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I received this Open Letter today and believe it should be reprinted here to add another point of view to the debate. If it is true, and it is certainly the closest to what I would take for a true account I have read so far, somebody is throwing their weight around to cover their own bad behaviour and in the process hundreds of people are suffering. I have to say while the L.A. Cafe has always to my knowledge been a haunt for freelance prostitutes, I have never once witnessed any of the staff pimping or being pimped or facilitating the activities of the freelance girls. If any of them ever did get a little too forward it was always  an easy matter to ask one of the waitresses to tell teh lady to leave you alone. And they did for fear of being turfed out. I see there being no difference between the L.A. Cafe and bars and casinos in Las Vegas and elsewhere. They will always be the haunts of women offering the only thing of value they have in exchange for an income. Sad, tragic but a fact of life.

OPEN LETTER TO

Honorable Harry K. Thomas, Jr

Ambassador to the Philippines

United States Embassy

Roxas Boulevard

City of Manila

THE CHAIRMAN

COMMISSION OF HUMAN RIGHTS PHILIPPINES

SAAC BUILDING,

Commonwealth Avenue,

Quezon City

Ms. Elzadia Washington

USAID Philippines

Acting Mission Director

United Nations Avenue,

Ermita, City of Manila

infoph@usaid.gov

Mr Roger Carlson

USAID Philippines

Acting Deputy Mission Director

United Nations Avenue,

Ermita, City of Manila

infoph@usaid.gov

Dear Sirs / Madame,

The employees of LA Cafe would like to address the fabricated press releases and totally untrue allegations coming from an AMERICAN FUNDED group called International Justice Mission (IJM) under the leadership of a certain Atty Carmela Andal-Castro, IJM Field officer

IJM Philippines an American Funded group claim they donate large sums of money to Philippine Government organizations. Their money comes from donations from American tax payers via USAID and various American Agency’s.

LA Cafe has been operating as a restaurant, live band , billiards bar similar to an American Theme Restaurant/Bar in Makati called Hard Rock Cafe since 1999 without any problem’s

or issues affecting public morality or health. LA Cafe enjoys Worldwide renown and is a significant contributor to local Philippine employment and welfare.

LA Cafe is a member of the Manila Entertainment Music Lounge Association and has been accredited by the Department of Tourism Philippines (DOT) since 1999

In early 2007 the general manager of L A Cafe was attacked by an inebriated American National and as a direct consequence suffered a life threatening heart attack, resulting in a full heart by pass operation at the Philippine General Hospital

The General Manager of LA Cafe once released from hosiptal filed a case against the American National Mr. MARC EDWARD MC CABE / IS # 06-H-16862/ Address: 139 Blk 7 Sitio 3 Zone 7 Sto.Nino A. Bonifacio, Western Bicutan Taguig – who claims he works for USAID Philippines

McCabe, a US citizen claimed he was ”un-touchable” in the Philippines as he worked for USAID Philippines and would use his infuence, connections and position of authority to cause problems for LA Cafe if a case was taken against him.

This criminal case IS# 06-H-16862 can be verified by the Regional Trial Court of Manila – the criminal case is still being processed and continued.

Why did an American USAID supported group (IJM) start to harrass a legal Filipino business that EMPLOYS more than 190 FILIPINOS as waitresses , bar tenders, utility, chefs, live bands ,dj’s, security guards, and administrative and purchasing staff? Workers who support their families and now have NO EMPLOYMENT!! thanks to the unfounded and untrue accusations and cases issued by IJM an American funded group, just a week after the case involving the USA National McCabe was elevated to court?

To compound matters and to highlight the level of vindictive behavior thrust upon this FILIPINO company by the AMERICAN funded group, IJM, several honest and hard working L.A Café waitresses have been accused by IJM of being PROSTITUTES! These accusations were made nationally in our FILIPINO newspapers giving no thought to the humiliation felt by hard working FILIPINAS as the baseless lies are paraded in front of their families! These poor FILIPINA waitresses were even paraded like animals on Philippine national television (TV PATROL), accused and condemned as PROSTITUTES and CRIMINALS while wearing their work uniforms!!

The American sponsored group INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE MISSION are the entity that filed a complaint against LA Cafe with the Manila City Hall, as verified by the newspapers

The Manila Standard Newspaper even wrote in their article that Mayor Lim had previously closed LA Cafe which is un true and baseless.

How would AMERICANS react if we FILIPINOS marched into a Hard Rock Café in New York, or TGI Fridays in Los Angeles, a HOOTERS BAR in Las Vegas or any AMERICAN owned restaurant and accused AMERICAN waitresses of being sex workers, PIMPS and PROSTITUTES writing un founded allegations to your beloved Mayor!!

Would this ever happen to the American Franchise Chain’s in the Philippines such as HOOTERS MANILA, HARD ROCK CAFE, TGI FRIDAYS, OUTBACK, CAFE HAVANA, CALIFORNIA PIZZA OVEN, MCDONALDS or the American Hotel Chains such as the MARRIOT PARANAQUE, HOLIDAY INN CLARK or the RENAISSANCE MAKATI where they have restaurants, bars and discos

These Filipina waitresses, supervisors and management all come from respectable Philippine famalies and are now branded as PROSTITUTES, PIMPS and CRIMINALS in their own Country the Philippines by this AMERICAN funded organization IJM

There are many similar Filipino establishments within walking distance from LA Cafe such as HOOTERS Manila Bay, Hard Rock Cafe, Hobbit House, Cafe Havana, TGI Friday’s, Cowboy Grill, which have never been a target of the American funded IJM and their vindictive operations against Filipino’s

How can this American supported mission IJM ask for donation’s from the American taxpayer for EVANGELICAL work here in our beloved Philippines whilst fabricating evidence and issuing affidavits against hard working Filipinos in our own Country, the Philippines?! All because the AMERICAN, McCABE got drunk and was sued correctly within OUR LEGAL SYSTEM???

Which legal Filipino establishment will this American Funded Group (IJM) target next and fabricate evidence against the management and have inocent Filipinos forced into jail while using American Tax Payers Money in our Country the Philippines

There are now four (4) FILIPINA’S who work for L. A. Cafe Restaurant/Bar as managers/supervisors facing LIFE IMPRISONMENT due to the total and baseless fabrication of evidence and sworn affidavits that they were pimping PROSTITUTES and are themselves PROSTITUTES

Their names have been published in all the National Newspapers by the American funded IJM using American Tax Payers money

Amazingly there are two (2) Filipina customers of LA Cafe who the American funded IJM

claim worked in L. A. Cafe, the management of LA Cafe has no record of there persons nor knowledge who they are.

