"I have no other place to go"

A struggle for survival | Home | "I started crying when I saw the mangrove tree"

20 August 2006

by Rodolfo Galuna, fisherman from Guimaras

©Greenpeace/Heike Dierbach

My name is Rodolfo Galuna and I am 52 years old. I am a fisherman and live in the village of Citio Alman Sur in the south of Guimaras that was affected badly by the oil. I came here 12 years ago and built this house right on the shore. My wife Susana and I have six children, they all go to school, the eldest is in second grade high school. I have three boats. I built them myself, I need 15 days to make an outrigger boat.

12 nets I have. The biggest is 6 feet high and 300 feet long. I go fishing twice a day: from 3 o'clock in the morning until noon and from 2 pm to 5 pm. Sometimes I go as far as five miles off shore. On good days I catch more than six kilogrammes of fish, on bad days only one. I don't sell the fish, it's only for my family.

On friday, 12 august, I was walking down to the shore from my house when suddenly it was slippery under my feet. I looked down and saw black sludge gushing between my toes. I knew it was oil. Then I looked up and saw all the mangroves were black up to the waterline. I tried to stop the oil from coming, but it didn't work. My whole backyard is full of oil.

Since that day I do not go fishing any more. It is very difficult for us because we have no ricefields, we have to buy the rice. I now collect wood and make charcoal and sell it. But that is not enough for my family. I don't know what we will be living off, I will have to find something else. But I do not want to leave Guimaras, I have no other place to go.

I am angry with the oil company, but I have to go on and keep going. I am a Filipino, I am resilient, I will find a way."

Trackback Pings

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://weblog.greenpeace.org/cgi-bin/mv/mt-tb.cgi/2080

Comments

That is so sad and depressing, reading your story made me feel s***. Petron should be prosecuted for the total devasation they have brought to the Island. You work so hard to feed your family and now it's ruined. My thoughts are with you. xx

Posted by: Jodie at August 21, 2006 12:34 PM

this is so sad and i can't help but cry for the children of guimaras. i just hope and pray that Petron better start to work their ass out in resolving this.

Posted by: anne at August 22, 2006 6:47 PM

I was really disappointed when the news broke out, and in everything that was happening right now..Mang Rodolfo is just one of the many people affected by oil spill, how many more people will get affected? And the ENVIRONMENT?! Oh my! I am REALLY DISAPPOINTED into our government! They should ACT FAST! And DO EVERYTHING to prevent the lifetime effect of this tragedy! WAKE UP PETRON! SUNSHINE MANAGEMENT! and MY DEAR GOVERNMENT!!

Posted by: ailene at August 23, 2006 10:08 AM

This really is a GLOOMY incident. Very DISAPOINTING indeed. Even just upon hearing the news, much more with seeing the photos, the real situation is so much disturbing. I don't know what more could be the effect of this. .........i hope..... the government will really focus on resolving the problem.... and that PETRON will do their part. =(

Posted by: sherwin at August 28, 2006 7:25 PM

All updates from the Southern Ocean whaling 2007 leg »
All updates from the Pacific transit »
All updates from the Mexico leg »
All updates from the Hawaii leg »
All updates from the Pacific leg »
All updates from the Philippines leg »
All updates from the India leg »
All updates from the Red Sea leg »
All updates from the Mediterranean leg »
All updates from the Azores leg »
All updates from the Pirate Fishing/Africa leg »
All updates from the Southern Ocean »

Avast ye land lubbers! The ocean critters need your help!
Take action today!