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Friday, October 5, 2007

Filipinos Rage against Desperate Housewives’ Racial Slur

A few days ago, news about the racist statement against Filipino doctors in an episode of the Desperate Housewives was all over the television and the internet. The Philippine Medical Association, Department of Health, Congress, and Malacanang itself issued their statements and demanded public apology from the ABC network and the series’ lead star Terri (something, Teri Onor ang kilala ko). Surprise, surprise, the motor-mouthed Miriam Defensor-Santiago was also seen on TV advocating for the boycott of the series, so its ratings would go down. To think that just a week ago, during the ZTE Senate hearing, and in full view of the cameras, she lashed out against the Chinese (without any exception) when she said that the Chinese invented civilization in Asia but the Chinese also invented corruption. She referred to them as “ang mga INTSIK na iyan!”, complete with the dagger looks, voice (how do you describe it?) and hand gestures which Edmund Sicam of the Philippine Daily Inquirer said was a clear case of OVERACTING. To think, that she’s the chair of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. Due to the strong reactions of the Chinoys and the Chinese Embassy, she had to issue a public apology, saying that it was not her intention to denigrate the Chinese (but she did not say what her real intentions were). Para bagang, pinag-sampal-sampal mo, pakatapos sasabihin mo, sorry, hindi kita gustong saktan.


Going back to the Desperate Housewives, without it landing in the news, I’ll surely never get to listen to that dialogue. I have never watched any episode of the series and I don’t have any intention of doing so. Ed Canela forwarded two articles from the newspapers to our egroup, complete with the link to the signature campaign.

I know it’s unfair to the Filipinos in the medical profession, who are regarded in the US or elsewhere as one of the best in the world. Let’s hear the reactions of Marybeth and Fechie on this.

It’s possible that the scriptwriter read about last year’s nursing exam debacle in the Philippines. The greed of two examiners led to the intentional leak of questions to equally greedy review schools. The stubbornness of the Professional Regulatory Commission and indecisiveness of Malacanang, resulted to the long drawn agony of the innocent passers, acrimony among pro- and anti-retake, until it was a US-based group that finally announced that it would not issue a certification for visa of June 2006 Filipino nurses unless they pass a retake of the exam. Still, the head of the PRC (said to be the dentist of the President, her closeness to GMA could have been the reason why she also lacked a sense of accountability) led a delegation to the US to make an appeal to no avail. Kaya, yun, nag-retake din, dapat noon pa.

So, while many of the best in the profession are leaving the country to practice elsewhere and in the process gaining the respect and honor of their host countries, the greedy among those in the PRC, Board of Examiners and the Review Schools are showing the world the other side of the picture.

That involved the nursing profession, not the physicians, but both are in the medical profession.

3 comments:

Dan dela Fuente said...

Hello Toti.
Unfortunately, we were not able to chat much via skype yesterday, but there will be more chances for that. About being personally affected by issues about Erap, GMA or the other topics we discussed like corruption, cheating , huweting payola to high government officials, Singson, Hello Garci, ZTE, NBN, ABC,EFG,HIJ ... let me emphasize again, hindi ako "naasar" to those who have different views from my views. It's just like Ed when he forwarded an article written against Erap, and he made a disclaimer outright that it doesn't reflect his political color and followed by a little he,he.. I don't know with you both, but for me, since during my activist days and up to this time, yes, I'm always firm, intense and passionate on the issues that I advocate, but I will never take it personal agaist anyone who opposes my view. The story will be different though if the other person will attack my person rather than argue the issue at hand. That is when you will see Kuya Danny "na naasar, nagpupuyos at handang mangpitchera". Those issues we discussed, "wala sa akin iyon". Look, give it another month, that ZTE or NBN expose' will just fade away just like those other expose' before. Remember your "ningas cogon" article? Mas appropriate iyon i-apply dito. So, why will I be "maasar", wala naman ako diyan, and whatever "pagnanakaw ang gawin ng mga iyan sa inyo, I don't think will affect me here. If there's anyone who should be "naaasar", should it not be you, Ed, Ate Marynat (which by the way by reading her e-mails, asar na asar na yata, kaya ako ang magsasabi na dahan-dahan Ate, mahirap na..).
O Toti, baka akala mo na naman na naaasar na ako, actually it's the other way, ako ata ang "nangaasar". Just kidding.
About that Desperate Housewives thing, it is sad that it happened and it was right that ABC apologized for that, but I think since the show is more on the comedy side, it should be taken lightly. Besides, where do you think the scriptwriter found out about what's going on in C.M. Recto, where diplomas are being sold to anyone who need it for their overseas application? Don't you think perhaps he/she heard it from from The Filipino Channel news coverage exposing those who are selling diplomas? I know I saw it from TFC. It's like when Joan River, in one comedy show, she said that if your neighbor is Filipino, don't allow your dog to go near their house, they might it your dog. Where do you think she found out about some Filipinos eat dogs? Of course from the Filipinos themselves. In so many occassions, I heard Filipinos, in their conversations with Americans or other nationalities, will tell proudly that back home they eat dogs. Ako mismo nahihiya. I don't eat dogs. Sometimes, it's the ways and naiveness of Filipinos that bring a lot of criticsm to them. Sabi nga, if you can not say good things, then don't say anything.
One time, I have a customer who works with US Immigration and he told me, I can't understand you Filipinos, why do you tell on your co-Filipinos? He refers to those who call the Immigration para mag sumbong ng another Filipino being a TNT. The same thing happened during the Little League Championship where the Philippine Team won and then one Filipino coach told the league official that one member of the team was over-aged. So they took back the trophy. It turned out that the boy celebrated his birthday while on the championship series that took him over the age limit. Only for few days. Considering that teams from Latin America especially, where fielding big boys and very obvious that they are over the age limit. Masyadong sensetive ang Filipinos but most of these criticsm, is brought about by Filipinos themselves. Filipinos reacted very strongly on M. Fernandez article. I don't know if you saw the show done by Joan Lunden formerly with ABC about Filipino domestic helpers in Hongkong. In that show, she showed Filipinas in a Hongkong Park, gathered in big numbers during their day off, doing things that majority of the residents of Hongkong find to be an "eye sore". The area where these DH were milling around was not a park like Luneta where it's okay to put a mat and lie down, eat foods like you are in a picnic and other things that is not proper to do in the area where they were. Of course, the impressions being formed about Filipinas in general is not good. I was told that if you are in Hongkong and if you are a Filipina, chances are, they will mistake you for a DH. There is nothing wrong being a DH, kaya lang kawawa naman iyong mga career women, mga women executives, mga professionals whom will not get the respect of their counterparts because the general impressions about them have already been imprinted by the actuations of other Filipinas. Until next time. We'll talk about Miriam.

Dan dela Fuente said...

Corrections: EAT NOT IT THE DOG.

Daet Parochial School Class 67 said...

okay danny. pare-pareho tayong di naaasar! Buti ito, may outlet to freely express ones views. i'll wait for your take on lady miriam.

Sor Victorina de la Providencia, Mother Superior of Daet Parochial School

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