The final detainee does not work for LA Cafe but is the manager of LA Cafe Annex in the adjacent building which is a small billiard hall employing 14 Filipino waitresses, utility and security. This small billiard hall is also closed due to fabricated allegations depriving its Filipino employees their constitutional right to work and support their families thanks to IJM.

All the employees of LA Cafe have valid work/health permits issued by Manila City Hall

Does the RAID on LA Cafe during a 2010 World Cup Soccer game and live performing Live Bands at 10.30pm at night have anything to do with the vendeta of the American National who claims to be a USAID employee who was a REGULAR CUSTOMER of LA Cafe until his drunken fit of rage with his Filipina girlfriend against the General Manager of LA Cafe??

L. A. Cafe has a very clear Policy with our 12 security guards managed by an honorable decorated retiried Filipino Colonel that NO MINORS are to enter the premises as ordered by Manila City Hall even though we are just a public restaurant and bar. The NO MINORS policy is clearly shown at the entrance and throughout the premises with prominent signs. Any minor who is out after 10 pm is a violation of Manila City Ordinance 8046 and responsibility of the parents, barangay officials and police.

No Philippine National is forced to work at L. A. Cafe as claimed by the American IJM Group. This idea is RIDICULOUS, BASELESS and is a TOTAL FABRICATION!! The AMERICANS have their own history of SLAVERY, we proud FILIPINOS DO NOT !!!

How interesting is that many United States of America DIPLOMATS frequent LA Cafe (since its opening) and know personally the employees now held in jail, due to the fabricated affidavits of an agency that they support, The IJM!

How ironic that the United States of America Philippines Embassy held a going away party for an American DIPLOMAT at LA Cafe recently, the Embassy department even more ironically was NCIS (Strategic Investigations) of the United States of America in the Philippines

This is NOT A FABRICATION unlike the baseless claims of IJM the LA Cafe has 16 CCTV Cameras constantly monitoring the premises for the protection of us the staff and its customers. CCTV footage can SUPPORT ANY counter claims made by LA Café against IJM and their hypocritical American supporters.

Many foreign and Filipino executives are customers of LA Cafe both female and male personalities including famous actors, actresses and sportsmen. The LA Café is a tourist attraction and brings foreign money to our country and to our community, helping to support our local families.

LA Cafe proudly sponsors, as being the largest billiard venue in Manila (On and off) the following famous athletes and done since opening in 1999 with pride

Manny Pacquiao Pound for Pound greatest boxer in the World

Bobby Pacquiao Former Asia Pacific Boxing Champion

Efren ”Bata” Reyes Hall of Fame Billiard Player and many times over Wold Champion

Francisco Bustmante Former World Number 1 Billiard Player

Marlon Manalo World number 6 Billiard Player

Jeff De Luna Professional Pool Player

Alex Pagulayan World 2004 Billiard Champion

Roberto Gomes World 9 ball Runner up

Darren Appelton World number 1 English Pool player British

Karl Boyles UK World 8 Ball Champion

Rudolfo Luat Former world number 1 9 ball billiard player

Ronny Alcano World 9 and 10 ball champion

Steve Davis Number 1 paid UK athlete in 1988 and World Snooker Champion

Dennis Orcollo Current World Number 1 Billiard Player

LA Cafe is the proud Sponsor of MP Warriors General Santos Basketball Team.

LA Cafe arrange regular live exhibitions by these athletes, two weeks ago there was an exhibition billiard game featuring Efren ”Bata” Reyes a Filipino icon

Two live band’s perform daily on the second floor where the American funded IJM claim is located a sex den

The second floor has live bands, 4 billiard tables, eating area and an extensive wine cellar

There are NO PRIVATE VIP rooms anywhere in LA Cafe

LA Cafe bands are auditioned by both International and American Hotel chains from Guam, Dubai, Singapore, Hong Kong, China and Malaysia.

The bands from LA Cafe then receive legal contracts to work throughout the world as a performing artists.Something we FILIPINO’s can be proud of. Does this constitute HUMAN TRAFFICKING as alleged by American funded IJM

The World famous Filipino Artists that have and until last week did perform in the LA Cafes second floor, claimed to be a SEX DEN by the AMERICAN IJM, include

Ramon ”RJ” Jacinto Rock and Roll Legend of the Philippines

Freddie ”Anak” Aguilar (For over 10 years) KA Freddie

Side A

Freestyle

Aegis

(Francis Magalona)

Andrew E

Southborder

Cushe

Highway 69

Christoper De Leon

Air Supply International Band

And two (2) local bands daily who vary from day to day.

Manila Dogs Golf Club (500 Members) which was founded by LA Cafe and has been the home of the club since 2001, have their weekly prize giving at LA Cafe.

Players include both male and female diplomats from many Embassies including the United States of America

Palugaw Soup Kitchen for the Ermita Street Children

Every weekend LA Cafe sponsors Palugaw Soup Kitchen with the Barangay 668 to feed the street children of Ermita, this will now be cancelled due to the closure of LA Cafe thereby depriving Filipino Street Children the opportunity of a full meal once a week due to the American Funded IJM

Should IJM not use their American funded resources to feed and help these innocent street children in Ermita which LA Cafe has done for years instead of closing legitimate business for their own personal gain for more funding from America

We the employees of LA Cafe request that this American funded IJM be stopped from continuing to use American Tax payers money to make victims of innocent Filipinos! We are perfectly able in our own country to control our own affairs and do not need to be bullied by some HYPOCRITICAL American funded mission

The American funded IJM are wasting the time of the Philippine courts while making Millions of Peso’s for themselves from the donations given to them by American Agencies and the American “man in the street”. Most importantly we cannot work and support our loved ones and we don’t have their resources to repudiate these FALSE and BASELESS accusations against us

FINALLY WE THE EMPLOYEES OF LA CAFE HAVE LEGAL DOCUMENTS AND SIGNED AFFIDAVITS PROVING THAT IJM AN AMERICAN FUNDED MISSION ARE USING AMERICAN DOLLARS TO OBTAIN FALSE AFFIDAVITS FROM THIRD PARTIES TO CRIMINALLY PROSECUTE INNOCENT FILIPINOS SO THEY CAN JUSTIFY THEMSELVES TO THEIR AMERICAN HEAD QUARTERS TO RECEIVE MORE FUNDING FOR THEIR PERSONAL GAIN AT THE EXPENSE OF FILIPINOS

Mabuhay!

