Spartlys Group of Islands is located at the South China Sea-now called as West Philippine Sea, is composed of 750 reefs, islets, atolls, cays and islands. Nearest to the Philippines is the Kalayaan Group, inhabited by Filipinos and is approximately 194 miles from the shores of Palawan. Other ‘part’ and whole claimants were Brunei which based their claim on their 200 mile EEZ, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and China.

The Claimants.

Nansha Islands as what the Spratly is known to the Chinese. Their claim is based on an map with a ‘9-dash line’ that asserts its teritorial claim over the whole of the South China Sea. The map was first used to challenged the claim made by Vietnam and Malaysia over their extended continental shelves on the said body of water. Aside from the said map, they also base their claim on historical manuscripts stating their ownership-which the Chinese written by themselves, and on artifacts found on the islands.

Vietnam claims the archipelago as part of the empire of Annam in the 19th century. Also, during the French colonization, in 1933, French annexed the Spratlys, making it part of their possessions. Vietnam says the islands are theirs as they are the inheritors of the French. In 1973 they declared that Spratlys were part of the Phuoc Tuy province. For Vietnamese, the archipelago is known to them as Truong Sa Islands.

Malaysia’s claim is based on the conviction that the islands are situated on its continental shelf, within its declared exclusive economic zone, security and its proximity to the mainland. Their involvement in the dispute started on 1979. Currently, they hold three of the islands, yet wants to claim the whole chain in the southern part of the Spratly.

Taiwan’s claim is based on historical manuscript. They assert that its Kuomintang government and Taiwan itself are the true China, and the Spartlys were discovered by Chinese navigators, fished by Chinese fishermen and under the administration of China since the 15th century. And on their assertion being the true China, they believe that the archipelago belongs to them and not to the People’s Republic of China. The above happenings were also part of the China’s basis in claiming the authority of said archipelago.

Philippines claim is only on the Kalayaan Group, which is within the 200 miles Exclusive Eeconomic Zone under the UN Commission on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to which the Philippines is a signatory. Philippines laid its legal ownership claim thru Admiral Thomas Cloma who surveyed the whole area and named it Freedomland. The island group was totally desolated and uninhabited during the survey, that was 1956. President Marcos then issued Presidential Decree making the said group of islands a municipality of Palawan. Afterwhich, residents flocked inhabiting the islands. The basis of the Philippine claim are the following: discovery, occupation, the law and the UNCLOS.

What’s on Spratly?

The dispute on Spratly Islands rested on the bounty of the natural resources underneath. Natural gas deposits were identified on the ocean floor of the said archipelago. China estimated that the natural gas reserve could brought up billions to trillions of US dollars. The US estimate was lower to that of China’s considering the deep water conditions and geology of the ocean floor. Aside from the natural gas reserve, the archipelago is also rich in natural resources. These resources have garnered attention throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

Solving the Dispute.

Philippines will not win if it will fight China in a shooting war. China is an economic giant and Philippines is a midget. The Government should internationalize the Spratlys issue in the United Nations, in the International Court of Justice or in any other international court. Philippines claim is on a solid ground. We only want to claim the Kalayaan group which is within the 200m EEZ, we don’t want to claim the whole as what China is doing.

Before I write, my mind plays some scenes of what is to put into the paper, what will it contain, how will the idea flow, how will it be presented and how will it came-out. But putting them into words, for me, is ain’t an easy thing to do.  I admit that  my knowledge in this field is limited and I can’t address that dilemma easily for I’m committed to a field who demands great time on focus.

I love to write. I love to express what’s on my mind. I love to share writings to people and hear their sides.  Aside from this blog, I used to maintain some other blog sites, broken handle which speaks my emotions and har! har! which contains my commentaries and rants to different personalities and issues, but I decided to have them deleted from the web. Now, I only have girva!. I miss writing, I miss myself in the crowd of people who talks, read and expresses their stand through writing.

