Etniko Bandido Infoshop

Review: RaEd (Radical Education)
UNCONFERENCE ON COUNTERCULTURAL PRAXIS IN EDUCATION

By: Taks Barbin/ SafeHouse Infoshop Q.C.

The first unconference on Radical Educational practices in the archipelago was held last June 23. Kids, parents and educators gathered at the Solo Arts and Dine despite the heavy rain. The topics discussed: Democratic schools; Free schools; Unschooling; and Infoshops.

Teacher Mon Armenia started the discussion on the first topic. He was a teacher at a democratic school in Payatas area called Fair Play For Kids, which mostly caters the poorest and most vulnerable kids in the city. He shared how things work at a democratic school, how the kids themselves, with the teachers, decide the subjects they take and the rules they will have to remember and revise every now and then. The only permanent rule in their school: You’re free to do anything you like, as long as you do not disturb others.

This first part was ended by a discussion where groups were invited to speak out what they think kids and adults should learn. It turned out to be a very good way of having the participants share their own stories on the subject of alternative education.

Jestoni Franco next took the floor. He shared how a couple of his co-facilitators decided to set-up a free-school in North Caloocan. It supplements the traditional education of the kids in their community. Mayari Independent Academy it is called. The teachers raise money in order to maintain the space, aside from accepting donations. It projects to conduct short series of different workshops, exposing the kids to the different arts which are usually lacking in traditional schools. It continues to invite volunteers to share their time and skills to their students.

The third speaker was Kimmi Del Prado, a mother and an advocate of Unschooling. Kimmi shared her experiences in unschooling her kids. She shared the benefits and challenges of unschooling , and emphasized the commitment required of parent-educators.

It also became a good time for the audience to share their experiences and tips, including one parent who home-schooled all his eight children. He mentioned how advanced his kids were compared to traditionally schooled ones.

Questions arose, like how to keep alternative education up with the requirements of a globalized world, and when to keep up with it. Systems like proficiency exams and the instituional Alternative Learning System were mentioned. While one parent suggested that kids should go take this step only when they desire to do so.

The last topic, on Infoshops, was delivered by Chung De Vera of Etniko Bandido Infoshop located in Pasig. He used a powerpoint to tell the story of infoshops abroad and in the locality. He listed at least 10 Infoshops in the archipelago. He mentioned how each Infoshops differs from each, having a library and conducting workshops as their commonality.

The discussion part was wrapped up by Safehouse Infoshop, prepared by Taks Barbin and Mon Armenia. They demonstrated how one can make a Do-it-yourself Zine using only one piece of bond paper. With a few folds and cutting, the participants were able to produce 8-page Zines containing words and drawings which expressed how they felt for the event.

After this, a video showing different activities practicing the principle of sharing information was played. The video was shot during an event which demonstrates alternative practices by different people in different communities. It was entitled Mga Pinagtapi-tagping Kaganapan sa Sining Kalikasan Aklasan, filmed and edited by Pulang Balintataw Films.

   

  

 

Aside from the discussions, the whole event was also enlivened by the booths. One booth by Safehouse Infoshop offered a number of different Zines containing practical and political knowledges, for reading and for sharing. Another booth by Pag-ibig was full of books containing non-mainstream topics such as Folklore, History, Indigenous Astronomy, the first Labor Union in the archipelago, accounts of Indigenous practices, and many others. Another booth, also by Pag-ibig, called Culture of a Colonized People Museum invited the participants to talk about and play indigenous musical instruments.

The event was more than successful having a very captive audience. Secondly, it was successful on emphasizing learning more than schooling. It was also successful in formulating a next step: by suggesting to create a network of like-minded individuals and groups who care for, who are involved, and critical towards education itself- a network or community which supports each member in this pursuit to love of learning and being critical. It is a community which, we can say, already started.

In solidarity of grassroots community, Jestoni Franco-Mayari Independent Academy/Kimmi Del Prado/Pheng Muncada- Solo Arts and Dine /Raymund Christopher Armena-Safehouse Info Shop/ Gnuhc De Vera-Etniko Bandido InfoShop/Taks-Safehouse Infoshop/Magisa Kolektib-Notra Block/Benji Domingo-Wild Tofu/MerdehekasLetterhead/Abot Tala

April 6, 2018
As the busy footbridge in Mandaluyong City. A group of peace advocates stage a protest in the area providing free meal to all the passers-by. They put up a banner and made a photo exhibition of war images. The action was plan and initiated by individuals who are fed up on different war going on in various places. This atrocities against fellow human happened because of the interest to control and dominate other being. Destroying culture and annihilate future generation. The people responsible and continued this brutality are the one who wants a total power like corporation/capitalist, states/government, fundamentalist religious group and other progressive political blocks. Most of them rely on war and it became an industry producing weapon, ammunition and war machineries. Tons of minerals needed to excavate to make this weapon available. Thousands of lives perish to this endless war and with the advancement of technology still we didn’t make a solution out of it. We are in favor with peace talks but this process constantly deliberating millions of budget that are wasted.

We are opposing the Indonesian State instigated genocide in West Papua.
We are against the Turkish state invasion in Afrin, Syria. Defend Afrin.
Stop the atrocity on Lumad communities.

The 2nd episode of Season 7 is co-hosted by Ocean and Daniel. First, group member Delia reports on news and resistance actions – collaboratively culled – from around the world; then, we hear an interview conducted by working member Ocean with Cris, a working member and founder of Etniko Bandido Infoshop in Metropolitan Manila of the Philippines. The second interview is also conducted by Ocean, and is a conversation with Michael Higgins and Byron Lee on their work with the Brooklyn Anti-Gentrification Network.

“Anarchy is based on actual practices of humans. The term “anarchy” was coined to describe something that has already been existing.The essence of this term is based on the need of humans to help one another so that life could thrive for the next generation.

for copies check and contact:

https://onsiteinfoshopphilippines.wordpress.com/

https://www.facebook.com/OnsiteInfoshop/?hc_ref=ARQUWXKRxPlmKLm82zquGoTZQTmujB9mEce_TwBN1KpLzyansR-SFkXJSzBpjx8mpts&pnref=story

PROVINCIAL CONFERENCE REGIONAL GATHERING

TRANSFORMING INITIATIVE THROUGH PEACE AND NETWORKING

FEBRUARY 2 – 4, 2018 NORZAGARAY, BULACAN

FOOD NOT BOMBS BULACAN

NARRATIVE REPORT AND DOCUMENTATION OF THE TRAINING-WORKSHOP ON CONFLICT TRANSFORMATION

 INTRODUCTION

 Rationale

In the Philippines, estimated unemployment averaged from 5.1% in 70’s, to be at an annual average of some 10.2% in the period 2010-2016. The official definition of ‘unemployment’ has removed millions of discouraged jobless Filipinos from the labor force. Underemployment remains on a high annual average of 18.9% from 2010-2016. The number of employed Filipinos dropped by 393,000 in April 2017. Meanwhile, an average of 5,771 Filipinos left the country daily in 2016 to work abroad.

There was a concentration of economic activity in corporations, and income and wealth in a few individuals while transnational companies (TNCs) have disproportionate control of the economy. The gross revenue of just the top 100 corporations, for instance, increased from being equivalent to 59% of GDP in 2010 to 71% in 2015. TNCs accounted for 37% of Top 1000 revenues and 63% of manufacturing by 2015. The net worth of just the 40 richest Filipinos grew from being equivalent to 14% of GDP in 2010 to 26% in 2016.

On the other hand, researchers estimated at least 56 million Filipinos as poor with a poverty line of around Php100 per person per day. These included the 21.9 million Filipinos officially counted as poor by a very low poverty line of Php60 per person per day.

Despite decades of land reform programs, millions of peasants remain landless. Land monopoly persists and continues to expand under various agribusiness venture agreements (AVAs) and other market-oriented land reform schemes such as the stock distribution option (SDO). Farmers and farmworkers who stand their ground demanding land distribution are meanwhile met with violence or intimidation by landowners and corporations.

