Cebu City-based Bisdak Pride Inc. hosted events to help build the capacity of LGBT organizations in the Visayas. These events form part of the series of capacity building to LGBT communities in the Yolanda-affected areas in the Visayas. According to Roxanne Omega Doron, who helms Bisdak Pride Inc. and is Outrage Magazine’s Visayas correspondent, “the series of events will hopefully build resilient LGBT communities” particularly in organizing, thereby strengthening them in the aftermath of calamities.
The first leg happened last September in the Central Visayas region, participated by 30 participants from Negros Occidental, Bohol and Cebu provinces. The second leg had participants from the Eastern Visayas region including from Samar provinces, Calbayog City, Tacloban City, Ormoc City and Baybay City; and this December, another leg will be held in the Western Visayas region.
The series of capacity building is – in a way – different from other similar efforts in these parts of the Philippines because of the focus on the LGBT community.
“The risk of gender-based violence, discrimination towards the LGBT community increase during social instability like natural disasters,” Doron said.
Doron added that this is also different because it is helmed by locals, as opposed to being dictated by Metro Manila-based organizations. This makes this “for us by us,” Doron said.
Topics in the gatherings include workshops on livelihood projects, financial management, and monitoring and evaluation of projects.
The series of activities is the second phase of the first project, “The Haiyan Aftermath: Listening to and Understanding the Unheard LGBT voices in Haiyan (Yolanda) Affected Communities in the Visayas.” And “we hope to realize the livelihood projects soon after we complete the series of regional activities,” Doron ended.