However, writing is now a small part of me. I must live on the field that I have chosen. Though I only insist my self in that field, I know that that field will bring something good to me.

Starbucks Cagayan de Oro, the company’s 166th store in the country will open its first Mindanao branch this coming September.                                                                                             According to news reports, Ma-Ann Rabino, recruitment specialist of Rustan Coffee Corporation, owner of Starbucks franchise in the country. was quoted as stating that the store will be located at Limketkai Center.                             -Progress Watch

Upon reading that post posted on PROGRESS Watch, I almost shouted for joy inside the  internet cafe where I was surfing the web. I know many Kagay-anons and city dwellers have waited for this moment- the opening of a Starbucks  branch within the city. The awaited moment is still coming [soon] yet knowing that it will come next to a few flip  of the calendar, the anticipation is hard to put into words.

What’s the BIG DEAL?

For those people who love the famous coffee shop for they had taken a sip from  its menu in other branches across the globe and were delighted, for them, the will-be-opening of a Starbucks branch within their area is like an answered prayer.

My first sip.

I had my first sip on Starbucks during my summer vacation in Makati last 2008. It was through  Kuya Jory who  generously shared his coffee that I had given Starbucks a try. It was my first time and was so long ago yet I know, in that instant, I had fallen in love with  him[to Starbucks].  Was it love at first sip [with Starbucks huh] ?

While waiting,

Anyone in Cagayan de Oro can still experience the “Starbucks”. In C7 Convenience  Store at Divisoria, an array of Starbucks-In- Can are waiting for you to pick them up. Doube Shot and other famous flavors at P125.oo each, one can can enjoy his Starbucks moment.

A column from The Philippine Daily Inquirer by Harvey Marcoleta, describes jejemons as “a new breed of hipsters who have developed not only their own language and written text but also their own sub-culture and fashion”.

Jejemonism have gain wide acceptance and is “very” contagious to the hip and young minds. Yet, hatred and rants from those people who value good communication and proper usage of the language.

What’s with jejemons linguistic style?

Jejemons uses Jejenese as thier language and Jejebet, mixture of the normal, numeric and special characters, as their alphabet in their communications. From UrbanDictionary.com, jejemon is “anyone with a low tolerance in correct punctuation, syntax and grammar”. In Jejenese, word are created by rearranging the letters in a word, alternating capitalization and the addition of letters H, Z and X to create “special sound effects” upon reading. Assume that a message like these pops up in your cellphone or PC:

hI!i LLyK tO knOw u, PwfoH. crE 2 t3ll mE yur N@me? jejejejeje!
(Hi! i like to know you, care if you tell me Your name? Hehehe)

Will you be amused and join the craze or you’ll get irritated and be a Jejebuster?

Many are concerned to the effects of Jejemonism of the language. Yet no one can really prevent the Jejemons in using their Jejenese for all of us are granted with the Constitutional Right: freedom of expression and of speech.

But, what’s the point of attending our language classes when at the end of every class it is that Jejenese we are using in our communications.

Our only Earth because no matter how great the effort we will exert in finding our second home, we will never find a another planet that will provide everything like the Earth does.

We all know and we are all aware of the present condition of our only Earth. In our country, our government have created many law that could help save the environment yet the implementation is not that efficient. Many programs have done in effort for us to be educated and to be awaken and reminded of our social responsibility yet we are only good at the start.

We keep on searching for the “fit” and redesigning the available programs that could help conserve the earth from total destruction but we haven’t realized that long before we started the search the answer have already been found. True, for the answer is US.

For thousands of years, human inhabited the Earth. Have used it resources to live, to reach industrialization and until now still using its resources just to survive.

The Earth is getting warmer and dirtier, this ain’t the same place our ancestors used to live.

We caused the Earth’s destruction, we all caused its decay. Our only Earth is dying and now its calling for our action.

