Often referred to as the “other side of Manila”, the existence Smokey Mountain slums come as no surprise for anyone who’s grown up in the Capital city of the Philippines.
But despite being a permanent part of the landscape and the consciousness of Filipinos of all generations, few truly are able to truly see and experience it; few truly feel the plight of the families who call it home.
Through the years, various advocacies have been established in the area to better the lives of the residents, to bring their stories to the world.
The most recent of which is a documentary, which hopes to open the eyes of Filipinos–and the world–to the reality of poverty, as well as to inspire compassion in viewers.
photo courtesy of Vitaliy Nechaev
Smokey Tours, an advocacy already present in the area, offers tourists the chance to truly experience Smokey Mountain.
“I quite like what Smokey Tour does, as they give you full immersion within just two hours. What to do next with this information is your personal choice. Some people become volunteers, some donate money, other (like me) creating videos to give larger exposure to problem. I was shocked by what I saw,” Vitaliy Nechaev, one of the creators of Happyland 360, said in an interview with theAsianparent.
photo courtesy of Vitaliy Nechaev
“I have been to Manila at least few times, but I have never seen this ‘hidden’ part of it. So I have immediately wrote an email to Anna and proposed her to create similar video, but using 360 technology. I just thought that we need to immerse people around the world in everyday living in poorest areas of Philippines,” explained Vitaliy to theAsianparent.
Find out more about the families they met during filming Happyland 360
“I do remember that every time traveling through slums I saw lots of kids. I had this feeling that kids are the main residents here,” recounted Vitaliy, “they were everywhere: playing, following our filming crew.”
photo courtesy of VItaliy Nechaev
Almost a third of Filipinos live in poverty, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.
In Happyland alone there are hundreds of families living in the worst conditions.
Anna and Eric, a couple whose video went viral for performing Anak, one of the most popular Filipino classic pop songs, arrived one day bearing a bag of candies to give away at a concert.
Vitaliy recalls what he thought was the most “tragic” of all encounters. Though they expected the candy to bring smiles to the kids’ faces. One boy, saddened, told the well-meaning couple that he thought they should have brought bread instead.
These small kids possibly didn’t even have any childhood at all,” lamented Vitaliy, “from an early age they needed to survive making money for their family and thinking about basic food (such as bread) first instead of enjoying their young years.”
photo courtesy of Vitaliy Nechaev
Despite the 360-degree view through which the creators approached the situation of Happyland, it’s the individual stories–which mostly didn’t make the final cut–that will stay with them.
They met a 12-year-old girl, Kimberly, who has been living in Happyland all her life. “She had an open wound on her knee that was seemed to be untreated for week. And I do remember I was thinking ‘Poor child, it is so dangerous to have such wounds in Happyland’, as we heard few stories from Smokey Tours guides when people were dying because of leptospirosis,” confided Vitaliy.
“We met another family who has 8 children (ranging from 1 year to 9 years) and three oldest are became scavengers,” he went on. “Instead of going to school, every day they need to walk around garbage desert and look for plastic or ‘if they are lucky enough’ copper (which they need to burn first. And copper smoke is toxic for their young lungs and skin).”
He also commended young volunteers, such as Kristian, who’s also featured in the documentary; he finished his studies in a University but dedicated himself to volunteer work.
View some clips from Happyland 360 below.
Learn more about teaching your kids compassion on the next page!
How can one inspire genuine compassion from a young age?
Start the topic naturally
According to Wellspring Family Services, it’s best to wait for your child to bring it up. Answer their questions simply. For instance, kids around the age of 2-6 are fond of asking “Why”. A good response would be: “Some people don’t have enough money to buy their own home.”
Encourage empathy
Even if you answer their questions directly, it’s also best to express your sadness over the suffering of others. This way, kids can understand that it is important to be invested and concerned about others’ troubles.
Explain your actions as well as your inaction
For kids above the age of 7, physical cues are just as important as verbal ones. Each time you encounter a homeless person, for instance, your child will easily pick up on your reactions and actions. For example, if you believe giving alms just perpetuates the poverty cycle, be sure to explain why you think it’s better not to give alms.
Help them take action
Once you’ve engaged them in a healthy ongoing discussion of what poverty is and how it affects–or, should affect–them, then you can talk about giving back. Empowering them to help at a young age will help them grow up to be compassionate members of society, one little good deed at a time.
READ: UNICEF’s social experiment will make you rethink how you interact with homeless children
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