Filipino News 15 January 2017

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08 15- 31 JAN 2017 ISSUE 95 | www.filipinonews.nz | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | www.pinoynzlife.nz Facebook: Filipino Migrant News Screengrab from YouTube / Tuko Film Productions. L e o Selomenio (addresses a crowd of Filipino maids): “Wag niyong isipin katulong lang ako binabayaran lang ako ng amo ko. Nandito ako dahil may sahod akong dollar may ipapadala ako sa Pilipinas. It's not that. Isipin ninyo sa sarili ninyo manager kayo! Syempre ako nag mamanage ng bahay ng amo ko. Bakit kayo hindi? O? Tatawa sila. Bakit kinahihiya mo trabaho mo? Sabihin mo muna manager ka. Siyempre titignan ka niya from head to foot. Oo may nakasabay ako sa eroplano. Anong ginagawa mo sa Hong Kong? Manager. Manager? Manager ka ng ano? Manager ako ng amo ko. O tinapat ko nga iPhone ko ha! Manager? Tapos tinignan niya ko from head to toe.” (Don't think of yourselves as mere helpers. You're here just for your salary to send back home. It's not that. Think of yourselves as managers. Of course I manage my employer's household. Don't you do the same? They laugh at me. I met someone on the plane and was asked my job. Tell them you're a manager. They look at me from head to foot. You're a manager? Yes, I manage the affairs of my employer. Then I whip out my iPhone. Then they look me over from head to toe.) SUNDAY BEAUTY QUEEN is a touching love letter to all mothers, sisters, aunts or anyone who has sacrificed something to make us who we are. When you think about it it's for every Filipino; for any parent and child or family in the world. It will make you want to hug every woman in your life. Directed by Babyruth Villarama Gutierrez, it is the only documentary to ever win BEST PICTURE in the history of the Metro Manila Film Fest Awards. It also garnered BEST EDITING - Chuck Gutierrez, GATPUNO ANTO- NIO J. VILLEGAS CUL- TURAL AWARD and CHILDREN'S CHOICE along with SAVING SALLY and VINCE & KATH & JAMES. It's a story we're all familiar with regardless of race. There's someone - a mother, an aunt, a sister, a father, a provider - who sacrifices themselves so we can go to school, have food to eat and have clothes on our back. They are stories that don't attract million-dollar blockbuster excitement; it's not necessarily Gal Gadot of WONDER WOMAN or Hugh Jackman as LOGAN for 2017. More often than not they are the people we take for granted and don't really think about. We feel and see the sacrifice through the experiences of Leo Selomenio (Science Education Graduate), Rudelie Acosta (IT Graduate), Mylyn Jacobo (AB English Graduate), Hazel Perdido (Computer Science Graduate) and Cherrie Mae Bretaña (Hotel Management Graduate). They are all Overseas Filipino Workers who work as domestic helpers in Hong Kong, but have found meaningful activity during Sundays. Leo is an organizer of pageants and other events specifically for Filipina OFWs since 2008. The rest of the subjects are the candidates. The pageants are held only on Sunday as their one free day in the week. We go through their typical day, hear their stories and even hear from their employers. As you can see from their college degrees they're actually overqualified for the position of domestic helper. That doesn't protect them from experiencing verbal abuse from their employers or from being looked down upon even by their own countrymen. Even as the government hails our OFWs as modern day heroes, other Filipinos sometimes look down on domestic helpers. Just like the joke that Leo shares above, SUNDAY BEAUTY QUEEN isn't just a tearjerker, but more of an inspirational journey. We see that they cope with loneliness through mutual support, performances and yes beauty pageants. Ju-Chen Chen, an Anthropologist at the University of Hong Kong, was at first puzzled at their efforts, time and passion for these activities, even after an exhausting work week. Chen witnessed firsthand the camaraderie during an event. She discovered that they literally carry the Philippine FILM REVIEW By JUDE BAUTISTA judebautista.wordpress.com flag The Sunday Beauty Queen(s) in our lives. through the performan-ces of cultural dances, pageants and concerts. There are elaborate costumes and choreography. They are proud bearers of Filipino identity. Chen realized that the fulfillment they get is far greater than their day-to-day difficulties. Through their gatherings and performances they find a greater sense of self worth. In the face of a stressful and often discriminatory work environment they take the one day they have for themselves and still find the energy to put on a show for others. HK Mindset There's no doubt that domestic helpers in Hong Kong have a vital role. Long time TV producer Jack Soo was interviewed and said. “I live alone. Mylyn is the only one taking care of me in my daily life … Let me tell you something. If Hong Kong had no foreign helpers then Hong Kong would be in trouble. Just imagine those familys without a foreign helper. How are they gonna work; how will they take care of their children? How are they going to do their daily lives? So if the Philippine government stops all the helpers in all the country then the whole world will be in big trouble without helpers. There will be a big problem.” Not everyone, though, has a glowing opinion of foreign domestic helpers. In April of 2015 Executive Councillor Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee made some derogatory comments about Filipina domestic helpers, accusing them of seducing their employers. The comments on her blog and official facebook page were particularly painful knowing the abuse that a majority of foreign domestic helpers endure. Some of them have even suffered physical and sexual abuse. For Filipinas who sacrifice so much this has the potential to damage their familial relationships back home. The issue came up in the Q&A portion in one of the pageants. Mylyn Jacobo very ably replied: “It's a big insult to us that most Filipina OFWs are called prostitutes. I will cite something that Mrs. Regina Ip told us. We Filipino domestic helpers are working here to serve a need and support our families in the Philippines. Whatever you say about us you should think twice about.” 2 Week Rule Documentaries put important issues to the forefront because viewers see real people in real situations, not actors. In this case it's the policies of the HK SAR concerning domestic helpers. This affects not just the DH themselves, but their wards and the elderly, not to mention their own families back home reliant on the money they earn. continues on pg 09