According to the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), 93% of the remaining balance for land redistribution are private agricultural landholdings. There are more than 97,000 hectares of agricultural land converted to other uses while more than 120,000 hectares have been approved for conversion between 1998 until January 2016. The number is bound to increase as the Duterte administration’s economic managers barred the proposal for a moratorium on land use conversions. Land that can be planted to food is continuously narrowed.

The human rights situation in the Philippines worsened in the second half of 2016 under the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, according to the latest European Union Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy.

With martial law still in full effect in Mindanao.  The human rights situation has already worsened due to the continuing implementation of Duterte’s counterinsurgency program called Oplan Kapayapaan, but this all compounded by Duterte’s termination of the GRP peace talks with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) and the recent verbal threats by the President. As the Malacanang poised to extend the martial law declaration in Mindanao and, possibly, to expand the coverage nationwide, the situation is set to become much more fragile and dangerous.

This turmoil happening in the Philippines and experienced by millions of marginalized people are irreversible as the trauma, pain and self-esteem attacked side by side. This situation is the backbone why the volunteers of local Food Not Bombs and other anti-authoritarian activist are continuing their effort to promote different tactics and organized strategic community-building and protesting social injustices, hunger, environment destruction and war.

The volunteers believe in the inevitable violence and conflict brought by social, economic, and political repression. All the more, the volunteers also believe that in shaping a new world, a more vigilant, creative and active participation of every individuals is a necessity. There is an urgency to be trained and be a part of a worldwide struggle for peace and social justice. There is a hunger and thirst for a gathering of activists in transforming initiatives through peace and networking.

DATE and VENUE

 The event took place on 2-4 February 2018 at the Bakas River Grounds, Norzagaray, Bulacan. The venue was about 40 kilometers from Manila.

PARTICIPANTS

 The event was participated by the following;

• Food not Bombs Baliuag
• Food not Bombs Sapang Palay X Mutual Aid Not Charity
• Food not Bombs Paombong
• Etniko Bandido Infoshop

FACILITATORS

 The facilitators were Chris De Vera of Etniko Bandido Infoshop and Asher Israel G. Quimson of Mutual Aid Not Charity/ Sapang Palay Food Not Bombs both of the facilitators graduated in the Training for Conflict Transformation Trainers in Baguio City in 2009. In addition to this the facilitators are also volunteers of the Food Not Bombs in Bulacan.

GOALS and OBJECTIVES

 At the end of the training the participants shall be able to;

• To learn principles on nonviolent Conflict Transformation.
• To gain insights on ways to apply newly learned skills on Conflict Transformation to conflicts in their lives, collectives and communities.
• To network with other food not bombs peace activists.

In daily basis the facilitators create goals plan for the success of the event.

Day 1    

• Settling and setting up the mood
• Sharing of experiences
• Present chronology of FNB by Chapter/Collective

Day 2

• Understanding of Direct Education and Experiential Education
• One-on-one sharing
• Building trust and confidence through sharing of experiences
• Opportunities and positivity of conflict
• Defining and experiencing the levels of conflict, violence or struggle
• Basic community defense (village game)

Day 3

• Creating a community
• The strength of communication
• Creative-Collaboration

DAILY NARRATIVE HIGHLIGHTS

 DAY I: February 02, 2018

 Around 2 in the afternoon Food Not Bombs Volunteers from different towns of Bulacan start coming and gather in Food Not Bombs Sapang Palay. By 5 pm all the participants travelled going toing to the proper venue, Bakas River Grounds, Norzagaray, Bulacan. Two jeepneys were used as transportation for the participants, materials, food, and luggage. In 30 minutes time all were came to Norzagaray. Participants now started to pitch tents and hanging the hammocks, these were followed with the preparation for the dinner.

While waiting for the dinner, volunteers were gathered in a big cottage to have a body count and introduce each other and discuss the rationale and objectives of the activity for the next two days. Aside from that ideas were asked for the expectations and also shared the difference of the kind of training that were about to be done in the following days. A short explanation about Conflict Transformation and its importance in the daily dealing of every Food Not Bombs volunteers.

The exact location of the activity does not have any electric connection that we may use for slide show presentation and film showing.  But then again, the activity continued with butane-powered lights, volunteers stayed in the cottage and the discussion of the Food Not Bombs chronological history from different chapters/collective started and flowed smoothly. A video was presented with the limited battery in the mini-laptop of one of the facilitators. The short-documented video of Food Not Bombs Baliuag was produced in 2007 produced by a foreign anarchist. The video was entitled “Workers of the World Relax”, which was part of the Anti-G8 Info-tour which then would like document different collective, projects and action. The video also reminds with the different actions that took place in 2006, as a solidarity support to the wrongful incarceration of 11 Food Not Bombs Volunteers nabbed in Northern Philippines also known as the “SAGADA 11”.

The night was finished with small discussions, informal talk and gave also an advised that the next morning will be the formal beginning of the activity, 08:00 in the morning. In the same way harmony tasks were raised instead of giving any rules or ground rules. The counted volunteers at that time were 39.

DAY II: FEBRUARY 03, 2018

The matrix of activity was intended to have the morning preparation by 6:30 and formally start at 8:00. But with the inviting weather of the venue it helps us to stay in bed and adjust an hour late in the activity, thus we began the activity by 09:00 in the morning. Unorthodox to any training-workshops, the activity was designed for the participants to learn their obligation and have time sensibility while on the event, a feature deemed as horizontally organized where facilitators act as sharers not a teacher-authoritarian figure. As part of being facilitators, participants were reminded that the success of the activity depends on how to act according to will and how to practice freedom in the engagement of any activities. The facilitators had been flexible and observant in the dynamics of the groups.

Activities were followed as expected and lined up in the matrix. One of the highlights of the day is the village game that reflects community defense and how to react in times of surging capitalist-invasion in a community.  Another part of the training that had a positive response was the rapporteur from the body system-sharing with guide questions given. While some highlighted as a positive tool that the facilitators shared was the brainstorming list that leads to good communication between different parties-may it be internal or external.

The second day was a wonderful day that needed a sumptuous meal. The prepared viand was “pakora”, an Indonesian dish made from Jackfruit and flour, and “vegetarian puchero,” a Spanish dish which means Stewpot known especially in the Autonomous Communities in Andalusia. The day ended with 45 participants.

 

DAY III: FEBRUARY 04, 2018

 Unlikely to the previous day were everyone woke up late, much of the participants woke up early and started to prepare noodle soup for breakfast. Most of the participants still enjoyed the rice and puchero with coffee from last night meal.

The same time as the first day the third day of training started at 9:00 o’clock. Prior to the formal workshop, one of the participants suggested to host an energizer in form of body stretching and basic exercises.

As the Conflict Transformation Workshop continued on the third day, the facilitators started with the tool tape in the forehead. The tool was chosen in order for the participants to feel and analyze the conflict happening in the Mainstream/Margin Identity issues, such as discrimination and division. It was a grouping activity. Participants were asked to be in two ques and close the eyes. While the eyes were closed, facilitators started to post the tape in the forehead of the participants. The marked symbol in the forehead of the participants were the groups they are into. Some groups were composed of three, two, four and some symbol are unique and alone. As the tapes were posted in the forehead already, the facilitators started to challenge the participants to look for their groups according to the symbol in posted in the forehead without any sounds or talking. It was important to note that the mouth was not taped in order to realized how they were group in silenced, and also marshalled every time the participants talked or made sounds. After 10 minutes, the participants were now in their respective groups while there were 3 participants with no groups. The facilitators started to ask for reflections in the activity, such as “How do they find their group?”; “How do they feel when they finally belong on their group?”; “How was the feeling for the unique individuals who has no group and separated from the rest?”. From the question poised, conflict automatically discussed wherein a common situation in everyday life.

