a continuation...
After finally picking up Manesses, Rizza's brother, from his late arriving ferry in Nasipit we drove the fifteen minutes it took to reach a quiet village, Punta. Southeast Asian municipalities are structured very differently than their Western counterparts. In this part of the world the basic unit of governance is the village. In Cambodia they call it the "commune," while in Malaysia it is the "kampong," and here, in the Philippines, it is the "barangay." A number of villages compose a single municipality even if there are great distances between villages.
Barangay Punta, or Punta Village, is nestled along a small palmtree lined bay filled with the turquoise and azure waters one finds all over postcards and travel brochures. Each village is seperately governed by a Barangay Chairman, or Barangay Captain and a Council all of whom are elected in extremely violent campaigns. The propetier of the cellphone store had been the Barangay Chairman but had reached the 9 year limit and had to step down in the September 2010 Election. Usually, such politicians will place a spouse or child in that position as a seat warmer since incumbency is virtually guaranteed at the village level due to the tribal nature of ethnicities here.
Unfortunately for the man, he set his sights upon a Municipal Councilor seat and instead of placing his wife into the Barangay Chairmanship, he simply nodded his assent as she staked herself in a campaign for Barangay Councilor, not wanting to deal with the inherent violence and organised criminality one must deal with as Barangay Chairperson. Well as luck would have it both failed in their campaigns though one daughter- one of the two I had seen walking into the shoppe- did emerge victoriously in that campaign, winning the SK Election.
SK, or Sangguniang Kabataan, translates loosely as "Youth Council." Each village has a parallel government composed of young people ages 15 to 21. The SK Chairperson, in this case the daughter I mentioned, gets an ex oficio seat on the Barangay Council. Guessing most reading this have no knowledge of Latin and far less knowledge about poli sci, the term "ex oficio" basically means that they have Observer Status; they can engage in debate but never vote, present to hold forth on the views of the SK constituency, the village youth.
So the daughter, named Apple, busies herself while her parents strategise to regain control of the village in the 2013 Barangay Elections. Aside from the little cellphone shoppe the family has no means of support. The eldest daughter, now 30, also a beauty queen, had gone into the nefarious abyss of cyber dating in 2006, and had quickly met a 49 year old elevator mechanic from Maryland in the US. Though 25 at the time, she quickly agreed to marry the nearly 50 year old American without ever having met him.
I really only learned about cyber dating and its trailer park cousin, Mail Order Brides, after moving here in 2007. It is a bit strange because of course Jews engage in Arranged Marriages which is something similar...except that in that case parents pick who one marries and inevitably it will be one raised exactly the same as you with all the same values and expectations...if not a first cousin or uncle (yes uncles and nieces DO marry in our culture).
In cyber dating though, it seems to me to be a real emotional...AND financial minefield. The really mystifying thing for me, especially vis a vis Western men and Filipinas in the whole shroud of ignorance. I mean, if you are specifically seeking a lover from a foreign culture, how could you not seriously research? In looking at ex pat websites I regularly see Western men make such thought provoking comments as, "Filipinas happily marry 75 year old Western men because Philippine Culture teaches them to respect their elders." Uh...it also teaches them to respect water buffalo but for the life of me I cannot recall ever hearing of any Filipinas riding down the aisle on one..."Filipinas are not at all into Womens Lib and only want to serve their husbands and home." Riiiiight, that is why they struggle to earn their Bachelors before age 20...just to bring you a cold one and serve it to you on her knees." I could easily go on and on about stupid stereotypical misconceptions about Filipinas but alas, my point is that if one aims to go that route, wouldnt it make sense to actually learn about Philippine Culture?
One thing anyone interested in Filipinas absolutely needs to learn is that Filipinos pool their resources and are absolutely dedicated to the welfare of their extended families. Unless you marry a Filipina from a very wealthy family you can count on supporting her siblings, parents, and grandparents. In my own case, Rizza comes from a wealthy family so that I have never had to deal with that but virtually any girl online will be one step removed from what Westerners would see as mind bending poverty.
So it was with this couple, the nearly 50 year old American from Maryland and the 25 year old beauty queen in Nasipit on Mindanao.
to be continued...
