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Opinion
˜ The Manila Times MONDAY February 25, 2019
w w w.manilatimes.net
The last resort
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ILIPINO artisans, skilled workers, professionals would rather stay home or within the country’s shores – if there are enough jobs that would provide them with decent pay, and consequently, the prospects of a better future for their families. Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who are threatened by war, pestilence, health outbreaks and ethnic CONlICTS IN ONE -IDDLE %AST NATION would rather cross the border and wait things out instead of coming home, even if there are assurances of repatriation and opportunities for training in preparation for re-entry into the Philippine workforce. To these OFWs, going abroad is not the ideal but it is the only viable option left. Last week, we traveled to Batangas, one of the provinces comprising the Calabarzon region. Based on various sources—the Philippine Statistics Authority, 0/%! #OMMISSION ON &ILIPINOS Overseas and the Central Bank—the number of OFWs who work abroad would be at least 2.2 million as of September 2016. 4HERE ARE NO OTHER AVAILABLE OFkcial statistics from these government sources online. Intermittent news articles by industry practitioners and recruitment agencies come out every now and then, but one would have to exert effort to scour the web for actual and timely numbers. The Philippines registered a nine percent decline in the deployment of migrant workers in 2017 after 10 years of continuous growth. A Sept. 24, 2018 news article which appeared on another daily quoted a “recruitment consultant
MIGRANT MATTERS
CRISPIN R. ARANDA -ANNY 'ESLANI u AS SAYING THAT gTHE deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to 180 countries declined by nine percent in 2017 as compared to 2016, a banner year of deployment for migrant workers THAT HIT u ! 0/%! SUMMARY OF $EPLOYED Overseas Filipino Workers by type of HIRING FOR THE YEARS TO THE kRST SEmester of 2018 shows only 1,992,746 workers were deployed in 2017. Of the total deployed in 2017, only 419,955 were new hires, and 1,194,719 were rehires. In 2016, there were 582,816 new hires while rehires numbered 1,086,695. By region, Calabarzon reported the biggest share of OFWs with 21 percent, followed by the National Capital Region and Central Luzon with 12.9 percent and 12.7 percent, respectively. !CCORDING TO THE 0/%! S REPORT ON /&7 $EPLOYMENT PER 3KILL and Country, there were 401,000 farm workers and farmers deployed. Five years earlier, the same occupation group represented only 103,000 of the total deployed based on 2005 0/%! STATISTICS On the way to La Luz Resort in San Juan, Batangas, we passed through the Star tollway ending up in Rosario, bypassing Lipa City. On the way back, we decided to take a road trip through the backroads FROM 0AGSANJAN TO -ABITAC ONWARDS to Pililla, Tanay, towards Teresa then
to Antipolo City. 4HE RICE kELDS ALONG THE WAY HAD shrunk while the commercial establishments, particularly the fast food franchises, had mushroomed. In addition, subdivisions were beING BUILT OVER RICE kELDS 4HIS IS TRUE from Pagsanjan to the long stretch OF ROAD TO -ABITAC AND EVEN THE town of Teresa, Rizal. g"UILD BUILD BUILDu ROADS OF course, would require buying the agricultural area planted to rice. Without sellers, there would be no buyers. In quite a few cases, farmers volunteer to sell a portion of their RICE kELDS AS THE VALUE OF THE LAND would be more than the reduced harvest (cavan per hectare). In some cases, the government uses its eminent domain authority to take the land without the owner’s consent provided there is just compensation. The buying price through eminent domain in general is much lower than if the price were to be negotiated directly between the farmer and the buyer. In 2015, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported that the average family income for all occupations was P267,000 per year. The average income of farmers (farm, off-farm, and non-farm), however, was just around P100,000 a year. After deducting the farming costs, the net income is much smaller. PSA’s report on production costs and returns shows a gross income of P80,360. With total costs of P48,985, a Filipino farmer only makes P31,375 NET INCOME 2EMEMBER THAT .%$! OFkCIALS GOT INTO HOT WATER WHEN IT CLAIMED THAT A FAMILY OF kVE NEEDED only P10,000 a month to survive. With these numbers, the farmer’s family
On press freedom and how we abuse it
