Where am I?

Huh!  This feels different! It feels so peaceful, so comfortable. How could this be? I begin to feel and listen to my surroundings. Surely, I am not lying on the ground with only a thin sheet of water resistant blanket between me and the hardened soil. I do not feel the mountain breeze that relentlessly sweeps my face all night, almost every night. I don’t hear the nocturnal howl of animals mating in the distance or the riotous chorus of crickets that have already become music to my ears. It feels so quiet, so tranquil, and so bizarre. But why do I feel so disturbed? It feels so eerie and disquieting.

Where am I?

I could not even open my eyes. I feel a blinding light shutting me out. Oh wait! Why is it so bright? It must be night time as I just woke up. It could not be dawn yet because I do not hear the usual clatter of pans and pots or someone fixing the fire to brew the morning coffee.  I hope no was playing pranks on me with their flashlights. But flashlights are not this bright. This one is just way too bright.

This feels so unsettling. I have to open my eyes. But I need someone to remove this bright light in front of me. I groped for my back pack. It was not there! Alarmed, my hand went straight for my gun. It was not there! What the hell! Where am I and where are my things? My eyes fluttered open in terror and panic as I hastily got out of bed.  

I was shocked! Stupefied! Confused!

I am in a room. I just knew it is a room. But there are no walls. I don’t even see the floors but I just know there are floors. And the light – where is it coming from? It is just so bright, but I do not see any sun. Not even any electric bulbs or lamps or flash lights. Panic gripped my core as I frantically turned around looking for any exit – or anything or anyone to tell me where I am. I felt the knots in my midsection as it recoiled in terror.

The knot – the pain – in my midsection! Pain! Pain! I remember feeling it! My chest! My chest was bleeding! But where is my wound? It is not there! And there is no more pain.

It was dark. I was with other people. They were with me. We were comrades. We were blood brothers. I could hear my breathing as we zigzagged along the unpaved mountain tracks of the Cordilleras, feeling the weight of our bags in our backs and the guns strapped to our shoulders. Then boom! And there was panic! There was shouting! There was running! There were gun shots; there were bombs; more shouting and more running and then the pain, in my chest – and someone dragging me. I can feel my feet scraping the ground and the grass whipping my torso. But the pain? It's real! And I feel it to the bottom of my soul.

 Then silence, peace, calmness, and this light, this bed, this room with no walls and no floors. Please tell me, this is not where I think I am. # (5 September 2014)

Why? You?

Why has death taken You?
You who so selflessly laid his life to free the peasants from the bondage of the soil.
You who carried the burden of life so that other may someday, somehow, live in demcoracy.
You who cried so that others may laugh.
You who weathered the storm so that the winds will not sweep out the people.
You whose smile could sink a nation but used it instead to try to free it.
Why? You?

(for A.J., 5 Sept. 2014)

A call for reason and conscience - Impeachment process not a game of thrones

In the cacophony of the discourse over the impeachment of President BS Aquino, the premise is important: it is the fundamental law of the land – the Constitution – which gave the people the power to impeach so they can directly confront and demand accountability from officials in the highest positions of power.

But a sword wields no power unless the hand that holds it has courage. We must find this fortitude among ourselves, in the midst of remarks and questions that grate on the ears – and in human reason.

NUPL Lawyers for impeachment complainants. Photo by Mon Ramirez

How disturbing is it to say that impeachment is simply a numbers game and it is "wishful thinking" to pursue it? If taken as crude as that, it would render such power illusory and let wage a tyranny of the wrong kind of majority.

To put it the other way around, would it be acceptable if haughty lawmakers through sheer number made laws or refuse to repeal laws that legalized plunder, cannibalism, massacre, torture, rape and bestiality?

How jaded and disillusioning it is to fear impeachment over reservations on Aquino’s replacement. This is not purely a "choice between two evils",  or a game of thrones, it’s an issue of accountability and public interest.

How glum and self-defeating it is to say that fatigue is a reason to discontinue fighting and seeking changes for good and not for worse. Why, when those who are in power untiringly pillage and concoct new ways to pillage the public coffers? 

It is precisely in these times of turmoil that we need to match point for point and measure for measure the tirelessness,  capacity, and cunning of those who do evil to do  evil.

How spiteful is it to think that all this is a bleary, divisive nuisance that pointlessly stirs the pot. What kind is this status quo, where the poor become poorer, the rich become richer and fewer; who benefits from this kind of life?

Who really upturns lives and disturbs the peace – those who in big ways commit acts of unbridled corruption and foster feudal patronage everyday, or those who seek the impeachment, for the first time in four agonizing years, of the President who knows no wrong?

How obtuse and misleading,too, to claim that the impeachment cannot be entertained while the DAP decision is not final. Impeachment is a proceeding in a class of its own,and its grounds,cause of action, standards and reliefs are distinct from any pending court case.

Where no judge or justice can take Aquino from Malacanang, away from the broad powers that he has disingenuously exploited, there is the impeachment court that may bring swift and compelling relief. One top leader who pretends to be Mr. Clean out of office is one step in the right direction.

We call on the so-called representatives of the people to confront the real question – not the question of whether they are yellow or not: Does the complaint present serious and credible charges worth taking a serious and deep examination? Are the allegations, facts  and conclusions indeed supported by data, records, and circumstances? Are there constitutional, legal, and factual bases for the grievance?

Will it be outstandingly silly to just dismiss it outright, without insulting one’s own conscience and losing self respect as a rational being? Are they willing to ignore the sincere clamor and be insensitive to the discontent of their constituents?

