ALEMANIA, SHAIRA MAY A39

BLANAS, AUGOSTO

WHY EVERY FILIPINO SHOULD HAVE A FACEBOOK ACCOUNT

BY SUSAN V. OPLE

There should be a law mandating the inclusion of Facebook as part of the conpulsory
pre-departure seminar for OFW's. Having a facebook account would make it easier to
stay connected to one's family, and have a digital bridge to groups and individuals able
to help an OFW in distress. Best of all, it's free!
Myea Grafil, a household service worker in Singapore, was able to get in touch with this
writer through Facebook at one of the lowest points in her life. She was overwhelmed
with personal problems and was contemplating suicide when a more positive force
prodded her to send an SOS message to a complete stranger—me!
After reading her angst-ridden private message, I immediately replied and was abe to
get her mobile number, I called up my Singapore based friend and former co-worker,
Donna and Myra met and my friend patiently listened as the troubled OFW shared her
story. Through e-mail, the Ople Center was also able to alert the the Philippine
Embassy about her plight and to their credit, the Office of the Labor Attache was quick
to help Myra out.
Today, Myra has completed a three-month course at the Asian School for Hospitality
Arts as one of the scholars of Skills-Up!, a joint vocational-technical training program of
Senator Manny Villar's Sagip-OFW Program and the Blas F. Ople Center. Facebook
saved Myra's life, and continues to be a lifeline for many other OFW's as well.
Facebook is also a gathering place for true-blue OFW advocates. Patnubay Riyadh is a
Facebook page that deals with the problems of migrant workers in the Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia. Patnubay Riyadh is really Joseph Espiritu, himself an empowered OFW in
Saudi Arabia with expert knowledge about the Kingdom's laws, culture and political
systems. Rashid Fabricante, Annie Geron, Jun Aguilar, are people well-versed about
labor and migration issues and concerns.
On Facebook, an overseas worker can easily set up an appointment with family
numbers for chatting. For those without Facebook accounts (a virtual minority),
“chatting” is done through a window Facebook at the bottom of the Facebook page
where you can type your thoughts and questions, and wait for the reply of a friend or
relative in real time. It takes a great deal of control for someone whose work revolves
around the computer to keep from opening one's Facebook account simply to check
who among one's friends are are online. For an OFW, however, having someone to
chat with on a lonely and tiring evening in an instant relief for homesickness.
Thankfully, mobile phones have found ways of incorporating social networking sites
such as Facebook as part of its features. Inmates on death row and in various detention
as well as migration facilities in the Middle East and elsewhere are able to borrow such
mobile phones from fellow detainees. Though this practice is not allowed, some
leniency is exercised particularly for those living on borrowed time. And so yes, thanks
to mobile phones. Facebook has become a vital coping mechanism even for overseas
workers under detention in some parts of the world.
Having a Facebook page make it easier for a mother or father physically separated from
their children to watch them grow up, make new friends, and even develop relationships
from afar. Unlike e-mails that can be hurriedly written or even tactlessly put together, a
Facebook page has a photos, videos, and notes that can draw a parent closer to his or
her kids, despite the distance between their countries. Facebook has the feature and
speed of life, and every status feed pulsates with time spent, with whom, and where.
I believe that learning how to open and run a Facebook page should be part of
compulsory pre-departure orientation seminars for OFW's. Facebook is user-friendly so
one does not need to be a computer computer graduate to know how it works. Parts of
the course should be on the ethical use of Facebook; no spamming, and married OFW's
for the sake of children, friends, relatives, and especially spouses who may find such
pictures as hurtful and scandalous.
We now live in the Facebook era where privacy is set by one's own hand. Unfortunately,
the power to connect also bears an inherent power to destroy and so we must not
conclude that no one else is interested in our online status, profilreges, and chats. Still,
social networking sites like Facebook are a powerful tool against loneliness and
isolation. It builds networks, connects friends, creates groups that believe in common
causes, and gives family members the chance to catch up. Since it's free and already
servicing more than 19 million Filipinos, why not encourage, if not make it mandatory,
for every first-time OFW to have one.