August 1-15, 2014 1

Vol. XXIII, No. 18 Online: www. manilamail.us August 1-15, 2014

Teen is rst Filipino
to win USGA title
FLAGSTAFF, Arizona. Prin-
cess Mary Superal became the
rst Filipino to win a United
States Golf Association (USGA)
event, coming from behind to
beat Mexicos Marijosse Navarro
in sudden death to clinch the US
Girls Junior title here last July
26.
The 17-year-old Superal
won the par-5 36th hole with a
birdie to pull even and ended
Global protest vs
China Page 6
Coup jitters hit
Manila Page 18
Pope Francis visits
PH Page 12
Fil-Am joins PH
pageant Page 22
Rizals Noli coming
to DC Page 23
PH joins Malaysian jet
shoot-down probe
MANILA. The Philippines
is joining a multinational effort
to investigate the shoot-down of
Malaysia Airlines ight MH17
and bring the perpetrators to jus-
tice.
Three Filipinos, Irene Pabel-
lon-Gunawan and her children
Sherryl, 15 and Darryl, 20, were
among the 298 people killed in
the July 17 crash in a conict-
stricken region of Ukraine. Irene
was originally from Quezon
province.
Irene and her family were
Obama mulls deferral for millions of undocumented
WASHINGTON D.C. Presi-
dent Obama is set to test to
bounds of presidential powers,
vowing to unleash a torrent of
executive orders on immigra-
tion next month notwithstand-
ing a possible law suit from the
Republican-led House of Repre-
sentatives.
The President is expected
to give more illegal immigrants
work permits and relief from
deportation. Seemingly fed up
with inaction in the House, he
has signaled to immigration
rights groups that he was pre-
pared to take signicant execu-
tive actions before the Novem-
ber elections to institute what-
ever reforms he can make even
though they could be later over-
turned by Congress or his even-
tual successor.
They could range from
reordering the priority list of
deportation cases to dramati-
cally expanding the deferred
action program he initiated in
2012, which allows immigrants
who entered the United States
illegally as children to apply for
a two-year deportation reprieve.
That could mean allowing
millions (an estimated 3.8 mil-
ALEXANDRIA, Va. The
Filipino-American owner of a
minority company that does
business with government agen-
cies has pleaded guilty to giving
bribes to a GSA ofcial to obtain
over $30 million in service con-
tracts since 2003.
Lawyers for Francisco L.
Bituin, 58, of Sterling, Virginia,
offered last July 21 a plea bargain
agreement that was accepted by
US District Judge Claude Hilton
of the District Court of Eastern
Virginia.
Bituin, who is well-known
in Metro DCs Fil-Am commu-
nity, owned Herndon-based
FLBE, Inc. that offered various
engineering as well as building
maintenance services.
Its website pointed to one
project, the upgrading and main-
tenance of the DC Courthouse
that included replacing the
steam converter, condensate and
ejection equipment.
Our care and consideration
goes a long way to maintaining
client and tenant satisfaction
when buildings like these are
occupied while being retted,
the FLBE Inc. website declared.
The statement from the US
Attorneys ofce for the Eastern
District of Virginia did not spec-
ify however, which of the com-
panys projects were tainted by
the bribery.
In a statement of facts led
with his plea agreement, Bituin
admitted to paying bribes to a
General Services Administration
(GSA) employee who was in a
position to recommend FLBE for
GSA-managed contracts.
The GSA is an independent
agency that supports the day-to-
day activities of the federal gov-
Pinoy astronaut talks space mission
By Maurese Oteyza Owens
FALLS CHURCH, Va.
Chino Roque will become the
rst Filipino astronaut to travel
in space and how he got that title
was a riveting story relayed by
the 22-year old La Salle Manila
graduate who was welcomed to
the area last July 20, 2014 at the
Luccianos Pizza and Restaurant
in Fairfax, Virginia.
Over 80 excited Fil-Ams
who responded to an invitation
by sponsors of the event La
Salle Philippines Alumni Asso-
ciation and Philippine Ameri-
can Foundation for Charities --
Members of the La Salle Philippine Alumni Association organized a meet-
and-greet event recently featuring Chino Roque (center), a La Salle gradu-
ate. Co-hosted by the Philippine American Foundation for Charities (PAFC)
and held at a pizzaria in Fair Oaks Mall owned by La Salle alumnus Tony
Zulueta, the mid-afternoon gathering drew dozens of fans and admirers who
came to congratulate the 23-year old Crosst trainer for winning the lone
Philippine slot in a 22-man mission to outer space. Photo by Jon Melegrito
The massive inux of unaccompanied children in Americas border has
focused attention on illegal immigration problem.
Irene Gunawan and her children Sherryl and Darryl were among 298 people
killed in Malayasian Airlines jet shot down over eastern Ukraine.
Princess Superal with trophy
Continued on page 20
Continued on page 20 Continued on page 20
Continued on page 20
Continued on page 20
August 1-15, 2014 22
August 1-15, 2014 3
P-Noys SONA draws mixed reactions everywhere
NEW YORK. Filipino Amer-
icans were divided about Presi-
dent Aquinos July 28 State of
the Nation Address (SONA),
some calling his favorite slogan
Daang Matuwid (Straight
Path) a sham while others point
to the Philippines rise as an
emerging economic tiger as
proof of his success as a leader.
A group of Fil-Ams staged
a rally here on the eve of the
SONA in Manila, throwing their
support for calls to impeach Pres.
Aquino. Were fed up with this
government, its neglected the
Filipino people, said DJ Arucan
of Gabriela Philippines.
His straight and narrow
path has been nothing but
crooked and corrupt, Jennine
Ventura of Gabriela New York
said.
His appointees and party
mates are guilty but none of
them have been charged,
declared Gary Labao of Bayan
USA, adding that he has dem-
onstrated that hes no different
from Marcos, Arroyo, Estrada
and Ramos who all exploited
and stole from the people.
But for Fil-Am business and
civic leader Loida Nicolas Lewis,
Pres. Aquino was the best presi-
dent.
He is able to make the
Philippines rise up. We are now
the new Tiger in Asia, Lewis
enthused in an interview aired
on The Filipino Channels Bali-
tang America newscast.
I really feel personally that
the Philippines has been very
blessed for having President
Aquino, for the rst time, we
have something that is really
a democratic Philippines, Joe
Ramos of US Pinoys for Good
Governance said.
In Manila, the Presidents
latest SONA speech also drew
mixed reactions. Despite huge
economic gains under his watch,
some businessmen complained
about the slow pace of imple-
menting big-ticket Public-Pri-
vate Partnership (PPP) ventures
that should have given stronger
impetus to economic growth.
The PPP is too slow
because they keep changing the
rules, said economics professor
Vic Abola of the University of
Asia & the Pacic.
On the other hand, Edgardo
Lacson, president of the Employ-
ers Confederation of the Phil-
ippines (ECOP) said he was
impressed with the Presidents
report. He still has two years,
theres still plenty of time.
President Aquino delivers State of the Nation Address.
August 1-15, 2014 44
Ofce romance prompts review of City Hall policy
SAN FRANCISCO. A
romantic relationship between
a Filipina staff worker and her
politician boss has forced the
San Francisco city government
to take a second look at existing
rules.
San Francisco supervisor
and former mayoral candidate,
John Avalos earlier apologized
for having an affair with his top
ofce aide, identied in reports
as Filipina Racquel Redondiez.
Ofcials in City Halls
human resources department
said the new policy will require
elected ofcials to report roman-
tic relationships with their sub-
ordinates to a third party.
The existing San Francisco
HR handbook states that: You
must notify your supervisor if
you are, or become, related to
or romantically involved with
another employee in the work-
place over whom you have the
authority to impose or recom-
mend an employment action.
The problem, insiders said,
was that members of the Board
of Supervisors, just like all
elected city ofcials including
the mayor, have no supervisors
so there was nobody to tell.
The new rule will now
require the subordinate to be
reassigned to a new manager
rather than have him or her
report to a romantic partner.
Redondiez reportedly
went on unpaid leave from her
$95,082-a-year position last May.
Details of how the new
guidelines will be implemented
are still under study and the nal
product has to be approved by
the union.
Avalos isnt the only local
elected ofcial to have had a
romantic relationship with a
staff member. In 2007, then-
Mayor Gavin Newsom made
headlines for having an affair
with his appointments secre-
tary, who was also married to his
campaign manager.
Avalos represents the Exel-
sior district, the area with the
highest number of Filipinos in
San Francisco. He reportedly
separated from his wife earlier
this year.
Bacolod tot dies after heart surgery
HOUSTON, Texas. Filipino
toddler Dave Gabriel died while
recovering from a July 17 heart
surgery at a childrens hospital
here.
The two-year-old Gabriel
is from Bacolod City and was
own here by the Heart Gift
Foundation to undergo free
heart surgery at the Childrens
Memorial Hermann Hospital in
Houston.
He was accompanied on
the trip to the US by his mother
Mary Grace.
Rachel Wright, executive
director of Heart Gift Founda-
tion, said they were saddened
by Gabriels passing after
undergoing the heart surgery.
He died while recovering at the
pediatric intensive care unit.
The Filipino American com-
munity of Houston had actively
supported the effort, fetching
the child and his mother at the
airport last July 12 and provid-
ing for their needs here. They
have appealed for prayers for
Gabriel.
The immediate cause of his
death has not been disclosed.
San Francisco supervisor John Avalos with former staff Racquel Redondiez
Nottingham lass hurdles
Md. board exams
Dr. Angelica Agojo Dario,
25, recently passed the Mary-
land state board examination for
pharmacy.
Dario is a graduate of the
University of Maryland School
Pharmacy.
She is the eldest grand-
daughter of Mayet Carandang-
Maralit, wife of retired Philip-
pine National Police General
Cris Maralit.
Dario was a consistent
deans lister since high school at
Perry Hall in Nottingham, Mary-
land. She is presently employed
with the CVS/Pharmacy retail
chain in Baltimore.
Dr. Angelica Agojo Dario
Dave Gabriel
August 1-15, 2014 5
Truck ban blamed for Balikbayan box delays
MANILA. Want to know
why delivery of balikbayan
boxes to your loved ones in the
Philippines has been encounter-
ing long delays?
The biggest problem,
according to the Los Angeles-
based Filipino American Ship-
pers Association (PASA), is the
ongoing truck ban imposed by
both the City of Manila and the
Metro Manila Development
Authority.
The truck ban has resulted
in massive backlog and conges-
tion in both the Port of Manila
and the Manila International
Container Port. It has also
extended the turnaround time of
cargo trucks from the ports and
back to three days, instead of the
usual one day.
The result is that containers
with balikbayan boxes and other
imported goods are being stalled
in the ports for another two to
three weeks.
The delay has prompted
PASA to reach out to tens of
thousands of customers to
explain the delays. It said it may
take some time before the Manila
and MMDA ofcials begin to
realize that their truck ban impo-
sitions are causing a big dent on
the Philippine economy, not to
mention the troubles it is causing
the balikbayan box industry.
It now takes 45 to 55 days
to deliver boxes in Metro Manila
and up to 90 days to far ung
provinces, according to several
balikbayan box forwarders. The
PASA is appealing to the public
for patience and understanding.
PASA is continually making
representations with Manila and
MMDA ofcials to remove or
minimize the truck bans. Philip-
pine business leaders have pro-
tested the truck bans, saying that
the impositions are affecting eco-
nomic growth.
Alfredo Yao, president of
the Philippine Chamber of Com-
merce and Industry (PCCI), said
that growth in the second quar-
ter will be slower than the rst
because of the backlog caused by
the truck ban. The truck ban is
seen to adversely impact growth
for the whole year.
This has resulted in slower
trade, lack of materials and
opportunity lost for more pro-
duction, Yao said.
Victor Abola, economist at
the University of Asia and the
Pacic, said that the truck ban is
a major internal threat to growth
as it tends to produce higher
prices due to disruptions in the
delivery of goods.
PH allows foreigners to own banks for first time
MANILA. The Philip-
pines has scrapped an old rule
that limited foreign ownership
in local banks, providing per-
haps the biggest impetus yet for
improving foreign direct invest-
ments (FDI) in the country.
President Aquino signed
on July 21 a new law that will
allow 100 percent foreign own-
ership in Philippine banks (old
regulations limited previously
limited it to 60 percent). It also
lifted the cap on the number of
wholly-owned overseas lenders,
formerly xed at 10.
The Philippines has always
lagged behind its neighbors in
attracting money from abroad.
Its expected to spur foreign
investments after it fell nearly 12
percent at the rst quarter of the
year, from over $2 billion in 2013
to about $1.8 billion this year.
The FDIs came mostly from
the United States, Japan, Singa-
pore, Hong Kong and Taiwan,
according to the Bangko Sentral
ng Pilipinas (BSP).
Bank of America and J.P.
Morgan Chase are among the
overseas lenders that already
have a presence in the Philip-
pines.
Growth in gross domestic
product in the Philippines fell
back to 5.7 percent in the rst
quarter from 7.2% last year, but
the deregulation of the banking
sector is expected to spur activ-
ity.
Philippine leaders in the
government and the nancial
sector have seen the wisdom
of allowing this arrangement
in order to fast-track economic
activity, where banks have a key
role, Communications Secre-
tary Herminio Coloma averred.
These will help further
strengthen the banking system
and make our banks better-
positioned in the face of ABIF,
said BSP Governor Amando Tet-
angco.
The liberalized system
is also expected to generate
increased foreign direct invest-
ments in the Philippines, includ-
ing in the manufacturing sector,
that will create more jobs and
raise output, he added.
The governor warned that
some local banks would need to
improve their operations in the
face of increased competition.
Truck drivers protest ban thats been
for delivery delays.
American bank in Manila
August 1-15, 2014 66
Pinoys stage worldwide protest vs China structures
WASHINGTON D.C. Filipi-
nos across the world staged pro-
tests last July 24 against Chinas
construction of new structures
in disputed waters of the South
China Sea, including a naval
base on Mabini Reef in the West
Philippine Sea.
The largest rally was held
in front of the China Consulate
in Makati City sponsored by the
West Philippine Sea Coalition
led by former Interior Secretary
Rafael Alunan III and former
National Security Adviser Rolio
Golez.
In the United States, the US
Pinoys for Good Governance
(USPGG) denounced Chinas
creeping invasion of the Phil-
ippines.
This protest rally is only
going to be the start of some-
thing that we intend to become
bigger, not only in the Philip-
pines but worldwide, Golez
said, in order to tell the world
what is happening in our back-
yard the bullying thats being
done by our big neighbor.
Vonz Santos, head of the
USPGG Philippine chapter said
his group will feature the per-
formance of Filipinos Unite,
a collaboration of Filipino art-
ists from around the world who
came together to produce origi-
nal music in response to the esca-
lating tensions with China in the
West Philippine Sea.
In New York, the rally
was held in front of the United
Nations at Dag Hammers-
jold Plaza at First Avenue and
43rd Street. A coalition of Fili-
pino community groups led by
USPGG National Chair Loida
Nicolas Lewis and Vietnamese
groups jointly protested Chinas
installing of oil rigs in Vietnam-
ese waters and a military base in
the West Philippine Sea.
We are calling on the
United Nations International
Tribunal on the Law of the Sea
(ITLOS) to stop China from its
plan to take over the entire South
China Sea which will constitute
the largest territorial heist in
maritime history, Lewis said.
We want ITLOS to issue
its decision now, not three years
from now, before China can con-
solidate its occupation of Phip-
pine territories, she added.
In Washington DC, the local
Philippine group, together with
their Vietnamese counterparts,
staged a lunch-hour protest in
front of the China Embassy.
In San Francisco, USPGG
organizers rallied at the United
Nations Plaza on Market Street
by the Civic Center.
We have invited the local
Vietnamese community and
other Asian communities to join
us in protesting Chinas imperi-
alistic occupation of the territo-
ries of sovereign Asian nations,
said Rudy Asercion, San Fran-
cisco chair of the National Fed-
eration of Filipino American
Associations (NaFFAA) which
co-sponsored the San Francisco
protest with USPGG.
What wed like is for
people to demonstrate against
Chinas bullying in all capitals
of Europe. We would like it to
happen because theyre at it
again. Theyre really bringing
their big guns, not just to the
Philippines but also to the neigh-
bors, Gene Alcantara, chair of
the European Network of Fili-
pino Diaspora (ENFID), said.
Peps Villanueva, convenor
of UK Pinoys for Good Gover-
nance, said that it was necessary
to educate Filipinos in Europe
about Chinas imperialist intru-
sions in their homeland. The
rallies aim to educate our local
European Filipinos and the
people of Europe about Chinas
imperialist ambitions in the
South China Sea.
Pres. Aquino was abso-
lutely right. What China is doing
now in Vietnam and in the Phil-
ippines is similar to what Hitler
did in 1938 when he assimilated
the Sudetenland in Czechoslova-
kia on his way to invading and
occupying Europe, Villanueva
added.
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Tearing Apart the Chinese President: (L to R) Maurese Owens of the Movement Free Philippines, Genie Nguyen of the
Voice of Vietnamese Americans, Daisy Tucay of the US Pinoys for Good Governance, Celestino Almeda of the Ameri-
can Coalition for Filipino Veterans, and Tess Taylor, a retired businesswoman from Iloilo, tear up photos of Chinese
president Xi Jinping, in protest of Chinas aggression and occupation of Philippine and Vietnamese maritime ter-
ritories. The July 24, 2014 rally was held in front of the Chinese Embassy in Washington DC. Photo by Eric Lachica.
August 1-15, 2014 7
August 1-15, 2014 88
Pinay nurses boyfriend charged for brutal slay
WINSLOW, New Jersey.
The live-in partner of a Filipina
nurse has been arraigned for
her brutal but still unexplained
murder early morning of July 25.
A pizza deliveryman found
the lifeless body of Filipina nurse
Jennifer Bongco, 41 on the side
of the road at Erial and Wiltons
Landing Road in Winslow, N.J
at around 12:30 a.m. of the same
day.
US Marshals hunted down
Bongcos live-in partner, 52-year-
old Kevin Ambrose and arrested
him in Atlantic City where he had
a reserved a room in the Tropi-
cana Casino. He is charged with
murder and bail set at $2 million,
according to the Camden County
Prosecutors Ofce.
He was arraigned last July
28.
Police say Ambrose stabbed
Bongco several times before
dumping her body and taking
off in her car. It is still not clear
why the Pinay nurse was mur-
dered.
Bongcos relatives and
friends have focused their atten-
tion on her 5-year-old daughter
Jessica Frantes who reportedly
saw her mother being stabbed.
Police described the crime
scene with bloody handprints
that was apparently made by the
girl.
