The Philippine Online Chronicles

To other Filipinos living in many different parts of the world, being treated like a second-class citizen or experiencing a little bit of discrimination comes with the territory of choosing to leave home for greener pastures. Filipinos – and other people who live in a home away from home – have decided to just roll with the punches and just deal them as a part of life.

In Northern Ireland however, things are starting to get a bit alarming. Hooligans have been targeting foreigners in recent months possibly due to racist and extremist sentiments. Late last month, a Filipino family was among those who were became victims to such cowardly acts of people who do their evil deeds in the cover of the night. Arsonists attacked the home of Ishis Calungsod and burned the car of Arnel Verzonilla – another Filipino. The attacks happened in the Northern Ireland capital of Belfast. It was believed that the assault was racially motivated since only immigrant families ended up being the unfortunate victims of the arson.

The arsonists struck while Calungsod and his family were soundly sleeping in their apartment building along Fernagh Avenue. Verzonilla is also a resident of the same building and was also indoors when the attack happened. The 30 year-old Calungsod claimed that he only found out of the arson attempt when fire fighters entered their home to save them from the fire. Another car belonging to a family who hail from India also ended up getting torched in the same building. This increased the index of suspicion as far as the racial motives of the perpetrators are concerned. There were also earlier attempts to set cars on fire in the same area and all cars belonged to immigrants.

The Calungsod Family have just moved into their new neighbourhood to be closer to their friends. With the recent turn of events that have them fearing for their safety and the security of their possessions, they are now once again considering relocating to another part of Northern Ireland.

The Philippine Embassy in the United Kingdom has already condemned the act and has done the proper action into helping the police and investigators into getting to the bottom of the harrowing acts of discrimination. They also add that the dastardly acts do not erode the great leaps that the many communities in Northern Ireland have made in efforts to create cross-cultural links while living in the area.

Northern Ireland – which is actually a territory that is a region of Britain just like England, Scotland and Wales – has plunged into tough economic times pretty much like the rest of Europe. It has the smallest economy out of the four major areas of Britain and has had a very rough reputation of being a chaotic hotbed riots and clashes between the Protestants and Roman Catholics who have routinely had violent episodes in decades past.

The situation has become tenser in recent months due to the deteriorating economy of Northern Ireland. The unemployment rate in Northern Ireland has gone up due to the financial crisis that has been sweeping through Europe. Peace has been hard to come by in Northern Ireland but the political scenario has become a lot calmer in recent years. The economy has thrown a wrench into the favourable trend towards greater harmony.

Protestants enjoyed a slight majority over the Roman Catholics in Northern Ireland but their way of life couldn’t be any more different. Protestants have always had a better life than Roman Catholics – they were more likely to have greater income and Roman Catholics were more likely to end up in jail. Tensions have since simmered down a bit but it seems like the pent up frustrations and angst have ended up being directed towards to those who were thought to be skewing the job markets unfairly. Feelings of inequality and discontent can certainly be one of the ingredients for unrest and bigotry so it’s high time that the authorities nip the problem in the bud and just deal with the very root of the issue.

While unemployment has risen in Northern Ireland, the jobs that the immigrants usually hold have been relatively stable. Construction and other industries may have taken a dive but sector such as health care and information technology have managed to keep them from going under ensuring that the immigrants continue to have a relatively nice life in Northern Ireland.

Non-Caucasians are definitely the majority in Northern Ireland. Over 99 percent of the 1.7 million in Northern Ireland are of Caucasian ethnicity. There are only 15000 immigrants in the region.

It is believed that Filipinos first made it to Northern Ireland back in the 1970s. Filipinos have been going to the United Kingdom for work and immigration but it was only recently that Northern Ireland became a plausible destination. Some of them even got to go to Northern Ireland on the prodding of their pen pals. Most of the Filipinos who were part of the first wave in the 70s were females who were originally from Manila, Baguio and Pangasinan.

In 1994, Filipinos in Northern Ireland established the Northern Ireland Filipino Association (NIFA) with 25 founding members. The organization eventually became a charity a few years later. The nursing boom has allowed more Filipinos to go to Northern Ireland and since the population of the area is still aging according to demographic trends, it’s likely that more and more Filipinos would go to Northern Ireland in search of greener pastures.

Photo: “Northern Ireland” by Rusty Stewart, c/o Flickr. Some Rights Reserved