https://www.scmp.com/rss/501186/feed Maro Enriquez is a freelance journalist based in Metro Manila, the Philippines. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com This story was produced in partnership with the Pulitzer Center. At a children’s care facility in Cubao, north of Manila, 18-year-old Mel and her four younger siblings wait to be adopted. Mel, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, is already too old to be adopted. Her only option to join a family is to be adopted along with any, or all, of her four siblings. It has been five years since Mel and her siblings joined the Gentle Hands children’s home, which also houses many children... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3192041/stuck-limbo-filipino-children-adoption-face-long-uncertain-wait?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3192041/stuck-limbo-filipino-children-adoption-face-long-uncertain-wait?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 11 Sep 2022 06:00:34 +0000 Majann Lazo used to hate doing the dishes as a child. But she had to overcome her aversion and soon learned to handle a multitude of chores considered the responsibility of firstborn children, especially those who are female, in many Asian societies including the Philippines. In Majann’s family, in Manila, she is the áte (elder sister), the captain of their ship, managing and overseeing everything that happens on deck. For years, she balanced her schoolwork with duties at home including tutoring... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3171945/filipino-women-share-stresses-being-firstborn-daughter-who-parents?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3171945/filipino-women-share-stresses-being-firstborn-daughter-who-parents?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Mar 2022 04:00:14 +0000 Filipino lawyer and human rights activist Clara Rita Padilla did not expect a photo she posted on Facebook in May would be so popular. In the picture, she looks sombre as she holds up a copy of a controversial proposed law she had drafted. “Amid the Covid-19 havoc, here is the bill that I’m finalising to decriminalise abortion in the Philippines,” she wrote. “This bill, when passed into law, can save women’s lives.” If passed, the bill would remove legal sanctions against abortion in the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/family-relationships/article/3111885/abortion-philippines-bill-decriminalise-terminations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/family-relationships/article/3111885/abortion-philippines-bill-decriminalise-terminations?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 30 Nov 2020 05:00:17 +0000 Maribel Bronda, a 50-year-old environmental officer from Quezon City, in Metro Manila, thought about killing herself when she caught the coronavirus. While the Philippines struggles to deal with the coronavirus pandemic that has swept the nation since early this year, many Filipinos have battled mental health crises caused by the upheaval, chaos and continuing danger of viral infection. Bronda tested positive for the virus in early June and was admitted to a quarantine facility in the city. She... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-wellness/article/3106854/surge-philippines-pandemic-suicides-shines-light-mental?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-wellness/article/3106854/surge-philippines-pandemic-suicides-shines-light-mental?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Oct 2020 23:15:19 +0000 A controversial Facebook post has sparked a Filipino version of the MeToo movement, igniting a deeply felt discussion on the nation’s so-called rape culture and inspiring more than 50,000 tweets. “And for you girls, don’t wear skimpy clothes because if you are harassed, you would be seeking our assistance,” the Facebook message from a local police station in Quezon province, south of Manila, said. “Think about it!” The inflammatory post, published just before the Philippines celebrated... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/family-relationships/article/3094938/rape-philippines-police-stations-social-media-post?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/family-relationships/article/3094938/rape-philippines-police-stations-social-media-post?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Jul 2020 23:15:12 +0000 Faye Cura’s white T-shirt says it all. Emblazoned with the words “Feminista: Lumilikha, Lumalaban, Lumalaya” – Feminist: Creating, Fighting, Liberating – the garment is a limited-edition item produced by the independent women’s publishing collective Gantala Press, co-founded by Cura. One of a group of dedicated friends and like-minded Filipino women who established the publishing house, run by an all-woman team, Cura believes there is a battle to be fought on behalf of female workers in the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3081366/i-use-poetry-talk-about-truth-independent-publishers-give?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3081366/i-use-poetry-talk-about-truth-independent-publishers-give?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2020 07:00:14 +0000 She is just 22, but Adrienne Onday already knows she probably will not have children. “I feel like it’s not compatible with what I want for myself,” explains the Filipino researcher and feminist activist. “What I really want is to teach and research sociology. And for me, that might entail a lot of travelling. Having a family – a baby – would mean that I have to take into consideration a child who would exist in that kind of reality. And unfortunately, that kind of situation is not suitable for... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/family-relationships/article/3052263/no-kids-no-husband-filipino-women-defying-society?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/family-relationships/article/3052263/no-kids-no-husband-filipino-women-defying-society?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 29 Feb 2020 21:00:11 +0000 A young Philippine artist and freelance illustrator has created a card game she hopes will inspire her countrymen to help revive the written language used by their ancestors. Patricia Ramos hopes her simple game will teach players across the Philippines how to read the ancient writing system of baybayin, widely used before the Spanish invasion of the archipelago in the 1500s. A written form of Tagalog, the language still spoken by a quarter of all Filipinos and the basis of the national language... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3044171/card-game-celebrates-pre-colonial-filipino-script-baybayin?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3044171/card-game-celebrates-pre-colonial-filipino-script-baybayin?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Jan 2020 23:45:06 +0000 Sauron, a malevolent presence in J.R.R. Tolkien’s famed Lord of the Rings trilogy, created a powerful ring to win dominion over elves, dwarves and men. First published in the 1950s, Tolkien’s masterpiece follows the story of Frodo, a hobbit, or halfling creature, who was given the task of destroying the ring to end Sauron’s growing evil in the fictional world of Middle Earth. Images of the disturbingly malevolent Sauron have found their way into contemporary popular culture. A disembodied... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3036949/philippines-police-killings-depicted-comic-book-spread-word?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3036949/philippines-police-killings-depicted-comic-book-spread-word?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 Nov 2019 23:50:12 +0000 It is hot, but that doesn’t stop inhabitants going about their business in the streets and alleys of Sitio San Roque, a poor but bustling neighbourhood in Quezon City, part of Metro Manila, the greater capital region of the Philippines. San Roque’s main thoroughfare is especially full during late afternoon, when most of the residents do their shopping. At one end of the main road is a wet market where they can buy fresh food, and side streets are peppered with stalls that sell everything from... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3021470/threat-eviction-and-forced-demolition-hangs-over-poor?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3021470/threat-eviction-and-forced-demolition-hangs-over-poor?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Aug 2019 23:45:07 +0000 Wandering into an alleyway in Manila, Filipino photojournalist Jilson Tiu has arrived just in time for pukpok palayok, a game where children break a hanging clay pot filled with confectionery. Not wanting to miss a moment, he positions himself and begins shooting. After the pot breaks, he resumes his tour, looking for other interesting scenes of life in the city to capture. Tiu, 27, says he loves his work, but admits it is no piece of cake. “Being a photographer sounds great, but people don’t... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/3015135/freelancers-philippines-fight-back-bill-offers-them-same-protection-full?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/3015135/freelancers-philippines-fight-back-bill-offers-them-same-protection-full?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 19 Jun 2019 23:15:06 +0000