Employees Crisis Commitee of L A Cafe

The anti-discrimination regulations in force in most western countries often seem like a politically correct joke in many ways. Especially as we know that even if they don’t specify X in the ad, if you don’t have X then you won’t get the job. Yes, they have just discriminated against you but then we all ‘discriminate’ every time we choose one thing over another, when we buy this brand over that and so on.

Personally I think the rules for advertising jobs are a good indicator of where political correctness can get it wrong, but then I read the job ads in Philippines newspapers. Here are a few taken at random:

Admin Assistant Female, 5′4″ in height, excellent in oral and written english, keen to details and able to work independently, knowledgeable in microsoft word, excel and powerpoint.

I thought English, the language, deserved an upper case E? Maybe why they need someone ‘excellent in oral and written english’. But why 5’4”?

Japanese Speaking Guest Service Associate for Front Office Female, 27-35 years of age, 5′4″ in height, fluent in japanese and english with strong customer service skills, willing to work in shifts, With at least 2 years experience working for a 5-star hotel is an advantage, college graduate.

At least they are consistent and leave out the J along with the E. What if the best candidate is 26 and 5’3”? No point sending in the resume as they will ask for a birth certificate and do a height check. OK, same employer (a five star hotel in Cebu);

Media Communications Manager Female, college graduate at least 5′4″ in height, preferably single, related working experience in marketing, advertising, or journalism is an advantage, has established contact and linkages with counterparts in the city, excellent in oral and written english, customer service oriented.

And this one:

Banguet Sales Executive Female, college graduate, at least 5′4″ in height, preferably single, preferably with 2 years relevant experience with a reputable hotel, excellent leadership, selling and communication skills.

Four out of eight job vacancies require females 5’4” in height. Why? Low doorways to the Ladies toilets? Only one uniform size? Of the other four job openings, one didn’t specify gender, two allowed the candidate to be either male or female and the last one wanted a female for the role, height unspecified but she had to be between 21 – 30 years old.

Trawl through any job listings for Filipino positions and you will be told how old they have to be, what gender, marital status, age and even that their personality must be ‘pleasing’. In some cases they even stipulate ‘attractive’. That means light skinned by the way.

That is the way it is here and just one more thing you will have to accept if you plan to live here. It is their Rome, they are doing it the ‘Roman’ way and you know what they say about ‘When in Rome…’

A recent court case between the mother of a premature baby and the hospital that refused to let the baby go until her bill was paid, found in favour of the mother. A Writ of Habeas Corpus (Produce the Body) was served on Cebu Doctor’s University Hospital to release the baby to the mother, even though the unpaid portion of the bill is P503,000 (US$10K)

Not letting the patient or the ‘watchers’ (patient’s family) leave is a common tactic in hospitals across the country. I waited in agony on a gurney for an hour while my wife looked for an ATM to pay the deposit before anyone would even triage me at Perpetual Succour Hospital, Cebu. That was just to get admitted! Both Cebu Doctor’s and Perpetual Succour are owned in whole or part by the Sisters of St Paul of Chartres, a Catholic order.

My wife’s father was held a virtual prisoner in Cebu Doctor’s Hospital in 2002 until I promised to pay his bill. The body of my sister-in-law was detained along with the Death Certificate until we had paid her bill in full at . She died in Cebu (Velez) General Hospital, a ‘public hospital’ but the mentality is the same. Doctors are mini-gods, nurses do nothing and the rats have the run of the place when the cats are sleeping. I kid you not.

The hospitals in Cebu are a paradox in many ways. They do have some first class hospitals yet the attention to detail is lacking, to the point where the cleaners only clean where you can see leaving dirt and dust behind hand rails and under sinks etc. They have some fine medical professionals also. My cardiologist was trained at Cebu Doctor’s but now practises in Australia.

Try also to see the hospital’s position. They are a business and have their own bills to pay. Until the societal changes necessary to make it fairer for all occur, only those with the ability to pay will be able to access the best treatment.

Read the article by clicking on this link to the SunStar Cebu.

Makati has a reputation amongst some of being the haunt of the rich, effete and privileged. Those fat cat expats with the big salary packages who live here in the company owned house surrounded by walls, guards, with a driver, maids and so on. True. Makati is also home to some of the poorest in Manila.

The city of Makati came about after the Second World War when the Ayala’s bought up Nielsen Field, the old US Army Air Corps airstrip. Even today, a glance at a map of Makati shows how Makati Avenue used to be the main runway and the old control tower is still there, near the intersection with Ayala Avenue, the alternate runway. Both roads are on a similar axis to the existing runways at NAIA as the prevailing winds haven’t changed.

The City of Makati has slums like any other Manila city, especially along the disused railway tracks of the old North Luzon rail line that runs parallel to Taft Avenue along the south western boundary of the city. Across EDSA to the north east and also to the north and north west lie areas of working class housing, squatter “jerry builts” and out and out shacks and shanties!

The super rich areas of Forbes Park are more what we think of when someone mentions Makati. Walled compounds containing huge family homes and servant’s quarters, immaculate grounds kept so by an army of gardeners and dozens of fawning domestic help almost like something from a Graeme Greene novel. It takes serious money to live here. No matter whether it is dollars, euro or peso, expect to hand over a lot of them for the privilege.

Of course there are also very affordable apartments in Makati that can be rented, fully furnished for P20,000 to P30,000 a month. If you want to live nearer the working class but still boast a Makati address you can even rent small apartments for half that!

Some argue that living in Makati is expensive and the truthful answer is yes, it can be. If you choose to live that way. Those single men who haunt P.Burgos Street and the go-go bars that line the curving carriageway would go through vast amounts of cash just keeping up with their bar tab, let alone renting company from time to time. But even there, ‘Happy Hour’ at some bars like ‘Rogues’ above the Pizza Hut can be reasonable with beers costing around P40 until 10pm!

If you are like me and are no longer an avid attendee of these bars, then the best value I was shown would have to have been Chilli’s. Two beers for P65 or six for P180, it varied over the time I was doing my “empirical research”. The same kind of deal could be had at Pier One in nearby Taguig at The Fort, a very flash new development I might say. The food at Chilli’s is very American, huge portions and so on but I love their Ranch Burger for P275. You really had a hard time stepping around the thing it was that big.

