The Philippines' failed nuclear experiment
Links: Have you ever played a Cambodian chess? Tips for trekking in Laos. Thailand's bank notes. Internat game Miss Bimbo is popular in Brunei.
Southeast Asia: Alternative sources of energy, a roundup for Global Voices. Thanks Manolo for the link.
Nuclear power is not necessarily evil and dangerous. It currently provides 15 percent of the world’s electricity. Scientists have been working hard to reduce the usual risks associated with nuclear energy. Unless new sources of energy are discovered, the world should consider the nuclear option as one of the solutions to the energy woes of many countries.
Environmentalists remind us that the problem of nuclear waste disposal has not been solved. This is a valid warning. Scientists must find ways to eliminate the dangers posed by radioactive emissions.
Meanwhile, many countries which are burdened by rising oil prices are now studying the option of tapping nuclear power for their energy needs. For example, Malaysia has set up a nuclear monitoring laboratory to allow scientists to assess the safety of atomic energy. The government believes it will take about 15 years to build a nuclear plant.
Indonesia is planning to build four nuclear power plants in the next two decades. The first of these plants will start operation on 2016 in Central Java on the slopes of Mount Muria. A new law was approved in Vietnam which allows the use of nuclear energy. Construction of a four-turbine nuclear power plant will start in 2015 and be completed in 2025. By this time, nuclear power is expected to account for 10 percent of Vietnam's total electricity supply.
Global warming is another reason why many governments are suddenly keen on using nuclear energy. Thailand justifies its proposal to build a nuclear plant by pointing out that 60 percent of the greenhouse gases generated by the country come from the energy sector. Nuclear energy is seen by some leaders as the most economic and environmentally friendly option in confronting climate change while addressing the energy requirements of developing countries.
It seems many governments in Southeast Asia are determined to use nuclear power in the near future. They are advised to review their plans carefully and learn from the experience of the Philippines, which constructed a nuclear plant 30 years ago but failed to generate electricity from that source.
During the first oil price shock in the early 1970s, the Philippine government decided to build a nuclear plant. The opposition claimed it was a knee-jerk reaction to the oil crisis. There were cheaper sources of energy at that time, like hydropower and geothermal energy. But others insisted the project proved the sincerity of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, who had earlier vowed to make the country an industrial hub in the region.
The nuclear plant was the costliest venture in the Philippines. More than US$2 billion worth of foreign loans were spent to build the plant but it didn’t generate a single watt of electricity. It remains the biggest white elephant in the country’s history. It has become a symbol of corruption and crony capitalism in the Philippines.
From the very beginning, the nuclear plant undertaking was politicized. Marcos awarded the project to a losing bidder. Marcos’ cronies bagged several subcontracts for the project. The cost of the plant was overpriced due to several commissions – read bribes – given to high-ranking Filipino politicians.
It usually takes six years to study the safety of a nuclear plant. In 1978 the Philippine nuclear plant was visited by one expert for two weeks. In 1992 the government sent a three-man panel to inspect the site for one week. In both instances, the experts concluded that the nuclear plant was safe to operate.
An independent inspection conducted by several technical experts disagreed with the findings of the government-commissioned reports. Filipino scientists discovered that the reactor had 200 defects. Safety issues were raised by the Philippine Atomic Energy Commission about the damaged containment structure, unshielded electric cables and faulty steam generator. In 1990 another independent study pointed out the structural weaknesses of the plant. The report mentioned the deficiencies in the component cooling system, quality assurance program, and emergency power system.
The design of the nuclear plant was also not applicable for the Philippines. The plant builder adopted Yugoslavia’s Krsko plant as the model for its project in the Philippines. But the two countries have different weather and geographical conditions. The same design for ventilation and cooling cannot be used for both sites.
The site of the Philippine nuclear plant was not chosen wisely. The location was only nine kilometers away from an active volcano. It was also within 25 miles of three geologic faults. The Philippines is located in the Pacific Ring of Fire, which means volcanic eruptions and earthquakes are common in the country.
When Marcos was ousted from power in 1986, the nuclear plant was not yet finished. The succeeding government mothballed the plant because of strong local opposition.
The failure of the Philippines in its attempt to use nuclear energy can be traced to corruption. The nuclear plant, if designed and constructed properly, could have been used to avert a power blackout in the 1980s. The power crisis not only plunged the whole country into darkness, it crippled the local economy, especially the manufacturing sector.
There is a proposal to revive the nuclear plant in light of skyrocketing oil prices. But environmentalists, activists, economists and even some scientists are opposing it. They believe it is too expensive and risky. It will take some time, perhaps a long time, before debates on the use of nuclear power can proceed without mentioning the Philippines’ painful experience to build a nuclear plant three decades ago.
Southeast Asian governments should not repeat the mistakes committed by the Philippine government. As much as possible, the role of elected politicians in overseeing the construction of energy infrastructure must be minimized. Public experts must strive to be more independent. The project must be transparent by involving people’s organizations in the process.
Related entries:
Oil alternatives
Remove Evat on oil
Transport strike
Amirah Lidasan: Huwarang lider-kababaihan
Links: Bangkok is polluted but its “green.” Street food of Vietnam. Krupuk, or fried fish cracker in Indonesia. Assessing the western media coverage of Fiji.
Ininterbyu ko si Amirah noong 2003 para sa The Filipino Student, opisyal na publikasyon ng National Union of Students of the Philippines. Heto ang ilan sa mga tanong-sagot na pinagbatayan ng artikulong sinulat ko…
Para sa mga kapwa niya Moro, siya ang matapang na lider ng Moro Christian People’s Alliance. Madalas na napapanood sa TV, nagpapaliwanag at bumabatikos sa mga mapaniil na patakaran ng pamahalaan.
Para sa National Union of Students of the Philippines, siya ang masigasig na lider ng Unyon noong ikalawang hati ng nakaraang dekada. Siya ang sumulat ng makasaysayang Critique on Education 2000, ang batayang dokumento sa pag-unawa ng sistema ng edukasyon sa bansa sa ilalim ng rehimeng Ramos.
Siya si Amirah Ali Lidasan, mula sa tribong Iranon ng Maguindanao, dating tagapangulo ng Unyon, at tinitingala ngayon bilang isa sa mga respetadong lider ng bansa.
Magkahalong tuwa at gulat ang naging reaksiyon ni Amirah nang sabihin naming siya ang napiling huwarang alumna ng Unyon ngayong taon. Marahil hindi niya batid ang malaking paghanga sa kanya ng bagong henerasyon ng mga miyembro ng NUSP. Ang paninindigan niya laban sa todong gerang inilunsad ni dating Pangulong Estrada sa mamamayang Moro, hanggang sa kasalukuyang pagbatikos niya sa gerang agresyon ng Estados Unidos sa Afghanistan man o sa Basilan ang nagtulak sa amin na kilalanin siya bilang modelong lider ng NUSP.