It doesnt even seem real,
said Bongcos oldest daughter
Maria, 19.
Ambrose had picked up
Bongco from work that fate-
ful morning. In a recorded
statement, Jessica told police
Ambrose and Bongco were argu-
ing inside the car, Bongco got
out and Kevin started hitting
mommy.
Then Ambrose drove Jes-
sica back to the house, dropped
her off and made her walk to the
door.
I just saw her covered in
blood, said Maria Bongco, who
found her sister banging her
little bloody hands against the
white front door.
I knew she wasnt hurt
because the rst thing she said
was, Mommys on the ground.
Kevin killed her.
Bongco earned her nursing
degree in the Philippines, before
coming to the United States in
the early 2000s. She worked at
Meadowview Nursing Home.
Bongco worked as a nurse
for more than 20 years, spend-
ing about half of that at Mead-
owview. Thats where Bongco
met Ambrose, her friends said.
They dated for two years
but the relationship caused tur-
moil between Bongco and her
teenage daughter.
Bongco was granted
a restraining order against
Ambrose, but reportedly
dropped it earlier this summer
when he begged to get back
together.
Even though we didnt
like him, she loved him, said
Bongcos friend and fellow nurse
Emelia Santos.
We changed the locks yes-
terday because we were scared
he was going to get us, she said.
I hope he rots in jail.
Funeral plans have not yet
been nalized although arrange-
ments are being made to y
Bongcos remains back to the
Philippines.
Jennifer Bongco
Fil-Am loses life saving friends
LOS ANGELES. Filipino
American Paul Alimoren paid
the ultimate sacrice for trying
to save a friends life while
swimming off Ocean Shores in
Washington.
Alimoren, 18, was on an
outing with his church group
last July 26.
According to police, a rip
current swept them out to but
ve of the members reached
the shore relatively easily. Two
others suffered exhaustion and
possible ingestion of sea water.
Alimoren managed to help
the two friends to shore before
he was swept away.
Authorities abandoned a
search and declared him dead
the next day, but are yet to
recover his body. He was last
seen around 8:30 p.m. about a
half a mile south of where he
rst entered the water, police
said.
Alimorens brother said in
an interview with TFCs Bali-
tang America newscast that the
siblings were born and raised in
Southern California, while their
mother is from Cebu and their
father is from Cagayan de Oro.
On behalf of my family, I
thank you for your prayers and
thoughts concerning this trying
time, Philip Alimoren said in a
Facebook post. My brother has
touched lives, and I can say that
he died serving His Savior on
the mission eld.
Ocean Shores is approxi-
mately 130 miles from Seattle.
According to Ocean Shores
Police, it had been a few years
since there was a drowning in
the area.
Paul Alimoren
August 1-15, 2014 9
August 1-15, 2014 10 10
Tornado victims family devastated by deaths
WASHINGTON D.C. A
freak tornado that emerged from
a passing storm in Virginias
eastern shore killed on July 24 a
Filipino couple vacationing with
their children from New Jerse.
Lord Balatbat and Lolibeth
Ortega, both 38 years old, died
after a tree fell on their tent at
the Cherrystone Family Camp-
grounds in Cape Charles, Va.
Their 13-year-old son was
staying in a nearby tent suffered
serious injuries and as of press
time, was in a coma, accord-
ing to Luis Balatbat Jr., Lords
father. Two more of the victims
children, ages 12 and 7 years
old, were also injured by falling
trees, although the wounds were
reportedly not life-threatening.
Philippine Ambassador Jose
L. Cuisia Jr. offered his sympa-
thy on behalf of Filipinos and
asked the Fil-Am community to
pray for the couple and other the
other victims. We would like
to extend our deepest condo-
lences to the loved ones of Lordy
Balatbat and Lolabeth Ortega
and would like to invite the
Filipino-American Community
to offer prayers for the couple
and the loved ones who they left
behind.
Deputy Consul General
Zaldy Patron also visited Balat-
bats parents, Luis and Lily, and
other family members in Jersey
City to express the sympathies
of the Embassy and the Consul-
ate General and at the same time
convey the offer to help.
He was accompanied by
Jersey City Councilman Rolando
Lavarro.
Corrinne Geller, a spokes-
person for the Virginia State
Police said, A tree did fall on
two tents. One of the tents con-
tained a husband and wife, both
38 years of age. They are from
Jersey City, New Jersey. And
they both died at the scene. Their
13-year-old son was in a neigh-
boring tent. Another tree fell on
that tent.
The elder Balatbat said they
were devastated by the tragedy.
Im struggling, the grandfa-
ther said. I wanted to go (to
the children, conned at the
Childrens Hospital The Kings
Daughters) but my doctor said
do not go there because I am not
well enough to travel. My wife is
the same way.
A survey crew that inspected
the scene concluded the deaths
and damage were caused by an
EF1 tornado. It was the rst time
lives have been lost due to a tor-
nado in Virginia since 2011.
PH ofcials urge undocumented Pinoys to tap DACA
WASHINGTON, D.C. Fili-
pino ofcials are lamenting that
only a few undocumented Fili-
pino youths have taken advan-
tage of the opportunity to tem-
porarily legalize their stay in
the United States through the
Deferred Action on Childhood
Arrivals (DACA) program.
It is unfortunate that major-
ity of undocumented Filipino
youths across the US continue
to shy away from the DACA
program even though they are
eligible, Consul Arlene Magno
said, citing gures from both the
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
and the US Citizenship and
Immigration Services (USCIS).
Under the DACA program,
unveiled in June 2012, undocu-
mented aliens who came to the
United States as children and
meet several key guidelines
may avail of deferred action by
immigration authorities for two
years, subject to renewal, and
would then be eligible for work
authorization.
The USCIS states in its
latest quarterly report that as
of March, only 4,041 Filipi-
nos have applied for DACA; and
of this number, 3,644 have been
approved. The MPI estimated
that as many 20,000 undocu-
mented young Filipinos would
be eligible for DACA.
These numbers constitute
a small percentage of the esti-
mated number of Filipino eligible
youth; and while there has been a
gradual increase in the number of
applications since August 2013,
we are making very slow prog-
ress, Magno said.

The tornado claimed the lives of Fil-Ams Lord Balatbat and Lolibeth Ortega.
Fil-Am volunteers help disseminate information about DACA.
August 1-15, 2014 11
August 1-15, 2014 12 12
Pope Francis visit to PH will be spiritual typhoon
MANILA. Pope Francis will
visit the Philippines, including
a likely sortie to calamity-rav-
aged areas on January 15 to 19
next year, in what one church
leader described as a spiritual
typhoon.
In a press conference at the
Arzobispado de Manila, Arch-
bishop Luis Antonio Cardinal
Tagle said his holiness Pope
Francis will make his apostolic
visit to Sri Lanka on January 12
to 15 and to the Philippines on
January 15 to 19, 2015.
Archbishop Giuseppe Pinto,
the current nuncio to the Philip-
pines, described the coming visit
as a spiritual typhoon.
Tagle said the Vatican will
announce the details of the visit
before the end of the year, but
reiterated previous statements
that Pope Francis wants to
visit areas devastated by super
typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan last
November.
He will also likely visit the
University of Sto. Tomas (UST),
the oldest learning institution in
Asia that is also owned by the
Catholic church, although Tagle
said that is not yet certain. On
past visits of popes in the Philip-
pines, UST has always gured as
one of the sites, he explained.
The government has also
started preparing for the visit.
Communications Secretary Her-
minio Coloma Jr. said President
Aquino has appointed Executive
Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. as
the lead point person in helping
the papal visit committee.
He said the government
expects the Filipinos to accord
[Pope Francis] the warmth of
their hospitality and manifest the
fervor of their faith as they wel-
come the rst pontiff from South
America.
The visit of Pope Francis
will coincide with the 20th anni-
versary of World Youth Day
Philippines, which took place in
Manila on January 10 to 15, 1995.
Tagle said everyday Fili-
pinos can also begin their own
preparations by undergoing
spiritual renewal, tasting the
mercy of God, returning to God
through the sacrament of recon-
ciliation.
He urged them to engage in
specic actions of mercy.
Tagle noted that when Pope
Francis blessed the mosaic of St.
Pedro Calungsod at St. Peters
Basilica back in November, he
took time to include Filipinos in
his prayers.
It was not just a blessing of
an icon During that event, he
said plainly that he was one with
the suffering of the people and
that we should not be afraid to
ask God: Why? he said.
Filipinos should not be
afraid to show Pope Francis their
worth, he said.
Pope Francis with Cardinal Tagle at St. Pedro Calungsod beatication.
August 1-15, 2014 13
Fil-Ams laud pull out of offensive training video
WASHINGTON, D.C. Fili-
pinos here lauded the decision
by a California-based company
to pull out a customer service
training video that appeared to
disparage Filipino healthcare
workers.
We welcome the expe-
ditious and comprehensive
action taken by CRM Learn-
ing in addressing the concerns
expressed by members of the
Filipino Community in connec-
tion with their customer service
video, said Ambassador Jose L.
Cuisia, Jr.
CRM Learning of Carlsbad,
California decided to withdraw
the training video after the Phil-
ippine Embassy, the Philippine
Nurses Association of America
(PNAA) and the Migrant Heri-
tage Commission (MHC) told
the company the customer ser-
vice training video violated cul-
tural sensitivities.
The CRM Learning
video, entitled Its a Dogs
World, showed two Filipina
healthcare employees gossiping
in Tagalog in front of an Ameri-
can patient. A Filipina nurse
who took offense after seeing
the video during a hospital train-
ing workshop reported it to Fili-
pino community leader Victo-
ria Navarro who in turn brought
it to Cuisias attention.
While we understand that
it was intended as a parody, we
felt that it was unfair to single out
and depict Filipinos as insensi-
tive and disrespectful employees
who do not care at all about good
customer service, said Navarro,
co-director of the Philippine
Humanitarian Coalition and
the immediate past president of
PNAA.
MHC Executive Director
Arnedo Valera said the video
not only offended Filipinos but
also went against existing guide-
lines on the English Only Rule
in the workplace that the Equal
Employment Opportunity Com-
mission struck down as language
discrimination and violative of
the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
This advocacy and ensu-
ing collaborative effort, respect-
ful and direct communication
exchange make this process a
good model to follow promot-
ing respect and celebration of
diversity, the hallmark of Amer-
ica, said Valera who is also
PNAA Foundation legal counsel.
In his letter to
Cuisia, Navarro and Valera,
CRM Learning President Peter J.
Jordan said his company is com-
mitted to the principles of diver-
sity and did not intend to create
a scenario that is disrespectful or
stereotyped Filipino employees.
He said health care training
professionals reviewed and cri-
tique the training videos before
it was released.
Jordan said that once the
revised version of the video is
completed, all copies of the origi-
nal version of the video will be
withdrawn from their inventory.
He said CRM will also notify all
previous buyers of the video that
they may exchange their copy or
copies of the original version for
the revised version at no charge.
FilVet group marks USAFFE Day
LOS ANGELES. A Filipino
veterans group here marked
the day President Franklin D.
Roosevelt ordered the Philip-
pine Commonwealth army to
be placed under the command
of Gen. Douglas MacArthur in
1941.
The Justice for Filipino
American Veterans (JFAV) and
Ms. Fil-Am International LCC
joined hands with the Seniors
4 Pilipino Americans Commu-
nity Empowerment (S4PACE) to
commemorate the 73rd USAFFE
Day last July 26.
That was the day in 1941
when Pres. Roosevelt issued
an executive order placing the
army of the Philippine Com-
monwealth under the United
States Armed Forces in the Far
East (USAFFE).
JFAV National Coordinator
Arturo Garcia said that it is only
tting and proper that we com-
memorate this event to honor
out surviving heroes, the Fili-
pino World War II veterans and
equally their heroic partners, the
widows or survivors of the vet-
erans.
The group will also mark
the 150th birth anniversary of
the Sublime Paralytic and the
Brains of the Philippine Revo-
lution, Apolinario Mabini who
was born on July 22, 1864 in
Tanauan, Batangas.
Apolinario Mabini was also
the rst Prime Minister and For-
eign Minister of the First Philip-
pine Republic from June 1898 to
1902. He was captured by the
Americans in Cuyapo, Nuve
Ecija and was exiled in Guam.
He died in Nagtahan, Manila on
May 13, 1903 of cholera.
MHC Executive Director Arnedo
Valera
Filipinos inducted into US Army before WWII.
August 1-15, 2014 14 14
PH breaks through 100-M population ceiling
MANILA. There are now
about 100 million breathing,
living Filipinos in the world.
The nation broke that thresh-
old a few minutes past midnight
of July 27, said Dr. Juan Antonio
Perez III, Population Commis-
sion (Popcom) director, citing
mathematical analysis results.
The gure of 100 million
was based on population pro-
jections by the Philippine Statis-
tics Authority, which says three
babies are born in the Philip-
pines every minute.
Perez said the event pre-
sented both hope and challenges
to the country as it struggles to
give its people a better quality of
life.
For Fr. Melvin Castro,
executive secretary of the Catho-
lic Bishops Conference of the
Philippines (CBPCP) Episcopal
Commission on Family and Life,
reaching the 100-million gure is
actually good news and a bless-
ing.
Its good for the econ-
omy its good news, not bad
news, Castro said over Church-
run Radio Veritas.
The Philippines is the 12th
most populated country in the
world, growing at a rate of 1.89
percent a year.
According to the Philippine
National Statistics Ofce, the
98,734,798 Filipinos in 2013 will
grow to 100,617,630 by the end
of this year. Because of limited
opportunities in the country,
about one in every 10 Filipinos
now live or work abroad, includ-
ing more than a million in the
Middle East.
We need enough young
population to sustain the econ-
omy. Because of a young popula-
tion, we can actually be economi-
cally strong, Castro argued.
He then urged the govern-
ment to work on nding real
solutions to poverty and use
the high number of Filipinos to
advantage, instead of looking at
it as a problem.
Lack of healthcare professionals blamed for PH deaths
MANILA. Nearly half of all
deaths in the Philippines result-
ing from diseases or medical
conditions were never diagnosed
because of the lack of doctors and
other healthcare professionals, a
group of experts concluded.
The group, composed of
former health secretaries, mem-
bers of the Philippine College
of Physicians (PCP), and differ-
ent health care groups, said 47.6
percent of deaths among Filipi-
nos are unattended by a medical
doctor or allied health provider.
They called on President
Benigno Aquino III and Con-
gress to take immediate, sus-
tained, and dramatic steps to
address what they described as a
healthcare workforce crisis.
They said only 3,000 out of
66,000 physicians, 5,000 out of
500,000 nurses, and 17,000 out of
74,000 midwives in the country
are working in a public facility.
This means less than three
healthcare workers are catering
to the needs of a population of
10,000.
The [numbers] translate to
only 0.2 physicians, 0.4 nurses,
and 1.7 midwives per 10,000
population, or a total of 2.3
healthcare workers per 10,000
population, they added.
They said the number is 10
times less than the 24 healthcare
workers per 10,000 population
recommended by the World
Health Organization.
The shortage of health-
care workers affects not just the
supply of doctors, nurses, and
midwives, but also the supply
of dentists, pharmacists, occu-
pational therapists, physical
therapists, speech pathologists,
medical technologists, and other
allied medical professionals,
including partners in healthcare
the community health work-
ers, the groups added.
While the so-called brain
drain started when the US
opened its doors to migrant
doctors and the Vietnam War
required nurses, PCP president
Anthony Leachon said the prob-
lem continues because health-
care workers still seek greener
pastures.
The shortage is due to two
relevant points. There is urban
migration, wherein students who
study medicine remain in Metro
Manila and they dont go back to
the provinces to serve. Around
50% of our current workforce is
in Manila. And once you have
studied here, there is also the
option of going abroad, he said.
Despite the shortage in the
country, Philippine nurses con-
tinue to supply 25% of the needs
abroad, based on 2010 gures.
The country is also the largest
exporter of physicians next to
India.
The exodus is fueled about
by low salaries relative to other
countries, lack of benets, poor
work environment as well as
perceived deterioration of the
socio-political environment, the
groups said.
The symbolic 100 millionth Filipino
gets an early party.
Many sick Filipinos never get a chance to see a doctor.
August 1-15, 2014 15
If youd like your organiza-
tions events to be included, please
send your information to Maurese
Oteyza Owens atmpapoose@aol.
com.
Aug 7-10 (Fri-Mon) National
Federation Filipino American
Association National Empow-
erment Conference. Town &
County Resort and Conven-
tion Center, 500 Hotel Circle N,
San Diego, CA 92108. Details
empowerment.naffaa10.org
Aug 8-9 (Fri-Sat) Mid Atlan-
tic Foundation For Asian Art-
ists, Noli Me Tangere (Touch
Me Not) as an opera, based of
Jose Rizals novel of the same
title. Kennedy Center Eisen-
hower Theater. Tickets at $60,
$80, and $100 (Special discount
for students @ the $ 60 range.
pls present ID). Proceeds for
MHCs Project Rebuilding
Lives, Building the Future
of typhoon Haiyan vic-
tims. Contact: www.maffaa.
org or 443-240-8734.
Aug 9 (Saturday) Philip-
pine Association of Metro-
politan Washington Engineers
(PAMWE) 34th Annual Fun-
drasing Gala Fairview Marriott,
3411 Fairview Park Drive, Falls
Church, VA 22042. Formal. $70.
Contact Hazel Russell 703 628
9925.
Aug 9 (Saturday) All
Saints Filipino-American
Ministry Monthly Rosary
and Meeting. 9300 Stonewall
Rd.,Manassas, VA. Contact: Rose
Ann 703-909-6454
Aug 9 (Saturday) All Saints
Filipino-American Ministry
Monthly Rosary and Meet-
ing. 9300 Stonewall Rd., Manas-
sas, VA. Contact: Leila 571-247-
1984
Aug 9 (Saturday) 9:00 am to
8:00 pm Marinduqueneos of the
Capital Area, Inc. (MCA, INC.)
Annual Family Picnic : Potluck
come one, come all @ Black
Hill Regional Park, Shelter B,
20926 Lake Ridge Drive, Boyds,
MD 20841. Contact: Blanca Sal-
cedo Ho (MCA, Inc. President)
301-540-6274.
Aug 9 (Saturday)
10:30am Ilocano Society of
America, Inc. 2014 Summer
Picnic & Miss Teen-Philippines-
America Appreciation Party.
Mass by Msgr Balbago at 10:50.
Bolling Air Force Base (AFB) DC.
Chappie James Blvd, Bolling,
DC 20032. Contact: Grace Valera
202-247-0117.
