Hunger is most deadly and widespread sickness

Fellow columnist and tokayo Alejandro Lichauco has called the nation’s attention to the fact that hunger – not corruption and crime – is the root of our national crisis.

We just want to add that we are not alone. Hunger is a world-wide problem.

Harry S. Truman noted that "More than half of the people of the world are living in conditions approaching misery." For the first time in history humanity possesses the knowledge and skill to relieve the suffering of these people." Yet we hear of the campaign against world terrorism. But the United Nations has yet to adopt a program, first, to alleviate, then to eliminate world hunger.

Josue de Castro also noted that "After some hundred of thousands of years of striving, two-thirds of the world’s population live in a permanent state of hunger". There is not a single country in South America in which the population is free of hunger.

In the Philippines one of our problems is that the population is growing much, much faster than the economy. Again Josue de Castro noted that "Overpopulation does not cause starvation" starvation is the cause of overpopulation" Consider that the three countries of the world that are held to be absolutely overpopulated are China, India and Japan; and it appears that the more these places are assailed by starvation the more the number of their inhabitants grows."

And he concludes saying, "Hunger is the most degrading of adversities; it demonstrates the inability of existing culture to satisfy the most fundamental human necessities, and it always implies society’s guilt."

To us the ultimate local symbol of this guilt and neglect are the street children. In about three weeks, part of our Christmas celebrations will be the commemoration of the Feast of the Holy Innocents, the male children under two years of age that Herod ordered to be killed in Bethlehem in his attempt to insure that the child Jesus would be slain.

Our street children are the contemporary Holy Innocents. Not only do they have no homes; they don’t know if they will have anything to eat. During the Spanish Regime, the Feast of the Holy Innocents was celebrated like April Fools. We have suggested to two Metro Manila mayors that it be celebrated as Street Children Day. We hope they initiate it this year.

We cited the fact that President Harry S. Truman was aware of the worldwide hunger problem. Another American president, Dwight D. Eisenhower went as far as saying that we don‚t understand the world situation if we do not take drastic measures to eliminate hunger. He said, "Our own conception of democracy, no matter how earnestly venerated by ourselves, is of little importance to men whose immediate concern is the preservation of physical life. With famine and starvation the lot of half the world, food is of far more current importance to them than are political ideas. The degree of our sacrifice in feeding the hungry is the degree of our understanding of the world today."

We are going to have a presidential election soon. So far, we have not heard any candidate express his opinion or program concerning the hunger situation in the Philippines.