LA Midweek Edition -- September 30 -- October 02, 2015

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September 30-October 2, 2015 Volume 25 - No. 76 • 3 Sections - 20 Pages

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ESCOBAR

AJPress

ACCORDING to a new report by the Pew Research Center, Asians are on track to become the largest population of immigrants in the United States. The study released on Monday, Sept. 28 also mentioned that the share of new Hispanic arrivals is smaller than it was 50 years ago, and that the percentage of the whole US immigrant population

was higher in 1890 than it is today. By 2065, Pew projects that there will be 441 million people living in the US, and 88 percent of that growth will be attributed to future immigrants and their children. Asians are expected to outnumber Hispanics, making up 38 percent of all immigrants. The nearly 130-page document--entitled “Modern Immigration Wave Brings 59 Million to US, Driving Population Growth and Change Through 2065�--

provides “nonpartisan analysis that explores trends and projects the future,� and comes 50 years after the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act, CNN reported. The act took away a quota system that once favored European immigrants, and replaced it with a policy that looked toward reuniting immigrant families and providing necessary employees. Since the act’s passage, about 51 percent of immigrants have come to the US

from Latin America, and a quarter of new immigrants have come from Asia. The US currently holds the largest immigrant population in the world--today, about 14 percent of the nation’s population are immigrants, but that number is expected to rise to at least 18 percent, Pew Research Center projected. Of the current largest immigrant groups, Hispanics made up 4 percent of the total U.S. population in 1965. Today, they make up 18 percent, and by

2065, that figure is projected to be 24 percent. Asians, meanwhile, were less than 1 percent of the total population 50 years ago--today, their numbers went up to 6 percent in 2015, and they are expected to meet 14 percent by 2065. Earlier data from the Migrant Policy Institute revealed Asians have one of the highest naturalization rates in the country. While only 47 percent of all immigrants in the country are natural-

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In 2004 case, Carpio ruled that Fernando DATELINE USA US envoy: PH maritime Poe Jr. was not Filipino FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

by JEROME

ANING Inquirer.net

law enforcement best in region

MANILA – The Philippines’ maritime police is better than any other maritime institution in the region, although the country has greater challenges since it is an archipelago, a top US official said. State Assistant Secretary William Brownfield, head of the US Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), said the Philippines, through the Philippine National PoliceMaritime Group, could do with more boats, vessels and even aircraft to protect national patrimony. “My own view is the PNP and its Maritime

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Pope Francis offers words of healing and peace before departing the US OVER the weekend, Pope Francis made a final stop during his historic six-day US visit to Philadelphia, to continue spreading his message of hope to diverse audiences, including immigrants, prison inmates, victims of sexual abuse, and Christian families from around the world. Pope Francis arrived in Philadelphia on the morning of Saturday, Sept. 26, to celebrate a Holy Mass with the bishops and clergymen and women religious of Pennsylvania. The mass was held at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, the mother church of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. “What about you?� the pope asked, speaking in his native Spanish to priests, deacons,

IN holding that Sen. Grace Poe is merely a naturalized and not a natural-born Filipino, Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio is just being consistent with his dissenting opinion in the 2004 case against Poe’s adoptive father, Fernando Poe Jr. (FPJ), whose citizenship was quesJLGI<D< :flik J\e`fi 8jjfZ`Xk\ tioned after he decided to seek the presidency. Aljk`Z\ 8ekfe`f :Xig`f

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Comelec will not extend voters’ registration by WILLIAM

B. DEPASUPIL ManilaTimes.net

THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) will not extend the registration and biometric validation of new and old voters. Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista on Monday, Sept. 28 said the poll body can no longer afford any delay in its preparations for the 2016 national and local elections. The poll body set October 31 as the last day for voters to file applications for registration, transfer of registration and validation, among others. It is also the last day for overseas voters to file their application for registration/certification, transfer of registration records from one post to another post, transfer from one residence to another within the same post and county, and to request for a change of address. The Comelec has tapped the support of malls in

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Aquino: PH may not recover in 2022 if wrong president wins in 2016

that the country’s achievements under his watch will be at risk if the administration’s “Daang MaMANILA – The Philippines tuwid� platform will be disconmay not recover in 2022 if the tinued. “Idiin ko lang: Sa susunod na president who will not continue “Daang Matuwid� will win next eleksiyon, di lang anim na taon year’s polls, President Benig- ang nakataya, kundi ang misno Aquino III said Monday, Sept. mong buhay at kinabukasan ng bawat Pilipino,� Aquino said. 28 “Kung lilihis nga po tayo sa tuSpeaking at the national assembly of the Liga ng mga Ba- wid at talagang subok sa 2016, rangay sa Pilipinas, Aquino walang nakakatiyak na makakreminded community leaders abawi pa tayo pagdating ng by LOUIS

BACANI Philstar.com

Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson on the upcoming NBA season and representing Filipino fans The Fil-Am basketball player, who is entering is second year in the league, is looking to work WITH the start of the 2015- hard and “put it all on the lineâ€? 2016 NBA season less than a when the regular season begins month away, Los Angeles Lakers on Oct. 27. Over the summer, he guard Jordan Clarkson is hoping worked on honing his skills over“great things will happenâ€? and all and told reporters his threeanticipates the team will mesh point shots, among others, are well together. easier to make. “We got a lot of guys that want “I was in there in the workshop to learn and want to have a good [this summer] chopping my game season. We pretty strong.... Last down and working it back up and year wasn’t fun, losing all those trying to build a lot of confidence games, but at the same time we for the season,â€? he said. did learn a lot and we worked, In his rookie year, Clarkson av8j Cfj 8e^\c\j CXb\ij ^lXi[ Afi[Xe :cXibjfe \ek\ij _`j j\Zfe[ p\Xi `e k_\ E98# _\ _fg\j we kept improving and that’s all eraged 11.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, Ăˆ^i\Xk k_`e^j n`cc _Xgg\eÉ Xe[ \og\Zkj k_\ k\Xd n`cc d\j_ n\cc% :cXibjfe# k_\ fecp Zlii\ek =`c$ we can ask for...â€? he told report- 3.5 assists, 0.86 steals and 0.20 8d gcXp\i `e k_\ c\X^l\# Xcjf X[[i\jj\[ hl\jk`fej i\^Xi[`e^ _`j i\Z\ek ki`g kf k_\ G_`c`gg`e\j# ers during Lakers Media Day on blocks in 59 games. He was also >`cXj G`c`g`eXj Xe[ _`j =`c`g`ef ]Xej [li`e^ CXb\ij D\[`X ;Xp fe Dfe[Xp# J\gk% )/% u G8>< 8) 8A gi\jj g_fkf Yp ;`e^ :Xii\fe Monday, Sept. 28. by AGNES

CONSTANTE AJPress

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2022,� he added. Aquino took the opportunity to urge the country’s barangay leaders to support his preferred successor, presidential aspirant Manuel Roxas II. He said community leaders should not be partisan politicians but they must back the one who will continue the administration’s reforms. “Ang akin po: Dapat tumulong kayo sa talakayan; himukin ninyo

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FROM THE FRONT PAGE

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ized, the number for Asian immigrants is considerably higher, at 59 percent. Breaking it down by Asian subgroups, data found that Vietnamese and Taiwanese immigrants have the highest naturalization rates at 76 percent and 74 percent, respectively. Data reveals 59 percent of Koreans, 51 percent of Chinese, 47 percent of Indians, and 68 percent of Filipinos are naturalized. As of 2013, 1.26 million Filipinos are US naturalized citizens; 43,489 of whom were naturalized that year. Today, the total Asian population in the United States amounts to over 18 million — nearly 18 times more than 1.5 million in 1970. Though Hispanics make up 47 percent of US immigrants, immigration from Latin American countries has generally slowed, especially from Mexico. “A steep decline began in 2007, in part because of the Great Recession,� Mark Lopez, director of Hispanic research for Pew, explained. “It became more difficult to cross the border and to demographic changes in Mexico with fewer young people wanting to head north.� Lopez, who oversaw this study, says the steady rise of Asian immigrants has “bubbled up� over

the past decade, noting Chinese citizens who’ve flocked to the United States for educational opportunities like graduate school. He also mentioned the great influx of Indians arriving on visas to work in high tech, taking jobs in Silicon Valley. Of newer immigrants from the past five years, more have come from Asia (2.5 million) than from Central and South America (1.7 million). According to Pew, the US will no longer have a “majority group� within four decades. By 2065, Hispanics are expected to make up 31 percent of immigrants, the study predicts. Asians will later outnumber Hispanics to make up 38 percent of immigrants. “On one hand, US citizenship offers more security than let’s say, permanent resident status, which can be lost or revoked in some instances. In addition, to

having the right to vote and having the ability to run for political office, US citizens can sponsor a wider range of family members — they can bring children, spouses and parents quicker than what’s allowed for the lawful permanent residents,â€? commented Jeanne Batalova, a senior policy researcher at the Migration Policy Institute. Becoming a citizen is “a very important step for the Asian American community because it allows them to become more integrated in America,â€? said Jannette Diep, executive director of Boat People SOS-Houston, in a press call back in June. “This integration allows the AAPI community to become more visible in US cities, increasingly getting elected to public office. Some immigrants never thought they would become a US citizen and have the right to vote in their lifetimes.â€? â–

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Los Angeles team, Clarkson was in talks earlier this year to play for Gilas Pilipinas in the ongoing FIBA Asia Championship, for which he was cleared to play. However, due to scheduling conflicts with Lakers training camp, which began Monday, he did not make the Philippine roster. Although Gilas lost to Palestine on the opening day of the championship on Sept. 23, it has secured the top seed after sweeping the second round of the tournament, claiming its most recent victory Tuesday, Sept. 29, against India. On Thursday, Oct. 1, Gilas will face Lebanon in the final round. “Just keep continuing to put it all on the line,� he said in a message to the Philippine team. “Keep continuing to play and good things are going to happen, keep continuing to win. That’s all anybody can ask for, but most importantly, keep representing the flag and keep playing.� He also said he hopes Gilas makes it to Rio. On visiting the Philippines & Filipino fans Clarkson, the only current Filipino-American player in the NBA, has expressed pride in his Filipino roots. In May, he visited

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Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson‌ In 2004 case, Carpio ruled that Fernando Poe‌

the first-ever Lakers player to be named the Kia NBA Western Conference Rookie of the Month, an award he received in April for games he played in March this year. Clarkson on Gilas In addition to representing the

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Carpio, head of the Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET), was one of the five justices who declared that FPJ was not only not a natural-born Philippine citizen but also not a Filipino, since he was an illegitimate child of his father, movie actor Fernando Poe Sr. (Allan F. Poe in real life), and his American mother, Bessie Kelley. Being an illegitimate child, FPJ took the citizenship of his mother, Carpio said. Burden of proof Carpio’s dissenting opinion also stated that the burden of proof of proving citizenship was vested in any person who would claim to be a citizen of the Philippines and that any doubt regarding citizenship must be resolved against that person. “Any person who claims to be a citizen of the Philippines has the burden of proving his Philippine citizenship. Any person who claims to be qualified to run for President because he is, among others, a natural-born Philippine citizen, has the burden of proving he is a natural-born citizen. Any doubt whether or not he is natural-born citizen is resolved against him. The constitutional requirement of a natural-born citizen, being an express qualifiu G8>< 8* cation for election as President,

must be complied with strictly,â€? Carpio said. Voting 8-5, the Supreme Court threw out the challenge to FPJ’s citizenship in March 2004. Those who voted in favor of FPJ were then Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. and Associate Justices Angelina Sandoval-Gutierrez, Alicia Austria-Martinez, Consuelo YĂąares-Santiago, Romeo Callejo Sr., Adolf Azcuna, Reynato Puno and Jose Vitug. Voting with Carpio against FPJ were then Associate Justices Conchita Carpio Morales (now the Ombudsman), Leonardo Quisumbing, Renato Corona and Dante TiĂąga. The majority decision, written by Vitug, said that while FPJ was born out of wedlock to Kelley and Poe Sr., Poe Sr.’s father, Spanish subject Lorenzo Pou, did not declare allegiance to Spain and he benefited from “en masse Filipinizationâ€? when the Philippine Bill of 1902 took effect. Proof of filiation The decision was heavily influenced by the legal opinions of four amici curiae, or friends of the court, who all said that in establishing citizenship, the Constitution did not distinguish between a legitimate or illegitimate child as long as there was proof of filiation.