Iilan na lamang ba ang katulad ni Amirah na handang talikuran ang payapa at komportableng buhay upang harapin ang suliranin ng lipunan at ng kanyang mga kapatid na Moro?
Sa mga susunod na talata ay mababasa natin ang maikling interbyu kay Amirah kung saan malalaman natin ang mga naging tampok na isyu sa kanyang termino. Masusulyapan din natin ang isang buhay na masasabi nating prinsipyado, makabayan at makabuluhan.
Binabago ni Amirah ang stereotyping sa isang babaeng Moro na ikinikahon ng pyudal na kultura bilang pambahay lamang. Tunay ngang isang kakaibang Moro ang ating huwarang lider. Isang karangalan para sa atin na bago siya naging Amirah Lidasan ng MCPA, naging Amirah Lidasan muna siya ng NUSP.
1. Ano ang pinagkakaabalahan mo ngayon?
Ako ang secretary-general ng Moro-Christian People's Alliance. Ang MCPA ay isang interfaith organization ng mga Muslim at Kristiyanong indibidwal at mga organisasyon na nagtataguyod ng mga karapatan at kagalingan ng mamamayang Moro; at kumikilalala at nagsusulong ng karapatan nila sa sariling pagpapasya or right to self-determination.
2. Bago ka sumali sa NUSP, ano ang mga pinagkaabalahan mo bilang estudyante?
Naging miyembro ako UP Muslim Students and Alumni Association. Sa kolehiyo namin, College of Mass Communication, sumali ako sa Union of Journalists of the Philippines. Noong kasagsagan ng kampanya laban sa tuition increase sa UP noong 1993, sumali ako sa Center for Nationalist Studies (CNS) at dito ako namulat sa mga isyung pulitikal sa loob at labas ng eskuwelahan. Dahil sa CNS, nakasali ako sa mga rali laban sa GATT at iba pang isyung panlipunan na nagpapahirap sa bansa noong 1993 at 1994. Dahil din sa CNS ay nakasama ako sa welga ng mga manggagawa ng Shoemart.
3. Paano ka naging miyembro ng NUSP?
Noong 1994 ay tumakbo ako sa aming kolehiyo bilang presidente ng konseho. Ako ay nanalo at tumayo na rin bilang college representative sa University Student Council. Katatapos lang ng tuition increase sa UP noon, tumaas mula P200 hanggang P300 per unit. Matindi din ang isyu ng mga manggagawa ng UP noon. Panahon na rin kasi ito nang magsimula ang UP na kumuha ng mga agency para sa mga janitor at gwardiya.
Sa labas ng eskwelahan maingay ang mga protesta laban sa GATT. Matindi ang partisipasyon ng ilang estudyante galing UP na sumasama sa mga protesta sa Malakanyang at Senado.
Nagsimula na rin akong maging aktibo sa mga student council organization. Lumahok ako sa Kasama sa UP Convention noong 1994 sa Miag-ao, Iloilo at sa NUSP sa Naga City. Sa NUSP convention noong 1994 ay nahirang akong Executive Vice President. Noong 1995 nang magdaos ng special National Council ang NUSP sa Aklan, ang presidente na si Melody Mallari ng UE-Caloocan ay nagbitiw sa puwesto at ako ang pumalit sa kanyang posisyon. Buong taon ng 1995 ay nagsilbi akong national president. Sa kongreso noong 1995 sa Benguet State University, ako naman ay hinirang ng kapulungan bilang secretary-general ng NUSP hanggang 1996.
4. Ano ang mga problemang kinaharap, naigpawan at mga tagumpay na kampanyang sinulong ninyo sa NUSP noon?
Ang pangunahing kinaharap ng NUSP noon ay organizational problem. Matapos ang Naga Congress, lumiliit na ang bilang ng college councils na sumasali sa NUSP. Matindi ang epekto nito sa paglaban ng mga estudyante sa Education 2000 na inilalako na ng rehimeng Ramos noon. Bukod sa organizational problem, may kakulangan din sa pag-aaral ng programang Education 2000. Umabot sa punto na naging mali ang naging pagsusuri at paglaban ng NUSP sa Education 2000.
Nang inihapag ng NUSP ang taktikal na laban sa Education 2000, umabot siya sa pagsusuri na walang krisis ang eduksyon sa bansa at manipestayon nito ay ang patuloy na pagsilbi ng edukasyon at patuloy na paglabas ng mga graduates na nakakatugon sa panganagailangan ng pamahalaan para sa trabaho.
Lito ang NUSP noon sa kampanyang ito at umani ng maraming puna mula sa mga regional chapters nito particularly sa Laguna-Cavite Chapter, Davao at Ilo-ilo. Ito ang mga pangunahing chapters na pinaabutan ng memorandum at inikot ko bilang Presidente ng NUSP upang ilako ang pagsusuri sa Education 2000.
5. Ano sa tingin mo ang naging ambag mo sa NUSP?
Inilabas ng NUSP ang Critique on the Education 2000 noong 1997, mas komprehensibo at malaman sa datos. Naging wasto at higit na kritikal ang papel na inilabas ng NUSP. Ang buod ng pagsusuri: “The crisis of the education system is continuing and intensifying with the release of the Education 2000 program.” Ito ngayon ang sinuportahan at mabilis na naging laban noong 1997 ng NUSP na nagbunsod din ng isa sa pinakamalaking Kongreso ng Unyon noong 1997 sa Cebu City.
Mas naging malakas ang NUSP noong 1996. Isang tunay na organisasyon ng mga student council dahil well-entrenched ito sa grassroots. Bukod sa pangunguna sa kampanya laban sa tuition increase noong first quarter ng 1997, pinangunahan muli ng NUSP ang taktikal na laban sa Education 2000. Bukod dito, nanguna din ang NUSP sa paglaban ng karapatan ng mag-aaral - tumulong sa pagtatayo ng mga student councils sa Metro Manila na siyang naging hudyat ng pagbubuo muli ng Metro-Manila Chapter nito.
6. Nakatulong ba ang NUSP sa mga ginagawa mo ngayon?
Malaking tulong ang NUSP sa political development ko. Nagbukas ito sa akin ng buhay labas sa UP. Dati, napaka-undecided ko after college. Nasa isip ko talaga pagkatapos ng graduation ay magtrabaho o kaya mag-aral ulit (MA Islamic Studies); pagkatapos babalik ng probinsya namin sa Mindanao para magturo dun.