The next tool that was used was Group Juggling. More than 30 participants were asked to form a big circle to play in a game with timing, coordination, clear communication, listening focus, strategy, accuracy, advance thinking, preparedness, anticipation, and accountability. Group Juggling is not just a game but a simulated scenario in time of adversity and needed a resilient spirit – coping up in time of unprecedent circumstances. The participant enjoyed the game especially seeing the big number of participants actively participating.

The Group Juggle was followed with another adventure-based tool that practice decision making, collaboration and communication, the Ankle Walk. The group were divided in to two groups with equal numbers of participants. They were instructed to solve a problem placing them in somewhat vulnerable state. Participants were asked connect their feet together and needed to race to the line given without breaking contacts of the foot. If breakage of feet were committed the whole groups should start in the starting line. The two groups given an enough time to strategize and collaborate. Both of the groups were noisy and trying to do different options. Experimenting strategies and how they can make it through the finish line. Each group were allowed to finish the race. After the race was finished, the groups were debriefed with the question “what worked” or how they strategize in a limited time or in a time pressure scenario. In the same manner they were asked of what makes an effective group.

TRAINING MATRIX

TIME	Friday/TOPICS/TOOLS	Participatory Activities
02:00 – 04:00	Arrival to Sapang Palay, Bulacan
04:00 – 5:00	Travel to the Venue Norzagaray, Bulacan
06:00 – 09:00	·   Cooking ·   Rationale and Objectives ·   Chronology of Food Not Bombs by Chapters ·   Dinner	Sharing of Experiences Shared Tasking
09:00 – 10:00	Bon Fire Sharing
	DAY 1/Topics/Tools	Activities	DAY 2/Topics/Tools	Activities
06:30 – 08:00	Wake – up Wash Up Cooking and Breakfast
08:30 – 09:30	Direct Education Experiential Learning       Buddy System	Max and Mini Lists Ways to have a valuable learning experience	Creating a community	Popcorn Game Tape on the forehead Mainstream/Margin
09:30 – 11:00	Conflict and its positive potential (Context)	Brainstorming/Listings	Communication Self-limiting Belief	Group Juggle Creative Collaboration through Ankle Walk
	Level of Conflict, Violence and Struggle	Power Sculpture
11:00 – 01:00	Cooking and Lunch
01:30 – 03:00	Transforming Initiatives	Story Telling (Participants)
03:30 – 04:30	Community Defense	Village Game
04:30 – 05:30	Local Issues and actions	The Coconut Experience
05:30 – 08:00	Cooking and Dinner
08:00 – 10:00	Sharing with Buddies Musical Night

 

CONCLUSION and RECOMMENDATION

 The Food Not Bombs Gathering of Bulacan Province is a success. Training-workshop, a gathering and a conference that has fun, enjoyment, learning, and solidarity. It is seen as a 3-day commune among volunteers. Each of the participants were happy and enthusiastically much motivated in the upcoming events in each respective collective and chapter. The days of training towards the journey of transforming initiative through peace and networking was done but needs to be applied in respective towns.

All participants enjoyed the time together having a different kind of seminar that participants will not just sit and listen but a proactive and adventure-based training. Though everything is done through somewhat informal discussions and games all of it were informative materials that strengthen the solidarity of each collective and at the same time solidify the comradeship of the greater FNB volunteers in the province. Like for example the newly formed Food Not Bombs Paombong.

The event also serves as a model and platform to the participants to recreate the training in their place. Looking at conflict as an inevitable factor in any lives which also creates division and leads to violence. This matter brings the volunteers into the importance of the event and the continuity of the program/project. It was recommended that it should be done annually. There is a need to be trained and be part of the greater changes in the community. There is a need to respond in the violence and angst that taking place in the neighborhood.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For many years Marxism has been the dominant ideology among dissent in the archipelago. It is a convenient tool utilized by social movements, civil society, scholars, academics and even a few government agents. This framework deeply influenced the way we view our history and alternatives. Its evolutionary logic provides certain analysis and proposes sets of actions and alternatives.

Historical accounts showed that resistance is not new to indigenous communities in the archipelago. Our ancestors were not dumb; indigenous people do not need to borrow ideas from the west to realize their own situation. Indigenous communities have mechanisms designed to protect and sustain their existence, culture and well-being.

Resistance that led to violent confrontation and war in different regions of the archipelago was complex. Every resistance has a peculiarity based on its context, culture and time. But statist politics became the dominant framework among those who have challenged the status quo. Because dominance is the very nature of the state. This kind of politics greatly affected the conduct of local dissent which led to the establishment of republican and leftist institutions.

Marxism in the archipelago, which you today refer to as the “Philippines”, has many variations. Like the dominant religions, Marxism produced a variety of thinkers, ideologues, politicians, activists and even faith-based groups and individuals. Dialectical historical materialism (DHM) is one of Marxism’s fundamentals to analyze a society. This is widely criticized for putting heavy emphasis on economy. It reduces the societies through a focus on economic progress and sets the bench mark of development with the system and scale of production and accumulation of material wealth. It inevitably disregards other essential aspects of society by elevating some class into the pedestal of revolution.

It is said that capitalism will prepare the material and social capital for the establishment of socialist society. Since workers are the primary force of production of a capitalist society, Marxists believe that the proletariat will lead the revolution with the aim to establish a “dictatorship”.

Social revolution is a process of overhauling social relationships that reinforce inequality, social injustice, environmental destruction and patriarchy. This process can only be realized if heterogeneous agents of society participate. The workers’ role is to liberate themselves from the chains of capitalism; women should act against patriarchy; other sectors and classes must do their share for social change by acting directly in their interests. Social revolution will not take place if the people’s mode of thinking is generally respectful to the institutions that reproduce and reinforce rules that define property, ownership, privileges, roles and power. Putting a particular class or group into a pedestal of power is another form of hierarchy and therefore invites privilege and the centralization of power.

In relation to this criticism, I would like to reiterate that the dialectical process is hierarchical. It is no different from the band-tribe-chiefdom-state model pioneered by the archeologist Elman Service, which refers to the hierarchical progression of society. It presents an evolutionary process of community from simple stateless egalitarian indigenous organizations like bands and tribes into chiefdoms and states, which are generally characterized by central power, uniformity and non-egalitarianism. The Marxist evolutionary model of the authoritarian left in the Philippines is consistent with this model. To apply this in our context, the indigenous communities “discovered” by Magellan in Leyte were supposedly primitive, inferior, savage, wild, ignorant and in need to be tamed.

Spain, according to the DHM model, was a feudal society governed by a King. Based on historical accounts, Philip had no intention of conquering the archipelago, it was an enterprise and he was in business with Magellan. They had a contract that defined every party’s obligations and shares.

The word “primitive” is in most cases used with prejudice by referring to traditional cultures as underdeveloped. There are hosts of communities that maintained their indigenous ways of life because they chose to protect and defend their culture by practicing it, by reproducing, innovating and improving it. They sustained their existence not because they were left out of social progression, as presented in the chiefdom model or the dialectical historical tool. Their resilience is attributed to their love of freedom and self-determination. Most of indigenous communities consciously maintained their cultures. Like any organization, they had mechanisms to protect their well-being by continuously doing things based on their customs and indigenous ways. Like the indicator of a healthy ecology, they were highly diverse and their systems myriad. Their commonality was a decentralized pattern of politics and of managing resources. Communities were autonomous and generally have horizontal social relations. The indigenous communities of the archipelago still live according to these principles.

Electricity, gadgets, cars, groceries, malls, appliances, bombs, cannons, nuclear power and arms, churches, guns and bullets do not exist in the remaining stateless societies. They lack sophisticated technology and material culture in the same way they lack hunger, poverty, crime, ecological destruction, forced labor and different kinds of abuse and exploitation and social issues attributed to large-scale, centralized power, to authoritarian, consumerist and patriarchal modern societies.

