The Freedom Grandstand Children

Written by Sheril A. Bustaman

Photographs by Melissa Chia

*Names in this article have been changed to protect identities of minors. 

     The atmosphere was loud. The humid night sky loomed above everyone present in the Freedom Grandstand. As people attempted to secure the best seats, in ran eight little boys. Skinny yet full of life, these boys ran around the grand stand, weaving their way through throngs of people and causing a kind of ruckus only young boys could cause. Out of the blue, one of these young boys decided to sit in the small space I had left vacant for a friend of mine. Petite in a NYC cap too big for his head and shades (despite it being eight o clock at night) the boy sat silently. The other boys then came up to him, tugging at his arm screaming what I assumed were invitations for him to join them, but he just shook his head, indicating he did not want to move. With the help of Aisa (one of the student guides), I decided to attempt to have a conversation with him, hence unearthing the story of the Freedom Grandstand Children.

Attempting conversation with an 8-year old.

    8-year old Jose lives in the neighboring area with his father and his grandmother. He only remembers his mother from pictures his father has shown him. His father works for a landscaping company and Jose sometimes helps him on weekends. This was Jose’s first time at the Dinagyang Festival dance rehearsal, but he was no stranger to the Freedom Grandstand. Together with his 13-year old cousin Ferdinand, Jose joins the other six boys every time there is an event at the Freedom Grandstand. The boys will usually hang around for the event, and then they will park themselves within a safe distance of a nearby fight club and watch a fight. 

  The Freedom Grandstand Children, as I now call this group of boys, are part of Iloilo’s charm. Commonly referred to as ‘street children’, these children roam the streets by themselves starting as young as the age of 6. Being ‘street children’ does not necessarily mean that they are homeless or uneducated. Jose and his friends all attend A Montes public school where Ferdinand will soon graduate. The boys come from the same area and also live nearby each other, hence the strong bond of brotherhood between them.

The leader of the Freedom Grandstand Children flipping off the camera.

    The Freedom Grandstand Children presented to me a great contrast to the Malaysian children back home. The mixture of crudeness and innocence was something that really struck me about these children. Watching them flip off my friend Kushmin as a pose for her camera shot and teach my friend Jon a perverted Filipino tune (as explained to me by the student guide Aisa) made me wonder what these children have been exposed to and what boundaries their parents or elders have set for them in their household. It is not as if there aren’t children in Malaysia who wouldn’t use the F word on their teachers, but I can bet you my bottom dollar that they would suffer some serious repercussions for it. Children in Malaysia are also generally definitely not allowed to roam around freely during a public event without any adult supervision at night. 

Jon unknowingly learning a perverted Filipino song.

     Observing these children despite not knowing their language invoked different feelings in me. I felt sad for our Malaysian children, so privileged and oblivious to the harsh truths of the world, and yet also for the Freedom Grandstand children who seemed to have been exposed too much of the world for their age. I ponder on whether or not parents are able to strike a balance between the two so that children of this generation can have a somewhat balanced and wholesome childhood, and if circumstances actually allow for all children to have a wholesome childhood, idealistic as it may sound. The Freedom Grandstand Children left me with many questions unanswered, and so the journey continues. 

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As Sheril begins her second year in Communications & Int Studies at Monash, she will also strive to curb her constant appetite for food and focus more on her appetite for life.