Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines


The COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines has had far-reaching consequences in the country that go beyond the spread of the disease itself and efforts to quarantine it, including political, cultural, and social implications.

Education

On March 9, 2020, President Rodrigo Duterte suspended classes at all levels in Metro Manila until March 14, in response to the rise in confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Philippines. Before that, Navotas Mayor Toby Tiangco had already suspended classes in the city as a preventive measure. He also appealed to the Department of Education to pass all Navoteño students for the remainder of the academic year. Some towns in Rizal, namely Cainta, Rodriguez, San Mateo, and Taytay, also suspended classes following confirmation of at least two cases in the province. Classes in Metro Manila were extended until April 14 when President Duterte placed the area under a partial lockdown on March 9. It was superseded on March 16 by the declaration of an enhanced community quarantine covering the wider Luzon island, which was later extended until April 30. On March 16, the DepEd issued guidelines prohibiting public schools in areas with suspended classes from administering the final examinations of students and instead compute the students' final grades for the academic year based on "their current academic standing." Otherwise, schools in areas without suspension were advised to immediately administer final examinations within that week on a "staggered basis" and for teachers and students to observe social distancing measures.
Before the announcement of the enhanced community quarantine, the University of the Philippines Diliman announced on March 12 that it would implement online learning alternatives for all its classes. The Commission on Higher Education advised other institutions of higher education to implement distance education methods of learning for its classes, such as the use of educational technology, to maximize the academic term despite the suspensions; several other public and private tertiary institutions implemented such arrangements for its classes. However, following the announcement of the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon and other areas, colleges and universities suspended mandatory online classes in consideration of the welfare of its students, faculty, and staff. Academic administration offices continued to operate with a skeleton crew, while other offices in colleges and universities operated through telecommuting arrangements. Some schools, however, continued to hold online classes, and in response, several student groups appealed to CHED to suspend mandatory online classes in consideration of the logistical limitations and well-being of a majority of students.
Classes in all levels across the country were eventually suspended due to the pandemic. Graduation rites in Philippine schools were also either canceled, postponed, or held virtually. However, as to whom would graduate is still unknown since the issue of 'mass promotion' in primary, secondary, and tertiary levels remains highly debated.
Regarding the start of school year 2020–21, Senate President Vicente Sotto III had proposed that classes should commence in September, while a group of UP experts wants it to be pushed back to December in order to limit the spread of the disease. The DepEd and the IATF-EID later decided that face-to-face classes would start on August 24, while online learning can begin as early as June. CHED left the decision of starting semesters to college administrators, although urged them to shift into the new semestral calendar and start 'flexible classes' in August and face-to-face classes in September as well. Meanwhile, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, who chairs the Senate Committee on Basic Education, Culture, and the Arts, set up an inquiry about how schools would brace the "new normal" brought by the pandemic. Gatchalian and DepEd proposed certain measures to be implemented during the opening of classes, such as the airing of lectures on television and radio, a "mandatory face mask policy", maintaining physical distancing, and limiting class sizes. In June, officials reported that schools will not open until a vaccine is available, though remote learning should resume at the end of August.

Tourism

The NEDA reported that the coronavirus pandemic would incur a monthly loss of tourism revenue for the Philippines and the impact of the pandemic could last around five to six months based from past experiences from the SARS, H1N1, and the MERS outbreaks. Over 5,200 flights covering two months, which was to be serviced by member airlines of the Air-Carriers Association of the Philippines, were canceled. Meanwhile, the Asian Development Bank predicts a loss in the tourism sector, while the Tourism Congress of the Philippines estimates the figures at around , considering that 12.7% of the Philippines' GDP is generated through tourism. Europe Solidaire Sans Frontières also reported potential damage in Philippine tourism.
The National Museum of the Philippines temporarily closed its complex in Manila and all branch museums throughout the country. On March 13, the National Parks Development Committee also closed Rizal Park and Paco Park until further notice while the Intramuros Administration closed several sites in Intramuros, including Fort Santiago, Museo de Intramuros, and Casa Manila. Rizal Park partially reopened on July 1, 2020, for jogging and exercise activities only.
The Philippine Shopping Festival, a nationwide mall sale event backed by the Department of Tourism originally scheduled on March 1–31 was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Several local festivals across the country were also either canceled or postponed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, including Panagbenga Festival in Baguio, Kadayawan sa Dabaw Festival in Davao City, Moriones Festival in Marinduque, and San Pedro Cutud Lenten Rites in Pampanga.

Prisons

The impact of COVID-19 in prisons in the Philippines is projected to be "dangerous," since its jails have the highest occupancy rate in the world that stands at 534%. The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology has temporarily suspended the acceptance of visitors in prisons it manages as early as March 2020, encouraging would-be visitors to avail the e-dalaw service which would allow inmates to communicate with relatives online.
Certain human rights groups raised their concerns on the issue. Human Rights Watch flagged the cases of dying inmates in prison cells and called for the freedom of minor offenders, the elderly, and the ill. Karapatan and KAPATID both called for the release of political prisoners that belongs to vulnerable sector as a way to decongest Philippine jails amidst COVID-19 pandemic.
A group of 22 high-risk prisoners also asked for temporary liberty due to 'humanitarian grounds' since "hellish prison conditions in the Philippines make the detainees vulnerable to COVID-19." All of the 22 prisoners, five of which are consultants of New Peoples' Army, are asking to be allowed to post bail or to be released under personal recognizance. They are represented by Public Interest Law Center and the National Union of People's Lawyers. Similarly, one of the suspects in the death of Horacio "Atio" Castillo III pleaded for freedom under the guise of the COVID-19's threat.
In mid-April, the Supreme Court reiterated its 2014 circular, which allows the temporary freedom of "persons deprived of liberty" who were able to serve their minimum penalty during an ongoing trial or those whose trial are paused due to lack of witnesses. Chief Justice Diosdado Peralta and Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra also signed resolutions that relaxes bail prices for indigent inmates and requirements to avail parole and executive clemency. On May 2, Associate Justice Mario Victor Leonen announced that there were 9,731 detainees released temporarily by the SC from March 17 to April 29 as a way to alleviate the country's overcrowding prisons.

