Is the Philippines a safe place?

why are you asking when you already said no where was safe?

Because I want to know what other people think. From the Department of Tourism postcard types who paint a rosy picture to the honest harsh reality types.

I think so, mind you I live on Mindanao and have for 5 years, I have never been afraid for my life or bodily harm happening to me. It is a relaxed kind of life here. I live in a medium-sized town.

I can say I have been coming to the Philippines for about 7 years. I have lived in Pateros,Cavite and Taguig,never felt unsafe, maybe because I am an ex police officer/soldier. I try to keep track of where I am and people around me. I do not look for trouble and attempt to avoid areas which may give rise to trouble. I am not flashy or flash lots of cash ,wear brand names. I am normally  in tee shirts and shorts most of the time except when going to the U.S. Embassy. I feel that anyplace on earth is safe,except known war zones and then you should know what can happen.
If you stay aware of the places you are visiting. I do not really go out late at night unless it is with some other active Filipino LEO's. I believe like any place, you create your own areas of safety,by being always focused on where and who is around you.

Good answer. Be aware and take necessary precautions.

i fully agree with your comments - to mind ones own business and stay out of confrontations is the way to behave - in 17 years of living in makati i have never felt any tension and not seen any trouble other than kids trying to be pickpockets - and i frequently walk home from a club late at night - for me the problem of living in makati, philippines, is not safety, its the traffic

Is The US or Europe safe? In Phil you just have to be careful and follow common sense and your instincts. Avoid carrying alot of money and wearing fancy jewelry

I've lived in Manila for 12 years and I've travelled around the country extensively to some of the remotest islands. So far no trouble. I have avoided the southern islands because of Abu Sayyef and other militant groups, though I know some areas are safe such as Davao. I'd be more worried about living in London (where I had my car broken into twice and been threatened a couple of times).

If you are living in the boondocks though or an apartment with no security, you should take precautions. I do have friends who have been burgled.

Filipinos are usually courteous to expats provided you treat them with respect. Don't yell at the locals however frustrated you might be by the service (it won't help anyway - things work differently in the Philippines.  Bacon and eggs will always be cold and your car will never work quite the same after you've taken it to a cheap mechanic).

I cannot speak to the safety concerns in any area of the Philippines aside from our area near Tagaytay, though I can say that my wife and I feel safe and comfortable in our little corner of the Philippines, with the recent bombings having made little difference in our area aside from an increase in police check points for a few days, though while out yesterday around the area taking care of business and those checkpoints are now gone.

With regard to the recent bombings and civil unrest in areas of Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago Most media outlets  focus on what will bring them viewers and readers with a little embellishment at times to make it seem worse than it is.
That is not to say the the extremists issues are not serious or dangerous, they are, but we avoid that part of the country, we prefer not to tempt fate.

We live in southern Luzon about 10 minutes or so from Tagaytay and the area for us is peaceful and quiet with our neighborhood having had only issues with a couple of belligerent drunks in the last 3 years or so that were handled by the barangay officials.

I believe a little common sense  helps in keeping you safe and the majority of the problems, aside from the rebels, seems to be in high crime areas around nightclubs, strip bars, etc. When the sun goes down the vermin come out of their holes looking for victims and that seems to be the way of the world in most places. Your choice of lifestyles and care in choosing your friends can help or hurt you when it comes to safety.

Some folks have spoke about having bars on your windows and armed security guards at nearly every business. With regard to the security guards I believe that because of a lack of police patrols in any given area and slow response times that that is compensated for by the business hiring their own guards, a good idea and no doubt a deterrent to the average thief.  With regard to window grills. They seem common in many parts of the world and especially in a country like the PI where poverty is widespread and some folks may be tempted by that nice home with the new car in the driveway. The thief isn't going to rob the simple home because he know they have nothing of any real value to steal and sell for money or drugs, While the nice home with the new car will no doubt yield a bounty that is worth the risk.  So grates on the windows and a fence around the home seems to be common sense and offers a little more safety and a deterrent to the average thief.

We find our area to be safe and friendly and the neighbors and barangay officials definitely look out for each other.  When and if we no longer feel safe, we will leave, though a this point in time considering the state of the world it may be hard to find any place that you can call "safe".