THE UAAP men’s basketball games has ended while the NBA regular season finally opened on Oct. 30. In all these events, a group of basketball players watch on, cheering their favorite teams even as the itch to play grows. But competitions and chances for them to play are scarce, and not everyone knows about their existence. Compared to the more “popular” forms of basketball, wheelchair basketball in the Philippines is in a slump.

By MALTE E. KOLLENBERG
WOMEN'S rights and migrant advocates in South Korea say complaints of domestic abuse are not uncommon here, and the story of Cathy Deocades is no exception. Cathy’s story started out as a hopeful search for a better life in South Korea, whose cultural exports like K-Pop-music and Korean dramas often paint a picture of domestic harmony. Cathy met her husband, who turned to the Philippines in search for a woman he could not find in South Korea, through a marriage broker. Shortly after the two met for the first time they got married. The couple did not have time to get to know each other.

By MALTE E. KOLLENBERG
GONGJU, South Korea —Two and a half hours south of Seoul by land lies the farming village of Tapgok-ri, a remote part of the city of Gongju. It is nothing like the glittery and glamorous world shown in Korean dramas and K-Pop music videos, which are increasingly popular among Filipino women. Here on Jan. 11, 2011, Cathy Deocades, 24, was found hanging from a wooden bar in an abandoned house several meters from her home. The police came and concluded suicide. Investigations stopped and the case was closed.