Philippine Collegian Issue 26

TOMO 91

BLG. 26

SABADO, MARSO 15, 2014

DIGITAL DIVIDE Examining the state of internet access in the Philippines

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN

Gloiza Plamenco

Opisyal na lingguhang pahayagan ng mga mag-aaral ng Unibersidad ng Pilipinas, Diliman

MARCH 1994 MARKED THE FIRST TIME that the Philippines officially entered the huge, rowdy, and fascinating world of the Internet.

Twenty years since, the country is now home to arguably some of the most obsessive users of online spaces such as the social media. As an offshoot of the hype brought by the internet, Filipino users of the social media website Facebook already ballooned to almost 30 million — the eighth largest in the world, according to analytics website Internet World Usage Statistics.

From a global perspective, the virtual landscape that the internet offers crosses all national borders and knows no cultural or racial boundaries. Yet even after two decades, the Philippines is still not geared enough to tap the potential of the Internet for development, especially among Filipinos living in rural areas. For Internet access remains, even in this day and age, a privilege enjoyed by only a few.

LATHALAIN page 7

5

‘Media, iba pang grupo nagprotesta kontra ‘e-Martial Law’ Balita

6

Instigador de la guerra The invisible hand behind Venezuela’s riots Lathalain

9

Imprisonment of beauty A Review of Damas de Noche Kultura

2

OPINYON

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN

SABADO, MARSO 15, 2014

Beware, the Panopticon PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN 2013 - 2014

Punong Patnugot Julian Inah Anunciacion IF YOU’VE GOT NOTHING to hide, you’ve got nothing to fear.

This was, in effect, what President Benigno Simeon Aquino III told reporters in an ambush interview a day after the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of online libel as a criminal offense as well as most other provisions of the Cybercrime Prevention Law. “Let me repeat: if what you said is true, then why would you be unnerved by the issue of libel?”

Perhaps Aquino wanted to appear reassuring--that the Draconian law supposedly does not aim to stifle freedom of speech--but the attempt was ultimately lame and the effect instead is rather chilling. It was a stern final warning to Internet users that the Philippine government from now on shall be watching and that anyone suspected of being a criminal must be very afraid indeed.

The chief executive of course admits that he has not yet read the full text of the high tribunal’s decision, but as someone who has supported the passage of Republic Act 10175 since day one, Aquino for once knew what he was talking about.

For the Court’s ruling shall now decisively vest

91

Kapatnugot Victor Gregor Limon Patnugot sa Balita Keith Richard Mariano Patnugot sa Grapiks Ysa Calinawan Emmanuel Jerome Tagaro Tagapamahala ng Pinansiya Gloiza Rufina Plamenco Panauhing Patnugot Piya Constantino Margaret Yarcia Mga Kawani Mary Joy Capistrano John Keithley Difuntorum Ashley Marie Garcia Ronn Joshua Bautista Pinansiya Amelyn Daga unprecedented policing powers in the state, a Panopticon that will oversee any and all online acts and mete penalties to those it will deem “illegal.” Already, as we dread the implementation of this law, the provisions approved by the Court threaten one of the most potent venues for free speech.

EDITOR’S PICK

The Philippine Collegian republishes distinguished photographs from its past issues that captured its YEARS tradition of critical and fearless journalism.

The #NotoCyberCrimeLaw coalition called on the Supreme Court to extend the temporary restraining order on Republic Act 1075, a week before the court order expired in 2013. On February 18, the high tribunal upheld the constitutionality of online libel, among other provisions of the law dubbed as the ‘e-Martial Law.’

BLACKOUT

Photo by Jiru Nikko Rada January 17, 2013

Under the blessing of the country’s highest ranking magistrates, online libel as a criminal offense shall apply to the original author of the post and is subject to a penalty “one degree higher” than if the libelous act is committed outside cyberspace.

The state is also free to search, seize, and examine computer data it deems suspicious as long as it secures a courtissued warrant.

Ultimately, the Court’s ruling is proof of what has always been obvious--that not all that is deemed legal is just. The law itself has been used many times in the past to perpetrate injustice, to limit the very freedoms that must be held sacred and inalienable.

We see this in history, in many frightening moments when the powers of the state and the interests of the few elite take precedence over the rights and welfare of the people. Until now, the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Extension with Reforms has failed and only further disenfranchised farmers from their right to own the land they till. Until now, those who are lucky to be gainfully

employed suffer the consequences of contractualization as allowed by the Labor Code itself.

