FEATURE | INVESTIGATIVE
Quarantine Unraveled: Unheard Narratives Written by Mdpwn. Franzesca Mari B. Bautista and Mdpn. John Rovic T. Lopez Photos by Mdpn. Mark Joseph D. Alovera and Mdpn. John Raylan P. Bañes
D
ark clouds encroached the sky—rain was about to fall. A long line of people patiently waited for financial aid. Their bodies dripping with sweat, they endured the summer heat. Famished, they hoped for food; penniless, they wished to survive.
The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) revealed that 7.3 million Filipinos were left unemployed last April 2020. The pandemic has brought about a record high of 17.7 percent unemployment rate. Fortunately, the rate dropped to 10 percent by July 2020 due to the easing of lockdown protocols. Nevertheless, Philippine Daily Inquirer writes that 4.6 million Filipinos remain jobless—indicating a higher unemployment rate than the 5.4 percent of 2019. As of September 2020, the World Bank reports that the Philippines’ unemployment rate is expected to rise to 6.2 percent. The increase implies an additional 1 million jobless Filipinos, and 2 million Filipinos below the poverty threshold. Labor Assistant Secretary Nikki Tutay said that 500,000 overseas Filipino workers have been displaced as of August 30. He further mentioned that this number could rise to 700,000 by December if the situation does not improve. In particular, Marina Administrator Robert Empedrad confirmed a slowdown in deployment of
28 THE DOLPHIN | UNRAVEL
seafarers despite the revocation of Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ). 2/O Joven Necor was one of the thousands of seafarers who had difficulty embarking; he was on vacation for 18 months. “Mga seaman sa bakasyon, stress na. Because sa pressure ng bills, payments and to put food on their plates. Wanting to get back onboard para may sahod but indi basta basta maka sampa because of border closure of airlines. And to some, loss of jobs of course. Kasi ang dami din barko ang na lay-off, nalugi, indi na bumiyahe because of this pandemic,” said Joven. (Seafarers on vacation are already stressed. Because they are pressured to pay bills, payments, and to put food on their plates. Wanting to get back onboard so that they’ll be paid, but they can’t embark easily because of the border closure of airlines. And to some, loss of jobs of course. This is because a lot of vessels are laid off, bankrupted, and did not embark because of this pandemic). He further mentioned that aside from career anxiety, both unemployed and onboard seafarers are