Carpio, in his dissent, said FPJ was not a natural-born Philippine citizen “since there is no showing that his alleged Filipino father [Poe Sr.] acknowledged him at birth.� “The Constitution defines a natural-born citizen as a Philippine citizen from birth without having to perform any act to acquire or perfect his Philippine citizenship. Private respondent FPJ does not meet this citizenship qualification,� Carpio said. The court, however, recognized as proof of FPJ’s filiation a declaration by his maternal aunt, Ruby Kelley Mangahas, that his father recognized him as his own son. Carpio has drawn flak for stating during oral arguments on a petition for the ouster of Senator Poe on Sept. 21 that she was a naturalized Filipino and not a natural-born Filipino unless she could prove blood relations to Filipino parents. Critics of Carpio, among them Rep. Silvestre Bello III, urged him to inhibit himself from the case for prejudging it and because of his association with Avelino “Nonong� Cruz, a lawyer for the administration standard-bearer, Mar Roxas. Carpio and Cruz cofounded

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US envoy: PH maritime law enforcement…

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Group are in fact as good as or better than any other maritime police institution in this region in conducting that mission. Could they benefit with more resources? Yes, they could. Would they have to get more boats? Yes, they would. Are we prepared to work with them in that area? Yes,” Brownfield told reporters. Brownfield was with the commandant of the US Coast Guard, Admiral Paul Zukunft, when they met with PNP chief Director General Ricardo Marquez and other top police officials at Camp

Crame recently. Brownfield’s office is tasked with combating international crime and illegal drugs and their impact on the United States, by providing effective foreign assistance and fostering cooperation to counter the threats. INL currently manages $20 million in foreign assistance to the Philippines, with plans to continue providing more than $8 million in assistance annually. The assistance has had significant impact on expanding the capabilities of Philippine partner agencies across the criminal jus-

Pope Francis offers words of…

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Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson on the…

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the Philippines, an experience he spoke positively about. His mother, Annette Davis, is halfFilipino. “Learning about my culture and being around those people.... It was a fun time for me and I really enjoyed it. Definitely being there with my country on my back is definitely something I want to do so hopefully we make that happen,” he told reporters. While in the Philippines, Clarkson hosted an NBA Cares clinic with Trey Burke from the Utah Jazz and four-time NBA champion Horace Grant. As Clarkson’s Filipino fans follow him into the NBA season, he offered the following message to them: “I’m going to keep trying

to represent well and keep trying to put on for the country and the flag and try and do my best.” Upcoming season With reports that Kobe Bryant could be retiring after this season, Clarkson said it means a lot to be playing with the NBA veteran. “We want to send him out on a good note so that’s what we hope to do,” Clarkson said. And with a rough season for the team last year, the Fil-Am said he wants to help bring back the Lakers’ winning days, especially because of the fans. “We got the best fans in the league so they definitely make you want to put it all on the line when you’re out there playing. That’s what I’m trying to do,” he

said. Clarkson also said he and rookie point guard D’Angelo Russell were able to build chemistry during the summer. The better offcourt relationship makes it easy to bring that chemistry on game days, especially, he said, because it’s important that they are both able to communicate with each other easily. “As a rookie, [we’re] both young guys and [we’re] both still learning.... Building that comfortability with each other off the court is going to make it much easier to do it when we’re on the court,” he said. The Lakers will play its first game of the season on Oct. 28 against the Minnesota Timberwolves. ■

and consecrated religious men and women, to remind them of their mission of building up the church. “How many young people in our parishes and schools have the same high ideals, generosity of spirit, and love for Christ and the Church! Do we challenge them? Do we make space for them and help them to do their part? Do we share our own joy and enthusiasm in serving the Lord?” He also called on the importance of women in the modern church, citing the example of St. Katharine Drexel, an heiress from Philadelphia who founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, and used her wealth to support minority students in the early 1900s. After the Mass and visit to St.

In 2004 case, Carpio ruled that Fernando Poe…

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The Firm, a controversial law firm now known as CVCLAW Villaraza Cruz Marcelo & Angangco, which in 2001 backed then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and again in her presidential bid in 2004. Constitution violated On Monday, Sept. 28 a former social welfare undersecretary and former alternate chair of the Inter-Country Adoption Board, Luwalhati “Lulu” Pablo, said Carpio’s statement that foundlings could not be considered natural-born Filipinos violated the Constitution. “[Being a] social worker by profession, and a child rights advocate by vocation, it pains me to hear that we are now threatening to deny foundlings their rightful place in our society,” Pablo said in a statement. “I am not a lawyer, nor am I a legal expert, but in my almost 50 years as a social worker, this is the first time that I have heard the Constitution being invoked to justify an injustice. Whatever happened to the basic social justice principle that ‘those who have less in life must have more in law’?” she said. Pablo also said Carpio’s statement had grave implications on children’s rights. “I have met these foundlings firsthand. They will be the last

ones to complain. It is up to us to speak for them. It is up to us to stand up and fight for the rights of children, especially the vulnerable ones and those born under especially difficult circumstances, chief among them are the foundlings,” she said. “I have worked with many lawyers, doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists, adoptive families and adoptive parents, adult adoptees, child-caring institutions, public and private orphanages, schools and universities. We have tried, at each turn, to uphold and advance the rights of children,” she said. Pablo said Senator Poe’s citizenship issue was also affecting the work of social workers and children’s rights advocates. “I have seen some low blows during [elections], but this one is the unkindest cut of them all. I am not ready to throw away all the significant advancements in international law and in Philip-

Comelec will not extend…

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setting up satellite registration booths to make it easier for voters to submit to biometric procedure. The poll body also implemented satellite registration in various barangays and opened priority lanes as well for senior citizens, persons with disability and pregnant women. As of October 2013, there were 54.051 million registered votG8>< 8( t sa diskurso’t debate ang inyong ers but this was whittled down mga kasamahan at tanungin: to 49.5 million in July 2014 as a Sino nga ba ang nararapat na result of the deactivation and delmamuno sa bansa pagdating ng taong 2016?” Aquino said. “Di ko na ho kailangang sabihin sa inyo kung sino ang kandidatong papanigan ko. Ang boto ko, doon sa siguradong itutuloy ang Daang Matuwid,” he added. Last July, Aquino formally endorsed Roxas as the Liberal Party’s standard bearer. Roxas is expected to identify his running mate on Wednesday along with the members of the Liberal Party’s senatorial ticket. ■

Aquino: PH…

pine child protection laws. And I cannot understand how a patent discrimination against children can be justified on constitutional grounds,” Pablo said. Social worker’s mission She also had a message to those who would indirectly attack children’s rights to justify political ends: “The social worker’s mission is to create a society that will protect, nurture and give all the opportunities to all Filipino children, especially the foundlings. We have fought many battles in the halls of Congress and in the courts of law, but I have found that the most important struggles are those that we wage in the hearts and minds of our people.” “Let us not lose sight of the lifelong struggles of abandoned children, as the way we treat our children may determine our future as a nation, and could very well define our spirit as Filipinos,” she said. ■

isting of 6,300,935 voters. But Bautista said this figure could go up to 55 million after the October 31 deadline. The Comelec said around 4.3 million registered voters have yet to have their biometrics taken. Biometric proceedings require the taking of a digital photograph, signature, and fingerprints of every voter, an added election safeguard aimed at eliminating flying voters, among other forms of voting frauds. ■

SEAFOOD CITY AD2

Charles Borromeo Seminary, Pope Francis greeted a crowd of thousands from the steps of Philadelphia’s historic Independence Mall, only a few feet from the building where the Declaration of Independence and Constitution were signed. Thousands gathered to catch a glimpse of the “Popemobile”-- a modest black Fiat 500--and chanted, “Francisco!” and “Viva Papa!” In his remarks, the pontiff talked about the importance of cultural heritage, also tying America’s historic founding to religious freedom, which he has been advocating for throughout the trip. He championed religious diversity and “compassion for those in need,” Huffington Post and the News Journal reported. “I ask you not to forget that, like those who came here before

tice spectrum. Brownfield noted that the Philippines “is a nation of 7,100 islands, and obviously, that most of its territories are in fact maritime as supposed to land, I believe that the law enforcement challenges can be divided into a number of categories, some of them related to those protecting the national patrimony, whether it is fish or whether it is coral reefs or whether mineral wealth located in the national waters, protecting them from criminals who would steal those assets.” (Cecille Suerte Felipe/Philstar.com)

you, you bring many gifts to your new nation. You should never be ashamed of your traditions,” Francis said. “I repeat, do not be ashamed of what is part of you, your lifeblood.” Pope Francis’ pro-immigrant message has echoed throughout his tour, from his historic address to Congress last Thursday, Sept. 24 to the Mass of thousands celebrated Friday night, Sept. 25 at Madison Square Garden in New York, reported the Los Angeles Times. He called for compassion and understanding towards immigrants, calling on Americans to minister to the disadvantaged and forgotten in society. “Many of you have emigrated to this country at great personal cost, but in the hope of building a new life. Do not be discouraged by whatever challenges and hardships you face… you are called to be responsible citizens,

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and to contribute fruitfully to the life of the communities in which you live,” the pontiff said. “He talks not like a pope, but like someone from my town, like a normal person,” Gerardo Flores, a Philadelphian and immigrant from Mexico, told the Los Angeles Times. “His words are going to change the ideas of the politicians.” Later, the pope concluded his first day in Philadelphia at the Vatican-sponsored Festival of Families, as part of the World Meeting of Families along Benjamin Franklin Parkway. The event included live performances from comedian Jim Gaffigan, the Philadelphia Orchestra, singer Aretha Franklin, Andrea Bocelli, and Juanes, according to the Associated Press. Actor Mark Wahlberg welcomed the pope before he led the crowd of over 20,000 people in prayer: “Holy Father, welcome to

Philadelphia…the City of Brotherly Love.” Families are “a factory of hope,” Pope Francis addressed the crowd in Spanish, reported CNN. “In the family, indeed, there are difficulties. But those difficulties are overcome with love.” “Hatred is not capable of dealing with any difficulty and overcoming any difficulty. Division of hearts cannot overcome any difficulty. Only love. Only love is able to overcome. Love is about celebration, love is joy, love is moving forward.” Papal message of healing to victims, prisoners, and believers On his final day in the US, Sept. 27, Pope Francis had a packed schedule filled with visits, farewell remarks, and a Holy Mass for the people. He spoke to about 300 bishops and religious at the chapel at St. Charles Borromeo Semi-

The outdoor 4 pm mass was held in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and included a 500member papal choir. In his homily, Francis encouraged the thousands of families gathered from around the world with words of love: “Faith grows when it is practiced and it is shaped by love. That is why our families, our homes, are true domestic churches. These are the right place for faith to become life, and for faith to grow in life.” At the Mass, he also announced the next World Meeting of Families to be held in Dublin, Ireland, in 2018. The global gathering of Catholics is held every three

Junipero Serra statue vandalized days after canonization by ALLYSON

ESCOBAR

AJPress

JUST days after Pope Francis elevated Blessed Father Junipero Serra to sainthood, vandalism occurred at the Carmel Mission Basilica where the remains of the controversial Catholic missionary are buried. At the cemetery and basilica in Carmel, California, there were toppled statues, splattered paint and damaged gravesites. Someone scrawled “Saint of Genocide” on a headstone, according to a Los Angeles Times report. Carmel police Sgt. Luke Powell said the incident was being investigated as a hate crime, because the vandals targeted “specifically the headstones of people of European descent, and not Native American descent.” Other parts of the mission near Monterey Bay were also vandalized, including tombstones and other statues, CNN said. Within hours of reports, volunteers came to help clean up the mess, picking up statues and scrubbing graffiti. Police have not named any suspects in the case. Serra, an 18th century Franciscan friar who arrived to California in 1769 and later established the first nine missions, has been criticized for his “harsh treatment” of Native Americans. While supporters view him as a faithful apostle who brought Catholicism

to the state, opponents believe he was a Spanish conquistador who oppressed native Indian populations, according to The National Catholic Reporter. Despite protests, Pope Francis canonized Serra at a ceremonial papal mass on Wednesday, Sept. 23 in Washington, D.C., during his historic first visit to the US. The pontiff said Serra “sought to defend the dignity of the native community,” and suggested that his legacy and treatment of the Natives was misinterpreted. “Junipero Serra left his native land and its way of life,” Francis said in his homily during the canonization Mass. “He was excited about blazing trails, going forth to meet many people, learning and valuing their particular customs and ways of life.” The Carmel Mission had planned an event on Sunday, Sept. 27 that celebrated Serra’s sainthood. “Pray for the people [who] did take this responsibility for their actions on this sacred property, and that they seek reconciliation,” a mission representative wrote on the Carmel Mission’s Facebook page. “Let us remember that we live in a loving community, and let us not be discouraged by such things.” “As St. Serra said, ‘Always look forward, never back’.” Powell said investigators were reviewing surveillance video

years. Before departing by plane back to Rome, the Holy Pontiff thanked the volunteers, bishops and priests, and US lawmakers including President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden for hosting and preparing for his historic visit. “Please know that as I prepare to leave, I do so with a heart filled with gratitude and hope,” Pope Francis said, before his evening flight from Philadelphia International Airport. “I will pray for you and your families, and I ask you, please, to pray for me. May God bless you all. God bless America!” (Allyson Escobar / AJPress)

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nary, where he stayed overnight in Lower Merion, Pennsylvania. The seminary was also visited by St. John Paul II in 1797, as well as Blessed Mother Teresa and then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger,

to try to identify the vandal or vandals. He added that several security guards were stationed overnight at the mission, but the vandalism went undetected until 7am on Sunday. “No one has claimed responsibility for this act,” Powell said. This year, legislators attempted to replace a statue of Serra sitting in the National Statuary Hall Collection in Washington with a statue of Sally Ride, an astronaut and educator with a less controversial legacy. Those who opposed the canonization argue that Serra did not uphold the dignity of the indigenous populations living at the mission sites. “We’re stunned and we’re in disbelief,” Valentin Lopez, 63, the chairman of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band in Monterey Bay, told CNN. “There was no Jesus Christ lifestyle at the missions.” Those present at the mission communities expressed their shock at the blatant vandalism at a historical California mission, open since 1793. “When I came out for Mass this morning, I was disappointed, but it could have been much worse,” said Carmel Mission Basilica pastor Father Paul Murphy. “Being a saint doesn’t mean a person is perfect. We all have our flaws, we all have our defects, and so it was with Serra.” ■

who became Pope Benedict XVI. The pope spoke on the serious issue of sexual abuse in the church, saying that “God weeps for the sexual abuse of children,” and apologizing on behalf of the number of priests and religious persons involved in such scandals. At the meeting, he also met with several victims to pray with them. “Please know that the Holy Father hears you and believes you. I deeply regret that some bishops failed in their responsibility to protect children. It is very disturbing to know that in some cases bishops were even abusers.” Francis has created a Vatican tribunal to address the issue; also to prosecute clergy members and bishops who fail to protect victims, the Washington Post reported. Later in the day, he visited inmates at the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility in Philadelphia, going row by row to greet prisoners with sincere smiles and, for some, heartfelt hugs. “Life is a journey, along different roads, different paths, which leave their mark on us,” Francis told 100 inmates at the site, which processes nearly 3,000 men a year. “All of us need to be cleaned, to be washed. [Jesus] invites us to share in his lot…to create new opportunities, for society as a whole. I encourage you to have this attitude with one another and with all those who in any way are part of this institution. May you make possible new opportunities, new journeys, new paths.” To end his visit, the Pope celebrated his final mass to conclude the World Meeting of Families.

