Who's afraid of NFP?

Philippine Daily Inqirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo I HAVE issues with both the pros and antis on reproductive health, who have been in fierce debates until recently when the pros in the House of Representatives and the Senate prevailed and married their respective versions now littered with the term “non-abortifacient.” But my issues aren’t anything that cannot be addressed by whichever side prevailed, if only there will be, to borrow a Church official’s words, “attentive listening.” Alas, there still are more incendiary remarks from some...

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An RH bill (board) I'd like to see

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo Billboards from hell have been this column’s objects of ire for the longest time. But as they say, if you can’t lick them, you might as well join them. Anti-billboard advocates might as well put up their own to replace some of the unsightly and distracting ads that obstruct our view of the sky. What’s this got to do with the RH (reproductive health) bill? More on this later. Many thoughts...

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Bottomline: Were they consulted?

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo When the 120 farmers and members of the indigenous groups Dumagat and Agta marched 340 kilometers for three weeks from Casiguran, Aurora, to Manila to amplify their opposition to the Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority (Apeco), they were not wearing headbands and carrying placards that said: “We are open to negotiations” or “We have open minds.” When you oppose, you do not...

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Today's 'singing nuns'

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo The 1960s movie “The Singing Nun” starring Debbie Reynolds was inspired by a real singing nun named Sr. Janine Deckers. The Dominican nun from Belgium popularized the French song “Dominique” and many other compositions. I had a book of her songs that came with piano scores, guitar chords and ink drawings. The semibiographical movie, with Reynolds playing Sister Ann, became a hit. It’s on YouTube. (Let me just mention here that the real singing nun’s life would later take a downward spin...

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Greed, need, ignorance and stupidity

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo Was it greed, need, ignorance or stupidity? On the part of the schemers-scammers it was, above all, greed. But on the part of the victims, it could be all or some of the above. It is puzzling—or perhaps not—how 15,000 people or more were gypped into believing that their money, if placed in this “wonder” of an investment scheme, could be doubled in a few weeks. Oh, but indeed, it was deliberately made to work for a few—they who were the living proofs that would entice even more people to...

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Bulacan martyrs lead honorees

Philippine Daily Inquirer/FEATURES/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo Twelve freedom fighters who opposed Ferdinand Marcos’ martial rule will be honored as martyrs and heroes in special ceremonies at Bantayog ng mga Bayani (Monument of Heroes) in Quezon City on Thursday, the eve of Bonifacio Day. Five of the honorees are collectively known as the Bulacan Martyrs of June 21, 1982. They were arbitrarily killed. Two of the 12 were shot dead. Three died of natural causes. One remains missing. They fought the oppressive Marcos regime in different ways, but their...

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Association of Foundations@40

Philippine Daily Inquirer/ OPINION/ by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo The Philippines can be Southeast Asia’s civil society organizations (CSO) or nongovernment organizations (NGOs) capital, what with countless CSOs that include foundations, people’s organizations (POs) and cooperatives operating in the country. Over several decades, many CSOs have come and gone, so much human effort and funding have been poured into them in the name of development,...

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The murder of the FOI bill

Philippine Daily Inquirer /OPINION/ by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo   Last Monday, in a last-ditch effort, groups marched to and rallied in Mendiola in the vain hope that the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill would become a reality after years of languishing in the desert despite the valiant efforts of its advocates. And for it to get past (to borrow the title of a Lemony Snicket blockbuster) the “series of unfortunate events” that bedeviled it, no...

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Tricycles and crime

 Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P.Doyo TRICYCLES DO not commit crime, it is their drivers and riders who have sometimes been involved in gruesome crimes with the aid of these three-wheeled vehicles. The latest victim in a tricyle-aided crime is Cyrish Magalang, 20, a cum laude graduate of the University of Santo Tomas, the youngest in her family. The two suspects—Roel Garcia Jr., 24, a trike driver, and his brother, Rollyn, 27, a vegetable vendor—have been arrested by Bacoor police. On national TV, both promptly and tearfully...