The malls of Makati are many and world class. Glorietta has four malls, then you flow into the Greenbelt series of four Malls and some of the café’s and eateries there are simply superb. Not all of them are ridiculously priced in fact all were far cheaper than what I would pay for similar fare in Sydney’s Darling Harbour. I have also been to Rodeo Drive in L.A. and Greenwich Village in New York, Berlin and London and I would have to say for value for money, Makati offers everything the other cities promise.

As well as the great café scene, the shops are full of eye candy for the discerning voyeur and great bargains for the serious shopper. The department stores like SM and Robinsons’ charge the same prices as they do in Cebu, and the malls go on and on for miles!

All of the insider information was passed on to me by my good friend, “David in Makati” as he signs his emails. A retired British Ghurkha Officer, David has lived and worked his own consultancy firm out of Makati for over twenty years. He knows his way around and he also, understandably, knows where to get a decent curry! As he quite rightly points out, “why live in the boonies and suffer when you can live in a civilized part of the world with everything you need close to hand, just as you would in the center of New York, London or any major cosmopolitan city?”

He’s quite right and I think you could live in Makati within a P50,000-P75,000 (US$1,100-US$1,750) a month budget and be very comfortable on half that again. Try living well and eating out regularly in Manhattan or Mayfair for less than US$1500 a month! And there aren’t all of those fashionista Filipina’s to feast your eyes upon, either!

Comparing 21st Century Philippines and Medieval Europe

A thousand years ago, give or take a hundred, our ancestors lived in feudal Europe governed by Kings and Dukes and Lords and what not. Countries were relatively small and there was often much disagreement about boundaries and titles. Many rulers expanded their land holdings through marriage, inheritance and conquest.

Society had several layers, perhaps similar to the A. B. C and D class divisions used by marketing professionals here in the Philippines. The nobility were the A class, they owned most all of the land and ruled all who lived upon it. The B class were the second tier of nobles, land owning but owing allegiance to their Lord, a kind of middle class of sorts. The C class consisted of the artisans, Freemen and merchants, craftsmen and yeomanry. The D class were the serfs, the peasants who tilled the lands for their landlords, who owned very little but a few tools and clothes and would be born into serfdom, live as serfs and die as serfs. They were hardly better off than slaves.

The lines are a little blurred here, today. We have the minority A class who own the majority of the land and the industry and commerce. These are the really big names in Philippines society and most would look more at home in Madrid than Manila. Before the Spanish were sent packing, these were the “Filipinos”. There were the peninsulars who were born in Spain, the insulars born here and the mestizo’s who were of mixed blood. Everyone else was labelled as “indios”, the Malay-Filipino majority in other words. Filipino was a term used to label those who were born here, owned land here but were definitely not “indios”.

The original leaders of the revolt against the colonial rulers were all “Filipino’s”, leading their loyal serf “Indios” into battle against the Spanish. I don’t believe they had any intention of giving the Indios a fair share of the pie, they were merely cannon fodder. Today little has changed and the D class and much of the C class are collectively known as the “masa”. The masa are too busy keeping some rice on their tables to worry about revolt, revolution, redistribution or anything else remotely political.

In medieval days, the serfs were treated similarly and while they may have risen up on occasion, these revolts were isolated exhalations of frustration, quickly quelled. Any long term changes in power were carried out at the upper levels, using the middle levels for management and the lower levels for muscle. The only people to really benefit from the power struggles were the upper classes.

What made it possible for the lower classes in Europe to break free of the bonds of serfdom was the industrial revolution. Mechanization spread the wealth. People with talent and ingenuity and chutzpah were able to get ahead without the traditional leverage of land and the riches that were generated from this real property. People colonised other continents and attitudes changed the farther they were able to move from direct feudal rule.
In the Philippines, it has been only a few generations since the Spaniards were removed from power, fewer still that Filipino’s in the modern sense of the term have had a say in their governance and so the old ways still remain. The wealth of the land for mining, agriculture and industry is still held in the hands of the elite few, maybe 20 families or so. Beneath them, “running” the country and so on are another 100 families and then there is the (slowly) growing middle class and below them the “masa”, or D class.

The D class, a majority of perhaps as much as 65% of the population, are kept in poverty and check by their adherence to the dogma of the Catholic Church. The poverty cycle will never be broken while they continue to breed like rabbits, forbidden to do otherwise by the church. When the government; put in power by the elite and their campaign contributions, toe the church line and focus on agriculture instead of industry (manufacturing), there is little hope for the small land holder who can’t even feed his own family for a year from his acreage, if he has any.

The elite control the church, who do their bidding by telling the masa who the elite want them to vote for, ensuring the cycle continues. There is no real change here, the 20th anniversary of EDSA had more police in attendance than supporters as people perhaps finally grasped nothing changed after People Power.

Look at how people here live. The rich live in walled castles and estates with guards, gates and the modern equivalent of drawbridges. All the way down the line to the C classes they barricade themselves in against the lower classes. If you don’t, the have nots line the boundaries and stare at the haves. Or they squat and take over the land knowing the law will save them because that law (the Lena Law forcing land owners to compensate squatters with money or a new place to live it they cleared them off their own land) was a sop to the masa in the name of “land reform”. The majority of land that was reformed has been public lands and the property of the hapless middle class, too busy earning dollars overseas to protect their land on a daily basis.

You walk any suburban street and it is all walls and gates, barbed wire and guards. Sari sari stalls peer out of barred windows, everything sold must fit through the small gate in the bars or else risk opening the door and a rush of thieving poor people. Every house has some small business going, even if it is just to keep the helpers busy. Even relatively poor people have helpers. Wages are low to non-existent when people will work for room and board and the employer has the status of having other human beings working for them as servants. Serfs. People who have few choices and little say in how they are exploited, mistreated and used to boost the ego of their employer.

The schools are controlled by the church, ensuring the people get little in the way of a worthwhile education but come out well versed in the myth and ritual that perpetuates the church’s stranglehold on their thinking and opportunities. Only the well off can afford a decent education where, funnily enough, the amount of religious instruction is noticeably less with more attention, and time, given to useful subjects such as maths, English, science etc. Out of 23 (mostly college graduate) Filipino’s under 30 I have asked “How many centavos in a peso” only one so far gave the correct answer! But they can all cross themselves and say the rosary!