Aug 16 (Saturday)
8:00am. ANCOP Walk for the
Poor (5K). Jones Point Park (5
Point Jones Drive), Alexandria,
VA. To register: ancopusa.org
Aug 16 (Saturday)
7:30pm. Monthly Filipino
Mass. St. Bernadettes Catho-
lic Church, 7600 Old Keene
Mill Road, Springeld, VA
22152. Mass Sponsor:. Sponsored
by Filipino Ministry of Northern
Virginia in cooperation w/ the
Diocese of Arlington, Ofce of
Multicultural Ministries
Aug 16 (Saturday) Univer-
sity of Santo Tomas Alumni Assn.
Trip to 2014 Fiesta in America
New Jersey Expo and Concert.
Package tour: $65 Roundtrip for
one person, one EXPO concert
ticket featuring Martin Nivera
and Jericho Rosales at 3:00pm,
Meadowlands Expo Center,
Secaucus, New Jersey. Details
and reservations with ustalum-
niamerica@gmail.com. Deadline
Aug. 1, 2014
Aug 23 (Saturday)
10:00am Birhen ng Anti-
polo, USA, Inc. Devotional
Mass. Basilica of the National
Shrine,400 Michigan Ave NE,
Washington, DC 20017 tel (202)
526-8300. Contact: bnantipolo@
gmail.com
Aug 31 (Sunday)
12:00pm VFW Post 5471 Hawai-
ian Luau Annual Fund Raising
Event. Ador & Nanette Carreon
Residence, 315 Syria Court, Fort
Washington, MD 20744. $25.
Hawaiian Attire/Casual. Con-
tact: Ador Carreon 240-475-2645
or ador.carreon@aol.com
Sep 6 (Saturday) Philippine
Nurses Association of MDC 8:00
a.m. 3-K Family Fun/Run/
Walk Tucker Road Community
Center Park, Tucker Rd, Fort
Washington, MD. $30. To benet
PNAMDCs Wellness Initiatives.
11:00am-3:00pm Picnic
and General Assembly. Mrs.
Philippines Home. Mrs. Phil-
ippines Home for the Seniors,
6482 Buck Road, Oxon Hill, MD
20745. Contact: Nora Mendoza
at norrad72@verizon.net
Sep 13-14 (Saturday) 11:00
a.m. 9:00 p.m.- (Sunday)
10:00 a.m -4:00pm Asian Fes-
tival, Rosecroft Raceway, Ft.
Washington, MD. All-day Asian
concerts and shows, as well as
Asian crafts and cuisine, sports
competitions, games and con-
tests galore, and rafes with
major prizes. Participating coun-
tries include the Philippines,
Thailand, China, India, Vietnam,
and Malaysia. Contact: Bing C.
Branigin email:bing@asianfesti-
valdc.com
Sep 13 (Saturday) 6:30 pm La
Salle Philippines Alumni Asso-
ciation Bente Berde (LSPAA
Turns 20)Crystal City Mar-
riott Hotel, 1999 Jefferson
Davis Highway, Arlington, VA
22202. $75 per person includes
dinner-dance and chance to win
a cruise for two to the Baha-
mas. Restrictions apply. Checks
payable to LSPAA with memo
Bente Berde Gala and mail to:
Aurora Arellano at 6615 Burling-
ton Place, Springeld, VA 22152
Sep 13 (Saturday) All Saints
Filipino-American Ministry
Monthly Rosary and Meeting.
9300 Stonnewall Rd. Manassas,
VA 20110. Contact: Conrad 703-
909-6454.
Sep 27 (Saturday)
10:00am Birhen ng Anti-
polo, USA, Inc. Devotional
Mass. Basilica of the National
Shrine,400 Michigan Ave NE,
Washington, DC 20017 tel (202)
526-8300. Contact: bnantipolo@
gmail.com
August 1-15, 2014 16 16
News in Pictures
This is another photo featured on page 1 showing Chino Roque (center), the
rst Filipino Astronaut, posing with his parents (from left) Danny and Angie
Roque during the meet-and greet event organized by the La Salle Philippine
Alumni Association and co-hosted by PAFC at the Luciano Pizzeria in Fair
Oaks Mall in Virginia recently. Hosting them are his aunt and uncle, Evelyn
and Juanito Roque. (Photo by Jon Melegrito)
NaFFAA -Region 1 held their 4th Statewide Summit in Harrisburg-Hershey, Pennsylvania last July 19. Dr. Aida
Natividad Rivera, MD, newly-elected NaFFAA Region 1 chair, hosted the conference. Present at the summit were
Filipino American leaders from New York, New Jersey, and Philadelphia. (Photo: Bing Cardenas Branigin)
Participants at the recent KLP Career Workshop pose for photo after the meeting that is aimed
at making them effectively communicate their personal and professional skills, goals, and experi-
ence in different professional and post-graduate settings. It also taught them how their identity
as an Asian may inuence their opportunities for professional advancement and development in
the workplace. The workshop at the AFL/CIO building in DC was co-sponsored by Filipino Young
Professionals of DC.
Chaee Remigio, ISAs Miss Teen Phil-
ippines (4th from right) was among 15
nalists selected for this years Pacic
Miss Asian American at a pageant
held at the Hilton Hotel in Rockville
recently. Turning out to cheer her
on are community supporters (from
right) Mylene Manawis Lopez, Annie
Wilderman, Grace Valera, Manny
Lopez, Carl Abella, Carrie Macanas,
Shanah Raganit, Lucy Pascual and
Rose Marie Armour of Forever Living
Products, one of the events sponsors.
(photo by Jeanette Calahong)
Posing for picture after the Fil-Am Friendship Day in Hampton Roads, Virginia Beach on July
5 are, from left,: Don Tagala, Balitang America; Haphi Llanuza, ABS-CBN; Matteo Guidicelli,
TV/Movie personality in the Philippines; Gelo Barangay USA, Joe Ortega, chairman, Council
Fil-Am Friendship Day Hampton Roads; Tricia Orpilia, 3rd co-chairman, and Marie Bautista,
emcee. ( Bing Cardenas Branigin)
August 1-15, 2014 17
Around DC in Pictures
Manila Mail Columnist Jon Melegri-
tos extended family of more than
70 relatives on the mothers side,
gathered for their biennial family
reunion recently in Silver Spring,
MD. Spanning four generations,
they came from a dozen states across
the country and Guam. The 3-day
event featured story telling, chil-
drens talent show, Filipino arts &
crafts, a memorial service, exchange
gifts, and lots of wining, dining and
dancing. (Photo by Hyatt Lindner)
Family, friends and community supporters of Ellen Regalado Carag gather for a celebration in Stafford, Virginia
where she and her family lived for many years. Lets have a party, because thats what Ellen would have wanted,
husband Vic told the more than 200 friends after the memorial service, inviting them all to lunch. Members of Bukas
Loob sa Diyos (Open in Spirit to God) Covenant Community organized prayer vigils and provided spiritual comfort
to the family. (Photo by Jon Melegrito)
Photo shows some members of the cast of Noli Me Tangere, a Filipino opera
which will be presented Aug. 8-9 at the Eisenhower Theater of the John F.
Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. The cast held a press conference at the
Romulo Hall of the Philippine embassy early this month.
Tanghalang Pilipino ng DC
gathered for a joint celebra-
tion of Elvi & Rey Bangits
44th wedding anniversary,
Rey and Angie Bangits 13th
wedding anniversary, Don
Algers return after a long
absence, and Gina Constan-
tino Santos recovery from
a major illness. Marlon
and Gina Santos hosted the
July 12 get-together at their
Gainesville home.
A baby shower was held recently at the Methodist Church in Reston, Virginia for Raiza Basilio
Chiang. In photo are, from left, Valyn Atienza, Raiza Basilio Chiang, Mari Lantin Roquiz, and
Ciela Basilio. (Photo: Bing Cardenas Branigin)
August 1-15, 2014 18 18
Emerging Fil-Am leaders finish immersion in PH
WASHINGTON, D.C. Ten
emerging Filipino-American
leaders have completed the
third installment of the much-
applauded Filipino American
Youth Leadership Program
(FYLPro) in the Philippines.
The 10 delegates are Edward
Aparis from Chula Vista, Cali-
fornia; Rynn Chua from Gar-
dena, California; Rommel Cle-
mente from Milpitas, California;
Adette Contreras from Brooklyn,
New York; Michael Dahilig from
Lihue, Hawaii; Rafael Diokno
from Washington, D.C.; Abbey
Eusebio from Lincolnwood, Illio-
nois; Jan Paul Ferrer from Tinley
Park, Illinois; Ryan Letada from
New York, New York; and Jason
Tengco from Washington, D.C.
The FYLPro was held July
24-28 in Manila and the program
included interactions with senior
government ofcials, corpo-
rate executives and successful
entrepreneurs, members of the
academe and representatives of
leading nongovernment organi-
zations, according to the Philip-
pine Embassy here.
We have a truly promis-
ing group of individuals who
have already made a difference
in their respective communities.
This is an exciting time for them
and a wonderful opportunity
to get to know more about their
heritage and roots, said Ambas-
sador Jose L. Cuisia, Jr.
We need more people in
the United States doing work
for the Philippines. I hope this
trip inspires the young leaders to
pursue projects and lines of work
that promote the Philippines and
its people, he added.
The FYLPro is the brainchild
of Cuisia and his wife Maria Vic-
toria.
I havent been back in
27 years and I am excited to
see what business and invest-
ment opportunities the Philip-
pines has to offer, said Jan Paul
Ferrer, Associate Vice President
at Morgan Stanley and a member
of various Filipino-American
organizations.
Soldiers warned against joining coup vs P-Noy
MANILA. If the raging
pork barrel and budget contro-
versies have an unwelcome by-
product, it could be the rise of
coup detat rumors against Presi-
dent Benigno Aquino III, whose
mother survived half a dozen
armed mutinies during her own
presidency.
The countrys top military
commander warned soldiers to
steer clear of politics and resist
the lure of adventurism.
We should be reminded
that as members of the Armed
Forces of the Philippines, we
should remain professional and
non-partisan, Lieutenant-Gen-
eral Pio Gregorio Catapang, the
new Chief of Staff, told troops
recently.
Coup rumors sprang up
after the Philippine Supreme
Court declared large parts of
Aquinos pet Disbursement
Acceleration Program (DAP)
unconstitutaional and his bellig-
erent reaction to the decision.
The DAP has become a
political issue. We should allow
the democratic process to take
its course and let the judicial,
the executive and legislative
branches of government deal
with this, Catapang said.
That prompted Palace Press
Undersecretary Abigail Valte to
appeal to the media to keep the
military away from the DAP con-
troversy. The military is for the
country and for the people. We
should not engage in any efforts
to politicize the military, she
declared.
Aquino is the only son of
the countrys democracy icon,
former president Corazon
Aquino. He faces the biggest
test of his four-year-old admin-
istration as his ratings drop to
historic lows at a time when
the $3-billion DAP controversy
threatens to overtake the notori-
ety of a pork barrel scam that has
already led to the arrest of three
prominent senators.
You cannot discount the
range of possible scenarios in
which the plotters would resort
to extra-constitutional mea-
sures, said Ramon Casiple,
executive director of the Insti-
tute for Political and Electoral
Reforms, an independent advo-
cacy group in an interview with
Reuters.
New Armed Forces chief Lt. Gen. Pio Catapang with President Aquino.
Delegates to Fil-Am Youth Leadership Program are briefed on Philippine
conditions.
August 1-15, 2014 19
Abu Sayyaf waylays Eid Fitr
revelers, 23 killed
JOLO, Sulu. At least 23
people were killed when ter-
rorists afliated with Al-qaeda
ambushed a group of Muslims
celebrating the Eidul Fitr festi-
val in Talipao town last July 28.
A dozen more, mostly chil-
dren were also wounded in the
attack by the Abu Sayyaf Group
(ASG) in one of the worst ter-
ror-related incidents since US-
backed Filipino troops virtually
decimated its ranks.
Capt. Maria Rowena
Myuela, a spokeswoman for the
Western Mindanao Command,
said the victims were traveling
on two civilian vehicles when
militants led by Idang Susukan
and Sibih Pisih waylaid them.
She said at least 50 people
were on the vehicles, including
their escorts who were members
of the Barangay Police Action
Team. She said 10 women were
conrmed dead in the attack.
The Army has launched
pursuit operations against the
terror group. The motive of the
attack is still unknown but of-
cials fear it could trigger retalia-
tory attacks from relatives of the
victims against the relatives of
the Abu Sayyaf attackers.
The attack occurred just as
Muslims in the southern Philip-
pines ended the fasting month
of Ramadan and was celebrating
the Eidul Fitr. Locals celebrated
the occasion with thanksgiving
after the conclusion of the 30
days of dawn-to-sunset fasting
during the Ramadan. This is a
day when Muslims around the
world show a common goal of
unity.
INC unveils huge complex to showcase clout
MANILA. The Iglesia ni
Cristo (INC) has unveiled what
it dubbed as the largest theater
on Earth, the 55,000-seat Philip-
pine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan
that wont be just a center for
worship but also a showcase of
their size and inuence in the
country.
The INC opened the Philip-
pine Arena to mark its in time for
its centennial last July 27.
The complex easily dwarfs
the other arenas in the coun-
try. The Philippine Arena is an
establishment, is a marker, of
what they are right now in the
21st century. Theyre not a reli-
gion in the Philippines. Theyre a
religion in the world, explained
sociologist Jayeel Cornelio in an
interview published on rappler.
com.
The INC claims a presence
in at least 100 countries and terri-
tories around the world, in addi-
tion to 4,800 churches around the
Philippines.
He said the Philippine
Arena is a broader symbol of
power than the Iglesia ni Cristos
grandiose headquarters in Tan-
dang Sora, Quezon City, which
was inaugurated in 1984.
The INC is a Christian
denomination religion estab-
lished by Felix Manalo in 1914.
It proclaims itself to be the one
true church and claims that is the
restoration of the original church
founded by Jesus.
Perhaps unlike most reli-
gious groups in the country, the
INC imposes a strict discipline
among its members that report-
edly include voting as a bloc
during elections. This has exerted
immense inuence among the
countrys politicians who openly
court the Iglesia vote.
The government has
declared 2014 as the Iglesia ni
Cristo Centennial Year.
FAGA rules First Act golf
tilt in Maryland
BALTIMORE. Golfers from
the newly formed Filipino-
American Golf Association of
Maryland (FAGA) shared the
limelight in the just concluded
First Act, Inc. (FAI) invitational
golf tournament last July 19 by
winning the mens and seniors
division championships at the
Oakmont Green golf club in
Hampstead, Maryland.
The FAGA golfers also won
three of the six special awards up
for grabs in the two-person team
scramble event.
FAGA mainstay Melson
Muneses teamed up beautifully
with brother Marlon to win the
mens division (59 years old and
below) championship with an
18-hole score of two-under par
70.
The pair of Lindley Hora
and Willard Riparip nished
second, while Resty Rodriguez
and Alex Balancad clinched
third place to clinch a rare sweep
in the division. Both teams n-
ished with identical even par 72s
but the Hora-Riparip duo won
on count back.
Cris Maralit, another FAGA
member and chair of the FAI
golf tournament, teamed up
with Dr. Ben Del Carmen to win
the seniors division with a 72.
Maralit provided the repower
off the tees, while Del Carmen
complemented beautifully
with his short game around the
greens.
Runnerup was the pair of
Dr. Jun Reyes-Jun Jovellanos
with a 73, while Ed Reyes and
Dr, Ted Paglinauan placed third
with a 76.
The husband-wife team of
Marc and Novie Zammichieli, on
the other hand, won the mixed
division with an 81 score.
FAGA also had its share of
the special awards, with Riparip
and Kenneth Dolores taking
home the longest drive trophies
in the mens and seniors brack-
ets, respectively. Current FAGA
Cup frontrunner Jun Magsino
took the closest to the pin trophy
in the seniors group.
Zammichieli also won the
ladies longest drive and nearest
to the pin trophies, while Gilbert
Reyes copped the closest to the
pin award in the mens division.
FAGA co-founder Dick
Marcelino expressed elation over
the performance of the group
and lauded the winners in his
congratulatory message.
The participants were also
treated to a cultural presentation
by FAI talents during the awards
banquet. The dancers thrilled the
golfers with the awless perfor-
mance of the bangko (bench) and
the popular tinkling. Spicing up
the presentation was an audi-
ence participation in the tinkling.
The FAI golf tournament,
now on its third straight year,
is to raise fund to discover and
develop Filipino-American tal-
ents in the performing and visual
arts in the Greater Baltimore
area.
Some of the participants in the First Act golf tournamant (from left) seniors
champions Dr. Ben del Carmen and retired Gen. Cris Maralt; Dick Mar-
celino, FAGA founder; Dr. Ed Beltran and Dr. Ruben Ballesteros.
Government troops launch pursuit operations against Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Worshippers ll the INCs cavernous Philippine Arena.
August 1-15, 2014 20 20
lion) of family members of so-
called DREAM-ers to get work
permits, or perhaps allowing
giving work permits to even
broader groups, such as undocu-
mented immigrant parents of US
citizens or virtually everyone
whos not considered a high pri-
ority to deport.
Republicans in the House
are set to sue President Obama
over alleged executive overreach
in implementing the Afford-
able Care Act or Obamacare.
Although theyve voted repeat-
edly to gut Obamas signature
legislative achievement, the GOP
has bristled over his decision to
delay key provisions through
presidential edict.
This notion of extend-
ing DACA [Deferred Action for
Childhood Arrivals] to parents,
who were the ones who con-
sciously violated the law, strikes
me as ridiculous, said Jan Ting,
a top immigration ofcial under
President George H.W. Bush in a
politico.com report.
He said Obama has
defaulted on his constitutional
obligation to faithfully execute
the laws.
While they are nalizing
legal strategy, House Speaker
John Boehner has stressed it
will not include the Presidents
impeachment although some of
his party-mates have called for
that.
Still, legal experts believe
the Republican suit faces the
same roadblock as any challenge
to the expected immigration
policy changes: nding a way to
show the injury needed to press
a case in the federal courts.
Many immigration law-
yers also believe Obama has
few restrictions on his ability to
decide how and when the US
deports immigrants.
There is, I think, a general
consensus that his authority to
take executive action is fairly
wide as long as it is based on
executive branch authority to use
prosecutorial discretion to
decide how people are treated
who are subject to deportation,
said Doris Meissner, Immigra-
tion and Naturalization Service
Commissioner under President
Bill Clinton, was quoted on polit-
ico.com.
She noted that Pres. Obamas
action can be justied on the
theory of prosecutorial discre-
tion, the long-standing executive
branch power to decide in which
cases the law should be enforced.
