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Post by EXO on Jan 3, 2007 7:34:49 GMT 8
Concerning Clint's comments: To extend Clint's point of view, does that mean that if a Government cannot afford to feed its own citizens, or to protect its environment, and decides (by neglect or ignorance to do the wrong thing) then that is a matter of its own choice, and no business of any other? Move over the Pope! I must have missed the point at which Governments were declared to be infallable. What a shallow world we live in! Here's a few other things to ponder: (a) The Philippine Government (of the time) allowed the run-down of Corregidor pre 1969, largely by its failure to take steps to prevent scrappers. In some instances, the government awarded ("gifted") contracts to favoured parties - eg the lead sheeting from the hospital roof. That which it couldn't legally sell, it allowed to be stolen. (b) The Memorial was also in a run down state, and the US has contributed directly and indirectly to its refurbishment. The Japanese Government funded the Peace Park, and as I understand it, there were monies left over to allow the CFI to do other things. (c) Placing the CFI in control of the facility has been entirely more wise and desirable than all of the prior alternatives. The CFI isn't perfect, but then again, no one can be. (c) Corregidor was, at one point, the second most popular (and lucrative) family-based foreign tourism attraction in the Philippines - [Pagsanjan Falls being the first.] Consequently, its value as a long term tourist destination exceeds its immediate balance-sheet annual cost. (d) It is generally accepted to be an indication of a neanderthal approach to environmental and heritage development to argue that a sovereign government has no responsibility to maintain or preserve its assets in the long term. The concept of "holding property in trust" appears to be beyond some folk. (e) Scrap metal can be sold only once, history can be sold seven tours a week. The US Government has taken steps to re-acquire privately held parcels of property which were Civil War battlefields, and it would be foolish to repeat such errors as to allow them to fall into purely commercial hands. (f) Besides, there's a commercial "curse" on any development on Corregidor which disrespects the spirit of the land. The Ghosts of Corregidor look after their own. Nabababoy ang lugar? eXo
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Post by Deleted on Jan 3, 2007 11:00:25 GMT 8
(f) Besides, there's a commercial "curse" on any development on Corregidor which disrespects the spirit of the land. The Ghosts of Corregidor look after their own. Nabababoy ang lugar?eXo This is very true .... in the course of our own decades long "relationship" with Corregidor I've been an indirect witness to mysterious circumstances that have ultimately influenced the way we behave and do things in the island in a positive way ... as in becoming more safety/heritage-conscious and respectful of it.
Case #1: One chilling experience was that of a husband and wife special effects team at the Corregidor Post Hospital ruins. The couple was dropped off and left at the site early in the morning to lay out simulated bullet hits and grenade explosions on the grounds around the ruins for a multinational tour event. Upon arrival, the wife who claims to be a 'clairvoyant' or at least 'sensitive' to paranormal activity, told her husband to take the ground floor, south wing section of the hospital "because there are a lot of them there," while she took the north wing section. The wife however didn't know that the ground floor of the south wing supposedly used to be the hospital's morgue.
When I returned at noon to check on the couple's work, I found them with worried looks on their faces. Apparently, the electrical wiring connections that they've laid out on the ground for the special pyro effects had been disturbed and mangled ... although no one else has come to the site except them. Of course they had to redo the work.
When the time finally came to trigger off the special effects, I was with the couple, no farther than 3 feet from them, in the north wing ground floor chamber of the ruins. Lo and behold, the system just wouldn't work. Checked the battery connection, still wouldn't work. Then the wife said a little prayer .... "please, I beg you, let us do our work. This is just work, we don't mean to be disrespectful." At that instance, sparks flew from the triggering mechanism and the whole system started working. Believe it .... or not.
Case #2: While waiting for the boat trip back to Manila, 2 of my staff members were playing chess in the balcony at one end of the hallway of the hotel's annex. A clear glass wooden-framed door opens to the balcony. I stepped out to the balcony to watch their game for a brief moment and then left the 2 guys. The glass door closed automatically behind me with a mechanical door closer.
Fast forward (in the boat). The 2 guys chided me for locking them out in the balcony. I said I did not even touch the doorknob. What happened was one of the bolt locks of the door got engaged. But it was the ceiling lock that "bolted up" and not the floor lock. Gravity couldn't have been the cause. A chambermaid heard them tapping on the glass door and unlocked it. Believe it ..... or not.
I wonder what kind of curse or bad luck have befallen those that have caused many a concrete post in Corregidor's buildings to "shrink" as if they've been on the South Beach Diet all these years.
