Cagayan del Oro City is the largest city in Northern Mindanao. I go there often enough because of my involvement with BULIF. As an ostensibly pro-Government paramilitary we co-ordinate our activities with the 4ID (Infantry Division), whose headquarters sits in that city's Camp Evangelista. Some may remember that my ex-lover Jackie lived on that base, and indeed that is where she and I met.
To get there we drive 110km to Butuan City, on the Northern Coast, then west for nearly 300km although as the crow flies it is less than 200km. It is a looooooong, slow ride and I always sleep through most of it. I also used to take extra trips there because Rizza's eldest brother, 25 year old Nigel worked in a hospital there before departing for England.
For some reason that city has a small expat community and for whatever reason most of these foreigners are fucked in the head. Two Swedes for example, just got Life for running a cyber-sex outfit. Here, outside the largesr cities, that one and Davao City, there is no rule of law. It is all clans, tribes, and paramilitaries. Personally I don't understand how any foreigner could even visit here if not tied into a powerful family. Life in a Philippine prison has to be a terrible hell.
In any event, I spent yesterday at 1001 Brigade HQ, in Monkayo, 90km south of here, trying to close a sale on 100 units of Tavor Micro,probably the best assault rifle on the planet at the moment. I was suprised to hear that those two dumb Swedes had been waiting for an escape tinnel to pop up in their prison yard. Their connection had gotten 86 meters from a nipa, a bamboo framed and palm leaf thatched hut that serves as a home for most here. The tunnel began inside the nipa and they were at the prison wall when someone sold them out. Five months of waiting for nothing. Me? I would just offer half a million Pesos (about 11K American) and walk out the front door and into a boat heading to Indonesia. Fuck the 5 months of waiting and depending upon others.
So, in talking to the General, the Brigade CO, I found out that BI (Immigration) is preparing a list of foreigners to deport. Of course that was interesting, because on this island nothing of the sort has ever taken place. Seems some dickhead Indonesian who had gained American citizenship came here a year and a half ago and went apeshit.
Getting hooked on "Shabu," the nearly pure smokable methamphetamine that sells for 16 US a gramme. As many crank addicts will do, he went nuts. Anyway, he was imprisoned in a two bedroom mini-villa at his own expense as they figured out what to do with him. Two weeks ago he simply walked away in Davao City. He was caught within 2 days by tracing his last visitors but the episode has led to a shakeup of sorts.
Six names are on the list. The two Swedes, two Taiwanese Shabu manufacturers who are in that same prison, one with Life, one acquitted (after coughing up cash) but both facing new cases. The last two are Americans wanted for banging minors. This place is really strange on that issue. If you are a Muslim or an Animist you can marry a 3 year old but if, you are like 90% here and are Christian, you better not hold hands with someone under 18, or else...Of course I did just that but then my wife's family is the most powerful in this region so I could do most anything but the point is the hypocrisy.
There is a scam, where poor families have a 16 year old daughter, or whatever, come on to foreigners. After a night of fun she leaves early only to return with papa and police and police here are worse than criminals. Pay thousands of US Dollars you can leave, if not, your life is ruined. See, here is the thing, here? People graduate highschool by age 15 or 16. By 20 they are college grads. You come here, you meet a 17 year old who is a sophmore at university, and it throws one for a loop. Of course some foreigners are sex tourists, maybe most for all I know, in which case I reckon they get what is coming to them.
The other big scam here are the "gold peddlers." They tell foreigners some Hilltribesmen discovered a US plane from WWII deep in the jungle carrying gold ingots and being primitive tribesmen, they have no idea of the actual value and will sell, say 5 Million US in gold for 50,000 US. Of course they then produce gold plated lead bars. It never ceases to amaze me how they reel in sucker after sucker.
Alternatives involve nickel babbit or bearer bonds, etc. The 3 Koreans just kidnapped? I believe I mentioned them recently, were "treasure hunters" who ended up kidnapped by their guides. Oh well.
To get there we drive 110km to Butuan City, on the Northern Coast, then west for nearly 300km although as the crow flies it is less than 200km. It is a looooooong, slow ride and I always sleep through most of it. I also used to take extra trips there because Rizza's eldest brother, 25 year old Nigel worked in a hospital there before departing for England.
For some reason that city has a small expat community and for whatever reason most of these foreigners are fucked in the head. Two Swedes for example, just got Life for running a cyber-sex outfit. Here, outside the largesr cities, that one and Davao City, there is no rule of law. It is all clans, tribes, and paramilitaries. Personally I don't understand how any foreigner could even visit here if not tied into a powerful family. Life in a Philippine prison has to be a terrible hell.
In any event, I spent yesterday at 1001 Brigade HQ, in Monkayo, 90km south of here, trying to close a sale on 100 units of Tavor Micro,probably the best assault rifle on the planet at the moment. I was suprised to hear that those two dumb Swedes had been waiting for an escape tinnel to pop up in their prison yard. Their connection had gotten 86 meters from a nipa, a bamboo framed and palm leaf thatched hut that serves as a home for most here. The tunnel began inside the nipa and they were at the prison wall when someone sold them out. Five months of waiting for nothing. Me? I would just offer half a million Pesos (about 11K American) and walk out the front door and into a boat heading to Indonesia. Fuck the 5 months of waiting and depending upon others.
So, in talking to the General, the Brigade CO, I found out that BI (Immigration) is preparing a list of foreigners to deport. Of course that was interesting, because on this island nothing of the sort has ever taken place. Seems some dickhead Indonesian who had gained American citizenship came here a year and a half ago and went apeshit.
Getting hooked on "Shabu," the nearly pure smokable methamphetamine that sells for 16 US a gramme. As many crank addicts will do, he went nuts. Anyway, he was imprisoned in a two bedroom mini-villa at his own expense as they figured out what to do with him. Two weeks ago he simply walked away in Davao City. He was caught within 2 days by tracing his last visitors but the episode has led to a shakeup of sorts.
Six names are on the list. The two Swedes, two Taiwanese Shabu manufacturers who are in that same prison, one with Life, one acquitted (after coughing up cash) but both facing new cases. The last two are Americans wanted for banging minors. This place is really strange on that issue. If you are a Muslim or an Animist you can marry a 3 year old but if, you are like 90% here and are Christian, you better not hold hands with someone under 18, or else...Of course I did just that but then my wife's family is the most powerful in this region so I could do most anything but the point is the hypocrisy.
There is a scam, where poor families have a 16 year old daughter, or whatever, come on to foreigners. After a night of fun she leaves early only to return with papa and police and police here are worse than criminals. Pay thousands of US Dollars you can leave, if not, your life is ruined. See, here is the thing, here? People graduate highschool by age 15 or 16. By 20 they are college grads. You come here, you meet a 17 year old who is a sophmore at university, and it throws one for a loop. Of course some foreigners are sex tourists, maybe most for all I know, in which case I reckon they get what is coming to them.
The other big scam here are the "gold peddlers." They tell foreigners some Hilltribesmen discovered a US plane from WWII deep in the jungle carrying gold ingots and being primitive tribesmen, they have no idea of the actual value and will sell, say 5 Million US in gold for 50,000 US. Of course they then produce gold plated lead bars. It never ceases to amaze me how they reel in sucker after sucker.
Alternatives involve nickel babbit or bearer bonds, etc. The 3 Koreans just kidnapped? I believe I mentioned them recently, were "treasure hunters" who ended up kidnapped by their guides. Oh well.