We have a system that runs
on discretion. There are 11 mil-
lion people in the country who
in theory are not supposed to be
here. Congress has funded the
capability to deport maybe half a
million people a year, the pro-
fessor said.
The Associated Press
reported that immigration advo-
cacy groups meeting with the
President were told he was con-
sidering executive orders that
would potentially defer depor-
tations or grant work permits to
millions of undocumented immi-
grants.
But immigrant-rights activ-
ists arent happy, either. Mem-
bers of the National Day Laborer
Organizing Network are calling
for the president to go further,
and for the president to meet
with actual undocumented
immigrants, not just advocacy
groups.
reportedly on their way to the
Philippines for a vacation.
The European Unions Judi-
cial Cooperation Unit announced
in a statement last July 29 that it
was establishing a joint investi-
gation team focusing on the tech-
nical and forensic investigation
in Ukraine, where the site of the
crash is.
Representatives from the
Netherlands, Australia, Malay-
sia, UK, Belgium, Germany,
the Philippines, Canada, New
Zealand, Indonesia and United
States as well as Ukraine,
Europol and Interpol discussed
ways of broadening and accel-
erating the investigations.
The task is considerable,
but with such a broad approach
and willingness to work together,
I hope that we can cooperate in
an efcient and effective way to
uncover the cause of the crash
and seek justice for the 298 inno-
cent victims and their grieving
families, said Han Moraal, the
Dutch representative and chair-
man of the group.
Ukrainian armed forces
mounted a major onslaught
against pro-Russian separatist
ghters in an attempt to gain
control over the crash site.
Irenes relatives are now in
the Netherlands to arrange the
possible repatriation of her and
her kids remains.
Tirzo and Erlinda Pabel-
lon is representing the family in
the Dutch capital where foren-
sic experts are trying to identify
remains inside 227 cofns that
have been own from Ukraine.
The Pabellons could help in
the identication of their kin by
providing DNA samples or if
they brought medical records.
Only one of the remains has
been identied so far, according
to an Associated Press report,
almost two weeks after the
remains were own to the Neth-
erlands. Ofcials said the victim
was Dutch but declined to give
any additional information.
The exact number of people
that the cofns contain remains
unknown, pending analysis by
forensic experts, and the crash
site still has remains, according
to the AP. Beyond retrieving
bodies from the wreckage site,
the investigation into the crash
remained on hold as ghting
ared up in the region between
the Ukrainian government and
pro-Russian separatists.
the match with a par on the
rst extra hole, the par-5 14th
on Forest Highlands Meadows
Course after Navarro drove into
the water.
It was the rst nal to go
to extra holes since 2006 when
Jenny Shin beat Vicky Hurst in
37 holes.
Superal became the rst
Philippine-born player to rule
a USGA event. US-born Doro-
thy Delasin, whose parents are
Filipinos, won the event in 1996
while playing as an American.
Dottie Ardina, who is now cam-
paigning as a pro in the LPGA,
also reached the title match but
lost in 2011.
The jungolf community
is extremely proud of Princess
victory in Arizona, said Luigi
Tabuena, president of the Junior
Golf Foundation of the Philip-
pines.
Superal said the sport is
growing in her home country,
with more kids wanting to try to
play golf.
Philippine junior golf is
denitely on a roll, especially
since it comes a week after Dani-
ella Uy won the Junior World,
chimed Tabuena.
On the 37th hole of the
match, played at the 14th, Navar-
ros tee shot fell into the water
along the left side of the Fairway
hole. Each golfer moved onto the
fairway and the green in nearly
identical spots, though Navarro
was a stroke behind due to her
penalty. Each missed their putts
on the green, but with the balls
right by the hole, Navarro con-
ceded the match to Superal and
the latter claimed the champion-
ship with a par.
I was very shocked,
Superal said of Navarros tee
shot in the playoff. We played
this morning, and she always
made it on and made a birdie.
She just didnt give up,
said Philippine team leader Bong
Lopez. Princess just kept her
composure and made a birdie.
She was simply tough.
Superal is the reigning
Southeast Asian Games cham-
pion. Navarro, also 17 years old,
is a three-time Womens Mexican
Amateur champion and nished
6th this year for Texas A&M in
the NCAA tournament.
Both Navarro and Superal
received exemptions into the US
Womens Amateur Champion-
ship at Nassau Country Club in
Glen Cove, N.Y., in August with
their nals appearance. Superal
will also receive an exemp-
tion into the 2015 US Womens
Amateur, to be held at Portland
Country Club in Oregon.
Teen is first Filipino... from page 1
PH joins Malaysian... from page 1
Obama mulls deferral... from page 1
ernment. It supplies products
and communications for govern-
ment ofces, provides transpor-
tation and ofce space to federal
employees, and develops gov-
ernment-wide cost-management
policies, among others.
The GSA overseas govern-
ment procurements worth an
average $66 billion a year, in
addition to managing about $500
billion-worth of federal prop-
erty.
The bribes reportedly
included a $3,750 golf club mem-
bership and $2,000 in cash passed
by Bituin to the GSA employee
during lunch at a Tysons Corner,
Virginia restaurant.
On another occasion, Bituin
allegedly offered the GSA
employee other things of value
in exchange for his assistance in
obtaining GSA contracts, includ-
ing access to a retirement home
in Las Vegas, the down payment
on a home in Virginia, and 5 per-
cent of the equity in FLBE.
Bituin faces a maximum
penalty of 15 years in prison
when he is sentenced on Nov. 7.
This case was investigated
by GSAs Ofce of the Inspec-
tor General and the FBIs Wash-
ington Field Ofce. Assistant
U.S. Attorney Paul J. Nathanson
prosecuted the case.
shared pizza with him and gave
him their full attention.
What happens to a boy who
follows his dreams? As a boy,
Roques fervent dream was to be
a pilot. He was however steered
into the eld of psychology.
When asked how his studying
psychology background helped
him, he said it helped him keep
his composure because astro-
nauts are supposed to be calm,
and to contain his emotions, to
think for himself but also help
people around you to think.
After college he was work-
ing as a cross-trainer when he
heard the call of the Axe Apollo
Space Academy Competition.
Out of more than a mil-
lion entries to the completion,
28,000 of whom were from the
Philippines, Chino emerged as
one of three nalists from the
Philippines. The two other nal-
ists were Evan Ray Datuin and
Ramil Santos. Roque emerged as
the winner and will join 22 others
who will train and then y into
space in 2015, aboard an XCOR
Lync space plane made by Space
Expedition Corporation, a pri-
vate company that has entered
the business of space exploration
and travel.
Recruits underwent dif-
cult hero missions such as the
assault course -- a modied but
more difcult obstacle course;
high g-force training; aircom-
bat training, and an aptitude
test among other physical and
mental challenges at the AXE
Apollo Space Academy (AASA).
A panel of judges, led by
astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the
second person to walk on the
moon, chose Roque after more
than three days of AASA tests.
Other judges included
COR Aerospacee COO Andrew
Nelson, whose rocket company
is manufacturing the shuttle
to y the 22 astronauts; Space
Expedition Corporation (SXC)
CEO and shuttle owner Mich-
iel Mol; SCV Test Pilot Mission
Control COO Harry van Hulten;
and SXC Director of Commercial
Space.
Roque is excited about this
mission and owes his success to
his upbringing by his parents, I
had to work to get the things I
wanted, he said. Things were
not just given to me. His tenac-
ity, physical prowess, willpower,
discipline and the fervent goal
to continue to improve himself
were characteristics that were
said to impress the judging
panel. He also agreed that he
was a lucky guy.
Chino Roque signed photos
of him and Buzz Aldrin after a
lengthy Q&A session. He felt at
home with other school alumni
and was happy that he was in the
company of his kababayans.
He was accompanied by his
parents and was met by relatives
who live in the area. A feeling
of pride pervaded the audience
as Chino Roque went around
thanking everyone.
Pinoy astronaut talks... from page 1
Sterling, Va. Fil-Am... from page 1
August 1-15, 2014 21
Asian festival back at Rosecroft
The Annual Asian Festi-
val, which draws thousands of
visitors, will be held again at the
Rosecroft raceway in Fort Wash-
ington, Md. on September 13-14,
festival Co-Founder and Execu-
tive Director George Duangma-
nee announced.
We got a lot of feedback
from people who said they pre-
ferred the cool fall weather, and
we are happy to oblige, he said.
We invite everyone to
come and join us, as we celebrate
the diverse and unique Asian
cultures, he added.
On September 13, Saturday,
the festival opens at 11 a.m. and
closes at 9 p.m. The hours are 10
a.m. to 4 p.m. on the following
day.
The festival offers some-
thing for everyone, and for the
young and the old alike. All-day
Asian concerts and entertain-
ment shows, as well as Asian
crafts and cuisine top the fes-
tivals attractions. Other high-
lights: Sports competitions,
games and contests galore, and
rafes with major prizes.
For years, the festival was
held during summer and at dif-
ferent sites, enticing crowds
from all ages. This years venue
is again at the Rosecroft Race-
way. The address is 6336 Rosec-
roft Drive, Ft. Washington, MD
20744.
This is good news for
the great state of Maryland!
remarked Delegate Kris Valder-
rama of the 21st district.
It will be great for showcas-
ing our state, as well as celebrat-
ing diversity. I want to thank the
Asian Festival organizing com-
mittee for bringing this cultural
celebration to my district.
For many festival goers,
this has become an annual
family tradition, said the Fes-
tival Assistant Executive Direc-
tor Bing Cardenas Branigin.
Several Asian embassies
and organizations are again join-
ing this festival, she added.
Indeed, it is one of the
biggest celebrations of Asian
heritage in the entire East Coast
region. Participating countries
include Thailand, China, India,
Vietnam, Malaysia and the Phil-
ippines, among others.
On ce again, major sponsors
include Singha Beer, Thai Tennis
Organization of America, and
the Philippine American Foun-
dation for Charities (PAFC).
For more information, email
Bing C. Branigin at mcbranigin@
aol.com.
Govt lures Fil-Ams to play tourist in PH
MANILA. About 300
Filipino-Americans and their
American friends have arrived
in Manila for the start of the 9th
Ambassadors, Consuls General
and Tourism Directors Tour of
the Philippines (ACGTDT).
They will be in the country
visitors to relax and spend time
with their families and friends.
While here, they will also explore
investment and retirement possi-
bilities.
Launched in 2005 during the
term of then Philippine ambassa-
dor the United States and now
Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert
del Rosario, the ACGTDT is a
joint project of all Philippine
Foreign Service missions in the
US located in Agana, Chicago,
Honolulu, Los Angeles, New
York, San Francisco and Wash-
ington D.C.
Through this successful
tour program, we are able to
entice Filipino-Americans as
well as their friends in the US
to visit us and to deepen their
appreciation of the history, heri-
tage and culture of our country
and the natural warmth of our
people, said chief operating
ofcer Domingo Ramon Enerio
III.
Participants are also slated
to join the wreath-laying cere-
mony at the historic Rizal Monu-
ment in Luneta, a photo oppor-
tunity with President Benigno
Aquino III in Malacaang Palace
plus a tour of its museum and
luncheon at the Heroes Hall.
Special tours include Cor-
regidor, Intramuros, Metropoli-
tan Museum at the Bangko Sen-
tral ng Pilipinas, Manila Ocean
Park, and spa treatments at
Wensha.
To cap this years visit, the
participants will be brought
via guided tours to the luxuri-
ous resort of Pico de Loro Cove
at Hamilo Coast in Nasugbu,
Batangas. They will arrive to
a festive welcome of native
songs and dances with rondalla
music. Gov. Vilma Santos-Recto,
and Nasugbu Mayor Charito
Apacible will personally join
them throughout their stay at
Hamilo Coast.
According to the Tour-
ism Departments most recent
industry performance report,
for the rst half of 2014, visitors
from the United States (Fil-Ams,
Americans and visiting Overseas
Filipino Workers) constituted the
second biggest arrivals for the
period.
DFA bats for 2-M overseas Pinoy voters for 2016
WASHINGTON D.C. Of-
cials are urging Filipinos in the
United States and across the
world to register as voters for
the 2016 national elections back
home.
The Manila Mail had earlier
reported that for the rst time
in more than a decade, more
than a million overseas Filipinos
have registered for an upcoming
elections and the Department of
Foreign Affairs Overseas Voting
Secretariat are eager to press the
momentum.
At the current pace of
registration, we could have an
overseas voter stock of over two
million for the 2016 presidential
elections. Attaining this goal can
denitely be a game changer,
said DFA Undersecretary for
Civil Security and Consular Con-
cerns and DFA-OVS chairman
Rafael Seguis.
With only the current mil-
lion potential votes, overseas
Filipinos have the ability to sway
election results in the country
especially if the contest is tight.
There are more than 10 million
Filipinos living and working out-
side the Philippines.
The top 10 foreign-service
posts for overseas voting regis-
tration are Dubai, Toronto, San
Francisco, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait,
Los Angeles, Jeddah, New York,
Singapore and Milan.
The overseas voter registra-
tion kicked off last May 6 and
will run until October 31, 2015.
The basic requirements for
any Filipino citizen to register as
a voter are simple: he must be at
least 18 years old, and a resident
of the jurisdiction where he or
she intends to vote.
Under the present system of
continuing registration, a quali-
ed person needs to register
only once. This registration is
permanent, unless declared oth-
erwise by law. Registering more
than once constitutes an election
offense.
However, in cases when
a voter transfers residence, he
needs to apply for the transfer of
his registration record.
There are also instances
when a registration record may
become deactivated due to some
reasons stated by law, the most
common of which is the failure
to vote in two successive regular
elections. When this happens,
the concerned voter needs to
apply for the reactivation of his
registration record.
Voters who have gotten
married after registering as
a single person, or married
voters whose marriage has been
annulled or declared a nullity
by a competent court, includ-
ing those married voters whose
spouses have died, may apply
for a correction of entry in their
registration voters.
Female voters whose family
name may have been affected by
such events may also le for a
change of their name in their reg-
istration record.
A registered voter whose
registration record contains
incorrect entries, including
wrong or misspelled name, birth
date, birth place or typographi-
cal errors, may request for its
correction during the registra-
tion period.
Visitors from the US, including Fil-Am balikbayans, are 2nd biggest source of tourists in Philippines.
Church group opposes
Nobel bid for Aquino
MANILA. An ecumeni-
cal group is opposing efforts
by a Norwegian political party
to nominate President Benigno
Aquino III for the Nobel Peace
Prize for crafting a peace agree-
ment with the Moro Islamic Lib-
eration Front (MILF).
The Ecumenical Advocacy
Network on the Philippines
(EANP) wrote in a July 18 letter
that although they supported
the Aquino administrations
initiatives to end hostilities in
Mindanao, reports of continu-
ing atrocities in the country
suggested that nominating Mr.
Aquino would not reect the
spirit and intent of the Nobel
Peace Prize.
The letter was sent to
Rasmus Hansson, member of
the Norwegian Parliament and
leader of the Green Party of
Norway in Oslo that submit-
ted the Philippine presidents
name.
The letter was signed by
retired American professors
Tim McGloin and Paul Bloom;
Filipino-American Meg Layese,
who heads a Philippine stud-
ies group in Minnesota; the
United States-based Group 37
of Amnesty International; the
Human Rights Watch based in
Washington; and the Interna-
tional Bureau of Labor Rela-
tions.
They asked Hansson to
withdraw their nomination for
Pres. Aquino.
The 11th Annual Asian Festival will be held September 13 to 14 at the Rosec-
roft Raceway, Rosecroft, Ft. Washington, Maryland. The George Mason Uni-
versity-Filipino Cultural Association and Alumni will be assisting organizers
as a partner for the Asian Festival 2014. Shown above are Michael Rogers,
Melanie Via-Daens, Stephen Liddle, Honey Lou Vedar, Elaine Mangulabnan,
Charles Caburian, Melissa Mandac, and Nam Phuong Thai. The picture was
taken during the Asian Festival Executive Committee and Philippine Ameri-
can Foundation For Charities (PAFC) meeting held in Reston, Virginia last
July 22. Photo by Bing Branigin
August 1-15, 2014 22 22
Pa. lass to represent Fil-Am community in PH Ms. World pageant
NEW YORK. An 18-year-
old summer camp counselor was
crowned as the rst-ever Miss
Philippines Quest USA at the
Symphony Space in Manhattan,
New York City last July 12 and
will represent the Fil-Am com-
munity in the 2014 Miss World
Philippines pageant in Manila
on Sept. 7.
Alexa Kirby, who was also
adjudged as Best in Evening
Gown, topped the New York
pageant and won a round-trip
ticket to the Philippines and
$1,000, among other prizes.
During the question and
answer portion, Kirby named
young American actress-singer
Demi Lovato, who has been
vocal about her personal strug-
gles, as one of the new beauty
queens personal women heroes.
She [Lovato] was able to
overcome self-harm problems
and is trying to help other people
with similar problems to over-
come it as well, she said.
Kirby recently graduated
from Downington West High
School in Pennsylvania. She
is not new to beauty pageants
having joined Miss Teen Penn-
sylvania USA and Miss Teen
Philippines in the past.
In 2011, she was a dance
scholar at Touch of Class Dance
Studio in Pennsylvania. She also
received community service
awards twice from Kohls Cares
for Kids, a volunteer program
that supports childrens health
and education.
Filipino festival set in Richmond
RICHMOND, Virginia.
The Commonwealths largest
Filipino festival rolls into town
on Aug. 8 and 9 with 6,000
lumpias, 6,000 barbecue kebobs,
4,000 empanadas, 2,000 turons
and a million smiles!
But dont stop there: look
for balut, a delicacy of fertil-
ized duck embryo; lechon,
baby suckling pig; pancit, rice
noodles; adobo, a saucy, a-
vorful chicken dish, and many
more other specialty dishes.
Or how about the king of
cool desserts, halo- halo made
of ice, jackfruit, purple yam,
beans, and sweet milk? Halo-
halo means all mixed up, and
it is! Its refreshingly delightful,
messy and sweet.
Quench your thirst with the
popular island brew San Miguel
or a Virginia wine with a favor-
ite or new dish.
The admission is free to
the 9th Annual Filipino Festi-
val to be held from 5pm-10pm
on August 8, and all day from
10am-10pm on Saturday,
August 9.
This event is produced by
an all-volunteer crew and will
be held at Our Lady of Lourdes
in Richmond located at 8200
Woodman Road in the near
west-end of Henrico County.
The event is held on the
churchs spacious grounds.
The Filipino Festival is
our opportunity to showcase
our culture while we support
and raise awareness about the
needs of our community, said
Rosario Igharas, Festival Co-
Chairman.
