Adjustments

Returning

For some reasons I had to make some readjustments in regards to my travel planning. I had, unfortunately, to cut off a month of traveling and set the date of my return to November 10^th. However, I was able to include instead, somehow as a final firework to my round trip and a treat to myself, 3 days in Hong Kong!  That means I will leave Manila on November 1^st, stay a week in Kota Kinabalu for a vacation at the beach, travel afterwards to Hong Kong and will then return finally and after all to my beloved hometown of Berlin.

Even though I am somewhat sad that I slowly have to make arrangements for my return I can also not wait to see my friends again and sleep in my own bed. I always thought that by traveling the world you lose a little bit the tights to what you call home- but now, after experiencing travelling for quite a while I would argue they are not getting lost, they are changing, adjusting and getting modified. I cannot tell if I have become more mature, wise, smarter or better looking… (well – I am always good looking)…but I can tell that I have learned to cherish even more the precious moments with my friends, not only in Berlin, but also in all the other cities around the globe.  - Anyways -for me, now, I must admit I am just really looking forward to get engaged again in my everyday life in my neighborhood in Berlin; as a friend just recently told me: “Having everyday paradise around you can become really intense.”

Upcoming Week

 

However- I am sure that until then a few more challenges and adventures are waiting for me! On my list for next week only: join two days of meetings with a delegation of the World Bank, collecting the first empirical data for my thesis, both quantitative and qualitative and learning how to surf.

–Could be worse I guess…

 

More Than 1.000 Visitors!

YAY!!!

Thank you all!!! As of today more than 1.000 visitors went on my Blog!!!

That means a lot to me and I really appreciate your curiosity and interest in my stories about the people I have met so far, the challenges I have had to encounter and the stories I would so often like to share with you in person and not via the internet.  

I miss all of you.

The demolition of the community of Guatemala Street, Makati, Metro Manila

When mediation fails and the interest in money wins

My intention with this entry is to support the struggle of that particular community and all the other countless communities threatened by forced evictions and demolitions. The demolition and forced eviction happened yesterday is what happens when investors do not care for peoples lives, politicians do not care for their humanitarian mandate and residents are not properly informed about their Human Rights... 

Two of my coworkers and I went to the site as part of Urban Poor Associate’s (UPA) work to monitor forced evictions as well as the crisis intervention program. Reason for the forced eviction and demolition of the community, consisting out of 300 families (even tho some of the corrupt press argues only 50 families) is exclusive gentrification, affecting heavily the city of Makati. In that particular neighborhood urban planners consider to construct a sports arena for 100.000.000 Pesos (a bit more than 1.5 Mio Euro).

The scenery I witnessed was completely new for me and many of the pictures I’ve seen I still try to emotionally figure.

When we entered the neighborhood we already ran into families, which, according to the threat of the local government, voluntarily self-demolished their homes, -some of those urban poor people living there already for more than 20 years!

the future of the "returner"

By doing so the government promises people could choose between a) becoming relocated, b) getting non-recurring financial aid (20.000P, which is about 330 Euro) or c) moving back into the rural areas. Those refusing to demolish their constructions would get forcedly evicted and end up with nothing. However, those families we ran into, which followed the illegal instructions from the government- ended up with nothing anyways- only themselves and their wives, husbands, sisters and brothers, boys, girls and babies with the few things they call possessions, forced to live in the gutters of Metro Manila since the relocation site is not ready yet and according to people who moved there and returned is “a giant cemetery for the living dead”!

With bulldozers against Human Rights

graffiti supporting the struggle

We walked around the corner into the street where the houses and the community used to be and what I saw reminded me on a civil war: heavy equipment and teargas from the police forces on the one side, barricades, stones and Molotovs from the informal settlers, mostly man, on the other side who tried to protect what they call home and which is their livelihood and community, -which is all they have! As a matter of fact some residents did just not do anything- they followed their daily routine, cooked food or talked to the neighbors. Perhaps they didn’t realize what will happen, or they just couldn’t believe what was about to happen. So the wife of the Peoples Organizations president, whom was already hiding because of fear getting beaten up by the governmental forces, asked one of my coworkers: “What should I do now? Should I stay or should I pack?” Well, she answered bitter: “You should slowly start to pack, there is only one way how the day will end for you and your community.”