Pagkatapos sa NUSP, naging volunteer ako sa isang workers federation sa KMU at nang sumiklab ang all-out war sa Mindanao noong 1999, nagvolunteer naman ako sa Karapatan sa Moro human rights desk. Noong 2000, naging founding member ako ng Moro-Christian People's Alliance.
“My decision to continue with student activism paved the way for me to work with the people I belong to: the Moro People. Had I not chosen NUSP over my work and contented life in Maguindanao, I would not have understood the raging war in my province. Like the rest of the Moro people who graduated and became part of the mainstream professionals in the country, I think I would not have been vocal against the violations of the rights of the Moro people. NUSP prepared me for a longer and harder battle that I am facing now, how to help the Moro people fight for their rights and to survive the militarist campaigns of the Philippine government.”
7. Ano ang plano mo sa hinaharap?
Gusto kong isipin na sana ay tuloy-tuloy na ang pagtulong ko sa pakikibaka ng mga kapatid kong mamamayang Moro. Ang gusto ko din ay bumalik uli sa aming probinsya, hindi bilang isang anak na magtatrabaho at magsesettle down sa homeland, kundi bilang isang anak na bumabalik upang tumulong na paigtingin ang pakikibaka ng mamamayan na kinabibilangan ko, ang mamamayang Moro. Ang pag-uwi ko ay hindi ibig sabihin sa pag-iwan ng trabaho sa MCPA. ang ibig sabihin lang nito ay ang paglago ng MCPA sa iba't ibang probinsya partikular sa Mindanao.
Related entries:
USC history
South Mindanao
Tibak sarbey
Media and human rights
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Human rights reporting was better during the Marcos years.
This was asserted by a TV news editor during a recent media forum on human rights in the Philippines. What was more surprising was the fact that nobody in that room full of veteran journalists disputed the opinion of the senior editor.
What could be the basis of this harsh judgment? Perhaps the minimal media coverage of human rights issues compared to other more popular topics, like Gabby Concepcion and product endorsements of senators. Underreporting of torture could be another reason. Abusive journalists – those who beat suspects and those who stage-manage brutal scenes inside a police post – are giving Philippine Press a bad reputation.
But are these reasons enough to claim that human rights reporting was better during the Marcos era? Is it fair to insist that the style of human rights reporting during that period should still be applied today? Veteran media practitioners should answer these questions.
I have a different opinion. Many journalists are indeed guilty of sacrificing truth and ethics for higher ratings, vanity and money. But I have to cite the positive contribution of media in highlighting the widespread human rights violations in the country, especially under the Arroyo regime. Media should be credited for promoting awareness and interest about the shocking human rights abuses inflicted on activists and other critics of the state. Consistent media reports on extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances were instrumental in developing an international campaign to force the government to act on these dastardly crimes against humanity.
The result was swift. The “murderous” Arroyo regime was put on the defensive. The number of human rights abuses declined. Human rights became a national issue once again.
The public became familiar with the terms extrajudicial killing, enforced disappearances and to a certain extent, Writ of Amparo. A decade ago, only few would have appreciated the political relevance of these words.
But a cynic may counter: Why praise the media for doing its work? Isn’t the media mandated by law to inform the public about the extraordinary high number of political massacres, assassinations and abductions in the country?
The answer to these inquiries is also simple: Media could have chosen to ignore these stories. They could have preferred not to write about the senseless killings of activists. But they made a brave decision. They reported these unpopular stories. They made Jonas Burgos and his mother the icons of human rights advocacy. The public is still interested about Karen Empeño and Sheryl Cadapan partly because the media is willing to join the search for these missing youth activists.
Writing about human rights is dangerous in this part of the world. New York Times correspondent Carlos H. Conde notes that “human rights and torture are subjects that can emasculate the journalist.” A writer can be called a destabilizer or a communist sympathizer if he/she does not subscribe to the government position. In short, human rights reporting offers few rewards but huge risks. That is why I have to admire the persistence of media in exposing the human rights atrocities perpetrated by state agents.
But why is there a perception about media’s failure to report human rights adequately? Perhaps the public cannot separate the weaknesses of media as a whole (dependence on corporate money, sensational news reporting) and the state of human rights reporting in the country. We apply the negative criticism on media in general to belittle the quality of human rights journalism.
I have another theory. Media has failed to improve the quality of discourse on human rights. Human rights was treated as an ordinary subject requiring traditional news reporting. News stories on human rights contained the elements of basic journalism: Who was killed/abducted/tortured? Who are the suspects? When, where and how did it happen?
But some very important questions were left out: Why was the crime committed? Why are there rampant human rights violations in the country? Why has nobody been prosecuted and punished for violating the human rights of the poor?
Mainstream media reported the crimes and other human rights abuses. But it failed to sufficiently explain the roots of the problem. The public was informed, but not educated about human rights issues.
The media satisfied the public urge to know the number of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances. The public was bombarded with gruesome visual and numerical details of human rights violations.
But the media citizens were not given adequate information on how to be part of the campaign to stop human rights violations in the country. The effect is disturbing: People are angry over the impunity killings but they are clueless on how to stop these crimes. Hence, they feel powerless.
Media critics in the United States are using the term “green fatigue” to describe the condition when “people are too overwhelmed by the command to be ‘green’ to do much about it anymore.”
Is there a “human rights fatigue” in the country brought about by too much dull human rights reporting? Since people are not told to do something about human rights abuses, they do nothing.
The media should learn something from the judiciary. Appalled by too many human rights abuses in the country, the Supreme Court promulgated the Writs of Amparo and Habeas Data. If the Supreme Court acted like the media, it could have been content in issuing an order calling for the quick resolution of human rights cases in the lower courts. But it did more than that. The Supreme Court recognized the need to implement bold measures to address the rising number of human rights violations in the country.
Unlike the Supreme Court, mainstream media preferred to confront the problem of human rights abuses by being traditional. Media could have done more. There was an opportunity to implement a media version of an amparo: Human rights education in the newsroom. A new internal writing guideline or media ethics on human rights reporting.
Maybe we are asking too much. We cannot ask media to solve all our problems. They are after all, mere messengers of truth. But can we at least agree that the protection of human rights requires extraordinary effort on the part of everybody, including the mighty media?
Related entries:
Impunity
In other words
Political words
Media vs government
Excess and lack
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Naku, ito naman si Badiou, pagsamahin ba naman ang philosophy at mathematics. Dumudugo ang ilong ko....
