Angeles City

[Matius]

i don't think the sky is falling quite yet. you notice that this is happening at the lowest of low season. give it a month or two . . . .

i've always been very pro angeles, even when changes and negative comments have been made by others. but what is happening now, is economically devastating to the bars in their ability to continue operations.

the tourist season last year was the worst in recent memory, 27 year veterans say the low season was the worst they've seen. the bars are not economically healthy. some like lewis grand who have attracted fresh investor money from off-shore make a big splash in their early days, but now with two bars closed, a third under threat with reduced customers, the realities of making a profit and paying the extortion money will sink into investors before they make continued contributions to maintain a loss making operation. for bars with continuing operations, without fresh seed money from offshore, the situation is equally bad.

most bars go to lengths to ensure their girls are 18 years or older, but it is very difficult to ensure girls with fake identification don't end up working. in most cases, the city ends up licensing these girls, so if a filipino government organization can't tell the girl is ****, how can the foreign bar owner. and generally these **** girls are 17, its not like there are a bunch of 12 year olds dancing on the stages. the 16 year olds are dancing nude on the stages of the filipino owned bars, owned by government officials. but those are not being raided.

tuesday of last week was the deadline for all the bars on fields and perimeter to begin making monthly payments to a lawyer (a shell conduit to the mayors office) based on the number of girls they had working. it was clearly stated if the bars wanted peace and freedom to operate they must make these payments. peace was defined as an end to armed raids and terrorizing the bar district. on wednesday, the day following the deadline, the raids occurred. lewis grand's group insists they made the payments, but were raided anyway. its not a coincidence the mayor is out of town, and his office's press release is in support of the raids. as part of this payment process, each bar was required to sign a code of conduct, which was approved by the mayor also. the raids at these bars began with police assets (foreigners) going in and taking a barfine. then **** girls were discovered. the mayor's letter to the bars on their closure sites the barfines as one of the reasons.

most of the girls have been released, some are still being held. those **** were transported to manila, reportedly with at least one mamasan. confirmation of what raided bars are being required to pay is not certain, but numbers in the millions of peso are being rumoured. the raids have two purposes, equally important, press for the american financial aid and extortion money from the bars.

raids have always been a part of the angeles scene, but the methods being used, the national press being given (describing the angeles strip as a central point of human trafficing), and most important the devastating impact on customer traffic, could very well kill the district.

suggest one will see the following in coming months: price increases at the bars to cover the additional costs of operation. continued raids, with high exposure, tv coverage and large numbers of people being detained. larger numbers of girls refusing to work in the bars, for a short time free lancing, eventually returning back to their provinces. bars closing in mass for periods of time, some going out of business. very difficult for customers to wade through the methods or rules imposed by the bars to protect themselves.

if one is on vacation, why put up with it. go to thailand.

[Betong]

Well, let's hope for the best!

Since none of us know where this is going, that's all we can do.

Maybe because I've seen a lot of crackdowns come and go over the years, I'm not wringing my hands yet (nor canceling my next trip). This is clearly bigger than the usual Policemen's Annual Fund-Raising Drive. But nobody has said that they want to close down the town, the way Lim did in Ermita 20 years ago. It appears to be a cleanup, which is not necessarily a terrible thing. My guess is that there will still be plenty of pussy in AC for a good long while to come. But we just have to wait and see.

[Matius]

Damn! I'm booked for AC in early October. Any advice on whether I should try to bail out. DAMN. Just paid the hotel reservation. Damn.

'Mouse

To your comment on hotel bookings, assuming you cannot change your plans, an alternative is to come to Angeles, use up your deposit (assuming it is a minimal deposit, otherwise you have been ripped off, most hotels can't charge a deposit), book a flight on Cebu Pacific (Clark to Bangkok), very cheap flights right now, and go to Pattaya or stay in Bangkok.

[Red Kilt]

Use LBC Instant Padala instead, especially if you are in the Philippines.

The money can be picked up at any LBC office.

You just need her valid name and that's all - no address needed.

I use a fake name. I have actually used D.Duck as my name in sending money to a relative who needed some urgent assistance, although of course I could have used my real name but I wanted to test the system. The LBC guy didn't bat an eyelid - just typed D. Duck on the receipt.

Pay about 60 php for the first 1000php and it gets cheaper if you send more.