Often the “Lord of the Manor” is an absentee landlord, off at the Crusades overseas however this time he or she is earning greenbacks rather than Redemption. The church still holds sway over daily life, threatening excommunication and other mythical punishments to fit the dogma they have developed and fine tuned over two millennia. In medieval times the first son inherited everything, the second son would become a mercenary (travel abroad as an OFW?) and earn his inheritance at the point of his sword and the third or often enough illegitimate son would join the clergy. Rich fathers would purchase a bishopric for the illegitimate son, knowing he would make a pretty penny and it would keep him and his mother from usurping the inheritance of the legitimate offspring. Illegitimate offspring would be handed over to the local convent or monastery and brought up there, well away from prying eyes. How similar is that to today’s situation here with the church taking care of these delicate matters for the well heeled and even their own wayward members? Funny how the well off, rich and famous can get annulments in short order, everybody else takes years!

I am no expert on medieval Europe, or the Philippines for that matter. But for me the similarities are hard to ignore. Take a walk around your neighbourhood and watch the village idiot roam around talking to him or herself just as they would have in the middle ages, only the rich can afford proper medical treatment for their mentally ill family members. Look at all the micro businesses that eke out a basic living for their owners, the walls and gates and guards, the dogs roaming loose, the garbage piling up and the simple outlook of the peasants with little in their future but more of the same. Wonder why there are cleft palates and cleft lips and even still cases of leprosy, all conditions born from poverty, poor hygiene and insufficient diet. Then ask yourself when will this country have it’s “industrial revolution” and what will be the outcome?

We Make The Clown Change His Tune! (Or At Least His Clock!)

There is a train of thought, and not without merit, that when in Rome, one should do as the Romans do.  Another way of interpreting this is that if they do something differently to how we do it “back home”, who are we to change them?  What right do we have to even comment?  I say it depends on the situation but if it is something so intrinsic to life, so basic to one’s survival, then you are duty bound to bring it to the local’s attention and suggest how it should be done!  So if it relates to breakfast at McDonalds, then it falls within this critical “life or death” category.  Right?

I have been consulting to a school way over on Cordova island, which is at the far end of Mactan.  It requires me to leave home early to beat the morning rush hour and try and minimise the evening drag for the return in the afternoon.  Some mornings I just don’t feel like having breakfast before leaving the house, I just want to get out there and mix it with the Dongs on the road.

Luckily, my old cobber Ronnie the Clown has one of his establishments near my route.  It is the work of a few seconds to hang a left instead of a right when I exit the old Mactan Bridge, pick up some Macca’s and then chuck a u-ey (Buy McDonald’s food and make a U-turn in Aussie speak) and resume my journey.

So the sign on the wall boasts the place opens at 7am.  It is 7:10am and it is still closed.  I bang on the door, point at my watch and make the usual signs of agitation.  Eventually a manager type opens the door.

“The sign says you open at 7am, it’s nearly 7:15, how come?”

“We go by the McDonalds clock, Sir.  The same time used all over the country.” the manager said, pointing over his shoulder to a large clock on the wall of the kitchen.

“So because that clock is slow or needs a new battery, you open 15 minutes late?  Can you imagine how much business you are missing from people driving past  in that time and turned away because you are following a clock set for Manila?”

“Yes Sir.” Was his open reply.

“Well how come the other McDonalds stores on Jones and Cebu South road open on time? Should we tell Ronald they are not following his clock?”  No answer so I pressed on.  “What is your personal opinion about a store that runs to it’s own clock? I mean, the entire nation of 85 million work to GMT plus 8 hours and you people use GMT plus 8 hours 15 minutes.  Doesn’t that seem a little ridiculous to you?”  Still no answer but I could see the dawn of comprehension starting to break over his physiognomy.

The next day I returned and they were still closed until 7:15.  I reminded them of the fact they were a joke and how did that feel? Shouldn’t someone tell the owner his store is a laughing stock and so on.  I returned the following week and they were still living in their time warp.  Then on the Tuesday, a week after my first attempt to make even one of them see sense, I arrived at 7:10am.  They were open!

As I walked in I saw right away there were already customers sitting at tables, eating.  Cars were in the drive through, their occupants buying breakfast!  Just like I had predicted!  What was even more amazing was the atmosphere!  The staff were pumped!

They were so proud of themselves for having been told they could reset the clock to GMT +8 and open at 7am.  The owner admitted it was silly to open 15 minutes late every day and the staff were rapt!  Now that nasty foreigner wouldn’t be pointing out how stupid they were, even if they were just following orders!  The change in the staff was amazing to behold and quite contagious.  I felt so positive as I left, maybe there was hope for this country yet? Maybe common sense and persistent complaining could make a difference?

A few days later I came again for my breakfast only to find the rope used to block off the carpark and drive through was still up.  I ignored it and drove under, parked and walked in.  The store was open but one of the Dongs had forgotten to lower the rope.  A day or two later the same thing except just across the drive through entrance.  Must have had brain fade that last few feet of rope lowering!  Still, at least they were open on time!

The manager told me they were making between P2000 and P5000 each morning in the first fifteen minutes from 7am to 7:15am. They had been following the late clock for nearly a year, so I figured that roughly they had lost about half a million peso’s just by losing that crucial first fifteen minutes of trade!  That’s nearly ten grand real money, not to be sneezed at in any currency!  Of course it begs the question how much more money is being lost or opportunities missed due to nobody having the bottle to speak up?  I think I figured out what happened to the clock, too.  Some Dong wanted a few extra minutes in bed each morning so he turned the clock back.  Simple!

Your Intrepid Editor Dines Italiano While Typhoon Namandol Bludgeons Manila

The Pollo Diavalo was, to be honest, superb!  The Maple Butter that covered the succulent breast of chicken spread its’ tasty treats onto the accompanying vegetables, the bread was still warm and the butter spread itself without complaint.  I was thoroughly enjoying the meal, and the old guy on the grand piano running through a medley of old standards.

The Jameson’s Irish Whiskey was a nice surprise, not many places even in Makati carry much in the way of whiskies other than Johnny Walker or J&B, even getting a decent bourbon can be an iffy proposition.  Somehow, the meal, the malt and the mood were just right.  I felt decadent, just like the Manila social set dancing, dining and drinking the night away as the army pulled out and Macarthur declared Manila an open city over 62 years ago.