According to Australian author Oliver Feltham, politics in his country constitute a generic “truth procedure” – a process by which concepts are accepted as truths. He writes:
“In Australian governmental discourse the indigenous peoples are always said to be either excessive or lacking: excessive in their political demands, their drain on the public purse, their poverty; lacking in their recognition of the government’s ‘good intentions,’ in their community health standards, in their spirit of enterprise and individual responsibility.”
This analysis is also applicable to Philippine politics. The Philippine government attributes the same characteristics of excess and lack to poor Filipinos. The academe provides ideological support while the media popularizes this type of thinking.
It is common for politicians and mainstream commentators to complain about the excessive political demands of poor Filipinos. They are always asking for more human rights, democracy, rice, jobs, land, housing, cheaper medicines and free education. These popular demands are viewed as irrational since they deplete the resources of the state, which make public services more inefficient.
Aside from being “excessive,” the poor are accused of being ungrateful for the numerous assistance packages provided by the government. Philippine President Gloria Arroyo is upset because the poor are always forgetting the pro-poor programs of her administration. The poor are always questioning the noble intentions of the president.
Reactionary scholars insist the poor are to blame for their own poverty since they lack proper education, skills, English language proficiency, good manners, civic virtues, and a sense of entrepreneurship. The poor are not maximizing the opportunities that society provides to everybody.
A variation of this theme is: The poor are multiplying fast. They are extraordinarily fertile. They eat tons of rice. They send too many text messages. Workers buy too many cigarettes and beer. But at the same time, their worldview is parochial and they lack the spirit to succeed in life. (Read: they are stupid and lazy.)
Take for instance the reproach against farmers and overseas Filipinos. During the 1970s, Filipino farmers profited from high agricultural yields. But economists said the farmers didn’t use the money to invest in modern farming machines. Instead, the farmers bought TV sets, washing machines and other home appliances. Now farmers are poorer and the agricultural sector is declining fast.
Overseas Filipinos and their families are also criticized for their wasteful spending habits. They are buying too many consumer goods instead of investing for the future.
It is indeed peculiar that the poor are seen by the elite to be both excessive and lacking. However, the elite’s perception is contradictory, myopic and unfair. The truth is that the elite resents the ability of the poor to “indulge in pleasure” despite their excesses and lacks. The poor are accused of being perverts – they enjoy their excesses and lacks.
What is the implication of this prejudiced viewpoint? The poor are ridiculed as abnormal and incomplete individuals. They are treated as parasitic citizens. They are part of the community but excluded from enjoying genuine economic, social and political privileges. They can vote during elections but the unthinking, emotional, and uneconomic poor do not deserve good governance.
The analysis above can help explain the current cash subsidy program of the government. The insulting dole outs are given to the poor precisely because the elite government views its unfortunate people as both excessive and lacking.
The poor are looked down upon because of their wretched conditions. Token measures are enough to satisfy their minimum needs. After all, they may be numerous but they are unable to comprehend what constitutes effective leadership.
In the eyes of the state, the poor are not mature enough to handle more rights and privileges in a modern democracy. Therefore, pitiful cash subsidies will suffice.
The same thinking governs the policies of the state toward radical activists. The extreme left has excessive demands (agrarian reform, national industrialization, peace negotiations). But they lack sincerity and right attitude. Their ideology is outmoded. They are inherently violent. They cannot be trusted. Their goals cannot be assimilated to mainstream values. Therefore, they must be eliminated from the body politic.
Activists should not be allowed to corrupt the thinking of other Filipinos. And this is what we are witnessing today – the abhorrent slaying and kidnapping of activists and other critics of the state.
There is excessive exploitation in the Philippines but resistance seems to be lacking. Filipinos are angry but they seem to be helpless. The equation should be reversed. The poor should realize that oppression is excessive because they allowed it to happen.
French philosopher Alain Badiou writes that “a truth is solely constituted by rupturing with the order which supports it.” He adds that new perceptions come about through events that reorganize the previously known. The poor, in their very excess/lack, will decide whether it is already time to rupture with the order and create a new event.
Related entries:
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militant activists
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I got this poem from V. Leni of the Student Christian Movement of the Philippines. Salamat.
Brain Drain
The Passage is still open
With brain not brawn
The new currency
I Have witnessed
the best minds of our land
pillaged with impunity
Yet they were not taken in terror
The buccaneers of our age
- The Guggenheims, the Rockefellers
the beatific Fords - are subtler
The slaveships of the past
no longer dot our horizon
Today scholarships suffice
to bait the reluctant
And now contained and silenced
With Dollars and Letters of recognition
The once militant
(ensconced in high professorial chairs)
rationalize their position
with talk of blood-money and vengeance
The shrewd American mantis
allows these poor gifted fools
their illusion of screwing her
Accustomed as she is
to eating their brains
while they tickle her bottom
"Bones and Feathers", Cecil Rajendra, Kuala Lumpur, 1978
Sinulat para sa Tinig noong 2003....
Cigarette smoking is dangerous to your health. Drink moderately.
Ang isang pangkaraniwang tagapanood ng TV ay maaaring mabighani ng pantasyang mundong nais likhain sa patalastas ng sigarilyong Fortune o mapaniwala sa pagkakaibigang nabubuo sa pag-inom ng San Miguel Beer subalit sa dulo ng patalastas, at sana'y mapansin ito, ay mababatid niyang hindi ito iniendorso nang buong-buo ng pamahalaan dahil sa masamang idudulot nito sa katawan ng tao. Bagama't kapos sa sinseridad, kahit paano'y nagagabayan at napoprotektahan ang publiko sa pagpili ng mga produktong bibilhin sa palengke.
Makapangyarihan ang TV sa paghubog ng katotohanan. At kadalasa'y tinatanggap ng madla ang ipinapalabas nito bilang absolutong katotohanan nang walang kritikal na pagsusuri. Kung kaya't may naiiwan pa akong pagpapahalaga sa mga babala sa mga komersyal bilang minimum na proteksyon sa mga konsumer.
Ganoon na lamang ang laki ng aking pagkabahala sa paglabas ng mga komersyal ng mga eskuwelahan nitong mga nakaraang buwan. Halimbawa, robotics daw ang itinuturo sa isang computer school. Trabaho pagkagraduate ang pangako naman ng isang eskuwelahan. World-class kaliber daw ang mga graduate sa isang pamantasan. Magiging klasmeyt mo si Kristine Hermosa at Juday sa eskuwelahang iniendorso nila.
Hindi ito simpleng paglalahad ng serbisyong inaalok ng mga eskuwelahan; matindi ang panlolokong ginagawa sa kapakanan ng publiko na ikinukubli ng maaamong mukha ng artista, magarbo at tila sopistikadong teknik na ginamit sa patalastas, at ang mismong swabeng epektibidad ng TV sa pagdala ng mensahe sa nakakarami. Pero bago tayo magapalawig dito, kailangang ipaliwanag muna natin ang kahulugan ng pagdami ng komersyal ng mga eskuwelahan.