From “Community Organizing in the Danger Zones of Pasay City and Metro Manila”:

In all cases of evictions, extreme cases of violence always erupted. Gunshots fired by un-uniformed policemen, teargas fired on people trying to block the demolition crew, people being clubbed with baton and truncheons by policemen and demolition crew, and the women, the elderly and children getting hurt in the scuffles.

After all the smoke cleared, people were practically left homeless on the streets. From the experiences of the accounted demolition cases, people stayed on the streets from one-week to two months as they were still looking for money to rent-out places, asking relatives or friends for a temporary stay, or in some few exceptional cases, were waiting to be transferred to some very far relocation sites that were promised by the government. 

Why the situation escalated, the people lost all they have and violence erupted might be depending on the perspective: greedy investors, corrupt politicians, weak community organizations, conflicts between NGOs involved or “false” mediation. What is clear: at the end of the day the struggle of the people was lost, and the powerful governmental authorities will have defeated the urban poor, causing suffer and another step down into further poverty…

not knowing yet that she will have to sleep in the gutters of Makati tonight

Assisting giving birth and some other things

What a weekend!!!

Starting with the most dramatic and most emotional part:

Assisting giving birth to a baby on a Bangka

It was very hot on the Bangka (an outrigger canoe) today on the way back from White Beach to Batangas. And as seemingly always in the Philippines, the boat was packed. All of the sudden I heard a scream and a few rows in front of me some kind of hectic came up. When I approached the scene I saw a women, pregnant, laying on her back, another white lady starting taking care of her. I introduced myself as a nurse and the other women, Amelie her name, as a physician from France. However, the pregnant women's waters broke already...but still at least 15 min to the harbour. The first idea to try to postpone the birth didn't work since her contradictions where already soo intense and the baby all ready to go. But we haven't had anything, no scissor, no clamps, not much of expeirence...nothing...

The obstetricians team: Bea, me and Amelie

-On the other side trying to suppress the contradiction appeared to be very risky for the baby. Bea joined us in the obstetricians team and translated . We organized towels to cover the sight, scissors, desinfection...it was amazing: everyone was exited and anxious, I called for what we needed and somehow everyone on the Bangka supported and helped us getting the materials together. It was hot, you could feel the tension on the boat and the question: what happens if there is a complication?! It was soooo intense!!!!

But in the end the mother had a final contradiction and there it was: a little baby-girl!!!!!!!

We took care of the baby, and after a few seconds it started to breath itself! Since we haven't had anything else I had to ligature the umbilical curt with hair ties and we cut it.

All went well. And people applauded. It was as if the entire boat was a huge family for that moment. I have never experienced something like that before: whether assisting giving birth in such a setting nor that more than 100 people are all concerned about the lives of two people. It was like in a movie- but reality!

Some friends of mine know how I usually talk about the process of giving birth, but this time, holding the little baby in my arms, making sure that it breathes, checking if the eyes are OK and so on- honestly, I feel just so great!!! I was always scared that I could get into such a situation, but we: Amelie, Bea, the other passengers on board and me- we where just a great team!

When in the end we reached the peer and the paramedics took care of the baby and the mother we finally left the boat. The passengers however, waited for us to leave and as soon as they saw us they jelled, applauded again, soo many people shook my hands, said Thank You, congratulated and everyone wanted to have pictures with the "heroes" (a term they called us- which of course i like a lot!!!!)

Only afterwards I've noticed that Bea and I had blood and other body fluids all over us. I will never forget that unique and once in a lifetime experience. Thank you to everyone on that Bangka today- we helped a little baby seeing the sun for the first time!

White Beach

 
The reason for me being on that Bangka was the fact that I urgently needed a time out from the hectic and chaotic place called Manila. And why not starting the preparations for the Master Thesis in a white sand, turquoise water paradise beach?