The festival also features
lovely international singer,
Stephanie Reese, on Friday
night followed by one of Vir-
ginia Beachs favorite bands,
DOriginals. Later that eve-
ning, get your oor space early
because Conjunto Sason, one of
Richmonds hottest bands, will
heat it up with their rich, salsa
sound. CBS-6 news anchor
Stephanie Rochon helps to hosts
on Friday night.
On Saturday, the 5K Race
n Roll to support the Colorado
Fund for Muscular Dystrophy
kicks off in the morning. This
fun-run-walk is named after
Aileen DeCastro Colorado who,
with her family, was an active
member of the Filipino Ameri-
can community until her death
in 2011.
Representatives from the
Philippine Embassy in Wash-
ington D.C. will provide Con-
sular Services on Saturday from
9am-12noon and from 1-6pm,
opening an important opportu-
nity for everyone to get Philip-
pine travel or legal documents
processed.
Throughout the day, tradi-
tional, colorful and lively Fili-
pino dances, music and songs
will be performed by local and
regional artists, including live
band music by Pinoy Republic
and songs by The Remnants
Rock N Soul. There will also
be tinikling as well as other
cultural dances like the pan-
dango and the Legend of the
Sleeping Beauty Mountain,
and more. Line-dancing with
the audience is always a hit. Lite
98s disc jockey Chris Parker
takes the mic on Saturday.
The Festival supports local
food banks, clothes closets, nat-
ural disaster relief funds, mental
illness and muscular dystrophy
advocacy groups, scholarships,
and more. Get the schedule and
all the details at www.lipino-
festival.org or info@lipinofes-
tival.org.
PH basketball team trains in Florida for World Cup
MIAMI, Florida. The Philip-
pine basketball team thats slated
to vie for a place at the FIBA
World Cup in Spain next month
has started training here under
the watchful eyes of a coaching
staff led by Chot Reyes.
The team is composed of
players from Gilas Pilipinas
which is sponsored by Philip-
pine telecom giant Smart Com-
munications. The players ew
to Florida so they can be joined
by their latest recruit, the Miami-
based American NBA veteran
Andray Blatche.
Reyes is supervising an
11-day boot camp that started
last July 28. Reyes, assistants
Joseph Uichico and Josh Reyes,
conditioning coach Dexter
Aseron and team manager Aboy
Castro ew out with players
Jimmy Alapag, Jayson Castro,
Ranidel de Ocampo, Marc Pin-
gris, Gabe Norwood, Jeff Chan,
JunMar Fajardo, L. A. Tenorio,
Japeth Aguilar, Gary David,
Marcus Douthit, Beau Belga,
Paul Lee, Jay Washington and
Jared Dillinger.
They were joined in Miami
by Blatche and former New Zea-
land national team coach Tab
Baldwin who will assist Gilas
as consultant. At the 2011 FIBA
Asia Championships, he coached
Jordan to second place and came
within a eld goal of beating
China for the gold medal. On the
other hand, Blatche has played
for Washington and Brooklyn in
nine NBA seasons.
Blatche, 28, is in Gilas ini-
tial list of players for the FIBA
World Cup with Douthit. But
when Reyes trims the cast to the
nal 12-man roster, he will name
only one naturalized player as
required by FIBA. Either Blatche
or Douthit will be in the nal
lineup.
Fan Page
Philippine basketballs winningest coach Tim Cone (at center, standing) dropped in popular Sweet City Des-
serts in Vienna, Virginia where he was welcomed by enthusiastic fans that included former US Ambassadors Harry
Thomas Jr. and his wife Mithi and John Maisto and wife Nini, and Manila Mail editor Bing Branigin. Cone was born
in the US but his family moved to the Philippines when he was nine years. He spent high school at the International
School in Makati but returned to the US for college, spending part of that time at the George Washington University
here. Photo courtesy of Eric Lachica
Stephanie Reese
Alexa Kirby
August 1-15, 2014 23
Noli Me Tangere Opera At The Kennedy Center
By Herminia Ubaldo
Smith
W
ashington, DC, July
2014- - - - Phi l i ppi ne
national hero Jose
Rizals novel, Noli Me Tangere,
an opera? Indeed, yes! An opera
adaptation, which is considered
the most performed of Philip-
pine opera, has been staged since
1957 when two illustrious Fili-
pino artists collaborated to create
an opera version of Rizals evoc-
ative and patriotic literary work.
Philippine National Artist
for Music, Felipe Padilla De
Leon, composed the operas
music while Philippine National
Artist for Visual Arts, Guill-
ermo Estrella Tolentino, wrote
the libretto. Both authors, like
Rizal, were ardent patriots with
their respective works in music
and sculptures projecting pride
of country, love of peace and
freedom, survival from turmoil
and strife, as well as their shared
love of the Tagalog language as
indicated by their penchant for
naming their children in Taga-
log: Marilag, Bayani, Luningn-
ing, Magtanggol for the scions of
Mr. De Leon ; Dalisay, Lualhati,
Bayani as some of the names of
Professor Tolentinos children.
Scheduled for performance
on August 8 and 9, 2014 at the
premiere and prestigious venue,
the Eisenhower Theater of the
John F. Kennedy Center for the
Performing Arts, the opera has a
diverse, dedicated and talented
crew and cast devoted and well-
trained in music and intrigued
by the operas Philippine his-
torical background committing
themselves with enthusiasm and
excitement to the production.
At the July 16 press confer-
ence in the Philippine Embassy
to promote the opera, the casts
inspired and vigorous renditions
of the US and Philippine national
anthems, which reverberated
beyond the embassys Romulo
Hall, provided an introduction
to the prowess of the producers
and cast, foretelling the exalting
singing in the opera.
Some of the characters from
the opera were introduced and
the attendees were then treated
to sumptuous singing of arias
from the opera. Protagonist,
Crisostomo Ibarra, the alter
ego of Jose Rizal, was Cuban
American tenor, Sal Malaki,
who felt privileged to be a part
of an opera that depicts simi-
lar historical experience with
Cuba. Soprano Katrina Sapor-
santos, was Dona Victorina , the
social climbing and pretentious
woman, who reinvented herself
from a poor and uneducated
ignoramus to a farcical so-called
sophisticate. Puerto Rican/Fili-
pino American John-Andrew
Fernandez has strong and force-
full baritone appropriate as the
cruel and corrupt Friar Damaso.
Beauteous soprano from Cebu,
Antoni Mendezona, brought the
house down as the mad woman
Sisa portraying her with pathos
and distressed mania. They were
all adroitly accompanied on the
keyboard by music director Ben-
jamin Dia.
The story of Noli is seem-
ingly straightforward: Juan
Crisostomo Ibarra, of a wealthy
and highly educated Filipino
family, or, in Filipino socio-eco-
nomic class, an Ilustrado, goes
balikbayan (returns to home-
land) after several years of study
and travel in Europe where his
broader education has wid-
ened his perspective and way
of thinking. He wants to see his
father and to marry his sweet-
heart, Maria Clara. However, he
nds his father has been impris-
oned for false charges and his
beloved doesnt want to marry
him giving him no explanation.
His idealism and broader view
of civil rights that he acquired
from his European studies con-
tradicts with the oppression and
injustices he now sees towards
his native people from the con-
trol of the Church and the Span-
ish colonizers. His unwillingness
to go with the ow got him in all
sorts of challenging complica-
tions and trouble.
Rizals book is in itself melo-
dramatic . The title, Noli Me Tan-
gere (Touch me not), is derived
from the biblical verse 20:17 of
John, the most political of the
apostles according to Harold
Augenbraum in his introduction
to his 2005 translation of Rizals
book. So, the phrase has been
around long before Rizal went to
Europe and many earlier paint-
Cast of Noli Me Tangere during the press conference at the Philippine Embassy on July 16, 2016. From left:Soprano
Antoni Mendezona (Sisa), tenor Sal Malaki (Crisostomo Ibarra), and baritone John Andrew-Fernandez (Friar
Damaso)..---Photo by H. U. Smith
Continued on page 31
August 1-15, 2014 24 24
Hawks versus Doves
K
ishore who? Thats
what many irritably
snap when gently
pressed to pay equal atten-
tion to other signicant issues
than the impeach President
Aquino brawl.
Kishore Mabubani is dean
the Lee Kuan Yew School of
Public Policy at the National
University of Singapore. He
was Singapores former ambas-
sador to the United Nations for
Singapore. And what he has to
say about Chinas doves versus
hawks will affect our grand-
chidlren. Excerpts:
China is on the verge of
destroying a geopolitical mira-
cle, Mabubhani writes. In just
three decades, China rose to
become No. 2 world economic
power. It did so, without dis-
rupting the world order.
Suddenly, three decades of
careful management of its exter-
nal challenges have been upset
by three years of assertive and
occasionally reckless actions
threatening all.
Meet the hawks versus
doves conict within China..
The hawks are
mostly young ofcers of the
Peoples Liberation Army.
They argue that China should
confront those question its
claims to most of the China sea.
The young ofcers are
taking control of strategy, and it
is like young ofcers in Japan in
the 1930s, recalls Prof. Huang
Jing at the Lee Kuan Yew School
of Public Policy They are think-
ing what they can do, not what
they should do. This is very dan-
gerous.
This new posture partly
explains an emerging Western
media consensus that China has
become an expansionist military
power, threatening its neighbors
and the world.
Before this consensus is
set in stone, we should remind
ourselves what a large, complex
society China is: Neither the
country nor its government is
monolithic.
Given this internal debate,
it would be unwise to rush to
judgment, Mabubhani cau-
tions. China will not necessarily
become more hostile. Western
prophecies of a dangerous China
could even prove self-fullling.
if they provoke a nationalist
backlash.
Chinese are still haunted
by humiliations endured in the
two 19th-century Opium Wars.
The surge of anti-China opinion
journalism feeds the hawks
assertion there is a containment
conspiracy by the West.
When Mao Zedong and
Deng Xiaopeng ruled China,
they paid scant attention to
public opinion. Both made ter-
ritorial concessions when they
settled Chinas border disputes
with Russia and Vietnam.
Today, no Chinese leader,
not even President Xi Jinping,
can make unilateral concessions
of that kind.
The doves, in con-
trast, use the current wave of
criticism . They heft a Pew
Research Center survey that
shows rising anxieties of Asian
neighbors. Remember Dengs
advice that China adopt a low
prole as it emerges as a world
power.
Chinas 2012 decision
to block a joint statement on the
South China Sea alienated the
Association of Southeast Asian
Nations. Asean represents 600
million people and is now wary.
China behavior unleashed a
tiger of anti-China sentiment.
That will be difcult to cage
again.
It is unwise for China to
defend the nine-dash line
map of territorial claims. As the
worlds largest trading power,
China has far larger interests in
maintaining open seas globally.
China can afford to be patient as
its power grows.
Its leaders spend perhaps
90 percent of their time focused
on internal issues. President Xi
and Prime Minister Li begun a
campaign against corruption.
Obstacles stem from factional
struggles within the Commu-
nist Party.. Senior army gures,
been may be stoking external
tensions to save themselves from
internal investigations Corrup-
tion is the one force that could
ruin legitimacy of the Party. Suc-
cess is far from guaranteed.
The need to shrink state-
owned enterprises is a major
challenge. Chinese university
graduates yearly crest at seven
million yearly. . Many cannot
nd work. This is a bigger issue
than sovereignty over barren
rocks in nearby seas.
juanlmercado@gmail.com
The Peter Principle and Aquino
T
he candid admission of
freshman Senator Grace
Poe that she still has much
to learn in her new job and isnt
quite ready for higher ofce is
the most realistic self-assessment
that this country has heard from
a public ofcial.
The only other public per-
sonality who was as candid was
the late comedian, Dolphy. When
asked why he had no plans to
run for president, he replied that
it was not for fear of losing but
for fear of winning and then, not
knowing what to do.
Ever since Poes surprise
performance as top vote getter
in the last senatorial elections,
increasing noises have been
made, even by ostensibly knowl-
edgeable political observers,
about elding her in the 2016
presidential contest, in lieu of
Mar Roxas. Roxas poll ratings
have remained in the single
digits in spite of the billions he
has been distributing in vote-
rich provinces in an early ballot
buying spree.
In the Senate, Poe has not
disappointed her supporters. In a
hall populated by loose cannons
like Miriam Defensor-Santiago
and members of the Committee
on Silence like Lito Lapid, she
has been careful with her pro-
nouncements, has substantively
participated in committee hear-
ings and has sponsored a bill
that resonates with the public,
the Freedom of Information bill.
She has also displayed
public relations savvy by using
her maiden name, instead of her
married name, the better, per-
haps, to share in the well-loved
image of her late father, Fer-
nando Poe, Jr. By her own admis-
sion, it was because of FPJ that
she topped the senatorial race.
While she obviously is deter-
mined to live up her fathers
good name, she has, just as obvi-
ously, not been shy about using
the name to advantage.
Poes honest and pragmatic
view of her current capabilities is
something that ambitious public
ofcials like Bong Revilla should
take a serious note of. Having
served several distinctively
unimpressive terms as a senator,
Revilla actually believes that he
is t to be president of the Philip-
pines.
And why does Revilla
think he qualies for president?
Because his thousands of ador-
ing fans think so. The trouble
is, his fans cant seem to tell the
difference between their idol
as a national ofcial and as a
movie and TV star. While we
must concede that Revilla is one
of this countrys biggest boxof-
ce draws, there is a universe of
difference between acting for the
screen and managing a country,
particularly one with the prob-
lems and unmet needs of the
Philippines.
The fact, however, is that
Revilla isnt alone in fantasiz-
ing about occupying the highest
position in our hapless country.
Of course, you cant blame a pol-
itician, already tasting and rel-
ishing power as a congressman
or senator or governor, to aim
for the top post. The presidential
ofce has perks and privileges to
die (and kill) for.
But one reason why even
the least qualied thinks he can
be president is that, as voters,
we have not been discriminat-
ing in our choice of president.
We are easily dazzled by glam-
our and celebrity or are emo-
tionally carried away by the
passing of a well-loved relative
or are impressed by the work
of image makers. Even those
among us who are supposed to
be level-headed are often prone
to declare someone as presiden-
tial timber because of the ability
to send out press releases about
ghting graft and corruption.
We cant seem to remember
the wisdom of the Peter Prin-
ciple, which tells of the perils of
promoting people to their level
of incompetence.
Noynoy Aquino was liter-
ally catapulted to the presidency
by the outpouring of grief over
the passing of Cory Aquino.
Here was a person who had to
be persuaded to accept the draft,
having served, like Bong Revilla,
a distinctively unimpressed
tenure as senator and as a con-
gressman. But because his late
mother was hailed as a paragon
of honesty and his late father
was considered a hero, Noynoy
was also perceived as honest and
heroic.
For sure, the Noynoy phe-
nomenon was seen as the anti-
dote to the corruption that
marked the administration of
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. That
made any candidate who was
seen as Arroyos surrogate the
epitome of evil. It also made
Aquino look like the champion
of good.
In our imagined battle
between good and evil, we
thought that good won. But we
ended up with a classic applica-
tion of the Peter Principle. We
promoted a good son of good
parents to his level of incompe-
tence as president of the country.
This is not to denigrate
Noynoy Aquino as a person. I
have no doubt that he is a decent
human being at heart. I also
believe that he sincerely wants
to rid the country of corruption.
But he simply wasnt and still
isnt tooled up for the task.
On the other hand, we were
not primed to make the right
choice. And one wonders if we
are now. We need to understand
the fact that becoming chief
executive of the Philippines is
a hundred million people more
difcult than being the son of
hacienderos or even being CEO
of a corporate complex like that
of the Ayalas and the Sys.
It should be as clear as day-
light. NOT EVERYONE CAN BE
PRESIDENT. If we think that it
takes years of study to become
a competent doctor or a com-
petent lawyer or a competent
accountant, why do we think
that anyone whose parents give
us fond memories and emotional
nourishment is competent to
become president of the country?
I still believe in Noynoy
Aquinos sincere desire to do
a good job as president. I even
believe that he approved the idea
of DAP for the most noble of rea-
sons. If anyone should be pillo-
ried for DAP, it should be Butch
Abad, for not apprising his boss
of the pitfalls that confronted his
brainchild.
Im even prone to believe
that bribing the senators who
cooperated in the impeachment
of Chief Justice Renato Corona
was not part of the original
concept of DAP but, hell, the
money was there anyway, so
why not put it to practical use?
And that is the trouble with
good original intentions. They
tend to be prostituted in the
actual implementation. This is
particularly true where money is
involved.
But Noynoy Aquino simply
wasnt and still isnt prepared
for the presidency. Worse yet, he
appears to have forgotten or is
unwilling to admit that he is ill-
prepared and has demonstrated
a stubborn streak.
I recall being approached by
a member of the Hyatt Ten, who
happened to be part of Aquinos
campaign, and being asked to
help. I said that I, frankly, wasnt
impressed with Aquinos cre-
dentials. But I was assured that
a phalanx of expert and pure-
hearted advisers would guaran-
tee his successful tenure. Unsure
that the other presidential can-
didates were what the country
needed, post-Arroyo, I agreed
to help. How I helped is another
story. Sufce it to say that,
according to the media, it served
as a turning point for the Aquino
campaign.
August 1-15, 2014 25
Bargain Filipinas
MANILA
W
hen will the humilia-
tion and indignity of
Filipinas abroad end?
When are we bringing them back
home?
The immediate answer is
not any time soon.
More than 10 million Fili-
pinos work abroad (the actual
number has got to be higher).
More than half of them -- 51 per-
cent -- are women.
A small minority of the
women are professionals or
skilled workers. But the great
majority are categorized as
unskilled workers, mainly as
household help, hotel chamber-
maids or caregivers. They do
work that TV network Al-Jazeera
calls the 3Ds -- dirty, difcult
and dangerous.
And yet many of these so-
called unskilled workers had
earned college degrees in vari-
ous disciplines. Many of them
were teachers, ofce workers,
accountants, and other white-
collar jobholders when they
were still here.
That they willingly accept
often undignied work abroad
testies to their desperation for
their inability to nd person-
ally and nancially satisfying
employment at home. But it also
speaks of the low educational
standards in the Philippines.
Massive joblessness in the
Philippines drives Filipinos
abroad where many people think
the grass is greener. It may be,
but the risks are also graver. And
sometimes deadly.
How many of our country-
men -- mostly women -- have
returned home in pine boxes,
victims of unspeakable cruelty
at the hands of their foreign
employers? How many have
been maltreated to the point of
near-death? How many of them
have been deprived of basic
needs and comfort by their for-
eign bosses? How many of them
have been treated like slaves or
beasts of burden?
