Lecture 3 lilfe stories of filipino women

From the Life Stories of Filipino Women: Personal and Family Agendas in Migration* Maruja M.B. Asis Scalabrini Migration Center

Drawing from the life stories of 10 women migrants who had returned from working abroad, this article examines the individual-family nexus in terms of migration decision-making processes, how women and their families cope as transnational families, and how women migrants themselves view and assess their migration experience. The life stories indicate the significance of women’s agency in initiating and carrying out their decisions, with support from their families. It should be noted though that although most of them decided to work abroad for the sake of their families, women also sought and attained personal benefits from migration. Among other purposes, the use of life stories provides a window to appreciate the internal changes that women attribute to their migration experiences.

Introduction Filipino women migrants are likely to figure in discussions on the feminization of migration in Asia. In the 1980s, when female migrants were “rediscovered” by researchers and academics in the West,1 Filipino women * I acknowledge with thanks support from The Ford Foundation and the coordination provided by the Asian Migration Research Center, Chulalongkorn University. I extend much appreciation to the members of the research team - Ma. Rosalyn G. Mesina, Ma. Luisa R. Yap and Ma. Cecilia V. Guerrero, the life stories researchers-writers, Dr. Clemen C. Aquino, the resource persons in the communities that we visited, and all the women migrants who generously shared their time and their experiences.

In the mid-1980s, a special issue of International Migration Review on “Women in Migration” (vol. 17, no. 4, 1984) highlighted female migration. The literature and perspectives about female migration have grown immensely since.

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were entering labor markets in the oil-rich Gulf countries and high performing economies in East and Southeast Asia. Years later with the benefit of hindsight, research would also uncover that in the 1970s and 1980s Filipino women pioneered less traditional destinations in Southern Europe, which in the 1990s, had grown into sizeable Filipino communities (see, for example, Chell, 2000:110; Lazaridis, 2000:61).

Elsewhere in Asia (specifically Indonesia and Sri Lanka), the participation of women in international labor migration has put to rest the debate on whether women migrants are associational or autonomous migrants. Women comprise between 60 and 80 percent of all legal migrants leaving every year from the Philippines, Indonesia and Sri Lanka.2 Moreover, it is not only unmarried women who have responded to labor migration but married women as well. In the case of the Philippines, the increasing participation of women migrants especially became evident in the 1990s when they became the majority of migrant workers deployed every year.3 In the 1990s, some 700,000 Filipinos (including sea-based workers) leave the country to take up work in more than 100 destinations all over the world, but mostly in the Middle East, and East and Southeast Asia. Most Filipino women migrants, like their counterparts from Indonesia and Sri Lanka, are generally confined to domestic services. However, the occupational distribution of Filipino women migrants is more diverse as they are also found in entertainment and factory work while a small percentage are professionals and skilled workers (particularly nurses).

To date, various dimensions of Filipino women in international migration have been examined, resulting in a considerable body of literature documenting the level, volume and direction of female migration, occupational sectors women migrants work in, their working and living conditions, earnings and remittances, policy responses of the Philippine government, and various recommendations to promote the protection of their rights (see Asis, 2001 for further elaboration). To a lesser extent - and with much more divergent and less conclusive results - studies have also looked into the social, cultural and psychological antecedents and consequences of female migration. Compared with male migration, female migration has

2 Female migration is also numerically significant in Thailand, but much of it is irregular or unauthorized migration. In terms of legal migration, female migrants are a minority. For example, in 1998, women comprised 13 percent of all legal migrants (Angsuthanasombat, 2001:173).

3 In 1975, women constituted 12 percent of all registered overseas contract workers (OCWs); their share increased to 47 percent by 1987 (Abrera-Mangahas, 1998:47); and from 1992, they outnumbered male workers among the new hires.

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raised many concerns about the social and personal costs of migration. The perceived impacts of women’s migration on the families left behind and the greater vulnerability of women migrants because of their concentration in domestic services and entertainment have cast labor migration as a harbinger of many problems.

Despite the risks to themselves and their families, more and more women are seeking overseas jobs. The lack of economic opportunities in the Philippines is still a factor, if not a very important one, in the migration intentions of many Filipinos. However, at this juncture of the country’s migration history, there are other contextual factors, which define the possibilities of migration for Filipinos. At this point, international migration is beyond the frame of push-pull factors. Particularly for female migration, the demand for domestic workers, caregivers and entertainers is an important factor in sustaining migration flows now and in the future: !

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In the course of some 30 years of international labor migration, the state, the migration industry and migrant networks have laid down the groundwork and process of migration. Having been “routinized,” information about migration is available, migration has become acceptable (or even desirable) and the pathways of going abroad (including irregular channels) are already in place.

Despite the temporary nature of migration, Filipino communities and institutions have been recreated in some countries of destination, providing some semblance of the familiar and offering social support for Filipinos in otherwise foreign lands. Also, these networks become part of the social capital of non-migrants, who may tap these resources to facilitate their migration.

The continued outmigration of Filipinos has resulted in changes in institutions, social relations, and norms in communities where migrants come from. As far as norms go, in general, the idea of migration is an option that is open to both men and women in Philippine society.

Before international migration became widespread, Filipino women were noted to be as migratory as the men, especially in rural to urban migration. Thus, women’s participation in international migration can be seen as a geographical extension of the freedom of movement accorded to women. In the case of female migration, the support of the families left behind in assuming childcare and other reproductive tasks also contribute to making migration possible.

In this paper, I consider persisting questions on the processes and consequences of female migration on women migrants and their families.

Given the centrality of the family in the lives of Filipinos (SyCip, Asis and

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Luna, 2000), I consider the individual-family nexus in the migration project and its consequences. The “thick descriptions� from the life stories of 10 women migrants lend themselves very well in threshing out the links, tensions, and convergences between individual migrants and their families.

These relationships are examined in terms of the migration decisionmaking processes, how women and their families cope as transnational families, and how women migrants themselves view and assess their migration experience.

