Michael Tan: Pinoy Kasi

Pinoy Kasi: the UNOFFICIAL website of anthropologist Michael Tan's Philippine Daily Inquirer opinion column. For more information, visit his official web site at: http://pinoykasi.homestead.com/

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Sunday, August 05, 2007

Crossing borders

PINOY KASI

Crossing borders
By Michael Tan

Inquirer
Last updated 01:51am (Mla time) 07/13/2007

MANILA, Philippines -- For many years now, I have been hearing Filipinos joking about the need to grow a moustache or beard before going off to work in the Middle East because, they claim, without the facial hair, a man becomes too “feminine” and, by extension, attractive prey for men looking for male sexual partners.

Nadya Labi, writing in the May 2007 issue of the American magazine, The Atlantic, describes how amid the extreme sexual repression in Saudi Arabia, there’s actually a frenzy of homosexual activity. One reason is that access to women is so restricted, and so the men turn to each other. Many of the men do not think of themselves as homosexual, and rationalize that they are going after men who look like women.

Appropriately, Labi’s article is titled “The Kingdom in the Closet” to highlight the many paradoxes surrounding homosexuality in Saudi Arabia. Men openly look for other men in shopping malls, and through the Internet, yet they are always in danger of being arrested by the "mutawwa’in," the religious police fielded by the Committee on the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice.

Don’t ask, don’t tell

Labi describes the atmosphere in Saudi as one of “don’t ask, don’t tell,” the phrase originally used to describe the US policy about homosexuals in the military. Officially, homosexuals were barred from the US military, but everyone knew they were there, and as long as they kept quiet, they wouldn’t be expelled. In Saudi, it’s an entire nation that works on a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, keeping all its homosexuals in the closet.

Now comes the overseas Filipino worker (OFW). I once attended a "despedida" [farewell party] for a very flamboyant Filipino "bakla" [gay man] who was leaving to work in Saudi and remember how his aunt sternly reminded him “to behave,” with the threat: “Sa Saudi, pinupugutan ang ulo ng mga bakla" ["In Saudi, they behead homosexuals”]. Several months later I asked how “Jun” (not his real name) was and his relatives showed me pictures of him in drag (dressed as a woman) in Saudi. He was apparently having the time of his life, with claims that Saudi men were queuing for him (“pila-pila sila”).

I thought of Jun reading The Atlantic article, especially because it had a photograph of someone with long flowing hair, a crown and a bouquet of flowers. The caption read: “Francis, in drag, the winner of a private beauty pageant held by Filipinos in Jeddah.” Such beauty pageants are common, but not without risks. There have been raids and arrests and if participants are caught having sex, they could be liable for very severe punishments. Saudi law actually prescribes death for sodomy or anal intercourse.

Perhaps the out and out Filipino bakla are lucky in that they know how to skirt the rules. The Philippines isn’t exactly that liberal so life here gives sufficient practice for the bakla when in comes to a life of happy subterfuge.

Labi mentions Filipinos several times, including one hilarious story about how 23 of them were arrested while holding a drag beauty pageant. They were dragged (pardon the pun) to the police station together with the evidence of their crime: wigs and makeup and photographs. Herded into a cell, the drag queens began to argue among themselves about who looked “the hottest” in the photographs.

Then there was Jamie who grew his hair long and kept it under a baseball cap, but still ended up arrested by the religious police who saw the long hair as “proof” that he was homosexual. At the police station, the police challenged Jamie to prove he was not homosexual -- by walking. Jamie apparently flunked the test but he was lucky: his employer came to his rescue. He has since cut his hair. And maybe grown a beard.

The ones who face greater perils are the non-bakla Filipinos, especially if their physique leans toward what might be perceived as “feminine”: slimness, a beardless face, maybe a bit too light-footed when walking. If they do get seduced or propositioned, they might not know how to respond. Just a few weeks ago, a Filipino OFW was beheaded in Saudi. His crime? He had killed a Pakistani taxi driver who tried to sexually assault him.

Illegitimate

OFWs need to be prepared for other forms of sexual repression. Filipina nurses learn to practice their profession wearing a "hijab," or veil, or even the "burqa," which shields the body from head to toe. They learn to avoid looking straight at a man, because that could be misinterpreted as seduction. Those working as domestic helpers are vulnerable to sexual harassment, and even if the sex is forced on them by the employer, they can still be accused of adultery or fornication. Again, every move is suspect: one Filipina told me how, working in a home, she had once come out from the bathroom with her hair wet, and this was interpreted by her male employer as a “signal” that she was available, i.e., her wet hair indicating she had bathed and was ready.

Woe to the Filipina who has children out of wedlock, since the baby can be used as evidence of sexual misbehavior. Fortunately, the authorities in the Middle Eastern countries seem to have become lax on this point; usually they just deport the women back to the Philippines, together with their babies. Literally hundreds of such illegitimate children have been deported back to the Philippines together with their mothers.

And they’re the lucky ones, considering that adultery is punishable by death.

Solutions? I’ll admit I’m at a loss here except to say the pre-departure orientation seminars given by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) should emphasize discussions of differences in sexual norms across the world, and the consequences of breaking the rules.

Perhaps OFWs can be taught some strategies for dealing with sexual harassment, maybe even invoking religious conservatism to defend themselves. They can tell the seducer that their behavior is “haram” [forbidden] and that they will be reported to the religious police.

I know though that’s easier said than done since many OFWs are not in the position to defend themselves.

We also need to consider the broader context of OFW sexuality. One of my colleagues, Dr. Sol Dalisay, is involved in a Southeast Asian research study of “cross-border sexuality” and finds that the overseas escapades of Filipinos aren’t a simple matter of libido. The Filipino is so used to having large groups of friends here at home. When they leave to work overseas, they suddenly find themselves isolated. Incurable romantics, the Filipino will fall in love easily, with fellow Filipinos, with people from their host country, or other expatriates. Sex will often come into the picture. Many will be able to deal comfortably with the cross-cultural divide when it comes to sex, but others may have to pay for their attraction -- not fatally, we all hope.

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