The rain was literally lashing the windows of the Italian restaurant on Tomas Morato Avenue, Quezon City.  Outside it was black, bleak, wet and windswept but “for awhile” I could sit back and enjoy the ambience of the restaurant and the pianist and just enjoy myself.  I rarely enjoy a meal in a restaurant here in the Philippines as much as I was savouring this one.  Admittedly the staff had to leave the plates just that little bit too long before being reminded to clear them away and for some reason my Jameson had taken rather longer to arrive than you would think, given the proximity of my table to the bar, but this is the Philippines. 

If you want perfect service of a standard you would expect in a western restaurant, go to the west!  At least the waitresses were pretty, friendly and tried their best.  If you don’t grow up in an environment that values and demonstrates efficiency then you can hardly be expected to have any idea of what proper silver service is all about.  I called for the bill and after a fairly lengthy delay it arrived.  Three Jameson’s and two cokes plus the superb chicken? About fifteen bucks! I’m not normally this extravagant but what the hey, there’s a typhoon coming!

My meal over with, I decided to head up to Mickey Dee’s for my favourite dessert, a caramel sundae.  Forget the fancy Tiramisu’s and Gelati, give me good old vanilla soft serve ice cream with caramel flavouring any day!  I even bypassed Seattle’s Best Coffee, Starbucks’, Figaro, Liberia, Mocha Blends, Gloria Jeans’ and Baang! on my way to the Golden Arches!  Two of them had already closed to give their staff a chance to fight their way home in the typhoon and the others offered overpriced brews I am seriously trying to give up.  Paying half a Dong’s daily salary for a cup of java does seem a little decadent when you start to do it on a daily basis and get rather blasé about the whole thing.

A bunch of Dong’s were huddled in the rain around a Corolla, trying to jigger the door open.  The driver was looking desperate, probably Ma’am or Sir were due back from their dinner and would be mightily upset that their limo had swallowed its own keys.  I knew from experience they would be hard pressed to open the car with just a wire coat hanger, you really need a brazing rod or something stiffer.  If I had my trusty old Slim Jim with me I could have had her open in a jiffy, but “going about equipped” is probably an offence here too, just like back home.

I had learnt the trade when I was a Military Policeman and had used it numerous times to my own advantage as much as anyone else’s so I know how dumb you feel when you lock the keys inside.  I also know the sweet relief as the door pops open but for this driver it was not to be.  Pretty soon the Dongs drifted away, but not without trying me out with a tentative “Merry Christmas Sir” plea for a handout.  After what I had just spent on a meal and a few drinks for one person, I wasn’t up for a spot of charity, never mind the weather!

My umbrella played hide and seek with itself all the way up the street, the tall buildings making the wind veer and wander so you couldn’t keep your brolly head to wind.  More than once I rounded up like my old sailboat on Sydney Harbour in a southerly just to save the umbrella spokes from terminally twisting themselves inside out.  The rain came in horizontally under the brolly that I had to hold in front of me leaving me walking blindly along the soaked sidewalk.  I had a few close calls with fellow pedestrians before I made it into the sanctuary of Macca’s.

I finished the caramel sundae, said goodbye to the clown and returned to the wind swept, rain soaked street and cast about for a jeepney to get me back to my room.  Two jeepneys roared past, ignoring my signal and naturally, empty.  Finally a very full jeepney came to a halt in front of me and I went to the back to clamber in.  Even though I hadn’t spotted anywhere to sit I scrambled aboard, knowing from experience a place would magically appear as I needed it.  It did and I plonked myself down with what little dignity I had left.  Trying to get my bear size bulk into these cut down sardine tins is an exercise in wishful thinking sometimes.  At least it was so windy and cool outside I was appreciative of the muggy warmth inside the vehicle.

What I didn’t cotton to was the smell.  It was like clinging to the collar of a giant, wet dog.  That damp dog smell, the one you get a whiff of just before he shakes four gallons of water onto you and your new carpet.  That’s the smell!  I hoped it wasn’t me and since the girls squeezed in either side of me didn’t seem to be squirming too much, I figured it came with the jeepney.

Getting from the jeepney stop to my lodgings proved to be another challenge in keeping my umbrella alive and me more or less dry at the same time.  We both made it without further loss or injury and I basically just settled in for what I knew would be a long, wet, windy night.  I gave thanks that I was nice and dry and warm and not wet, freezing and homeless like many would be that night.  Only the other day Tropical Depression “Winnie” had claimed over 300 lives.  I wondered what the butcher’s bill would be for this little spat Mother Nature was giving us?  I called the wife and made sure she and the kids were safe and well, then went to bed.  After all, once you’ve battened down your hatches, there’s not much else you can do in a Typhoon, Nature pretty much has her own agenda!

One Man’s Interpretation Only, Your Mileage May Vary.

Cebu was inhabited centuries before the Portuguese explorer (in the service of the King of Spain), Ferdinand Magellan, ever set fatefull foot upon Mactan’s shore.  Malay immigrants colonized the islands in the Visayas centuries before, driving the aboriginal inhabitants, the Aetaks into the mountains on some islands and wiping them out completely on others.  The later Spanish colonization was merely history repeating itself here as it has everywhere else on this planet.

When Magellan and his fleet of five ships anchored off Mactan island, Cebu, or Zeebu as it was also known, was already a thriving trading center.  Arab dhows, Chinese junks, sailing vessels from Siam and Malacca, all of these were there long before Europeans ever knew the islands existed.  Trade between the islands and other countries had been carried on for hundreds of years.  Cebu was repleat with pottery, textiles, implements and artefacts of other civilizations.  Few remember today how the people of that time had their own alphabet, knew mathematics and navigation and many other skills that were stamped out by the Spanish Friars as they converted them to Christianity.  The people kept their fighting arts alive by including them in religious plays called “Moro Moro” and the alphabet was used as a decorating pattern along the hems of the women’s skirts.

Magellan was defeated by Lapu Lapu, a local chieftain who, with the help of about a thousand warriors, slew Magellan and his less than one hundred men in the shallow tidal waters claimed to be on the east side of Mactan island.  There has never been any archaeological evidence of this battle found there and some argue the low lying coral island of Mactan could never have supported a thousand warriors and their families back in 1521.  They claim the battle actually took place elsewhere, perhaps on the Camotes Islands nearby.  If this were the case, then more than just the re-writing of the history books will need to done as much of the tourist infrastructure of Cebu relies on Magellan and Lapu Lapu having fought it out at the monument site just past the airport!