Text the code number on the receipt to the recipient, and the recipient picks up the cash a few minutes later

[Sammon]

My first post with a problem. Made a very big mistake and sent twice some money via Western Union to a pregnant bargirl just to help her. I felt so pity for the girl. Now she is demanding more, otherwise she will inform my family about the previous transfers! Although I did not tell her my surname or my home address I am wondering if she could trace back these details with the Western Union people in Angeles. I am getting nervous and wonder if that would be really possible, or is there any privacy policy at Western Union I can rely on? Has anybody some information about that?

She already knows your name and address. Once you send money through western union, you get a confirmed reciept with a MTCN number. You need to send this reciept to her and she takes the copy to the western union office to claim the money. Without this reciept western union office will not give her money. You can block out your name and address in the reciept and send her. I do not know if you did that. These days once you have the name and address it is not diffuicult to find phone numer even if it is listed as private.
Having said all these Phi girls only threaten but rarely take action to harm you unless you live in Phi. She does not want Police to knock on her door in case you are connected and complain. If you are not the father of the child, you have nothing to worry about. If you are the father take care of your responsibility and do the right thing. Send money.
How can she contact your family? your e mail is checked only by you right?
Google your name and see what info comes up.
It is also possile for the girl to get your info from Western union office guy. People in Phi can be manipulated.
Honestly do not get scared and do not reply to her mail. If she does something threaten to call the police in her hometown.

[Gogobarlover]

Damn! I'm booked for AC in early October. Any advice on whether I should try to bail out. DAMN. Just paid the hotel reservation. Damn.

'Mouse

Why the sudden bail out?

[ThatGuy865]

Its bigger than just a payoff to anyone. The USA has put pressure on the PI to crack down on what they consider the [CodeWord908] sex trade. And AC is the main target.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakin...>-driveDe-Lima

MANILA, Philippines – Over 200 victims of [CodeWord908], including at least 15 minors, were rescued Wednesday night during an inter-agency operation in Angeles City in Pampanga, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said on Thursday.

De Lima said that the 268 women and minors were discovered to be working at the establishments identified as Camelot, Dirty Duck and Forbidden City.

De Lima said the owners and managers of these establishments would face charges.

“This is a breakthrough in our anti-[human] trafficking initiatives,” De Lima said.

The US State Department's 2010 report on [CodeWord908] has retained the Philippines in its “Tier 2 watchlist rank.”

The Philippines may lose some $250 million in aid from the US if it fails to improve its conviction rate against human traffickers.

The Angeles City raid was described by De Lima as a “very big operation” that was planned for several weeks.

Those involved in the operations were the National Bureau of Investigation, the Philippine National Police, the Department of Interior and Local Government, and the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking, which is headed by the Justice Department

So the pressure will be on for awhile ... they have to make example out of AC to prove they are doing something .. i think it will be more raids in the coming months ... The country needs that aid money and beside all the payoffs that will satisfy .... and one raid is not going to convince the USA that they have cleaned up their act

[Redd55]

Damn! I'm booked for AC in early October. Any advice on whether I should try to bail out. DAMN. Just paid the hotel reservation. Damn.

'Mouse

I am in the same boat, I am going the second weekend in October.

[Fast Eddie 48]

Damn! I'm booked for AC in early October. Any advice on whether I should try to bail out. DAMN. Just paid the hotel reservation. Damn.

'Mouse

To Titmouse

Which hotel did you book, I never paid upfront so many option in AC try to contact the hotel maybe they allow you to change date or cancel.

Fast Eddie 48

[Titmouse]

Damn! I'm booked for AC in early October. Any advice on whether I should try to bail out. DAMN. Just paid the hotel reservation. Damn.

'Mouse

[Robbaf]

My first post with a problem. Made a very big mistake and sent twice some money via Western Union to a pregnant bargirl just to help her. I felt so pity for the girl. Now she is demanding more, otherwise she will inform my family about the previous transfers! Although I did not tell her my surname or my home address I am wondering if she could trace back these details with the Western Union people in Angeles. I am getting nervous and wonder if that would be really possible, or is there any privacy policy at Western Union I can rely on? Has anybody some information about that?

Where did you meet her? I would delete her emails and if she emails you ignore her. She will move on fast. If she is asking for money do you really think she can afford to find you? Western Union will not give personal information out to a girl picking up money. Did you use your real name? If you Google your name what do you get?

She is playing on your pity card. Drop her and tell her good luck, find a new sucker, as she just lost any chance she had for you to help her.

Robb

[Hesekiels]

... Give it a month or two . . . .

Well, let's hope for the best!