The Life Stories The life stories drawn upon in this paper were compiled as part of the Philippine component of a study of female labor migration in Southeast Asia undertaken in 1999-2000.4 A survey of 100 women migrants who have returned from abroad were interviewed in each country. In addition, qualitative approaches were employed to explore the more subjective elements of migration. In the Philippines, we used the life story5 approach in delving further into the meanings of migration for women. Initial findings from the survey and some excerpts from the life stories have been written up elsewhere and will not repeated in this paper (Asis, 2001).

The ten life stories participants were selected from the 100 women who were interviewed in the survey part. The survey was conducted between April and June 2000. The selection of the survey respondents was purposive. It proved difficult to track down migrants who had returned from abroad. Although some communities are renowned as migrant communities, finding return migrants was difficult (most migrants were still working abroad) or the returnees did not meet the selection criteria.6 We made a short list of potential participants, migration experiences and outcomes.

Once we had identified the participants, we asked them if they would be

4

The other participating countries were Indonesia, Thailand and Yunnan, China.

5 In an earlier report (Asis, 2001), I noted that the life story approach has not been employed much in migration studies in the Philippines. Lilian Trager (1988) used life histories and family case studies in her study of female migrants, their families and their social networks.

6 The criteria were: (a) that they must have worked in another Asian country, except the Middle East (this was relaxed in other countries), for at least a year; and (b) that they must have returned to the Philippines between April 1998 and October 1999. For the most part, we subscribed to the criteria, but we also made some exceptions where the migrant’s story could shed light on some aspects of migration. For example, we included two respondents who returned from Japan in February 2000 because their experiences shed light on irregular or unauthorized migration.

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willing to participate in the second part of the project. Most of the interviews for the life stories took place between July and December 2000 and additional ones were carried out up until March 2001. The interviews were conducted in Filipino. These were then fully transcribed and the transcriptions became the basis for drafting the life stories (originally in Filipino). The drafts were shown to the participants for their comments and approval and they were also provided with a copy of the taped interviews.7 Findings from the survey underscored the diverse composition and migration histories of women migrants. We had to keep these considerations in mind in selecting the life stories participants. Although life stories are not intended to be representative or generalizable to other women migrants, the profile of the life stories participants is similar to that of the survey respondents. In the survey, the mean age of participants at the time of interview was 36.47 years (standard deviation of 7.74) while the mean age at the time of their first departure was 27.02 years (standard deviation of 6.24). At the time of their first departure, 48 percent were not married, 42 percent were married, seven percent were separated and three percent widowed. At the time of interview, 19 percent were not married, 70 percent were married, six percent were separated and five percent widowed.

As presented in Table 1, the life stories participants ranged in age from 23 to 52 and differed in marital statuses (two were single, seven were married, and one was widowed). The participants had overseas experience ranging from four years to 16 years (compared with a mean of 5.21 years and a standard deviation of 3.61 in the survey). The jobs participants worked in abroad were confined to the domestic services, factory work and entertainment, similar to the job distribution of respondents in the survey. For practical reasons, we had to limit the life stories participants to Metro Manila residents; the only exception is Lita, who is from Pangasinan.8 The experiences the life stories participants had gone through run the gamut of those who had been successful, those who encountered difficulties, those who had seemingly ordinary stories, those who went through dramatic twists and turns, and those who had unusual experiences. As we

7 Prior to the conduct of the life story interviews, an orientation-training workshop was conducted for the researcher-writers. Dr. Clemen C. Aquino of the Department of Sociology, University of the Philippines, served as the resource person for the workshop and as consultant for the life stories component of the project. Other meetings were held while work was in progress to discuss the data that we have gathered as well as to process our own experiences and reflections about the research process.

8 The survey included women migrants in Metro Manila (and surrounding areas, Cavite and Antipolo), Pangasinan, Capiz and Davao City.

Age

41

52

28

38

23

35

37

Participants

Minda

Lita

Guia

Corazon

Kim

Chat

Dahlia

M

M

S

M

M

W

S

Current Status

Malaysia and Japan

Hong Kong

Japan

Hong Kong and Taiwan

Japan

Hong Kong

Honduras and Taiwan

Countries worked in

4.5

9

4

4

5

16

4

Years abroad

Particulars

was a singer who tried her luck in the same line of work overseas; now runs a sari-sari or variety store

had different work experiences including domestic service, waitressing and serving as a teller in a foreign exchange store; also encountered different relationships while abroad

factory worker; a lesbian; was an irregular migrant in Japan

“seemingly ordinary;” worked as a nurse before, during and after migration

first went abroad at 17; worked as an entertainer; did not have a “family” to speak of; had several relationships, has 5 children

worked as a domestic helper; “success story;” her going abroad was prompted by the need to support her family; did not encounter problems with children while abroad; had sent her children to school, built a house and now runs a dress shop boutique

“seemingly ordinary,”2 i.e.; she did not encounter serious problems or dramatic life-changes; had factory-related jobs before and during migration

TABLE 1 PROFILE OF LIFE STORIES PARTICIPANTS1

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48

Linda

M

M

M

Current Status

Hong Kong

Taiwan

Japan

Countries worked in

12

5.4

3.9

Years abroad

worked as a domestic helper; was able to send children to school; formed an organization that provides counseling to other OFWs; now runs a store and is in the process of completing her house

worked as a domestic helper; was an irregular migrant in Taiwan; was active in the migrant community enjoyed her life abroad; married to an overseas Filipino worker (OFW)

worked as an entertainer; “rags-to-riches-to-rags” story; supported her family with her earnings abroad but was later spurned by family members; currently lives with a Filipino partner; has a child each by her Japanese and Filipino partners

Particulars

ordinary in some dimension or the other.”

2 The “ordinary person,” as we found out was not ordinary after all. As Plummer (1983:89) noted, “Almost everyone stands out of the

The names of the participants have been changed.

37

Lally

1

35

Janet

NOTES:

Age

Participants

TABLE 1 (continued) PROFILE OF LIFE STORIES PARTICIPANTS1

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found out and as the following accounts will illustrate, many of these elements are interwoven in the stories of women migrants.

As a source of data, life stories are powerful not only in providing a voice but also in appreciating other people’s experiences from their own standpoint. Given the tendency to depict migrants either as victims or victors, migrants’ accounts of their own experiences tell of the varying shades of human agency and structural constraints. Moreover, while life stories capture the minute and distinctive details of an individual’s life, they can also reflect common themes and issues that speak of shared experiences.