The place White Beach is close to Puerto Galera, which is on the island of Mindoro and only 3 hours away from Manila. It is a cute little place with jungle in the back, huge palm trees, some monkeys playing around and water so warm and clear that you don't want to get out of it at all.

At night you can take a swim under the moon while fire dancers at the beach perform with torches or Trannies perform lip singing shows for their audiences.

Next to all kinds of food you can also try national delicacies:  For example "Balut" which

"is a fertilized duck embryo that is boiled and eaten in the shell. Popularly believed to be an aphrodisiac and considered a high-protein, hearty snack, balut are mostly sold by street vendors. It is commonly sold as streetfood in the Philippines." 

You must imagine a huge egg with a little bird inside. You can identify the anatomic structures and sometimes it even has already feathers and beak. Thank you Bea and Jaime  for sharing that experience with me :)

Next to those cultural highlights i should also point out that in that village of course also prostitution takes pace. You see older white guys with Filipinas, or Filipinos walking at the beach- just like people would stereotype it. Since many people are poor and heavily rely on tourism no one is concerned about that business. For me, not morally questioning prostitution it was just kind of interesting to really see basically the Asian sex tourism many people in Europe talk about.

Summing up- that weekend was so much more I could have asked for and again, I am just thankful for each single experience, taste, smell or sunburn! For now and the upcoming week- I will focus again on my intern and the urban poor.

The slum of Ulingan

The community of Ulingan is what others would describe as hell on earth; god’s forgotten children or just a place indescribable in words.

 

The community of informal settlers, exiting out of 1.500 families (not individuals!) is positioned closed to the north harbor, right next to a canal. The houses, mostly consisting only of a few planks tacked together.  How they get from one place to the other when the water comes is unclear to me…

I saw naked kids playing in the dirt, man trying to fix their houses and women cooking.

Some of the families provide their livelihoods by theproduction  of coal- of course without proper clothing, mask or even gloves. They “cook” the wood barfeeded and with raw hands. They also collect the coal like that once the process is over. Afterwards the kids will come and collect nails and other metal things with little magnets in order to make a little additional money. 

Not only because of the rain and the frequently over spilling canal does the ground consist of mud- it is garbage juice! Everywhere! The entire place is covered in it. People live in it, children playing barfeeded in it, something I could not bear to see. Sometimes knee-deep, mixed with trash, and wastewater…I don’t know how to describe those picture except with horror!  

The smell of rotten trash, feces and smoke from the production of coal is everywhere and penetrates your clothing and your nose. Within a few minutes you have the smell sticking on you- even after showering! 

However, the people in the community are chitchatting, friendly, even making jokes and laughing. It seems that even in those conditions they see a purpose and a reason to get up in the morning, go to school and not drink yourself to death. 

I must admit being at that place has immediately changed a few of my perspectives. Although I was aware about poverty and already used to work with the urban poor in San Francisco, I just had no idea!!!! That experience has opened my eyes. I feel emotionally dumb, somehow I reached the limit I can take and went beyond and just can’t understand anymore…The biggest question in my mind is how  can it be that here in Manila shopping malls are getting constructed in the size bigger than the Olympic stadium in Berlin while  people desperately fight for the right of appropriate housing in those shantytowns and communities of informal settlers. Of course, I do not want to blame the people of Manila, since I was in Guatemala I know that greedy assholes rule the world and do not care for the suffer, inequality and injustice. And I have seen in Guatemala what rural poor mean- but the urban poor, poverty concentrated on such a little spot in such a density- that is hard to digest. 

Approximately 500.000 families of informal settlers live in Metro Manila. By counting five people per family (which is considered a small family) we are talking about 2.500.000 informal settlers living in conditions they have never asked for but have to do so, so that the rich can live on the expenses of the poor!  Think about that when you go for shopping the next time…

First Week Anniversary

As of today I am in Manila for an entire week. Strange how  the perception of time changes with the places and the experiences you make.