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OPINION

FEATURES

Alerted

TOURISM is a dynamic and complex industry, where apart from leisure, the success of any tourism destination will depend on how well it can provide a safe and secure environment for its visitors. Currently on the upswing, the Philippine tourism’s momentum as being one of the leading tourist attractions in Asia might be halted following the highly publicized abduction on Samal Island in Davao Del Norte. Local and international authorities have been alerted after the kidnapping incident of three foreigners and a Filipina from a luxury resort island in Samal. Canadians John Ridsdel and Robert Hall, Hall’s Filipino girlfriend Marites Flor, and Norwegian Kjartan Sekkingstad, were taken from the Holiday Oceanview Marina before midnight on Sept. 21, by armed men who claimed that they were members of the New People’s Army (NPA). However, early speculations also pointed out that the Abu Sayyaf Group, a terrorist group linked to Al-Qaeda, initiated the attack. The group is notorious for kidnap-for-ransom activities in Mindanao but the military has yet to confirm if the group is behind the recent abduction. There has been no breakthrough in the search and rescue operation as of Tuesday, Sept. 29. Hundreds of policemen, elite Army troops and Navy members are currently scouring the coasts of Davao and nearby provinces in search of the captives and the armed group. Canada has advised its nationals against traveling in several areas in Mindanao after two of its citizens were among the captives. Canada said its nationals should avoid travel to the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Zamboanga Peninsula and the provinces of Sarangani, Lanao del

Editorial

Norte, Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, Davao Occidental, Davao Oriental, Cotabato, South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat “due to the serious threat of terrorist attacks and kidnap-

ping.” Other countries followed suit as the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand have issued travel advisories to their citizens. If not concluded at the soonest time possible, more travel advisories against the Philippines are to be expected, and its consequences to the tourism industry may be exacerbated. Malacañang accepted the travel advisories issued against areas in Mindanao. However, Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. assured everyone that the Philippine government is working double time to apprehend the perpetrators. Coloma also allayed the possible effects of the latest kidnapping in the tourism industry saying that it was an isolated case in the last 14 years. Coloma added that the government has enforced tighter security also as part of the country’s preparation for the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit on Nov. 18 and 19. President Barack Obama, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin are among the expected high-profile visitors of this year’s gathering of world leaders. The kidnapping incident is not to be tolerated, but it is enough reason to make the national government and concerned agencies improve their operation to promote a safer environment not just

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for the country’s tourists but also its citizens. The country’s tourism will undoubtedly suffer after this, but this doesn’t mean all the things that have made Philippines—a country full of history and cultural

diversity—are gone. All agencies concerned will just have to compromise and compensate for the damages that may be incurred from this unfortunate incident. (AJPress)

Early poll results: Fil-Ams choose Roxas over Poe and Binay AS the election season in the Philippines heats up, we see possible tandems forming among those seeking the highest posts of government. Anticipation and excitement are growing, and Fil-Ams are very much in the loop about the political developments in the Motherland. As of press time, Sec. Mar Roxas still awaits Cong. Leni Robredo to be on board as his vice president, but she asked for more time to discern whether this is her true calling, because her daughters with the late DILG Sec. Jesse Robredo’s daughters wish that she would not run for the second-highest post. Only Sen. Grace Poe has a solid tandem with Sen. Chiz Escudero, who is definitely running as

Pictures of Duterte and Sen. her vice president. Allan Peter Cayetano have been VP Jejomar Binay has not yet The Fil-Am circulating in the news after announced who his pick is for Cayetano formally announced VP, although rumors are circulat- Perspective that he is indeed running for VP. ing that it would probably be Sen. Could this scenario push RobreBongbong Marcos, a solid anti-addo to run with Roxas? ministration figure whose political On September 16, after Poe interests match those of Binay at GEL SANTOS-RELOS announced her candidacy, The this time. Filipino Channel’s daily newsBut even Marcos is not sure whether to run with Binay as other rumors say cast Balitang America asked its viewers: If the he could be picked by Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Philippine Presidential Elections were held today, Duterte. Duterte has yet to formally announce his who would you vote for to be the next President of intent to run, but the latest survey shows a strong the Philippines? The results: following, placing fourth after Poe, Roxas and BiMar Roxas - 56 percent nay.

Grace Poe - 29 percent None of the above - 15 percent Jejomar Binay - 0 percent It looks like Binay has a lot of work to do among Filipinos in America. meanwhile, will Duterte shake the dynamics if and when he decides to run for President? Will Grace Poe be able to keep her lead? Will Mar’s upward momentum catapult him to be the next President? ABANGAN ANG SUSUNOD NA KABANATA! *** >\c JXekfj I\cfj `j k_\ XeZ_fi f] K=:Ëj È9Xc`kXe^ 8d\i`ZX%É M`\nj Xe[ fg`e`fej \ogi\jj\[ Yp k_\ Xlk_fi `e k_`j Zfclde Xi\ Xi\ jfc\cp k_fj\ f] k_\ Xlk_fi Xe[ efk f] 8j`Xe AflieXc Xe[ 89J$:9E$K=:% =fi Zfdd\ekj# ^f kf nnn%K_\=`c$8dG\ijg\Zk`m\%Zfd# _kkgj1&&nnn%]XZ\Yffb%Zfd&>\c% JXekfj%I\cfj

Metro Manila is dangerously crowded THE Metro Manila urban area, accord- Demand ing to a World Bank study, is one of the and Supply densest in the region. It is also becoming even denser. Why does that matter? Two things make BOO CHANCO that matter. It makes the quality of life for its inhabitants worse with every passing year. It also makes for unimaginable consequences, if a big calamity strikes. I hate to be gruesome, but sometimes I think we need a big earthquake to give us the resolve to fix things, but that comes with a huge cost in lives. Indeed, a catastrophic tremor will likely seriously damage, if not bring down older structures. Every time I fly in or out of Metro Manila, it is so clear from the air how despicably chaotic it is down there. No zoning or land use policies in effect and the congestion in its arteries of roads paint a picture of a city on the verge of paralysis. What happened in Metro Manila is the result of poor governance through the years. Perhaps it all started after the city was pulverized by the Americans and the Japanese during WW 2. We were left to pick up the pieces and remake our lives as creatively as we can amidst war debris. The Liberation mentality never left us. Just look at the jeepney, the public transportation born out of necessity from Army surplus jeeps, it is still here 70 years after. What was makeshift or intended to be temporary became permanent out of necessity and laziness on the part of leaders and people. The last few weeks, our attention was focused on Metro Manila’s traffic jams. Of course, there is nothing really much we can do now for the short term beyond fielding armed constabulary officers to instill discipline among drivers.

But that’s more PR for an inept regime than anything else. Even the long term solutions will likely not happen due to a combination of lethargy and absence of strong political will to make the tough decisions. There is, for instance, no going around the need to reduce the metro area’s population density. It is just too dangerous to keep all those souls crowding in an area that’s prone to natural calamities. I am glad that because the congestion problem is now more than an annoyance in our lives, there is open discussion of my favorite topic: how to govern the metro area. We cannot go on allowing those 17 mayors of Metro Manila cities to continue ruling their fiefdoms as their family businesses. We need a metro perspective. The World Bank points out the Manila urban area is notable not just for its size and density, but also for its extreme administrative fragmentation. Mindless growth and poor governance have aggravated urban blight and made it difficult to have more inclusive economic growth. Yet, the World Bank points out, “urbanization is a key process in ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity.” But even as urban growth provides opportunities for the poor, the Bank warns, it can also aggravate existing inequalities in access to services, employment, and housing. This is why better regional planning is a must. “Spatial planning can help reduce inequality in access to urban opportunities and amenities. The pattern of urban form is one of many factors that affect the ability of the urban poor to access economic opportunities in their cities. “Ensuring a spatial match between jobs, affordable retail, public transpor-

tation, health and education services, recreational areas, and affordable housing is one of the means of fostering such access. Risk-sensitive land use planning can ensure that urban growth does not expose the urban poor to natural disasters.” On that basis, I think Metro Manila is a hopeless case. We have to start more or less from scratch, learning from the mistakes we have committed in our National Capital Region. In any case, it is now too late to impose any sensible spatial planning in Metro Manila. It is even impossible to expropriate enough land to build a new runway for NAIA, which is a less ambitious project. This is why the offer of BCDA to put up a “backup government center” at Clark’s Green City should be taken seriously. It is the right strategy to take in conjunction with our disaster preparedness plan for Metro Manila. It also could be the start of an effort to move government offices and inevitably, people away from the crowded Metro Manila area. According to Arnel Casanova, BCDA president and chief executive, they have offered free lots inside the Clark Green City for government agencies to use in establishing backup offices. These will ensure uninterrupted delivery of services in the aftermath of major calamities. Green City is a 9,450-hectare metropolis to rise within the Clark Freeport Zone whose development was recently won by the Filinvest Group. It is expected to be the first smart, disaster-resilient city in the Philippines. Clark Green City is around 100 kilometers from the West Valley Fault Line and is surrounded by the typhoonmitigating Zambales and Sierra Madre mountain ranges. For now, BCDA made the offer to prepare for the eventuality of a big earthquake in Metro Manila’s West Valley

Fault. “When the Big One strikes, delivery of government services and operations of businesses suffer the longest because you will have to face issues of health or personnel shortage, supply chain problems, public order, and a host of other challenges,” Cassanova said. But really, Clark is a good area to build a new government center, our version of Malaysia’s Putrajaya. A new large center of population in Clark can be jumpstarted, if government initiates the move. Perhaps, the government buildings can be constructed by the developer, Filinvest, along the lines of the DepEd partnership with the private sector for constructing school buildings. Government budgets for rent and upkeep of Manila-based offices can be used to amortize the cost of new buildings in Green City. Moving government offices to Clark will also solve the NAIA congestion problem. Flights will no longer have to crowd limited slots at NAIA because there will also be rising demand to fly directly in or out of Clark. But one thing we have to watch out for is the haphazard development of the adjoining San Fernando-Angeles urban center, something already evident. It will be easy to do things right at Green City, but complementary efforts must be made for the adjoining areas. Why do we have to move now on this worsening problem of Metro Manila congestion? Simply because doing nothing may make the situation explosive over time as life, specially among the urban poor, becomes more and more oppressive. The findings in this World Bank study reinforce the connection between economic growth and urbanization. But how a city expands directly affects the poor. Getting urban form, density, and administrative coordination right, the

World Bank says, will be essential to ensuring that urbanization helps achieve the twin goals of ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity. We have this golden opportunity to try something we really ought to be doing anyway by working with BCDA in Clark. Once Clark itself gets built up, we will lose the chance to have a national capital that is done right. Indeed, we should not wait for the Big One to happen. Once a massive earthquake devastates Metro Manila to make it nearly uninhabitable, we may no longer have the massive land area now available in Clark to build a new National Capital from scratch. In any case, Metro Manila will be increasingly uninhabitable too even without an earthquake. Climate change may make more than half of the metro area extremely flood prone, if not permanently under water. I saw some maps simulating what could happen and it isn’t pretty. I realize we have a lot of current problems that keep us preoccupied. But someone in authority must step up and execute a viable plan to reduce population density in Metro Manila. I don’t think we can wait. I hope this issue gets discussed during the campaign, but I doubt it. I hope the next administration will start the ball rolling so future generations can have a better life. It looks like an impossible task, but to do nothing is worse. I suggest that BCDA be made to jumpstart that program on behalf of government. I am confident its very competent management today can get the job done. We have no more time to lose and I think BCDA is ready to go right now, in case P-Noy wants to do something significant. ***

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DATELINE PHILIPPINES

Duterte to decide on 2016 bid after ‘final soul-searching’ by ROSETTE

ADEL

Philstar.com

MANILA — Davao City Mayor Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte on Saturday, Sept. 26 heeds the clamor of his supporters and told them he will go on a “final soul searching” before coming up with a decision for 2016. Duterte said the soulsearching time he sought will not only involve himself but also his family. “Sa lahat sa kababayan natin, humihingi ako ng konting panahon na lang po, so I can do some final soul-searching with myself and my family. At pagkatapos, sa konting panahon na lang po, haharap ako sa bansa at sa inyong lahat. At magdedesisyon ako ng buong kalooban at mula sa puso,” Duterte said in a text message read during the “Million People March” at the Rizal Park in Manila City on Saturday. “Pangako ko sa inyo – hinding hindi ko kayo papabayaan,” he added. Duterte’s text message sparked hope in the minds of his supporters who continued with the rally to convince him to run even if he earlier proclaimed he is not running and called on his supporters to stop the “Million People March.” In the text message, Duterte reiterated he had no ambitions to be the country’s president but he noted that he heard the public’s clamor.