For sure, indigenous communities are not perfect, but the imperfections are far less destructive than systems of states, corporations and churches that instigate war, exploitation, environmental destruction, hunger and poverty through the control of centralized political power. Since the common interest of organisms is to secure their existence, I could say indigenous communities are more developed and advanced because they are more sustainable than modern institutions, which are in constant struggle for dominance and aiming for infinite growth, which is totally inconsistent to ecological systems and the self-determination of communities.

I heard several times that what Marx did in his DHM was to interpret history. I agree. But you and me, we can also have our own reading. I would say that the evolutionary approach is not suitable to analyze our local context. Based on historical accounts, the indigenous organizations did not evolve into states but were rather coerced to adopt centralized patterns of organization such as states, churches and corporations.

Autonomous/indigenous resistance was the resistance staged by different communities and tribes throughout the archipelago. These were anti-colonial in nature and aimed to re-install their indigenous ways of life. Among them were Magat Salamat, Tamblot, Tapar, Bancao, the Mandayas, the Ifugao, Zambal, and others. In the perspective of statists, their initiatives will be labeled “primitive”.

DHM’s hierarchical process downplayed societies they considered part of a “lower” evolutionary process and treated them as underdeveloped and in need of evolving into higher form. I am not really sure whether they treated poverty, environmental degradation and social injustice as pre-requisites for their imagined perfect society.

Diversity, horizontality and spontaneity are the very foundation of life; ergo, life on earth will not flourish through singularity but rather through a multitude of systems that are interdependent, directly and indirectly connected to one another. No life on earth is guided by a systematic plan and a singular direction. Life on earth thrives due to an ending process of evolution of conflict and cooperation.

Our modern age is characterized by centralized politics; an approach that is seeking an absolute truth which aims to establish uniformity and singularity; a framework that is totally opposite to the foundation of life, i.e., diversity, heterogeneity and tolerance.

Institutions such as states, markets and churches exist due to a particular objective. They are designed to ensure obedience, submission and control.

You may observe that we are experiencing environmental destruction, discrimination, war and exploitation. It occurred due to anthropocentrism. Humanity’s domination and control over one another and the earth resulted in the destruction not only of our diverse systems and cultures but also of our very own habitat.

One will notice that DHM’s logic is not only hierarchical but also reinforces uniformity. It is supposed to promote freedom, and many leftist revolutionaries believe this. But its singular and hierarchical direction inevitably discriminates societies that are not Eurocentric and that oppose systems of industry, market, democracy and one-God-based spirituality. DHM replicates oppressive systems. We have seen this in various places that have adopted Marxism.

Bas Umali

Remembering this day Sept.21, one of the horrific and tragic moment happened in the history of the Philippines. Martial Law was declared by President Marcos to suppress and repress most of the people. Rampant violence, forced disappearance, arrest, killings and torture experienced by dissidents and common people who are criticizing the authoritarian regime at that time.

Today, Duterte’s administration was also following the path for being a totalitarian and a fascist by putting people’s lives on his own hands defying constitutional and human rights. Declaring Martial Law in Mindanao and instigating War on Drugs policy by killings thousands of poor people. This regime are misleading the people by their fake news by putting their effort on drug related issue to stop criminality and not confronting the real problem of the society, that social injustice like poverty, no job opportunity, no social welfare, forced displacement are the main cause and this injustices are already violence.

As our attempt to express our sentiments against this atrocity. We planned to gather in Luneta Park to have a picnic, Food Not Bombs mass feeding, Really Free Market, mobile library, culture jamming, Radyo Kalye and many more. More than 40 participants show their support engaging ourselves with the homeless community who sleep and stay in the park. Homelessness are one of the awful problem happening in the Philippines and no government since before could make a solution.

“Ang Pekeng Balita ay Karahasan”

Uso ang peke. Pekeng pera, pekeng produkto, pekeng kwento, pekeng buhok, pekeng droga at pekeng balita. Hindi ko lang alam kung may Peking duck.

Marahil ay walang ibang layon ang pamemeke kundi manloko. Bakit? Dahil ikinukubli nito ang totoo. Hindi makikita ng ibang tao ang tunay kalagayan dahil ito ay natabunan ng nagpapanggap na katotohanan. Maaring nakabili ka ng murang pekeng produkto, kung ang hanap mo ay branded ikaw ay naloko. Ngunit kung sadya namang bumili nito ang korporasyon ang nagoyo. Ang paggamit ng pekeng buhok ay isa ring porma ng panlalansi, kung wala mang layon na masamang intensyon naikubli ang katotohanan, ang kasalatan sa buhok ay natatabunan.

Ang magpakalat ng pekeng balita at istorya ay likas na masama. Ito ay may pagtatangka na itago, pagtakpan o iligaw ang mga tao sa tunay na kalagayan para protektahan ang interes, posisyon o layunin ng isa o grupo ng mga tao.

Ang pamemeke ng tunay na kalagayan ay mapaminsala. Iyong nakakaligtaan na ang tunay na kalagayan ay ang kahirapan at kagutuman ng karamihan. Nagaganap ito dahil may iilang tao lang ang may hawak at kontrol sa mga yaman ng lipunan. Ang mga lupain, ari-arian at mga pasilidad na makakalikha ng ating mga batayang pangangailangan ay kontrolado ng iillan dahil sa kanilang mga posisyon at impluwensya sa pamahalaan.

Binentahan ang mga tao ng pekeng riyalidad. Sa pekeng riyalidad na ito nakatuon ang atensyon at nagiging bulag sa mahalagang usapin na may direktang kinalaman sa mismong buhay natin. Halimbawa, bakit hindi tayo nagagalit sa napakababa na batayang sweldo ng manggagawa? Habang hindi mapigilan ang pagtaas ng presyo ng mga batayang bilihin at serbisyo.

Laganap ang pagnanakaw sa pamahalaan, sa halip na mapunta ang salapi sa mga serbisyong panlipunan ito  ay isinisilid sa bulsa ng iilan. Makakarinig tayo ng pagtangis subalit sa kabuuan ay business as usal ang mga kawatan.

Sa tuwina’y bukam-bibig ang proteksyon ng kalikasan ngunit patuloy ang pagmimina, pagputol ng mga kahoy, pagbubuga ng carbon emission at pagkakalat ng basura at lason sa kapaligiran.

Bakit hindi tayo nag-aalburuto sa daan libong tao at pamilyang walang tahanan na nakakalat sa mga lansangan? Ang mga bata, matatanda o kababaiahan may kapansan na naghihingi ng awa, sa halip mag-abot ng suporta, mas mabilis pang sisihin sila sa kanilang katamaran at kabobohan. Ating nakakalimutan na ang kawalan ng marami sa atin ay dulot ng kontrol ng iilan lang.

Walang pag lagyan sa kasaganahan ang mga lider at pulitiko ng mga partido, korporasyon at simbahan habang malawak na bilang ng tao ay nag-aagawan sa mumo at tira-tira ng mga de-prebelehiyong iilan.

Hindi mo na pinapansin ang mga iyan dahil ang atensyon mo ay nasa PEKENG BALITA. Natutuwa ka bang makita na ang kapwa mo mahirap ay pinatay dahil sa akusasyon pa lang? Sabihin na nating adik nga siya o nagbebenta ng tingi-tinging shabu, ito kaya ay sapat na batayan upang siya ay kitlin?

Totoong may mga karahasan kaugnay sa illegal na droga; maaring ito ay sikolohikal na epekto o onsehan sa bentahan hindi ito dapat na pagtakpan. Marapat lang na masugpo ang ganitong mga karahasan. Ngunit iyo ding pag-isipan; gaano kaya karami ang buhay na nasayang dahil sa digmaan sa pagitan ng mga pulahan at pamahalaan? May ideya ka kaya sa bilang ng mga napatay dahil sa tunggalian ng mga sundalo at mga rebeldeng muslim? Nakita mo rin kaya na sa simpleng alak lang ay napakarmi na ring insidente ng patayan?

