Support from the international community and the guidance of a moral revolution are important aspects in the struggle for a better society. Yet every effort would need the widespread, active support of the people to be successful.

BY REYNA MAE TABBADA AND ALEXANDER MARTIN REMOLLINO
Bulatlat
Vol. VII, No. 43, December 2-8, 2007

The celebration of the heroism of Andres Bonifacio every Nov. 30 offers a glimpse of how little has changed for a country whose past and present erringly resemble each other.

For instance, the shadows of the Martial Law years have been hounding Filipinos since the Arroyo administration came into power.

And the latest reminder of this informal dictatorship is the curfew – the first since the time of Marcos – imposed last Thursday night because of the standoff in the Manila Peninsula between a group led by Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV and Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim, and government forces. The curfew may not have been lifted were it not for the protests from both activists and the general public.

However, the day also provides an opportunity to reflect and recognize the various prospects for changes that can help the Filipinos regain lost ground. Amidst the cry of rejection and the call for an encompassing overhaul of the present system comes the possibility of freedom from the quagmire the Philippines is currently in.

International pressure

The final report recently submitted by United Nations Special Rapporteur Philip Alston on the spate of extra-judicial killings in the country highlighted the international pressure that the Arroyo administration is being subjected to.

“In some parts of the country, the armed forces have followed a deliberate strategy of systematically hunting down the leaders of leftist organizations,” Alston said in his report.

“The military’s argument that the leftist activists who have been killed are the victims of a ‘purge’ by the rebels is strikingly unconvincing and can only be viewed as a cynical attempt to displace responsibility,” Alston also said.

In spite of the blatant Malacañang denial of the findings in the said report, it prompted the president to form a new task force to yet again investigate allegations that it is a state military policy and not an internal communist purge that made such a culture of impunity plausible.

For Bayan Muna (People First) Rep. Satur Ocampo, this shows the present vulnerability of the Arroyo government to international pressure.

“Ang nakikita natin na vulnerability ng gobyerno ay ang international moral, economic and political pressure” (We can see that the government’s vulnerability lies in the international moral, economic, and political pressure), surmised Ocampo in an interview with Bulatlat.

He then pointed out the various Supreme Court decisions ignored by the administration as these rendered several policies, like the proclamation of an emergency rule, unconstitutional.

Even calls for justice from the leadership of the Catholic Church fell on deaf ears, leaving international pressure as the present hope for positive outcomes in the campaign to make government answerable for its “fascist” measures, Ocampo said.

Ocampo said the international pressure is a big thorn in the side of the Arroyo regime, although he noted that the final decision for a change in governance still rests on the Filipino people.

“Hindi natin iaasa ‘yon sa international community dahil desisyon ‘yon ng mga Pilipino. Pero y’ong international condemnation sa human rights violation at corruption ay makakapag-weaken sa moral and political capacity ng gobyerno para makayanang patalsikin o ma-pressure mag-resign” (We cannot pin all our hopes on the international community since it is a decision that Filipinos have to make. But international condemnation on human rights violations and corruption will weaken the moral and political capacity of the government, thus making its ouster easier or be pressured to resign), said Ocampo.

Moral revolution

Following the series of corruption issues involving the Arroyo administration, from the ZTE broadband deal to the money-in-the-brown-paper-bag distributed inside the Palace, a number of leaders of the Catholic Bishop Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) have espoused a moral revolution.

CBCP president, Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, and Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz are among the signatories to a recently-issued statement from the representatives of various political forces calling for the rejection of “morally bankrupt government.”

Part of the statement reads thus:

“When Gloria Macapagal Arroyo took office as President in January 200l, she proclaimed that she would usher in good governance, that she would show honest leadership by example, and ensure transparency in public transactions for public welfare.

“We are now in the seventh year of that presidency – and that presidency has instead reaped pain and ruin for our nation and people.

“We are pained by the extrajudicial killings; by the forced disappearances which have heightened despite the fact that this pattern of abuse was brought to the attention of the President early on, long before the outcry of concerned international officials and organizations condemned them before the world.

“We are pained when billions of pesos are shamelessly diverted to serve personal political interests – such as the abrasive diversion in the fertilizer scam of public funds meant for farmers to ensure victory in the tainted presidential elections of 2004.

“We are pained when demonstrators are bludgeoned by police and military men misled and emboldened by an erroneous “calibrated preemptive response” policy, a distorted policy already declared illegal by the Supreme Court but still enforced in the Parliament of the Streets.

“Worse, our values have been degraded, our collective integrity blighted by the wanton examples of bribery, graft and corruption.”

In the wake of the controversial National Broadband Network (NBN) deal between the Philippine government and China’s ZTE Corp., House Speaker Jose de Veneciaq – whose son was one of the losing bidders in the rigged auction – called for a “moral revolution.” Arroyo expressed support for De Venecia’s calls for reforms.

The President and the House Speaker have since entered into a “truce.”

Though novel and timely, the call for a “moral revolution” cannot be left simply to the government as it might be turned against the people.

“Hindi malayong gamitin nila ang slogan ng moral revolution para gaguhin ang mamamayan at palabasin na ang kailangan magbago ang mamamayan. Ang kailangang magbago ay pamunuan. At dahil hindi sila magbabago ng utak, kailangan silang patalsikin” (It is possible that the slogan of a moral revolution can be used to dupe the public and make it seem like they are the ones who need to change. It is the leadership that should change. And if they don’t change their minds, they need to be overthrown), declared Dr. Carol Araullo, chairperson of the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan or New Patriotic Alliance).

The concept of a moral revolution inevitably rests on the values and morals that a society promotes, with the acts and decisions of its leaders at the forefront. Unfortunately, the supposed foundation of a moral compass is wanting.

“Ang mga patakaran ng pamunuan ay nagdudulot ng pagkabusabos ng tao. Ang problema wala naming natitirang moralidad d’yan” (The policies of the country’s current leaders result to the abuse of the people. The problem is they have no morality left), added Araullo.

Critical mass

With a number of elements within the military and the church raising their stake in the campaign of rejecting the Arroyo administration, the likelihood that other groups will follow is very high. This is reminiscent of the earlier period of the demand for Arroyo to step down, where different formations were united in a common undertaking.

Notwithstanding the setbacks that the campaign suffered, it is apparent that discontentment is still present. And its latest manifestation is the collusion of Trillanes and several blocs in the military, leading to several hours of tension in the heart of the Makati business district. However, the activity did not suffice, and the final arbiter is and still remains to be mass action – a factor that is absent in the Manila Peninsula incident.

Both Ocampo and Araullo agree that a “critical mass” is necessary for justice to prevail and make the Arroyo administration accountable for its illegal and unconstitutional actions. Support from the international community and the guidance of a moral revolution are important aspects in the struggle for a better society. Yet every effort would need the widespread, active support of the people to be successful. Bulatlat

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