It is thus far from surprising that the government must resort to a cyber-Martial Law. For RA 10175 is a weapon that comes handy amid brewing public discontent with the way the Aquino administration is running the country--negligence and incompetence in the face of calamities, continued landlessness among peasants, price hikes, low wages, and dire working conditions.

Yet far from ending the fight for our democratic right to freedom of speech, the high tribunal’s decision is a call for a more decisive show of force from the ranks of freedom advocates. Though progressive forces continue to engage in court battles--and indeed must do so-the fight against RA 10175 must necessarily trust from now on in the strength of warm bodies in the streets.

For there is no other recourse than to bring down the Panopticon and we have nothing else to rely on other than the firm resolve and the just anger of a people against a government that threatens to silence them. ∞

Tagapamahala sa Sirkulasyon Paul John Alix Sirkulasyon Gary Gabales Amelito Jaena Glenario Ommamalim Mga Katuwang na Kawani Trinidad Gabales Gina Villas Kasapi UP Systemwide Alliance of Student Publications and Writers’ Organizations (Solidaridad) College Editors Guild of the Philippines (CEGP) Pamuhatan Silid 401 Bulwagang Vinzons, Unibersidad ng Pilipinas, Diliman, Lungsod Quezon Telefax 981-8500 lokal 4522 Online pkule1314@gmail.com www.philippinecollegian.org fb.com/philippinecollegian twitter.com/kule1314

Ukol sa Pabalat Ysa Calinawan

BALITA

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN

3

SABADO, MARSO 15, 2014

BOR selects CSSP dean as chancy, defers draft CSC approval Julian Bato THE BOARD OF REGENTS voted against the reappointment of Dr. Caesar Saloma as UP Diliman chancellor and postponed its action on the proposed Code of Student Conduct (CSC) last revised under the chancellor’s term.

Seven out of the 11 Board members, including UP System President Alfredo Pascual, selected incumbent College of Social Sciences and Philosophy (CSSP) Dean Michael Tan to head the university’s flagship campus in the next three years.

The lone student representative in the Board, Student Regent Krista Melgarejo said she voted for Saloma, along with another sectoral regent, in a secret ballot held during the February 27 meeting of the BOR. One regent, meanwhile, voted for current Center for Women Studies Director Sylvia Claudio.

All 11 regents were present in the 1296th meeting of the highest policymaking body in the UP System, which is composed of the UP System president, Commission on Higher Education chairperson, four sectoral regents, three Malacañang appointees and two representatives of the Congress.

Following the expiration of her term, Malacañang appointee Gizela Gonzalez-Montinola also attended the BOR meeting but only as an “observer” and was thus not allowed to vote in the selection of the new chancellor.

Tan had served as CSSP dean for two terms. The anthropology professor is also an affiliate faculty member of the UPD College of Science and the UP Manila College of Medicine for his work in medical anthropology.

“My program will align with the UP System's strategic plan, emphasizing operational efficiency and academic excellence,” said Tan. Tan said he intends to continue his predecessor’s programs, particularly in relation to the creation of “nurturing and enabling spaces” such as infrastructure projects that had already completed such as several buildings in the National Science Complex.

Student Regent Krista Iris Melgarejo, who voted for the reappointment of Saloma, challenged the new chancellor to practice good governance by responding to legitimate issues of the different sectors in UP Diliman.

“From dealing with student issues to the concerns of the community surrounding the campus, [Saloma] has exemplified what an administrator should be— someone who is able to balance

rules and regulations while hearing out the concerns and issues of the sectors,” said Melgarejo.

For instance, Saloma allowed student participation in the revision of the draft UP Diliman CSC. The latest draft CSC was presented in the BOR’s last meeting. The BOR however has yet to act on the proposed set of rules governing student conduct and discipline.

The CSC was first proposed under the administration of Sergio Cao in 2009. The University Student Council (USC) and former Student Regent Shahana Abdulwahid then appealed for student representation in the drafting committee to no avail.

Student organizations had criticized the earlier drafts of the CSC for its anti-student provisions that seeks to bar freshmen from joining organizations and require organizations to recruit at least half of its members from different colleges, among others.