Just a week ago I left cozy cool San Francisco and entered hot mess Manila. Thinking I could handle the culture shock because I just went through one in Guatemala and a reverse culture shock in the US was TOTALLY wrong!!! But only slowly I start to realize the pressure and stress I have been through in the first week here in the capitol: The noise, the bad air, millions of people, shiny commercials and the humidity requested their tribute…

However, the incredible hospitality, friendliness and supportive culture of the Pilipino people made it possible for me to get settled really easily. Although I have never met one of the people here before they supported me with an Apartment, Cell Phone, Internet, Movies, even Pasta and Beer as well as hot and hung GoGos…More than I could have ever asked for! My dear friends in Manila and elsewhere: Thank You All for all you support! 

Surviving Kit

Some things I have learned pretty fast (and which were not explained in Lonely Planet) are the five equipments important in order to survive in Manila:

• First of all: PATIENCE!!! Not only because of Island Time but also because of the millions of people, traffic jam and the humidity -being impatience will only get you closer to a heart attack
• Secondly a towel, since even when you walk slowly: you will sweat! Sometimes so much that you have to escape into an air-conditioned mall even if you don’t need to buy anything.
• Thirdly, and connected with the sweat is water! I have experienced already major headaches since you are so easily dehydrating.
• The fourth item is an umbrella- when it’s raining and if you have bad luck  you will be much likely soaked within a few minutes. Thankfully you can usually buy those at the train stations for 50 PHP (less than one Euro), but the quality is consequently bad.
• Last but not least is it always helpful to wear flip flops, when it’s raining heavily and the streets are flooded that is your only hope!

Something which marks the city by heart are the millions of people living, working, commuting and celebrating here. It is impossible to walk the streets and not see people. It is also impossible to ride the MRT in the direction of Makati in the morning not waiting for at least three trains only to be finally automatically being pushed in when in the front of the line for the fourth train. Honestly I barely have had such an intensive body-contact, even not when making out! When you want to enter a supermarket or a mall or any other public building you should always calculate on a line since there are hundreds of other people who want to enter (which brings me back to my survival guide); and for some strange reason if you do enter public places you usually get screened. Screening here means that two or more security guards act as if they would take a look into your bag or purse. But since there are masses of people they will just wave you though, regardless if  or if nor you are a threat…

The Otherness

I can remember I wrote something about the “Otherness” already when I was in Guatemala. And here again I do experience it every time I leave the house or stay at home, watch TV or eavesdrop in a train, chitchat with my coworkers or try to hook up via online dating. It is this constant feeling not to belong, but also the constant feeling causing also a reaction of peculiarity on the other person. Just only by having blue eyes and blond hair I am somewhat obvious in any giving situation here- in the beginning I was afraid people would stare at me, but that usually only happens with little children which never seen blue eyes or an eyebrow piercing before…It is just awkward when there is no place in public for me to hide, being a visible minority… “Otherness” means, next to other things, not being capable of being one of the others, being THE other! But not only the visible features are describing Otherness, habits, customs, language, food -even how to eat food (why on earth Do you guys in the Philippines not using knifes for food!!!) are different for me and sometimes a challenge every day. Feelings which come with the otherness are extreme: excitement and curiosity, fear and anxiety, happiness and loneliness and for me difficult to handle. In line with those emotions is always my fear of making mistakes, not being culturally sensitive enough or just acting for the local stupid and weird. However, since there is a pool in my building I started to work things out by swimming my rounds in the mornings and afternoons.

I believe I will get more used to the “Otherness” as soon as I have established a somewhat everyday life…

Shantytowns and my Thesis

This week I also started officially with my intern. As some of you remember that internship was starting point for the entire consideration of the trip I am doing meaning I am thankful that finally after almost three months I reached my destination.  I have just started to understand the work, the ethics and the approaches the Urban Poor Associates (UPA) use in order to serve their clients, the urban poor, but already after the few days I am convinced and assured that this internship will become an unique experience, that I will learn a lot and my time with the organization and the people involved will be a landmark in my life. While I had the chance to understand concepts of the rural poor in the highlands of Guatemala, I have now the chance to understand concepts of the urban poor better. I have never thought my life would turn into that direction- but I am excited and eager to get started with my thesis.

