Filipinos working abroad are a source of money, not reform

NINE MONTHS after Taal volcano erupted, life in the Calabarzon region of the Philippines, south of the capital, Manila, is slowly returning to normal, despite the raging pandemic. Cinders buried houses, destroyed papaya plantations and sent tens of thousands fleeing. Today, the roads have been cleared and the power is back on. Evacuees have returned to patch up homes. Local distilleries producing lambanog, a fierce spirit made from fermented palm sap, have sputtered to life. Few locals, though, are holding their breath for the promised splurge of government assistance. That leaves only one sure source of income: remittances from relatives working abroad.