Una, ito ay tanda ng pagpasok at pagdomina ng malaking negosyo sa sektor ng edukasyon. Hinahalintulad ang edukasyon sa iba pang kalakal na kailangang i-package ng mabuti at ibenta sa publiko batay sa umiiral at persepsyong demand na trabaho. Kung parang kabuteng nagsulputan ang mga computer school noon, ngayon naman ay umuusbong kung saan-saan ang mga caregiver institution dahil ito ang may mataas na demand sa abroad. (Kahit si Amable Aguiluz ng AMA ay itinayo ang St. Augustine para sa paghubog ng mga caregiver).
Pangalawa, ito ay tanda ng desperasyon. Kung tutuusin, hindi problema noon ng mga eskuwelahan ang enrolment. Pangarap ng bawat Pilipino ang makatuntong sa kolehiyo at hindi na kailangang suyuin ang mga kabataan na mag-aral. Subalit dahil sa walang tigil na pagtaas ng matrikula taun-taon, bumulusok nang husto ang enrolment sa malalaking pribadong pamantasan. Idagdag pa ang pagkadismayang idinudulot sa mga kabataan sa nakikita nilang bata-batalyon ng mga nakatapos ng kolehiyo pero wala namang trabaho. Kaya ngayon, sa TV, dyaryo at naglalakihang billboard sa kalye, andyan ang anunsyo ng mga eskuwelahan at ang nilalako nilang tipo ng edukasyon.
Marami ang nabibiktima sa panloloko ng mga eskuwelahan. Enrolment pa lang ay nalulula na ang mga estudyante sa taas ng bayarin. Hinahanap-hanap ang pangakong abanteng pasilidad subalit hindi pala ito pwedeng gamitin ng lahat. Kahit ang kurikulum at eskuwelahan mismo ay hindi pa pala accredited ng CHED. Reklamo sa amin ng mga estudyante sa isang international business school na malaking kabalintunaan diumano ang world-class teaching na inaanunsyo sa TV dahil part time teachers lang ang kinukuha ng eskuwelahan na palaging absent, pagod at hindi marunong magturo. Ang ipinagyayabang na kagyat na trabaho pagkagraduate ay isa palang ilusyon na walang pinagkaiba sa mga komersyal ng axe deodorant.
Dumadaan ba sa screening ang komersyal ng mga eskuwelahan? Kung ang mga patalastas ng gamot ay aprubado muna ng Bureau of Food and Drugs, dapat ganun din sa mga eskuwelahan ng CHED. Libu-libong pera at kinabukasan ng isang kabataan ang nakasalalay sa inaanunsyo ng mga eskuwelahan, tama man o (kadalasan) mali. Dapat pag-isipan ng gobyerno kung paano pangangalagaan ang interes ng publiko. Kailangang ipagbawal – at dapat bigyan ng leksiyon ang mga eskuwelahang tahasang nagsisinungaling sa edukasyong kaya nitong ibigay.
Payag naman kaming ituloy ang pagsahimpapawid ng mga komersyal ng mga eskuwelahan basta't dapat ilagay sa dulo ang isa sa mga sumusunod na STUDENT WARNING: High tuition fees guaranteed, quality education not inclusive, at contractual employment after graduation assured.
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Private and public schools
Turn-off TV
Education and big business
Women and legislation
Links: An expensive item issued by Brunei's postal service, A Khmer-English online dictionary, How to get a driver's license in Thailand. GMA News: Gov't working hard to prop up human rights image
My wife gave me a copy of Jill's paper. Jill is a batchmate of mine. We were both members of the student council in 1998. More importantly, we were part of Stand-UP's university-wide secretariat.
The government boasts that the Philippines ranks high in the list of countries which are promoting gender equality. In another report the Philippines is expected to achieve significant gains in improving gender parity among school-age children. Last year a deputy speaker for women was appointed in the House of Representatives.
Should the local women's movement celebrate and announce the victory of feminist causes? The emphatic answer is no. Women continue to be marginalized in Philippine society. Feudal culture is still dominant. Women welfare is still not given top priority by the state.
True, the number of women in government is increasing every year. For instance there are 53 women legislators in the House of Representatives today. This is almost one-fourth of the total composition of the Lower House, the highest number in Philippine history. This figure is also outstanding by Asian standards.
But this does not mean that women are more empowered today. The paper of UP College of Law graduate Sandra Jill S. Santos, "Legislation for Women, by Women", clarifies that more women are entering Congress partly because of dynastic politics. Santos writes:
"An estimated 45 percent of the female legislators elected to the 12th Congress were replacements of relatives previously in the House. In the 14th Congress, 15 percent of the congresswomen are wives of congressmen who have just served their third and final terms."
Santos adds that as of 1998, only 130 women legislators have been elected in the century-long history of Philippine Congress. The figure stands for only about 10 percent of the total number of legislators elected. This figure is "statistically negligible." In fact, only 2 female presidents (as opposed to 12 male presidents) had been elected in the country. No female Chief Justice has ever been appointed in the judiciary.
We must ask the women legislators: Do they stand for genuine change? Are they prepared to defeat traditional politics? Will they promote the women agenda? Can they challenge the anti-poor and anti-women platform of their political parties?
Many women politicians are clueless to the troubles afflicting the women sector. What they represent, and ready to defend at all cost, is the oligarchic interest of their families. The best example is President Gloria Arroyo. She courted the women and the poor (Nora Aunor fans) during her reelection bid in 1995 despite advancing a neoliberal economic agenda in the Senate which hurt the women and the poor.
After reviewing the legislative performance of women legislators in the country, Santos noted the following:
"A scrutiny of the bills and laws framed by women in the post-war congress revealed that the congresswomen generally advocated for social amelioration and education rather than what are presently perceived as specific gender concerns. The women of the Post-People Power Congress are credited with promoting legislative agenda that gave more attention to specific women's issues."
After the fall of Marcos in 1986, women NGOs proliferated in the country. Foreign-funded advocacy groups succeeded in articulating women's specific concerns inside Congress. The specific women's issues refer to gender equality, reproductive health, women's rights violence against women (rape, sexual harassment and trafficking in women) and the protection of an increasing number of women in overseas contract work.
Here are some of the landmark laws for women: Women's Day Law; Women in Development and Nation-Building Act of 1995; Maternity Benefits Law; Women in Small Business Enterprises Act; Anti-Sexual Harassment Law; Overseas Workers' Rights Protection; Anti-Rape Law; the Child and Family Courts Act; the Rape Victim Assistance and Protection Act; the National AIDS Policy Act; the Solo Parents Welfare Act of 2000; the Anti-Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children Act of 2003; and the Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Law.
