Territorial Dilemma: Who Really Owns Spratly Island?

Territorial Dilemma: Who Really Owns Spratly Islands?

by Jewel Carlos Sumayo

             

                                  Countries like China, Taiwan, Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines are fighting over the Spratly Islands and its hitting the headlines in the news both on air and in the broadsheets as well during the first few months of the year. So what is special with this Spratly Islands anyways and why these countries are fighting over just to have it? There are a lot of opportunities that awaits for these countries if they would win the Spratly Islands (sounds like a big hit of a jackpot isn't it?). Spratly Islands is rich with its own natural diversity, there are also rumors that is widespread that because China is interested with these islands is because of oil. In this case the United States of America (USA) as well joined in this issue by trying to back-up the Philippines, maybe Uncle Sam wanted also to enjoy the richness of oil in the Spratly Islands by using again the innocent Juan Dela Cruz.

                                 Territory is the real issue within this brawl of the Asian countries, the location of the Spratly Islands strategically speaking is really near Palawan  as claimed by the Philippines. However China, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei also claimed that the islands are really near their territorial zone. In this case there would be really a territorial question that will popped out, who really owns Spratly Islands? As of today there is a news that came out that the Philippines will build a pier in the disputed Spratly Islands (see full news article here). According to the news article made by  Agence France-Presse that was posted in the Global Nation part of the Inquirer.net that the Philippines will still exercise the territorial sovereignty and will build a pier in the Spratly Islands. The Department of Foreign Affiars (DFA)  of the Philippines is claiming that the pier will be built on the largest of the five Philippine-occupied islands, and that one is called Pag-asa Island. The DFA claims that the Pag-asa Island is territorial-owned by the Philippines, and the Philippines has its own right to exercise its own territorial sovereignty over the West Philippine Sea because it is within the Philippine borders. 

                                  The Philippines, sent Filipino troops already to occupy the five Spratly Islands including Pag-asa island and will group them as a town and will be called as Kalayaan group of islands (Freedom). The said pier is finalized already to be the home of an improved unload equipment for airstrips and other more facilities that the future tourists will benefit from it as well. Getting back to the question of territory, even if there is still an existing dispute for the Spratly Islands is it still okay for the Philippines if they did not consult the other countries first? Even if the Philippines is claiming already that these group of islands is officially part of the country, there are still underlying questions that needs to be addressed, and still there are other countries such as China that stands as a very important stakeholder that needs to be consulted first. 

Photo URL: http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2012/01/18/article-2088414-0F84066000000578-971_634x469.jpg

Labor Exploitation: Does the Workers Feels Abused?

 Labor Exploitation: Does the Workers Feels Abused?

by Jewel Carlos Sumayo

                        Even if having a large population that is actively participating in the labor force of a country's economy there is no assurance that the country is experiencing a healthy progress of economic development. There is still inequality in this issue of labor especially in the condition of the developing nations in which they use human resources as the main source in order to make their economy in full throttle. Business process outsourcing companies (BPOs) are actually a perfect example in this kind of situation. Countries such as the Philippines and India are now involved in this kind of BPO industry in which made their economy kinda booming in rise of its economic development. However there are still issues such as lower salaries for ordinary employees or even no benefits at all.

                         Issues of inequality according to Karl Marx includes the labor exploitation, such as the example of unjust wages. The economy of the country lies with the citizens of course, but what is more important is the purchasing power of these citizens. The citizens cannot be able to purchase even their basic commodities if their salaries are not enough for them to pay for these basic needs. In that case, people tends to trust the government to pass laws that will protect them in order for them to get good salaries especially to maintain the necessary minimum wage that is suitable for their nature of work.

                               So why do I state in the title if the workers feels abused? Maybe because of the unjust wages that Marx theorized, if the people is not enjoying a just and good salary then it is already a kind of abuse. Abuse in a way in which these people will not meet their necessary needs such as the access to the basic needs or commodities. So what does the government needs in order to help these laborers from being abused? Strengthening legislation policies that will cater to the problems of the laborers is needed, maintaining a necessary just minimum wage is needed in order to protect their own rights as citizens of their country. 

                      

                     

Image source: http://nimg.sulekha.com/others/original700/malaysia-human-trafficking-2009-7-27-1-40-25.jpg

Access to Education: Cause of Inequality in the Philippines?

Access to Education: Cause of Inequality in the Philippines?

by Jewel Carlos Sumayo

                           In one of the class discussions in our Globalization and Development (GLOBDEV) class we were able to talk about the different global shifts and inequalities. One of the sources of inequality is actually education. How come that education is one of the sources of inequality? There are statistics that were presented by organizations such as the UNICEF (2010) that there is a disparity between the female and male individuals who have access to pre-primary school (2007-2010 data) and secondary school (2007-2010 data). Other than education, two other sources of inequality are race and income. So why focus to education? In the Philippines, there are still areas in which there are no schools especially in remote areas in the provinces in which the children needs to go down from the mountain area where they live in order to go to school.

