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Quadruple concerns converge in March: Observance of International
Women’s Day on March 8, World Water Day on March 22, World Theatre
Week from March 21 to 27, and Fire Prevention Month. The four themes
serendipitously are interlocked in a vision that affirms life. The
woman as the womb that brings forth and nourishes life. The woman as
the mother and is the first teacher of a child serves and as the
pillar to hold a family together.
Females in developing countries on average carry
20 liters of water a day over 6 kilometers. Survival without water
is impossible. There are many ways of using and celebrating water as
there are varied cultural traditions. Water is sacred and central to
many religious rituals and ceremonies. The scarcity and pollution of
water, the responsible use and conservation of water, the provision
of safe drinking water and sanitation is at the heart of the
declaration of a Decade of Water is Life (2005 to 2015) by the
United Nations (UN). This year the UN is calling attention to the
waters that cross borders and link countries. Rather than give rise
to conflict, what is stressed is efficient, equitable management of
international watercourse agreements for cooperation built on
respect, understanding and trust. Among some of the river basins are
the Mekong, the Jordan, the Nile and the Niger. The Earthsavers
Movement led the 45-day rally in Makati to protect the Pacific Ocean
from nuclear testing. More so now, archipelagic nations and small
island states have to synergize efforts to mitigate extreme climate
change impact on water resources.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization (Unesco) created the International Theatre
Institute (ITI) in 1948 to promote cultural exchange and deepening
mutual understanding between nations participating in the promotion
of peace. World Theatre Day on March 27 focuses on a message by an
outstanding international figure which is translated in many
languages. This year’s epistle comes from Augusto Boal, the guru
of the “Theatre of the Oppressed” as a weapon for liberation in
Latin America. A proclamation by President Gloria Arroyo has
expanded the celebration to a week from March 21 to 27, 2009 for the
gathering of artists to enhance the creative empowerment of people
for poverty alleviation and sustainable development.
Fire is essential to generate heat and light so
that we can cook. Fire is the symbol of energy so crucial to living.
Yet fire, as detailed by Homer has also been used in warfare where
the Greek commandos hid in a wooden horse to burn Troy. Flame
throwers were also used by infantries and incendiary bombs were used
by the axis and the allies alike during World War II. So, fire can
also, besides its utilitarian value be the source of destruction and
devastation. We have seen the latest images of forest fires in
Australia, in California and Indonesia which caused haze to cover
our region. The safety tips like using smoke alarms, escape plans,
fire drills, sprinklers and warnings about hazardous activities like
carelessness with cigarette butts, electrical wiring, appliances,
firecrackers and burning candles must go beyond
consciousness-raising into implementation.
How will the National Commission for Culture and
the Arts (NCCA) help generate attention and collective action
regarding these issues? The battle cry for women has been
gender-equity, equal opportunities to education, work and
healthcare. This year’s global theme is Men and Women Ending
Violence against Women and Girls. Through culture and the arts the
mindset can be changed with re-oriented attitudes and values
emphasized through diverse manifestations in performance, literary
and media arts. We have initiated the Pamaas Gintong Bai award in
appreciation for outstanding women leaders beyond 50 years old where
Filipino women eminent in the fields of media, broadcast, cinema,
arts, dance, literature, music, theatre, visual arts, cultural
heritage conservation and promotion of Indigenous and Filipino
language were honored in Malacañang by President Gloria Arroyo in
line with her proclamation 6222, declaring 2005 as Centennial Year
of the Feminist Movement of the Philippines. (Among those recognized
were: “Tia Dely” Magpayo, Anita Linda, Mona Lisa and Gloria
Romero, Paz Cielo Belmonte and Corazon Iñigo, Gilda Cordero
Fernando, Genoveva Edrosa-Matute, Rosalinda Orosa and Azucena
Grajo-Uranza, Fides Santos Cuyugan-Asencio, Ernestina Crisologo and
Carmencito Lazada, Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio, Rustica Carpio and
Natividad Crame-Rogers, Rosario Bitanga, Araceli Limcaoco-Dans and
Anita Magasaysay Ho, Sonia Santiago-Olivares, Isabel Santos, Sister
Delia Coronel, Espreranza Bunag-Gatbonton, Ana Maria Harper, Rosario
Mendoza Cortez, Carmen Guerrero-Nakpil, Gloria Santos, Estefania
Aldaba-Lim, Leonora San Agustin and Sister Nieves Valdez and
Consuelo Paz.)
We shall once more focus on talented women and
their remarkable art focused on social transformation that promotes
reflection and critical thinking, encourage dialogue, and inspire
community action. A salute to women artists will be featured in
Sining Gising at NBN 4 on March 8, with a panel of artists in
different disciplines sharing the impetus of their extraordinary
careers. Through inter-agency action, the youth and the community
will be involved through various artistic competitions in text tula,
editorial cartoons, essays and songs, paintings focusing on fire
prevention, and the protection of our water bodies. A unique example
has been the Gallery of the Sea consisting of sail paintings
instituted by Secretary Heherson Alvarez with the Arts Association
of the Philippines. The message of Augusto Boal for World Theatre
Day and its Pilipino translation by poet-scientist Professor Tomas
Ongoco is disseminated through the NCCA Web which recently won Best
web Design for a government agency. Delegates from all over the
country with special international guests will be welcomed in the
2nd NCCA Creativity Summit/ Festival/ Workshop/ Exhibit on KALAHI
Cultural Care-giving to achieve the United Nations Development Goals
at the WOW Philippines, the Theatre in the Ruins at Fort Santiago
and the NCCA auditorium. It is a time of sharing the DREAMS
methodology and enhancing strategies for a vital People’s Theater
Movement. Boal has succinctly expressed the rationale of how theatre
throws light on the stage of daily life. “When we look beyond
appearances, we see oppressors and oppressed people, in all
societies, ethnic groups, genders, social classes and casts; we see
an unfair and cruel world. We have to create another world because
we know it’s possible. But it is up to us to build this other
world with our hands and by acting on the stage and in our own life.
We are all actors: being a citizen is not living in society, it is
changing it.”
(Cecile Guidote-Alvarez is the NCCA Executive
Director / PA on Culture)
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