ON A recent vacation in the Philippines—my first ever in this country, I must add—my girlfriend and I stayed a few nights at her sister’s house in Palayan City, Nueva Ecija, where we visited her many relations in the area.
But I had a rather distasteful experience. A group of men had been drinking for several hours when for no good reason known to me, I was confronted by one of them. He claimed to be a chief of police. (This was confirmed later by several witnesses.) He kept reminding me of his standing in the community, even giving me his name.
After several more drinks, he confronted me again while brandishing his firearm in front of several witnesses, and in a very threatening manner he asked if I would like to be shot or barbecued for three hours. I was aghast at this, and he kept reiterating and telling me of his standing in the community.
I have always been a law-abiding citizen and I am now in my 60s. I feel I should share this experience through the Inquirer lest other tourists go through similar abuse.
The man also sounded very racist; he said he would like to shoot Americans and Chinese. If a chief of police (assuming he really is one) has this mindset, God help us all.
—PETER W., Box No. 813AP, Torremolinos, Malaga, España 2962001