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Post by victor on Jan 4, 2007 6:38:17 GMT 8
AprilThunder, Thanks for the very even-keeled, logical, sensible, and articulate reply to "brndirt1". I wouldn't have been able to put together a mature reply to such a very small-minded opinion... It's one of those things I'd have to walk off to calm myself down. Kudos.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2007 13:53:40 GMT 8
Thanks for the kind words, Victor!
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2007 15:08:37 GMT 8
April_thunder sent me a copy of the email that Philippine Presidential Adviser on Veterans Affairs Jerry Adevoso sent to Mr. Dionisio Grava, writer of the special report on Quo Vadis that appeared in Weekend Balita, a Fil-Am newspaper in California, reporting on his Jan. 2 inspection trip of Corregidor. Unfortunately, it seems that some people he has corresponded with have taken Mr. Adevoso's report hook, line and sinker, to the point of dismissing Quo Vadis Corregidor as having no right to criticize.
Here is my take on his statement further to what we have already articulated in our response to the column of Beth Day Romulo several posts earlier. Mr. Adevoso's pronouncements are in black text, mine are in red.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ Date: Tue, 2 Jan 2007 23:30:18 -0500 From: "Jesus Terry Adevoso" <pavaopgma@gmail.com> To: "dcgrava@aol.com" <dcgrava@aol.com> Subject: Re: Coregidor CC: fbquesada@cox.net
i went to corregidor yesterday jan. 2 and found at middleside barracks no mutilation, no destruction, no alteration of any historic site ongoing.
CFI Exec. Director Art Matibag’s assistant showed a development plan that calls for the installation of “catwalks” for tourists inside “hollowed-out” interiors of the middleside barracks. This so-called clean up work is presumably preparatory to that. The CFI should explain further in detail what this is all about because this smacks of “alteration.”
it was all preservation work, and cleaning out of the dust, ashfall, moisture areas that had accumulated over the years,
The ash from Mt. Pinatubo fell 15-16 years ago yet, why the sudden concern about the ashfall? We’ve led numerous experiential tours through Middleside Barracks since 1994 and no tourist has complained of the ashfall, dust, or even of the debris from illegal chipping activities or of the collapsed sections of the building. It’s all part of the “bombed out” ambience which should not be “erased.” This is necessary in communicating the horrors and the mess of war.
Moreover, why the belated concern about “moisture areas?” Middleside Barracks, for the longest time, has no roofing anymore and the structures get soaked to the ground everytime it rains. To eliminate what they call “moisture areas,” if that is the real intent, will necessitate encasing the ruins in a protective structure that will cost tens of millions of pesos to construct. And we heard that CFI and FAME (Filipino-American Memorials Endowment) are grumbling about their fruitless efforts to raise funds and/or generate support from “concerned” parties?
.... and cutting of trees that had entangled and entombed the walls, roofs and floors of the ruins threatening much greater harm than before.
We already have an argument on the banyan trees in the environmentalists’ reply to Beth Day Romulo’s column. At the very least, the common ground guideline should be not to touch anymore the banyan trees that have been growing on already marginalized sections of ruins (portions that have been severely mangled by bombs and/or chipping). Those growing on relatively intact portions that still project the buildings’ architectural style and engineering-construction methods used to construct them should be “controlled” instead of eliminated. i am reminded of the roman colliseum and the greek acropolis. would the italians and the greeks have allowed trees and other vegetation to grow on the roofs and floors and walls of these historic sites?
The Roman Colosseum and the Greek Acropolis are found in the center of urban areas teeming with people everyday. Their attraction and appeal as ruins are very different from that of Corregidor’s war relics that are located in a remote island that’s already overgrown with jungle. The island’s ambience is more like that of south American jungles and their “lost” Mayan, Aztec and Inca temples. Trees and vegetation around and even on the structures are essential to maintaining this ambience and appeal. This should be made part of the island’s “packaging” strategy relative to the fact that it must face up to new tourism market realities such as eco-adventure tourism.
with the philippines' strong typhoons, rains, corrosive salt water air, strong winds, trees threatening to fall on the ruins, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and its ashfall, how can anyone say to leave things as they are? that would be like killing off the ruins and d**ning (filtered terminology) them to an earlier demise.