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$%,%'!4)/. FROM the National Task &ORCE TO %ND ,OCAL #OMMUNIST !RMED #ONlICT members of a “press FREEDOM CARAVANu AND other government ofkCIALS WAS RECENTLY IN %UROPE TO PRESENT TO THE 5NITED .ATIONS THE OFkCIAL 0HILIPPINE version of matters pertaining to enforced and involuntary disappearances. Ambassador %VAN 'ARCIA THE 0HILIPPINES 0ERMANENT Representative to the United Nations and OTHER ORGANIZATIONS IN 'ENEVA 3WITZERLAND lamented that front organizations of the Communist Party of the Philippines have BEEN PEDDLING gFALSE NARRATIVESu 0HILIPPINE Information Agency, Feb. 22, 2019), putting the Philippines in a bad light as far as respect for human rights is concerned. !MBASSADOR 'ARCIA IS RIGHT 4HE #00 through its extensive network of Philippinebased and international organizations, has been spreading false narratives for decades. However, we must not be blind also to the shortcomings of the government. “Unless we somehow reduce to the barest minimum [the New People’s Army’s] sentiments, their hunger for justice, social justice, there will BE NO PEACE IN THE LAND u 0RESIDENT 2ODRIGO $UTERTE SAID IN A RECENT SPEECH 0RESIDENTIAL #OMMUNICATIONS /PERATIONS /FkCE OFkCIAL transcript, Feb. 19, 2019). Reading the comments of AmbassaDOR 'ARCIA AND 0RESIDENT $UTERTE ) WAS REMINDED OF THE CASE OF *ESUS @$ONDON Isugan who was killed by policemen from THE 0OLICE 2EGIONAL /FkCE 02/ ON $EC IN CONNECTION WITH /PLAN Sauron counter-insurgency operation in 'UIHULNGAN #ITY .EGROS /RIENTAL %YEWITNESSES CLAIM THAT $ONDON WAS EXECUTED ) HAVE NO PROOF OF THIS -Y POINT IN ONCE again bringing up this case is that the police told both local and national media THAT $ONDON WAS THE gPRIME SUSPECTu in the murder of Philippine Air Force 3TAFF 3ERGEANT -ARK (ERBERT /BERES WHO was mauled, stabbed and shot, his body BURNED ON *ANUARY LAST YEAR $ONDON PRO-7 told reporters in a statement dated Jan. 31, 2019, had standing warrants of arrest for “murder docketed in [Criminal Case] # TCR (Talisay City RTC) 2018-3913 and another case of Arson in Carcar City 0ROSECUTOR S /FkCE u A personal check with the Talisay City PROSECUTOR S OFkCE HOWEVER REVEALED THAT $ONDON S NAME NEVER CAME UP IN connection with the murder of Oberes. )T WAS $ONDON S BROTHER 4OMAS WHO WAS implicated. The police were aware of Tomas’ involvement right from the start as stated in numerous news articles about the murder, the investigation and trial. Warrants for Tomas’ arrest for murder and arson have been issued but not re-
TURNED 4WO *OHN $OES were charged. "UT $ONDON HATED Tomas, according to 'UIHUNGAN #ITY BASED sources. There was no WAY THAT $ONDON WHO was known as a good guy, would help his NPA brother. Yes, Tomas is a member of the NPA and the parents are active and known members of the communist peasant organization Kaugmaon. But these FACTS DO NOT MAKE $ONDON A MURDERER or arsonist. The police killed an innocent man and told the public that they had killed the prime suspect in Oberes’ murder. *ESUS @$ONDON )SUGAN WAS THUS wrongly described as a murderer by local and national media that accepted the police’s narration of supposed facts without verifying these. Unfortunately, THE KILLING OF $ONDON IS EXACTLY THE KIND of injustice that fuels insurgency. As for the communist aboveground and underground organizations’ being so vocal about press freedom, hurting as they are from the undoubtedly government-sponsored attacks on their websites and social media accounts, their howls of protest are hypocritical. From a partisan political perspective, I understand why they are silent when the .0! MURDERS CIVILIANS LIKE #ORNELIO -ORALES (killed on January 29 in Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental); Reynaldo Lukiluki (February 18 in Bindoy, Negros Oriental); and Junibert Sabico (February 19 in Kabankalan City). The NPA, in justifying its liquidations, use exactly the same line of argument—including their victims’ alleged involvement in drugs and gambling—as THOSE WHO DEFEND THE THOUSANDS OF %*+S believed to be the handiwork of the police. In this type of justice system, accuser, judge and executioner become one. Karapatan and OTHER SO CALLED gHUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERSu reveal their true colors in not taking a strong stand against human rights violations committed by the NPA. Using unsuspecting, naïve or ideologically like-minded journalists to perpetuate the deception that aboveground organizations such as, for example, Karapatan, Anakpawis and Kodao Productions, are not as much PART AND PARCEL OF THE #00 S .ATIONAL $EMOcratic Front as the NPA, is a clever way of taking advantage of press freedom. These organizations are communist, not simply ‘progressive’, ‘militant’ or ‘left-leaning’. They have not renounced armed struggle or violence as a means to achieve political goals. These organizations provide vital moral and material support, directly or indirectly, to the CPP and the NPA. Thus, the government is JUSTIkED IN WAGING WAR INCLUDING ONE IN cyber space, against both underground and aboveground communist organizations.