                          What does the government do with this? In the Philippines there are some initiatives that the government was able to conduct, such as looking for volunteer teachers that are willing to be destined in these areas in order to teach of course with additional benefits to compromise with their willingness to go these so-called barrios. For the Filipinos education is really important, because it is where their children will undergo in a process of learning different things in order to be ready to whatever choice of career they wanted. Education is also needed in order to know how to read and write, or even learn the English language which is very important nowadays in this globalizing world. There are Filipinos who are very lucky enough to be able to go to an academic institution that offers the finest and quality education (most of it are called private schools) however there are still Filipinos in which they cannot send their children in school even if in a public school system.

                          The possible hindrances on why some of the parents does not send their children in schools besides of course the financial incapability, for example is that for them their male children needs to help them in their farms in order to have more income to their family. There is also the culture of not educating the female children because they just need to help their mothers in the household chores and stay at home or help in their small-scale business. In this case the Philippine government were able to find a small solution in this kind of issues that will also somehow help the issues in the family such as giving the children incentives if they go to school, such as giving them a feeding programs and free health check-ups, as well as giving them two kilos of rice and other goods as incentives both to the children and to their family.Even if it sounds like a dole out project by the government (more of  band-aid solution) at least it still helps in a way that it encourage the children and their parents that education is really important.

Source for photo: http://gulfnews.com/polopoly_fs/philippines-1.643163!image/679043440.jpg_gen/derivatives/box_475/679043440.jpg

Is The Philippines Still Experiencing Extreme Poverty?

Is The Philippines Still Experiencing Extreme Poverty?

                  In an article made by Satur C. Ocampo that was published last March 16 of this year regarding the extreme poverty that dips in developing countries (read full article here). He cited the issued report of the World Bank with its surprising finding that the extreme poverty level in every developing regions declined from 2005-2008. The United Nations (UN) as well announced that the world had met already the 50 percent target to reduce the extreme poverty which is five years ahead of the said 2015 deadline. Along with this, the UN reported that there are already more than two billion people who gained access to improved drinking water. Of course this is a very good news for UN special adviser on the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Jeffrey Sachs. But the real question is, how was the Philippines coped with this interesting finding?

            Still according to the published article of Ocampo, there is a data cited by Christian Monsod and by the IBON Foundation in its 2011 year-end briefing. First is that, some Filipinos (24 million) who live on less than P46 a day and not P53.59 are actually called deemed "poor" while  the 9.4 million who have P36 a day are called "food poor" I in which they cannot meet the daily minimum requirement of 2,000 calories). Second, that the Philippines' real per capital income only increased by 20 percent compared to Malaysia's 400 percent, Thailand's 500 percent, and of course China's 1,100 percent. And lastly, 26 years ago since EDSA I, the income inequality stayed the same in which the top 1 percent of the families' (185,000 people) the income equals of that of the bottom 30 percent (5.5 million).

           With this facts laid out in front us, we Filipinos shall now ask, how come that the United Nations already stated in their report that the first goal of the MDG is already achieved prior to the 2015 deadline? What are their basis from telling that it was already achieved? And lastly, if it is already achieved then how come there are still Filipinos who are living in such "poor" conditions? As a Filipino individual, we have the right to know more about our condition as citizens of our country. After reading the article that Ocampo published, I was able to question my own understanding on what really is the definition of being developed. Maybe for the UN the increased of 20 percent in the Philippines' real per capita income is already a big change rather than having no change at all. On the other hand, for us Filipinos we see the definition of being developed in another way, and that is to see how the way of life is being improved. To conclude, Philippines is still in the idea of experiencing extreme poverty, after all the definition of extreme poverty is that there are still households that cannot meet basic needs for survival and one thing that would support my argument is that there are still Filipino families who cannot meet the said daily minimum calories intake. Now, the question that needs to be addressed is that, how can we Filipinos alleviate ourselves out from the extreme poverty that the country is still experiencing? 

             

Source for image: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifbr5jUwvxO79DktBt_-xiAEjyaG0CHngjZ7d1uEv8Y-pgstqe5duLRkrSWh3n0mO7mIUnkgQDyrnd9mNJeTLlNlVcoaVxll_7pNLv9ARYbC8tnYc6pNogU9OzsTB3VGPas_MEEJcRbQg/s1600/phil-street-children.jpg