These multiple realities and dimensions are “messy” data to deal with, but they also alert researchers to the dangers of a neat but inaccurate appreciation of migrant women’s realities. In presenting the findings, the names of the participants have been changed in order to protect their privacy.

Findings from the Life Stories Migration Decision-making: The Personal is also the Family In the Philippines, migrating for the sake of the family runs through the script of migrants, men and women alike. This tendency has raised questions about the place of the individual in the family, and the possibility that family interests will take precedence over individual decisions. Eight out of the ten participants took it upon themselves to work abroad in the hope of improving the economic well-being of their families. Most of the women came from an economic background wherein they saw migration as the only avenue through which to steer their families to a better life.

A widow, Lita knew that she would not be able to put her three daughters through college if she were simply to depend on her earnings as a seamstress, not even if she and the rest of the family helped each other.

Similarly, Linda thought that her earnings as a small-appliance dealer and her husband’s remittances would fall short of putting their five children through college.

The desire to help their families was also a major reason why unmarried women decided to go abroad. At the time of their first departure, Janet, Dahlia, and Lally were not married yet. All three had worked at various jobs to help support their families. The decision to work abroad, seen as a means to earn more, was a logical progression of what they had been doing all along. Dahlia, for example, had known poverty since childhood. Abandoned by their father, she and her three siblings started working at an early age to help their mother. As the eldest in the family, she applied to anything that had a “wanted” sign. When she was offered a job to sing with a band in Malaysia, she convinced her mother to allow her to leave for abroad. At

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the time (1988), she was earning P75/night as a singer in Manila, which was a far cry from the RM800 (or P8,000) that she would earn in Malaysia.

Guia also came from a poor background, but was practically without a family when she was growing up. Left by her mother and orphaned when her father and grandmother died, Guia moved from one relative to the next from age seven until her departure for Japan at the age of 17. Although she lived with her relatives, she said she was treated more like a domestic helper than a member of the family. She also had memories of her male relatives harassing her, which was also one reason why she constantly moved on from one relative to the next. At a young age, she worked at various jobs to support her schooling. She wanted to be a nurse, an occupation which she saw as a way to go abroad. However, she also knew that this was impossible since she did not have money to finance a college education. Thus, when a friend, also an entertainer, told her about Japan, she took this as a ticket to a better life. She did not consult with any of her relatives, whom she perceived as oblivious to her anyway. After finishing high school, she packed her bags and started training as a cultural dancer with a promotions agency recommended by her friend: … My wish, because of the hardship that I had experienced, is to have a good life. That is, to have a house, … I wanted to have a helper, to have a car, I wished for these things. Thus, when I realized I could not go to college, my hopes were dashed, [but] I could realize these dreams by going abroad, someone talked me into going to Japan.

I just wanted to make my dreams come true … I wanted to be rich, to get to know someone who’s rich, a Japanese. Thus, since I could not go to college, I thought going abroad was my only chance to have a good life.

When she became a single mother (she became involved with a Japanese man who fathered her three children), Guia’s motivations to work abroad were redirected towards supporting her young children. Without a husband and the safety net provided by an extended family, Guia had no other recourse but to seek employment abroad.

Minda did not really think of working abroad. Her only interest was to have a job. While working at a Korean-owned garments factory, her employer told her about a job opportunity in Honduras (also another Korean-owned garments factory) which she seized. It was only after her Honduras experience that she developed a keen interest in working abroad:

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I worked at many factories but I was no longer contented in working in the Philippines. I was looking for a higher salary. When I worked in Honduras, for the first time, I was able to buy whatever I wanted. I was looking for that [higher salary].

Compared with the others, Corazon, a private nurse, was somewhat better off economically. As she herself put it, they were not in want.

However, she wanted to earn more so that in case a need arises, she did not have to worry about money: We were not in dire need. But I didn’t like it that if you needed to buy something, you will have to scramble for money. At least if you have something stashed away, whatever it is you want to buy, you just go ahead and buy it. If you have saved something, you put that aside, and if it occurs to you, ‘I want to buy something,’ you don’t have to save for it; you already have something set aside for it, for other expenses.

In all the above cases, it was the women who took the initiative to go abroad, and in most cases, their family supported their decision. In several cases, women had to persuade their families or even risk going against their family’s wishes. Dahlia’s mother was not keen for her to go abroad as they had never been separated before. In the case of Linda, anticipating that her husband will not approve, she did not tell him about her plan to work abroad. In her application form, she declared that she was single so that she did not have to submit additional requirements. She only informed her husband when she had confirmed a job as a domestic worker in Hong Kong.9 For married women, although the children’s future was often the object of their migration, they also considered how the children would fare in their absence.10 Corazon, for instance, had wanted to work abroad earlier, but her concern for her young children (also her elderly parents) prevented her from carrying out her plan. For the three mothers – Lita, Linda and Corazon – the pain of separation and anxieties about their children were eased by the 9 Linda’s husband also found work in Hong Kong as a family driver from 1990 to 2000.

Although they both worked in Hong Kong, they had different employers and they only saw each other on weekends.

10 There was not much comment regarding the husbands left behind. In part, this may be due to the profile of the participants. Lita is a widow and Linda’s husband also worked in Hong Kong. Corazon was the only participant who had a left-behind husband and her concern for her husband was closely linked to her concern for her children. The rest of the participants were not yet married at the time of their first departure.

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fact that the children were past pre-school age, they had trained and guided them, and the availability of other family members who would look after the children (in Linda’s case, the children were in the ages 12 to 18 when she left and they took care of each other).

Kim and Chat did not follow in the mold of “martyr mothers” or “altruistic daughters” who toiled abroad for the sake of their families. Both had no intention of going abroad, even if they had family members who were already abroad. Kim was enjoying her carefree life in the Philippines with her barkada (friends) and she was in a relationship. When her parents found out that she was not taking her studies seriously, they decided that she should join them in Japan11 to ensure that she came under their disciplinary grace. Chat, a single parent, had a job that she enjoyed and she was earning enough to support her daughter well. It was her parents’ idea that she joined her mother and sisters in Hong Kong, not so much for the higher income but to keep Chat from just marrying anyone. While they were dutiful daughters in following their parents’ wishes, both Kim and Chat managed to fashion a life of their own making when they were abroad (as discussed later).

