VOF Week 1 : (Breaking the Collective Silence)

Ever since I could remember I always wanted to write. Writing is my way of making sense with the world, of getting the shape of my fear, of giving a voice to my hope, of breaking my silence. Writing of things I strongly feel has always been a liberating and empowering thing to me.

But somewhere between rigors of my work as a development worker in a conflict and poverty-ridden place like Mindanao and the demands of being a single parent to my two children, my passion for writing was forgotten. Like a well loved t-shirt that has outlived its fashion, it just lies at the bottom of my cabinet, unseen and unused.

Then came Web 2.0. I was introduced to it because my present work requires me to blog on issues affecting the people of Mindanao. I am not computer savvy yet and it’s still a new experience to me. I started blogging with some coaching from a techie friend. I can felt the rush of adrenaline when I read the post that I made. It’s like writing, editing and printing out my own newspaper . And we don’t have to worry how it will be distributed. It’s exhilarating!

And reading the blogs of other people is a new way of connecting to people even without leaving the comfort of my home. It’s like listening to people and sharing our comments or question to people in one invisible room that has no walls. Its like having additional communities of colleagues, friends and neighbors.
I haven’t explored fully the Web 2.0 but I can sense it power. It’s a different kind of power because it is in the hands of the users, the people , the women like the WorldPulse. That the users create the content of the web, without an editor determining whether what we write is news worthy, is changing the power paradigm in mass media.

I believe Web 2.0 is a new kind of power. A power that can be shared by countless men and women, regardless of color, ideology , class and gender divide. A tool that can empower us to make use of the information and knowledge that we can get from others, to share with other common passion, beliefs and undertake actions that cuts across borders. It’s a way for women to get out of our limiting society and situation. It’s a way for us to break our collective silence as women and developing new unities and alliances. Its a whole new world.