PHILIPPINES: ITALIAN VILLAGE IN THE HEARTLAND

Pulong Anahao, 31 August (AKI) - While for most Filipinos, the United States is the “Land of Honey,” for residents of Pulong Anahao, Italy is the “Promised Land.” Situated in the province of Batangas, 110 kilometers south of the capital Manila, Pulong Anahao is known as the “Italian village.” Residents claim that “the houses, including the interior design, were actually patterned according to some houses in Italy.” This is confirmed by the sprawling pastel-coloured homes made of granite and marble, visible through the narrow steep road along the slope of mountain overlooking Batangas Bay.

Pulong Anahao has a population of around 1,000. According to data, provided by the village council to Adnkronos International (AKI), a quarter of them are currently in Italy working as domestic helpers.

Data shows that almost every one of the village’s 158 households has at least three members of the family in Italy.

Although the migration started in the latter part of the 70s, residents said that it wasn’t until recently that they were able to secure their work permits.

Eugenia Solis, 55, is one among the early residents who tried her luck in the “Bel Paese,” or the beautiful country, as Italy is known. Being a single mother, she had to look for a better job to raise her two children, who she left to the care of relatives when she secured a job overseas.

Solis, who was on a vacation in the Philippines, told AKI that all her sacrifices are bearing fruits as she now owns a 1.5 million pesos (280,000 dollars) house and two large lots of farmland.

“My children have finished their education and have joined me in Italy,” she added.

The Italian fever is alive and kicking also among the young.

“I would rather not going to university and go to Italy and to work after graduating from high school,” 15-year old Joan Romero told AKI.

Romero was born in Italy. Her parents, who met and fell in love in Italy, have been domestic helpers there for 18 years.

According to Gerarda Silang, head of the Municipal Social Worker and Development section, Italy really helps the local economy.

“Families which have members working abroad can send their children to better schools, provide not only their basic needs but also other materials such as car, cell phones and others,” she told AKI.

However, the social worker underlined that working abroad carries also a heavy social price.

“Guiding the children is left to the grandparents or relatives. There is no direct supervision from the parents and important and urgent decisions can’t be made because the guardians are yet to contact the parents abroad,” she said.

According to locals, the distance from the parents gives rise to a lack of discipline on the children. This in turn leads to social problems, such as early pregnancy or drug use.

The International Organization for Migration’s World Migration Report 2005 said that the Philippines ranked third among migrant-sending countries in terms of remittances received from its nationals, next to Mexico and India.

Manila admits that remittances of migrant workers contribute around 10 percent to the country’s gross domestic product.

In 2005, migrants’ remittances hit 10.7 billion dollars and of this 430 million dollars, or 4 percent, came from Italy.

The Philippines government and the Italian embassy in Manila have estimated that there are around 120,000 Filipinos in Italy, 95 percent of them are domestic helpers.
source: http://www.adnki.com/