RESURGENCE
MARIT STINUSCABUGON
would be able to survive for just over three months. According to Payscale, the average pay for a farm worker is SAR 15,660, or P217,394 per year. No wonder the number of farmers being deployed overseas increase OVER A ONE TO kVE YEAR PERIOD If there are less areas planted to palay, where do Filipinos get their rice? From imports of course. For politicians, importing provides a better opportunity to make money than providing funds and support for the Filipino farmer. In November 2018, the country’s RICE SELF SUFkCIENCY LEVEL DECLINED TO 93.44 percent from 95.01 percent, according to PSA data. The PSA report said that “the country’s imPORT DEPENDENCY RATIO )$2 OF RICE increased to 6.56 percent last year, from 4.99 percent in 2016. “Rice imports went up by 39 percent to P18 billion in 2017.In terms of volume, shipments soared PERCENT TO METRIC TONS u The reason? 4HE DECLINING SELF SUFkCIENCY OF rice was due to the reduced share of domestic production in the country’s supply of the staple, while the share of rice imports increased. It does not take rocket science to deduce that with subdivisions being built and commercial establishments BEING BUILT OVER RICE kELDS DOMESTIC production is bound to decrease. In fact, the PSA reported that by major industry group, other sectors got a boost, but the agriculture industry registered a decline of 723,000 workers in farming, huntING FORESTRY AND kSHING SECTORS Rehired OFWs – farmers or non-
agricultural workers – invest their earnings in tricycles, jeepneys and other modes of transportation as the alternate source of income in anticipation of the day when the OFW might have to return home, repatriated or not. After losing the farm or being forced to either pawn or sell their rice kELDS THE FARM WORKER FARMER HOPES income from tricycles or other forms of transportation would earn more than the previous farm income. OFWs also hope that when they kNALLY HAVE TO RETURN VOLUNTARILY OR otherwise, their children would have kNISHED SECONDARY EDUCATION AND would be able to earn for themselves or contribute to the family income, this time as workers in other sectors, but not agriculture. In 2012, there were over 650,000 public tricycles operating in the country, accounting for nearly 68 percent of the total for-hire vehicle population. While this motorized personal and public conveyances earn income for the OFW operator, tricycles and motorcycles are responsible for 45 percent of all volatile organic compound that destroy the ozone layer and worsen the greenhouse effect, according to a study conducted by the National Center for Transportation Studies (NCTS) of the University of the Philippines. A few students in hospitality courses were deployed by the schools in Batangas province to La Luz Resort. These on-the-job trainees hope to gain experience and later move out of the province either to -ETRO -ANILA -ETRO #EBU OR -ETRO $AVAO WHERE THE PAY WOULD BE higher and there would be a career progression compared to inheriting
THE FARM OR WORKING THE kELDS )N !UGUST THE $EPARTMENT OF ,ABOR AND %MPLOYMENT $/,% reported the minimum wage of non-agriculture in Calabarzon, or Region IV-A, was P317 to P400. Workers in agriculture, however, get P303 to P372. Non-agriculture workers in NCR get P475 to P512 a day. With at least two years’ experience, the same entry-level or semi-skilled workers (food and beverage servers for example) in Canada would earn an average of $12.70 per hour, or $16,661.00 per year today, according to the Alberta Wage and Salary Survey. The peso equivalent in today’s exchange rate would be P657,378 a year. The son or daughter of a farmer would be earning P147,456 a year with the highest wages (in NCR), after moving out of the farm into a provincial resort hospitality job, then on to NCR and eventually overseas. As an OFW, the farmer or