Reflections on My Visit to a Local Dumpsite Written by Candace

Hey Everyone, I miss you all very much!  The last 4 months have gone fast, but so much growth has happened in my family, my heart, and my desire to serve the Lord.  The following is a brief family update: Elijah lost 4 more teeth, has performed two dances at his school, and practices Tagalog everyday (He loves to communicate with Jeepney drivers in Tagalog). He is growing up so fast! Noah is so curious.  She loves to observe people, and ask me why they do certain things. Chloe also is growing up a ton. She can speak in full sentences…they may not be spoken back-to-back, but she knows them J. Shaun is doing great! He’ll come back with more grey hairs, but it won’t be from living here, it will just be from making the kids sit down to eat J. Caring for my family in a new environment is accompanied with challenges and learning curves, but overall I am doing well.   

This past week I was able to visit the dumpsite and red light district in Cebu City. So much injustice takes place in these areas of needs; it’s hard to even know where to begin my processing. Here are some of the things I observed while in the dumpsite. I will post in a couple days about my visit to the red light district.

The Dumpsite:

This place has the worst living conditions one can imagine.  The men, women and children living there literally live in, eat and breathe trash all day long. Their houses are made of trash, their walkways are made of trash and the clothes they are wearing often come from the trash. It’s hard to describe all the horrific things I witnessed while there. 

-I saw newborn babies and children of all ages covered in dirt.

-I saw barefoot children running around on broken glass and animal feces. 

-I saw women bathing their children in the sewer water that lines the streets.

-I saw children covered head to toe in soars, scratches and scabs.

-I saw flies swarming all over a newborns face but the mother seemed too hopeless to shew them away. (Which makes sense because there weren’t a few flies, but thousands. When people tried to shew them away it did no good, because there were so many.)

- I saw little girls sitting and playing in piles of trash with NO pants or underwear on.

            These are just some of the things I witnessed that should NOT BE HAPPENING.  But I also saw these things while there…

-Mothers loving on their children.

-Children laughing and smiling.

-Children playing with broken toys, but seeming to care they were broken.

-I saw women smiling and talking together while cooking over a single open flame.

-I saw older folks playing dominos and chatting.   

These sights made every thing worse to me. I was so confused on how people could find joy in such a terrible place. How can children smile when their bodies are so infected? How did they find the strength to get up and live another day?  These are still questions I am thinking through.  I think a lot of the reason is they don’t think they deserve better. We have to free these people from the injustice they live in.  We learned that the government has tried to relocate the people living in the dumpsite to another location, but it didn’t work because education and subjective liberation weren’t included. Their mindsets are going to have to change before moving from the dumpsite makes sense to them. I want to help fix this mindset! We have to fix this mindset! But I am aware for us to be able to help people in situations like this our own mindset has to be changed. We can’t be a people who complain, we can’t be a people who take education for granted, and we can’t be a people who say we want to make a difference but don’t want to put in the work.

Lord, please help us to realize everyday is a new day to pick up our cross and follow you. Help us to wake up everyday more eager than the last to learn your word and not grow weary in doing good. I pray this is the best semester for everyone! We are so privileged to live for Jesus and share his goodness!  

Jail Ministry in the PI

For the past three months the SEA immersion team has been consistently visiting and doing bible studies in the jails. In this post I'll share some experiences and things I've learned about the prisons and jails. At the bottom is a link to an interview with Craig Duffy that talks about an opportunity we have to teach a Bible class to prisoners in the Lapu Lapu jail.

In the Philippines, there is a distinction between a “jail” and “prison”. A “jail” is defined as a place of confinement for inmates under investigation or undergoing trial, or serving short-term sentences. It is differentiated from the term “prison” which refers to the national prisons or penitentiaries managed and supervised by the Bureau of Corrections, an agency under the Department of Justice. So far we've spent time in the Olongapo and Lapu Lapu City jails, both of which are maintained by the Bureau of Jail and Management Penology (BJMP). Although the jails are supposed to be short term, many prisoners will remain in jail several years awaiting their hearing. Initially i thought a trial and hearing where the same thing, but every time I asked a guy when his "trial" was they’d correct me and say "hearing," which has led me to investigate the difference. What I've learned so far is that a hearing differs from a trial in a few ways. Although held in a court, a hearing is less formal and doesn't have a jury, and during the proceeding the judge determines what evidence will be admissible in court and if their is sufficient evidence to hold a defendant over for trial. Some cases are dropped altogether at a hearing due to lack of evidence or the accused is deemed innocent. Also, I think sentences for smaller cases can also happen at a hearing. In the Philippines the judicial process is slow and hearings are almost always postponed. Several reasons contribute to this, such as corruption, bribery, greed, as well as judges, officers, or witnesses not showing up which results in a rescheduling. A man named Ollie in for drug possession had six hearings postponed within the last year. This is a common story. So, if Ollie is convicted and required to serve a prison sentence of five years he won't get the time he spent waiting for his hearing in jail taken off his sentence.