Dahil sa pekeng balita, hindi mo na alintana ang higit na seryosong usapin. Hindi mo na napagtuunan ng atensyon ang mga isyung may malalim na pinsala sa ating lipunan katulad ng kagutuman, kahirapan, diskriminasyon at pagkasira ng kalikasan.

Sa halip ay nalilibang ka sa mga nakasalansan na bangkay sa paniniwalang ang pagiging sangkot sa droga ay higit na masama kaysa pagpatay, pandarambong sa kaban ng bayan, kawalan ng mga disenteng pabahay, kawalan ng lupang sakahin, patuloy na digmaan at pagkawasak ng kalikasan.

 

Samantala, Septyembre 21 ay ika- 45th na taong deklarasayon ng martial law. WALANG DAPAT IPAGDIWANG.

Ang atin ay pag-alaala sa MALAWAKANG KARAHASAN ng Gobyerno laban sa mga tao.

Si Marcos sampu ng kanyang mga cronies ay bangag sa kapayangrihan at hayok sa yaman.

PANANAKIT, PANANAKOT, PAGPATAY, PAMIMILIT ang kanilang gamit.

NANGAMKAM, NAGNAKAW, NANDAYA, NG TORTURE, NANGIDNAP, AT PUMATAY NG LIBO. Ilan ito sa mga dapat nating maala-ala upang makaiwas sa mga katulad na sakuna.

Sa TOTOO, hati ang maraming tao. Ito naman kasi ang gusto ng mga pulitiko. Ang magbakod at maghiwalay sa mga tao. Kaaway ang hindi kapanalig sa pulitika. Ang DEMOKRASYA ay NAKAKATAWA, ang oposisyon kinikilala pero ang layon ay lupigin ang hindi katulad. Sa pagturing na ang sarili at kinabibilangang grupo o partido ay higit na superyor kontra sa iba. Ikaw ay may “matalas na linya” habang ang iba ay “totoong sosyalista”. Sila naman ang may “totoong pananampalataya” at “huwad”  naman ang sa iba.

Nakalimutan mo na pwedeng-pwede na sa iyong sarili ang pagpapasya. Desisyon na may pagkilala sa iyong interes, kapamilya, komunidad at kalikasan. Hindi ang IPAGTANGGOL ang interes ng iilan. Por diyos por santo! Matagal mo ng alam na ang mga pulitiko at partido ay pinakikilos lang ng kanilang interes na manatili sa kapangyarihan. Huwag ka magbulag-bulagan dahil kitang-kita mo na sila lang din ang may kontrol sa mga yaman. Hindi pa rin ba natatauhan? Ilang beses na bang nagpalit ng administrasyon, iba-ibang konsumisyon at iisa ang ating sitwasyon. GUTOM at MANGMANG pinaiikot sa palad ng mga may kapangyarihan. Aber mabibigyan mo ako ng pamamahala na naalis ang kahirapn, kagutuman, matinong serbisyong panlipunan? At sa karanasan wala ring matinong PULAHANG PAMAHALAAN, higit pa ang karahasan nito sa maraming bansa sa iba’-t-ibang paraan.

Ating balikan ang IDEYA AT PRAKTIKA NG BAYANIHAN — ang pagtutulungan sa ating mga pamayanan. Pagbibigy suporta na walang kapalit na pabor. Ito ang relasyon na may pagkilala sa ating limitasyon at pagkilala sa kolektibong aksyon bilang mabisang  solusyon sa ating mga problemadong sitwasyon.

Alam mo ba na ang pagyakap sa partido at mga grupo na ang layon ay maging boss, sentro at nagsasabi na siya lang ang tanging totoo ay likas na peligroso? Ang nais nito ay gawing iisa ang ating paniniwala at panlasa.  Walang itong pagkilala sa likas nating pagkakaiba-iba. Kahit anong gawin mo, malawak ang pagkakaiba-iba ng mga komunidad sa arkipelago. Dapat nating kilalanin ang samut-saring kultura na umiiral sa maraming lugar hindi lang dito maging sa buong mundo.

ANG MGA PULITIKO KABILANG ANG MGA PASISTA ay kumikilos upang panatilihin ang kamangmangan natin ng sa gayon tayo ay patuloy na aasa sa kanila at habang tayo naman ay tuloy din sa pagsuporta sa kanila. SILA AY LUMILIKHA NG DINGDING SA PAGITAN NATIN. Ang dingding na ito ay nagsisilbing harang upang hindi natin makita ang katotohanan na habang may iilang may kontrol ng kapangyarihan at yaman ay mananatili ang kahirapan ng karamihan at pagiging marhinalasado ng malawak na bilang ng mga pamayanan.

ANG PEKENG BALITA AY MARAHAS HUWAG MANIWALA.  PEKE ANG SINASABING PAGBABAGO. IKAW NA ANG MAKAPAGSASABI NG TOTOO MONG KUNDISYON. IKAW ANG DIREKTANG NAKAKARAMDAM NG TAKOT O MAARING POOT DAHIL NGA SA MGA KAGANAPAN NGAYON.

We had an opportunity to visit Taiwan and stay there for almost two months from July to September 2017. With the help of our friends from Neng Sheng Xing Factory Tainan City, Taiwan an LGBTQ community, artist and environmentalist who runs a two building multi-functional creative-space with live house/concert venue, gallery, bookshop, bars, organic market stalls, workshop and lecture venue and a hostel accommodation.

 

On the first week of our arrival, we managed to participate in a one week event in Ocean Home Wild Market Festival (July 3-9, 2017). The festival located on coast line of Hualien City east coast of Taiwan, on the Pacific Ocean. This festival was organized by more than 150 volunteers from different parts of Taiwan who are responsible on maintaining the traffic, kitchen staffs, cleaners, sound engineer, production assistant, seller, electrician, program coordinator etc. The practice of volunteerism in Taiwan is very high. They have three stages for performances: independent stage, free stage and environmental stage. Every stage accommodates diverse genre of music and performances from techno/electronic, rock, alternative, disco, theater, dance, trans-music, earth music etc. There are almost 400 makeshifts stalls/store which is selling different hand-made crafts, foods and beverages and 10% of the profit of each stalls will goes to the logistics and funds for the festival.  Many people came from all over Taiwan and some numbers of foreigners. Most of the people who participate lived in a tent and the festival provided a place where you can take a shower. It was a new experienced for us to witness a festival like this who are independent from government and corporate sponsorship. We got a chance to go to a near water falls in Hualien with a Taiwanese friends. I also managed to play in a band with a Japanese friend and the crowd were appreciative.

After the festival we go straight to Tainan City by train, a four hours travel from Hualien to Tainan City. We stayed in Neng Sheng Xing Factory as a residence artist and in this space we will organize and facilitate different activities and workshop that we prepare and share some information of the things that we do in the Philippines. At the time we arrived in the space, the people who stay there are all volunteers which they called “little helper”. The task of little helper is more on domestic works like cleaning, preparing foods, organizing garbage disposal in exchange they can stay and have food for free provided by the space. Tainan, officially Tainan City, is a special municipality of Taiwan, facing the Formosan Strait or Taiwan Strait in the west and south. Tainan is the oldest city on the island of Taiwan and also commonly known as the “Capital City” (府城; Fǔchéng; Hú-siâⁿ) for it’s over 200 years of history as the capital of Taiwan under Koxinga and later Qing dynasty rule. Tainan’s complex history of comebacks, redefinitions and renewals inspired its popular nickname “the Phoenix City”. It is also one of Taiwan’s cultural capitals, for its rich folk cultures including the famous local street food and traditional cuisine. We really like the food here because it’s delicious and very cheap compare to the other cities in Taiwan.