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“I hear your clamor loud and clear. I know you want an alternative to those who now present themselves with their ambition to lead the country,” Duterte said. He stressed that leaders must “answer not interest or their personal glory” and “leaders respond to duty and moral obligation.” Although Duterte was not present during the “Million People March,” he thanked his supporters who attended the gathering through the text message he sent that was read at the Quirino Grandstand, Manila on Saturday afternoon. The mayor also apologized that he was not present in the

said event as he is in Zamboanga City to help in the search and rescue operation connected to the kidnapping incident in Samal Island’s Peal Farm Resort, Davao. Duterte’s text message was sent 5:50 p.m., Saturday and was read by his friend Armed Forces chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon before an estimated 6,000 supporters. Last September 8, Duterte made an announcement that he is officially out of the 2016 polls and he will retire. He repeatedly said his decision was final since. The “Million People March” was originally slated September 15 but was moved to September 26, Saturday afternoon. ■

Martial law victims seek $1.9-B award

MANILA – The Court of Appeals (CA) was asked on Monday, Sept. 28 to enforce a 1995 US court decision awarding $1,964,005,859.90 in damages to human rights victims of martial law. Petitioners led by former Human Rights Commission chairman Loretta Ann Rosales asked the CA’s 13th Division to reverse a ruling of the Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC) dismissing their plea. However, the CA did not immediately resolve the petition. It ordered lawyers of the heirs of former President Ferdinand Marcos to clarify who will be their lead counsel.

Lawyer Robert Sison and the Marcos Ochoa Serapio Tan law offices are to submit written manifestation from their clients clarifying the representation on the case. “The defendant-appellee (Marcos estate) must choose which of the two law firms is its lead counsel, and who is the collaborating counsel, if any,” read the CA decision. Non-monetary benefits Non-monetary benefits for human-rights (HR) victims of martial law will be made possible through a partnership between the Human Rights Victims’ Claims Board (HRVCB) and four

other government agencies. Signatories to the memorandum of agreement are the HRVCB, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Health (DOH), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and the Commission on Human Rights (CHR). Under the agreement, the DSWD will develop a comprehensive psychosocial services and rehabilitation program for victims or survivors of human-rights abuses, which will include ensuring access to relevant education and training. (Edu Punay, Rhodina Villanueva/Philstar.com)

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COMMUNITY JOURNAL

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Low-cost manufacturing hubs emerge in ASEAN

WHILE the Chinese manufacturing sector is in the process of transitioning to higher valueadded manufacturing under the government’s new strategic industrial policy of Made in China 2025, a number of countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are emerging as new low-cost manufacturing hubs. As China leads new regional initiatives to strengthen connectivity with large-scale infrastructure investment through the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and Silk Road Fund, both the country and ASEAN are set to benefit in the next decade and beyond from rapid regional growth in long-term trade and investment flows. The ASEAN countries and Chinese provinces in the Greater

Mekong Subregion (GMS) are expected to be among the biggest beneficiaries, as they are well-positioned to become lowcost manufacturing suppliers to the rapidly growing Chinese consumer market and industrial supply chain. Average manufacturing wages in Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos are considerably below those in Chinese coastal provinces. Yunnan and Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region — the Chinese areas that are part of the GMS — also have relatively lower wage costs compared to the national average, and considerably lower wages than those of coastal industrial hubs such as Shanghai, Guangzhou, Tianjin and Beijing. However, a major competitive weakness of the GMS is relatively

poor infrastructure connectivity, which has been a constraint on economic development. This issue was one of the main areas of focus at the 5th Greater Mekong Subregion Leaders’ Summit in 2014. If infrastructure connectivity is strengthened in Southeast Asia to allow high-speed rail networks and modern roads to link Chinese provinces, such as Yunnan in southern China, to the Indian Ocean via Thailand and Myanmar, it could significantly improve freight logistics for southern China for both imports and exports. It will also create significant opportunities for the development of major new ports and free trade zones in Thailand and Myanmar, thus boosting their

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Poll: Pinoys concerned PH remains attractive to Chinese investors about inflation, workers’ pay by RICHMOND

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S. MERCURIO

Philstar.com

MANILA – The Philippines remains an attractive investment destination among companies from Hong Kong and China despite ongoing territorial disputes. “There’s tremendous interest in what’s going on in the Philippines. It is not only Hong Kong companies but also mainland Chinese companies that are in Hong Kong. I hope we’ll see more companies coming into the Philippines soon,” Invest Hong Kong Director General of Investment Promotion Simon Galpin told The STAR in an interview. According to Galpin, more Hong Kong and Chinese firms are currently looking to see which part of their businesses is well suited to be in one of the region’s fastest growing economy. “It took time for the Philippine economic story to get through

est this year. Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. of the Presidential CommunicaMANILA – Inflation and work- tions Operation Office said the ers’ pay are the top concerns of government was exerting maxithe Filipinos, according to the mum effort to preserve the purchasing power of the peso. latest Pulse Asia survey. As of August, inflation rate was Reacting to the survey, Malacañang said inflation was at its low- at 1.7 percent. by AUREA

CALICA Philstar.com

Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said that since 2010, inflation on a yearly average has been going down (3.8 percent in 2010, 4.6 percent in 2011, 3.2 percent in 2012, three percent in 2013 and 4.1 percent in 2014).

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Young population to help PH become economic powerhouse fice (IRO), said the government’s growing budget for human capital development shows the intenMANILA – Rising investments tion to further improve the qualin human capital amid the ris- ity of workforce. She said rising investments in ing number of young population would help groom the Philippines human capital also reflects the to become a major economic government’s desire to make the powerhouse over the long term. economy reap the potential deEditha Martin, executive direc- mographic dividends. “Consistently rising investtor of the Investor Relations Ofby LAWRENCE

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but I think it now has not only among the mainland and Hong Kong business community but also the large international business community. The Philippines is definitely the economy people

are watching,” he said. “The fact that the Philippines has done so well in business process outsourcing is an indication. The Philippines is definitely a

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AGCAOILI Philstar.com

ments in health and education will help ensure that the Philippines does not miss out on the opportunity offered by its entry to the demographic window,” she added. Starting this year until 2050, the Philippines is said to be within the “demographic window,” loosely defined as a period when

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Young population to help PH…

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a great majority of the population are of working age. Because the number of workforce far outweighs that of dependents, the increase in incomes may accelerate. But this can only happen if there is good quality of labor force. Under the Aquino administration, the government’s budget allocations for education and health have risen substantially year after year. The budget for the Department

of Education increased 18.6 percent to P367.1 billion, while that of the Department of Health went up 19.2 percent to P108.2 billion for this year. Moreover, the budget for the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program, which encourages school attendance among children from poor households, is high in the government’s agenda. Its budget of P62.3 billion for this year is six times the P10-billion allocation in 2010. For his part, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio

Balisacan stressed the need to sustain the trend of rising investments in human capital development. “We need to understand that having a fast growing workingage population is a boon for the economy, but only if we do two things: invest more and more in human capital development and make sure the job opportunities match the skills of the people,” Balisacan said. The country’s chief economist also highlighted the need to make education more accessible and to intensify measures that will make the country’s investment climate more attractive. Based on official projection, the country’s working-age population (between 15 and 64 years old) this year accounts for 66.6 percent of the total population of 101.6 million. The share of the working-age population is expected to rise to 68 percent of 110 million people in 2020, and further to 70.6 percent of 125.3 people million in 2030. Government strategies and private-sector suggestions to further boost the country’s chances of reaping demographic dividends would be discussed in more detail during the 28th Philippine Economic Briefing on Sept. 30. ■

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Credit Suisse lowers PH GDP forecast by LAWRENCE

AGCAOILI Philstar.com

MANILA – Zurich-based Credit Suisse has slashed the economic growth forecast for the Philippines due to the slowdown in the first half of the year brought about by weak global demand and lack of government spending. At the same time, the investment bank does not see monetary G8>< 9( t authorities adjusting key interest Valte said unemployment and rates until end of 2016. underemployment rates were In its Emerging Markets Quaralso on a downtrend. terly report, Credit Suisse econoBased on the survey, 47 percent mist Michael Wan said the bank of Filipinos were most concerned trimmed the Philippines’ gross with the country’s inflation while 46 percent were concerned with workers’ pay. Corruption in government (39 percent), employment (36 per- G8>< 9( t cent) and poverty (35 percent) good news story,” Galpin added. are among the second cluster of Investments from Hong Kong national issues deemed urgent that have qualified for investment by Filipinos. incentives from Philippine govThe third cluster of urgent na- ernment are currently among the tional issues includes peace (21 biggest in the country according percent), crimes (20 percent), to the Department of Trade and rule of law (16 percent) and en- Industry. vironmental destruction (15 perGalpin said the number of cent). Hong Kong and Chinese firms The survey showed that Fili- showing interest in investing in pinos are least concerned about the Philippine market is not the rapid population growth (nine only one increasing but Filipino percent), national territorial in- companies looking to invest in tegrity (seven percent), Charter Hong Kong as well. change (four percent) and terror“We’re starting to see an inism (four percent). crease now and with a little bit The survey was conducted more push, we can encourage from May 30 to June 5. ■ more companies to take the next

Poll: Pinoys…

domestic product (GDP) growth forecast to 6.1 percent instead of 6.4 percent this year, but maintained next year’s projection at 6.4 percent. “We have trimmed our 2015 estimates reflecting the weak first half numbers seen thus far. Nonetheless, moving forward, we expect private consumption spending to underpin the strength in GDP over the next two years, with our analysis suggesting that lower rice and oil price inflation is expected to boost consumption with around two quarters’ lag,” Wan said. The country’s GDP growth slowed down to 5.3 percent in

the first half of the year from 6.4 percent in the same period last year on the back of weak global demand and lack of government spending. Wan said exports are also expected to show some recovery in the second half following the weak first half performance, reflecting a bounce back after supply disruptions from typhoons. However, he explained the severe and prolonged El Niño and the associated dry weather would cap improvement in agriculture exports. According to him, there are some signs of improvement in

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PH remains attractive to Chinese… step,” he said. Galpin cited technology, training and education, and consumer product sectors as potential growth areas in Hong Kong for local businesses. “Hong Kong imports all its food products but we’re a major food market because we have so many visitors. So we’d like to think companies in food and beverage sector can benefit in Hong Kong too,” he said. “At present, we’ve got the (Filipino) big guys. We’ve got the banks, airlines, some big companies using Hong Kong for mergers and acquisition. What I would love to see is the medium sized companies. Companies that are

already doing well here but want to take the next step and do something overseas. We want them to consider Hong Kong as their next step. Medium companies, if they have a competitive product, a competitive service, we’d like to think they can do well in Hong Kong also,” Galpin added. The Philippines last Thursday forged a new agreement with the Hong Kong government to bolster investment cooperation between the two economies. The DTI signed a memorandum of intent with executives from InvestHK pledging mutual cooperation on investment promotion exchanges and best practices. ■

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Debt Relief ATTY. LAWRENCE YANG Chapter 20 NEVER heard of Chapter 20? That’s because in the Central District of California, most courts don’t allow Chapter 20, except in Riverside. Riverside bankruptcy court allows Chapter 20. What is Chapter 20? First, you do a Chapter 7 to discharge your debts. Then you file a Chapter 13 to avoid a junior lien on your residence. The two together is a Chapter 20. Clients, husband & wife are in their fifties. They owe $100K of credit card and personal debt. Wife is a registered nurse. Husband is a warehouse person. They owe two mortgages on their residence. They owe a balance of $480K on the first, and $120K on the second. They have not paid the first mortgage for six months and there are arrears of $20K on the first. They have not paid the 2nd for a year and owe arrears of $12K on the 2nd. The house surprisingly is still upside down. There is no equity supporting the 2nd. The current fair market value of the house is $420K. Even though they haven’t paid the first for six months, there is no notice of default yet. Therefore, foreclosure has not started. They want to save the house and get rid of all unsecured debt of $100K. Should they file Chapter 13 because of the mortgage default and because they want to get rid of the 2nd trust deed, or should they do a Chapter 7? The best strategy for clients is to do a Chapter 20. First, they do a Chapter 7. That will discharge all their debts. Then, they do a Chapter

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Client seeks Chapter Calendar of Events across 20 relief to avoid lien Senior protects house from $100K judgment lien with Chapter 7 13 to remove the 2nd trust deed. However, the time frame is critical. If the Chapter 7 sails through without problem, they get a discharge in four months. In the fourth month, they will still own the house because foreclosure has not yet started. When they get their Chapter 7 discharge on the fourth month, they can then file a Chapter 13 to remove the 2nd trust deed. What this strategy will allow them to do is not worry about paying a portion of the unsecured debt of $100K in the Chapter 13 because that has been discharged in Chapter 7, it will also allow them to cure the default of the first mortgage over 60 months in the Chapter 13, and most importantly, when they strip the 2nd mortgage in the Chapter 13, there is no unsecured portion of the 2nd trust deed that has to be paid in the plan because the Chapter 7 discharged the 2nd trust deed. In other words, the Chapter 13 plan only has to pay the arrears of the first mortgage. The plan doesn’t have to pay any unsecured debt because they are all discharged in the Chapter 7, including the 2nd mortgage, which becomes unsecured debt of $120K when it is avoided by the LAM motion in the Chapter 13. Note that you can only do this if your residence is still upside down now and for the next 4 to 5 months, and that there is no risk of foreclosure of your residence in the next 4 to 5 months. Starting this month, even bankruptcy

courts in the Central District of California, namely, Los Angeles, Woodland Hills, and Santa Ana will allow Chapter 20 because the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision on July 9, 2015 in Re Boukatch, that the Court of Appeals was joining the ‘growing consensus of courts’ allowing debtors to use Chapter 13 to strip off wholly unsecured liens after receiving a Chapter 7 discharge. So, they now recognize Chapter 20 debtors. Prior to this ruling, you can only get a Chapter 20 in Riverside. Chapter 7 Client is 68. I saw him last year and I told him last year to file his Chapter 7 at that time to prevent a judgment lien on his residence from happening. But being the stubborn person that he is and one who seems to revel in procrastinating, he decided to not file his Chapter 7 last year. Last year, he was sued for $100K in a business lawsuit, which he decided not to defend against. Probably because he knew he was guilty. A default judgment was entered two months ago. Still he waited and did not do anything to protect his house. If he filed for Chapter 7 two months ago, the judgment of $100K would have been wiped out, thus preventing a judgment lien for $100K on his house from happening this week. This week, he received a notice of involuntary judgment lien on his house for $108K, which I warned him about last year. Now, he wants

