Name: Carl Angelo B.

Quiapos

ASSESSMENT 2

Marissa "Issa" Reorizo-Redburn is a Masbate native from San Pascual. A former

teacher and Bicolana writer. She also teaches readings in "Bangaw kan Arte," Literature

and Culture, alongside Estelito Jacob and Honesto Pesimo, Jr. She also published

"Katiriponan nin mga usipon sa Bikol" and the English translation of "Dain Linaw an

Hinaw." Issa received her diploma from Unibersidad de St. Isabel in Naga City, taught

elementary school, and eventually became an entrepreneur. In 2010, she became the

president of "Kabulig-Bikol," a group of Bicolano and Bicolana writers, and she also

became a member of "Hagkos Bikolana," a club of women writers in Camarines Sur,

together with Irmina Torres, Lourdes Nieva, and Eilyn Nidea. She also became a

panelist in a yearly writers' workshop, as well as a yearly competition for Bicolano

writers. She had previously participated in the 43rd Writers Workshop at the University

of the Philippines National Creative Writing Workshop, which was held in the city of

Baguio in 2004. She also took part in the first "Translation Seminar-Workshop" held by

the University of the Philippines on February 8-10, 2018 in Quezon City. Eventually, her

book "Burak asin An Tambobong nin Literaturang Bikolnon" was published. Where she

was included in the Bikol women writers of the twentieth century. Her writings spawned

100 contemporary works in bicol's several languages. She also became a panelist in a

yearly writers' workshop, as well as a yearly competition for Bicolano writers. In 2013,

her short tale "Aurea" was published in an anthology edited by Paz Verdades Santos

and Francisco Peones, Jr. One of her works that portrayed and awaken the hearts of

many Bicolano suffering in life is entitled “Abaniko”. It tells the story of Abeng, a fan
vendor. The life of Abeng is a representation of the life of every Filipino, simple yet

happy but facing poverty despite the hard work they put in to raise their day-to-day living

standards.

Abaniko is Tagalog for pamaypay and English for fan. It is a traditional hand-held

fan from the Philippines. It is usually fashioned of woven buri or anahaw palm leaves. It

is often heart-shaped and woven using the sawali technique (twilled). The edges are

braided and join together to form a looped handle. It is also commonly used to make

wall decorations and other handicrafts. In the story of Abeng, a vendor of fans. They sell

abaniko to supplement their daily needs. Making abaniko became a family custom for

them. They acquired it from their forefathers, along with how life challenges them as a

result of their employment. It was an irony, because they sold abaniko, but it constantly

gave them agony sweat. The misery I'm addressing is their daily struggle as ordinary

people in the Philippines. While reading, I saw that the author addressed various issues

that the majority of Filipinos were dealing with. Poverty, child labor, family planning, lack

of business opportunities, and lack of habitable and lack of cultivated land area were all

factors.

According to a Borgen Project research, the Philippines has a rather high poverty

rate, with more than 16 percent of the population living below the poverty line. Because

to the large number of individuals who rely on agriculture for a living and the

discrepancy in wealth distribution, around 17.6 million Filipinos are unable to buy basic

essentials. Poverty fell from 21.6 percent to 16.6 percent between 2015 and 2020. The

narrative of Abeng makes it apparent that poverty is the main reason they got their
occupation from their forefather. Their existence as a fan vendor is not an easy one

because that is where they acquire all of their money to get by on a daily basis.

The author's second topic of discussion in her novel is child labor. According to

the International Labor Organization, the Philippines has 2.1 million child laborers aged

5 to 17 years old, based on the Philippine Statistics Authority's 2011 Survey on Children

(PSA). Approximately 95% of them are engaged in dangerous labor. Sixty-nine percent

of individuals are between the ages of 15 and 17, well past the legal working age but

nevertheless exposed to dangerous labor. Children work on fields and plantations, in

perilous mines, on the streets, in factories, and as child domestic workers in private

houses. Agriculture continues to be the sector with the highest proportion of underage

laborers, accounting for 58%. In the story it was told that Abeng's children work despite

their age. It wasn't their decision in the first place, but poverty forces them to labor at a

young age. Abeng children grow as a laborer, though they were still studying it was the

parent responsibility to give them what they need. But, as the story goes, Abeng has no

choice but to make her children work for a living in order to provide for their daily needs,

or else they will all starve.

The third topic covered by Issa in the story is the luck of family planning. Family

planning is a problem in the Philippines. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority,

women in poor homes (40.1 percent) are less likely to undertake family planning than

those in non-poor households (50.2 percent). This disparity is mostly attributable to a

higher rate of female sterilization among non-poor women than among poor women

(13.2 percent versus 5.1 percent). Furthermore, the use of family planning methods is

most common among elementary (49.5%) and high school (49.5%) graduates, while it
is least common among women who did not complete any grade (39.5 percent).

However, there is a significant increase in the prevalence of current procedures among

women who have not completed a grade (from 22.7 percent in 1999 to 27.4 percent in

2000). The usage of conventional methods among women with no grade finished, on

the other hand, has decreased from 17.3 to 12.1 percent. In the statement of Abeng in

the story, she had a total of eight children. Their luck with family planning is symbolic of

every poor family in the Philippine community. Abeng's life is also the product of his

ancestors' lives, and his education clearly demonstrates why his husband and wife had

8 children despite their young age.

The fourth topic is regarding Abeng's lack of business opportunities. She does

not have enough funds to expand his livelihood business. She only relies on money

lenders like "Bombay," who lend money to the borrower at a hefty interest rate. In the

Philippines we have law that punish those creditors who lend money at a very high

interest it is called Usury Law, a very old law, being 105 years old, enacted in 1916 as

Act No. 2655, in order “to protect those who, in financial desperation, would agree to

pay exorbitant interest rates, and to punish unscrupulous creditors who take advantage

of their plight”.

The author's final lens focuses on the scarcity of farmed land. Agriculture land

areas in the Philippines, a 7,107-island archipelago with a total land size of 30 million

hectares, fell to 13.32 million hectares in 2018, resulting in decreasing farm output

across all commodities. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority's (PSA)

Agricultural Indicators System (AIS) report on output and productivity, the country's

harvested area of agricultural crops in 2019 decreased by 1.3 percentage points to

she will be able to buy anahaw leaves or woven buri. She would be able to expand her

operation because there is an area where she can grow the major material of her

livelihood, and she would no longer be concerned about where she would get the

money to buy the material for abaniko.

The "Abaniko" Marissa Dela Cruz Reorizo-Redburn's has taught me many life

lessons. That despite our adversity, we can still be happy. We have reason to smile and

keep going forward in order to enhance our lives. Several themes are addressed in the

story that reflect the ordinary life and hardships of the majority of Filipinos. Nonetheless,

we Filipinos are tenacious and able to grin in the face of difficulties.

Reference:

Bikolanong Parasurat (2018) “Biography of Marissa Dela Cruz Reorizo-Redburn”

Borgen Project (2020) “The Poverty level in the Philippines”

International Labor Organization (2011) “Child labor”

Philippine Statistics Authority (2020) “Family Planning”

Atty. Jun De Zuniga (2021) “Usury Law”

Philippine Statistics Authority (2020) “Agricultural Land Area”