We started our first activity on August 6, a workshop on a DIY Eco-menstrual pads for women an alternative DIY making of re-usable pads for women. To help minimize the waste. Think, how many women throw disposable pads and panty liners every day? That’s a lot of waste! These products require hundreds of years to biodegrade, particularly if wrapped in the plastic bag commonly provided for this purpose as part of their packaging. In fact, every piece of plastic ever made, still exists to this day. This workshop facilitated by Juey. There were seven participants who joined and most of them are happy to sew together.

The next activity happened in National Tainan Second Senior High School on August 9, with the help of Neng Sheng Xing people they arranged my activity in this school. There are 40 senior high school students and their adviser who joined. I presented a power point entitled “Ecological Catastrophe and Our Autonomous Initiative” an analysis on how the corporation with the help of the government destroy the Earth and the direct action that we can do to prevent this destruction. Through exploring and providing alternative solution that are independent and autonomously done by individuals, family and the community in general. The second presentation is a film entitled “Leyte Mission”, a short documentary about one of the strongest typhoons recorded in history: Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. The video documents the devastating impact experienced by the people in Leyte Province and how anarchists made an intervention in the relief effort and recovery stage to give direct aid to the marginalized communities that were affected. The third is the Off-grid Solar Power demonstration and workshop, I show them the four equipment and how it works to provide electricity. I promoted the used of decentralized and self-manageable type of energy production for household level. An alternative to minimize the carbon emission and make a direct-oriented result base practice by community itself.

The third activity take place on August 12, we introduced and organize together the Really Really Free Market event in the streets in front of Neng Sheng Xing Factory. Many people participate and bring stuffs that they can share and also other passerby join to collect some materials. There is a lady who pass by and ask what is going on and then later she came back and share some sweets and foods for all of us. There is a lady who play violin and a guy who play djembe. Father and daughter dance on the streets. And lot of exchanging stories and meeting new people. Our objective is to present a community that open for sharing and giving as an attempt to lessen the capitalist-consumerist lifestyle.

The fourth event done on August 13, we facilitate a workshop/training on Conflict Transformation. More than 10 people participate. We start at around 2pm, the first thing we did is the One Minute Introduction, and participants will introduce themselves in one minute and experienced to speak up in a diverse group of people. Then we share the Group Juggling Game, the objective is to give them an experienced on how to communicate well, focus and how they will react on the situation. Then we introduced and explain what Conflict Transformation is. After that we go to the next tools/exercise about Brainstorming, getting or harnessing ideas and thoughts from the participants. Then we share the Four Roles tools in which they will choose one role that they think its fit for them and explain why they choose the roles and not the other roles. Then we group them into two, each group composed of four roles and we gave them a situation ire for them to figure out how they can make a plan of action based on their role in collaboration with others. Then presented them in the whole group. On this activity everyone shared their opinion sometimes an arguments from some of the participants but settled it in the process. The next tools that we share is the Tape in the Forehead/ Margin-Mainstream, this is one of the intense and emotional thing for all of us. We put different signs in their forehead and tell them to find their group without talking, at first most of them are confused on finding their group then suddenly managed see their group with the help of someone. But one individual stay alone with no group at all. Then we ask the group how they find each other, what they feel after they find their group. The same question that we ask on the one who are alone. After that we have a debriefing asking them what they notice and what they learn, suddenly one participants share her feelings in which she is concerned about the one who had no group and she cried felt that she experienced the same being alone, lonely, rejected. Everyone shared their feelings, another female share the same thing that she feel discriminated, feeling of not belong. While we are discussing this I already put some things to fill up for the Mainstream and Margin awareness then explain this to them that each of us feel the same and sometimes we are not aware that we hurt anybody. Then we had a 5minute break. The last workshop is the Village Game, we group them in to two again and tell them to draw an ecological sustainable village that they dream of. After they finished the drawing each group present their work. Then a group of people went to their village and started to proposed development projects and convinced harder the community to take the offer but the village refused and depended their community. This workshop is about a non-violence situation ire on how the people will react on destructive development intrusion.

The last activity occurred on August 20, 2017. We share two films: 1.Sining, Kalikasan, Aklasan (Art, Nature, Resistance) 31 mins. A short film about the horizontally-organized protest event against the State of the Nation Address of the President. The video documents the inclusive and creative kind of resistance initiated by a diversity of individuals and groups condemning the social and ecological injustice. 2. “Leyte Mission” 9mins. A short documentary about one of the strongest typhoons recorded in history: Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. The video documents the devastating impact experienced by the people in Leyte Province and how anarchists made an intervention in the relief effort and recovery stage to give direct aid to the marginalized communities that were affected. At this day there is also a Farmers Market Day. Two days in a month Neng Sheng Xing Factory tie up with the local organic farmer. They invite local farmers and seller to use their space as a temporary market to sell and showcase organic products, this is to support the advocacy on organic farming and organic product consumption.

When we are in Tainan City, we visited other places too like the Fort Zeelandia in Anping District, Fort Zeelandia was a fortress built over ten years from 1624 to 1634 by the Dutch East India Company, in the town of Anping on the island of Formosa, during their 38-year rule over the western part of that island. Another place is The Tainan Flower Night Market is a night market in North District, Tainan, Taiwan. It is often considered to be the largest and most famous night market in the city. It is said “South is Flower, Middle is Fengjia, North is Shihlin”. We also went to Ala Stream Waterfalls Group (中文版：阿拉溪鞋瀑布群) is a group of at least 4 waterfalls in Tainan, Nanxi District, it’s a great experienced to be in nature for a quiet moment. Aside from touristic spots, we had a chance to visit the Xigang District a rural area were agriculture is one of the main livelihood. In this place a local farmer’s community are contesting the road widening project of the government. They don’t want the project to be built because most of the agricultural land and historical places will be destroyed.

As a residence artist in Neng Sheng Xing Factory in Tainan City we noticed the hard work of every member in different task that they need to do. Every dinner all of us will eat together as a family. If we have time we also cook Filipino dish. Language is one of the barrier and sometimes miss-understanding occur but it will be easily settle. I see their dedication on running their space as they really like to do whatever according to their desire. Most the people there are very kind and sweet.

When we finished the residency, we decided to visit Taipei City to meet other interesting people and to do some activities with them. The first place that we visit is the Trapped Citizen Collective House that run and rented by 30 people. Most of them are into the music scene mainly punks and other are into activism. The main function of the space are for music studios, film screening, gathering hub and accommodation. The member are mainly composed of men and three female. Every Sunday they have a meeting to discuss matters regarding the space and their collective. They welcomed us dearly like as we know each other a long time ago, even though we didn’t know each other they didn’t hesitate to let us in and stay for free on their place. We had a film screening event that happened on August 23, one of our friend there decided what film we will screen and we choose Manila Dispatch and again the Sining Kalikasan Aklasan with Chinese subtitles. After the two film shown we had a break for five minutes then I continue the program by having a power point presentation about Etniko Bandido Infoshop. Then we open the floor for question and answer. I received a lot of question and clarification coming from the participants and more are related to politics and society in the context of Philippine archipelago.  About what is our position in the War on Drugs policy? Poverty situation? The relationship with other left-wing block? How we organized? The danger of being an anarchist? Etc.

The next day August 24, I was invited also to cook and share the film Leyte Mission and S.K.A. in another space called Nature More with their mission of sparking sustainable values and attitudes via creativity, art and interdisciplinary collaboration. The set up was kind a cozy with a hi-tech kitchen facility and elegantly design furniture. Our friend invited a small number of people estimated 14 person to have a dinner while I’m presenting a film. It’s a casual conversation, curious why are there so many waste and garbage in Manila River and discussing what kind of community-development should be appropriate.