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Credit Suisse lowers PH GDP…

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government spending and disbursement. “Our expectation is for government spending to improve gradually over the next few quarters, although probably not as much as other analysts expect during an election period,” he added. Credit Suisse also lowered its inflation forecasts to 1.4 percent instead of 2.2 percent for this year, and to 2.4 percent instead of 3.7 percent for next year due to the benign inflation environment. Inflation eased to a new record low of 0.6 percent in August from 0.8 percent in July, bringing the average inflation to 1.7 percent in the first eight months of the year amid stable food prices and

lower utility rates. “These partly reflect the lower-than-expected inflation prints that we have already seen in the first half of the year, with inflation falling to a multi-year low of 0.6 percent year-on-year in the latest print,” he said. The revised forecasts, he explained, reflects a lower assumed path for oil prices and more moderate food and electricity price increases from the El Niño impact. As such, the bank now expects the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to keep interest rates until the end of next year. “We have removed our expectation for rate hikes in 2016. Partly on the back of the more moderate profile for headline inflation, we have removed our

forecast for BSP to hike rates come 2016, and now expect the central bank to keep rates on hold until the end of next year,” Wan said. He added the risks to monetary policy are nonetheless biased towards easing by tweaking macroprudential measures and reserve requirement ratio as potential first step. “Nonetheless, we believe that the risk is tilted towards a more dovish central bank at this stage, given the very low and manageable inflation and the moderating credit growth profile,” he said. The bank added the Philippines has policy space compared to other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). ■

Low-cost manufacturing hubs…

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economic development. With rapid infrastructure development creating an improving business climate for low-cost manufacturing production in Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos, the GDP of the Greater Mekong Subregion is forecast to rise from $1.2 trillion in 2015 to $3.2 trillion by 2025. Auto production hubs Since the implementation of the ASEAN Free Trade Area in 2010, the Thai automotive industry has grown rapidly to become one of Asia’s leading hubs for auto and parts production. It produced 1.9 million passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in 2014. Total production could rise to 3 million cars and commercial vehicles by 2024, based on IHS Automotive’s projection. Meanwhile, the Indonesian auto industry has also grown rapidly, helped by strong growth in domestic demand from the fast-growing middle class. Total Indonesian production of cars and commercial vehicles was 1.24 million units in 2014. It is projected to rise to 1.9 million units by 2024. Annual production of passenger cars in Indonesia now exceeds that of Thailand, with 1,001,686 units produced in Indonesia in 2014, compared with 857,723 passenger cars in Thailand in the same year. IHS Automotive forecasts that Indonesian passenger vehicle production will rise to 1.5 million autos by 2024. Electronics hub A new wave of shifting manufacturing production is currently underway in the electronics industry, as multinationals reposition their East Asian production of electronics products such as semiconductor chips, mobile phones and printers toward lower-cost production hubs. Vietnam has been a key beneficiary of this trend since 2009, when Samsung invested in a new mobile phone factory in the country. A year later Intel set up a semiconductor chip plant in Vietnam. Many other multinationals have followed suit with more investments in electronics manufacturing, including major new investments by Samsung, as

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well as by other electronics firms such as Kyocera, Canon, LG and Nokia. Samsung has become a major investor in Vietnam, with production facilities in Ho Chi Minh City, BacNinh and Thai Nguyen. The South Korean tech giant announced plans in late 2014 to build a second smartphone factory in Vietnam involving an investment of $3 billion. Samsung already accounts for around 20 per cent of total Vietnamese exports and has around 73,000 employees in Vietnam. Textile industrial hubs The China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement that was implemented in 2010 has accelerated the growth of bilateral trade and investment flows between ASEAN and China, with the regional bloc’s textiles, clothing and footwear sector being a major beneficiary. The textiles and footwear industry has been a key driver of Cambodia’s economic development in the last decade. Total exports of these products have grown from $27 million in 1995 to $5.8 billion in 2014, and are estimated to account for 600,000 jobs in the country’s economy. Industry exports rose 10.6 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2015, and are expected to be an important long-term growth engine for the Cambodian economy, which will benefit from the fast-growing Chinese consumer market. The Vietnamese textiles industry has also been experiencing rapid growth, with total exports of garments and textiles reaching $24.5 billion in 2014, up 19 per cent on the previous year. The new European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement agreed in principle in August will provide a further boost to Vietnamese garments exports to the EU, which is already a key market for Vietnamese garments. The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, if concluded, will be another major boost for Vietnam’s garments sector, as it will provide duty-free access for Vietnam into the US market. IT-BPO industry ASEAN’s information technology and business process outsourcing (BPO) industry has also

become one of the region’s fastgrowing sectors, with Malaysia and the Philippines among the leading global hubs for the ITBPO industry. The competitiveness of Malaysia and the Philippines in this industry has been particularly helped by the large pool of university-educated workers as well as the strong English-language skills of the work force in both countries. In the Philippines, the industry’s export revenue has more than doubled between 2008 and 2014, reaching an estimated $18 billion by 2014, while its total number of employees exceeded 1 million. By 2016, the industry in the Philippines is projected to have 1.3 million employees. The rapid growth of this industry is also driving economic development in a number of cities across the Philippines, with Manila and Cebu now ranked among the world’s leading IT-BPO hubs. In Malaysia, the industry has also posted fast growth, with major hubs having developed in Kuala Lumpur and Penang. A new IT-BPO Park being built in Penang is expected to create around 21,000 new jobs by 2020. ASEAN has become one of the world’s fastest-growing economic regions, driven by a range of factors, including its large domestic consumer population of 600 million, dynamic economic reforms and trade liberalisation to boost competitiveness, and close trade and investment ties with Asia’s largest economy, China. With China having emerged as an upper-middle-income economy with a fast-growing consumer market, ASEAN’s industrial hubs in a wide range of industries, including autos, electronics and textiles, are poised to experience rapid growth in exports to the Chinese market. Intra-ASEAN trade will also grow rapidly, helped by trade liberalization and economic integration as the ASEAN Economic Community agreement is implemented. At a time when many emerging markets worldwide are struggling, the long-term growth and trade prospects for ASEAN still look very bright. (Inquirer.net)

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America

ADVERTISE YOUR EVENTS! PRE-EVENT AND POST-EVENT GO DEEPER. GO WIDER. LET THE WORLD KNOW. CALL ASIAN JOURNAL: (818) 502-0651 DISPLAY AD SIZES AT SPECIAL RATES FOR NON-PROFIT GROUPS F : KF 9 < I *

G_`c`gg`e\ ?\i`kX^\ @ejk`klk\ @ek\ieXk`feXc Gi\j\ekj Ki`Ylk\ )'(, The legacy of Naomi Palma-Armada, who died of a heart attack June 10, lives on. On October 3, from 6pm to midnight, the Philippine Heritage Institute International (PHII), a private non-profit foundation founded by Naomi in 1989, will present Tribute 2015: White House Millennium Council Award to Outstanding Filipino American Nurses (on its 17th year) and President’s Award: Profiles of Service, Pillars of Community (on its 8th year) at the Sheraton Cerritos Hotel (12725 Center Court Drive, Cerritos, CA 90703). Parking for the event is free. Attire: Formal or Filipiniana. Music provided by The Midnight Motion Band. For more information, contact president Josie E. de Jesus (714) 272-0300; joestarisdejesus@gmail. com, or event chair Norma Merza (562) 947-0248; norma.merza@yahoo.com.

=`c$8d ?`jkfip Dfek_ =`cdj ÈKXcb JkfipÉ K`d\ Please join us at the Carson Library (151 E. Carson St. Carson, CA 90745) on Oct 3rd, from 1-4pm, at the Carson Library to hear stories of individuals from the books, “Filipinos in Carson and the South Bay” and “Hawaiians in Los Angeles.” Join with FANHS-LA Chapter, the Filipino American Library, Friends of the Carson Library, APALA, and other community leaders as we celebrate October as Filipino American History Month and the birthday of Larry Itliong, one of the main organizers of the 1965 UFW Delano Grape Strike. There will also be a screenings of Delano Manongs: Forgotten Heroes of the UFW, and America Aloha: Hula Beyond Hawaii; both are educational documentary films about the Filipino and Hawaiian experience in America. This is a FREE event with a talk, book signings by the authors, and light refreshments afterwards. For more information and to RSVP, please contact roseeibanez@ gmail.com.

=`c$8d ?`jkfip Dfek_ B`Zb$F]] The 2015 Filipino American History Month celebration in Carson will be held on Saturday, Oct. 3rd from 12 to 4pm at the South Bay Pavilion (20700 Avalon Blvd, Carson, CA 90746). Organized by the Filipino American Chamber of Commerce South Bay Los Angeles (FACCSLAA), the event headlines musical entertainment, business vendors, networking, exhibits, an immigration panel, and health and fitness activities. Special performances by Malou Toler, Mon Concepcion, Sara Mislang, Cecile and Mighty Show, and with host Gee Gee Starr. For more information on the FilAm History Month in Carson, please 310.748.9688, or South Bay Pavilion at 310.366.6629.

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BlckliX1 8 =`c`g`ef 8d\i`ZXe =ff[ 8ikj =\jk`mXc Kultura Festival, an all-ages, contemporary Filipino-American food and arts festival, will take place in Logan Square’s Emporium Arcade Bar in Chicago on Sunday, October 4, from 11 AM to 6 PM. Presented by Filipino Kitchen, this festival is carefully curated to appeal to those who personally identify with Filipino culture, food, and those who are curious or uninitiated. With a craft beer bar, food trucks, special guest chefs, and an expected 2,000 festival guests and staff, Kultura Festival aims to highlight the best of Filipino cuisine to Chicago and the Midwest. Tickets can be purchased for $10 general admission at https://ti.to/filipino-kitchen/kultura-festival, $5 for students and seniors. More information can be found at http://filipino.kitchen/kulturafestival.

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C8 9l`c[\i C`fej :clY ),k_ 8ee`m\ijXip The Los Angeles Builder Lions Club will celebrate their 25th Anniversary and Annual Outstanding Parents Night on October 10, 2015 at the Almansor Court banquet hall (700 S Almansor St, Alhambra, CA 91801). Music will be provided by The Midnight Motion Band. For further questions, please call Lion Bill Menor (323) 465-0613, Lion Yoli Ramo (213) 3051332, chairpersons or Lion Tita James, co-chair at (818) 203-2325.

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C\^`feXi`fj [\c KiXYXaf `e 8d\i`ZX Ki`\ee`Xc :fem\ek`fe The Legionarios del Trabajo in America, Inc. will hold its 18th Triennial Convention, October 15-18, 2015, at the Clarion Inn and Suites in Stockton, CA (4219 Waterloo Rd, Stockton, CA 95215). For more information, please contact Cora Gines at (209) 957-0217 / (209) 4065438, or Elena Gabriel at (209) 598-1436.

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LE@K<; C89$LJ8 *)e[ 8ee`m\ijXip The UNITED LAB-USA will celebrate their 32nd Anniversary on Saturday, October 17, 2015 at Royal Garden in Cerritos. The association is headed by Rey Guieb, President. Music will be provided by The Midnight Motion Band. For other questions, please call Felix Belen, outgoing president at (626) 839-0736.

L<IDDD: $ D\[`ZXc 8clde` 8jjfZ`Xk`fe @eXl^liXc 9Xcc The University of the East Ramon Magsaysay Memorial Medical Center - Medical Alumni Association of Southern California (UERMMMC - MAASC ), a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation which participates in many humanitarian projects and medical missions to barangays in the Philippines, will hold its Inaugural Ball and Dinner=Dance on October 17, 2015 at the Manhattan Beach Marriott (1400 Parkview Avenue; Manhattan Beach, CA 90266). Proceeds from the event will benefit underserved areas and families in Lucena, Quezon and District 2 of Pampanga (Lubao, Sasmuan, Guagua, Floridablanca) who are in need of medical and surgical care. The theme of the Inaugural Ball will be “A Black and White Event.” The evening starts at 6:00pm. Tickets are $90 per person and are tax deductible; VIP packages ranging from $500 and up are also available. For more information, please call Dr. Teri Pastor at 310-707-8480, Gloria Legaspi at 951-496-0536 and Lucy Babaran at 818-395-9348. We thank our guests and sponsors for their generous support!

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GXZf :Xk_fc`Z ?`^_ JZ_ffc :cXjj f] (0-+ I\le`fe sa Amerika” at the Gold Coast Casino & Hotel (4000 Flamingo Rd. Las Vegas, NV 89103) in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 25-27, 2015. Reminisce with your schoolmates from 50+ years ago and re-live memorable high school days! Reconnect with your old friends and make some new ones! This is the first reunion gathering in the US since our 50th grand reunion. For more information, please contact: Dan Hidalgo - danielh616@hotmail.com; tel. (914) 3100864 / (914) 740-7028. Ester Tadeo Celestino - cesarucelestino@yahoo.com; tel. (201) 4330727/ (551) 574-8511. Minda Cuario Cameron - meandatwo@aol.com; tel. (813) 633-5642. Ed Bondoc - bondoced@yahoo.com; tel. (415) 342-9877. Gertrudes “Nette” Descallar Collyer - mycolly@roadrunner.com; tel. (818) 767-8175.