And yet they continue, in
the thousands, daily to leave
their homes and families just to
be able to earn wages that arent
always generous but only seem
a bounty because of the superior
value of other countries curren-
cies.
In exchange for what?
Humiliation, misery, home-
sickness, inhumane treatment,
deprivation of basic rights and
amenities, and other ordeals that
they dont deserve to experience.
Many of them are simple, honest,
innocent, law-abiding and hard-
working people who accept the
inhumanity that they suffer out
of necessity. The necessity of
raising a family that often breaks
up because of their absence and
the lack of parental guidance,
nurture and love.
Its a cruel world out there.
Virtually every day bad
news haunts us about Filipinos
abroad. One of the recent out-
rages inicted on Filipinas is the
humiliating experience of being
displayed in shopping malls as
bargain maids in Singapore.
Theyre reportedly shown doing
typical household work in malls
for the gaze and inspection of
prospective employers and
advertised as being available at
bargain prices.
If this isnt an indignity, its
hard to fathom what is.
Its no different from the
slave trade in the past when
human beings were sold to
wealthy buyers to do manual
labor in god-forsaken sites as
mining camps, plantations or
crop elds. The lucky ones were
taken to their wealthy owners
homes as household help. The
women were often sexually
abused with impunity by their
masters.
Today thousands of our
fellow countrymen suffer
through stints of hard work in
the Middle East and other Asian
countries. The lucky ones nd
their way to more hospitable
nations where people are rela-
tively enlightened and treat Fili-
pinos with more sympathy. Nev-
ertheless, most Filipinos abroad
are treated not as co-equals but
as third-class residents.
(As added irony, as I was
researching the statistics on our
labor migration, alongside the
text on the computer was an ad
that screamed Chat with Fili-
pina girls!. Services for so-called
Mail-Order Brides or Bargain
Brides are all over the Internet.
This is another escape for our
young women who sell them-
selves to foreigners in their mis-
guided hope that theyll nd a
pot of gold where theyre going.
On Appreciating Filipino Operas
T
he coming gala premiere
of Noli Me Tangere, the
Opera, at the Kennedy
Center for the Performing Arts,
Eisenhower Theater, on August
8, 2014 introduces Filipinos
living and working here in the
United States and their descen-
dants to a rarely-seen- or- heard
musical form that is culturally
distinct. While an opera might
betray Italian or German inu-
ences or even by the Chinese
in Peking, an opus composed
in the Philippines is strictly her
own, for it will always portray
a segment of the countrys his-
tory and be lulled by haunting
music embodying emotions and
sentiments experienced and
expressed only by the Filipinos.
Lest Noli Me Tangere
(Touch Me Not) escapes any-
ones memory, it is a ctional-
ized portrayal by Dr. Jose P.
Rizal of Spains 333 years domi-
nation over the many aspects of
Filipino lives. First published in
Berlin in 1887, Noli became
the guiding spirit, the rallying
image, during the Philippine
Revolution against Spains colo-
nial rule, a transforming event in
the countrys history. Thanks to
the libretto by Guillermo Tolen-
tino and music by Filipe De
Leon, both recognized as Philip-
pine National Artists, Noli can
now be seen, heard, and felt on
the stage.
Any period in Philippine
history, starting even from the
arrival of Magellan in 1521 up
to the present, is an opera in the
making. But it will take a person
gifted with perception to revisit
a momentous era, wandering
through the contours of cultural
events and summarizing his
ndings in a form that is expres-
sive and eloquent. Only through
an opera can he achieve this.
And it is not by accident that he
will be helped in his presentation
by a profusion of equally-gifted
artists.
In the world of perform-
ing arts, Filipino artists enjoy
a reputation as specially gifted
and endowed, almost a stigma,
born of years of exposure to the
eastern and western cultural
legacies. Added to this is their
knowledge of indigenous Asi-
atic arts readily-available for use
in developing and improving
art forms. Recognition of their
talents is world-wide in scope.
To name a few of the living art-
ists, Lea Salonga of Broadway
fame; Apl. De. Ap, rap artist and
member of the Grammy-Award-
winning group The Black-Eyed
Peas; Joshua Bell, violinist and
Music Director of the Academy
of St. Martin in the Fields; Lou
Diamond Phillips, multi-tal-
ented artists renowned for his
award-wining performances on
stage, television and lm; and
Rodell Rosel, a tenor who has
performed in the opera houses
in New York, Chicago, Santa Fe,
Houston and Florence in Italy.
Jovita Fuentes, concert pia-
nist and opera diva, will always
be remembered for her por-
trayal of Cho-Cho San in Puc-
cinis Madame Buttery in La
Scala, located in Italy and recog-
nized as one of the worlds great
opera houses. The rst public
opera house was built in Venice
in 1637. Aurelio Estanislao,
baritone and exponent of the
German Leider tradition, was
the rst Filipino to win the pres-
tigious Premiere Prix de Chant
at the Conservatoire National de
Musique de Paris.
The scenes that will be seen
in the three-act opera of Noli
will not be very different from
those that have taken place
for almost 400 years in virtu-
ally every opera house in the
world. The opera has remained
unchallenged as the most elabo-
rate, spectacular, complex, and
extravagant of all musical forms,
combining musical, dramatic
and visual arts into age-defying
achievements. Think of Ver-
dis Aida, Bizets Carmen,
Mozarts Figaro, Wagners
Meistersinger, or Puccinis La
Boheme.
The public turnout to an
opera might be pleasing to the
producers and managers, but
they are frequently troubled
by the knowledge that a full
house does not always cover
operating and production costs.
Added to this is the distracting
notions of some who view an
opera as a contrived presenta-
tion of life in which people sing
when they should be speaking,
go through incessant repetitions
as they make their exits, and
exhibit surprising vocal agility
on their deathbeds. The vocal
sounds range, for female, from
the lowest alto, to the intermedi-
ate mezzo-soprano, to the high-
est pitch of soprano; for the male,
from baritone to tenor.
Historically, the rst Fili-
pino opera in the traditional
form was Sandugong Panag-
inip (Dream of Blood Compact)
composed by Ladislao Bonus in
1902, based on Pedro Paternos
La Allanza Sonado. The rst
Filipino modern opera Binhi
ng Kalayaan (Seed of Freedom)
was composed by Eliseo Pajaro
on a libretto by Ricardo Pascual,
based on the life of Rizal. The
national anthems of both the
Philippines and Spain were used
as the principal theme to project
the fervent desires of the Filipi-
nos for freedom from the tyran-
nical rule of Spain. For this work,
Pajaro was conferred the Presi-
dential Award of Merit in 1966.
Filipinos musical gift and
penchant for singing led to
the tinkering of the stringent
requirements of a full opera to
come up with their own version
of the light operetta, the zarzu-
ela, a play showing the develop-
ment of a plot through the union
of declamation and music. It
usually is a light-hearted sketch
of the inconstancy of love. It was
introduced by Dario Cepedes at
the Coliseo Artistico in Manila
in 1878. The zarzuela Walang
Sugat, (Woundless) was rst
performed in a year before World
War II. It portrayed the travails
of a young revolutionary who
was made to choose between his
betrothed and duty to his coun-
try. It was in this play that the
song Bayan Ko (My Country)
was rst rendered. The ever-
popular song Bituin Marikit
(Twinkling Star) was rst intro-
duced in a zarzuela Dakilang
Punglo (Great Weapon) in
1926. The ditty was composed by
Nicanor Abelardo based on the
written text of Severando de los
Angeles.
The rst venues for the
emerging zarzuela was the
Clover Theater in Manila,
famous in the 1920s for its stage
shows or bodabil (vaudeville)
and the bodabil queen, Katy de la
Cruz; and the Zorilla Theater, the
rst choice for staging musical
performances in the early 19th
Century. It opened in August 17,
1893 with El Diablo Mundo
(The Devilish World), a zarzuela
with music by Jose Estrella.
Operas, operettas, and zar-
zuelas are parts and parcels of
a countrys history and cultural
legacies. They contribute to the
validity of their identity. Filipi-
nos should be acquainted with
them, but performing any of
them before an audience takes
money, talents, time, and efforts.
With Edward Seidel and Lorna
Imperial-Seidel at the helm and
a host of benefactors and spon-
sors led by Loida Nicolas Lewis,
the Mid Atlantic Federation for
Asian Artists is spearheading the
venture, with Noli Me Tangere,
the Opera for a start.
Continued on page 31
August 1-15, 2014 26 26
PORK CHOP WITH PLUM SALAD
H
ere is a pork dish I
seldom cook since I
became a vegetarian
14 years ago. But whenever I
serve this dish by request, it is
always the rst one to go. To
simplify the prep, I used only
2 pieces of pork chops, but of
course, you can always double
this recipe. And here is my sig-
nature summer Plum Salad (see
recipe below), worth trying. If
preferred, add steamed or garlic
fried rice on the side.
Ingredients:
2 thin center-cut pork chops
Granulated garlic powder
Salt and pepper
Extra light olive oil
1 tablespoon bread crumbs
Methods:
Trim any visible fat from the
pork chops and season to taste
with salt and pepper; sprinkle
lightly with granulated garlic
powder.
In a frying pan, add the pork
chops in a single layer and add
about half a cup water. Cook,
turning both sides of the pork
chops until the sauce is almost
evaporated (about 10 minutes).
Transfer the pork chops at in
a foil then lightly sprinkle both
sides with bread crumbs.
Clean and dry the frying pan
and sprinkle a little bit of extra
light olive oil. Under medium
high heat, cook both sides of the
pork chops until almost grilled.
Serve with Evelyns Plum Salad.
Evelyns Plum Salad
Ingredients:
1 red plum, peeled and cut
into chunks
2 yellow plums, peeled and
cut into chunks
3 fresh inner leaves of
Romaine lettuce, tear into chunks
Salad dressing ingredients:
1 tablespoon fresh lemon
juice
1 tablespoon light mayon-
naise
1 tablespoon honey
salt and white pepper to
taste
Suggested garnishing: 3 to
4 pieces of black cherries or blue-
berries
Prepare the salad dress-
ing -- in a small bowl, combine
all the salad ingredients and
mix well with a teaspoon. In a
platter, arrange the plums and
Romaine lettuce and pour and
mix in the salad dressing. Gar-
nish and serve with pan-grilled
pork chop.
Editors Note about Master
Chef Evelyn: 100 Most Influential
Filipina Women in the U.S., 2009,
Filipina Womens Network; MHC
Most Outstanding Migrant Award
in Culinary Arts, 2011; PAFC
Dakila Special Achievement Award,
2011; Owner/Chef, Philippine Ori-
ental Market & Deli, Arlington,
Virginia; Founder and President of
CHEW (Cancer Help Eat Well)
Foundation, a 501 (c) (3) public
charity formed to help and cook pro-
bono for Filipino-Americans who
are afflicted with cancer and other
serious illnesses; Culinary writer;
Member, Les Dames dEscoffier
International, Washington DC
Chapter; Member, International
Cake Exploration Society, Member,
Culinary Historians of Washington,
D.C.; Master Chef, French Cuisine
and Patisserie, Le Cordon Bleu,
London.
DOCTORS ORDER
H
enry, an 82 year-old
man, went to the doctor
to get a physical.
A few days later, the doctor
saw Henry walking down the
street with a gorgeous young
woman on his arm.
A couple of days later, the
doctor spoke to Henry and said,
Youre really doing great, arent
you?
Henry replied, Just doing
what you told me, Doc: Get a
hot mamma and be cheerful.
The doctor said, I didnt
say that. I said, Youve got a
heart murmur, be careful.
T.G.I.F.
A blonde and a macho are
riding in an elevator:
Blonde: Whew! Im glad its
t.g.i.f.
Macho: Shit.
Blonde: Really... its T.G.I.F.
- Thank Goodness Its Friday!
Macho: S.H.I.T. - Sorry,
Honey Its Thursday!
REWARD
Three married men died and
went to heaven. At the pearly
gates, St. Peter asked each one of
them, how many times they have
cheated on their wives.
First Man: Never!
St. Peter checked his book
and gave him a Rolls-Royce to
drive during his stay in heaven.
Second Man: Aahhh, about
10 to 20 times. (St. Peter gave him
a Ford Pinto.)
Third Man: Maybe 50 to 75
times. (St. Peter gave him a bicy-
cle.)
A few months later, the
three met up . The Pinto driver
and the bicycle rider were sur-
prised as they noticed the Rolls-
Royce man was very sad.
Second and Third Men:
Why the sad face?
First Man: I just saw my
wife, she was riding a skate-
board!
IN AGREEMENT
Two deaf people get mar-
ried. During the rst week of
marriage, they nd that they
are unable to communicate in
the bedroom when they turn off
the lights (because they cant see
each other using sign language).
After several nights of fum-
bling around and misunder-
standings, the wife proposes a
solution. Honey, she signs,
Why dont we agree on some
simple signals? For instance, at
night, if you want to have sex
with me, reach over and squeeze
my left breast one time. If you
dont want to have sex, reach
over and squeeze my right breast
one time.
The husband thinks this is a
great idea and signs back to his
wife, Great idea! Now if you
want to have sex with me, reach
over and pull on my penis one
time. And if you dont want to
have sex, reach over and pull on
my penis fty times!
PATAS
Misis: Hudas ka! Lagi ka na
lang umuuwing lasing. Naaasar
na tuloy ako sa mukha mo.
Mister: Pero mahal, kung
hindi ako lasing, ako naman ang
maaasar sa mukha mo!
TWINS
Twins talking inside the
womb:
Twin 1: Ano gusto mo
paglaki mo?
Twin 2: Gusto ko doktor. Eh
ikaw?
Twin 1: Gusto ko maging
pulis, para huli ko kalbong may
balbas na labas-masok dito,
tapos, tapik-tapik bago dura pa
ulo ko. Bastos siya!
Q & A
Host: What is the national
ower of the Philippines? Clue :
It starts with the letter S (Sam-
paguita)
Contestant: Sunower?
Host: Hindi. Ibinebenta ito
sa kalye.
Contestant: Stork?
Host: Hindi. Bulaklak sabi,
eh.
Contestant: Sitsarong bulak-
lak?
Host: Hindi pa rin. Ends
with the letter A
Contestant: Sitsarong bulak-
lak na may suka?
Host: O, para madali, uuli-
tin ko ang clues at dadagdagan
ko pa... pangalan ng bulaklak na
nagsisimula sa S, nagtatapos
sa letrang A, at kapangalan ito
ng isang sikat na singer.
Contestant: Ah, alam ko
na... Sharon Cuneta!
DAHILAN
Ako ang tumulong sa
asawa ko para maging milyo-
naryo! pagyayabang ng isang
misis sa kanyang mga kumare.
Bakit, ano ba siya dati?
tanong ng isang kumare.
Bilyonaryo. sagot ni misis
na gastador.
HEAVEN
Dalawang langaw nasa may
mabahong basurahan.
Langaw 1: Ang sarap
kinakain natin, no pare?
Langaw 2: Oo, nga... this is
heaven pare.
Maya-maya pa...
Langaw 1: Naku, pare... pas-
ensiya ka na... napautot ako.
Langaw 2: Kumakain naman
tayo pare. Ang bastos mo talaga!
SWEETHEARTS
At a movie house:
Girl: Honey, the man beside
me is masturbating.
Boyfriend: Just ignore him,
dear.
Girl: I cant. Hes using my
hand!
August 1-15, 2014 27
Letters to the Editor...
E-mail of writers
Sir:
Similar to the Washing-
ton Post, when possible, it is
requested that the email address
of writers and columnist be pub-
lished so that readers can agree,
disagree, make comments, be
more interactive. Thanks,
PABLITO ALARCON
Leesburg, Virginia
-----------
Mr. Alarcon, if you have any
comments, favorable or critical
about columns or stories that are
published in the Manila Mail,
you are welcome to send them
by email to manilamail@yahoo.
com or manilamail@gmail.com.
You can be assured that your
comments will be published for
all the readers of the Mail to
read. The reason is that it is not
only you who read the same col-
umns or stories, but all our read-
ers.
In fact, we have been invit-
ing all readers to send in their
commentaries to the editors and
they can be assured that their
observations will be published.
If they want their names not to
be published, we can accede to
such requests.
THE EDITORS
---------------------
Is the Mail a GOP paper?
Dear Editor,
As a card-carrying Demo-
crat I want to ask if the Manila
Mail is now a Filipino American
newspaper for the Republican
party. On p 16 of your July 16-31
issue, you published several pic-
tures taken by Bing C. Branigin
and other contributors showing
Republican candidates attending
FilAm parties in Virginia Beach,
Colorado and elsewhere.
In the Letters to the Editor in
the same issue of the Mail, you
also published the commentar-
ies of Ninio Fetalvero attacking
President Obama and the Demo-
crats.
Isnt it a requirement in
journalism that when a newspa-
per publishes press releases and
pictures of one political party
it should also give the same
amount of space for other par-
ties?
A VA DEMOCRAT
----------------
Mr. Democrat,
Thank you for your com-
ments.
Yes, we are duty-bound
to publish pictures, letters and
press releases if the Democratic
party send them to the Manila
Mail. Except for the daily press
releases from the White House,
we do not receive any PRs from
the Democratic party or local
candidates who are running
for election in November. If the
White House news releases are
of interest to our readers, we
publish them.
Similarly, almost every day
the Republican National Com-
mittee based in Washington D.C.
bombards us with press releases
lambasting the President, Obam-
acare, etcetera, etcetera.
The GOPs are also all over
the social mediaFacebook,
Twitter, and other channels that
are also critical of the administra-
tion. We have not seen anything
coming out from the Democratic
party.
THE EDITORS
--------------
Watch Noli
Open Letter:
Take pride of the Filipino
heritage and appreciate Rizals
novel that led us to freedom from
Spains bondage of 400 years !!!
Hurry , get your tickets now for
MAFFAA Incs NOLI ME TAN-
GERE, THE OPERA (Jose Rizals
famous novel) on 8-9 August
2014 at the Kennedy Center in
Washington D.C. Tickets at $ 60,
$ 80 and $ 100 for Aug 8.
Now, the producers are
nally bringing it it here to
Washington D.C. for a limited
2-day performance so please
dont miss this opportunity! Take
pride of the Filipino heritage and
appreciate Rizals novel that
led us to freedom from Spains
bondage of 400 years !!!
The NOLI ME TANGERE
Immigration Notes
By: J. G. Azarcon, Esq.
Options for
tourists
M
ost of the people who
come for a visit to the
U.S. intend to return to
their home country. There are
some however who fall in love
with America it pains them to
part with Lady Liberty.
What are possible options
for a tourist who would like to
remain in the US legally?
A college degree holder has
the potential to change to H-1B
status.. This is a non-immigrant
status that allows employment.
