IMELDA MARCOS AUTHORS UNPRECEDENTED PHILIPPINE HUMAN RIGHTS BILL

Representative Imelda Marcos
Representative Imelda Marcos

BATAC, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – Asserting that answering the call of nature is a basic human right, former Philippine First Lady and incumbent Congresswoman Imelda Romualdez Marcos (Second District, Ilocos Norte) has filed an unprecedented bill before congress that would make it illegal to charge fees for the use of public toilets.

Charging a fee for the use of public toilets is a widespread practice in the Philippines — in bus stations, public parks and plazas, strip malls and even in some airports and restaurants.

In fact, in a public toilet just blocks away from the Ferdinand E. Marcos Museum — where the former president’s embalmed body lies in a refrigerated glass crypt — a reporter for The Adobo Chronicles had to pay five pesos ($0.11) to use the bathroom while doing a story in Batac, Ilocos Norte, hometown of Marcos.

imageThe bill, if enacted, will apply to all public toilets throughout the country. Violation of the law carries with it a fine of One Hundred Thousand pesos and/or jail time of 6 months to one year.

Senator Nancy Binay, daughter of Vice President Jejomar Binay, has expressed full support for the bill and promised to campaign for its approval when it reaches the Philippine Senate.

Notwithstanding the political rivalry between the Marcoses and the Aquinos, President NoyNoy Aquino said that he will sign Marcos’ bill when it reaches his desk.

CLASS DISCRIMINATION: A PHOTO ESSAY

imageMANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – History has taught us about the racial prejudices of decades past. Are we better off now than those days when drinking faucets were segregated between whites and colored people, or when Filipinos were barred from entering establishments in America?

The big news this Easter weekend in the Philippines was the discovery of the yaya meal, served exclusively to nannies at the members-only luxurious resort at Balesin island, just miles from Manila.

But discrimination based on class or economic status is more pervasive than what was revealed in Balesin.

For our Easter Sunday edition, we feature a photo essay about social discrimination happening everywhere — in resorts, corporate offices, private condominiums, and yes, even in the U.S. Congress.

We let the photos speak for themselves. (Where available, we included links to corresponding narratives. Simply click on the image/photo.)

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Yaya meal
Use service elevators
Use service elevators
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Executives only
Welcome, Senators and Representatives; all others, please take the stairs
Welcome, Senators and Representatives; all others, please take the stairs

BALESIN ISLAND: PHILIPPINES EXCLUSIVE RESORT DISCRIMINATES AGAINST RICH PEOPLE

imageBALESIN ISLAND, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – Described as a destination of unmatched natural beauty located off the eastern coast of Luzon in the Philippines, Balesin Island Club, Alphaland Corporation’s flagship project, is a 500-hectare tropical island paradise with 7.3 kilometers of pristine white-sand beaches. It is a members-only, private leisure getaway located 60 miles east of Manila that boasts of a clientele composed of the who’s who in politics, business, arts & entertainment, and the Philippines’ millionaires circle.

(The resort was the venue of the recent wedding of Senator Chiz Escudero and actress Heart Evangelista.)

What is little known about this exclusive resort is that it discriminates against the very customers that it is trying to attract: the rich people.

On Saturday, fashion designer and model Maggie Wilson-Consunji said that her mom was discriminated against by the resort. It happened during breakfast when the waiter refused to serve her mom the same delicious chicken adobo meal that her son Conner’s yaya (nanny) ordered. The waiter said the adobo was a ‘yaya meal’ and was not available to the rich clients of the resort.

Consunji  informs us she will file a formal complaint against the resort before the Philippine Commission on Human Rights on Monday for discriminating against rich people and for giving preferential treatment to nannies.

Here’s her story as posted on her Facebook page:

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