Writing a book on Filipino campaigns in London

LONDON — I visited the Philippine Embassy today. It is no longer in elegant Palace Green in Kensington, a tree-lined street of stately homes known as Millionaires’ Row at the back of Kensington Palace, once home to Charles and Diana, the Duke of Cambridge’s parents.

It has gone down to three townhouses, nos. 6, 7, 8 on Suffolk Street on a modest but more appropriate part of London in central Leicester Square.

The present Philippine ambassador is Enrique A. Manalo whom I did not know. He was quick to let me know he was a career diplomat and he was the ambassador in Brussels before my late husband, Alberto Pedrosa. Isn’t it strange that London was the place where we worked as the Opposition and organized the Filipino community for 20 years and end up in Brussels after the Edsa revolution? There is a story to that, too.

I told the ambassador, I was paying a courtesy call and letting him know that I will be working on a book that will document the events and the work during our exile. We would be grateful for their assistance for the project.

I was with Roselle Cabanero who helped organize the community in those difficult times when Filipino workers were singled out in a Tory campaign to limit immigration to the UK. Many of our companions in the struggle have died. They were the brave ones. They fought for the rights as migrant workers and won. Yet this is little known because succeeding embassy administrations had other concerns than acknowledging the sacrifices that the besieged Filipino workers made.  It is time to document what happened in the UK circa the ’60s and ’70s so that those who now enjoy the stability of community will be reminded.

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While waiting for the appointment with the Philippine Ambassador, Roselle and I decided to walk to the National Portrait Gallery that was nearby. Admission to most of the exhibits is free. Lo and behold the first exhibit we saw was Creative Connections “a four-year project connecting young people with contemporary artists to create new responses inspired by the Gallery’s Collection.”

The project is how a leading artist, Lucy Steggals shared some of her thoughts when she worked in the London borough of Tower Hamlets with students from St Paul’s Way Trust school.

 Among the famous people who lived there were David Adjaye, Elizabeth Garrett Anderson,  Mark Gertler, Sylvia Pankhurst, Isaac Rosenberg, Rachel Whiteread and more known to Filipinos Mahatma Gandhi. He lived there in 1931.

The aim of the exhibit and program for the youth of Tower Hamlets was to connect to these great individuals.

Tower Hamlets is in the East End where most Filipinos who first came to England lived. Roselle was one of them. She now has her own house but I remember the many meetings we held in her council flat there. Speaking of serendipity.

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The big news in Londontown is of course, the birth of the prince. Although it might seem that there is universal adulation, there are differences of opinion and these are printed without fear in mainstream media.

Here’s one that complains about a subtle but necessary privacy of the royal birth:

“Really noticeable that no-one has a color piece saying “this is what it was like inside the Lindon wing” — the news was completely contained.”

The Times says: “It’s a boy — and the rewriting of history will have to wait”, and points out that “centuries of tradition was overtaken by social media,” noting how plans for the official announcement were altered relatively late on, and it was put out by email first.

Its leader (editorial for English English) adds “The task of Britain’s leaders in the prince’s generation need not be to manage long-term decline. On the contrary, it should be to rekindle and harness the ambition of the Victorians for a more tolerant and enlightened age. A forward-looking Royal Family will have the opportunity to embody that ambition just as Queen Victoria herself did.”

The populist Mail said: “this paper takes special pleasure in welcoming a Prince who will be our first sovereign with a substantial proportion of middle and working-class blood in his veins.”

And of course, the left of center Guardian wore its opinion on its sleeve. Its website sported a “Republican” button yesterday that would purge all mention of the royal baby from the front page of the site, splashed with the dignified headline “A birth, a boy, a prince, a king.”

Daily Star astrologer Lori Reid writes on astrological sign of the birth: “Cancer is all about home and nurturing. They are great little collectors and very close to their mums. They are squidgy on the inside, sensitive and emotional but they have a hard, strong shell.”

And the populist Sun playfully changed its masthead into “The Son” which was hilarious.

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And back at home: The more telling criticism made on Benigno S. Aquino III recent ”State of the Nation Address” comes from the Human Rights Watch that of late has been adding its voice in criticising his government. It is a signal that all is not well with the main source of support for his government — the United States.

The US-backed Human Rights Watch wrote his government before his annual “State of the Nation Address” that it would welcome an “outline of concrete steps to provide justice for victims of human rights abuses in the country. “

In its letter before the speech in Congress it said “it should end impunity for extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances by prosecuting state security forces implicated in human rights violations.”

It cited “death squad” killings in Davao City and other cities; stopping abuses in mining areas; disbanding local militias and paramilitary forces, and rescinding Executive Order 546, which allows politicians to arm “private armies.”

Since human rights violations were not mentioned in Aquino’s State of the Nation speech, James Ross Legal and Policy Director, Human Rights Watch wrote:  “We are dismayed that President Aquino, in his State of the Nation Address today, chose not to talk about the continuing culture of impunity in the Philippines. We are disappointed that he did not take the opportunity to communicate to the military and the police that they will be held accountable for human rights violations. President Aquino’s failure to denounce abuses against outspoken activists, environmentalists, clergy and journalists sends the wrong message to abusive security forces and corrupt politicians.” That is ominous.