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:XcXgXe :\ekiXc ?`^_ JZ_ffc I\le`fe Please save the date for the 60th anniversary year of Calapan Central School in Oriental Mindoro. Where: Oakland, CA When: November 1-3, 2015. Contact: Luz Yu (luz_yu@yahoo.com)

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=\jk`mXc f] G_`c`gg`e\ 8ikj Xe[ :lckli\ Save the date! FPAC 24 will occur on November 7th at the El Pueblo Historical Monument. Please visit www.FilAmARTS.org for more exciting details and information!

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Immigrant Living: 101 and Beyond MONETTE ADEVA MAGLAYA

Begin the Beguine with Vigan “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

— Marcel Proust

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HERE’S a thought. How about playing tourist in your own native land? Get out of the city and really look with fresh eyes at the countryside. Let it not be said that aliens and other strangers saw something worthwhile that we didn’t — right in our own backyard. Let’s hope that even with gale force winds brought on by the latest super storm to hit the area, Vigan remained unflappable. Those cavernous shopping malls, tiendecitas, tianggues and the stalls of Greenhills springing up like mushrooms, awash with gizmos, trinkets, doodads and brand name knock-offs for consumers to buy —we will always have with us—but certain places in the country deserve a long, hard look and a VISIT, before they fade away to oblivion. Vigan is one of them. If you fit the bill of an expatriate who must

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cram the tourist experience into a 2 to 3 week time frame and there is only one chance for a local side trip, just one chance to do one mad dance before your Philippine trip is over, begin the beguine with Vigan. It has first claim to being the best of the old remaining towns of our Philippine colonial past. It shows the eclectic blending of many cultures forged over hundreds of years. Vigan shows aspects we would never see just by reading a travel book or watching a video. Vigan shows aspects of our character, of who we are as a people. VIGAN TEACHES US. For the longest time, I have always wanted to go North of Manila and visit Vigan in the Ilocos province, struck by the memory of an image I’ve seen in some tattered travel poster years back. Here is Philippine history you can actually touch, a nar-

row, colonial street you can actually walk on or keep your ears peeled to listen at sundown to the soothing clip clop of horsedrawn calesas for hire to tourists at 150 Php/hour or more, mixed with the annoyingly grating sound of the ubiquitous tricycles. The authentic remnants of Spanish architecture on Calle Crisologo, a short strip of narrow, cobblestone road, allow us to get a glimpse of what life must have been like several hundred years ago. If you have any clairvoyant bone in your body, you can even sense the presence of curious, benign ghosts of ages past in the ancestral homes, mingling and jostling with the tourists eying strangers curiously wondering about us just as we wonder about them. At the nice, neat bed and breakfast inn we stayed in

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ATTY. KENNETH URSUA REYES

7 things you should not do when served with divorce papers by your spouse

FOR most people, being served with divorce papers by your spouse is probably one of the biggest surprises in your life. The spouse in the receiving end of the divorce sometimes are not offered any explanation for the divorce petition by their spouse. You may start getting upset about how this can happen to you and start doing things that are going to be seriously detrimental to your divorce case later on in the proceeding. Here are seven things you should not do. Do not confront your spouse and commit domestic violence Many spouse feel very angry and upset upon receiving the divorce papers. You may start blaming your spouse and attacking your spouse. You may even yell, threaten, scream, or even physically assault your spouse. This type of confrontation is called “domestic violence.” You may be arrested criminally if your spouse calls law enforcement.

Your spouse may also file a domestic violence restraining order against you. Either one would compromise your ability to seek custody of your children, child support, and spousal support. It would also affect your credibility as a witness for future proceedings. In addition if you do this in front of the children, this may be looked at as domestic violence and abuse against the children. The incident may be reported to Child Protective Services for investigation. Do not run to the bank and empty out all your bank accounts or sell assets except for funds necessary retain legal representation in the divorce. If you have assets, do not run and empty out your bank accounts with the goal of securing it from your spouse. The divorce petition and summons includes certain automatic temporary restraining orders (ATROS) which prohibits transferring and encumbering assets. You will be

Barrister’s Corner

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in violation of the ATROS if you do this. Your spouse may also make a claim for breach of fiduciary duty against you. However there are certain exceptions to withdrawing funds such as funds necessary for your living expenses and funds you need to retain an attorney. Do not cut off your spouse from any insurance policies One of the ATROS prohibits you from removing your spouse from health insurance coverage and other insurance policy. It would be a violation of ATROS to do so. You need to maintain your spouse on all existing insurance until the divorce is finalized or the status of marriage is dissolved in a bifurcated trial. Do not take off with your child and move out of state or out of the country If the child has been living in this state, California Court has jurisdiction over your child even if you leave California after being

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Client seeks Chapter 20 relief… G8>< 9* t

to file the Chapter 7. After the judgment lien came in, the IRS followed with $90K of tax liens. Well, it not that simple anymore. His residence has $300,000 of equity. Even if he qualifies for $175K equity exemption, there still $125K of free equity on which the lien attaches. He cannot remove the judgment lien on the $125K at this late time. He is afraid that creditor may move to sell his house because of the lien, is this possible he asks? Of course the creditor can move to sell the house because creditor has a secured lien on the house, and if that is not paid, he can ask

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the superior court to allow him to sell the house so he can get paid. Chapter 7 now will prevent creditor from taking the next step of selling his house because the discharge will prevent creditor from taking any further steps to collect the debt, including asking the court to sell client’s house. So, the Chapter 7 still protects his house by preventing the judgment creditor from selling his house because of the lien, so he can live in the house until he dies and the judgment creditor will not be able to do anything to collect the judgment. Frankly, I don’t know how

called Grandpa’s Inn, named for the doctor who owned it sometime ago, I could swear there is a quietly hovering presence in one part of the upstairs open area, faintly caught on camera, mysterious and otherworldly, making the small hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. If it were not for the bagnet, the daing and the longganisa they were serving for breakfast and the quaint calesa bed, the pleasant people at the reception desk and the efficiently working air conditioning in the Kalesa Room we were billeted in, I would have bolted for other accommodations. It takes serious money and pigheaded determination to undertake preservation projects on a huge scale. In time, the ancestral homes that line Calle Crisologo will need to be preserved, if they are to be seen by generations yet to come who

People and Events

this client thinks. I warned him early enough to file Chapter 7 last year to prevent this from happening. Makes no sense to me at all. “By day the Lord directs His love, at night His song is with me - a prayer to the gold of my life.” — Psalm 42:8h.

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Begin the Beguine with… must be afforded the chance to see bits of our past in order to understand who they are, as a people with a shared history, heritage and distinct personality in the context of an increasingly global world. The venerable Ayala Family, who understood history, art and culture and its collective role in nation-building, saw this clearly far ahead of anyone else in the country and did its part through Ayala Foundation, decades ago. The legacy lives on in the wellkept Burgos House which is now under the auspices of the National Museum. But more needs to get done. There is a certain sense of urgency in seeing just such a place — before the passage of time, changing mores, priorities and the inroads of crass commercialism endanger and eventually transform these old remnants of our history into just a memory, preserved only in history and travel books.

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Sadly, under present conditions with the country constantly grappling with its social, economic and political woes while searching for its soul in waging a fight to the death with endemic corruption from the highest to the lowest rungs of government, preserving history, art and culture will have to stay in the back burner for a very long time. What this means for us is that the remaining relics of our history, if we don’t take the effort today to provide for their preservation, will simply be allowed to crumble to dust and fade away. But enough thinking about tomorrow! Today has enough troubles of its own. For now, there’s enough yet of Vigan to enjoy just the way it is. (To be continued) ***

Let’s Rock! to fund the Cathedral of the Angels’ LA Outreach Volunteers Foundation

LOS ANGELES – UST Med 70 L.A. Chapter attended LA Rock’s 15th anniversary on Sept. 12, at the Casa Italiana, to cheer colleague keyboard player Max Basco of the Rubber Sounds Revival band. Dr. Basco was recognized with a ‘Music Award’ for his contribution to the ‘Rock N Roll’ music industry. Founded by Jimmy Lizaso, assisted by Carmelita Paule, the dinner dance fundraiser will benefit the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels’ Los Angeles Outreach Volunteers Foundation. Norma and Harry Salceda sponsored the medical group’s table, coordinated by Dr. Basco. Marissa Bautista, granddaughter of Jun and Concep Bautista, entertained guests with EfkX 9\e\1 Dfe\kk\ 8[\mX DX^cXpX `j Broadway hits from “Cats” and JMG f] 8j`Xe AflieXc GlYc`ZXk`fej# @eZ% Kf “The Phantom of the Opera.” Memj\e[ Zfdd\ekj# \$dX`c dfe\kk\%dX^cXpX7 bers of the Bits N’ Pieces band also received music awards. ■ Xj`XeaflieXc`eZ%Zfd

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7 things you should not do when served with divorce papers by your… G8>< 9+ t

served the divorce. Your spouse can get an order from the California court to return the child to California and get sole physical custody of your child. This can be enforced through law enforcement in other states. In addition, this would also be an ATROS violation. Such a move would seriously undermine your claim for custody of the children. Do not use your child as a messenger to communicate with your spouse Divorce process is a very difficult process for the children. Children often blame themselves

for the divorce of their parents. Children sometimes manifest this through their academic performance during the divorce process. Do not involve the children in your divorce case. Using the children to communicate messages to your spouse puts them in a difficult and very stressful situation. This will also affect your claim for custody of your children if you regularly involve your children in your attempt to communicate with your spouse. In addition, you should not say disparaging remarks about the other parent to your children. Do not stalk your spouse in

social medias such as facebook or tweeter. Your spouse probably stopped informing you as to what is going on in his/her life at this point. You may be curious if your spouse hooked up with a third party or an old flamer. You may be curious what your spouse are telling your friends and family. Do not stalk your spouse in social media such as facebook. Do not hack into your spouse’s e-mail. This is a crime. Your spouse can also file a domestic violence restraining order against you for stalking. Most of the evidence obtained illegally is not admissible in court

anyways. If you have been unfriended by your spouse, let it be. Do not quit your job voluntarily If you think you can dodge child support and spousal support by quitting your job voluntarily, it is not going to happen. Your spouse’s lawyer will argue that there was no legitimate reason for you to leave your employment and may seek the court to impute income on you. Your spouse may seek vocational evaluation for purposes of determining your earning capacity. In addition, the amount of income you will lose by quitting is sub-

stantially more than the money you will owe in child or spousal support. Even if you are successful in dodging the support orders by quitting your job, your spouse can modify them back up the moment you go back to the work force. If you have been served with divorce papers and are unsure how to react, seek professional help before you dig yourself deeper in the hole. *** 8kkfie\p B\ee\k_ LijlX I\p\j `j X :\ik`Ô\[ =Xd`cp CXn Jg\Z`Xc`jk% ?\ nXj Gi\j`[\ek f] k_\ G_`c`gg`e\ 8d\i`ZXe 9Xi 8jjfZ`Xk`fe% ?\ `j X d\dY\i f] Yfk_ k_\ =Xd`cp cXn j\Zk`fe Xe[

Annual Awards Banquet presented by TOYOTA Tuesday, October 6, 2015 The Globe Theatre Universal Studios Hollywood Black Tie Optional

Emcees

Honorees Business Enterprise of the Year

CJ America, Inc.

James Kyson Mei Melançon Entertainment

Media Company of the Year

Wong Fu Productions ABA Chairperson Award

Honorable David E. Ryu Corporation of the Year

U.S. Bank

Advocate of the Year

Paul Dateh

Maker Empire

Richard Chacon

abala.org ǀ @ABALosAngeles ǀ #ABAAwards Celebrating the success of Asian owned businesses.