15- 31 JAN 2017 - ISSUE 95 | www.filipinonews.nz | email: filipinonews@xtra.co.nz | www.pinoynzlife.nz Facebook: Filipino Migrant News 09 Continues from pg 08 Discrimination against foreign domestic helpers is built into the system. A clear example is what happened to Rudelie Acosta. After one of the pageants she was late coming back to her employer and went over her curfew hours. She was fired on the spot and was asked to leave the only lodgings that she had. Even after pleading to at least spend the night her employer refused and kicked her out without a roof over her head. On top of this she only has 2 weeks to find another employer or she will lose the right to stay in Hong Kong. Although the termination was abrupt and unfair, because of the 2 week rule there's almost no recourse to both file a complaint and immediately find a new job. Rudelie's case is an example of the unfairness and injustice that thousands of foreign domestic helpers find themselves facing in Hong Kong. Different foreign workers associations of Indians, Indonesians, Thais, Malaysians, Nepalese and of course Filipinos, have banded together to formally complain against the 2 week rule since the late 1990s. But the HK SAR has stuck to its guns, allowing this discriminatory and racist policy to The Sunday Beauty Queen(s) in our lives continue. A comprehensive article entitled Maid in Hong Kong: Protecting Foreign Domestic Workers explained clearly how the 2 week rule is unjust: “Beyond cramped housing conditions, the isolation of domestic workers means that abuses by employers often go unrepor-ted. A 2013 survey conducted by another Hong Kong based group, Mission for Migrant Workers, found that 58 percent of the more than 3,000 workers surveyed had experienced verbal abuse in the home, 18 percent physical abuse and 6 percent sexual abuse.” The report continues. “Another policy, the 'two week rule', mandates that once foreign domestic workers quit or are let go, that they must depart Hong Kong within two weeks. This policy, critics say, discourages domestic workers from seeking justice in fear that they could lose their jobs. It also makes finding a new employer difficult, as this process can take from four to six weeks. Moreover, a visa extension, the length of which varies by case, costs HK $190 (US $24) and during the extension application period migrants cannot work and must pay for their housing and food. Many domestic workers, therefore, choose to stay silent about abuses.” Interestingly enough a possible solution also came from one of the victimized helpers in the documentary. She theorized that no less than our own Philippine Screengrab from YouTube / Tuko Film Productions. government, along with other nations like India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and others, should negotiate on behalf of their workers with the Hong Kong authorities to abolish the 2 week rule. Track Record SUNDAY BEAUTY QUEEN is another meaningful and significant creative contribution from executive producers Vincent R. Nebrida, Fernando Ortigas and E.A. Rocha. These are the same executive producers who brought us the historical hit HENERAL LUNA and the enchanting KANA THE DREAM- WEAVER. In a short period of time they have established a winning track record of award winning and critically acclaimed films. Director Babyruth Villarama's loving and supportive husband Chuck Gutierrez is both Producer and Editor. Chuck has added yet another BEST EDITING award from the MMFF to his wins at Cinemalaya, Cinema One and many others. Dexter Dela Peña as cinematographer also deserves credit for being able to make everyday scenes more cinematic. Even though it was a run and gun style we were able to see the character of the city and more importantly, the beauty of the contestants. Babyruth must have also handled the secondary camera. The trio of Babyruth, Dexter and Chuck have already been together for several projects, including JAZZ IN LOVE, another documentary that was part of Cinemalaya in 2013. Invaluable Watching SUNDAY BEAUTY QUEEN is so enriching and educational in so many ways and on so many levels. There are many touching moments between the families that helpers literally care for. Employers address Leo as 'he', even if he is biologically a woman. They see him as who he is, as a person. If you bring every family member, every maid, yaya, kusinera and labandera to this movie then you will all come out richer for it. Respect and kindness truly goes a long way. Leo uses the earnings from the pageants to help domestic helpers who were abused and need emergency assistance. In truth, he has given those who participate in them and even those who watch something more valuable. He has given them a chance to see and feel the beauty they have. You can see the pride in the costumes and dances, unique to their provinces and hometowns in the Philippines. This pride extends not just to participants, but to the audiences as well.
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Filipino News 15 January 2017

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