The last event take place in a space called Revolution International, a newly renovated building and when we got there the construction still not yet finish. They plan to have a bar, fair trade store that will support other country, they have also an accommodation for rent, and space for workshop/ lecture/ screening. This was managed by a Taiwanese and Japanese friends with their partner investor who will finance the progressive business project. According to them, to continue the social and political initiatives you need to do a certain compromises in a way to achieve the things that you need to pursue. At this space Juey facilitate again the workshop on how to make a DIY Earth-friendly cloth pads for women while I’m touring around the area with our friend and visited the The Ama Museum (Chinese: 阿嬤家-和平與女性人權館; pinyin: Āmā Jiā-Hépíng Yǔ Nǚxìng Rénquán Guǎn) is a museum in Datong District, Taipei, Taiwan. The museum is dedicated to the comfort women during the Japanese rule of Taiwan. The same day is our presentation called Creative Resistance against Ecological Collapse. Again I presented the film Leyte Mission and Sining, Kalikasan, Aklasan. Next, participants make their reaction and raise some question. One of them impressed on the stress debriefing activities that we did for the kids of San Miguel Leyte who had traumatize on the 2013 Typhoon Haiyan. The solar power effort to bring a free electricity in the typhoon affected area was for them a nice initiatives. The space member cook delicious pasta for all the participants.

The next day we had chance to visit Yun Sen Waterfalls in New Taipei City a hometown of our friend. It’s a 30mins trekking and we noticed that many local older people go to this place with their friends and family. It’s a cool place and accessible nevertheless  it’s clean with no trace of rubbish. Then we meet the family of our friend who prepared our lunch, they are very hospitable. After that we visited the Sanxia Old Street and railway.

We went back to Taipei City and the next day another friend tour as around and visited Lungshan Temple of Manka is a Buddhist temple in Wanhua District, Taipei, Taiwan. The temple was built in Taipei in 1738 by settlers from Fujian during Qing rule in honor of Guanyin. Then we went to the oldest and only punk shop in Taipei named Liberated Rythms a music, clothes and art related merchandize that caters punk, post punk, indie, darkwave, coldwave goth, deatheock, crust punk, thrash. HC, black, metal, indie, doom, sludge, psychedelic rock and more.

I also visited the Aborigine protest camp near Taipei Main station. The main issue that is being demonstrated is the Tsai administration’s exclusion of privately-owned property from what was designated as indigenous land in the draft proposal put out by the Council of Indigenous Peoples. It was one of the promises of the Tsai administration that it would restore traditional lands to Taiwanese indigenous population. As a result, while indigenous territories have increased from zero to 800,000 hectares, Indigenous Peoples themselves estimate that their land should consist of 1.8 million hectares. Indigenous groups have criticized that Indigenous Peoples themselves, who should know the range and extent of their traditional territories best, were generally not consulted in the process of surveying traditional lands.

The last two days of our stay in Taiwan ended in Taoyuan City, a place near the international airport. Another friend invited us for a free stay in her space. She loved to have visitor and always preparing sweets and foods for a guest. We had a chance to see Hutou Mountain Park and see a lot of Filipino migrant worker. Most of the nearly 120,000 migrant workers from the Philippines in Taiwan are working in factories, where they are working regular hours with overtime pay. But not all migrant workers had a good experience, according to some information that we got most of them get less than a minimum wage specially people who are into domestic work and care giver. The minimum wage in Taiwan is around 22,000 NT Dollars per month but the migrants only get 15,000 to 18,000 NT Dollars a month. They have only one day off per week and lived in a small apartment with other workers, company will issued penalty if you sleep-over outside the designated apartment. They also have a curfew that no one should be outside at 10pm.

Our days in Taiwan is very hectic but it’s a lot of fun and excitement.

 

EKSTRA-ORDINARYONG KOLABORASYON
[Pagbubunyi ng BUHAY sa pamamagitan ng Malayang Inter-aksyon]

Pagninilay-nilay ni Itim Luntian

MAIKLING BACKGROUND
Ang kahirapan ay isang nagdudumilat na katotohanan. Hindi ko alam kung nababagabag pa tayo sa daang libong mga walang tahanan at ang bilang ay patuloy pang lumolobo. Nababalisa ka pa kaya sa napakaraming paslit na nagkalat sa lansangan na dinadahas ng kasalatan at kagutuman? Ang mga namamalimos, nagso-solvent at marami ding nasasangkot sa maliitan at mga seryosong krimen ay karaniwang eksena sa ating kapaligiran. Ang ating kumbinyenteng paliwanag ay sisihin sila sa kanilang kalagayan, kesyo pabaya ang kanilang mga magulang, tamad, walang disiplina, bobo at mangmang.

Sa kabilang banda, bibihira nating sulyapan ang isa pang nagdudumilat na katotohanan na may iilang taong nasa posisyon na nakaka-impluwensya sa distribusyon ng yaman ng lipunan. Sa tuwing may nakikita kang paslit na namalimos habang karay ang isang sanggol sa ilalim ng init ng araw sa gitna ng mapangnib na lansangan, una mo bang naiisip ang labis-labis na luho ng iilan na may direktang kontrol sa mga pasilidad, budget at resources ng pamahalaan? Naiisip mo kaya na may iilang korporasyon at negosyo ang may kontrol sa mga likas-yaman at mga istratehikong industriya kagaya ng pagkain, kuryente, supply ng tubig, pabahay at edukasyon? O mas madaling tanggapin ang dahilan na kumplikado ang problema ng kahirapan at hindi ito maso-solusyunan ng isang kumpas lang.

Ang kahirapan ay isang tanggap na problemang panlipunang, sa katunayan may iba’t-ibang programa maging sa pandaigdignang antas upang ito ay tugunan. Subalit sa awa ng ating mga Ninuno, nanatiling miserable ang kundisyon ng napakaraming bilang ng mga tao.

Malinaw pa sa sikat ng araw, ang KAHIRAPAN ay pangunahing suliranin na dumuduhagi sa malawak na bilang ng mga tao at pamayanan. Kailangan pa ba ng mala-“rocket science” na sistema upang maintindihan ang ugat ng suliraning ito? Napakalayo na ng inabot ng teknolohiya ng tao, ang pinagkaka-abalahan na sa kasalukuyan ng mga pantas at eksperto ay kung paano makaka-pamuhay sa ibang planeta. Ang sistema ng produksyon ay nakakalikha na ng labis-labis na pagkain, gamot at iba pang pangangailangan at luho ng tao. Hindi ka pa rin nagtatanong kung bakit sa kabila ng labis na produksyon ay may 836 milyong tao ang nabubuhay sa labis na kahirapan sa daigdig (United Nations World Data Forum).

Hindi naman nalalayo ang programang pang-kahirapan ipinatutupad ng kasalukuyang administrasyon sa mga nakalipas na pamahalaan kagaya ng public-private partnership sa modelo ng Accelerated and Sustainable Anti-Poverty Program (ASAPP). Ang programang ito ay nakabalangkas pa rin naman sa isang neo-liberal na kaisipan kung saan ang mga malilit na kabuhayan ay nakasandig sa malalaking negosyo kung saan ang malalaking korporasyon ang makikinabang at magse-sentrelisa ng higit na may malaking benepisyo.

Hindi sa hinuhusgahan ang administrasyong Duterte sa programa nito sa kahirapan, pero kung susundan ang lohika ng programang ito, makikita na ang resulta ay katulad lang din ng mga nagdaang administrasyon.

ANG HIGIT NA MALAKING INVESTMENT NG ADMINISTRASYONG DUTERTE AY NASA PROGRAMA NG DIGMAAN LABAN SA ILLEGAL NA DROGA. May mas mahalaga pa ba sa buhay ng 10,000 mahihirap? Ang labis na kahirapan kailanman ay hindi kumikilala sa batas, katulad ng rebelyon ng kaliwa man o ng mga rebeldeng muslim na kung tutuusin ay kumitil ng buhay hindi lang makatlong-ulit kumpara sa mga namatay sa krimen kaugnay sa droga.