Despite the passage of these laws, women continue to be discriminated and abused in the country. Legislation of specific women's issues does not guarantee the upliftment of women. Perhaps it is also crucial to pinpoint the general political, social and economic reforms which should be implemented in order to promote the well-being of women. The tendency to highlight the specific women concerns can sometimes lead us a bit farther away from addressing the roots of women oppression in the country.
It is not wrong to advocate the establishment of women desks in public institutions. But this should not be celebrated as proof of the state's benevolence towards women. This campaign, along with other politically-correct micro advocacies, if not accompanied by a comprehensive platform for women and social emancipation, can produce a wrong impression that men in our patriarchal society are now starting to recognize women as equals.
This is not an endorsement of the legislative performance of post-war women legislators. This is also not an attempt to diminish the achievements made by post-EDSA Congress. This is only to reiterate what activist women groups are advocating: Women liberation is not isolated from the struggle of the people for genuine freedom and democracy.
In short, it is not enough to fight for women's reproductive and marital rights. Women are part of the broader fight to assert people's rights and welfare. It is best that women's groups should be active in shaping a new political landscape in the country.
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Batas Kasambahay
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Real and symbolic fences in a borderless world
Thanks Hannah of Bulatlat for writing about the Among Ed bloglaunch. Malaysia: Escalating fuel protests, a roundup for Global Voices. Support Bakit Sira? - a website dedicated to empower Filipino consumers.
According to an online dictionary, the word fence comes from Middle English "fens," short for "defens" which means defense. Perhaps the best example of a fence constructed for defense is the Great Wall of China which protected the northern borders of the Chinese empire.
Fences have cultural functions. Scholars believe the history of civilization is intertwined with the history of the fence. The rise of farming, protection of settlements and private property coincided with the construction of fences.
But the fence is more a manifestation of people’s paranoia. It shows their inability to live peacefully with their neighbors. It also symbolizes the failure of societies to equally distribute the goods of the economy to everyone, especially the poor. Since inequality breeds hatred, the privileged few must be protected (fenced) from the hungry barbarians at the gates.
In the Philippines the most famous historical fence is the Walled City of Intramuros. The fortification was intended to ward off pirates, foreign troops and local dissidents during the Spanish colonial period. The walls were meant to preserve Spanish hegemony in the islands. Inside the walled city, the Spanish colonizers built church cathedrals, convents, universities, and mansion houses.
Like the Spanish colonial rulers, Philippine politicians are also afraid that angry Filipinos will revolt against the established government. This is the reason why Malacanang Palace continues to be heavily fortified. Malacanang is the country’s seat of power yet it is inaccessible to ordinary Filipinos. The last time the palace doors were opened to the poor was more than 50 years ago, during the term of President Ramon Magsaysay.
President Gloria Arroyo, the present occupant of Malacanang, ordered the construction of an electric fence to prevent people from crashing the gates of the palace. During protest rallies, Malacanang is surrounded by container vans so that no one can get near the beleaguered president. The president is afraid of her own people.
The practice of building an exclusive elite community during the Spanish era was continued by succeeding generations in the Philippines. Scholar Benedict Anderson has this observation on the unique urban planning in the country:
“Forbes Park was the first, and still the most celebrated, of these beaux quartiers, which remain sociologically unique in Southeast Asia. Elsewhere in the region luxurious houses are jumbled together with the dwellings of the poor. But the golden ghetto of Forbes Park was policed, as a complex, by armed security guards; access even to its streets required the production of identification papers.”
Indeed, affluent villages in the Philippines are protected by strong and high walls. The poor are denied access to these exclusive subdivisions. Fences were adjusted higher to prevent passengers, pedestrians and motorists using the flyovers, footbridges and the elevated railway from having a glimpse of the mansions in prosperous Makati City. The rich must have their privacy. On the other side of the fence, urban poor homes are demolished to give way for road widening and more parking spaces.
In the economic sphere, the fence is the trade barrier implemented by protectionist or closed economies. Market fundamentalists and free trade adherents want these barriers dismantled. Poor countries like the Philippines are bullied to decrease or remove tariff rates so that rich countries can dump their cheap products. They say the world has become a global village where borderless (fenceless) economies and multinational companies are bringing wondrous benefits to the poor.
The paradox of this doctrine is that developed countries acquired their wealth by building economic fences in the past. These countries supported their local manufacturers by discouraging foreign competition. Now they are lecturing poor countries about the advantages of practicing free trade.
In fact, rich countries are guilty of establishing new trade barriers. They do not want to completely open their economies to free trade. They provide hefty subsidies to their farmers. They impose stringent regulation on imported goods. For example, Filipino tuna producers and banana growers are complaining that rich countries are imposing unreasonable standards which restrict trade. Rich nations are rejecting Filipino products while the Philippine government welcomes their exports.
The Philippines should abandon the economic prescription of the neoliberals. What the country needs are strong fences in order to become a first-world nation. The fences will curb smuggling, which robs honest local traders of their income. The fences will boost the productivity of domestic industries, especially the agricultural sector.
Globalization continues to revolutionize travel and communication. But the movement of people is still unreasonably controlled. Rich countries are establishing fences to push the immigrants away. Border patrols are expanded to guard national territories.
Lobbyists, credit analysts and investment consultants are given access in developing countries to study the situation of poor communities. But the migrant workers in rich countries are subjected to bureaucratic, sometimes unjust, immigration procedures. Capital is free to circulate but the working classes are not allowed to swiftly move in and out of countries.
The truth of globalization is that societies are becoming more and more paranoid. Cases of racism and violence in “tolerant societies” are up. New forms of inequality are developing. Symbolic and literal walls separate immigrant groups, ethnic communities and marginalized communities from those enjoying economic prosperity. Philosopher Slavoj Zizek describes this new form of racism as economic egotism.
Technology has given individuals the chance to fantasize about escaping from the harsh realities of an alienating world. Music players, Internet and video games serve as imaginary walls which prevent people from fully participating in the making of a more liberating society.
Perhaps the most disagreeable persons are the fence sitters. Those who are aware of the real harm brought by divisive and oppressive fences, yet still choose to be on the sidelines, should be condemned for their inaction. To paraphrase Machiavelli, we should not fear the dictator, but the apathy of the people.
Real and symbolic fences are proof that people are still living in an unequal, divided and intolerant world. It is not enough to smash the walls that exclude the impoverished from the rest of society. Some protective economic fences are essential, especially for small and developing countries. The more radical act is to change the iniquitous social conditions of the present.