The alien must rst nd a job
offer for a position that can
only be performed by a college
degree holder whose education
is relevant to the job duties. For
example, and engineering job for
an engineering graduate, but not
a bricklayer job for an engineer-
ing graduate. In some instances,
experience could substitute for
a college degree. H1-B is ini-
tially issued for 3 years and can
be extended to six years. Due
to quota limitations, nding an
employer who is willing to spon-
sor the alien does not assure a
favorable outcome.
If the alien is not a college
degree holder, H2-B is an option.
This is a non-immigrant status
that also allows employment in
jobs that do not require a college
degree and can be completed in
not more than one year. H2-B
is for non-professional jobs that
are seasonal or short contractual
duration. For example, a laborer
in a construction job that is
required to be completed in ten
months. If the employers need
VISA PRIORITY DATES FOR THE PHILIPPINES
AUGUST 2014
FAMILY-SPONSORED PREFERENCES
First: Unmarried sons/daughters
of US citizens Jun. 01, 2004
Second:
A: Spouses/minor children of
permanent residents: May 01, 2012
B: Unmarried sons/daughters 21 years
of age or older of permanent residents Oct. 08, 2003
Third: Married sons/daughters of citizens Apr. 15, 1993
Fourth: Brothers/sisters of citizens Jan. 22, 1991
EMPLOYMENT-BASED PREFERENCES
First: Priority workers Current
Second: Professionals holding advanced
degrees or persons of exceptional ability Current
Third: Skilled workers, professionals Jun. 01, 2010
Other Workers Jan. 01, 2010
Fourth:
Certain Religious Workers Current
Fifth: Employment creation/
(Million or half-million dollar investor) Current
Continued on page 31
The wonders of statins
Cholesterol and saturated
fats have killed more people
around the world than all the
battles and wars combined. In
the United States alone, more
than half a million people suc-
cumb to heart attack and stroke
each year.
This does not even include
the morbidities and disabilities
caused by the blockages of arter-
ies in the abdomen and limbs
due to cholesterol plaque build-
up, leading to lack of blood
supply to vital organs.
Luckily for all of us today,
there are the wonder drugs
called statins.
*The risk factors*
Besides hypercholesterol-
emia (high blood serum cho-
lesterol levels) from eating red
meats, eggs, dairy products
with high saturated fat contents,
there are other contributing fac-
tors to the development of car-
diovascular diseases, such as
smoking, lack of exercise, excess
body weight, unmanaged stress,
untreated or poorly controlled
high blood pressure, diabetes,
and, to some degree, genetics.
*Prevention*
There is no question that pro-
phylaxis by living a healthy life-
style, minimizing those risk fac-
tors listed above, is the best way
to slow down arteriosclerosis and
reduce your risk for heart attack,
stroke, cancer, possible Alzheim-
ers and Multiple Sclerosis. It has
been clinically shown that life-
style changes alone (low fat, high-
ber diet of sh and vegetables,
plus daily exercises and absti-
nence from tobacco) could reduce
the Low Density Lipoprotein
(LDL, the bad cholesterol) by 40
percent, whereas statins reduce
the LDL between 25 percent-60
percent.
Some people need a combi-
nation of lifestyle changes and
statins.
*Where statins come in*
If the cholesterol and triglyc-
erides are still uncontrolled in
spite of positive behavioral life-
style changes, the wonder drugs,
statins, could be just what the
doctor would prescribe. Some
physicians are more aggressive
than others but the trend appears
to be towards early use of statins
in dramatically lowering the total
cholesterol down to (not 200 any-
more but) 150 as the new healthy
cut-off level, the LDL to below
100, increasing the HDL (good
cholesterol High Density Lipo-
protein) to above 60, and reduc-
ing the Triglycerides to below
150. While statins can tame
the cholesterol risk factor,
it can not thwart or negate the
adverse effects of smoking, lack
of exercise, uncontrolled high
blood pressure and obesity.
*Arteriosclerotic plaques*
Twelve to fteen million
Americans of various ages and
conditions depend on one statin
or another to reduce or prevent
the waxy goo formation (arte-
riosclerosis) on the walls of their
arteries all over the body. The
cheesy materials are fat deposits
or plaques on the arterial intima
(inner wall lining) which continu-
ously build up, cause narrowing,
and eventually block the arteries,
cutting off the blood supply to the
vital organs like the heart (heart
attack), the brain (stroke), etc.
*What are statins?*
Statins are cholesterol-low-
ering pills, a top-selling class of
drug in the United States, rst
introduced in 1987, accounting
for about 15 billion dollars in
2003. They work by (1) blocking
an enzyme that the body needs
to produce cholesterol, which
lowers the cholesterol, and by (2)
boosting the livers efciency in
removing LDL (bad cholesterol)
from the bloodstream, by increas-
ing LDL-receptor production in
the
liver, which receptors elimi-
nate the excess blood LDL and
resulting in lower bad cholesterol.
*How adverse is the couch-
potato syndrome?*
This sedentary and lazy
behavior has caused a lot or
mortality and morbidity. Couch-
potato lifestyle is no joke. This
has led to a dramatic increase of
61 percent of obesity in the 1990s
and 49 percent increase in dia-
betes that same period. Statistics
show that fewer than 50 percent
of American do any form of daily
exercises, and obesity is now in
epidemic proportion. The bigger,
super-sized, portions in fast junk
food restaurants, which, by the
way, are also loaded with satu-
rated fats, is a big factor in trans-
forming America and other west-
ernized countries into unhealth-
ier societies.
Continued on page 31
August 1-15, 2014 28 28
The Charmed-Life Feeling
M
any years ago, during
my visit to attend the
25th wedding anniver-
sary of my sister in San Fran-
cisco, I had an interesting con-
versation with one of her daugh-
ters, Charmaine. A couple of
days after the wedding, she sat
with me to chit-chat and catch up
with some family tidbits. With
the same family genes, expres-
sions and the likes, it was like
talking with my own daughters
which I enjoyed much. One of
the things that came up was the
topic of Charmed Life. She said
the term intrigued her because
of the closeness to her name with
the French word Charme which
meant charming. She uttered
she liked her name a lot and was
thankful that her mom gave her
that name. She coyly added that
she was fondly called Charm-
ing by her friends that she
found very nice and uplifting. I
commented with honesty that
her name aptly described her
personality. She was very young,
then.
Last spring, I was in San
Francisco again for the nth time.
Charmaine suddenly remem-
bered the topic that we talked
about many years ago. She is
now an adult and both of us have
already forgotten how we ended
that conversation. However, I
recalled that she mentioned the
name of a former First Lady as
an example of a person having
a Charmed Life, Jacqueline Ken-
nedy. Having that conversation,
the difference between now and
then was both of us are now con-
tributing ideas and opinions to
our discussion. Unlike before,
most of the substances were
coming from me. How about
now?
Well, rstly, we agreed that
the term Charmed Life, basi-
cally came from the root word
charm which meant pleasing,
delightful, fascinating or it could
be described as, A trait that fas-
cinates or allows physical grace
or attraction (I often advise, Use
your charm in regards to a situ-
ation when a favor or a positive
decision is badly needed). All
these good traits are essential to
a satisfactory daily life. We said,
Charm Life is geared toward
women, but men could lead a
charm life as well. As we have
experienced life over the years,
the reasons for this charmed-
life feeling have become clear
- it entails greater and deeper
understanding and constantly
molding the experience in posi-
tive directions. I said, It is like
transforming an ordinary life
into a set of extraordinary expe-
riences. In a realistic way, we
would be able to turn something
that most people would consider
a hassle into a good learning
experience. Charmaine uttered,
Tita, it takes a person made of
strong bers to be able to con-
form to a charmed-like life. Not
all of us can lead a charmed-life.
How Can I Live a Charmed-
Life?
Charmaine: If I am not
born with it, how can I have it?
Me: Charmed living is like
living principles. You start by
deciding what the life you want
looks like and where you are to
get your life where you want it.
Next is answering the how- for
a lady, it helps a lot if you show
you are a woman of substance,
renement and assurance, then,
follows the characteristics of
being pleasing or delightful.
Having these basic personal
attributes could pave the way,
but unfortunately, there are a
thousand more added combina-
tions needed to change the real
you and charm your life. Lucky
are the ones who were born with
the right attitudes, aptitudes and
propensities that are harmoni-
ously blended.
Charmaine: Tita, it looks
like you are describing my lady
boss who is an architect, owns
several leased apartments, a
director of a city business organi-
zation, a director of a charitable
institution, has a lawyer an-
ce, active in her parish church,
has a nice home with a beauti-
ful garden and plays the piano
she has created a charmed-life.
I think, in a way, I also have cre-
ated something for myself, but it
is only half of what my boss has
made for herself.
My niece added that that
her lady boss is a tough cookie,
blessed with foresight, insight,
wit and humor, and can manage
her busy life with grace and
poise and nds time for what
is really important. Charmaine
admittedly inferred that she
was lacking in the area of time
management which was detri-
mental to the timely completion
of some of her projects. Clearly,
she admired her lady boss who
became an inspiration. Onward
to a charmed-life!
Learning is a never ending
thing. This conversation has
given us the opportunity to
exchange information and learn
more from each other. In my next
trip to San Francisico, I look for-
ward to see Charmaine with a
fuller charmed-life. Some point-
ers to add: Give yourself some
time to shine and be recognized;
take some time for vacation or
relaxation; keep your personal
life yours and discuss particu-
lars only with condants; travel
to gain global perspective; give
yourself breaks, even ve-min-
ute ones; remove from your life
certain complications; eat small;
and age gracefully.
* * * * * *
Personal Time
Like most busy women, we
always thought that once our
children grew up and left home,
once we got a little closer to
retirement age, well have more
free time than we knew what to
do with. I wish! we say now.
We have different circumstantial
challenges in life involving chil-
dren, spouse, parents, and sib-
lings. All too often, to make room
for these tasks and demands
from our everyday living, the
rst thing women give up is per-
sonal time those moment s in
the day, large or small, that used
to give us pleasure. In doing so,
were missing a valuable and
vital part or our lives.
I say, Personal time is not
a luxury- it is a necessity.
Weve seen that having free
time even just a few moments
of peace and quiet everyday-
helps us feel more centered. We
are more patient and able to deal
with the demands of work and
family.Moreover, setting aside
me time in our schedule also
helps combat stress, which can
cause sleep problems, suppress
the immune system and increase
the risk for heart disease ad high
blood pressure.
Understanding the he need
for personal time isnt the prob-
lem. Actually taking that time
out of the busy schedule is. For
inspiration, other women con-
sider their own personal me
zones like giving self permis-
sion to take a break. Perhaps the
biggest obstacle is overcoming
the idea that we are too busy
to have free time- make a list of
activities that wed spend time
on and set rm dates for commit-
ments including doing things for
ourselves. Create space for our-
selves, designating an area that
is a time-out zone, Lastly, focus
on quality not quantity for per-
sonal time, even a few minutes to
enjoy peace and quiet.
In Search Of Nirvana
W
hat could I say to
you that would be
of value, except
that perhaps you seek too much,
that as a result of your seeking
you cannot nd. Hermann
Hesse, Siddhartha.
Siddharta, a ction novel by
Hesse, follows the life of a young
Brahmin utterly dissatised with
his life of leisure. He leaves his
fathers house and begins a jour-
ney in pursuit of enlightenment,
happiness, and contentment. He
becomes an ascetic but quickly
becomes disappointed, so he
goes to the other extreme and
turns into a sybarite. Again dis-
enchantment nds him.
At the end of the narrative
Siddharta nally attains content-
ment and enlightenment when
he takes over as the ferryman of
the river he crossed at the start
of his journey. Ommmm. End
of story. Or is it? I think not. He
changes course too many times
that I am left unconvinced he has
indeed found nirvana in a life of
hard labor and tedium.
The book made me intro-
spective and philosophical. I
can understand the restlessness
that leads one to search for lifes
meaning. I crossed the ocean
and left the security of my home
in the Philippines. What was
I searching for? Happiness of
course. I was young and in love
and the object of my delight and
bliss was on the other side of the
globe.
I am not a proponent of
austerity and self-denial. I crave
comfort and serenity in my life. I
am, however, bewildered by the
extent to which we chase after
happiness as though that is the
ultimate aim in life. I just want
to be happy.
I nd happiness to be a
moving target. The bar is set ever
higher when I peg that joy to
possessions and passing fancies.
The material things I own
break down and rot. How often
have I coveted the latest model
of anything and everything?
My, how beautiful that new car
looks! If only I can afford one,
I will be very happy. Lo and
behold the fate genie heard my
fervent wish and I did get that
spiffy automobile. I am ecstatic.
Until the next model year when
my happiness gets tarnished and
dented like the faded luster of
my cars paint nish.
Youth and beauty are eet-
ing. Time, that most ckle of mis-
tresses, will denitely take care
of both. Aha, how easy one for-
gets. It is the age of nip and tuck
and magic potions. If you have
the money, you can turn back the
clock, honey.
I am as guilty as my girl-
friends, constantly on the prowl
for cosmetic solutions to keep
my face supple and youthful.
And Ill never say never to sur-
gical interventions either. (How-
ever, I have a partner who is
vehemently against such things.
And I am destitute. He holds the
purse.)
It has been decades since my
restless youth. I now realize that
if I pursue happiness as my only
goal, I fail.
My children have given
me many reasons to be proud
and happy. They are produc-
tive members of the world com-
munity. They have given me
grandchildren who are my joy
and my delight. My husband has
provided for me a life of comfort
and security . He has made it pos-
sible for me to grow and mature
into the quirky life-a-holic that I
am. But I refuse to depend even
on them to make me happy. It is
not their responsibility. It is mine
alone.
I have stopped chasing after
nirvana. Instead, I chase after
dreams that give meaning to my
life. That has allowed happiness
and contentment to nd me. I
have and will continue to do my
best and shrug off the rest.
August 1-15, 2014 29
Editorial
Welcome to the 100 millionth Pinoy
T
he Philippines population has
reached the 100-millionth mark
after the birth of a lucky baby on
July 27, 2014. This means that the Phil-
ippines, whose land area is less than the
size of Texas, is nearing half of the total
US population of about 236 million! While
economists in the Philippines cringed,
churchmen hailed the landmark birth as
God-send!
One Pinoy Tsismoso says we now
have enough people to populate the islets
in the West Philippine Sea and stop Chi-
nese encroachment. No, we cant beat
China which has a population of almost
2 billion!
***
God-Dems, wake up!
This was the cry of a rabid Demo-
cratic supporter who recently noted the
rise in the press releases of the Republi-
can party. He declined to identify him-
self when he criticized the Manila Mail
for allegedly becoming pro-Republican.
He said he is worried because the DC-
based Republican National Committee
has started wooing the Filipino and Asian
American voters in the US.
The DC-based Republican National
Committee has been bombarding the
Manila Mail and other Asian American
publications with its daily dose of anti-
Obama and anti-Democrat press releases.
The Manila Mails last issue showed
Republican candidates being present
in many Filipino American community
activities in Virginia Beach, Colorado,
San Diego and elsewhere. No one, for
instance, has seen any Democratic candi-
dates for the House and Senate in the tri-
state area rubbing shoulders with Filipino
and Asian Americans in their community
celebrations.
In charge of the GOP press release
machine in DC is Ninio Fetalvo. The Dem-
ocrats? Nada, zilch, zero, wala
If the Republicans win big among
the Asian American voting population in
the November elections, its because they
have wooed them, at least in Virginia,
Maryland and Washington D.C. But it is
assumed that the same PR machine exists
in almost all key areas in the U.S.
***
Wheres USP4GG now that Presi-
dent Benigno Noynoy Aquino III is
being attacked by practically all sec-
tors of society? It seems that everyone
has started distancing themselves from
PNoy because of his alleged blunders
and deance against the rule of law.
Tsismoso is referring to the group that
calls itself US Pinoys for Good Gov-
ernment that was formed after PNoys
assumption of the presidency in 2010.
Now that PNoy is being pilloried right
and left, some are asking: where have
all the USP4GG leaders gone? During its
formation 4 years ago, there were many
volunteers in the East and West Coasts
who enthusiastically joined the group and
even made their pilgrimages to Manila at
their own expense. Today, there is nary a
whisper from them.
They are concentrating their attacks
on China for its incursions into the West
Philippine Sea because it contains huge
amount of gas, oil and other natural
resources.
What happened?
For one thing, says one Tsismoso,
at that time many joined hoping to get
recognition from PNoy or a position in
the administration he was forming. Now,
some have become disillusioned because
PNoy have not even complimented them
for their support. The result is that some
have now turned against him. after he
used his power to save Hacienda Luisita,
oust the former Chief Justice and now
is on the verge of defying the Supreme
Court.
Today, Filipino Americans have
joined their countrymen in calling the
President as bungler, inept in gover-
nance, etcetera, etcetera. Some have
started referring to him as BS.Aquino
dictatorial, vindictive, or running amuck.
Some Filipino Americans have been
calling for Edsa III, referring to the dem-
onstrations that ousted dictator Ferdinand
Marcos and later President Erap Estrada
for corruption.
While he got an A for his initial ght
on corruption, he is now getting a D for
ineptness, incompetence, and for attack-
ing his own Supreme Court just because
they ruled against his unconstitutional
disbursement of funds.
There is now talk, even among Fili-
pino Americans, for his impeachment
should he ontinue to defy the SCs ruling.
But others are cautioning against such a
move The reason is that it might result
in a Gloria Arroyo II. When Gloria was
elevated to the presidency, she loved the
position so much that she resorted to
Hello Garcie in order to win reelection.
And like Erap, she herself is now facing
corruption and plunder charges!
Some cooler heads are now urging
caution against Arroyo II. Their argument
Impetus for reform
More than 57,000 unaccompanied immigrant children
have entered the country since October, spurring a worry-
ing dilemma in Americas own front yard.
Immigration rights activists believe they are whats left
of a larger group eeing the drug-fueled violence in their
countries or are trying to reunite with parents already in
the United States.
They are survivors of a long, perilous trek. Who knows
how many have fallen prey to predators, sold off to broth-
els, abused or worse, mortally felled in the journey?
Government facilities are swamped. This crisis has
exacerbated an already congested immigration pipeline
that could delay prosecution and deportation, and inadver-
tently fan the false notion, spread by wily syndicates, that
they can stay in America after sneaking across the border.
A recent Associated Press-GfK survey showed that
Americans, by a margin of 2-to-1, oppose the current pro-
cess for handling the unaccompanied minors.
Washington is as much to blame for this growing
humanitarian crisis as the coyotes who smuggle these chil-
dren into the country. And while the political partisans in
Congress point accusing ngers against each other their
inaction is really whats driving this crisis.