Let this Earth Day be the start of history. Let us take an action to save our only Earth and have a better future. Let us be asked by this question: What can I do to help save my only Earth?

Pornography is rampant nowadays and its the internet that provide the total accessibility. Downloaded and pirated sexually explicit movies had found its way illegally to  the market and anyone who wants it can have a copy. Media sharing is technologically available via bluetooth  enabling easy share.

Cognitive theory suggest that children who  regularly watch violence on television may learn to become more violent, so perhaps people who regularly watch pornographic materials may learn to become more aggressive to sex. And that sexual aggressiveness will more likely bring someone into consensual sex or worst to sexual violence.

Yet it was cited that pornography is only one of a number of contributing factors that may lead to sexual violence. The nature of the pornographic material, the characteristics of the viewer (of the pornographic material) and the surrounding culture all combine to produce an effect.  Thus, no one factor is likely to control a complex behavior.

For the violence previously mentioned, true that the pornographic material that the doers were watching had a great contribution to the molestation. Also, all the doers were all minors and all were at the stage of curiosity and that curiosity tend to dominated in the mind of every young people. And since they were in one group and maybe the suspects were all sexually aggressive, the molestation had happened.

Poverty and inadequate attention of the government for the minority group are sighted as the major reason.

Cagayan de Oro (CdO) is one of the many urban sites that have become the new home for the oppurtunity seeking bajao. Agora Tabacoan, located in between of the Agora Market and of the modern shores of the city became their refuge. With its location, the site is a perfect niche to the new city comers.

The city streets became the life support for many city bajaos. The young, with teir pipe drums sings with their nomadic tongue in exchange for some peso. The women, often seen on the streets carrying their child, reaches their hand to the commuters when the traffic light hits red. Men are rarely seen on the streets.

Digna, a bajao of Zamboanga inheretance, moved to CdO some years ago with her family. Poverty had caused them to leave their old ways and to live a life that was once stranger to them.

Many says that they are sluggish but they are not. As Sea Gypsies, they had established their name and built a reputation. Life in the urban streets may be new to them but this doesn’t them in believing for a better life.

]]> http://girva.wordpress.com/2010/01/27/bajao-in-the-city/feed/ 1 gogoi http://girva.wordpress.com/2009/10/28/barangay-assembly-and-transparency/ http://girva.wordpress.com/2009/10/28/barangay-assembly-and-transparency/#comments Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:23:04 +0000 gogoi http://girva.wordpress.com/?p=9 ]]> “I challenge you all! Pa-imbestigahi ko. Do it, do it, do it!”

Those words were just part of a statement made by a Barangay Councilor in an interrogation during the Barangay Igpit Assembly last October 24, 2009.

Filipino People are given the right to access to information regarding government acts and transactions. This is vested to the people through the Doctrine of Transparency, Article III Section 7 of the Philippine Constitution.

At the said activity, residents of the barangay filled the gymnasium to hear the reports of the barangay officials. During the interrogation, a citizen questioned the whereabouts of the construction materials that should be product of an long-approved project that was allotted with fourteen thousand pesos from the barangay funds.

It was a revealing one for the said project was not included in the report of the Barangay Councilor-in-charge. Instead of explaining and resolving the mysteria,  the councilor defended himself of any crime that may put on him and he even challenged the people: “I challenge you all! Pa-imbestigahi ko. Do it, do it, do it!”.

It wasn’t a good move for Kag. Mendoza, the Councilor-in-charge of the project, to act that way. His actions showed his guilt for the crime.

Many mysteria will be revealed if we exercise the Doctrine of Transparency. Many projects will come to realize and the rights of the people will be protected if we exercise this doctrine. With this, we can have a government that is serving in the highest standard of credibility and honesty.

Kagawad Mendoza was then answered by a resident: “Wad, ayaw pag-ingon ana. Unsa pag-to’o nimu? Dli mi maka-sumbong?”.

Barangay Igpit is located at the Municipality of Opol, Mis. Or.