The May 1998 elections may indeed have been the last Philippine elections in which overseas Filipinos were not allowed to vote. Even before the elections, numerous bills were proposed in both houses of Congress to allow overseas voting. Some people even thought that the government was going to push for such a law during the special session of Congress just before the elections. Now, "absentee voting" bills are being prepared for submission in the Senate and the House of Representatives. And this time, the drafters have involved migrants and migrant advocates in the process of preparing these new bills.
The developments towards an overseas voting law are one of the signs that Overseas Filipinos (OFs), as a sector of Philippine society is about to come to age. While the various Filipino communities throughout the world have been able to achieve a lot over the years in terms of asserting their rights in their host countries, building their community, and contributing to Philippine development; Overseas Filipinos have largely been marginal to Philippine politics. This has meant that despite all our contributions to the Philippines economy and society, the Philippine government can still afford to disregard our needs.
The passing of an overseas vote is not the final goal of our efforts. In fact, we may say that this will just be the beginning. For one thing, we do not yet know what kind overseas voting law will eventually be passed. There is still a big chance that it will contain provisions that would limit the political weight of the overseas Filipino vote. For instance, procedures may be so complicated that they would discourage or disqualify many Overseas Filipinos from voting.
Overseas Filipino participation in the Philippine politics would still need to be fought for every step of the way. Already, many community activists are wondering when the issue of dual citizenship and OF representation in Congress would come on the agenda. Eventually, Philippine consular officials should be answerable to the Filipino community in the various countries, and be subject to recall for bad performance.
Also, there is the need to facilitate Overseas Filipino contribution to Philippine economic and social development. The Philippines is not making full use of the skills, insights and resources of the seven million Filipinos abroad. At the same time, there is a need to strengthen cultural bonds between the Philippines and the various Filipino communities.
At the same time, there is the ongoing need to confront problems caused by policies of host countries' governments, and to help fellow Filipinos who are in trouble or in need. For many among us, these kinds of concerns will take up a lot of our time.
It is now important for Overseas Filipinos everywhere to build our unity as a sector. In the past, inspite of our numbers, we have been weakened by all kinds of divisions - both those that we make ourselves, and by categorizations made by others. The recent experience of organizing activities around the Philippine Centennial has shown that despite the many internal conflicts within the various Filipino communities, it was possible to work towards a common goal.
Our experience in the various Filipino communities abroad has shown us that Filipinos who are relatively more settled and those who newly arrived from the Philippines both benefit from working together. The earlier migrants provide the social infrastructure that makes it easier for later migrants to adjust and find their way in their adopted society. The newer migrants keep the link with the Philippines fresh and vibrant. Then there are the children of migrants, both of Filipino-Filipino and of mixed marriages; they help to solidify further the link between the Filipino community and the host society.
At a larger scale, the various Filipino communities in different parts of the world could also complement each other. While the conditions we live with vary depending on the host country, we are one sector in relation to Philippine society and politics.
We need to work at building solidarity among the various subsectors of Filipinos overseas. Together, we are a significant percentage of the Philippine population. However, if we allow ourselves to be divided into all kinds of sub-groupings, our potential political impact in the Philippines will be much less.
Already, there are many efforts to network across countries. Exchange of experiences, or even informing each other of the different conditions we face, helps to build understanding among OFs. And of course, for countries with large Filipino communities, networking within these countries is a big enough challenge already. We are now learning to lobby Philippine government officials together. Last year, a delegation of Filipinos from all over Europe met with President Estrada, Congress and various government agencies dealing with migrants.
Networking and sectoral unity does not mean that we need to form hierarchical all-inclusive "alliances" or "federations". The diversity within and among Filipino communities actually calls for looser arrangements. What is more important is that we move in the same directions, and that we support each other's efforts. Linkages among Filipino media, information centers, and service organizations would contribute a lot towards building a common perception of what we as a sector need.
When Overseas Filipinos finally get to participate in the Philippine political process, it would be natural that a common OF legislative agenda would need to be forged. Before this, there needs to be a lot of exchanges among the communities in the different parts of the world, in the hope of preparing a common set of demands on the Philippine government.
The road to full political empowerment is indeed still long and difficult. But we hope that the days of Overseas Filipinos being in the limbo of Philippine politics are soon about to be over.