Today I went for the first time in my life into a shantytown. Actually in one of the communities in the Delpan, to be more precise into one of the affected communities of the local upgrade at North Harbor. Those people, together more than 700 families, are supposed to get resettled in order to make space for bigger ports and more money. 

Some of the people in those communities are living there for more than 30 years now, their entire livelihood gets destroyed and the resettlement sites are questionable, as my experience from last Friday shows (see other entry). Do they decide, for what reason ever, to move back to the city they become “professional squatters” and not only losing their rights for further social assistance for the next 10 years but also can get imprisoned or fined.  The situation is really complicated but somehow I have the feeling to be at the rights spot at the right time and hope I can support the cause of UPA. How exactly I will figure in the next few days…

In advance I was quite nervous going into a shantytown. That might sound naïve, but honestly- have you ever considered yourself in a place like that? And what place do you have in mind when talking about shantytowns. I am pretty sure if we would talk in a group of 10 about it we would get 12 different opinions. However, I made it today and must admit it was totally different as expected. Having lunch with one of the families proved to me that solidarity and hospitality are features not relying on wealth or money. Actually the opposite: as less you have the more you share. However, I only saw a few communities today which means it would not qualify myself for a proper opinion, however, over the next few weeks I will hopefully be able to get more connected and to understand those concepts and motives better. For tomorrow a site visit in the community of Ulingan, also in the district of Delpan is planned. For that reason I need to buy proper rain boots since the mud people live on is caused by garbage juice…  

Recreation

As already mentioned, Manila and the Philippines in general are places of extremes, after seeing the urban poor for the weekend I am planning on an recreation visit at Puerto Galera- a place only a few hours away from Manila by bus and boat. For me the perfect place for reflection and further planning.

Emergency Relief

The relocation site of Santa Rosa, Laguna

When we approached the site yesterday afternoon I was not sure what to expect: what would be the living conditions on that site, how many people do live there, what are the circumstances after the floods and so on. -Thankfully I was together with some of my new co-workers from UPA which made it more easy for me to get adjusted...

The site consist out of several communities, some are smaller, some are bigger, but all came from a background of forced evictions since they used to live in cheap shanties along the railways between Manila and Santa Rosa, coming from five different cities in Metro Manila. All together we are talking about 7.000 families- that means approx. 25.000 people! All of them got relocated in the year 2008, most in groups of several hundred people. The government paid for the buses, the few things they considered as furniture where transported by buses. None of them wanted to get moved, and none of them was giving a choice.

The compound is gigantic- organized in blocks all the houses look the same (the houses usually consist out of a bedroom, a kitchen and a bathroom, barely any windows and just the plain walls and floor), there is only on the major streets a proper pavement, no sidewalks or street lightening.Of course you won't see any colour on the walls, art in the streets or any other feature making this entire place less depressing. For me, it reminded me on a never ending ghetto, a labyrinth with no exit.

Of course is living there not for free, even tho they could never choose to go there in the first place: families have to pay for the housing 165.000 Pesos (a bit more than 3.000 Euros) in 30 years, plus electricity and water, for many a challenge not possible to conquer. If they have an income it is generated by the breadwinner who is either way commuting or lives in the bigger cities and comes for the weekends home. However, since those families can easily consist out of 6-8 children money is always a big issue. Also do the breadwinner have sometimes a second family in the cities, which can cause them to abandon the primary family in the relocation sites, something which is happening not rarely. Also not rarely happening are domestic rapes, based upon the fact that all people live together in one room.

Next to the issues related to joblessness, poverty and hunger other conditions are also reason for concern: there is only one elementary school and one highschool on the site, meaning that a class usually consists out of 80 students. Also does the relocation site have only one health center with one physician, again we are talking about a population of 25.000 people!

Because of all those circumstances, many people sell their homes and move back to other squats in Metro Manila, initializing the limbo of squatting, forced eviction, relocating and squatting again...

The Relief

Background for the operation is the heavy monsoon and the flooding in the aftermath of it. The community we went to was flooded for more than a month. The drainage clocked and the rainwater mixed up with the contaminated waste water causing the entire city to stink. The smelly sludge stood kneedeep in the streets and houses of the people, causing severe sickness. When we arrived the water was gone, but the community far away from recovery.