Baka naman sadya lang siyang uhaw sa dugo? O baka naman siya ay psychopathic o serial killer? May iba pa kaya siyang rason sa likod ng kanyang marahas na polisiya laban sa mga tao lalo ng mahihirap na sangkot sa illegal na droga? Wala akong tiyak na kasagutan, pero ang sigurado ako, ang polisiyang ito ay mababaw na tugon at wala sa tono para ma-solusyunan ang nagdudumilat at patuloy na lumalalang problema sa kahirapan at mga kaugnay na isyu nito.

Sa kabila ng takot at banta na inihahasik ni Digong, marami pa ring mga tao ang may higit na respeto sa BUHAY na nanindigan at nagpahayag ng paninindigan laban sa nagaganap na karahasan. Nagkita-kita ang iba’t-ibang grupo, kolektiba at indibidwal upang tutulan ang marahas na kampanya laban sa droga na ang pangunahing layunin ay ITIGIL ANG NAGAGANAP NA MALAWAKANG PAGPATAY NG MGA PINAGSUSUPETSAHAN AT MAGING ANG MGA NADADAMAY NA MGA INOSENTENG TAO KABILANG ANG ILANG PASLIT.

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Patungkol sa Proseso
INTERESANTE ANG UGNAYANG NABUO ng napaka-diverse na mga tao at pamayanan, hindi ordinaryo na magsama ang mga taong simabahan (EIMELIF o Evangelical Methodist Church in the Philippine Islands), Peace Church Philippines), Theo sa Kanto, indidbiwal at mga kolektiba ng mga Anarkista, mga alagad ng sining, mga Anarcho-Punks at Food Not Bombs Crew.

Interesante dahil sadyang malawak ang pakakaiba-iba sa kultura, gawi at pananaw ng mga kalahok sa kampanya. Mga pagkakaiba-ibang hindi aasahan na magkakadaupang-palad. Sa kabuuan ay naging makinis ang daloy ng proseso ng preparasyon, matingkad ang pagkakaiba-iba sa pinagmumulan ng pagsusuri subalit dahil sa kapwa-respeto na ipinapakita ng mga sangkot sa proseso ay lalo pang umigting ang unawaan. Lumutang ang praktika ng kapwa-tulungan. Sa pamamagitan ng serye ng dialogo at pagiging bukas sa isa’-isa naging kapuna-puna ang pantay na turingan. Transparent sa bawat detalye at hinihikayat ang bolunturismo ng bawat isa.

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Patungkol sa Aktuwal na Kondukta
Sa aktuwal na kondukta ma-o-obserbahan ang pagkukusa ng bawat kalahok. Naging sensitibo ang karamihan sa pagtukoy ng mga gawaing kailangan punan at buong pagkukusa na gumampan sa mga bagay na dapat gawin. Mula sa preparasyon ng pagkain, ng venue, paghahanap, pag-transport at pagsasa-ayos ng sound system, pag-install ng mga likhang-sining, pag-estima sa mga panauhin, pakikitungo sa mga homeless at mga batang lansangan. Ispontanyong nagawa ang mga akbtidad at workshop na kung tutusin ay bonus dahil hindi na bahagi ng mga pinag-usapang plano subalit naging epektibo at nakadagdag sa pagpapa-ganda ng aktibidad sa kabuuan.

Mainam na lumutang ang usapin ng partisipasyon ng mga tao at mga batang direktang kumakaharap ng talamak na kahirapan, diskriminasyon, kagutuman at kamangmangan. Hindi sila ang mga tao na nasa laylayan ng lipunan na tinutukoy ng ilang mga pulitiko. Sila ang mga taong ITINAKWIL NA NG LIPUNAN. Sila ang higit na nakadarama ng malupit na epekto ng hindi pantay na bahaginan ng biyaya mula sa ating mga ninuno at kalikasan. Kung mayroong mang dapat i-prayoridad ang mga instituyon sila iyon. Mainam at nagkaroon tayo ng malusog na talakayan upang i-konsidera ang kanilang paglahok sa anumang mga aktibidad na iniisip nating gawin sa hinaharap.

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Patungkol sa Layunin
Malinaw ang layunin ng Biag, Buhay Kinabuhi 2.0; ito ay upang makapag-pahayag ng pagtutol sa walang habas na pagkitil sa buhay ng mga tao na itinataguyod ng estado. Nakadisenyo ito na magbahagi ng mga napapanahong impormasyon tungkol sa isyu at makapaghain ng mga posibleng alternatiba sa halip na patayan, kaya nga nag-imbita ng mga tao institusyon na makakatulong sa pagkamit ng nabanggit na mga layunin. Sa pangkalahatan ay epektibong nakamit ang mga ito; nais ko lang susugan ang nabanggit ng isa sa mga kasama noong assessment na dapat sana ay nagkaroon ng pagkakataong magtanong ang mga tagapakinig sa bawat pagtatapos ng talakayan ng mga tagapasalita ng sa gayon ay magkaroon ng pagpapalalim at paglilinaw.

Nais kong idagdag na mas mainam kung nagkaroon ng pagkakataon ang mga alagad ng sining magsalita tungkol sa kanilang mga inspirasyon sa paglikha ng kanilang mga likhang sining na ini-ambag.

Natural wala namang perpekto at hindi ako naghahangad nito, ang naganap na gawain ay higit pa sa isang daan porsyento lalo’t ang bawat isa ay hindi naglimita sa kanilang mga ambag at partisipasyon.

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Mga bonus na nakamit ng Aktibidad

– Ang pagkatuto ko ay hindi lang sa mismong paksa, nadagdagan ang mga taong nakilala at nag-uumapaw ang kasiyahan dahil maraming tao at pamayanan na may katulad kong pagtanaw sa kapwa kung saan ang relasyon ay umiinog sa respeto at pagkilala sa pagkakaiba-iba.
– Tumaas ang aking moral at na-engganyo na ituloy pa ang mga katulad na gawain.
– Napatibay ko ang pananaw na kailanman ay hindi hadlang ang ating pagkakaiba-iba para magsagawa ng kapwa-tulungan upang itaguyod ang kapakanan na kapaki-pakinabangan sa buhay ng mga tao, lalo ng mga marhinalisadong mga komunidad at ng ating mga pamilya mismo. Gayundin ng ating kalikasan at likas-na-yaman.

MARAMING SALAMAT SA ATING LAHAT! NAWA’Y PATULOY TAYONG GABAYAN NG ATING MGA NINUNO.

“Ecological Re-connection and Our Responsibility as a Human Being”

“Every creature is better alive than dead, men and moose and pine trees, and he who understands it aright will rather preserve its life than destroy it.”       Henry David Thoreau

 

 

The human being already consumed, extract and destroy the only habitable planet on the solar system, our mother earth. We people, are already detached ourselves with the land, sea and other creatures that supposed to be our brother and sister. Our modern practices dependent on the values of consumerist lifestyle, alienation, destructive progression and greed. We are no longer connected to each other, to our culture, to our language and to our traditional life ways. We are already influenced by the capitalist market and gradually forgetting our true local identity. This whole system teach us to become a product and think that nature is our commodity, disrespecting the importance of life.

There is a necessity now for us to re-think our sole purpose in life and why we are here in this planet. Re-connecting ourselves with nature that support our daily function as a human being. The mother earth is calling us to protect the mountains, rivers, sea and each other from an onslaught that is already happening in different side of the globe.

As a human being like you, we are encouraging you to be part and express your willingness to an experience that will tackle the culture of sharing, cherishing lives, promoting diversity and rejoining ourselves to the nature.

Workshop/ lecture: Mono print, Detergent soap making, Yoga for Earth and Health, Marginal World music, Silk-screen printing, Cooking demo, Solar power demo, Percussion workshop, Participatory Zine-making, Eco- menstrual pads workshop, Poi dance and DIY film making and editing.