Sometimes you have to do what must be done

This column will surely receive the ire, insults, and complaints of human rights advocates, but I would not be honest with myself if I did not feel that certain actions and plans got the best results. I find myself standing behind men who had to make the tough calls and who are, as a result, getting the heat from human rights groups. I am talking about two of our country’s deserving city executives — Manila’s former Mayor Alfredo Lim and Davao City’s Mayor Rodrigo Duterte who have publicly demonstrated what it takes to get the job done.

Both of these men are as tough as nails and they sometimes have to make the hard decisions, but they are not afraid to do what it takes. Now I know there are some people who may find them harsh, or even brutal, but I am not one of them. I understand the odds they face and I know that sometimes in order to truly get through to those who would do us harm, you must be willing to do harm to them as well. I can’t help but feel sometimes that their brand of “cowboy justice” is exactly what we need in our convoluted society where criminals are sometimes afforded more protection than the victims they terrorize.

Admittedly, there are many times when the media plays a key role in highlighting the bad side of any newsworthy event, or sensationalizing only one side of the story. Having been in the media for more than half of my life I am well aware of the guilt the media must shoulder for sometimes only showing the shocking side of a news event. It seems unfair, to be sure, but it’s what sells papers. People more often than not, love to read about the misfortunes of others and then they rush straight to judgment without even knowing all the sides of the story.

Lim and Duterte have surely gotten their share of negative publicity. Much of it claiming they are roaming their cities like gun-toting sheriffs ready to shot the bad guys. While it is true that they are ready to take the hard steps required to get criminals off the streets, it is also unfair to brand them as brazen just because they know what it sometimes takes to make a dent in the criminal community. It reminds me of the Hollywood film “Dirty Harry” played, of course, by Clint Eastwood. He played a tough as nails law official who often goes against his superiors but succeeds in ridding the society of scum through his fair albeit scarier form of strict justice. One thing is sure: criminals were scared of him where they were usually not afraid of law enforcement.

The same can be said for Mayor Duterte who issued a “shoot-to-kill” order for at least 10 suspected kidnappers who were said to be hiding in his city. While many clamored that his order was immoral such as the Commission on Human Rights, I can’t help but feel that it was just the right thing to do. After all, he was ordering his officers to go straight into harm’s way it only seems fair to give them the authority to protect themselves while they do it. After all, it was not as if he was asking them to go around shooting people at random, it was only an order to give them authority to shoot when a suspect posed a serious threat. And I believe a suspect coming at them with guns and ammo a serious threat indeed.

The Mayor should also be lauded for standing behind his beliefs. When the complaints came in about the morality of his order, he did not back down and have his officers shoulder the blame while he straddled the fence and tried to please both sides. He stood by his decision and told everyone that he would stand behind his men and, if need be, they would go to prison together. That is a true leader. He definitely spoke the truth when he was quoted saying: “people expect too much from the police. An officer is about to lose his life in a face off with a kidnapping suspect

shooting at him and yet you expect equanimity?”

He stands by his decision that sometimes force is necessary when getting things done. His ultimate goal is putting criminals in jail and keeping people safe. And many times criminals are not willing to go quietly. What is a police officer to do in situations like these? Allow himself to be overpowered by the suspect or fight back? Duterte believes that fight back is the only option. As he said, he would much rather see dead criminals in the streets than dead innocent civilians.

I definitely see his point. And before we judge I think we would all benefit from learning how the victims feel. Imagine being the victim of a crime and people protesting for the rights of the criminals who victimized you. While there are healthy debates about the morality of the death penalty, we can’t help argue about the effective way that it strikes fear into the hearts of those who want to do wrong. Maybe this kind of fear is just what we need to prevent more and more crimes from happening.

Take the Ampatuan case for example. It was a massacre the likes of which we have never seen and hopefully never will see again and yet three years have passed and nothing has happened. Witnesses have died or gone missing and yet the criminals are still not being brought to justice. What message does this send to those who would consider breaking the law? That they can do what they want and never have to pay for their actions? This is most definitely the wrong message to send unless we are okay living in a society where criminals are not afraid of the law.

While I applaud the legal system in theory, in practice it is just fostering a society wherein criminals can get off easily and not have to pay the price for their actions. The wheels of justice — the justice human rights activists claim is the only option — move ever so slowly and many cases just end up getting swept under the rug or forgotten. This can’t be how we want our justice system to work.

It may seem harsh, but sometimes I think the Chinese are on to something when I see how harshly they deal with those who break the law. They punish criminals as severely as needed and because of that, many Chinese citizens and visitors to China know to be very careful and watchful of their actions lest they end up paying the ultimate price. The death penalty is a very difficult sentence to give and even more so to carry out, but in some instances, the punishment just fits the crime. We weep for the criminals who pay this price, but we have to ask ourselves, how many times did they make others weep with their actions? How many lives have they destroyed or taken in order for them to get to that point? It seems cruel but sometimes it truly works when you take an “eye for eye”. While some have to pay the price, the benefit is ultimately for the many.