The relief we had with us was sponsored by the wife of a senator which is running several restaurants in Manila. It consisted out of rice, some meat and a pair of flipflops...
You can argue if a relief operation like that even makes sense. What is the point of spending money on such a little amount of food that the families can perhaps cook only one meal out of it instead of spending it for a more sustainable solution? However, that is also the idea of UPA, but many more wealthy people want to donate and approach UPA since it is so well linked to the affected areas. The major goal of UPA is empowerment, not dependency. But still- after seeing this huge line of people, hungry and happy about every little amount of food they could get for free it is not this easy to sustain the argument...

For me the saddest part was when the supplies where depleted and still people in line...telling them they should come back in a month is a very hard thing to do!

WTF!

The Asian Experience

Manila's moniker , the "Pearl of the Orient", couldn't be more apt - its cantankerous shell reveals its jewel only to those resolute enough to pry. No stranger to hardship, the city has endured every disaster both human and nature could throw at it, and yet today the chaotic metropolis thrives as a true Asian megacity. Skyscrapers pierce the hazy sky muchrooming from the grinding poverty of expansive shantytowns, while gleaming malls foreshadow Manila's brave new air-conditioned world. The congested roads snarl with traffic, but, like the overworked arteries of a sweating giant, they are what keep this modern metropolis alive.

The determined will discover Manila's tender soul, perhaps among leafy courtyards and cobbled streets of serene Intramuros, where little has changed since the Spanish left. Or it might be in the eddy of repose arising from the generosity of one of the city's 11 million residents. 

Even tho that is a quotation from my tourist guide (Lonely Planet) I would not know how to describe the vivid, strange and somehow surreal atmosphere of Metro Manila in a better way:

The skyscrapers are uncountable, not even considering all the new ones getting built right now. Gigantic malls offer sales specials on every corner, while the shantytowns resist against them like David against Goliath. In the middle of the noisy, chaotic, rushing and crowded urban canyons you can see homeless and naked children, sometimes even orphans, sleeping or begging for money- during horning Jeepneys find there way through the jammed traffic.

Crossing the streets, without signals and cars which would stop for pedestrians is at least as exiting as to walk through the old town of Manila and see the colonial architecture of the past.

Extremes

It is said that Geminis, my zodiac sign, always life in between the extremes: black and white, happy and sad, patient or furious. Perhaps that is the reason why I experience Manila as such an melting pot of emotions- Metro Manila appears to be in the same way disrupted and torn:

While you have an exploding real estate market, with three, four or five gigantic malls in one block, the average of people still fall underneath the level of poverty. When you walk down the streets you will come across houses which do not have running water, electricity or even windows while on the other side of the street Starbucks sells it coffee. In general is the influence of the American way of living very intense: malls, sales, fast food, cars and commercial. Values like gaining wealth and property seem to be omnipresent, however, I have seen only little so far and I am curious how far my first impressions will change...

Getting started 

Tomorrow I will meet for the first time my supervisor from the Urban Poor Associates, the community-based grassroots organization I will intern with. The purpose of the internship is to collect the required empirical data for my Master Thesis while at the same time making important experiences on the ground.

The Urban Poor Associates has defined following goals (from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_Poor_Associates):

• No one shall be hungry or live in squalor unfit for human beings.
• All families shall have clean inexpensive water, sanitation, drainage, security of tenure and a decent house. Evictions will be a thing of the past.
• All will have access to health care, good schools and employment.
• No one shall feel powerless or left out.
• Families will help one another; community organizations will be vigorous; and urban poor people as a group will work for the common good.
• Those who have less in life shall have more in joy and solidarity.
• Religion will help educate and motivate people to work together for change.

I will support them in a relief operation in a relocation site in Sta. Rosa, Laguna. Until now they are submerged in flood water from the recent monsoon. I don't know what to expect or how I can contribute, but I am eager and thankfully to help. I am also nervous and hope to have the required strength and professionally to cope with the suffer and poverty I will  be exposed. 

I'll keep you posted...