Life returned pretty much to normal after Magellan was killed.  His body was never recovered, even though the other ship’s captains offered to pay for it.  Most of them had been against Magellan’s inclination to show off to the chieftains and take sides in the local squabbles.  They had refused to send troops from their ships or fire their cannon to aid Magellan.  While the Filipino’s boast of how they defeated the invaders armed only with swords and wooden sticks and spears, the fact is the modern weaponry of the Spanish consisted of a half a dozen single shot muskets. They were able to fire each perhaps once in the battle and then were unable to be reloaded again before the fight became a hand to hand slog with swords and spears.  The Spaniards had removed their lower leg armour, or greaves, to prevent them rusting in the shallow salt water they would have to wade through to get to land.  The Cebuanos realised this and naturally hacked away at the unprotected calves of the otherwise well protected invaders.  When your enemy outnumbers you ten to one, even if every man had been armed with a musket the end result was a foregone conclusion.  Of course the Filipino penchant for grandstanding and never letting the truth get in the way of either a good story or a run for political office was alive and well, even back then.  I can well imagine Lapu Lapu standing over the fallen Magellan and calling for a microphone so he could sing the crowd a song.

In 1565, the Spanish colonizers Legazpi and Urdaneta arrived in Cebu and set about building a fort to protect them from the natives.  Fort San Pedro still stands to this day, although the original fort built by Legazpi was made from logs, the stone fort that replaced it has impressive walls twenty feet high and eight feet thick.  You can visit the fort today, stroll the gardens and visit the museum.  After the Spanish were ousted in the revolution of 1896-98 the fort was taken over first by the Revolutionaries, then the invading Americans and last saw military service in World War 2 when the Japanese holed up there during the liberation of Cebu by US forces in 1945.  Perhaps the best use of the fort was by the Cebu Garden Society as a botanical garden in the 1950’s!

In the nearly four hundred years between Legaspi and the Japanese, Cebu saw much oppression from the Spanish who seized large tracts of land for sugar cane plantations, their Friars who were often less than gentle in persuading the locals to convert to Catholicism, the Americans who assumed the role of the Spanish in 1899 and finally the brutal reign of the Japanese in WW2.  The jagged moutainous spine of the islands still offers succour and concealment to those fighting authority to this day with small, relatively ineffectual bands of NPA guerillas hiding in their remote valleys.

After Independence in 1946, Cebu enjoyed a period of economic growth as did other parts of the country, even surviving the downturn brought on by the implementing of Martial Law by Ferdinand Marcos in the seventies.  The Cebuano have always seen themselves as being different to the Tagalog and other clans and this is clearly evident by their continued use of their own language, Visayan and dialect, Cebuano.  The Spanish influence is naturally very strong in the region, both in the language and architecture. After all, the Spanish were here the longest and set up the first western style school in the country in Cebu which is still operating today as the University of San Carlos.  Cebu existed seven years before Manila, being officially recognised as the settlement Villa del Santisimo Nombre de Jesus in 1575.  The oldest street in the islands can still be walked along, Colon Street, not far from the Fort San Pedro and the San Agustin Church, now known as the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño.

Cebu became a municipality in 1901 and a City in 1937.  Since the end of the American Occupation, Cebu has grown into a small but vital city of around three quarters of a million people.  Many people prefer Cebu to Manila because it is smaller, easier to get around, has most of what Manila has to offer in material terms and yet is close to the beautiful beaches and natural wonders that make tropical living so special

Are There Business Opportunities To Be Had In The Philippines? We Take A Look Each Month.

So far I know of people who are getting involved in bat guano, tempura cart sales, sari sari wholesale supply and a few other interesting ventures, including real estate development, sea shells, prescription eyewear and more! The common denominator seems to be the desire to get involved in something. However, a word of warning.

A business in the Philippines can indeed be started on a frayed shoestring, unlike something you might try back home. But be aware that the less you invest the less it will produce. This has nothing to do with any law of diminishing returns, it is simply that the successful businesses here are successful for the same reasons a business is successful back in the UK or America.

If you have insufficient capital, or a poor location or no real business plan then just because it is only a few dollars to get Dong going doesn’t mean it has any special chance of success or even survival just because it is started in the Philippines. I was in a Chilli’s franchise tonight. Cost of the meals are over P200 and well into P400 with some even more. Drinks were fairly pricey too, but you can have the buy one take one beer deal for P65 that works out pretty good value. Anyway, the points I am making are twofold. Firstly it took a fair chunk of change to put up a decent business like Chilli’s in the first place and secondly, there is money in this country!

There may not be much to spread around in the province where the asawa comes from but in Quezon City there is a lot of it! I was speaking to a car dealer who brings in “gray imports”. On his lot he had a VW Tuareg, a Dodge Ram, a Mercedes, three Honda’s and so on. Plus a 2004 Range Rover HSE going for P6 million! Given the fact Land Rover pulled out of the country due to the gray import market back dooring them for billions, I wonder where the eventual buyer will get it serviced? Woe betide him if it breaks down or the computer chip needs a zap, nobody has the diagnostic gear to fix it!

So between the gray imports and the authorised importers, there has never been more new car metal on the roads in Manila. And it all costs money because financing here is a joke. I left Chilli’s and walked down T.Morato Avenue and turned into Timog Avenue, part of the South Triangle area of Quezon City. The place is wall to wall restaurants, coffee shops, liquor stores, aerobics gyms and anything else you want. By the time you sweat your way onto Quezon Avenue the giant KTV lounges and nite clubs fill your horizon with their ridiculous prices and lurid neon lies of love and popularity. No money here? Rubbish!

So if you don’t have real chunks of cash, then you are in the realm of the SME or small to medium enterprise, which officially lists a micro business as being worth up to P3 million, not including buildings etc!!!! Small businesses are P3-P15 million and medium sized P15-P100 million. Anything with more investment than that gets to call itself a large, or big business. If you don’t believe me, check the official DOLE figures! So unless you have US$60,000 or more in the venture, it isn’t even a “small” business! 

Getting back into Manila, my old stomping grounds, after a two year hiatus in Cebu has proven more than merely interesting. I have really gone out of my way to get back into the street vibe that oozes from this city’s pores. Everywhere you turn in Manila somebody is trying to turn a peso. Across the street from me every morning at 5.30am a young woman sets up a simple stall selling corn, sits there all day and by nightfall it still looks like she hasn’t sold a single cob.

