In The News
Unfortunate incidents seems to have been welcoming the year 2011. Aside from the death of migrant workers due to illnesses and accidents like the death of a Filipina Leukemia patient and the death of a Nepali man in a traffic accident, we were shocked to learn of two more unfortunate incidents, both involving Filipina migrants.
The Death of a Young Mother
On January 11, 2011, Cathy Bonesa Mae Deocades was found dead in her home in what police investigators deemed to be a suicide. Deocades came to Korea in 2009 and has a five-month old baby. Allegedly, she suffered from depression after giving birth last October. According to friends, they had not been able to contact Deocades since December. They also said that calls were either abruptly stopped, or interrupted.
Deocades had confided to family and friends that she was being maltreated by her husband and her family. She also told them that she had been repeatedly abused and had been sold to other men for sex. A statement she uttered one time was one of the things that her father could not forget... She told him that if she does not leave soon, she would probably die. Because of these revelations the family sought assistance from the Department of Foreign Affairs in the Philippines. They went three times since they could not afford to provide for their daughters airfare. The Philippine Embassy claimed that they "visited" Deocades last October and said she was fine during that time. The family, friends and many members of the Filipino community can not help but think that there is a possibility of foul play involved. Even if her death was not the result of direct violence, Deocades' depression could have been caused by the violence and abuse she experienced.
Deocades, like the Vietnamese migrant murdered earlier, is another victim of trafficking by marriage brokers. She was married in the Philippines to a certain Korean man named Park in 2009.
Love Gone Wrong
The Filipino migrant community was appalled when we heard about Sheryl Ogsila, a 25-year-old Filipina migrant worker, who was run over by her boyfriend. Apparently the couple got into an argument which resulted in this unfortunate incident. The victim is still in the hospital and the suspect, Mark Junie Hernandez, is still at large. The suspect claimed it was an accident but his evasion from the police has made him the object of a man-hunt.
Our Opinion:
We are calling on Mr. Hernandez to surrender himself to the proper authorities because he will just make matters worse by evading arrest. We also appeal to our 'kababayans' to please calm down, practice restraint and hopefully... usher in the surrender of Mr. Hernandez to the authorities. To assure that his rights may be protected we call on Mr. Hernandez or his friends to ask for intervention or assistance from migrants' rights groups, migrant centers, the Philippine Embassy or MTU.
It is undeniable that the culture of violence against women still rears it's foul head in these "modern" times. Discrimination against women is the result of adherence to a patriarchal culture. It is quite unfortunate that the media has not done enough to contribute to the elimination of this culture. Portrayals of women merely as homemakers and objectification of them as sex objects contribute to this culture of violence. We need re-education, proper formation of values and realization that women, men and LGBT are all equals. All sectors of the society deserve respect and freedom.
