Leap of faith
The “Emir” would have chosen joining his confreres last Thursday in a “leap of faith.” Instead, he was thousands of miles away from the country, on the other side of the globe, telling anybody who cared to listen about his “mission.”
“Probably, it was a destined occasion that I am here instead of being with my fellow church workers in Manila,” UCCP Bishop Emeritus Constante Claro tells a group of human rights defenders—mostly coming from Europe, Latin America and the United States—on the sidelines of the First European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR) conference organized by the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium last week.
“I am here so that I can tell you, the world community, about our efforts to end the state of impunity in our country,” says the Bishop, fondly called “Emir” by colleagues, short for his “Emeritus” title with one of the biggest Protestant churches in the country.
And, while he told his very eager listeners of the still incessant human rights violations even under the new Aquino administration, he emphasized the move of his church to sue former President and now Pampanga representative Gloria Arroyo for rights abuses during her hated presidency. “The P5-million damage suit is our way of seeking justice, of making the Arroyo administration accountable, albeit, even symbolically,” he cautiously says, acknowledging though the “odds” they faced “under a justice system that sadly favors more the powerful, even the disgraced ones.”
The UCCP is one the most “harassed and victimized” church members of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP) because of its strong stand against human rights abuses and corruption, as well as the active participation of its flock organizations that “advocate genuine and meaningful change in Philippine society.” Many UCCP members were among the more than a thousand victims of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances during the almost decade-long bloody reign of the Arroyo administration.
The Arroyo damage suit was, indeed, a courageous collective act of the UCCP, following similar bold initiatives made by other concerned groups like Bayan Muna, the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers in the Philippines (NUPL), the health workers collectively known as the Morong 43, among others.
Indeed, after the Arroyo administration left office almost a year ago, Gloria and her minions—particularly the cabal of generals that protected her and whom she lavishly rewarded in return—have yet to be made accountable for the bloody path of human rights abuses that they have left in their wake. And, revoltingly, they continue to even arrogantly display their power and wealth under the present P-Noy administration.
On the other hand, while rich in rhetoric after it was elected into power, we have yet see even bolder moves from the present administration to truly run after Arroyo and her ilk, not only for massive graft and corruption, but more importantly for massive human rights abuses. This may sound like a broken record for Aquino, but there should be no impunity for human rights violators. Even our national hero Jose Rizal, whose 150th birthday we celebrated on Sunday, will certainly agree with that!
The victims have already made their efforts to strongly “pinch” Arroyo for her past sins, it is now high time for President Aquino to show much “nerve” by making the same “leap of faith.”
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There was a “leap of faith” too, in the respective resumptions of the long-stalled peace talks with both the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP).
“Kapayapaan at katahimikan po ang pundasyon ng kaunlaran. Habang nagpapatuloy ang barilan, patuloy din ang pagkakagapos natin sa kahirapan,” President Aquino (P-Noy) says during his first State of the Nation Address (Sona) in July last year.
Yet, while P-Noy’s statement is still resonating, the resumed talks with the two revolutionary fronts are apparently shackled and hounded by issues of sincerity, particularly in the implementation of past agreements.
For example, the energized yet guarded optimism that greeted the resumption of the GPH-NDFP talks in Oslo, Norway last February is slowly being dissipated by the failure of the P-Noy administration to effect the release of NDFP consultants in the resumed talks, like Alan Jasminez, who are covered by the Joint Agreement for Security and Immunity Guarantee (Jasig).
This release of Jasig-covered personnel was one of the commitments made by the government as stated in the joint communiqué that both the GPH and NDFP issued at the close of their session last February. The failure thus derailed the supposed meetings this month of the members of the working groups and committees to discuss the substantive issues on socio-economic reforms, as well as the needed political and constitutional reforms.
Although Malacañang already announced that the talks “will resume soon,” the postponed resumption of the talks this month already gives us an inkling that the touted signing of comprehensive agreements by both parties in the next 18 months to three years will be sailing roughly in the sea of bargaining and negotiations.
Yet, judging from this recent development, it is not cynical to say that a long-drawn-out talk is now expected, given the sometimes differing interpretation of both parties on past signed agreements and the substantive issues involved in the current phase of the peace process.
Even so, as a peace advocate, it is not amiss to still remind the parties not to miss this opportunity. This is still a “springtime for peace” and it is not wrong to take a “leap of faith” in finding lasting solutions to the root causes of the country’s armed conflicts.
