Your safety in the Philippines

[Georgebob]

1 hour ago, Lee said:

You would be wrong there. I know Lamoe and he's a pretty reasonable guy.

If you read his "bio" in the OP you might have noticed that he is quite diminutive in size and almost 80 yrs old. He's a bit feeble and hard of hearing. When he lived in Cebu he often got messed with while shopping at the Carbon market with his GF (now wife). To a lot of the locals he was looked upon as a pretty easy target. In reality he could probably do little to fight back if needed---the baton that he carries offers up some type of peace of mind, perhaps a little more.

He has been told by his friends that he really should stay home more often and stay away from public notice but being a guy, he refuses to listen.

I have to commend anyone at his age and having his limitations that's out there everyday trying to live his life as he chooses.

Some might be surprised to know that many ex pats carry guns (illegally of course) in their cars when they go out. Most can't afford to live in nice neighborhoods in Subic or gated condos in Cebu. They have to provide their own security.

Your post has me concerned about safety

The Filipinos "mess' with a 80yo foreigner ? That he should stay home 😲 because he is old and could be attacked?

What happened to the friendly Filipinos ?

Is this normal for elderly foreigners to be threatened

I feel sorry for this old guy ,is any other expats of older age feel threatened ?

Is this only Cebu ? 

I don't doubt you that some expats do carry guns,it's made me re-think whether Thailand may be better for a older expats 

 

Edited May 28 by Georgebob

[Lee]

2 hours ago, Georgebob said:

Your post has me concerned about safety

The Filipinos "mess' with a 80yo foreigner ? That he should stay home 😲 because he is old and could be attacked?

What happened to the friendly Filipinos ?

Is this normal for elderly foreigners to be threatened

I feel sorry for this old guy ,is any other expats of older age feel threatened ?

Is this only Cebu ? 

I don't doubt you that some expats do carry guns,it's made me re-think whether Thailand may be better for a older expats 

 

This type of behavior happens in almost every corner of the globe.

Being perceived as a rich foreigner by the locals only exasperates the situation.

[Mike J]

15 hours ago, Georgebob said:

Your post has me concerned about safety

The Filipinos "mess' with a 80yo foreigner ? That he should stay home 😲 because he is old and could be attacked?

What happened to the friendly Filipinos ?

Is this normal for elderly foreigners to be threatened

I feel sorry for this old guy ,is any other expats of older age feel threatened ?

Is this only Cebu ? 

I don't doubt you that some expats do carry guns,it's made me re-think whether Thailand may be better for a older expats 

 

I have lived here for 10 plus years, currently 74 years old.  Never have I felt threatened or been "messed" with.  That being said, I also do not go into areas that appear to be unsafe.  

[Old55]

16 hours ago, Georgebob said:

Your post has me concerned about safety

The Filipinos "mess' with a 80yo foreigner ? That he should stay home 😲 because he is old and could be attacked?

What happened to the friendly Filipinos ?

Is this normal for elderly foreigners to be threatened

I feel sorry for this old guy ,is any other expats of older age feel threatened ?

Is this only Cebu ? 

I don't doubt you that some expats do carry guns,it's made me re-think whether Thailand may be better for a older expats 

 

Do you believe everything you see or read on YouTube? 

Use common sense. Filipinos are generally great just be polite stay out of poor areas and going out in some areas after dark. Avoid drunk Filipinos in all cases.

I agree with Gator, people sometimes attract issues in a variety of ways.

 

[hk blues]

On 5/28/2024 at 2:25 PM, Georgebob said:

Your post has me concerned about safety

The Filipinos "mess' with a 80yo foreigner ? That he should stay home 😲 because he is old and could be attacked?

What happened to the friendly Filipinos ?

Is this normal for elderly foreigners to be threatened

I feel sorry for this old guy ,is any other expats of older age feel threatened ?

Is this only Cebu ? 

I don't doubt you that some expats do carry guns,it's made me re-think whether Thailand may be better for a older expats 

 

It's nothing like as bad as you seem to be now thinking - I feel safer here than I did in the UK.  But, maybe the Philippines isn't for you if you are easily swayed as many folks here love to exaggerate and make things out to be much worse than they are.  You might confine yourself to barracks if you believe everything you hear. 

[Georgebob]

Well yes I do tend to "catasphrize" thoughts.

But this old man dressed up in weapons jackets with batons and pepper spray etc just to go out ,that's very sad 

[hk blues]

Just now, Georgebob said:

Well yes I do tend to "catasphrize" thoughts.

But this old man dressed up in weapons jackets with batons and pepper spray etc just to go out ,that's very sad 

It's really not the norm here - trust me.  

Anyhow, as is often said on this forum you probably need to spend a few weeks here to see for yourself the reality i.e. boots on the ground.  Of course, not everywhere is the same and some places are safer than others relatively speaking so maybe you should identify a short list of 2 or 3 places to stay and spend a few days in each and see how the land lies yourself.   

[craftbeerlover]

8 hours ago, Old55 said:

Do you believe everything you see or read on YouTube? 

Use common sense. Filipinos are generally great just be polite stay out of poor areas and going out in some areas after dark. Avoid drunk Filipinos in all cases.

I agree with Gator, people sometimes attract issues in a variety of ways.

 

I've lived here for about 13 years, 1 year in Thailand, many years in Japan and many many places in the USA.  I have never felt unsafe in any of the places that I have lived.  Common sense comes into play, and there are areas in all the above that I would never live or walk around at night.  Having said that, robbery is much more a concern here than any other place I have lived.  I have first hand knowledge of 8 houses that have been burglarized, 5 of them in nice subdivisions, and the other (nice house (robbed twice), outside of a subdivision.   Two cases my friends were inside their homes when it occurred, and one of the guys was caught on CCTV with a gun.    Not one of the cases was ever solved.  

[hk blues]

2 hours ago, craftbeerlover said:

I've lived here for about 13 years, 1 year in Thailand, many years in Japan and many many places in the USA.  I have never felt unsafe in any of the places that I have lived.  Common sense comes into play, and there are areas in all the above that I would never live or walk around at night.  Having said that, robbery is much more a concern here than any other place I have lived.  I have first hand knowledge of 8 houses that have been burglarized, 5 of them in nice subdivisions, and the other (nice house (robbed twice), outside of a subdivision.   Two cases my friends were inside their homes when it occurred, and one of the guys was caught on CCTV with a gun.    Not one of the cases was ever solved.  

Relatively regularly my wife lets me know there was a burglary in our community - not our phase as it's relatively small.  I do take such news with a small pinch of salt as they love to exaggerate.  Due to the size of the community I imagine most are inside jobs i.e. done by folk living within the community.  

[craftbeerlover]

15 minutes ago, hk blues said:

Relatively regularly my wife lets me know there was a burglary in our community - not our phase as it's relatively small.  I do take such news with a small pinch of salt as they love to exaggerate.  Due to the size of the community I imagine most are inside jobs i.e. done by folk living within the community.  

Based on my observations, conversations etc., I would say a vast vast vast majority of all burglaries are inside jobs here.