There are only two things I hate about the
Sinulog period: the congested traffic of Cebu City and mass-balloon release.
As a kid, I had this book on dolphins and
whales—a picture/activity/early reading book which I got from an aunt in Australia. It
was one of my favorite books at that time—I believe—that is why it
succumbed to its ill usage or overuse by me. From that book—I really can’t
remember the title—I first read about the hazards posed by the released
balloons to wildlife.
Although the sight of hundreds of balloons in
the air is fascinating, we should take note that these balloons don’t just
disappear—they end up as litter and marine debris. Natural rubber is
biodegradable but it takes months or a year to decompose. A fallen deflated balloon from balloon
releases can be ingested by an animal or entangle an animal. The string or ribbon
from the balloon can entangle birds—preventing movement and flight and starving
the animal. Deflated balloons pose a greater threat to marine animals. Whales,
dolphins and turtles may mistake them for prey—squid and jellyfish—and ingest
them.
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A bird with a tangled beak.
Photo courtesy of The Ocean Conservancy |
Of course, there are other occasions where
balloons are allowed to float into the sky but the Sinulog period is a ‘mass-release’
machinery. On a regular day, balloons are a ubiquity in the immediate vicinity of churches but during the Sinulog period balloons and balloon vendors can be found as far as the docks in Mandaue and in the routes of the Translacion and the Sinulog Grand Parade. Balloon release is a common activity during the 11-day Sinulog period.
Devotees do them at least once in one or more days starting from the first day
of the novena to the day of Sinulog Grand Parade. Devotees write their prayers
in paper and attach them to the balloons which they then release in the air. In
other times, a balloon is released—without the paper—as a sign of prayer,
devotion or celebration. In the last three days of the Sinulog more and more
balloons are released—during the Translacion, the parade at sea and on the
feast day of the Santo Niño de Cebu. Sadly, a lot of these people who release balloons in
the air are not aware of the balloon’s harmful effects. I’m not a spoilsport
and I admire the Cebuano’s devotion but I think we can do away with the
balloons. God is a know-it-all, right?
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| Balloons dot the sky. |
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| Balloons get tangled in the power lines. |
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Balloon releases are illegal in several
states in the
US.
In the
United Kingdom,
organizations like the
Marine Conversation Society and the
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals oppose balloon releases. Sadly, in Cebu or in
the Philippines there are no laws that regulate the release of balloons—if
there is or if there will be such a law, the government would have to work hard
to implement the policies since most of the laws here in the Philippines are
not properly enforced.
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| Balloon flowers |
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| Balloon rosary |
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Earlier today, I saw one of those overused more-fun-in-the-Philippines memes. The internet photo meme was an image of a balloon release in
Basilica Minore del Sto. Nino and it read
Balloons in the Air: More Fun in the Philippines. Yes, balloons-in-the-air is an impressive sight but, at the same time, it is a harbinger. Balloons kill.
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