This should shake lawmakers, Republicans and Demo-
crats alike, from their seeming stupor. Honorable Gentle-
men and Mesdames of Congress: Its time to buckle down
to work and reform the nations obviously broken immi-
gration system. If not you, who? If not now, when? (RJJ)

Continued on page 31
August 1-15, 2014 30 30
Princess
wins big
I
was glued to TV watching the
exciting match play between
two seventeen-year old girls
vying for the title- 2014 Cham-
pion of the U.S Girls Junior
Golf sponsored by the U.S. Golf
Association. In a nail biter 37
holes extended play last July 26,
Filipino Princess Mary Superan
bested Mexican Marijosse
Navarro at Forest Highlands
Meadows Course in Flagstaff,
Arizona.
Superan is the rst Filipino
to win the title. Dorothy Dela-
sin, born to Filipino parents who
immigrated to California won
the title in 1996 but she played
under the U.S. banner. Superan
is based in Manila but spends
some months in the U.S. for
training and competition.
Past winners of this tourna-
ment have gone on to dominate
in the ladies professional golf
circuit, including notable names
Alexis Thompson of the U.S. and
Inbee Park of South Korea.
Superan, who is only an
inch or two above ve feet with
a slim body frame more than
makes up for her unimposing
physique with robotic-like ef-
ciency that even Tiger Woods
would envy. She drives her ball
consistently on the fairway and
her short game is so accurate that
it gives her lots of opportunities
for birdies putts.
She has that steely calm
demeanor that masks fear or
panic when the road to victory
becomes rocky. She was lead-
ing the Mexican golfer by two
strokes only to falter and lose her
lead in the 35th hole. The 36th
last regulation hole showed her
composure. She did not deviate
from her strategy of reaching the
green in three strokes. Her stron-
ger opponent had the length and
tried to reach the green in two
but missed. It ended in a putting
duel with Superan hitting her
target and Navarro missing.
The overtime 37th hole was
anti-climactic. The balloon burst
immediately for Navarro when
her drive went into the water.
But Superan still had to execute
the plays to grab the title. And so
she did with what looked like her
golf routine in utmost efciency-
drive on the fairway, approach
within a hundred yards in a par
5, pitch close to the hole and
putt. Easier said than done, but
not for Superan.
A Golf Channel commen-
tator likens her to Lydia Kho, a
diminutive rookie golfer from
New Zealand who is now win-
ning in the professional circuit.
Boxing legend Manny Pac-
quiao may now have a rival for
superstardom in the Philippines.
Cheers for Princess Mary
Superan!
***
After having been slapped
by the Philippine Supreme Court
declaring the Disbursement
Acceleration Program (DAP)
unconstitutional, Pres. Noynoy
Aquino is behaving like a lover
scorned. He warns that the
adverse court decision brings
the possibility of a clash between
two co-equal branches of gov-
Real gains
I
n his most recent SONA, Pres-
ident Aquino said better gov-
ernance has led to signicant
gains in the Philippine economy.
But there are some who ques-
tion if its not just a lot of smoke,
a phantom growth that hides a
deep, unresolved weakness.
The Philippines has become
the new darling of the invest-
ment world, with no less than
World Bank president Jim Yong
Kim predicting that it was poised
to be the next tiger of Asia.
And its hard to argue with
statistics: Gross Domestic Prod-
uct (GDP) expected to hit 6.4 per-
cent this year and forecast to rise
to 6.7 percent next year; Stan-
dard & Poor raised the countrys
credit rating two notches this
year; other rating agencies Fitch
and Moodys gave the Philip-
pines an investment grade.
The president cited in his
State of the Nation Address
(SONA) a whole host of eco-
nomic data to buttress his asser-
tion that the Philippines was
nally open for business.
But somehow they still come
off as hollow boasts.
Earlier this year, the Asian
Development Bank (ADB) pro-
duced a paper that listed the
challenges and opportunities for
the countrys much-anticipated
economic take-off.
Notwithstanding higher
growth in recent years, the
study said, poverty incidence
according to ofcial statis-
tics, declined only moderately
between 2009 and 2012.
Higher growth was not
fully benetting the poor, the
bank said.
During my last visit to
Manila, progress was evident:
condominium towers seemed
to rise everywhere; the roads
have become more congested;
it offered the scenes one may
expect from any bustling, vibrant
metropolis.
And while the landscape
was changing, the face of my
beloved Manila seemed only
slightly altered. There are still
the cigarette hawkers peddling
sticks of Marlboro but they now
seemed to be outnumbered by
menacing bands of street chil-
dren.
Motorcycles are the new
kings of the road. A colleague
once joked that the Philippine
tricycle, that cheapest and most
prevalent mode of taxi service,
was unique in that it was invis-
ible. Though they run rough-
shod over road rules, they are
impervious because cops dont
see them, or pretend they dont.
The Philippine Statistics
Authority says a family of ve
needs at least P5,590 ($133) a
month to meet the familys basic
food needs; at least P8,022 ($191)
if they are to satisfy non-food
essentials as well. And yet about
a third of Filipinos, now 100 mil-
lion strong, earn less than that.
The ADB blamed the slow
progress in reducing the grind-
ing level of poverty in the Phil-
ippines to the lack of good jobs.
That is, good jobs to be had with-
out leaving the country.
In 2012, over 10 million Fili-
pinos were either unemployed
or underemployed. Every year,
more than a million Filipinos
join the labor force but only one-
fourth of them will nd a job;
three-fourths will either bloat
the ranks of the unemployed/
underemployed or go abroad.
Continued on page 31
Two Dreamers
D
ays before 23-year-old
Chino Roque appeared
at a Filipino-owned piz-
zeria in Fair Oaks Mall, Va. to
talk about the grueling physi-
cal and mental tests he had to
go through to become the rst
Filipino to attempt a ight into
outer space, there was another
Filipino celebrity shown on CNN
attempting to board a plane and
cross the U.S. border to Mexico.
So, whats the connection?
Funny you should ask.
Chino has never met Jose
Antonio Vargas, but the resem-
blance in their circumstances
cant easily be ignored. Both
dreamers, Chino had always
wanted to y as a child without
constraints and Jose just wants
to be able to y back and forth
to visit his mother in the Philip-
pines, without legal restraints.
Chinos childhood dream
has actually come true, even
beyond his wildest imagination.
He simply wanted to y a com-
mercial jet, but now he gets a
chance to co-pilot a two-seater
space plane and get a rare view
of planet earth. Unlike Jose, how-
ever, he wont need a US Visa or
Passport when his plane launches
from the Mojave Desert, unless
he accidently lands in another
planet, which would make him
an illegal alien.
Still undocumented,
Jose remains a DREAMER,
although at 35 hes no longer
qualied under the terms of
the DREAM Act, if and when it
passes. This bill would legalize
the status of minors whose par-
ents came to the U.S. without
legal papers. Jose was 12 years
old when he was smuggled
(with his moms permission) into
the country by an uncle. She
simply wanted her son to have
a better life even if it meant a
long and painful separation. Jose
hasnt seen his mother for more
than 20 years. Except on Skype.
Chinos mother also gave
her son permission although she,
like Joses mother, is deeply wor-
ried of separation. And what her
son says isnt exactly comfort-
ing: You never know what will
happen up there. You just have
to have faith and believe in your-
self.
To be sure, both mothers
want the best for their sons, yet
wishing perhaps that theyd stay
closer to earth (in Chinos case),
and closer to mom (in Joses
case), where the center of gravity
is called home.
As it happened, the day
Chino landed in Fair Oaks Mall
before a cheering crowd of fans
and admirers wanting to shake
his hand, get his autograph
and pose for pictures, was the
same day 45 years ago when
Neil Armstrong became the
rst man to land on the moon.
How fortuitous indeed. PAFC
Board Chairman Sonny Busa, in
his welcoming remarks, aptly
noted that Chinos space ight
as part of an international team
is good news. Theres so
much bad news lately, he said,
acknowledging whats still pain-
fully fresh in peoples minds:
the shooting down of a Malay-
sian airline that killed hundreds
of passengers, the bombings in
Gaza that has left more than 300
dead, the thousands of unaccom-
panied children from Central
America eeing death and vio-
lence and risking their own lives
crossing borders. And, we might
add, the inaction, inertia and
intransigence of Tea Party hard-
liners in Congress thats paralyz-
ing government and destroying
the country.
But there is hope for the
human race, Sonny contin-
ues. So we will embrace this
moment.
Continued on page 31 Continued on page 31
Opinion
Jose Antonio Vargas Chino Roque
August 1-15, 2014 31
ernment.
The Supreme Court says
that the executive branch cannot
squeeze funds from various
departments under the guise of
savings and apply them to proj-
ects not designated in the appro-
priations approved by Congress.
PNoy is on a warpath. He
has already spent billions of
the DAP monies purportedly to
jump start the economy. He is
taking issue with the Supreme
Court publicly as if appealing
for people power to whip the
big stick against the recalcitrant
justices. His hatchet woman in
the Bureau of Internal Revenue
is taking the cue. The BIR Com-
missioner has demanded that all
Supreme Court justices submit
their statement of assets, liabili-
ties and net worth (SALN). The
message between the lines?
Behave yourselves or we will
do a Corona on you. The former
Supreme Court Justice Renato
Corona was impeached and
removed for failing to disclose
certain assets in his SALN.
PNoy maybe delusional
that his presidency is more equal
than any other co-equal branch
of government because his good
intentions trump everything,
including the constitution. He
may have done something good
for the nation but his imperial
view of government that trivial-
izes the institutional check and
balance is a recipe for bringing
back the specter of dictatorial
rule.
***
Golf tidbits: Weekend One-
Balikbayan Nestor came to town
and picked the pockets of Don
Alex, Bert R and King Arthur.
Eveready Freddie and Juliets
Romeo (JR) avoided the net loss
column. Mr. T, Kilabot and El
Salvador were AWOL. Weekend
Two was a bonanza for El Sal-
vador with Balikbayan Nestor
squeezing a tiny slice of the brag-
ging rights. The rest had to settle
for fried wings and salami. In
between, Kilabot and Mr. T won
lollipops from King Arthur and
El Salvador. My Godfather asked
for a refund then settled for a
draw the next game.
The Philippines relies heav-
ily on money spent by families
of overseas Filipinos, about 10
million of them at last count, as
well as spending for the bur-
geoning business outsourcing
(BPO) industry, to help fuel the
economy.
They drive the services
sector, the primary engine of
the economy, in lieu of the tradi-
tional sources of growth such as
exports.
The Philippine economy
could very well be standing on
stilts. The ADB stressed the need
for sustained and more inclu-
sive growth, to generate more
and better jobs and reduce pov-
erty.
All those economic gains
that the Aquino administration
likes to bandy about are well and
good, but for many Filipinos,
theyre meaningless. As a keen
albeit distant observer, what
Id really like to hear from the
Presidents report is how theyve
lifted the life of my favorite tri-
cycle driver.
Real gains... from page 30 Princess wins big... from page 30
And it was a moment that
was particularly sweet for the
proud dozens of La Salle Alumni
members who showcased their
large green banners and green
t-shirts, clearly enjoying the
presence of one of their own.
Former President Rolly Saldana
put it well when he seized the
occasion to invoke Star Wars.
I would have said, Greetings
earth people, Rolly started to
say in a clever attempt to chan-
nel Roques astronaut, describ-
ing him as the role model of our
youth for generations to come.
And, of course, he has to tout the
schools patron saint, St. John
Baptist De La Salle, historically
one of the greatest practical pio-
neers of education for ordinary
people. So, today, we turn the
chapters of history as we see
again that pioneering spirit to try
new boundaries, beyond ones
imagination. This time in outer
space.
Days before Chino Roque
posed for pictures and shook
hands at a pizzeria in Fair Oaks
Mall, Jose Antonio Vargas was
being arrested, handcuffed and
detained for attempting to y
across the border without legal
papers. He used the occasion to
highlight the plight of 11 mil-
lion undocumented immigrants,
victims of a broken immigration
system. Illegal aliens is the
term used by nativists and anti-
immigrant zealots to dehuman-
ize the undocumented.
In a way, both Chino and
Jose are out to prove something,
albeit for different reasons. To
y, free as a bird, into outer
space with a view of planet earth
is now within reach of a young
man who dreamed dreams of
ying as a child. But to Jose, to
be accepted as an American and
be able to freely y in and out of
America is not quite within his
reach yet. Someday soon per-
haps.
Like Chino, Jose is just
as determined to take risks,
undergo grueling tests. They
are Filipinos, after all, who
have deed convention, strayed
beyond boundaries and dared to
test the limits of whats humanly
and politically possible.
Send your comments to
jdmelegrito@gmail.com
is indenite, it is difcult to jus-
tify temporary employment. The
employer also has to go through
a labor certication process that
requires advertising the job to
prove that there are no quali-
ed American citizens or per-
manent residents who are inter-
ested. H2-B is good for one year
only. It may be extended but the
employer has to demonstrate
that the reason for extension
was unforseen during the initial
application.
Some may nd luck in for-
eign embassies and international
organizations. Change to A or G
status are usually done by the
employers without expense to
the alien.
It is no longer possible to
change to student visa unless
the alien has previously declared
himself to be an intending stu-
dent when he applied for a visi-
tors visa.
For those who are single,
marriage to a U.S. citizen makes
one eligible to immediately apply
for adjustment to permanent
resident. The application can be
led even after the expiration
of the aliens authorized stay.
The alien is granted conditional
permanent resident status if the
marriage was less than two years
from the date of approval. Before
the second anniversary of the
grant of conditional residence,
the alien and his/her spouse
need to le a petition to remove
the conditional residence.
Asylum is a risky option
unless that the aliens case is
really meritorious, that he can
prove by documentary and tes-
timonial evidence that he has a
well-founded fear of persecution
in his home country. An asylum
application that is found frivo-
lous could disqualify the alien
from eligibility for any future
immigration benet.
A family-based or employer-
based petition for permanent res-
idence will not provide a quick
solution to the tourist dilemma.
The processing of these petitions
will take years, long after the
expiration of the aliens tourist
visa, unless one is internationally
renowned with exceptional abil-
ity or holding advanced degrees.
If the alien remains in the U.S.
beyond the period of authorized
stay, he faces the 3-year or ten-
year bar unless he is also a ben-
eciary of a previous petition
covered under Section 245(i) of
the Immigration Act. An over-
staying tourist who is sponsored
by an employer but not covered
by Sec. 245i may not ultimately
benet from the labor certica-
tion process, unless the current
law is amended.
(For questions, you may call
703 893 0860)
PRODUCTION at the Kennedy
Center is a historic moment and
cultural pride for the Philippines
for it will be the rst time that an
OPERA of its kind will be pre-
sented in the U.S. capital at the
most prestigious venue for the
performing arts in the U.S.
*A project of MAFFAA Inc.
with the Migrant Heritage Com-
mission (MHC) as a major spon-
sor.
MAFFAA INC . Executive
Directors_ Dr. Ed Seidel/Lorna
Seidel with Matthew Aninzo
(Board Member) and Patrick
Realiza (PR Director)_Exec Pro-
ducers : _Jerry Sibal and Edwin
Josue._Honorary Chairs: _H.E.
Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia, Jr.
and Ms. Loida Nicolas Lewis.
ARNEDO s. VALERA, Esq;
GRACE VALERA AND JESSE
A. GATCHALIAN.
Letters to the Editor... from page 27
is that impeachment of Aquino
will mean the ascension to power
of the Binay dynasty.
***
Manila City Mayor Joseph
Estrada, the man who was
impeached and imprisoned for
plunder and later resurrected
through pardon by the same
person who led his ouster, is him-
self facing ouster by the Supreme
Court. The question is whether
or not the pardon Arroyo gave
Erap erased his conviction for
plunder and allowed him to run
again for a public ofce. His pre-
decessor, Mayor A. Lim who lost
in his reelection bid, brought the
Erap case to the Supreme Court.
If the high court declares
Erap ineligible, will the latter
bow out peacefully? No. He will
le cases after cases for recon-
sideration until his term expires.
He can also claim that the people
overwhelmingly voted for him.
Washington Tisimis... from page 29
Options for tourists... from page 27
Two Dreamers... from page 30
Even the word girls is disre-
spectful. Were talking about
women, unless the ad about
girls caters to pedophiles.)
The countrys population is
too large so that the creation of
jobs cannot keep up. Our schools
are generally not up to interna-
tional standards, which automat-
ically disqualies many of our
graduates for meaningful work
overseas.
The government agency(ies)
providing vocational and techni-
cal training -- paging Tesda and
vocational schools! -- must work
overtime to train young Filipi-
nos in greater numbers to enable
them to qualify for better jobs
here and abroad.
Surely every Filipinos
heart breaks when news arrives
about the maltreatment of our
fellow countrymen abroad. We
all shed tears when a fellow Fili-
pino comes home in a cofn or in
a wheelchair in pitiful condition.
We offer our tears out of sympa-
thy but also out of admiration for
the grit and perseverance of Fili-
pinos who try their luck abroad.
But the government must
offer more than tears and sym-
pathy. It has to come up with a
comprehensive program to raise
the standards of training in the
country and enable us Filipinos
to compete for truly meaningful
jobs abroad.
It has to crack down on
unscrupulous recruiters who put
many Filipino workers in harms
way. It must make sure host
countries treat Filipinos with
dignity, decency and deference.
After all, Filipino workers give
their blood, sweat and tears to
make foreigners lives comfort-
able. It is the height of ingrati-
tude to treat them shabbily.
Bargain Filipinas... from page 25
ings were even titled with the
same words.
The phrase was also very
familiar with ophthalmologists,
and being an eye-doctor himself,
its a given that Rizal knew of its
use and symbolism. To his friend
Ferdinand Blumentritt and to his
former professor, Francisco de
Paula Sanchez, Rizal wrote that he
wanted to awaken his country-
men from their profound lethargy,
and whoever wants to awaken
does not do so with soft and
light sounds but with explosions,
blows, etc.
Transitioning the novel then
into an opera presumably should
be easy and smooth considering
that opera is almost always melo-
dramatic with exaggerated emo-
tions and themes. But then the
book is also satirical with scathing
humor and sarcasm, elements that
are problematic in translations. So,
it should be very interesting how
the satire and humor from Rizals
novel gets manifested in the opera.
With the complexity of com-
bining and simplifying plot, satire
and humor into an understand-
able show, the directors, Freddie
Santos and Ana Tsuri Etsuko, are
focusing on making the story as
clear as possible, so it becomes his-
torically accurate and emotionally
powerful at the same time.
Noli Me Tangere Opera... from page 23
August 1-15, 2014 32 32