Our turn to help
ABOUT A week later and the catastrophe is still unfolding, each horror compounded by a new one. The temblor and tsunami that leveled large swaths of Japan, terrible enough as they were, were only the beginning of that country’s agony. Now, one of the world’s richest, most technologically advanced nations is suddenly prostrate on its knees, dazed and overwhelmed by the seemingly unending chain of disasters that have come in the wake of that natural calamity.
Its damaged nuclear reactors are threatening to spew harmful radiation not only on Japan’s cities, but on the rest of the world, wherever winds might carry the radioactive plumes. Millions of Japanese, just days ago enjoying the comforts of a singularly affluent, well-organized society, are now bereft of food, power and water, on top of many of them having lost loved ones to the tsunami. Freezing weather has also hampered rescue and rehabilitation efforts, aggravating the misery of survivors.
As the scale of the damage sank in, it became clear this was a tragedy Japan hadn’t seen since the dark days of World War II, when it endured its own share of terrible deprivations as a vanquished aggressor in that conflict. Japan holds the grave distinction of being the only country in the world to have suffered the horrors of the atomic bomb. What a cruel trick of fate, then, that a race with deep, traumatic memories of the destructive power of nuclear technology, now already battered by heaving earth and surging sea, must also wrestle with the existential anxiety of malfunctioning nuclear reactors at its doorstep.
There should be no dilly-dallying about it. Japan needs help—and fast. Containing the meltdowns at those crippled reactors requires rapid and intensive international effort, not least because any adverse effects would certainly extend beyond Japan and to other parts of the world. Survivors also need clothing, supplies, food, toiletries—basic amenities with which to get by.
One might be stumped at the idea of lending help to Japan, a famously prosperous and self-reliant nation. How exactly do you help this economic powerhouse—so rich that, in the decades after it had risen from the rubble of war, it would become the world’s biggest foreign aid donor to struggling countries, next only to the United States?
The Philippines, while it had suffered tremendously under Japanese occupation, would become a regular recipient of that country’s largesse. Japan has been a good neighbor—usually among the first to offer assistance in times of typhoons and other calamities, while also supporting collaborative endeavors across a wide front, from infrastructure and technology to education and culture.
That generosity requires that we reciprocate now, as the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines rightly reminded the country. The CBCP is taking the lead by urging Filipinos to extend help through its charity arm, Caritas Filipinas, donations to which will be spent on food, water, shelter and for rebuilding homes and schools in Japan.
There are other ways. The Red Cross can be counted on to be among the first at the scene of the disaster. Its operations in Japan, especially in the country’s east coast which bore the brunt of the devastation, need all the help they can get at this moment. The local Red Cross would know how to forward to them any form of help coming from the Philippines.
There are some things we are good at that could also constitute assistance. Our caregivers, doctors, nurses and social workers distinguish themselves in many parts of the world for their warmth, solicitousness and sense of empathy toward their patients. If we have nothing much to offer Japan in terms of money or equipment, perhaps the innate friendliness and caring of our people would do—and might even prove of more lasting benefit to survivors.
The Aquino administration must go beyond tepid, pro-forma expressions of sympathy and support for Japan. Obviously, it must do all it can to rescue Philippine government staff and OFWs from areas affected by the disaster. Closer to home, victims of the floods in Leyte must also be cared for. But, with a disaster of this magnitude shaking a country to its foundations, surely going beyond one’s concerns is also forgivable—in fact, called for.
Japan’s resources, shared with the world through foreign aid for many years, are proving paltry against an unprecedented calamity. It’s our turn to offer help.