Every second house has its obligatory sari sari store attached, the barred serving hatch the sign of a micro enterprise in the making. On the street corners, food vendors offer BBQ meat, BBQ bananas, squid balls, taho and anything else you can think of. There are ten million people in this city and it seems that at any one time five million of them are trying to sell the other five million something. Like I said, there is money in this country, it’s just a question of who has it and how much at any one time.

We Play Word Association To While Away The Hours Caught In Manila’s Traffic.

The other day I had to take a cab from one end of Makati, (Jupiter and Makati Avenue intersection), down Sen. Gil Puyat/Buendia Avenue to the LRT station on Taft. Straight run down one road, more or less. I entered the cab at 09.21 am, as proven by the printed receipt I have in my possession! Yes, a Manila cab with a receipt printer on the dash! The driver said he mainly works the Alabang area and sadly had to bring someone into Makati when I snaggled him. He promised he was heading back there as soon as he dropped me at the airport. I wasn’t going to the airport. He swore. I digress, where was I? Yes, in a cab at 09.21am heading down Sen Gil Puyat Avenue.

I arrived at my destination at 10.44am, 83 minutes and just 4 kilometres later! At a cost of P152 I had spent 71 minutes of that time standing still. At least the cab was stationery, I was squirming a fair bit in frustration! The “waiting time” is recorded via this machine the taxi was fitted with and this is how I know we didn’t move for exactly 1 hour and 11 minutes, in total. I wonder how long the journey would have been if I had taken it right in the middle of the peak “hour”? Of course peak hour in Manila lasts from 6am to at least 10am and then again from about 3pm to 8pm!

When I arrived in Manila the other week I took a taxi from NAIA2, the PAL terminal. I had to go upstairs to the departure drop off area as the airport management have cleared all taxis away from the arrivals area so they can maximise their revenue from airport “limo” services. In other words, the official going rate for a ride into Makati was P345, yet my cab cost me P120, and that included stopping twice to repair a busted fender and change a flat tyre! And this was at 7pm, the very height of peak hour!

When I came back to Manila this week I grabbed a cab at 9am for the trip to Quezon City. It took 90 minutes and cost me P200. The meter said P172 but the driver had asked for an agreed upon fare. I didn’t mind but I insisted he run the meter just so we could compare. Now maybe he was trying to get as close to the agreed P200 as possible, just so I didn’t do a Filipino on him and change my mind, but another person on the same flight arrived at the same destination as me 30 minutes sooner and for P150! His taxi took him via the “very traffic” EDSA route whereas my driver ducked through the middle of town following for the most part the northern railway line and squatter camp.

Traffic in this city is heavy, no doubt about it. It is, however, better disciplined than Cebu traffic, of that I am certain. Far more policing and more effective policing as well as more stringent road rules do make some difference. My favourite giggle is the “color coding” system used to limit the amount of traffic. On Mondays, cars whose license plates end in 1 or 2 are prohibited from being on the road. Tuesdays its 3 and 4, Wednesdays 5 and 6, Thursdays 7 and 8 and Fridays 9 and 0. Sensible system and one day a week is easy enough to overcome, arrange a lift with friends, work at home, use the other car, swap plates whatever. Now, can someone tell me where the “color” comes in to this system of coding? Another case of Taglish at work, methinks!

I have only been living and working here in Manila for a few days now but already the traffic is the locus of control over my life. Where I go and when I go, even if I bother to go anywhere, all is determined by the time of the day or night, the position of the stars and the planets and the omens in the entrails of the sisig soup the jeepney driver is having for his lunch! Where I am working and staying is right across from the Pantranco Jeepney Terminus, or Bat Cave as I call the dark and dreary dive. What it means is I can hop on any one of several jeepney lines and ride them to the end of their route, then simply ride back the same way and know I will never pass my stop!

Naturally, the best way of beating the clogged streets is to rise above it all and ride the LRT or MRT. These light rail systems are terrific. For less than P20 you can go from one end of town to the other, then swap lines and go somewhere else! The LRT has two carriages at the front reserved just for women, as I found out the hard way! I didn’t follow what the security guard was trying to tell me (move along, the first two carriages are women only you stupid foreigner!) and I stepped into a clean, quiet, orderly carriage…….full of women! I knew something was wrong and, concerned it was a trap set by my wife to tempt me into cheating on her, I quickly leapt out and ran to the next carriage. I was then able to stand at the end of the carriage and look through the large window into the women only car all the way to my station.

It can get crowded and those stairs leading up off the street are steep and many, but the MRT/LRT system can’t be beaten. There is a new east-west MRT line I will take one of these days, just to say I have done it! My only hesitation is to warn that pickpockets love the crowded conditions and they are very, very good at their craft. Never think for a second your wallet or purse is safe whenever you are within spitting distance of an MRT/LRT station or car. Then again, keeping one hand on your wallet is a small price to pay for missing out on sitting in the traffic for hours at a time.! If you have plenty of time to spare then why worry? Of course Manila is hardly an ideal retirement destination so most foreigners here are here for work and time is important.

An alternative might be to have a driver so you can sit in the back, read the newspaper or a report, make some calls on the cell phone and generally get some business done while in the traffic. At least it hasn’t degenerated into what Bangkok residents were forced to do a few years ago; basically live in their cars! They would leave home very early, give the kids their breakfast from the back of the family van parked outside of the school at the crack of dawn, then head for work, drop off hubby then fight back to school for the kids then back to work for hubby and then home so late it was re-pack car with the meals for the next day and hit the sack! What a life!

Manila’s traffic problems won’t go away, even as gasoline prices rise higher than ever before. More and more people are buying cars and more marques are opening dealerships to offer their wares to the car buying Filipino public. As the population moves upscale and can afford more and more luxuries such as personal vehicles, the only question left will be where can they enjoy them? More freeway systems are called for but the disruption caused during construction can be immense. I remember back in 1997 while the Skyway and the Ortigas overpass were being built, the traffic was just as bad as today, and there were fewer cars on the roads! Getting rid of the jeepneys and death-rattle buses is one answer, but hard on the lower income earners who need cheap mass transport. More light rail is another possible solution, but again construction will be a pain. Meanwhile, be as Filipino as you can, smile and go with the flow!