the farmer’s children would even be able to save enough and join other OFWs IN "ATANGAS m PARTICULARLY IN -ABINI – as homeowners and, with their GLOBAL QUALIkCATION AND EXPERIENCE become mid- to top-level management in hotels, rental facilities and other hospitality establishments. Leaving for overseas may have been the painful last choice of their parents and they had to move out of the family farm as a last resort, but they can return better individuals, more productive members of the community and bringing back some of the better traits from their country of temporary work and residency. They may even be stockholders, PARTNERS OF OWNERS OF THEIR kRST RESORT
FOCUS
SKoreans fearful of ‘nightmare’ US troop withdrawal PYEONGTAEK, South Korea: Sales at Kim Chang-bae’s hardware shop in South Korea rise every year thanks to Camp Humphreys, an enormous US military base he is frightened will close in the wake of the summit between Kim Jong-un AND $ONALD 4RUMP -ORE THAN 53 TROOPS ARE STAtioned in the South to guard against nuclear-armed North Korea, part of a Seoul-Washington security alliance in place since the Korean War ended with an armistice instead of a peace treaty. But with talks between the North Korean and US leaders in Hanoi just days away, speculation is building that the pair could agree to a treaty in return for denuclearization measures from Pyongyang—and that the withdrawal of US troops might follow. For South Koreans dependent on US troops to make a living—like Kim Changbae—that is a worrisome prospect. “Without the presence of US soldiers, many businesses, including mine, will LOSE THEIR MAIN SOURCE OF INCOME u SAID Kim, who sells bolts and screwdrivers to Americans stationed at Camp Humphreys, 60 kilometers south of Seoul. g)T S A NIGHTMARE SCENARIO u Camp Humphreys, in the city of Pyeongtaek, is the US’ largest overseas military base, stretching across 14.7 square kilometers to accommodate 32,000 people – soldiers and their families. The camp—home to almost all of the 53 TROOPS IN 3OUTH +OREA‡BOASTS A lEET of Blackhawk and Apache helicopters,
a bowling alley, an 18-hole golf course, multiple schools, churches and cinemas. Hundreds of restaurants and shops ranging from nail salons to tattoo parlors have set up around the base, which is in the final stages of an expansion project that will see its capacity rise to 43,000 people by 2022. “It does worry me that they could leave the COUNTRY u SAID #HOI %UN HEE WHO HAS RUN a Turkish restaurant just a few steps from Camp Humphreys for a decade. “At least 80 PERCENT OF OUR CUSTOMERS ARE 53 SOLDIERS u
the end of war declaration had “nothing to DOu WITH 53 FORCES IN THE 3OUTH “Kim Jong-un understands that the issue is entirely up to the decision of South +OREA AND THE 53 u -OON SAID "UT 3EOUL HAS gNO REASONS TO BELIEVEu +IM Jong-un’s quoted assurance at face value, Kim Sung-han, professor of international relations at Korea University, told AFP. “North Korea is expected to say the US military presence in the South poses a serious threat to its security... It could claim true peace is only possible when 53 TROOPS ARE OUT OF HERE u
‘We go together’ Trump factor Choi, 43, attended a rally last month, where dozens from the community demanded US troops remain. When AFP visited, banners reading g!NTI !MERICANS 'ET /UTu AND g7E 'O 4OGETHERu WERE STRUNG UP AMONG A CLUSTER OF !MERICAN AND 3OUTH +OREAN lAGS Shopowner Kim, 57, who is head of the local merchants’ association representing 230 business owners, said Americans in uniform had become a “hallmark of the CITY S CHARACTER u )F THE WAR WERE TO BE OFkCIALLY DECLARED over at the Hanoi summit—the second between Trump and Kim after the two met in Singapore last year –and a peace treaty subsequently signed, Pyongyang could raise objections over the presence of US troops in the South, analysts say. 3OUTH +OREAN PRESIDENT -OON *AE IN HAS tried to quell concerns, saying in January that the North Korean leader had told him