Related entries:
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Bakit may suicide sa mga billboard
National roads
Urban facelift
*******************
Inspiration for the article....
Batchmates, remember the "fencing" program of ex-UP Pres. Emil Javier? Millions were spent to "fence" the property of UP. Ex-student regent Dennis Longid exposed this unnecessary expense a decade ago. The UP fence along Commonwealth Ave was recently destroyed to give way for the MMDA road widening.
During the mid-1990s, a controversy erupted in the UP campus over the decision of the UP Catholic Chapel to erect a fence around its property. The fence violated (destroyed) the "open" culture of UP. A few years later, the UP protestant chapel also built a fence.
A fence was recently constructed in front of the QC Hall.
People’s Protocol on Climate Change
Thanks Erwin of Inquirer for writing about the Among Ed bloglaunch.
Go green? Go red! Save the environment by defeating imperialism. Do not just mitigate. Do not just adapt. Revolt!
Despite skepticism in certain quarters about the scientific basis of the global warming phenomenon, the issue has mobilized many institutions and individuals to address the deteriorating condition of the global ecosystem. Landmark initiatives were launched to combat global warming. In 1992 the Framework Convention on Climate Change was drafted. Then the succeeding Kyoto Protocol was signed to reduce global carbon emissions.
These efforts have failed to reverse global warming, however. Environmentalists are accusing rich countries like the United States of deliberately ignoring the Kyoto Protocol. But it is also reasonable to criticize the inadequate content and wrong framework of the climate change agreements.
Activist groups are pinpointing the failure of the Kyoto Protocol to include the concerns of the marginalized sectors in the world. They describe the Kyoto Protocol as a “false compromise” since it has not acknowledged the real roots of climate change – neoliberal globalization and the “mad pursuit” of transnational companies for profits.
Thus, the People’s Protocol on Climate Change was initiated. This is a global campaign that aims to provide a venue for grassroots participation in the process of drawing up a post-2012 climate change framework.
The proposal was conceived in Bangkok, Thailand, in October 2007. More than 170 participants in an environmental conference supported a resolution to launch a People’s Protocol on Climate Change. During the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Bali, Indonesia, alternative workshops were held in East Java to gather more feedback about the proposed climate change agreement.
National and regional assemblies are to be held this year to reflect the demands and sentiments of the people on climate change. The People’s Protocol on Climate Change will be a key instrument for grassroots groups to pressure their governments at the global climate change negotiating table.
This document views the crisis as a social justice issue, and not merely an environmental problem. Global warming is rooted in the overexploitation of resources by northern nations and transnational companies. Or, as explained further in the preamble, “On one hand a privileged global elite engages in reckless profit-driven production and grossly excessive consumption. On the other hand, the mass of humanity is mired in underdevelopment and poverty with merely survival and subsistence consumption, or even less. The powerful industrialized nations of today were built on the severe exploitation of the human and natural resources of the global South. The pursuit of growth and profit is at the core of exploitation, structural poverty and global warming.”
The document notes the inherent conflict between the pronouncements of rich countries that they will curb harmful greenhouse emissions and the free trade agreements they are clinching with poor nations. This analysis is important since China, India and other emerging economies are often criticized today for their rising carbon emissions.
As correctly pointed out by the People’s Protocol, “We must acknowledge the role that Northern consumption plays in driving rapidly increasing Southern emissions. We recognize that a very significant part of supposedly Southern emissions actually result from the energy-intensive operations of Northern transnational companies located in the South for the purposes of exploiting local labor and natural resources.”
The People’s Protocol on Climate Change rejects market-led development as the solution to the global poverty crisis or climate change. It emphasizes the limitations of technological fixes in addressing the climate crisis if current levels of growth and consumption are maintained.
The alternative agreement proposes a paradigm shift away from market-based development models “which perpetuate the exploitation of people and the planet” toward people’s sovereignty over natural resources. The basic principle is to put the needs of the people and the planet above those of global capital.
The People’s Protocol on Climate Change recognizes that many communities around the world are dependent for their survival on their access to and use of natural resources. It is then vital that the specific needs of farming communities, indigenous peoples, coastal communities, and other rural producers should be given special attention in all adaptation efforts. In short, the marginalized peoples, rather than the big foreign companies, must have real access and control over the natural resources. This is the essence of the concept “people's sovereignty over natural resources.”
The protocol wants rich countries to contribute more to the global mitigation fund. Transnational companies should increase “unconditional financial compensation to directly address the climate crisis in the South.”
Restorative justice is introduced, which requires “distribution of responsibility according to historical per capita emissions, not just on a by-country basis, but more significantly on a by-polluter basis.” Transnational companies, whether they are located in the North or South, must be compelled to pay for the damages they cause to the environment.
At a minimum, there should be an overhaul of international trade and investment rules to promote sustainable development. Production should be based on the actual needs of the people to reduce waste and over-consumption. This will then curb carbon emissions. Polluting industries should also not be transferred from the North to the South.
People’s lifestyles must change. Old habits and views that hurt the environment must be modified. Governments must act quickly by enjoining the support of their constituents, especially the marginalized sectors.
But we must not forget to grasp the bigger, harder and more important challenge: “Climate change crisis is not simply about adaptation and mitigation, but changing the whole economic framework into one of eco-sufficiency and sustainability.”
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Poverty and system losses
In the past the rural poor migrated to the cities, especially in Metro Manila, to look for employment and livelihood opportunities. When there were no more enough jobs for the army of unemployed youth, the government started exporting Filipinos to other countries.
Three decades of exporting labor has not made the Philippines a rich nation. But the monthly remittances of Overseas Filipino Workers, along with incessant foreign borrowing, prevented the total collapse of the local economy. The malling phenomenon is financed by OFW money. Real estate is booming because of OFW investments. More importantly, poor families are able to survive the perpetual economic crisis through the “manna” sent by their OFW relatives.
But migration today is no longer a financially rewarding option for the poor. Foreign companies are requiring college diplomas. Skilled workers are preferred. Professionals are now leaving the country in droves. The unskilled, uneducated, and unrefined poor have less chances of working abroad.
The desperate poor who failed to get a passport, visa and foreign employment contract are now roaming the streets of Metro Manila. Most of them have joined the informal economy. They can be seen on sidewalks, MRT stations, footbridges, narrow alleys, and churchyards. They are regularly harassed by power tripping MMDA personnel and kotong cops.
There is a new option which can bring instant cash to the poor. They can now sell their body organs for a large sum of money. The real message of unregulated medical tourism is this: “Filipino kidneys are for sale.” In the past Filipinos are selling their labor power. Now kidneys and other body organs can be bought as well. If the soul can be traded, will Filipinos sell their souls to the devil?
