Batanes crime free
Though it's
somewhat of a drawback that everyone knows everyone else's business,
this small town familiarity has helped keep Batanes virtually
crime-free. Despite relatively high alcohol consumption, especially
during the long rainy season, the people remain basically "honest
and hardworking".
Houses are rarely
locked except during typhoons, and it is safe to walk alone at night.
Most people are in bed by 22:00, partly because their day begins
at 5:00, and partly because outside Basco, there is electricity
only from 18:30 to 21:30, if at all.
Though their
income is far below the national average, no one starves
or goes homeless. They are better off than poor urban dwellers (who
may have higher salaries) because the Batanes people still have
the land, and still can depend on it for their livelihood. This
actually makes them independent - independent of the high
costs of food and shelter that shackles many of those who struggle
in the city without a garden.
Yet some wistful
locals contend that life in Batanes is hard. There is limited
motorized transportation; many places have neither indoor running
water nor indoor toilet facilities; and there are no telephones,
no television and no night life (0).
But they
take for granted that more importantly, there is also no NPA,
no social unrest, no industrial pollution, no water shortages,
nor any of the other countless problems that can make the so-called
easy life in the city even harder. And if they had ever experienced
Manila's air pollution and the toil of rush hour traffic, they
would probably be glad of their freedom to walk.
During the coup
attempts in Manila, the local Philippine Constabulary
spent their days as they often do: playing basketball and napping.
Keeping peace and order in Batanes gives them so little to
do.
A unique feature
of small town politics in Batanes occurs before gubernatorial
elections. Instead of the usual name calling and verbal backstabbing
expected, the candidates in Batanes go door-to-door together
to meet the voters. Each candidate explains his platform, after
which, the one candidate cordially invites the voter to vote for
his opponent, if not for himself. Of course, the fact that the candidates
are related may have something to do with their geniality;
the Castillejos family has held political power for generations.
Farming, fishing,
raising cattle, hogs, other livestock and some poultry are the main
sources of livelihood for the people of Batanes. Garlic and cattle
are the main exports.
Although
only a few can afford to export cattle, almost every family grows
garlic as a cash crop. The high price of garlic in the rest of
the Philippines has made it a very lucrative business.
At the beginning
of the garlic harvest, which runs from February to April,
the price of garlic tumbles from a high of 195 pesos/kg to a low
of 30 pesos/kg. The harvest is transported from Batanes to Luzon
by an LST (Landing Ship Tank), used for inter-island cargo shipping.
Jumping on
the bandwagon to cash in on the demand, many have converted into
garlic fields large portions of land normally reserved for subsistence
crops. Such a mass of garlic coming from this far north in the
archipelago also fuels the belief that this garlic is actually
part of the illegal imports from Taiwan, accused of unfairly
competing with domestic garlic.
Whether or not
this is true, the production of garlic in Batanes has so increased,
that the LST boat occasionally makes a special trip beyond the island
of Batan, to Itbayat just to pick up their garlic shipment.
The trade-off
of garlic in place of subsistence crops has already relegated to
second place the production of basic root crops like cassava. Along
with rice, they are essential as staples stored for consumption
during the typhoon season when regular shipments from outside cannot
be counted on.
It also threatens
to make the general population even more dependent than before on
the canned goods and other imports that arrive in Batanes often
at twice the Manila retail price, thus depleting twice as
fast the extra income gained from crop conversion.
In addition
to garlic and root crops, many families grow some vegetables and
fruits such as pineapple, bananas, papaya, jack-fruit,
watermelon and even oranges. But although these fruits grow well
in the islands, commercial production would be extremely risky,
as the entire harvest could be so easily wiped out by just one
of the many typhoons that strike every year.
Furthermore,
because of the heavy agricultural demands on the land, without sufficient
replenishment of nutrients, the soil has become somewhat less productive.
People tell of yams that used to be the size of watermelons. Supposedly
the Bureau of Soils has taken steps to restore and maintain the
land's fertility.
Apart from the
land being productive, the open seas are rich in marine resources.
Proof of this are the many so-called Taiwanese junks, powerful modern
trawlers plying the open waters day and night and reaping large
catches.
By stark comparison,
the local fishermen of Batanes with their simple wooden boats and
small nets are lucky to get even a few kilos which is a bare
subsistence catch. Fishing is difficult for the locals as their
small boats can safely navigate only in the channels between the
islands. Outside the channels the winds make the sea too rough.
More on Batanes:
This page: http://www.cockatoo.com/english/philippines/philippines_islands_batanes_crimefree.htm
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