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OFW saints and eco-saints

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo TODAY, ALL Saints Day or Todos los Santos, it behooves us to remember the saintly women and men who have done much good for our country, communities, families and, directly or indirectly, our individual selves. They may not be canonized saints but they are saints nonetheless to those for whom they offered the substance of their lives.  Who, to you, is a saint, living or dead?  Today...

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The horror of toxic mine spills

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo In the 1980s, long before the deadly Marcopper mine spill shocked us witless, I went to Marinduque to document for a church-based organization the havoc that Marcopper had been wreaking on the sea and the lives of fishing communities living near Calancan Bay.  Environmental activism was not very much in vogue then but the social action arm of the Catholic Church was the voice in the wilderness that called attention to the wanton destruction of the environment in that part of Luzon.  Marinduque...

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Women wield plows, cast nets

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo "Grow your own, be sure, be safe, grow organic, go organic.” “Make the shift. Go brown.” “Food security is nutritional security.”  These were some of the popular catchwords on World Food Day on Oct. 16 that brought together many Filipino women farmers, fishers and their supporters in a market venue. Today is the last day of the 4th Women’s Market at the Quezon City Hall Plaza....

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'Hour Before Dawn'

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo Marites Danguilan Vitug is Philippine journalism’s most prolific book writer today. Her oeuvres aren’t easy to write and aren’t easy on the heart, mind and conscience. She excavates, names and damns, not for her personal delight, but in order to bring to the surface long hidden ills of society and in the government, for these to be exposed to the light that kills harmful microorganisms.  Vitug’s...

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In God we trust (and also in stocks)

Sunday Inquirer Magazine/FEATURES/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo Vintage Bo Sanchez discourse:  “Why is Facebook so big today?  “Because deep in our hearts, our most basic need, found in our DNA, written in our genetic code, is the need to belong to a community, a friendship, a network, a club, a family.  “Forgive me for being flat-out corny, downright mushy, but whether you know it or not, whether you admit it or not, you have a desperate...

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Religious of the Good Shepehrd: weaving compassion

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo One of the wondrous times in my life was spent in a special place with very special people, in an atmosphere of simplicity and prayer. I remember how we came together somewhere, I remember taking in the mountain air and the soft scent of the pine that wafted into my soul. The flowers were in full bloom, the hills were green and throbbing with life. The stars were out the night we gathered to sing hymns, and the sun rose gently from behind the hills the next morning. The quiet and the peace...

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Songs of protest, songs of love

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Corruption in NGOs

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma.Ceres P. Doyo What a shock it was to read that a much-awarded, much-funded nongovernment organization (NGO) is being investigated for fund anomalies. It was front-page news (reported by Nancy C. Carvajal) in the Inquirer last Sept. 14, and the day’s banner story no less.  The headline: “US sues top NGO execs.” The subhead: “P210-million aid unaccounted for.” The lead paragraph: “The US government has accused the founder and president of Visayan Forum Foundation Inc. (VFFI), a group that has won international...

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Who are out to kill the Subanen chiefs?

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo Last Sept. 4, Timuay Lucenio Manda, a Subanen chieftain and environmental defender, and his 11-year-old son Jordan were ambushed by armed men. Jordan died instantly. Manda sustained wounds. The ambush happened on a road between Conacon and Bubuan in Bayog, Zamboanga Peninsula, in Mindanao. Timuay Barlie Balives is second from right. Columban photo) Last July, Subanen Timuay Barlie Balives...

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Filipino moms rank first in food campaign

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo Filipino mothers rank first in wanting to make a difference in the world’s ailing food system. This is the finding of a six-country survey of Oxfam, an international NGO. In its report, “The Food Transformation: Harnessing Consumer Power to Create a Fair Food Future,” Oxfam said women who make the majority of the decisions about the food their families eat control amounts to around $12 trillion...

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Better dead than read: The years of writing dangerously

Sunday Inquirer Magazine/FEATURES/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo I dig my files and clippings and I realize that this assignment is somewhat discomfiting. A flood of memories surges, tsunami-like. I feel the warmth of triumph and of freedom long-won, but also feel sadness over the loss of those I had met and known and written about. It all began more than 30 years ago. On July 10, 1980, my face was on the front page of Bulletin Today, the biggest...

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