Corregidor is not in the typhoon belt (Bicol, Batanes or Samar-Leyte regions), therefore the frequency or likelihood of direct or near hits by typhoons are significantly lower. And we REPEAT, it’s not the typhoons nor strong winds nor earthquakes nor falling trees that’s the PRIMARY cause of deterioration, it’s the CHIPPING and METAL SCRAPPING! Corregidor’s concrete structures, especially the batteries, have been made to withstand the ravages of war much less nature. So they can pretty much be left as they are … they can only be buried but they will still be there thousands of years from now.
Any clean up or maintenance program should be in the interest of providing access to these structures and enhancing tourism marketability.
On the other hand, a PRESERVATION PROGRAM should be implemented based on a post-chipping/scrapping scenario (ONLY AFTER ALL CHIPPING AND SCRAPPING ACTIVITIES SHALL HAVE BEEN EFFECTIVELY STOPPED). Then identify the structures and/or portions thereof to be saved, reinforced or shored up versus those that are deemed futile or useless (waste of money) to rehabilitate and be merely allowed to deteriorate and contribute to the “bombed out” ambience.
i saw a lot of trees felled by the last 2-3 strong typhoons. the national government gave P5 million for this cleaning operation.
Trees falling during storms are as natural as the sun rising and setting everyday. Fallen trees decompose and enrich the soil or become habitats themselves of new vegetation and wildlife. If standing trees become in any way imminent threats to the integrity of Corregidor’s war relics, the proper thing to do is to either minimize the threat of their falling on the structures through pruning, or if the areas around structures have to be cleared of trees, they should be balled and transferred to another site, NOT CHAINSAWED! Certainly, with P5 million, that can be done.
but the website was still a wake-up call. the corregidor foundation has only preserved a fraction of the original structures of corregidor since it started its good work in 1987.
So, is this an admission that illegal, clandestine chipping and metal- scrapping have indeed been continuing to this day? Just asking.
the many others that i saw are fast crumbling simply because the tourists dont see them anymore or they are off the beaten track.
How can concrete superstructures crumble fast because tourists don’t see them anymore? Or does Mr. Adevoso mean that because these structures don’t get to be visited by people anymore because they’re off the beaten track, the illegal chippers and metal scrappers can rape them with impunity, without getting caught? Is this another way of admitting that this nefarious activity persists to this day?
i have conferred with the general manager of the corregidor foundation and we are starting to put together a plan to save the other main structures and even the smaller ones from the ravages of nature.
Nature should be the least of your problems, Mr. Adevoso. In fact, you should work with nature because it’s going to be Corregidor’s insurance for survival. Enrich that already beautiful forest, manage the island’s solid and liquid wastes scientifically, introduce more wildlife species and increase opportunities for wildlife observation if not interaction, provide affordable access to the island but control it’s carrying capacity.
if the italians and the greeks can save their structures, then surely ours can be saved and preserved as well.
CERTAINLY, WE CAN. But consult and inform your stakeholders regularly because neither you nor CFI have monopoly of good and noble ideas that will benefit Corregidor
Jerry Adevoso PA Veterans Affairs Malacanang, Manila
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2007 23:51:30 GMT 8
FUNDS ARE NOT THE ONLY SOLUTION
To assert that only those who make donations to Corregidor have the right to criticize its management is begging the issue. There are many ways to help Corregidor Island.
By conducting our Corregidor-promoting, eco-firendly adventure games, we have, over the years, been directly or indirectly responsible for bringing close to two thousand visitors to Corregidor Island.
Most of these visitors stayed overnight, used the facilities of the island's concessionaires, and by the very nature of our activities, were introduced to the magic of Corregidor. Many expressed their desire to come back and bring their families, and many did.
I am a Corregidorphile. I promote the island, by way of the Corregidor Island Souvenir E-book. I talk about the island incessantly, and preach the gospel of its wonders to my friends and acquaintances, and practically everyone that I meet. In conjunction with the aforementioned souvenir e-book, I maintain a website that features the island.
Even without the first two reasons, The basic principle of public accountability gives taxpayers every right to question or criticize the way the island is being run or managed. I've mentioned this in my reply to brndirt1, but I'm saying this again to make sure that no one misses this point.
MONUMENTAL MENTALITY
Slowly but surely, the idea of building monuments and depending on them as the main attraction for tourists is becoming outdated. Many countries recognize this fact and have diversified into eco-tourism, the promotion of which requires only a fraction of what is required to build megabuck infrastructure projects that would have been otherwise needed to sustain other older concepts. Eco-tourism has lower impact on the environment, and uses the precepts of CONSERVATION and PRESERVATION rather than ALTERATION.
