Manila mayor, Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, cancelled all Chinese New Year Celebration including the Raucous dragon dance in Chinatown district in Binondo due to the threat of COVID-19.
Raucous dragon dance is one the the many traditions performed during the Chinese New Year. It is believed that performing the dragon dance scares away evil spirits and all the bad luck associated with them, and brings in good luck and wealth instead, according to Gund Kwok. But this year due to the pandemic the streets of Binondo, where the oldest China town in the world is located, will be nothing but empty.
Due to the banning of dragon dances, residents in Binondo including Sicat lost their livelihood. However even without the shows, Therry Sicat and his family are fighting to keep the Chinese tradition and their livelihood alive.
“There would have been large crowds wanting to drive away the misery and bad luck, but our street dance shows were prohibited this year”
Therry Sicat told the AP News.
Sicat along with his siblings manages one of the several dragon dance troupes in Chinatown.
In a facebook post by Arron Favila he shared photos of Therry Sicat and his siblings as they “turned their unused styrofoam, cans of paint and other materials intended for dragon costume-making to craft Chinese-style miniature lion decorative”.
Sicat sold about 200 pieces of the miniature dragons. Each are priced for about 1,500 pesos. However compared to dragon dances, Sicat’s profits from the decorative lion heads are just a fraction of the income generated by their dragon dance shows in the past. During the busy Lunar New Year season in past years, a Chinatown business establishment would pay 35,000 pesos for a session of dragon and lion dancing accompanied by drummers and merrymakers for good luck according to AP NEWS.
Therry Sicat along with residents from Tondo remains optimistic in celebration of the Chinese New Year despite the threat of COVID-19. Mr. Therry Sicat looks forward to the return of the hope-inspiring dragon dances and hearing the drums again.
“There’s no Chinese New Year, but we are all healthy. We can survive this pandemic,”
Therry Sicat
According to the Associated Press, the Philippines has reported more than 540,000 COVID-19 cases, the second highest number in Southeast Asia after Indonesia, and 11,296 deaths. It is negotiating with seven Western and Asian pharmaceutical companies to obtain COVID-19 vaccines, with the first batches expected to arrive next week.
About 70 million Filipinos are to be vaccinated with the hope that it will help Manila’s devastated economy bounce back. (AP)
Isabela D. 