As mentioned earlier, the economic vulnerability of their families was very prominent in the women’s decision to work abroad (except for Kim and Chat). In such a context, most women considered migration not so much for personal ends but for the family’s well-being. Similar findings were suggested by a study of women in a fishing community, which using the life story approach, found that individual and family aspirations were identical (e.g., Illo and Polo, 1990). Thus, women’s migration can be seen as the meshing of individual and family aspirations rather than the imposition of the family’s interest over the women’s. There is no need for the family to pressure its members to migrate because helping the family is seen as the “natural thing to do.” Migrants’ remittance behavior and their assessment of the outcomes of their overseas employment will further bear this out. In the two cases where the family decided on the behalf of the women, migration was seen more as a disciplinary measure rather than as a household strategy to minimize risks or to promote social mobility. Family obligations, however, did not get in the way of women aspiring for noneconomic and personal agendas. Corazon’s motivations illustrate this point. Although intent on working abroad for her children’s future, Corazon also looked forward to a different experience: “One cannot just learn from books … of course, you also want to experience a different culture, how they 11 Kim’s parents were doing odd jobs in Japan - Kim’s father was a handyman doing various electrical and plumbing jobs while her mother worked in a small snackbar and in a factory, apart from babysitting.

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live, to gain knowledge.”12 Thus, even prior to migration, personal agendas were interwoven into migration as a family project.13 With the exception of Kim and Chat, who left it up to their families to take care of their travel arrangements, the rest of the women were very active in the pre-migration work. They were the ones who sought information from friends and found ways to raise the placement fees.14 Janet, for example, went to great lengths to land a job abroad. Her first attempt, as a domestic helper in Abu Dhabi, was traumatic. She was nearly raped by her male employer and was maltreated by her female employer. She was repatriated, with the assistance of the Philippine Embassy, after three months. Undaunted by her experience in Abu Dhabi, she became more determined to succeed in her next venture. She tried to apply as an entertainer for Japan, but was set aside by the promotions agency that thought that she was not attractive enough. However, she said that while the others were indeed more attractive, they were not good dancers. She persisted until she was able to convince the agency to give her a try.

Women as Transnational Mothers/ Daughters15 and Migrant Workers In general, leaving and being away from their families was felt more by women who had children left behind than the unmarried migrants. Homesickness was especially intense in the first few months. The mothers’ departure was also felt deeply by the children left behind. The first time that 12 In the survey, it was found that several respondents thought of working abroad because of marital problems, mainly the husband’s philandering. This did not come through as a salient point among the life stories participants. Eight were not married at the time of their first departure; including one who had been widowed.

13 Tacoli (1999) found that women migrants in Rome managed to promote their personal interests while simultaneously pursuing family goals.

14 Placement fees are what workers pay to recruitment agencies for finding them a job and for processing their papers. The official placement fee is only P5,000 (for documentation costs) plus one month’s salary - this applies to most workers, except those going to Taiwan and also to those going to Japan as entertainers. Those who go to Taiwan pay a lot more because of the fees exacted by Taiwan-based brokers. Although there is an official placement fee, it is acknowledged that this is often violated.

15 “Transnational motherhood” was coined by Hondagneu-Sotelo and Avila (1997) to refer to an organizational arrangement among Latino immigrants in response to the spatial and temporal separation resulting from migration. The idea of families whose members are distributed in various places has been variously referred to as transnational corporation of kin in the Pacific context (cited in Connell and Brown, 1995:7) or Caces et al.’s concept of shadow households in relation to the Philippine experience (1985).

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she left, one of Lita’s daughters took to sleeping on top of Lita’s duster (housedress) to ease her longing for her mother. Corazon said that her youngest daughter was the one most affected by her departure. When she came home for a vacation, her daughter was afraid to lose sight of her lest she will not see Corazon again. Linda recalled that when her children sent her off, she fought the urge to take a last look at them for fear that she might change her mind, akin to the airport scene in the film Anak (Child).16 Asked to compare single women and married women, Corazon explained: Those who are single, certainly you don’t have any worries, you don’t have children or a husband who will be left behind. But if you have a family, you will think of the children because they need a follow-up during their growing period. If you are not around, your husband will be left alone, he will be a single parent. That’s the way it is. That’s what you will consider. How can you support him when there are problems, in taking care of the children. He also needs to work. How can he manage?

Dahlia had experienced being away from her family as a single woman and later as a wife and mother. She described the separation from her family in both instances as the most difficult challenge she confronted when she worked abroad: Longing for your family, that is number one. You always wonder how they are. That when you return, hopefully they are still complete. I don’t want it to happen that somebody will no longer be around. That is what I always prayed for. I don’t want to return and someone is sick…Longing for the family, you would really miss them. Even if sometimes you fight with your siblings, you will still miss them. They are your siblings. Even more so with your children.

You will really miss them. When I didn’t have any, I was not that lonesome, but when I had a child, I really felt homesick. It’s like I wanted to go home…like I wanted to jump [commit suicide] and that was only for six months! When I was on the phone, I wanted to get through the phone! I really longed to go home. Yes. I didn’t realize that it would feel like that when you have a child. I could not concentrate on my work, it’s like I was always quiet, sad. That’s 16 This is a film about a mother who worked in Hong Kong as a domestic helper. As part of the promotions exercise for the film (shown in mid-2000), there were calls for essays or reflections of OFWs and their families about their own experiences. Some of the participants informed their friends and neighbors that they were being interviewed and that their life experiences were being written about.

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why my colleagues told me not to be like that. And him (pointing at husband), we would always quarrel on the phone because he was jealous…

Away from their families, the women bridged the distance through phone calls (especially in recent years) and letters,17 prayers and yearly visits. To a greater extent, the mothers - Lita, Linda and Corazon – were religious in calling up their families on a regular basis. Corazon allotted some NT$2,000-3,000 a month for the weekly phone calls to her family.