Cheers!


Hesekiels

[Undakovabrotha]

thank you, brothers for all the valuable reports and information.

i am right now in ac. i had booked my trip just before the raids happened, and there was no time to cancel. now, in very brief and in addition to what has been reported already.

the fact is that as of september 20, camelot, forbidden city, and dirty duck are closed and sealed by the police. most of the other bars are open and serve the customers. however, there are very few customers only. it happened more than once to me that i was the only guy in a bar.

the selection of girls is not to the standard i am used to in ac. i am afraid the prettier ones fled the city, while the average and ugly ones stayed. there are some exceptions, though, and you just need to search longer for the right catch.

i have taken out only 2 so far, but there was no problem at all. the ewr is as before. perhaps this is because i am european and look so harmless...

in some bars, the girls wear street clothes, in others they are still (or again...) in bikinis. some are reluctant, though, to flash their tits or pussy - things which were "normal" in the old days. but i also found others in various bars who have no hesitation and show you all their assets.

i am not sure how this will continue and whether or not this is the beginning of a permanent change in ac. knowing some other places and countries, i doubt that this is the end of ac. too much money is involved. and where there is demand there is supply. perhaps the system will change once from the ewr to a more direct negotiation and transaction with the girl. if that would be the case, the bars were at clearly lower exposure.

and when it comes to ****, of course, this is not ok at all. when i pick one from a bar, i also want to be certain that she is no ****. otherwise, i might be in deep problems. therefore, i am also quite reluctant to pick a fl from the street, even though there are many and some of them are gorgeous. as long as i am not absolutely sure she is above 20, it is a no go.

i am also not sure whether or not there will be other raids. i guess the chances are 50:50. one one hand, the recent ones look as a very targetted action against some identified bars. on the other hand, in order to enforce "respect and law", some repeated "instruction" might be used. but this could take some time in between as well. since all the other bars are now very careful, it is not so likely that a second raid would be "successful" again.

i plan to stay for a few more days and will decide then whether or not i take my own "ewr" from ac, depending on the development of the situation. meanwhile, i keep you posted if there are any news.


wonderer


and for senior members who would like to know in which bars i had no problem with the ewr, please pm me. i don't want to post it in the forum - otherwise it might be too easy for the le.

i just talked to one of my regulars from forbidden, dirty duck, and camalot. she stated the main reason for the closures are **** girls, no proper documentation, and money. although, she states the owners have paid quite a penny so far. she states the situation is not good. she is hustling her old customers through online contact. she thinks the situation will get better after the new politicians figure out how to get paid.

this is unfortunate because the prices will rise in places like thailand and other mongering hotbeds in the asian corridor. yes, you can get a sw. but, our bareback friends, you raise the risk for stds and other unknown infectious diseases. the girls are desperate. so, they're ready to jump on anything right about now. ha!

alternatives? our american friends should look to mexico, caribbean, central and south america. our european and pacific friends should continue heading to thailand, south asia, and other great places. i think angeles city needs to sort things out. well, hell, if you have to go to the philippines. you still have cebu, manila, and other small spots. ha.

[Sammon]

I don't think the sky is falling quite yet. You notice that this is happening at the lowest of low season. Give it a month or two . . . .

My friend told me today all the bargirls and waitresses who lost their jobs because their bars closed are out on the street at night trying to make money. She told me she and her friends are doing the same thing and getting lucky. Weekdays they go into Skytrax because it is free. They do not have money to pay entry fee on weekends. She said you can see many girls aimlessly walking on the street and if you are so inclined smile and negotiate. I know it is dangerous to pick freelancer girls but with so many unemployed bargirls have no choice but to troll the streets.
My friend also said none of the other bars are hiring at the moment. Previously it was easy for her to jump from job to job. It seems all bars are reducing the number of employed girls. It maybe because there will be less number of punters because of the bad publicity or they are being carefull not to attract undue attention.
She told be AC will not be the same again because it has become prime target for various organizations in the law enforcement to try to make money. Previously the protection money was paid only to local police to look the other way. At that time bars did whatever they want including simulated sex, body painting , being naked etc. None of these things will come back in the near future. She said all customers as well as girls working there are considered informants until proven otherwise. By law they cannot refuse admittance like in Thailand if somebody looks like Philippino.
As of now everybody is still in jail.

[Betong]

RIP, good old AC. :(

I don't think the sky is falling quite yet. You notice that this is happening at the lowest of low season. Give it a month or two . . . .