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Wednesday, SEPTEMBER 30, 2015

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ON THE COVER: PHOTOS COURTESY OF ALVIN CAILAN AND EGGSLUT

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cover story The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - September 30, 2015

AN ASIAN JOURNAL EXCLUSIVE

How Eggslut’s Alvin Cailan got Los Angeles to eat eggs all day by CHRISTINA M. ORIEL / AJPRESS IT all started with eggs. Growing up as a latchkey kid, Alvin Cailan’s father taught him how to cook eggs when he was tall enough to reach the stove. Who would have thought that years down the road and experiences at fine-dining restaurants under his belt, he would circle back to what he first learned how to cook? And even, build an empire on the basic ingredient that’s making Angelenos salivate and queue up? “All my life,” Cailan shared, “I always wanted to cook.” At 15 years old, he got a job as a dishwasher, eventually making his way up to kitchen manager. However, he steered into a different route after high school: he studied business at Cal State Fullerton and worked at a construction company upon graduation. “All I could think of every day was, ‘what am I going to cook for dinner?’” he said. With that insatiable hunger to prepare food and a personal mantra of ‘just doing it,’ Cailan took a leap and moved to Portland to attend the Oregon Culinary Institute. However, reality hit that breaking into the culinary industry wasn’t so simple. He knocked on every major restaurant in the city and faced constant rejection; if there was an opening, it was for free and a short period of time. When he landed his first paying job, the restaurant shuttered six months later. It was back down the coast of California for Cailan, as he stopped at Yountville and Napa along the way, where some of the country’s best and Michelin-starred restaurants are located. Bouchon offered him a job, but he declined and moved back to his hometown of LA, where he made rounds at places like Spago and Hatfield’s. For six months, he worked at Manhattan Beach Post, which he continues to regard as one of his most rewarding experiences. “My experiences from Manhattan Beach Post and working with a chef that lets a lot of [his] cooks figure out things for themselves made me realize that opening a restaurant for myself would be easy. That six months there really taught me how to be an restaurant owner. That’s when I knew I was ready,” Cailan said. A breakfast revolution At this point, Cailan was nearing 30 years old and stumbled upon perhaps the saddest and most pathetic breakfast sandwich to exist — so sad that it motivated him to sell his car and buy a food truck, just as the city’s food truck movement was hitting its peak. “I was really in shock [over] how breakfast was at the time. I went to a diner in Hollywood and they’re known for their breakfast. I ate their sandwich, and I thought, ‘in Portland, this is the lowest of the low,’ he said. “Then, I really looked into it and Yelped to see who were our competitors: McDonald’s or Starbucks. But in the craft realm, there were none.” Along with his cousin Jeff Vales, Cailan based his mobile eatery on something as simple as eggs and breakfast sandwiches, drawing in that comfort and familiarity. Yet, there would be a twist of innovation, and a jarring

The “Slut,” a coddled egg dish

name to it: Eggslut. “I’m not going to take credit for actually inventing the word. But if you looked at food blogs 10 years ago, chefs were using that term, which then became an industry term, like ‘oh, all the chef does is make food with eggs…he is an eggslut,’” he shared. “I figured, being Filipino and in the second largest market in the country, how do you make waves? Having a name like Eggslut threw people off. Immediately people were intrigued by the name, [but] they would walk in, taste the food, stay and then come back. I took a word that no one was using commercially, got the trademark and went forward with it.” The Eggslut truck was initially parked in front of Intelligentsia in Silver Lake, under the premise that “if people buy $7 coffee, they’re going to buy $6 breakfast sandwiches,” Cailan said. Some of the menu items were elevated and elaborate --

elements already present in the kitchen. The popularity and crowding near the Silver Lake coffee shop, however, eventually caused other business owners to complain. “…I had to move and that was the biggest hit. Three months rolled by and I was making like $50 a day. I was running the truck myself. I would wake up at 4 in the morning from Compton and drive it down to West Hollywood myself. Back then, it was just yell 1, 2 or 3 because I [was] the cashier, cook and everything else,” he said. Then a “miraculous” morning happened in January 2012, as the truck was parked along Fairfax Ave. in Mid-City: Ruth Reichl, famed food critic and former editor-in-chief of Gourmet magazine, approached and ordered the “Slut”. “She comes up to the truck and my knees are shaking. She was the reason in the 80s and 90s why restaurants in New York would either be soaring successes or closing their doors. She was that kind of food critic,” Cailan recounted. “I did everything to order all for her, gave it to her and ran back to the truck…Food trucks have a little window and I’m looking out the window and she digs in and eats it. Boom, you just see it. I’m like I…crushed this.” Following that morning encounter, Eggslut’s Twitter went from 70 to 2,000 followers, all thanks to Reichl’s blog post, “The Most Decadent Breakfast” — a poetic narration of why she was drawn to the food truck not because Bacon, egg and cheese sandwich of its name, but because of the description of the coddled egg a pork belly banh mi or croque dish: madame, for example. But, it “A well-coddled egg is a really was the simple, baconbeautiful thing, and when the egg-cheese combinations that chef said, ‘This will take a while; resonated. we coddle them to order,’ I was “At the end of the day, hooked. when you’re eating at a food As anyone would be. This is truck, the last thing you want is fancy because it doesn’t trans- a perfect way to start the day - a late. You’re eating on the side of tender egg, held together with the street and eating something no more than a wish, on top of buttery pureed potatoes. The hard to eat. It took some time crunch of salt, the snappy bite to realize that making bacon, of chives. Heaven in a spoon. egg and cheese is the right And so rich it made three of us thing to do… As far as how deliriously happy for the rest of Eggslut really became Eggslut the day.” was finding out what people “I owe it to her. If it wasn’t wanted to eat because you have to be selfless in opening a for her, I wouldn’t have gotten restaurant — you can’t just cook to shine,” Cailan noted. “She gave me a chance…Next thing what you want to eat,” he said. The eggs made for a natural you know, every food blog and writer [was] hitting me up.” pairing with one’s morning cofIn late 2013, Eggslut transifee. Cailan did research on what tioned from four wheels to a 20classic coffee shops offered, seat counter at Grand Central and one of the dishes was a Market in downtown LA. On coddled egg, a process that opening day, the staff of three required cracking an egg into only expected 150 orders and an espresso cup and stirring it even thought that was a stretch. with an espresso wand to heat “But at 8 am, on the day the top until it coddles. we opened on November 19, Eggslut’s rendition became [2013], there were 400 people known as the “Slut,” a coddled who showed up to Grand egg on top of a smooth potato Central Market. We opened purée, poached in a glass jar and sold our breakfast menu and served with a demi baguette. At $9 a pop, it’s a dainty in an hour and 15 minutes. We reopened for lunch and sold out dish, but signifies the burst flavor that “both the novice and in two hours. Immediately after that, I was freaking out because extreme foodie” could indulge I didn’t order enough,” Calian in. Other menu items include a recalled how their supplies for turkey sausage sandwich, which the next week were gone within came about to offer a less heavy a few hours, and forced them to close for the next two days. option for pork in the morning, Luckily, their purveyors were and the “Fairfax” (scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, caramel- able to deliver ingredients immediately. ized onions and sriracha mayo “We ended up muscling in a warm brioche bun), which through and got over the first was composed from separate

Eggslutʼs Alvin Cailan AJPress photo by Ding Carreon

week. We thought that maybe in two weeks the lines would go down, but it just got worse,” he joked. Head over to the market at any time between 8 am and 4 pm, and Eggslut isn’t hard to miss with a line of customers, 50-100 people deep, snaking behind the stand. The marketing behind Eggslut has been organic and social media driven. “At the end of the day, you can spend millions of dollars on promoting a name, but if your product sucks, no one is going to show up,” he said. “We get fortunate when a famous person with like 2 million followers tweets or Instagrams us, because immediately that’s a reach of 2 million people.” To date, the brick-andmortar does about 500 covers on weekdays, with wait times averaging 45 minutes around lunchtime, and 1,000 covers on weekends, with an hour-long wait time. It may be peculiar from afar that something so uncomplicated like an egg sandwich would magnetize a horde of curious foodies. Is it for the name Eggslut itself? For the coolness factor and the Instagram? Scrambled eggs with sriracha mayo? A seared wagyu tri-tip steak and eggs wedged in a warm brioche bun? Every minute — from waiting in line to placing the order to taking the first bite — is part of the entire Eggslut experience. “At Grand Central Market, it’s the perfect place to wait because you have the option to try cheese or grab coffee. It’s a food hall, so in an hour, you can easily try every restaurant and then wait for us [Eggslut] to end your meal. Grand Central Market in itself as a location is perfect. But going forward, we want to make sure that our food is the reason why people wait in line, especially with locations we plan on opening later on, we have to make sure our food is on point. We have to show people that we’re different and why they should eat with us and not stray away. That’s our marketing plan,” Cailan said, name dropping all of the local farms in Southern California where the ingredients are sourced from. “Everything is as local as possible at a really low price. Again, that’s another reason why people come and wait in line — it’s quality.” However, like anything popular or successful, not everyone has been eating up Eggslut. “There are certain places that we couldn’t do events in because of our name. Like a lot of these food truck roundups, some places didn’t want Eggslut because of the name. When we

The lunchtime crowd at Eggslut

and that simply wasn’t the case. Eggslut and other projects kept me busy and I had to find people who can keep pushing the best ramen in town. The folks from Yokocho were the perfect fit and now they’re continuing the legacy. It couldn’t have landed in better hands while I grow Eggslut and other endeavors,” the Ramen Champ co-founder, who will stay on as a consultant, said. Cailan also conceptualized a diner that would bring simple comfort food — in a city “where we’ve gotten so crazy with food” — but the concept would be too time-consuming for Cailan, who realized that the Photos courtesy of Alvin Cailan and Eggslut attention shouldn’t be taken were announcing our opening away from Eggslut. at Grand Central Market, we “The realistic thing is, our received a lot of letters, saying customers at Eggslut want us to the name is disgusting and open more because they’re tired vulgar…But in due time, we’ve of waiting too,” he said. “It’s ended up changing the connocrazy, like when Krispy Kreme tation of the word by someone first opened in LA, we would who’s obsessed and loves a wait freaking three hours for a certain thing, which is eggs,” donut and I hated that. I always he said. wondered why they wouldn’t Earlier this year, Eggslut was just open another [store]. I was invited to be at Food & Wine really stubborn and wouldn’t Classic in Aspen and at an event want to open another Eggslut, in New York, both instances but now I’m getting backlash where the lines were long. from customers who want “I think we chose the right another one so they don’t have name. Our work ethic and our to wait in line. Now my focus food are here to stay,” Cailan is finding the right place that affirmed. doesn’t jeopardize who we are Eggslut expansion integrity wise.” In the nearly two years While nothing is set in stone since the Grand Central locajust yet, Cailan said Mid-City tion opened, Cailan has since and the Westside are considdipped into other ventures. erations for additional Eggslut Cailan frequented Men Oh locations. in Little Tokyo and other restauLessons from the kitchen rants across the city in pursuit In addition to his parents, of the perfect ramen bowl, Cailan credits his success to his which led to studying broth, past experiences and go-getter noodles and the ramen-ya con- attitude. Working in the kitchen cept. Along with partners John- since 15 has made him “as ny Lee and Nathan Asamoto, power as possible” to open his former chef of Men Oh, Ramen own restaurant. Champ was opened in ChiAs for mentors, Cailan natown in January, as a place mentions three men who have where everything is completely helped shape him into the made from scratch, Japanese chef he is today: Chef Mark style. The broth is an elaborate Tagnipez, who has been his process wherein pork bones best friend since kindergarten; are cleaned and soaked for two Michael Hannigan (chef de days, then cooked for 20 hours. partie of Ten 01 in Portland), (Cailan mentions that Drew who taught him how to focus; Barrymore is a fan — “She says and David LeFevre of Manhatthat it’s the closest bowl to Totan Beach Post, who taught him kyo. We ended up being really how to open and run a restaugood friends over it.”) rant. “After the broth is finished, “We talk a lot all the time we only serve it for that night about how it’s easy to have a and after that, whatever’s left dream and it’s easy to make over gets thrown out. That’s it happen, especially when why we always sell out bepeople are shoveling money cause it costs so much to make your way,” he added. “But can from scratch, so we only make you actually be a smart business enough to sustain,” Cailan said. owner? The only way you can In other words, there’s no be a smart business owner is room for mistakes. through experience. I learned a “You can mess up a bacon lot from [working]. Also closing and egg sandwich, but in 10 a restaurant taught me what not minutes later, you can make a to do.” new one. But if you mess up a He said camaraderie, batch of ramen, that’s it for the especially among Filipinos in day. There were times when I the food industry, is essential shut the restaurant down bein building up support for each cause I didn’t like how the broth other’s projects. “With more tasted. It’s a lot tougher and and more entrepreneurial there’s a lot of risk,” he said. spirit from restaurant industry At first, juggling both restau- people, Filipino food is gorants brought on sleepless days ing to grow really quickly,” he with a routine of making sure noted. Eggslut was running smoothly “Don’t do it for the money. in the morning, only to spend You can’t be in this industry if another eight hours at Ramen you’re doing it in the money. Champ. A lot of people who go to culiBeing in Chinatown, Cailan nary school end up being waitsaid, is tricky because of the ab- ers because you make more sence of other ramen competimoney than being a cook or tors that could provide a taste chef. If you really want to cook, comparison. In August, Ramen know that we are the lowest Champ went on hiatus, and will paid people in the hospitality be re-opening in early October game, so be prepared to cap at under new ownership. $14 an hour. If you go into the “I wish I could’ve given all industry, it’s because you love my attention to Ramen Champ it,” he said.

