Pugs in Australia accuse Pinoy of exploitation

SYDNEY – Sports fans are crying out for justice after the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s flagship current affairs TV show 7.30 recently exposed the alleged shenanigans of Filipino Dido Bohol in supposedly exploiting Filipino fighters whom he imports to use as cannon fodder in one-sided carnages and as unpaid houseboys.

Broadcast journalist Caro Meldrum-Hanna interviewed fighters Czar Amonsot, Allan Jay Tunacao and Arnel Balicuatro, Fil-Aussie community leader Dante Barcoma, Fil-Aussie boxing trainer Todd Makelin and the late boxer Roberto Ruiz’ former girlfriend Michelle Canoy in digging up content to pin Bohol against the wall. Meldrum-Hanna spoke with Bohol on the telephone and went to his Green Valley home in western Sydney but was not allowed in. Bohol vehemently denied any wrongdoing and said his dealings with Filipino fighters are above board.

But Amonsot, 27, minced no words in lashing out at Bohol. Now the Australian lightwelterweight champion, Amonsot was brought to Sydney by Bohol in 2010 and has so far posted a 2-0-2 record. He lived in Bohol’s home and slept with four others in bunk beds stacked on a concrete slab inside an unheated garage. When not training, Amonsot said he cleaned Bohol’s house and washed dishes. In his Australian debut, he claimed Bohol gave him only A$650 of his A$3,500 purse and was told he still owed A$500 to A$600 for his air fare and expenses. Amonsot said he left Bohol’s home without his passport which was taken from him upon arrival.

Tunacao, 25, used to live in Bohol’s home but like Amonsot, escaped. Since moving to Australia in 2010, he has figured in 11 bouts, including one in Fiji, and won only thrice. When Bohol paid him A$400 for a fight, he wanted out and asked for his passport back. With only A$20 in his pocket, Tunacao was to be sent back to the Philippines by Bohol. Instead of leaving, Tunacao went to the police and charged Bohol with exploitation and human trafficking.

Meldrum-Hanna said police raided Bohol’s home in October 2010 and his boxing stable was stripped of sponsorship by immigration officials a year later. But she said there are no existing records of charges against Bohol. Meldrum-Hanna said in two years, his suspension could be lifted.

Makelin, the former Australian flyweight and bantamweight champion who was knocked out by Manny Pacquiao in 1999, said he can’t wait for police to put Bohol away. “He should be stopped,” said Makelin. “If you bring back the Filipino fighters whom he took to Australia and later returned home, they’ll tell you a lot of stories.”

Barcoma said he helped Balicuatro leave Australia to go back home. Balicuatro said Bohol would force him to fight bigger opponents and hid metal pieces in his body to make the weight. “He was repulsive doing it,” said Barcoma. “He ran away from Bohol and was scared.” Balicuatro figured in six fights in Australia and never won.

A fighter who didn’t survive Bohol’s treatment was Ruiz who lost nine of his 12 bouts in Australia in 1997-99. His former girlfriend Michelle said he gradually lost his eyesight and with Bohol holding his passport, became an illegal resident. Going blind and facing deportation, Ruiz committed suicide in Sydney. “I know that he developed a lot of hemorrhages, a lot of eye problems from not being taken care of while he was in the care of a boxing trainer in Australia,” said Michelle quoted by Meldrum-Hanna. After Ruiz died, Michelle complained to the immigration authorities. “I was only 20,” she said. “Nothing happened about it. Never found anything else about it which is pretty disgusting.”

Amonsot lost a 12-round decision to Michael Katsidis in Las Vegas in 2007 and took a two-year rest after doctors found a blood clot in his brain. He was cleared to resume fighting in 2009 and has since compiled a 5-0-2 record, with 3 KOs. Amonsot used to belong to the ALA stable.

Today, Amonsot speaks with a slight Australian slang accent in his broken English. He said Bohol promised a life of riches and success in Australia. “If I came here, I can make money but when I don’t have any fight, I can get a job or something, just to make money and send money to my family in the Philippines,” said Amonsot.

Tunacao said he lived under sub-human conditions in Bohol’s home and was fed chicken bones with sauce over rice. “Early in the morning, I always got nose bleeds because it was too cold,” said Tunacao. “When they cooked, they took out the good parts and just gave us the bones and that’s what we would eat.”

Meldrum-Hanna said Bohol has brought over about 20 fighters in the last 10 years with “a disturbing pattern of losses and knockouts.” She quoted Australian fans noting that Filipino fighters were slaughtered in one-sided massacres like Rey Olarte who has posted a 7-14-5 record since transplanting to Australia in 2008. Olarte lost to Michael Zerafa on points in Victoria last June. He was knocked out by Billy Dib in three rounds in 2008. Another Filipino fighter Rolando Gerongco was a known tomato can in Australian rings with a 1-19 record since migrating in 2004. He retired from boxing after bowing to Lance Gostelow via a first round knockout in Queensland in 2007. Meldrum-Hanna said Filipino fighters “disappear” after ending their boxing careers on a low note in Australia.