Particularly for Lita and Linda who were away for an extended period of time (16 years and 12 years, respectively), they tried to time their yearly vacations to enable them to take part in special events such as graduations or weddings. Linda was able to have a vacation every year, and her husband also came home every six months. For the three mothers, the fact that they left when their children were relatively older helped in maintaining the children’s sense of connection with their mothers. On the whole, their children had turned out well despite their long absence.

While no major problems cropped up with their children, the mothers nonetheless alluded to missing out on the ordinary details in their children’s lives. Corazon, for example, was disappointed to learn that the clothes she bought for her children went unappreciated. Linda also cited an experience when she and her husband brought home, in one of their trips to the province, a huge jackfruit. She painstakingly prepared and bottled the preserved jackfruit for her children, only to find out that the children did not like jackfruit. She was not sure whether she had forgotten that her children were not keen on jackfruit or because their tastes had changed.

Mothering for women migrants, thus, has been redefined in the process of migration. Regarded in the Philippines as the “light of the home” (ilaw ng tahanan), complementing the fathers as the “pillar of the home” (haligi ng tahanan), migrant mothers relinquish their role as nurturers and recast mothering in terms of securing their children’s future. Although fathers are supposed to be the providers, mothers take on the task when they see that something has to be done. The economic contributions of wives and mothers in supporting their families are well documented (see Medina, 1991:25). Although husbands are generally considered as the symbolic household head, the wives are acknowledged as “co-partners” or the family treasurer. When wives contribute to the support of the family, this does not necessarily downgrade the husbands’ status. Lita, Linda and Corazon were 17 Asking about modes of communication with their families, I asked about voice tapes.

According to one respondent, voice tapes apply to those in Saudi Arabia. Findings from the survey suggested that letters and phone calls are the most common forms of communication between migrants and their families.

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very determined to provide for their children’s future with a college education, which could only be possible if they worked abroad. Lita was already a widow at the time, so she only had to convince her mother and her children about her plan. Corazon had her husband’s support while Linda defended her decision:18 I didn’t want to leave my children’s education to chance. My eldest was about to start college. I don’t know, as far as my children are concerned, I have dreams for them. I told myself, there are five of them … I told my husband, I obeyed you … You said you wanted me to be a homemaker, a simple homemaker. You did not want me to work, and I decided to find ways to earn money and at the same time take care of your children. I obeyed and I raised them well …

But you changed … your work in Kuwait is not stable, sometimes you send money, but I hear from your officemates that you often have overtime … As for me, I will go ahead with my decision . . .

Being away from their families, women migrants have no choice but to delegate their caregiving responsibilities to other family members.19 Lita entrusted her three daughters in the care of her mother who constantly reminded the children about Lita’s sacrifices. Corazon’s husband took care of the family while she was in Taiwan, with the assistance of the older children. Chat left her five-year old daughter with her father and siblings when she left for Hong Kong. When she moved out of domestic work into waitressing, she earned more and was able to come home more often or to have her daughter vacation in Hong Kong.

Transnational motherhood as an alternative arrangement is something, which the women are not completely happy with. Although there were things that could be conveyed through the phone or through letters (advice, guidance, reminders, greetings on special occasions), they seem to think that a mother’s presence is essential.20 Linda’s statement, for example, that 18 Her husband had worked in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. She said that her husband started to be less regular in sending remittances when he worked in Kuwait, which was also a factor, which contributed to her decision to work abroad.

The only exception is Guia, who, not having any family, left her children to be cared by a domestic helper.

19

20 In the film Anak, Josie, the mother who worked in Hong Kong for many years wondered whether she made the right decision in working abroad. Upon her return, she was jolted to discover family problems, especially with her children. In one scene with other returning migrants from Hong Kong, Josie remarked that when men leave to earn for their families, they are considered as good fathers – but when women do the same thing, something is still found wanting.

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her children’s accomplishments had been worth the sacrifice and hard work hints of a less-than-ideal situation. She regrets at not being around to know the quirks of each of her children, or not knowing the things that troubled them in her absence. It was only upon her return that she discovered the problems her children had encountered, which they never wrote about to shield her from problems.21 Upon their return, women had to deal with the changes that had taken place in their absence. Corazon had to come to terms with the fact that her grown-up children now have minds of their own, whose ideas sometimes conflict with her own. In the case of Lita, she moved into the empty nest stage upon her return to the Philippines. Two of her three daughters had married while the youngest is working as a professional in Macau. Similarly, four of Linda’s children had gone on to start their own families. For these mothers, their return also meant coming back to a family that has moved on to a different stage. Among others, this means dealing with their children as adults in their own right, or embracing a new role, as mothersin-law or grandmothers.

Women who left their young children (i.e. pre-school) had a somewhat different experience. After a nine-year stay in Hong Kong, when Chat returned, her pre-school daughter and her son (whom she left as a baby in the care of her family) had not only grown up but had also grown apart from her. She hopes that in time, she will be able to win back the affection of her older daughter. Similarly, Guia, who had to leave her young children with a yaya or helper (since she had no family), reported that her children are rather distant: They are not close to me. Not like the others. It is different when you are not around. They know me but they were very young then. Like the fourth [child], as soon as I delivered her, I had to leave for abroad in ’95. I gave birth to her in October, then I left December, ahh, December, … February to go to Singapore. She was just several months old then, she didn’t know anything. And then I was gone for a while… Almost all of them, because they could feel and I could also feel. Thus, when the yaya left, she took care of the first four, they started getting close to me. If she were here, she is the one that they have come to know as their mother. Even if they know that I am their mother, they are not at ease with me.

21 By the same token, it was only upon her return that the children came to know about Linda’s problems with her husband.

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Like Chat, Guia also hopes that she will be able to win back the affection of her children. She said it helped that the yaya has left and she has been working at nurturing their relationship.