This "monumental mentality" as we have termed it, leads the island to create more and more monuments. And with more more monuments come higher maintenance and carrying costs for the island, thus requiring more donations. It's a vicious cycle that needs to be broken.
On the other hand, the blazing of additional hiking trails that could attract backbackers and hikers from all over the world would not cost as much .If promoted the right way, the island -- even in its present state - is capable of attracting this market. We have proven this by virtue of the activities we have successfully conducted.
A minor upgrade of existing facilities could also give Corregidor island the added ability to offer basic but comfortable hostel accommodations to this new tourist market. Because of their outdoor orientation, these visitors will not be predisposed to look for swanky, five-star hotel facilities. Instead, they might prefer to "rough it out". In fact, some of them of them might actually be turned off by an over-developed, highly manicured environment,.
And there are other markets that can be tapped. There are joggers and physical fitness buffs, bird-watchers, nature-lovers, kite-flying enthusiasts, orienteering clubs, Boy and Girl Scouts, schools (big market!), etc. to name a few. It's all a matter of realigning overall strategy to present-day market realities.In short, what Coregidor Island needs to do is to make itself attractive to more people.
Corregidor Island should also lessen its dependence on yearly governmental budget allocations or grants from foreign countries, private companies, or individuals. It should be self-sustaining. (This is not to say, though, that we should stop trying to get donations or grants.)
What needs to be done is for the CFI to come up with a Tourism Needs Assessment, This way, proposed projects can be analyzed as to their practicality and practicabiility. These projects can then be matched against expected returns in the form of tourist traffic, revenue, carrying capacity of the island.
STOP THE CONTINUOUS DESTRUCTION OF CORREGIDOR'S STRUCTURES
We reiterate that the prerequisite to any action is the immediate stoppage of chipping and scrapping activites on the island. As we have previously stated, any assistance, whether in cash or in kind, will be all for naught if these nefarious destructive activites are allowed to continue.
We have also noticed an odd reluctance by people to admit that this as the primary reason for the massive deterioration of Corregidor's structures. We're not going to get anywhere unless we take the bull by the horns, Skirting this issue, or attributing the horrendous damage being inflicted on thse precious war relics to trees, weather, or some other natural phonomena is simply not going to work anymore. We know the real score, and sooner or later, someone will have to wrestle with this issue.
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Post by Karl Welteke on Jan 5, 2007 14:57:35 GMT 8
Hello you all: My contribution to this discussion are the two links below. They are links to some of my pics as they relate to this discussion. I’m a 30 year US Navy retiree and permanent resident of the RP. In the last 3 years I have visited Corregidor 10 times or more. Every hill or rise, every ravine and 95 % of the coast line has been visited by me. The scrapping, the evidence of digging and the damage by wind and rain I’ve seen and have took some pics of it. See the Middleside Barracks link. As to when the digging and scrapping occurred I don’t know, I really couldn’t say, whether it happened in the last 3 years. I speculate, it was earlier. Over the years I have grown fond of the Corregidorians. See ’Faces of Corregidor’ Middleside Barracks,27 Jan-04, 31 Aug-06: app.photobucket.com/u/PI-Sailor/a/3dfb51d3-4496-4e09-b7a2-312cff0d56faFaces of Corregidor: app.photobucket.com/u/PI-Sailor/a/0430b9e6-819c-4a8a-b252-86045f3b3b93
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Post by EXO on Jan 5, 2007 21:53:43 GMT 8
The cleaning of the floors would be the best way to know if the scrappers and the chippers were again on the island - having slipped past the guards. New chipping would announce that the guarding of the island's assets needed an overhaul. "Chippers" is far too kind a word for them. They're thieves and they're stealing YOUR heritage. Photo credit: Karl Welteke eXo
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Post by Deleted on Jan 6, 2007 0:29:42 GMT 8
Karl, thanks for posting the links to your pictures. The images showing the treasure hunter's hole and the results of massive and rampant chipping are very graphic illustrations of what we've been saying all along.
Thanks also for showing the photo of the bamboo trees which seem to have fallen on one building of Middleside Barracks. Equally interesting the other one which shows workers in hardhats lifting the cut trees. Your accurate photographic reportage will really come in handy when the time comes.
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Post by Karl Welteke on Jan 6, 2007 1:31:42 GMT 8
You are welcome, perhaps, one day, we all meet on 'The Rock'.
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