This story is known in the LGBTQIA and HIV advocacies: A few years back, when attention was finally given to the transgender community, and funding was to be made available for this in the Philippines, this Social Hygiene Clinic (SHC) of a local government unit (LGU) in Metro Manila was supposedly considered to pilot the effort. The SHC partnered with a then-emerging non-government organization (NGO), which was believed to be “effective” in the implementation of HIV-related services for men who have sex with men (MSM). The story took a twist here, particularly (as the story going around goes) when the NGO allegedly took over the effort and allegedly tsinugi ang SHC (kicked the SHC to the curb), in a manner of speaking.
From here alone, it can be said that there’s a notable “error” already, i.e. giving of funds for transgender people to non-transgender organizations led by non-transgender people.
But what’s worth stressing even now is this: Funds for the transgender community continue to be controlled by such NGO, and still NOT by transgender people.
And so even now, MSM-centric NGOs still “dictate” what’s good for transgender Filipinos. Notably, transgender people continue to be considered as “subjects” who are “beneficiaries” of well-funded organizations that – interestingly – actually focus on MSM, LGBTQIA, HIV, children, et cetera. With this, transgender people have become pet “projects”, existing only to be “helped” and “saved”. Forget actual empowerment as that seems to be not part of the equation.
What’s the implication?
Case in point: For my Master of Development Communication (MDC) thesis, I interviewed over 20 transgender women who do sex work in Cebu City on their PrEP-related experiences. Gist of the results:
- NONE of them use/d PrEP.
- I conducted more than half of the interviews in this well-funded NGO supposedly catering to transgender people in Cebu City, but – Get this! – shockingly, only two of them knew that the facility existed, and that they offered PrEP for people like them.
- Only one decided to get PrEP from this NGO that gets huge funds for transgender people.
When somebody not one of you, and is not even from your community decides what’s good for you, this is what you get. In advocacy work, you get an extremely well-funded pretending-to-help NGO with well-marketed and yet not-reaching-target-populations projects, satisfying the NGOs’ heads because – Hey! – lots of money’s there, as well as the funders that get money, too, as long as there are “reports” from the NGOs.
In truth: You need transgender people to inform you what ails the transgender community. And you need transgender people to inform you what will work best for them.
With all transgender-related projects in the Philippines coursed through non-transgender NGOs, there is now clamor to change the dynamics. After all, why “pay” middlemen (the NGOs) when, really, it makes better sense to just directly fund the target communities?
And here now is another twist: Because money is now being made available for the transgender community, apparently, there is now a “worry” about the emergence of “trans for funds”, or people (in leadership positions in non-transgender NGOs) who “conveniently” started transitioning to claim to “represent” the transgender community and so should (continue to) be given the funds.
Obviously, this is very, VERY tricky. People can “discover” their true SOGIESC at various points in their lives. And so people can “transition” to be their true selves whenever they want, or are more comfortable doing. As such… how do you prove someone’s faking it?
But yes, transgender people have – apparently – already been discussing this.
That MSM NGOs continue to get funds for the transgender community; and when there’s this threat of money being moved to the actual beneficiaries, the emergence of “trans for funds”.
Mga donor agencies ninyo parang walang paki (Your donor agencies don’t seem to care). They ALL know about these issues, and yet look at who they continue to fund. It seems that – intentionally or not – there’s always this silent “Fuck you” to the demands of people at the grassroots.
So ang gawin nyo, punahin nyo ang organisasyon na nag-se-serve sa inyo. Kung ang sahod ng nagpapatakbo ng proyekto ay mas malaki pa kesa sa binibigay sa beneficiaries – i.e. transgender people – then magduda na kayo. Kung ikaw eh ni hindi makabili ng pills, pero siya may pambili ng $66,500 necklace, ₱100,000 Rimowa luggage, at high-end Apple Watch Edition from $10,000- $75,000, aba… hindi na serbisyo yan (What you do is, call out organizations that serve you. If the salary of the person running a project is bigger than what goes to the beneficiaries – transgender people – then start doubting. If you can’t even buy pills, and yet these people can buy $66,500 necklace, ₱100,000 Rimowa luggage, and high-end Apple Watch Edition from $10,000- $75,000, well… that’s no longer service).
Sa mga lider ng transgender community, maging mapanuri rin (To leaders of the transgender community, be also selective). I know of a transgender man whose community-based organization was once tapped by this moneyed non-transgender-led NGO for “partnership”. The ending: all his ideas were taken (stolen?), turned into actual projects… but the “partnership” never materialized, and the money went to the NGO alone as it now has all the money to “serve” a community it doesn’t know anything about.
Kamkam pa (Hoard wealth even) more? Nope, enough na. Tama na ang lokohan (Enough with this foolishness).