Changes in husband-wife relationships did not surface as much as issues dealing with mother-child relationships. Among the participants, only Linda and Corazon were married at the time of their migration.22 The only problem that Corazon mentioned in relation to her husband was having to deal with his insecurities upon her return – i.e., his fears that she may not be able to adjust to the difficult life in the Philippines, or his fears that she had been involved with someone else while she was in Taiwan. In time, they were able to deal with these issues. Ironically, Linda encountered problems with her husband, although they were both working in Hong Kong. He got involved with other women, something which she kept from the children. It was only upon her return to the Philippines when she told the children about their father. She almost separated from him, except that the children asked her to give their father another chance: My children are a great blessing from the Lord. Although I have a burden with my husband, I do not [mind it so much], I just tell myself, it’s okay. It would be a pity if I would give up on our marriage just because of my personal feelings, so I handled it that way. I tell myself, anyway, we do not have too many years left in our life and what will it serve? Even if our children now have their own families, it will hurt them to have a single parent. I know they will all be with me because they know their father’s calibre. But I always tell them, it is okay, love your Papa, respect your Papa, because he has not committed anything against you as he had with me. He has been a good father to you, I tell them …

Linda and her husband are still together, but Linda said she feels differently now. She said that the “timing is off” because she had decided to devote her time to her healing mission (she does spiritual healing). She acknowledged though that her husband has changed for the better.

Those who were not married or had no children at the time of their migration had fewer adjustments as far as their family roles are concerned.

Lally, Janet, Minda and Dahlia were dutiful daughters and sisters whose remittances supported their families. Some of the problems some migrants faced had surfaced later. For example, in the case of Janet, she and her siblings had a falling out when she remarried. Although she did not regret helping them (three of her siblings had completed college), she is sad that 22

Refer to footnote 10.

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they do not respect her. In the case of Minda, she belatedly realized that she should have set aside some savings for herself. Perhaps the more lifechanging experiences single women went through are the relationships they got into when they were abroad. For some unmarried women, working abroad paved the way for the formation of less traditional families. Guia entered her first relationship when she was an entertainer in Japan. She got involved with an older Japanese man, who became the father of her three children. The break-up of this relationship rendered Guia and the children economically vulnerable. Armed with only a high school diploma, Guia had no other choice but to seek work abroad. Her stint as an entertainer in Singapore also led to another relationship and two more children. Although she and her current partner (who provides her monthly support) had discussed marriage, she harbors uncertainties about the relationship. Fearing for her children’s future, Guia has considered returning to Japan (which she remembers fondly) to work as an entertainer. However, her partner’s objections and her own anxieties of what might befall her this time have restrained her from going ahead with her plan. Up until the time of the interview, Guia’s partner visits her and the children every three months.

Janet, also a former entertainer, trod the same path. She also met a Japanese, with whom she has one child. The relationship did not last and at the time of the interview, she had moved on to another relationship (a Filipino) and bore another child. The families that they have formed from these relationships have given rise to some concerns. Guia, for example noted that while her current partner is kind to her other children, she still worries about the long-term prospects. She is considering applying for child support from the Japanese father. In the case of Janet, her partner sometimes brings up her past as a Japayuki, i.e., despite the fact that she never concealed this from him. While male migrants may also get into relationships when they work abroad, the consequences are different. The prospect of single parenthood – with all the responsibilities that it implies – is more real for women migrants who bear children and become responsible for their upbringing.

Economic Support All the participants, regardless of marital status (and regardless of their migration motivation), remitted to their families in the Philippines. In the case of Lita, her singleminded purpose to put her children through college defined her very existence in Hong Kong for most of the 16 years that she worked there. By the time she had finished her contract with her fourth employer, all her three daughters had completed their education and were

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urging Lita to return home. But Lita decided to continue working because she enjoyed working and she wanted to experience earning money for herself. She later used her personal money to put up a boutique/dress-shop, something which she had always wanted to do.

Unmarried women were as devoted in providing financial support to their families. Minda related that when she was working in Honduras (1993-1995), she remitted US$450 out of her monthly salary of US$500 and subsisted on only US$50. It was only a little later when she remitted less to her family so that she could set aside some savings for herself. Lally also used to remit most of her income to her family, but later set aside some personal savings, upon the advice of the priest in the church that she attended. Even Kim, who did not migrate for the sake of the family but in response to her parents’ wishes, shared her earnings with her siblings in the Philippines.

The only one among the participants who kept her earnings to herself was Guia. Earning a lot of money was a major experience for Guia, who had known a difficult life until she went to work in Japan. Recalling her reaction when she received a large sum of money for the first time, she related: I was happy, although when I received my pay, I felt like, it was like it wasn’t right that it was just for me. It didn’t seem like, it didn’t seem like I really worked hard for it. Because in my mind, if you worked hard for it, you do it for your family. But in my case, I did not have a family to give it to, so I just spent it on myself since I had nothing ever since I was a child. I had always worked and when I finally got some money, I treated myself to material things that I could not have before. I never experienced that since I was born up until I got to grade six. I was already working doing various sidelines [odd jobs] even when I was in elementary. Thus, when I finally received money, I was very happy because I could buy whatever I wanted, clothes and the like.

Later, when Guia later had her own children, all her earnings went to the children’s upkeep, as other mothers had done. To keep the remittances coming, women migrants concentrated on their work abroad. They exerted all efforts to keep their jobs, looked out for opportunities to maximize their earnings, and they resorted to various cost-cutting measures. Lally, an irregular migrant worker in Taiwan, was very conscious of her limited – and uncertain – time in Taiwan: … I focused on my work, time was gold… I only had limited time.

Firstly, I was not legal. I could be caught anytime and be deported.

Hence, I had to work. That was very important, all I did was work.

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Finding her workload with her usual employer light, Lally asked permission to find part-time jobs. She ended up working with different employers all seven days of the week. Corazon observed that married workers tended to be more prudent about expenses than unmarried ones: You work abroad for the children left behind, for them to have a better future. Also, you would always consider, I have a family to return to, hence, I should save my money. I should work hard here, and after my contract, I will go home to my family. … You will not think about non-essentials. You will not buy things that are not necessary. Whenever you see beautiful things, you will think, oh this is for my child. I buy for my child, for my husband.

You will really see to it that your expense will go towards something, you will not just spend it on things that will not count for something.

