Garcia, Ellaine V.

BS3A
Reaction Paper: Explore - Manila to Mindanao
The Philippines is a beautiful country with beautiful culture and heritage as
well as it is thriving with natural resources. However, although beautiful, there are a
lot of problems hindering its progress.
First, the rice terraces in Baguio are one of the wonders of the world. The
people who are tending in the rice terraces are already getting old and have no one
to keep the work done in the future since the young ones are going to the cities and
doesnt want to work in the fields. There are also giant earthworms that are ruining
the rice terraces as it burrows huge holes under the soil which in turn erodes the
land.
Next, in Manila North Cemetery, there are families living within the
mausoleums. Some are even born in the mausoleums. 10.000 families are now
living within the cemetery. Graves of the poor are stacked up in cubicles and are
only for 5 years. And if not paid beyond the allotted time, the bones of the dead are
removed for new corpses to occupy the cubicle.
Religion is also a big deal in the Philippines. Filipinos are very devout and
merely 2 million people join the black Nazarene procession in Quiapo every year.
The country may be filled with Catholics but there are very controversial politicians
in the government who are allegedly abusive and corrupt like the Marcos. There are
also hundreds of political killings and abductions in the country. Deovito The
Butcher Palparan is one of those alleged main man in the killings and abductions of
activists and human rights workers.
There are water gypsies in Palawan known as Badjao. These people live in the
waters and have already been living in the seas, traditionally, for hundreds of years.
But now, the Badjaos have changed and are already polluting the seas with their
trash and are already destroying the nature.
The Philippines has the highest density of unique and endangered species in
the world but also has the highest deforestation rate in the world. This is a threat to
all the species in the Philippines. One of which is the Tarsier. There were a lot of
Tarsier back in the day but due to people burning down forests, the Tarsiers have
decreased in population.
Mindanao, the largest of the islands in the Philippines is home to many
Muslims and is filled with Filipino troops trying to keep peace in the island. Some
Muslims want independence from the Philippines because they believe that they are
not part of the Philippines during the Spanish invasion and should be an
independent state known as Bangsamoro, an independent Islamic sultanate. An

ongoing war of Filipinos against Filipinos, of the Philippine government against

Muslims who want independence in Mindanao, has left many people homeless and
hungry; suffering from the war.
In conclusion, the Philippines is filled with beauty, of rich culture and heritage
and of natural resources. However, there are a lot of problems arising from natural
and man-made threats. Hopefully, the Philippines will have better answers to all
these problems and be a more peaceful and progressive country now and in the
future.