Dolores Bernabe is a woman of the sea. For years, her heart floated over fishnets, boats, and improvised paddles all of which she built and created with her own hands.
Also known as “Ka Dolor,” she and her husband Paeng, make a living and a life from the sea.
The couple built their own two-seater bangka out of plywood and scrap materials. Every day, they sail over the waters of Navotas the country’s fishing capital reaching as far as Bataan, Bulacan, and wherever the waves take them.
In the Philippines, it is rare to see the likes of Dolor since the country’s fishing industry is dominated by men (90.9%), according to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
Jobs in the fishing sector are deemed too difficult for women, but Dolor, alongside other Filipina fisherfolk, is breaking stereotypes.
Her love affair with fishing began in the summer of 1965, during a visit to relatives in Bicol. Back then, she was a 19-year-old lass. She met Paeng, then a 22-year-old fisherman. After a month-long courtship, the love-struck duo left Bicol and returned to Dolor’s hometown of Tondo, where she married Paeng and the sea.
They moved to Tanza where Paeng fished, while Dolor sold fish. Later on, she decided to do more than selling; she wanted to catch the fish herself.
Despite being told that women are unfit for the job, Dolor did not give up. Kung ano kaya ng asawa ko, kaya ko rin. Nagkakarera pa nga kami eh, she quipped. (What he can do, I can do too. We would even race.)
rappler.com, 2014