Lita considered herself better off than married women as she did not have to worry about a husband left behind, which can sometimes lead to problems according to her. Unencumbered by a husband, she was able to channel all her efforts to provide a better future for her children. She cut down on her social activities and took on part-time employment to earn more money when all her three daughters were in college: They were the reason why I worked hard abroad. I would take on part-time jobs. I didn’t know how to iron when I was here [Philippines], but my employer who was a doctor was very picky about clothes. When I haul the clothes that I have to iron, tears would run down my face. I would tell myself, “ if it were not for my daughters, I will not experience this hardship.” I would cry as I ironed. There are many hardships when you are abroad. It doesn’t mean that the work abroad is good. But the others, they brag when they return, as if they were in heaven.

Linda also had a sideline to augment her income. On her days off, she would cut or perm hair, with other Filipino women as her customers. Also, to cut down on food expenses, she would pack lunch and snacks for herself and her husband when they met on their days off.

Living the migrant’s life was not easy, as had been documented by various studies. Those who had worked as domestic helpers related long working hours and adjusting to the eccentricities and demands of their employers. Two participants were nearly raped by their employer or customer — Dahlia (while she was a singer in Malaysia) and Janet (she was nearly raped by her employer in Abu Dhabi and by a customer in Japan).

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The rest did not experience harassment or extreme maltreatment, something that they were very thankful for. However, those who had worked as entertainers related that they knew of other Filipino women who had been harassed. Also, in recent years, Guia has heard of entertainers being forced to go into prostitution.

While most participants may have been unscathed physically, several participants talked about other difficulties — e.g., being locked in by their employers, being suspected of dishonesty, not having enough food. Linda, who in initial interviews did not talk much about problems,23 said that she conveyed to her employers the message, trabaho lang namin ang binabayaran ninyo, hindi ang aming pagkatao (you are only paying for our labor, not our humanity). Minda, who worked in a garments factory in Honduras and Taiwan, spoke of backbreaking schedules and high quotas (i.e. compared to the quotas in the Philippines), which affected her health.

Whatever problems they had encountered while they were abroad, the women regarded them as trials to be overcome – and overcome they did, with determination, the help of family and friends abroad, the support of their families in the Philippines, and faith in God. Surviving these trials is part of the canvas of experiences, which the participants remember and value. Among others, being away from their family and being in a foreign country had imparted lessons and realizations which were deeply personal: knowing their self-worth, gaining confidence, becoming stronger, developing self-reliance, being drawn closer to God. While the objective conditions of their working and living conditions abroad had been far from ideal, the women migrants had risen above their circumstances and managed to keep themselves whole.

Assessing the Impacts of Migration When asked about the impacts of migration, women almost always considered how migration has uplifted their families: they spoke of children or siblings who had completed a college education, of houses built or renovated, of capital given to family members to start a business. Lita is perhaps the epitome of the successful migrant whose 16 years in Hong Kong is capped by a house, a thriving business, and three daughters, now all She was more open about work-related problems that she encountered in later interviews. The discussion came up when I remarked that she probably did not have any problems at all since she never mentioned any. She replied that she also had problems but she was more determined to keep on working in Hong Kong. Thus, if they were things that she could bear (e.g., long hours, making do with the food that was given to her), even personal problems, she did not allow these problems to affect her work.

23

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professionals. Corazon, who had hoped to experience living in another culture, came back with many lessons learned from her Taiwan experience.

She said that she realized her self-worth when she was abroad. For this reason, she would also want her children to experience life abroad, not just to earn money, but for them “to improve their own personality.” Lally also considered her seven years in Taiwan as a learning experience. According to her, her Taiwan experience shaped her character. She said, “I have changed a lot because it was there where my personality developed.” The self-confidence she developed abroad came from her exposure to different types of people. She carried this with her up until now and this also helped her in her business and as an agent for a pre-need company (a type of insurance firm) in the Philippines.

Migration had not only been an avenue for the realization of their dreams (or at least, some of their dreams) for their families. It also introduced life-changes and new perspectives, which affected the personal lives of women migrants. In very general terms, with the exception of Chat, the rest of the participants considered their migration experience as a positive episode in their lives. However, the impacts on different areas in their lives are much more varied (and thus, not easily generalizable), as shaped by the specific choices women made. The stories of the two reluctant migrants, Chat and Kim, are highlighted here to illustrate the possibilities and risks, which accompanied migration and how women negotiated these terrains.

Among the participants, Chat was about the only who did not see much improvement in her (or her family’s) economic status despite her nine years’ stay in Hong Kong. Compared with the other participants, Chat said that her going abroad has not done much to improve her self-esteem: Until now I still don’t regard myself highly … For all the years that I was abroad, for all the hard work that I invested, I am still the same … All my earnings were spent. Nothing is forthcoming. Even if you think hard about it, all the things you worked for, nothing. You don’t have to think about it because it all went to your family… I realize now, perhaps I will have a higher regard for myself when I have something, when I can be on my own.

Her less sanguine assessment of her stay abroad is colored by a five-year relationship with a man (also a Filipino), which wounded her deeply. She could not believe that she endured five years of an abusive relationship, which drew her into drug abuse and economic ruin. She bore a child from this relationship, and the need to support her two children forced her to take on a job, which she did not like. In her last year in Hong Kong, she met a British man by whom she had her third child. This last relationship, according to Chat, made up for all the ugly things that happened to her in

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Hong Kong. As she had stated, she is glad that in the end, her Hong Kong episode had a happy ending. At the time of interview, Chat was preparing their papers – hers and her son’s – to visit her partner in England. They had discussed marriage, and if things work out, she will be embarking on another migration. Asked whether she saw changes in herself before migration and after she has returned from Hong Kong, she replied: A lot. Before, I was, ahh, demure (laughs). I was demure, I was not the type who would enjoy going to the discos or going on outings, I was not fond of those things. Ah, but when I went abroad, when I returned, I like going to the discos, I would go to, you know, gay bars, I would go there together with my nephews/nieces (voice sounds amused). That is the difference. That’s why I say that when you go abroad, you will really learn a lot.... Because you are away from your parents. You can do anything. You become very independent. You will have to rely on your own self, right? Unlike when you are here in the Philippines, you are with them. You just cannot do whatever you feel like doing (laughs).

