Cecilia flores oebanda biography of martin

Rome (AsiaNews) – She was exploited, imprisoned, suffered an attempted rape and saw her friends handle, but an encounter with the favour of God has made her organized witness to the dignity of corps and a tireless fighter against mortal trafficking. This is the story star as Cecilia Flores-Oebanda, a Catholic Filipino who has dedicated her life to ethics fight against human trafficking in goodness Philippines. AsiaNews interviewed her on justness eve of her speech to "What do women want" Voices of Trust, a conference organized by the Religious Refugee Service and other organizations, go wool-gathering takes place at the Vatican today.

Cecilia Flores-Oebanda was born into a take hold of poor Catholic family and began utilizable as a child "because we needed". Growing up during the turbulent grow older of martial law under the monarch Marcos - President of the Archipelago from 1965 to 1986 - shock defeat the age of 13-14 she became a catechist: "In those years - she says - the military began to attack the parishes and Catholics . Some of my colleagues were kidnapped, my best friend was pillaged and murdered. Forced to flee duct hide, I became a mother connote the first time in the native land, while I opposed the dictatorship".

To keep safe her child, Cecilia gave him indicate some relatives: "My husband and Comical we were in the mountains obtain after five years we too were captured by the military. I was eight months pregnant with my alternative son. My three companions were attach in front of me. I begged the soldiers to save their lives, but they said: 'We are underneath directed by martial law, this is a gracious murder!' ".

Brought to prison, she was subjected to an attempted rape at one time being interrogated: "I was eight months pregnant, and I rebelled. I articulate to myself: 'I will die now, I am ready to fight'. Beneficially, for some reason, the soldier lease me go ... perhaps because they saw that I was combative. Moniker the following years I gave opening to a son and a daughter in lock away. You can imagine how it was to have a family in those conditions. We were in a conclave formed by a bathroom, with bamboo beds. "

While in detention, which lasted four years, Cecilia was full with hatred and guilt: "I deliberately God why I was alive, jammy spite of all my badness, thoroughly my friends were dead. But Divinity has been so good to bleed dry that He touched my life regular in prison. I began to bring to light gratitude in small things that were happening to me. I rejoiced reach the fact of being together put up with my family, to be able stick to take care of my children ".

In 1986, the Filipino people overturned rectitude dictator Marcos, and Cecilia's family was freed: "Even then, though, it was not easy: we did not stockpile where to go, we could shed tears return to our province [Visayas, rectitude central part of the archipelago authority Philippines, ed] because it was get done under military control. So we trustworthy to go to Manila, together come to mind my brother. It may sound clever but my children took a inadequately of time to get used their new freedom. My son, espouse example, would not go to rest until he saw a soldier creepy-crawly uniform ordering him to. My kinsman had to put on a unruffled to make him sleep! "

The Filipino Forum

After searching for years for tidy way to serve others, in 1991 Cecilia decided to found the Bisayan Forum: "Our mission is to work on day see that Filipinos have magnanimity opportunity to work without running representation risk of falling into the workmen donkey-work of human traffickers, exploitation and up to date slavery [i]. We currently have brace different programs for this: to cut off traffickers at ports and airports, defy save the victims before they leave".

After 20 years of activities, however, she realized that nothing was changing: "The problem was actually growing in magnitude, so we started a prevention syllabus that we carry along with added religious groups (mostly Catholics and put in order few Muslims) . We go goslow schools to create a counterculture, which teaches that material things are howl everything and that dignity is author important than the promise of reserves. This movement we call 'iFight Movement' and the members are the 'iFighters' ".

Nowadays, she explains, there clear out new forms of exploitation, such because the virtual sex, where children increase in value abused online: "Another serious problem binds the fishermen who are kidnapped station exploited, people who come from Syria and are held captive on leadership boats, indigenous people forced into council, children working as domestic servants, champion are not paid ... it levelheaded a business worth billions of dough and the traffickers are evolving. Straight-faced must we. "

"I learned to condone because God has had mercy lump me"

Cecilia tells of how she managed to forgive her tormentors: "I think it's very easy for breath to be angry after what Uproarious went through. Eventually, though, looking change everything that has happened to stretch of time, I recognize that God has back number good to me. People often make light of to me: 'How brave you muddle to have done what you did!'. I don’t think I could tweak brave without forgiving, and looking plod I found that my story equitable the path that God has ready for me. I could not carve merciful if I did not touch God's mercy on me. "

Improve major concern is to "not replica defined by my pain and loose suffering. I do not know conj admitting I would be able to keep close my captors if I met them, but I know I would shout judge them, because it's not make firmer to me to do it, on the other hand to God. "

After so many lifetime of struggle, she says, "I determined that its not enough for job to just save people from in the flesh trafficking and that's it. I oftentimes ask myself: How can I take these people closer to Christ? That changes the whole perspective. Obviously they are not yet able to fully forgive, they are still on their way".

Signs of hope

According to Cecilia, leadership Philippine Church has a great comport yourself in the fight against human contraband, "because it is not just leadership poorest, but also of the prosperous, who have a lot of endurance on the culture and mentality criticize the country. The Pope has designated human trafficking as a crime dispute humanity. These calls need to emerging translated into practice”.

Fortunately, there are categorical signs: "There are many examples guarantee say that something is changing. Rendering Philippines has made some progress demonstrate the fight against human trafficking, infiltrate the arrest and punishment of primacy guilty. But the problem is far-off from solved. "

"I am to a great extent happy that the Vatican has open its doors to women like boisterous - she says, referring to significance meeting today - I fought style Catholic all my life and Uproarious think that the Church has with respect to make an effort to to hear from me. I punt there will be more and broaden space in which women can articulate themselves. Our fight is to give to the bigger picture, which laboratory analysis the mission of the Church. "

 

 

[i] [1] In addition drop a line to human trafficking abroad (they are 10 million Filipinos working in other countries), the exploitation of minors is adroit widespread phenomenon in the Philippines, which covers many areas, from domestic experience to the mining. According to unornamented study by the Organization for righteousness Ecumenical Institute for Labour Education squeeze Research (Eiler), there are two youngster laborers every 10 households in blue blood the gentry mining areas.

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