 The condition of the jails in the Philippines are very bad. All the ones i've visited are overcrowded, and extremely unsanitary. When I asked a guard in the Olongapo jail if they were beyond capacity he just laughed, reflecting how grossly overcrowded the facilities were (This was the same guard that boasted in the fact that the Olongapo jail won awards for being the best jail in the district). Because there isn't enough space or beds, many of the inmates sleep on the cell floor, and each cell has only one dingy toilet for 20 plus guys. Little to no rehabilitation is taking place with these men. Several religious groups and other organizations are scheduled to visit and do educational programs with the inmates, many of which are illiterate and haven't completed an elementary level education. These programs, however, are largely ineffective. Columban College sponsors the ALS program in Olongapo, but they don't have teachers to send to the jails. So, they either don't have class during that time or other inmates try to facilitate. One day we met two older American missionaries who teach regularly at the jail, but we discovered they only visit the two foreigners that are being detained for human trafficking. After witnessing the lack of rehabilitation, my next thought is in regards to how these men will be re-integrated into society.

 In the Olongapo jail we got to know a man named Jeff whose in his mid-thirties. My initial impression of him was that he was a friendly, gentle, and soft spoken man. But behind the friendly smile and soft eyes is a man that has experienced and seen a lot of pain. Immediately, he showed the guys in our group hospitality by inviting us to share a meal with him and some other inmates. Currently, Jeff is under investigation for murder and has been in jail for six years awaiting a verdict on his case. Jeff was a security guard on the SBMA, and one night he was off duty and drunk and someone was murdered. According to him he was at the wrong place at the wrong time. which led to him being arrested for the crime. I'm not sure if he did it or not (my inclination is that he didn't do it), but in the Philippines there is no due process of law, which means a person is guilty until proven innocent, regardless of the crime they were arrested for. Jeff, like many of the other guys have families, and their biggest fear is to get convicted and sent to the maximum security prison in Manila, which would mean they would rarely, if ever see their families due to the distance and cost of travel (Just about every guy I've met is poor and their family is poor. One exception is June, who they all call the "Godfather"). Other men have been left by their families long ago. I don't know all the details of Jeff's case, but he says there is a possibility he'll get out soon, but even if that's happens he'll never get back those six years he was away from his wife and kids.

 In Olongapo we had a group of guys that began to met with us regularly for an informal Bible study during visitation hours. One guy named Mark from San Diego, CA did most the translating. Mark is in for selling drugs and was telling us that the same cops he bought drugs from are the ones that arrested him. I'll never forget the moment in Olongapo when a group of inmates gathered around us and began whispering amongst themselves. When we asked Mark what they were saying, he said, "these guys are saying they want to learn about God." I'm thankful we had an opportunity to share with them our testimonies and teach them the Bible. During our time in Cebu we've made regular visits to the Lapu Lapu City jail. Clark, Craig, and myself recently got approval from the warden to have a formal bible class for two hours, two times a week with a group of 15 - 20 prisoners. To learn more about the jail bible class, click on the link below to watch an interview with Craig Duffy. Craig Interview link http://youtu.be/kx7ZvSAYcII

Teaching Primary Education in the PI Written by Shaun

For the last three months I've been teaching at a local elementary school in the Philippines. It's the same school Elijah has been attending. The classes I teach are Math and Christian Living. Also, the team and myself do a Bible lesson and skit during the school's chapel each Friday. Teaching first graders in a cross cultural setting has been challenging. Before this summer my formal teaching experience had been with college age students. However, I've welcomed this challenge and the Lord has definitely helped me throughout. A highlight for me has been watching the kids behavior improve during my time. An observation I made early on was that some of the boys in particular had discipline issues. Through investigating the situation further, I've discovered the reasons for this are multifaceted. Part of my strategy for addressing this issue has been to teach the kids Biblical principles and values. A highlight for me came the other day when one of the kids who always misbehaves approached me after a bible story about Jonah, thanked me, and said, "that was a great story." Upon learning more about his life, I found out that he is neglected at home. When I first began volunteering, he wouldn't listen to me at all, but now I've earned his respect and attention. I really value the time I have with the children and think my teaching contributions have benefitted them. The kids affectionately refer to me as "Teacher Shaun." I will miss them when we return to Olongapo in a few weeks.

Philippine 2013