As mentioned earlier, migrating to Japan was farthest from Kim’s mind.

The family was well provided by their parents who were working in Japan.

Kim had a very active social life, and of special importance, she had a girlfriend in Manila. She realized that she was a lesbian when she was about to graduate from high school. Only her close friends knew about her sexual orientation. At that time, she could not be open to her family about it: “I knew they would be angry. I knew they would not approve. They are right but if I followed their wishes, I also knew that I would just be miserable. I cannot, … I cannot fool myself, right?”

She was very unhappy in her first few months in Japan. Her father closely guarded her activities and expected her to come home after work.

Although she was not a legal migrant worker, she did not find it difficult to find a job. During her four-year stay in Japan, she worked in various factories manufacturing computers, cell phones, and ball pens. The routine of work put some structure in Kim’s life, a radical departure from her life in Manila where her social life dominated her waking hours. She actually came to like working: “Working gives you a nice feeling, as if you have a family to support.” She also learned to share in housework.

Her life in Japan was not problematic, except when it came to her love life. After two years there, she met a Filipino singer. Her decision to live with her girlfriend led to the first time she had to reveal her sexual orientation to her family. Although her parents were not pleased, they were resigned when she decided to live with her girlfriend. However, the relationship did not last long and this was a painful experience for Kim. However, she also

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considered this episode in her life as something that set her free, when she finally opened up to her parents. She figured that if she had not gone abroad, she would not have thought of, or would not have the courage, to be open about her sexual orientation. She has, in fact, moved on to another relationship. Incidentally, her parents inadvertently paved the way for Kim to meet her new partner. They encouraged her to Singles for Christ, where she met Jane. Initially, Kim and Jane kept their relationship a secret, considering that they were part of a religious organization. Since Jane and her family are based in Japan, Kim had made arrangements to return to Japan as soon as possible.24 If her first departure for Japan was some kind of a disciplinary measure imposed by her parents, her return to Japan is clearly Kim’s decision. She wants to save for the future and help her family (as she told her mother, whom she considers to be the only woman who loves her unconditionally: “someday, you will be proud of me … I will help you”). For the long term, she is ambivalent about living as a lesbian in the Philippines, hence her interest in finding a place where she can be accepted: There are times when I want to live here because I am Filipino … but my girlfriend and I had discussed it that if we would be together, we will live elsewhere. Not in Japan, perhaps in the States … or somewhere. A place where we will be truly accepted (laughs) … a place where we will be truly accepted.

Although her family now knows about her and has accepted her for what she is, her parents continue to hope that she will change someday.

While migration has been a significant marker in the lives of women migrants, coming home, especially for a successful migrant like Lita, was also a welcome change. As Lita herself put it, “… it is like my problems are all gone. Now, I am my own boss. And I am much more relaxed.” For the others, the idea of returning for good is still nebulous. Among the participants, only Lita, Linda, Corazon and Lally were thinking of being home for good. Guia, Dahlia, Janet and Minda were considering working abroad again for economic reasons. At the time of the interview, Minda was accepted for a job in a garments factory in Malaysia – it would be her third venture and perhaps not the last. Kim and Chat were also planning to go abroad for reasons other than economic – Kim wanted to be with Jane and also to work, while Chat may eventually marry her British partner.

24

Kim returned to Japan in October 2000.

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Insights from the Life Stories As an approach, the life stories have generated data and insights which confirmed many observations that have been made about women migrants – the role of the family in decision-making, working and living conditions abroad, migrants’ ways of coping, remittance behavior, uses of remittances, the economic challenges of returning to the Philippines, and migrants’ tendency to postpone a more permanent return due to lack of options in the country. The value-added contributions of life stories are also considerable.

For one, like other qualitative approaches, life stories provide a voice and a migrant-centered perspective in the telling and interpretation of experiences. From their perspective, migrants did recognize that working abroad entails many difficulties, but they did not see themselves as hapless victims.

Instead, we find a view of women who recognized the obstacles and found ways of rising above their difficulties. The details provided by the life stories also further our understanding of the strategies women employ to send remittances, to maintain their dignity, and the non-economic aspects of migration, among others. Most of all, they were able to draw out the more internal changes that women gained in the course of migration. Almost all of the participants (except for Chat) mentioned a stronger sense of spirituality and a more positive sense of self, not because of the absence of trials but because they had surpassed various trials.

The large-scale migration of Filipino women has raised some questions about the nature of Filipino families and their role in the lives of individual members. To some, the migration of women, especially mothers, seems to be incongruous with the fabled closeness of the Filipino family. Questions have also been raised as to how families could allow the migration of wives, mothers, and daughters, given the risks and vulnerabilities of their work abroad. Some observers have even speculated that families may be exerting pressure on the women to work abroad.

Although we cannot generalize from the life stories of ten women migrants, they suggest several insights concerning the individual-family nexus. For one, women have a great deal more agency in the decisionmaking process than has been generally recognized. As economic actors, women considered migration as a means to address the economic vulnerability of their families. If personal considerations did not seem to figure as much in their motivations for migration, it is because personal and family aspirations are intertwined. Whatever their starting point, in the end, most women claim that migration has had positive impacts on their personal lives.

Migration has led to some redefinitions of their roles, particularly for mothers. The “good mother” for women migrants has been redefined from

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nurturers to providers. As family members become separated in space, long-distance mothers (or daughters) attempt to maintain family ties through letters or phone calls. The amount and the constancy of remittances that women migrants send back to their families reflect their commitment to their families. The sacrifices entailed in making these remittances possible had been considerable. Instead of being broken by the problems and difficulties that they had encountered, women viewed these as experiences to learn from, as trials and obstacles from which they emerged as stronger persons. Out of these experiences, they had learned to be self-reliant. The time away and the distance from their families have somehow contributed to a sense of self, independent from (though not necessarily in conflict with) their families. From these life stories, we may glimpse “martyr mothers” and “altruistic daughters” who promoted their family’s interests, but we also realize that these women gained something for themselves in the process.

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