Reality Check

The Human Rights Commissioner was aghast. She had just seen footage of our soldiers storming a provincial capitol, and pointing big, scary-looking guns at innocent civilians. She could not understand how military men could threaten to evict a governor, and in such a rough manner at that!

Her thoughts? She voiced out her serious concern that if these soldiers could do it against an elected official of the land, and in full view of the public and the media, then for sure, they could do the same with more ease in the mountains and the countryside, where no media watched and only peasants to be dealt with.

My thoughts? Well, hello there Madame commissioner, exactly where have you been? I have this strange feeling that you've been safely ensconced in the warm comforts of the capital. Perhaps the political realities of this banana republic hasn't hit home yet, despite the length of time you've been sitting in that post.

This is a country where town mayors have armed bodyguards, and political figures get gunned down while attending weddings. This is a country where "elected officials," like the governor in question, will barricade themselves in their offices despite an order from a court to step down. This is a country where a court has to order the military to enforce their other orders, because elected officials don't want to submit to an unfavorable ruling from the court, at least, not while the very last resort (meaning the Supreme Court five or ten years down the road, and when their term has expired and the whole issue is moot) has been exhausted.

Now the naiveté displayed by our dear commissioner is a bit worrying, considering she's supposed to be out there defending our rights from encroachment (and I'm just talking about the political rights here, and not the whole caboodle that includes social and economic fundamentals). If she doesn't know what's out there, I mean, what does she do, exactly?

Attend international conferences in air-conditioned environments at taxpayer's expense? Sign lots of beautifully drafted language printed on expensive paper with her foreign counterparts, and title them non-binding manifestos? Sip cocktails at press conferences and murmur distressed comments sotto voce?

Just wondering. I, of course, do not have any specific proof she's really doing all these things. But it makes one wonder how a person we've vested with the responsibility of watching our backs doesn't seem to have a grip on harsh reality.

Does she get the creeps, like I do, when inside a small town? I mean, sometimes you meet local officials, and they'll be the sweetest things. Very gallant, very caring, and eager to show you what they have. Shoot, they'll even open their homes and feed you from their table. Other towns, on the other hand, you get this real itchy feeling while talking to politicos, and you just want to hop into your car and keep on driving 'til you're safely out of their jurisdiction.

I suggest, Madame Commissioner, that you explore these thoughts you've already voiced. Take a look at what's happening in the countryside, and on the small islands. Check out what the men and women in power do to their constituents, or worse, casual visitors they don't like the faces of. Try to live in a small town where tough talk, hired goons, and serious firepower are the faces of peace and order.

Then maybe, you might try figuring out the psychology of Filipinos, and come up with a solution (or lots of them) to these stories of human rights violations that consistently float around certain political figures. (Sorry I can't help you with a brain wave just yet - but then again, you're the one sitting in that post.)

While not exactly forgiving the brutality of the soldiers involved in the eviction of the governor, it might make it easier to understand why force manifested itself. Why violence was expected from the quarters of the 'elected official,' and why the soldiers had to be armed.

At the end of the day, those unarmed civilians that were on the other side of the rifles that day do need your protection. But what a pleasant surprise it would be if you went beyond this incident, and into the everyday truth experienced by marginalized Filipinos.