In Need of Human Connection: features 3 An evening of comfort and hope TV series ‘Transcendent’ looks to break The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - September 30, 2015

By PROSY

ABARQUEZ-DELACRUZ, J.D. AJPRESS

“The vibrations on the air are the breath of God speaking to man’s soul. Music is the language of God. We musicians are as close to God as man can be. We hear his voice, we read his lips, we give birth to the children of God, who sing his praise. That’s what musicians are.” - Ludwig van Beethoven HOLLYWOOD—On August 9, Mon David opened up his show at the Catalina Jazz Bar and Grill with a special aura. It was as if he was on top of a mountain summit, overlooking the grandeur of God’s creations and watching the sunset colors of orange and yellow gold for the evening. “I lead a very privileged existence, surrounded by friends, colleagues, family. I am grateful for [you] coming out and [me] performing in front of the live audience,” he said. Midway in the program, his children, Nicole and Carlo (who just flew in from the Philippines), joined him in scatting Moanin. It was perhaps one of the best that night. The audience raved at the trio’s performance. Mon has clearly mentored his kids well. Jazz music has become his legacy to them, taking them to different parts of the world. Mon and his children are not just singers -- they are also composers, instrumentalists and arrangers. Onstage, Mon was both reflective and appreciative, singing every note and every word as if they were his last, perhaps reflecting on the very untimely death of his musician friend, Zane Musa. He culled some of the words and thoughts from the compilation which resonated with him: “As long as there’s a song to sing, I’ll stay younger than spring.” “If I ruled the world, every man would be as free as a bird.” “Even the stars when they glow in the night, say thanks to you, our Divine.” “Our seeds will scatter far and wide, across God’s fertile countryside.” Zane Musa was a most celebrated saxophonist. His

genius was appreciated by the likes of Arturo Sandoval and the close-knit jazz community. He played three songs from Mon’s CD, This is All I Ask (“Gratitude”, “Conviction” and “Love Abounds”). In his groove, ruling the stage “If I ruled the world every man will sing/everyone is his friend/everyone would say the world is his friend,” Mon gives the audience his all and they respond. “We all enjoyed the sounds and acoustics and of course, the ‘interplay’ and the audience’s warm reception. I felt each one of them really listening and feeling each note…each note. Many of those who came to me were crying as we hugged and some couldn’t even talk sa sobrang tuwa at pagkaoverwhelmed sa music.., the words..messages and that really fulfills me – when I see and feel that. I am connecting through the songs that I choose to express my visions and views,” Mon said. Why this fusion number? Ala Thelonious Monk with Pinoy Touch?, I asked. “That piece is called “Moanin,” a classic jazzy gospel blues tune written by Bobby Timmons with lyrics by Jon Hendricks. “Jon is considered the father of ‘vocalese’ - the art of putting words to pieces originally written as instrumental pieces for sax, piano, etc. (which inspired me to write Filipino words for the Thelonious Monk and Charlie Parker tunes),” Mon shared. “These have become favorite jam pieces among jazz players because of the challenging lines, notes, phrasings. Itong dalawa [Nicole and Carlo] nag-eenjoy mag-improvise at mag-scat over chord changes! Nakakatuwa na patuloy ang kanilang pag-e-evolve at pagexpand sa kanilang repertoire! I’m happy and fulfilled with what happened at Catalina’s,” he added. Mon expressed pride at his children’s accelerated growth as artists and musicians Mon paid tribute to the

misconceptions of transgender women By ALLYSON

ESCOBAR AJPRESS

A BRAND new TV series is premiering on Fuse, uniquely focusing on the everyday lives, struggles and overall experiences of today’s transwomen. Produced by World of Wonder Productions (creators of “RuPaul’s Drag Race:), the show “Transcendent” will follow the lives of a diverse group of transwomen living in San Francisco. The show will document the Mon David physical and mental struggles, AJPress photo by Prosy Abarquez - Delacruz as well as triumphs, of this group of women, and will shed light on great musicians who agreed to their professional, personal, even join him: Theo Sanders, Trevor Ware, Abe Lagrimas, Jr., Chuck romantic lives. Episodes will take a close look at how the women Manning (who is a scientist by connect through their sisterhood day and everybody’s musical of shared experiences. coach by night), Tateng Katin“One of the really great dig, and Nolan Shaheed. things about ‘Transcendent’ that What about your collabomakes the series stand out from rations with Theo Sanders?, I other trans-focused serious is asked. how diverse the women are,” “I’m enriched by my colsaid Hillary Wilson from The laborations with Theo. He is Lippin Group, who works with quite serious about his dedicathe show. “They are everyday tion to the jazz tradition in the women who struggle with the way he composes his music. difficulties of being transgender, To me, he is one of the most as well as being of a different ‘tasteful’ improvisers on the race.” piano and a great accompanist The show -- which makes its as well…the ‘merger’ Monk and Parker tunes were “Straight No debut on Fuse on Wednesday, Sept. 30 at 11:30pm/10:30c Chaser” and “Billie’s Bounce” and like “Moanin,” they’re both -- features two Filipinas (Nya fave jam pieces. I came up with and L.A.), two Latinas, and an African-American woman, who Pinoy words for “Straight”… are all connected through the ganyan ba talaga? Ganyan nga world-famous AsiaSF Cabaret & ba ang buhay? Masalimuot [ang] mga problema, nakakalito! Restaurant in San Francisco. “At first, I didn’t want to be Hirap maintindihan..nakakahilo, a part of it; I didn’t even think it nakakabato! Ingat lang pare would happen,” Nya, 31, told ko, huwag kang magpapatalo the Asian Journal. “I love to sa ikot ng mundo, ganyan ang dance and to entertain people; buhay! that’s what I do. But having my And for “Billie’s”..kailan personal life so public, on blast, mo pa kaya uumpisahan, kailan is kind of weird for me.” ba, kailan pa? Huwag mo nang Nya (pronounced na-ya), ipagpaliban! Puro bukas na from Hayward, California, has lang, ay naku puro bukas na been working at the club since lang pag lagi kang ganyan she was 19 years old, and was walang pupuntahan kailan promoted to a managerial posiman, tandaan! (kung baga po, tion. Confidently knowing she yung ‘manyana’ habit), ” Mon has been female her whole life, continued. she has never struggled with More than a record label Along with Mon, composer- self-identity and her family has been very accepting of who she singer Cathy Segal-Garcia, creis. ated the record label, Human “Transitioning was a bit Connection. rocky, but it’s not because they But it has become more didn’t accept me. Looking back, than that. It is also a collaboraContinued on Page 4 I think my mother was hard on

Photo courtesy of Transcendent

me because she was just trying to protect me from bullies,” Nya said. “A lot happens in the transgender community, especially to women of color.” She talked about the negative labels being both trans and Filipino--“In Filipino culture, they still call us ‘bading,’ which means gay. But we’re not gay. We’re trying to ban these stereotypes.” Nya expressed her hopes for the future of the transgender community, especially with the premiere of the new show. “I was always kind of scared because I am going to be out there for people to criticize. Some people may like me, and some may not. But I’m doing this for the future generations of trans people who will watch. Now, transgender people are in the forefront of media. Caitlyn Jenner, Laverne Cox…I’m very grateful that there are so many role models in our community that the youth can look up to.” “We’ve been out there, but we just haven’t been visible. We are learning to exercise our voices and be who we truly are.” Nya is very open on the show, which captures everything from her personal struggles to her romantic endeavors, all on camera. As a leader of the girls, she especially loves to express herself through dance--a regular part of AsiaSF cabaret life. “Dancing has always been my outlet for not worrying about self-identifying myself, bullying, and hate,” she said. “When I’m performing, I feel like this is the one place that I

can really be myself. I feel accepted and I feel beautiful.” The show also follows the newest and youngest of the group, L.A.,--whose real name is Lauren Anthony--who is just starting with her transition, guided by her new friends at AsiaSF. “While her new friends have become like family, L.A. is still faced with the prospect of telling her own family about her transition,” read a Transcendent synopsis from Fuse. “Looking at these girls, they’re all gorgeous, strong, and proud of who they are,” said L.A., who became a part of ‘Transcendent’ through Nya, a longtime friend in the community. “And that’s who I want to be.” The show follows L.A.’s transition, her regular visits to the doctor, the audition process for AsiaSF, as well as her personal struggle coming out as a woman to her family. She recently moved to San Francisco from the Philippines. “I was never really exposed to the transgender community; growing up, I was always identified as a ‘gay male.’ I didn’t know any better,” L.A. told Asian Journal. “I know Filipinos mean well--as a culture, we are all about togetherness and being a family, and no matter what, my family has always been supportive of me. They still love me, as long as I don’t step on anyone’s toes.” L.A. also talked about the ongoing discrimination and prejudices in the community. Continued on Page 4

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entertainment

The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - September 30, 2015

MOONLIGHTING by MYLAH DE

LEON

IT was my first police beat assignment. We felt that we had no right to do what we were doing.

The violation of a woman

The killing of a fellow human being was repulsive and hideous -- like performing some iniquitous farce. These were the thoughts flashing in my mind. The boundaries of this narrative (from that one moment in May, years back to this day) are necessarily arbitrary -- like an artificial grid of days, weeks, months, years imposed on the

long and true arc of the lives of men who violated women. The death chamber suddenly was brimming with blank faces. We are all arranged at the edges of the room, neatly divided into 10’s. At the center, the electric chair exerted a certain centripetal force amid the dry heat of the room. We intently watched then Prisons Superintendent Gen. Vicente Raval, launch into the standard exposition, telling the grieving family what they should and should not do. We marveled the way he handled the grieving families, with that perfect touch of patriarchal gravity. By what right was all that done? How could such a shocking routine be allowed? It was like a performance, a spectacle, but didn’t have a trace of the so called “instructions spectacle,” Ivan Turgenev thought . And of capital punishment: could it be justified? On the surface, the execution resembled a nightmare. But digging deeper only saw the perverse eloquence of the whole thing. It was nothing but the unending inner city comedy

of crime and punishment. Head tilted slightly, hands folded together at the waist, the priest expressed his most heartfelt sorrow in a slow, measured tone. He asked us to pray the Holy Rosary. Relatives of the condemned men looked around for any signs of a phone call from Malacañang. They were in utter discomfort of a lifetime. Attempts at conversation spelled out words that were thick and incoherent. “Bring in the condemned man!” The rites commenced with General Raval’s glum voice that slightly shook, though conducted at no emotional cost. Yet, the effect was that of a .357 Magnum Smith and Wesson barrel in a sea of silence. The condemned man was escorted into the death chamber by two attendants. He stepped on a rectangle adobe block covered with wet rags that dripped with water as his feet touched them. Three feet away from him, I stood, shaking like a leaf. Standing beside the prison physician didn’t help cool my frazzled nerves, like the rest of my colleagues. To my right was foreign

affairs star reporter, the suave and dashing Romy Mapile. To my left was feisty police reporter, Ruther Batiguas. When another wet circular headdress that looked like a bishop’s cap was placed on the condemned’s shaven head, he looked at me and gave me a warm smile. Then in a slight, endearing stutter, kicked in by last-minute stress and anxiety of a man facing death, he looked straight into my eyes and jested: “O, bagay ba?” I almost expired! Before I could blink, I knew the electric lever was switched on because the rosary he wore on his neck suddenly sparked and glowed into a hundred little sparkles. As his body jerked forward, the acrid smell of burnt flesh assailed my nostrils. I fainted! Ruther Batiguas carried me out of the room in disgrace, before my yelping and heckling colleagues and a sea wave of humanity! In time, the tragedy of the four boys’ execution was consigned into the bowels of the Penitentiary’s record drawers. They became nothing but 3” by 4” index cards, filed with a thousand others. They will mean nothing and only their

away five years ago. You want to pluck out this special cluster of masterful performers. Outside, three sets of fans stopped to congratulate Mon. Cathy sang her own composition, “What Are We Gonna Do?” One verse particularly resonated with me: “When life starts to decline, and throws us a curve/And makes us go blind…/Got to find the right door to open our hearts, and help us stay kind!” The music video, “I Need You to Survive” featured the “We Care” Community Choir. Nolan Shaheed engineered the sounds, while conducted by HB Barnum (currently on tour with Aretha Franklin), directed by Marc Saltarelli and Instrumental Track created by Richard Turner, Jr. This writer got a preview of the music video, “I Need You

To Survive” -- a song extending a message hope to those contemplating suicide. The video featured the We Care Community Choir. It was created by Richard Turner, Jr., conducted by HB Barnum and directed by Marc Saltarelli with sound engineering provided by Nolan Shaheed. It was a touching evening. The audience was teary-eyed when Becky Musa, mother of Zane and Chance, spoke about her sons, who took their own lives. “I miss them very badly, they were gone way too soon [but I am] glad people know what they have done,” she said. Mon reminds us how life is so fragile and that life should be lived. Human Connection, with its first CD, All I Ask, has stirred souls and hopefully, would heal the wounded hearts of those who have tragically lost a loved one from suicide.

In Need of Human Connection... From Page 3

tive space, where positive synergies of thoughtful musicians with a purpose converge. At a benefit show for The American Foundation For Suicide Prevention (which was co-hosted by Bill A. Jones and Martha Taylor LaCroix) on September 19, over 80 folks watched a short video tribute to Zane Musa and his brother, Chance Taylor, who was a renowned artist in tap dancing. Cathy and Mon joined 18 other jazz singers with a threeperson band: Steve Rawlins on piano, Tome Bowe on drums with Mark Massey as musical director. Along with Mary Wilson and Joan Ryan, Mon gave a riveting rendition of “Sack Full of Dreams”. Before doing his number, he spoke a few lines from the poetry of 14-year-old Matthew Stepanek -- a peacemaker and a poet, who passed

offenses will be remembered -- nothing of what they did right. That they had families and were human. That they could have been good kids with good parental supervision. That they were raised in an atmosphere conducive to character-building and sterling behavior. What benefit, however small, could we have derived from that depraved day (it was like a circus) and the hideousness of it all? Would my male colleagues go back into the bosom of their work, hating vice more than before? What about me? What did I get from it? Apart from feeling involuntary astonishment over an execution and contempt for savages who violated women, what moral purpose can one possibly talk about, after so many refutations were confirmed by experienced lawgivers? The fact remains: capital punishment is one of the most urgent questions that humanity needs to solve at the moment. ***

E-mail Mylah at moonlightingmdl@ aol.com

‘Transcendent’ looks to break...

From Page 3 “It’s time that society knows we transgender women exist. Oftentimes, we are seen as a fantasy, or just different, not normal,” she said. “With the show, we want viewers to see how transwomen live their life, not any different from anyone else. To see that we are all human and it’s okay to be yourself and to be happy and not let anyone judge you.” Regarding her new acceptance and journey towards becoming herself, she simply said, “It all comes down to just being yourself and owning who you are, making the most of your lives.” Nya also talked about her life’s ambition. “To love and be loved,” she says in the pilot episode, “that’s what everybody in life wants, really…and hopefully great shoes.”

The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - September 30, 2015

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The Asian Jour nal MDWK MAGAZINE - September 30, 2015

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