It was the anniversary of the Ladies Special Mumbai train when I was fortunate to see some of parts of the Philippines. The Filipino women stand out. Yes a Ladies Special. The Filipino women: hard-working, friendly, resourceful, astute, with a good understanding of money matters. They are everywhere; working outside the home and in, mobile: day and night. A safe place for women to work and travel in. (I am of course comparing it with how we women work and live in India). If the women are safe then possibility of children being safe have to be higher. Right? Also noticeably absent is the feudal hierarchical mindset obvious and prevalent all over even among the most “modern” in India.
Philippines has a colonial past, from Spaniards, Japanese to Americans. Very briefly in the 16th Century the islands were sparsely populated village based communities. By mid 16th century Islam was established in Mindanao, by 1565 the Spanish began their settlements. Most Filipinos have Spanish names. The Spanish Christianized the Filipinos. By the 1870’s the nationalist movement was born. Strangely while there is anger about the Spanish invasion, the Americans whose stamp is all over the country gets less of a mention. Sometime around 1899 the United States purchased the Philippines from Spain and colonized the whole Philippine archipelago. Independence was granted in 1946. The people seem to feel that modern contributions like urbanization, ‘democracy’ was brought by the Americans. Between 1946 and 1972 there was a constitutional democracy similar to the US but in 1972 President Marcos declared martial Law. (Remember stories of his wife Imelda Marcos and her 3000 pairs of shoes? Well she is very much a Page 3 celebrity still.) In 1993 Benigno Aquino (Marco’s most prominent political opponent) was murdered and Cory Aquino (his widow) with support of army wins elections! In 1992Ramos is elected president. In 1998 Estrada (an ageing movie star) is elected president. In 2001 Estrada was impeached which made Vice-president Aroyyo the President. In 2004 she won again on her own.
The timing was not bad, the visit happened during the present Presidential elections. Former President Corazon Aquino’s son is the front runner. There is hope as well as cynicism as the Aquinos and Aroyyos (present president) belong to the same elite. The ruling class everywhere protects status quo and their own kind. Dynasties!!! No surprises there. An interesting addition was a group Ang Ladlad (coming out or ladder). The group said if elected would propose laws that would criminalize discrimination against lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender (LGBTs). The commission on elections initially junked the petition of Ang Ladland to join the party list elections but the Supreme Court reversed the decision saying a gay group is a marginalized sector qualified to have representation in Congress.
It seems that President- apparent Senator Benigno ‘Noynoy’ Aquino III of the Liberal party called on President Aroyyo to reconsider her appointment on May 12, 2010 of former chief of staff Supreme Court Associate Justice Renato Corona as New Chief Justice. He was a midnight appointee! Critics say that the Corona appointment is aimed to protect President Aroyyo from graft investigation by her successor. Guess Judicial accountability and corruption is an issue there too.
Of course the American Mall culture is seen in Manila, the capital. When I saw Manila city with all its malls, I was reminded of the book by Annie Leonard “The Story of Stuff”. (It’s mostly about America). She writes “We (Americans) have a problem with stuff. With 5% of the world’s population, consuming 30% of world’s resources, creating 30% of world’s waste. If everyone consumed at US rates, we would need 3-5 planets”. Of all the American influences, the malls stick out, drawing young people and families, unsettling. The same feeling I get when I see all the malls which came up on mill lands in Mumbai and remember the tired weary faces of struggling mill workers outside labour courts. The Left in Philippines says that the Government rather than regulating private sector is controlled by it. A crony-capitalist control we in India are familiar with. However the government seems to have invested in some social housing which is bound to have ripple effects especially for women.
A truly inspiring National Hero, Dr Jose Rizal. There is the Rizal shrine, which is a reconstruction of the colonial period barracks where Dr. Jose Rizal , was confined by the Spaniards during his trial for sedition. Born on 19 June 1861, Calamba, Philippines and executed on 30 December 1896, Manila, Philippines, patriot, physician, writer, poet an inspiration to the Philippine nationalist movement. Son of a prosperous landowner and sugar planter of Chinese-Filipino descent on the island of Luzon influenced by his mother, Teodora Alonso, one of the most highly educated women in the Philippines at that time. He went to study medicine and liberal arts at the University of Madrid. Later medicine in Paris and Heidelberg. A brilliant student, he soon became the leader of the small community of Filipino students in Spain .Religion was used as a tool of expansion by the Spanish. His first novel in Spanish, was Noli Me Tangere, a passionate exposure of the evils of the friar’s rule. On the eve of his execution, while confined in Fort Santiago, Rizal wrote Mi Ultimo Adios (“My Last Farewell”).
Equally or more inspiring is Lola Hilaria, in her 90’s, fighting the good fight alongwith Lila –Philipina, an organization of surviving Filipino ‘comfort’ women who were gang raped by Japanese during World War II(1943). The women were made sex slaves: gang-raped, beaten, and tortured and in the morning, bodies shattered: forced to cook the food and wash the clothes of the soldiers who raped them. Their struggle for dignity continues. Hats off to Lola Hilaria and Lila-Philipina. Men waging war and bodies of women used, as an act of war.
I hesitate and don’t know if there is a connection: but the toilets are called Comfort rooms.
The God of the rice terraces is “Bul-ul”. The ‘Kadangyan’ were the rich families, ‘tagu’ the middle class, the ‘Nawotwot the lower middle-class and the Makibokla the non propertied working class. The Banaue rice terraces, over 2000yrs old, rise amphi-theatre like 3,700 ft above sea level. The vast complex of rice terraces carved into the mountains moves and humbles. It is believed that the indigenous tribes build the terraces by hand covering over 10,000 square kilometers. The rice terraces are a Unesco World Heritage Site.
Tagaytay, lovely, 60 kms south of Manila City, has the Taal lake and an active Volcano .This active volcano, which last erupted in 1965 supports a tourism industry. Actually Philippines is supposed to be in the middle of the ‘pacific ring of fire’ and has about 200 volcanoes. Taal, the world’s smallest volcano , it seems, has erupted more than 20 times.
Abundant fruits, flowers, trees and vegetables. Oh, I must not forget the delicious fruits: santol (yellow, sweet-sour), dragon fruit (magenta outside , white-black dotted inside, sweet), sininggwelas (small, green, sweet), mangosteen (loved by Korean visitors to Philippines), guyabano (green, like a cross between custard apple and jackfruit), jackfruit, pineapple, strawberries
Food, they cook ubod (inside of the banana stem), sticky rice, Pinakbet (supposed to be vegetarian but cooked in fish oil with shrimp paste added). By the way they use ‘karela’ in many of their meat and vegetable preparations. Arroz Caldo (chicken and rice porridge), Pancit Palabok (Seafood noodles), chicken and Pork adobo etc etc, washed down with San Miguel beer! Speaking of food, I must mention ‘Jollibee’ a giant Filipino food chain competing with McDonalds. Similar food with Filipino flavours.
by MMC
If you walk around the market places: be sure to ask: awan tawar na ? (Can you give discount?)
Filipinos love music and dance. They even have a National Artist for music Levi Celerio who is recognized as the only person who can play music using a leaf!
I want to go back one day, this time to see the Tappiyah falls, the world’s longest underground river( being considered for the new seven wonders of the world), Palawan’s Tubbataha Reef which is the world’s richest biogeographic area- marine life-unesco world heritage site. And before I end, Philippines comprise more than 7000 islands and islets! Imagine the beaches, the flora and fauna.
I do realize, I have created stick figures but for now this is it on the Philippines. Well last thing, Jeepneys and tricycles are truly interesting modes of travel.
by MMC
