Reflection 3: Caregiver

Read the article:

People, the Philippines' best export
Feb 9th 2010, 3:00
I HAVE been in Manila, where it's clear that the most successful export of the Philippines remains its people. The central bank reports that in the first 11 months of 2009 remittances from 9m overseas Filipinos, nearly a tenth of the country's population, rose by 5.1% compared with a year earlier, to $15.8 billion. Remittances are now equivalent to 11% of the economy, with double-digit growth in remittances predicted for this year. Remittances are the force behind powerful consumption growth of more than 5%, easily outstripping the country's annual economic growth of less than 2%. Manila malls are full to bursting, while blocks of flats are going up that are being marketed solely to OFWs, that is, Overseas Filipino Workers.
As the global economic crisis hit, many predicted that remittances would be an early victim as overseas Filipinos lost their jobs in hordes. A mix of factors seems to account for their resilience. One rather negative take, which I heard at the Asian Development Bank, is that plenty of overseas workers have indeed lost their jobs and, returning home, tend to repatriate all their money in one go. On that interpretation, a surge in remittances is bad news, not good. A quarter of the 600,000 Filipinos in the Middle East, for instance, work in the United Arab Emirates, afflicted by Dubai's woes. Factories in Taiwan and hotels and casinos in Macau have also laid off Filipinos.
Yet returning workers are only a small part of the story. Mitzi de Dios, who runs the CLSA stockbrokerage in Manila, argues that one reason why far fewer Filipinos have come home than thought is because a shift in employment patterns means that overseas Filipinos are moving from the construction industry to service sectors, including accounting and finance. Jobs in these sectors are relatively secure. Filipino seamen, who man the world's merchant fleets, have not been laid off even if their ships have been laid up, so valuable is their reputation for dependability. And as for the vast number of Filipino domestic helpers and chauffeurs in Asia and around the world, spoilt employers have simply come to depend on them.
So, remittances will continue to be the chief bright spot for the Philippines, whose domestic economic affairs are coloured by corruption, sloth and poor governance. Still, actively exporting your best and brightest is hardly the best long-term policy.

http://www.economist.com/blogs/banyan/2010/02/philippines_and_its_remittance_economy

Please answer at least one of the following questions

1. What are some of the struggles Pilipinos emigrants face as shown through the film?

2. One of the central themes of the movie was underemployment, or the employment of workers with high skill levels in low-wage jobs that do not require such abilities. Given this common situation, why do Pilipinos still emigrate and what are the consequences of this "brain drain?"

Reflection 2: Food

Answer 2 of the following questions:

1. Using food, the episode goes over many geographical, economical, historical and cultural specifics of particular areas in the Philippines. What details surprised you?

2. Luzvimin Vocalan laments that the new generations are moving away from traditional dishes for "pasta." Is this a bad thing?

3. The Philippines has been exposed to a number of cultural influences ranging from the Malays and Chinese, to the colonizing Spanish and Americans. What does this imply about Pilipino culture?

4. How does Augusto illustrate the continuing theme of the struggles Filipino-Americans face?

Reflection 1: The Debut

Reflection 1: Free write

What are your reactions to the movie/ various clips we saw today?

Do not write about the quality of the film (ie. “The acting and use of camera were bad.”)

Topics to consider:

Personal opinion of movie/ clips
• Explain why you like/ dislike various messages of the movie/clips
• Do you identify with his struggles?

Idea of a dichotomy of American v. Filipino Culture?