Entertainment and media

The DOH issued an advisory for the cancellation of large public events and mass gatherings, such as concerts, until further notice to minimize the risk of spreading the disease. This prompted several local and international artists to either cancel or postpone their scheduled concerts and fan meets.
Local television networks temporarily stopped admitting live audiences for their television shows, including variety shows Eat Bulaga! on GMA Network as well as It's Showtime and ASAP on ABS-CBN. On March 13, both ABS-CBN and GMA announced that they would suspend productions on their drama shows as well as other entertainment programs by March 15, replacing affected programs with reruns of previous series or extended newscast runs.
Broadcast radio companies are also curtailing their operations during the quarantine period, either by shortening their broadcast hours and/or suspending regular programming in favor of "special broadcasts".
The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation ordered the suspension of all gaming operations in the country, including the land-based casinos in Entertainment City and Newport City, on March 15. The gaming regulator also announced that they were limiting the operations of Philippine offshore gaming operations in the region.

Religion

The Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines has issued preventive guidelines against the pandemic through the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines. In January 2020, the CBCP issued a liturgical guideline which urges Mass attendees to "practice ordinarily" the receiving of communion by hand, and avoid holding hands while praying the Lord's Prayer during Mass. As a spiritual measure against the spread of the disease, the CBCP also composed an oratio imperata which is to be recited during Mass. In February 2020, the CBCP issued a second liturgical guideline in anticipation of the Lenten season. The bishops suggested that during Ash Wednesday, ashes would be sprinkled on the faithfuls' head instead of the customary marking of the forehead with a cross to minimize body contact. The CBCP also urged people to refrain from kissing or touching the cross for veneration during Good Friday, particularly the celebration of the Passion of Jesus. They suggested genuflection or bowing as an alternative to the practice. Dioceses across the country have suspended the public celebration of Masses. On April 8, Holy Wednesday, the CBCP organized an interfaith prayer service against the spread of the coronavirus, which was televised nationwide.
Other Christian denominations and organizations, such as the Iglesia ni Cristo and the Jehovah's Witnesses, have suspended live worship services and resorted to organizing worship services through online platforms. The Philippine Council of Evangelical Churches, an organization composed of Evangelical and Protestant church member organizations in the country, also adopted similar measures.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints directed missionaries assigned in the Philippines who are not native to the country to move out for temporary reassignment to another country. They were ordered to self-quarantine in their new homes for 14 days.
The Islamic community in the Philippines has also adopted measures against COVID-19. The Regional Darul Ifta' of Bangsamoro suspended all congregational prayers in the Bangsamoro region from March 19 to April 10.

Sports

Several ongoing or scheduled seasons of sports leagues in the Philippines, such as the ASEAN Basketball League, Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League, Philippine Basketball Association, National Basketball League, Philippines Football League, and Philippine Super Liga, were suspended. Upcoming sporting competitions hosted by the country, specifically the Badminton Asia Championships and the AFF Women's Championship, were postponed.
Regional qualification games involving Philippine national teams were likewise postponed. The 2021 FIBA Asia Cup qualification home match of the Philippine men's national basketball team against Thailand scheduled for February 20 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum was rescheduled, while FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation suspended the Philippine national football team's three remaining matches in the second round of qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Some games, however, pushed through but were played behind closed doors to prevent the spread of the virus among the audience. Before the suspension of the Philippine Super Liga, three matches in the PSL Grand Prix Conference on March 10 were played at an empty Filoil Flying V Centre. On March 11, local football team Ceres–Negros F.C. played their 2020 AFC Cup home match against Bali United F.C. behind closed doors at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
On April 29, 2020, the Philippine Sports Commission have announced that they will cancel all of their sporting events until December 2020 to comply with government directives that prohibit mass gathering events. This meant that the Palarong Pambansa in Marikina, the Philippine National Games, and the ASEAN Para Games were all cancelled.

Elections

The Commission on Elections has suspended the nationwide voter registration on March 10 until the end of the month due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The registration period began on January 20, 2020, and is scheduled to run until September 30, 2021. The suspension was later extended to last until the end of April. The issuance of voter's certification is also suspended until further notice. The next national elections scheduled in the Philippines are in May 2022. The plebiscite to ratify legislation that proposes the partition of Palawan into three smaller provinces scheduled for May 2020 was also delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Misinformation and hoaxes

After the initial outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, conspiracy theories, misinformation, and disinformation emerged online regarding the origin, scale, prevention, treatment, and various other aspects of the disease. Among these hoaxes include:
The DOH has advised against spreading misinformation and unverified claims concerning the pandemic.
The Philippine National Police has taken action against the spread of misinformation related to the pandemic and has warned the public that misinformation purveyors could be charged for violating Presidential Decree no. 90 for "declaring local rumor, mongering and spreading false information". In the case of misinformation circulated online, violators could be charged for violating the Cybercrime Prevention Act which has a maximum penalty of imprisonment for 12 years. The Bayanihan to Heal as One Act also punishes fake news peddlers of two months jail time or fine of up to.
According to the DOH, the cremation of the body of the first confirmed COVID-19 death in the Philippines has been hampered by the proliferation of misinformation.