To be unthinking, critical and cynical and even adopt the view that this is just a numbers game, that it is divisive and tiring is to fall into the deathly trap laid down by jaundiced defenders that democratic processes and rights like pursuing impeachment of those abusing and exploiting the public trust is not worth fighting for. 

The challenge, nay, our duty, is to debunk these views and not merely parrot them. We must help enlighten and educate those being misled  and to help galvanize and snowball public opinion towards truth and accountability, rather than being unwitting and blind followers of the Emperor.

This is a time for us, the Filipino people, to rise intelligently above the din and act decisively on our collective desire for good government, a chance to truly go on the righteous path.

We at the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers took a "leap of faith" in agreeing to assist the complainants in filing and pursuing the impeachment complaint amidst the odds. We do not and will not regret it.

Because we believe we make history or we can potentially turn the tide against those who cling to power no matter the cost. We have had not a few fine examples how popular struggles can be a game changer at the right juncture of quick turn of events. #

Reference:

Edre U. Olalia

NUPL Secretary General

09175113373

The Philippines is at War!

Grabbed from Yahoo

It's the intent, not the mistake. This international athlete, showing his gesture of support to the victims of typhoon Yolanda runs out waving the Philippine flag not knowing that it was upside down - a symbol that the Philippines is at war. Had this been done in ordinary times, the Filipinos could have had a feast pouncing on him. However, in these desperate times, the Filipinos are even touched by the gesture. On hindsight, i think the Philippines is indeed at war - at war against environmental destruction, poverty and at war against corruption by government officials. Let the flag fly with the red on the upper side until government corruption, poverty and environmental destruction cease in this country!

5 Things I miss about Sri Lanka

Egg hoppers

1.   Regular walking exercises. Since I was eating a lot of rice because of the good rice quality that Sri Lanka has, I had to offset the intake of carbohydrates with some exercise walking that I regularly did – walking to the office instead of taking the trishaw and be caught in traffic jams, walking to and around independence monument and walking to and along the Galle Face Green. The walking exercises kept my weight on check.

2.   Food and drinks! I especially miss biryani, kottu and egg hoppers. They are to me what appealed most in the otherwise curry-filled Sri Lankan cuisine. The Elephant ginger beer is unique, and I drank a lot while I was there.

Mt. Lavinia beach

3.   Travels around Sri Lanka. It is a small country but it has a lot to offer to the adventurous traveller – whether you want to see some mountains or beaches, artifacts or temples, culture or relaxation. What’s more, since it is a small country, you can actually travel around the whole country in just one week.

4.   Friends. I have very good friends and gained more friends in the short time that I stayed there. And they are one lovely and sweet bunch of people.

Water falls in the tea mountains

5.    Holidays. Sri Lanka has a lot of holidays, so one has a lot of vacations from work or university. Every month there is always a holiday. Unfortunately for those who use their holidays to party and drink, it is forbidden to sell alcohol during holidays. One can only drink and relax in the privacy of their homes during these holidays. For those who love sweets – these are abundant during some of the holidays like Vesak.

I am an Igorot

Gone were the days when Igorots[1] were unjustly  looked down and wrongly perceived as filthy barbaric savages with tails like that of monkeys. The discriminatory perception of Igorots before even resulted to an attitude of disclaiming any relation or affiliation to the Igorot people. Today, much have changed as Igorots find their niche all over the social, political and economic spectrum and the awareness of the mainstream population have been considerably enlightened.

Still, a lot of people in the Philippines have little knowledge about the Igorots or where they come from, their culture and traditions. One of the usual questions when Filipinos meet other people, aside from asking their names, is “taga-saan probinsiya ka?” (which province do you come from?) When I respond with, “Mountain Province”, I get a lot of perplexed facial reactions that can only mean they do not know where the hell that place is; and when I say, “Sagada”, I get a lot of “ahhhs” and “ohhhs” for those who have been to Sagada or who have heard about it and have it on their list of places to visit. Still, a lot of Filipinos do not also know where Sagada is. But if one mentions Baguio, people respond with so much familiarity. This may be attributed to the fact that it has always been a famous destination since the American colonization, and has been so popularly promoted especially when it was referred to as the “Summer Capital” of the Philippines. The familiarity of almost all Filipinos with Baguio City inclined me to just respond with “Baguio City” when people asked me where I come from. Not only that I am legitimately a resident of Baguio City, but more because I wanted to avoid the exasperation of having to deal with people who did not know their geography.

But as I went into the advocacy of indigenous peoples’ rights, I told myself that if I, an Igorot,  was not an instrument in raising the awareness of people about my place and my culture, then who do I expect to do it for me? How would the non-Igorots know about the Igorot people if I did not tell them about it? Since then, every time I get the question, “taga saan ka?”, I always responded with “Sagada, Mt. Province” and sometimes, I would add, “the Cordilleras”. I did not mind if I had to answer more questions of the curious few or the inquisitive bunch or explain that this place is located north of the Philippines to which I get another question – “malapit sa Baguio?” and I would always say, it is six hours away by public bus from Baguio, 4-5 hours if by private car. And guess what? It always does not stop there. The next question would always be, “ahh, so ilocana[2] ka?” (Oh so you are an Ilocana?) To which I would always respond – “No, I am not an Ilocana but I know how to speak the Ilocano[3] language. I am an Igorot.”

---

[1] The word Igorot, according to the late William Henry Scott, comes from the Spanish words “y” (from the/dwellers of the) “golote” (mountains).

[2] Feminine term for people from the Ilocos Region, North Western part of the Philippines.

[3] Ilocano is the lingua franca in the northern Philippines.

Jaded!

Pen doodles
   Eyes pall
      shoulders slouch

grabbed from google

               room blurs......

(Manja, Sept. 18, 2013)