserve the right to make
changes in line with house
style. Entries should be sent
to [email protected]