After finally picking up Manesses, Rizza's brother, from his late arriving ferry in Nasipit we drove the fifteen minutes it took to reach a quiet village, Punta. Southeast Asian municipalities are structured very differently than their Western counterparts. In this part of the world the basic unit of governance is the village. In Cambodia they call it the "commune," while in Malaysia it is the "kampong," and here, in the Philippines, it is the "barangay." A number of villages compose a single municipality even if there are great distances between villages.
Barangay Punta, or Punta Village, is nestled along a small palmtree lined bay filled with the turquoise and azure waters one finds all over postcards and travel brochures. Each village is seperately governed by a Barangay Chairman, or Barangay Captain and a Council all of whom are elected in extremely violent campaigns. The propetier of the cellphone store had been the Barangay Chairman but had reached the 9 year limit and had to step down in the September 2010 Election. Usually, such politicians will place a spouse or child in that position as a seat warmer since incumbency is virtually guaranteed at the village level due to the tribal nature of ethnicities here.
Unfortunately for the man, he set his sights upon a Municipal Councilor seat and instead of placing his wife into the Barangay Chairmanship, he simply nodded his assent as she staked herself in a campaign for Barangay Councilor, not wanting to deal with the inherent violence and organised criminality one must deal with as Barangay Chairperson. Well as luck would have it both failed in their campaigns though one daughter- one of the two I had seen walking into the shoppe- did emerge victoriously in that campaign, winning the SK Election.
SK, or Sangguniang Kabataan, translates loosely as "Youth Council." Each village has a parallel government composed of young people ages 15 to 21. The SK Chairperson, in this case the daughter I mentioned, gets an ex oficio seat on the Barangay Council. Guessing most reading this have no knowledge of Latin and far less knowledge about poli sci, the term "ex oficio" basically means that they have Observer Status; they can engage in debate but never vote, present to hold forth on the views of the SK constituency, the village youth.
So the daughter, named Apple, busies herself while her parents strategise to regain control of the village in the 2013 Barangay Elections. Aside from the little cellphone shoppe the family has no means of support. The eldest daughter, now 30, also a beauty queen, had gone into the nefarious abyss of cyber dating in 2006, and had quickly met a 49 year old elevator mechanic from Maryland in the US. Though 25 at the time, she quickly agreed to marry the nearly 50 year old American without ever having met him.
I really only learned about cyber dating and its trailer park cousin, Mail Order Brides, after moving here in 2007. It is a bit strange because of course Jews engage in Arranged Marriages which is something similar...except that in that case parents pick who one marries and inevitably it will be one raised exactly the same as you with all the same values and expectations...if not a first cousin or uncle (yes uncles and nieces DO marry in our culture).
In cyber dating though, it seems to me to be a real emotional...AND financial minefield. The really mystifying thing for me, especially vis a vis Western men and Filipinas in the whole shroud of ignorance. I mean, if you are specifically seeking a lover from a foreign culture, how could you not seriously research? In looking at ex pat websites I regularly see Western men make such thought provoking comments as, "Filipinas happily marry 75 year old Western men because Philippine Culture teaches them to respect their elders." Uh...it also teaches them to respect water buffalo but for the life of me I cannot recall ever hearing of any Filipinas riding down the aisle on one..."Filipinas are not at all into Womens Lib and only want to serve their husbands and home." Riiiiight, that is why they struggle to earn their Bachelors before age 20...just to bring you a cold one and serve it to you on her knees." I could easily go on and on about stupid stereotypical misconceptions about Filipinas but alas, my point is that if one aims to go that route, wouldnt it make sense to actually learn about Philippine Culture?
One thing anyone interested in Filipinas absolutely needs to learn is that Filipinos pool their resources and are absolutely dedicated to the welfare of their extended families. Unless you marry a Filipina from a very wealthy family you can count on supporting her siblings, parents, and grandparents. In my own case, Rizza comes from a wealthy family so that I have never had to deal with that but virtually any girl online will be one step removed from what Westerners would see as mind bending poverty.
So it was with this couple, the nearly 50 year old American from Maryland and the 25 year old beauty queen in Nasipit on Mindanao.
to be continued...