The recent action of the government of Dumaguete to round up the Badjaos, and send them back home to Mindanao has drawn mixed reactions from the public.
Most Dumagueteños praised the action of the City, having been bothered by the unsanitary living conditions of these vagabonds who use the streets as their sleeping quarters, and public areas as their restrooms.
The Badjaos are a seafaring tribe who rely on fishing as their means of livelihood. However, due to hard living conditions in their communities in Mindanao, they have opted to scatter in the cities, giving up their rich cultural practices, and being reduced to a life of mendicancy.
They have taken begging to a higher level. They produce not a few babies, and use them as props, realizing how begging parents, with babies in tow, are hard to refuse. Clearly, the children are being exploited by their parents for monetary gain.
Because they are in the streets the entire day, the children do not have access to education, nor do they have a proper environment that can support them as they grow.
For our local government unit, its primary responsibility is to its taxpayers and voters. Whenever taxpayers express their complaints, the LGU has to act. Which it did in this case of the Badjaos roaming the City.
And then there are those who try to play devil’s advocate by praising the benefits of having Badjaos in the midst of our community.
One market vendor said the Badjaos were a good source of the much-needed loose change as the beggars would come early morning to change their alms of coins into paper bills. Another said that sending the Badjaos away would diminish the meaning of Christmas. Would it, really?
It may be true that government should help the Badjaos find their own place in the sun. There have been projects to help them by teaching them new skills but unfortunately, they would rather engage in the more lucrative practice of begging, thanks to the generous gentle people of Dumaguete.
And, as what had happened in the past, the Badjaos will be back soon. Will we welcome them, and try to integrate them to our society? Or will we continue to treat them as the elephant in the room?