Smokey Mountain, the garbage dump in Tondo, was the face of poverty in the Philippines during the Marcos era. Succeeding governments were able to transform Smokey Mountain into a residential-commercial district. (“The old apparatus survived by casting off its symbolic clothing” – Slavoj Zizek). Smokey Mountain was replaced by Payatas. And now the Quezon City government wants to develop Payatas too.
Public symbols of poverty must be removed. Poverty must be hidden. Suffering has to be endured privately. What is the indelible proof of poverty today? They can be found on the bodies of the poor. The scar of poverty is the literal wound on the bodies of organ donors. The Holocaust survivors have scars on their arms; the Filipino poor have stitches on their bodies.
Poverty has to be “privatized” but poverty’s impact is public. Hunger is visible in the streets. Children are malnourished. Rice is rationed among the poor and schoolchildren.
Gruesome crime robberies have shocked the nation. Desperate individuals are subverting the rule of law to earn money. But the elite is also guilty of stealing money from the poor and public treasury. They also subvert the rule of law yet they are able to legitimize their crimes. They commit senseless killings of activists and journalists to silence critics. Are the horrid bank robberies the answer of the poor to the horrid scandals committed by the elite? Are we already witnessing the public display of outrage by the poor?
The social volcano will erupt soon. Remember the man who threw a stone at Arroyo’s poster in Mindanao? Frustrated that he failed to get a bag of rice from the National Food Authority, the man turned his rage towards Arroyo’s poster – the president’s symbol of impotence to deliver food to the poor. This is a disquieting sign of the times. They say “a hungry man is an angry man.” Can the government handle the anger of 80 million Filipinos?
The poor – jobless, homeless, hungry and living with only one kidney – are reprimanded by authorities for wasteful consumption of rice. The hungry poor are told to eat and consume less to save the environment. Let them eat biofuels, lifeline subsidy and half-price texting!
The poor are blamed for their own poverty. They should increase their productivity, they should learn new skills, they should think global and act local. Sipag at tiyaga ang kailangan. Therefore if you remain poor, it means you are either lazy, stupid or lacking in fortitude.
Blame the lifestyles of the poor and forget their social circumstances? Don’t be surprised if these greedy, indolent and lavish poor will soon join the ranks of revolutionary fighters in the countryside.
The buzzword today is systems loss. According to a Sun Star report, systems loss refers "to the portion of electricity which is pilfered or is lost during transmission." Usually, urban poor residents are accused of increasing the systems loss of utility firms because of their illegal power and cable connections. We should make a new meaning of systems loss. Instead of denial, the poor will admit that yes, we are responsible for systems losses. Charge us, jail us, punish us, if you dare. But we warn you. It is us, the fighting poor, the rebellious poor, who will bring irreversible losses to this wicked social system.
Related entries:
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Recto-Doroteo Jose
Urban facelift
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Kapampangan-ness
“May the Sun cut my body in halves, and may disgrace befall me before the eyes of my wives that they might abhor me if at any time I had been friends to the Spaniards." – Tarik Soliman, Pampanga warrior and freedom fighter
Southeast Asia: Series of unfortunate disasters, my roundup for Global Voices. Thanks Mau of Pinoy Weekly for writing about the Jun Lozada blog launch. I recently joined Plurk.
Among Ed is now blogging. Thank you PJ for endorsing Bloggers Kapihan to your friends in Pampanga.
Yesterday 20 Manila-based bloggers and about 30 youth leaders from Pampanga participated in launching the blog of Pampanga Governor Among Ed Panlilio. After the event at the provincial capitol, the group proceeded to the Juan D. Nepomuceno Center for Kapampangan Studies located at the Holy Angel University. Then we visited a quarrying site in Porac, Pampanga.
What are some of the interesting things I learned from the trip to Pampanga?
1. There is a rumor that an election recall will take place in Pampanga. Among Ed is in danger of losing his post. Only the city of San Fernando is supporting the embattled leader. Remember the infamous incident when the mayor of Candaba returned the funding assistance given by Governor Panlilio? Even the recent SK elections were used by Among Ed’s rivals to consolidate their hegemony in the province.
2. Among Ed talked about the need to develop a “critical mass” in order to promote good governance in the country. He mentioned about his regular communication with Isabela Governor Grace Padaca and Naga Mayor Jesse Robredo. This revelation is worthy of note. Are they also discussing the 2010 polls?
3. The number of Filipinos speaking the Kapampangan language is declining. There are fewer students who can understand and read Kapampangan. The reactionary elite’s response: Eh ano, basta marunong magsalita ng wikang Ingles, di ba?
4. Pampanga was the first province created by the Spaniards. In the past Pampanga’s territory included parts of Tarlac, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija and Nueva Vizcaya. This explains why there are barangays in these provinces where Kapampangan language is dominant.
5. Pampanga was the favorite province of the Spanish colonizers. Every time the colonial regime is under attack, the loyal Kapampangans will defend their Spanish masters. Remember the Macabebes?
6. Bacolor was once described as the Athens and Pompei of the Philippines. Residents of Bacolor were among the richest, artistic and sophisticated in Spanish Philippines. The town has produced pioneering professionals and high-ranking public servants. Bacolor was once named as the capital of the Philippines.
7. Pampanga’s freedom fighters include, among others, Kumander Bilog, Dante Buscayno, Luis Taruc, Felixberto Olalia and Satur Ocampo.
8. Tarlac was once named Nueva Cuenca. FPJ is a Kapampangan. There is a Poracay resort in Porac, Pampanga.
9. Agriculture and quarrying are the top sources of income of Pampanga. Pang-ilan kaya ang jueteng at smuggling? Porac hosts the biggest quarrying site in Pampanga. Everyday more one thousand trucks are entering and leaving the quarry site in Porac alone.
10. Before the term of Among Ed, a barangay in Porac was receiving five thousand pesos a month as its share from the quarrying fees. Now it is receiving a million pesos a month. Porac and Pampanga should draft a masterplan on how to efficiently use the quarrying income to develop the province and improve the lives of the people. The lahar deposit will not last forever.
11. Pinatubo erupted in 1991. But the lahar flow hit several parts of Porac only in 1994. Villages and farming communities were destroyed. Residents have started returning to their villages. My anthropology teacher is correct; the Kapampangans are very resilient.
By the way, I am a Kapampangan. My lola was born in Capas, Tarlac. We are part of the Mendoza clan. I think my family is originally from Concepcion, Tarlac. My father speaks fluent Kapampangan. My favorite kapampangan food: buro.
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Burger, fries and Among Ed
Election questions
Southern Mindanao
