Best Posts in Thread: Drought ravaged north cotabato

Found this in a book over the Philippine history I'm reading. This observation was made in 1634!!
It has been too justly observed by Señor Solórzano , that whatever is established with a view to benefit the Indians (philippino's), universally fails of attaining that end; nor is this to be wondered at, as every regulation brought forward with this avowed intention is always so contrived, as to contribute not to the advantage of the oppressed Indian, but solely to that of the person exercising the chief authority.

 

Things haven' t changed much.

 

You make it sound so simple and easy when in fact it is anything but...

I agree the government should in some way assist especially as they are the food safety net for the nation. Farming is a difficult job and in a perfect world every member of society would be at least given a minimum standard of living like is done in most western nations (through welfare/SNAP/Unemployment etc...) but those things do NOT exist in the PI in any meaningful way. Most farmers here are no better really than share croppers were in the US. They are desperately poor and have little to no opportunity to change their situation for themselves or their children as the "free" education system here is NOT free nor very good IMO. Hence a large percentage of Farmers children do not finish even the 6th grade education as they are needed to help on the farm.

Most farmers also don't own the land they farm. They rent it for a set fee or amount of crop. If drought and little or no crop not only do they have nothing to pay the land owner, they have nothing to eat or sell for cash money. They then have to go further into debt to borrow money to pay for the failed crop and then borrow again to get seeds for next seasons crops and for food to eat. The only one getting rich is the landowner.

That's how you keep a nation and it's people impoverished and if they are lucky enough to break that vicious cycle they usually end up in large cities doing menial labor and living in squalor. Boy, what an exciting future they have to look forward to...

Please don't' over simplify their struggles. They do NOT have an easy life and everything is not settled as easily as you seem to imply.