%VEN IF A PEACE TREATY IS NOT SECURED IN (Anoi, there is no guarantee US troops will remain with a highly unpredictable presiDENT AT THE HELM WHO HAS lIP lOPPED ON the issue of their long-term stay. Trump said on Friday that reducing US forces in the South “was not one of the THINGS ON THE TABLEu AT THE SUMMIT‡BUT he has repeatedly complained about the expense of keeping them there. Seoul agreed earlier this month to hike its payment for maintaining the troops on its soil, but since the new deal is only valid for one year, the two sides may soon have to return to the negotiating table. Song Wol-sook, 46, who runs a nail salon, said US withdrawal would leave South Koreans feeling isolated and alone in their own city, with a bleak future. “It will leave pretty much every busiNESS HERE IN RUINS INCLUDING MINE u AFP
Q STEINBOCK FROM A5
Postcard from Malaysia CONTROLS WHILE DETERRING 'EORGE 3OROS SPECULAtive efforts to derail the economy. )N THE 7EST -AHATHIR WAS DEMONized as an authoritarian dictator who was intent on undermining his own economy. In reality, his mix of policies ULTIMATELY HELPED -ALAYSIA ENDURE A SHALLOWER '$0 LOSS THAN CRISIS AFFLICTED Indonesia, South Korea, and Thailand. .OW -AHATHIR S OBJECTIVE IS kSCAL CONsolidation to surpass the policy mistakes of the Najib years, while stabilizing a more robust growth path. It is a challenging task that must be implemented amid America’s new protectionism and US tariff wars. -OREOVER -AHATHIR HAS HAD TO SUSPEND several multibillion-dollar projects, including China-backed initiatives, in a bid to TARGET -ALAYSIA S ESTIMATED BILLION national debt and other liabilities. %ARLY SIGNS ARE PROMISING )N economic growth is likely to be around 4.5 percent; in 2020, 4.2 percent. Private consumption is the key contributor as consumers have loosened their purse
strings amid an improving labor market and lower consumption tax. However, investment growth is lingering as SEVERAL HIGH PROkLE PROJECTS HAVE BEEN PUT ON the back-burner following the new governMENT S kSCAL RATIONALIZATION
Preparing for 2020 contingencies !S THE NEW GOVERNMENT S kRST BUDGET SUGGESTS the focus is on institutional reforms, improving the standards of living, particularly for the lower income groups, as well as encouraging ENTREPRENEURSHIP 4HE kSCAL DEkCIT IS PROJECTED TO NARROW TO PERCENT OF '$0 BY AND TO 2 percent in the medium term. )T IS A TYPICAL -AHATHIR MIX PEOPLE kRST GOOD GOVERNANCE SELF SUFkCIENCY BUT OPENNESS TO international trade and investment. 9ET THERE ARE TWO KEY RISKS TO THE kSCAL target forecast. On the one hand, growth could be less than anticipated, thanks to the challenging external environment. On THE OTHER HAND REVENUE lOWS COULD PROVE more volatile than expected, given the higher
dependence on oil-related revenues, which account for almost a third of total. While the government’s expansionary efforts ARE LIMITED BY THE ONGOING kSCAL CONSOLIDATION -ALAYSIA CAN STILL RELY ON MORE ACCOMMODATIVE monetary policy. In 2019, monetary policy is expected to be stable. As international headwinds are likely to escalate in 2020, the central bank could opt for a more dovish stance. Until recently, neoliberal policies have OFTEN BEEN PORTRAYED AS gNATURALu FOR POST industrializing Asia. In reality, such policies tend to boost oligarchs and shun the rule of LAW ,ED BY -AHATHIR -OHAMAD AND !NWAR )BRAHIM -ALAYSIA S POLITICAL RESET SHOWS that neoliberal trajectory and corruption are not an inevitable destiny. -ALAYSIANS DESERVE A BETTER SOVEREIGN FUTURE
$R $AN 3TEINBOCK IS THE FOUNDER OF $IFFERENCE 'ROUP AND HAS SERVED AT THE )NDIA China and America Institute (US), Shanghai Institute for International Studies (China) AND THE %5 #ENTER 3INGAPORE &OR MORE SEE HTTP WWW DIFFERENCEGROUP NET