Say No To Violence Against Women

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Not many Filipina women are aware that there is a law to protect them from physical or even verbal abuse from men, called the The Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act of 2004 (Republic Act No. 9262). Aside from physical abuse, the law also protects women from , psychological or emotional, sexual violence and economic abuse. My friend and senator Pia Cayetano is spearheading a “Say No to Violence” campaign around the country by conducting seminars to women so they are aware of their rights.

1 out of 3 women have been victims of some form of violence. The abuser is usually known to her – a husband, boyfriend, father, brother, relative or some other person in her life.

Violence does not distinguish between economic class, culture or religion. In a World Bank study on selected risk factors facing women between 15-44, rape and domestic violence rated higher than cancer, motor vehicle accidents, war ans facing women in this age group, rape and domestic violence rated higher than cancer, motor vehicle accidents, war and malaria.

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The Worldwide Candle Lighting on December 14, 2008

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2008 Annual Worldwide Candle Lighting Services

Communities across the globe will be joining in The Compassionate Friends 12th Annual Worldwide Candle Lighting on December 14, 2008. In the Philippines, it will be held in Quezon City.

Where: 2nd level, University of the Philippines Institute for Small Scale Industries
E. Virata Hall, UP Diliman Campus
Diliman, Quezon City
View Map

Date: Sunday , December 14, 2008
Time: 5:00 to 8:00 PM
Please email me at noemidado@gmail.com if you want to join the memorial service.

Click here for Venue List of Other Countries

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Grief Over Marky Cielo & Lea ALyanna De Vera’s Death

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Even if I have lost a son, I still cannot imagine what it is like for Marky Cielo’s parents. I cannot imagine the horror of Lilian de Vera, the mom of Lea Alyanna, the 7 year old girl caught in a crossfire, found dead on dimly lit Sampaguita Street along with 10 other people, including eight of the suspected robbers, and her husband.

I can only imagine Lilian’s devastation as she cried out…

““Why do you have to kill my little angel? Why do you have to kill my husband? He’s a good man. We’ve done nothing wrong to you.”

The real cause of Marky Cielo’s death is hazy at this point. His family said he died while he was sleeping. But the Antipolo Doctor’s Hospital cited the reason as “confidential.” Some showbiz insiders speculate that it was suicide. Others go as far as saying, “It was prompted by love.” Just like that, a life is gone. So young, so soon. Their deaths were so sudden, just like my son’s death.

One of the things so astonishing about losing a loved one is that, while the sun continues to rise and set, newspapers continue to be delivered, traffic lights change from red to green and back again, our whole life is turned around, turned upside down. That devastating feeling, I know for sure.

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Christmas Songs Playlist

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christmas tree
The twinkling rice lights of our Christmas Tree gleam in our living room. Along the staircase, traditional red and green Christmas ornaments drape the sides. The girls’ stockings hang near the landing, as if waiting for small gifts on Christmas day. One thing that you will hear in my home are Christmas carols streaming in every nook and corner. There’s nothing like setting the mood for my baking chores or simply when I am busy with office work. It’s what drives me to glamorize the house a little bit for Christmas without noticing the great tasks ahead. Whether I hum along with the church chorus, the melody and the simple lyrics will never cease to mesmerize and attune me to the holiday mood.

Let me share 4 playlists I organized from this online music site.

The playlist of Filipino Christmas Carols below, I collated for you to add more joy to your Christmas celebration. The first song in the track is Pasko na Sinta ko sung by my two girls and three other members of the Manila Children’s Choir in 1999. The second track is ““Kasadya ni Takna-a” the original version (Pasko ay Sumapit) as sung the way it should be.

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Thank You For the Music

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Last night, my nephew, the son of Oscar, my late brother asked me if I knew the notes of his dad’s award winning composition Pangarap ng Musmos (Dream of the Youth) which was played over 30 years ago in an Ateneo College Music Festival. I told him I didn’t have it but if he can hear the notes, it is easy to take it down. Honestly, I haven’t heard my brother’s composition for a long time now and decided to turn it on again. As I listened to “Pangarap ng Musmos”, the tears just rolled down my cheeks as the lilting music streamed through my bedroom. As I watched a video of my brother playing Love Story on the piano, the more I sobbed. What irony! He was dying of leukemia as he played the melody.

I missed my brother so much and listening to his music made me feel he was right there in the room, playing it for me. The heartfelt passion as he played every note in the piano moved me so much. I also missed my other brother Reuben and my dad and mom. I counted 4 deaths in my family of origin. not counting my own son. Five deaths in my immediate family.

It is easy to count what we do not have.

I cannot ignore fleeting moments of nostalgia. In my sadness, I assessed what I had. I counted my blessings.

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ABS CBN TV Patrol in Copyright Violation

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Update at the end of this entry

It is rare for me to rant in my blog unless of course, there is a positive resolution in the end. I also believe that when I have problems with services or products, I give the business owners or officers a way out. Ranting without doing anything about it is just not my cup of tea. In most cases, my bitch powers work and I often get satisfactory results. Being married to a lawyer, I often hear my husband say that one should try amicable settlement before filing a suit. Our courts are swamped with thousands and upon thousands of court cases that have yet to be resolved years later.

I also don’t believe in pulling strings to get my message across. I feel that one should start with the persons involved before bringing it to the highest officer or persons involved in my complaint.

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Bloggers Join The Impeach-Arroyo Drive

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Manolo Quezon and bloggers filed a complaint for intervention seeking to include the thwarted Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to the charges in the impeachment complaint against President Gloria M. Arroyo. I admit I am not that knowledgeable of the political situation but thanks to my dear husband he explained to me Why The Intervention in the Impeachment Case is Proper and Should Be Allowed. The intervention move seeks to include among the grounds for impeachment GMA’s complicity in the aborted MOA which would have established a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity and effectively given away a significant chunk of the republic to the MILF. This can be viewed as treason.

I laud the bloggers for taking this action. It’s so easy to blog, rant, talk and comment about the state of our nation, our president and the corruption and all we want in our blogs and I believe it is not enough.

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