In 2011, upon assuming office, Saloma formed the Student Review Committee (SRC), a committee composed of student representatives, to review the proposed CSC. The SRC ended up drafting the Student Handbook on Rights and Responsibilities (SHRR) in lieu of the CSC. Saloma then formed another committee including members of the SRC and the 2009 CSC drafting committee to consolidate the SHRR and the draft student code.

The 2012 draft CSC reduced the minimum residency requirement for applicants of student organizations from one academic year to a semester. The latest draft also requires student representation in trying disciplinary cases against students.

But some provisions, including the residency requirement in joining student organizations, remain contentious and unacceptable, said Melgarejo.

Melgarejo questioned provisions such as rules prohibiting supposed involvement in “violence” in the University premises and disrespecting faculty members and an imposition of a resident rule for organization membership.

Definitions in these provisions remain vague such as what can be considered a violent incident or a form of disrespect, explained Melgerejo.

“These provisions may be more lenient but the Office [of the Student Regent] stands firm that any code that aims to limit our student organizations and activities curtails our constitutional right to organize and assemble,” added the Student Regent. ∞

LABAN KABABAIHAN Litrato ni Chester Higuit

Nagmartsa ang grupong GABRIELA kasama ang ilang sektoral na grupo mula Liwasang Bonifacio hanggang Mendiola bilang bahagi ng pagdiriwang sa ika-103 Pandaigdigang Araw ng Kababaihan noong Marso 8. Kinondena ng grupo ang pagpabor ng administrasyong Aquino sa Public-Private Partnership at ang kawalangkatarungan sa mga biktima ng bagyong Yolanda.

New theater may displace CAL orgs in tambayan complex Julian Inah Anunciacion THE COLLEGE OF ARTS AND Letters (CAL) administration is eyeing the relocation of the student “tambayan” complex, which is currently located near the college, to give way for the construction of a new theater.

A P100-million donation from UP Diliman alumnus and Euro Towers International Inc. (ETII) chair Ignacio Gimenez will fund the construction of the theatre, said CAL Dean Flora Elena Mirano. The administration will disclose the period of construction after the theater design is finalized.

“Hindi pa final ang [design], pero as much as possible ayaw tamaan ng architect yung slope [ng tambayan complex]. However sa initial plan na pinresent ay matatamaan ang bahagi nito,” CAL Associate Dean for Administration and Development Regina Banaag-Gochuico said.

The tambayan complex currently houses UP Asterisk, UP Writers Club, UP Lingua Franca, UP Ugnayan ng mga Manunulat, UP Speech Communication Association, UP Graphic Arts in

Literature, UP UP Círculo Hispánico, and UP Anime Manga Enthusiasts, among other organizations.

“Hindi naman masama ang ganitong klaseng mga improvements sa facilities ng CAL, pero sana ay masecure muna ng administration na maayos ang paglilipatang espasyo para sa mga [organisasyon],” CAL Student Council (SC) Vice Chair Micah Magaro said.

The CAL administration plans to fund the construction of a new tambayan complex. “Matamaan man o hindi sa final design ng theater ang mga tambayan, the CAL administration made it a project to provide the students with a new tambayan complex,” said Mirano.

With the lack of budget, however, the administration will initially build a temporary tambayan complex for the student organizations, added Mirano.

The administration is planning to relocate the tambayan complex to Pavilion 1, across the current site of the complex. The new tambayan complex will house 15 organizations, including the college’s student council (SC) and official student

publication, Kalasag.

Each organization will occupy an estimated space of 3.8 by 2 meters through the current point system, Gochuico said in a March 10 dialogue with CAL organizations. The college administration, however, is open for suggestions for the design of the new tambayan complex, Gochuico added.

The division of space in the new tambayan complex is problematic due to the differences in the size of organization membership, and as to which group will be prioritized, CAL Representative to the University Student Council Aliona Silva said.

“Kailangan ding kilalanin ng admin ang karapatan ng mga estudyante sa pagkakaroon ng tambayan… Parte [ang mga organisasyon] ng buong kolehiyo.

Importanteng bahagi ng [isang organinsasyon] ang tambayan.

Doon nagaganap ang mga meeting [at] palitan ng mga kaalaman na siyang nagpapatatag sa samahan ng [organisasyon],” UP Ugnayan ng Manunulat President Ram Hernandez said. ∞

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BALITA

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN

SABADO, MARSO 15, 2014

ALYANSA wins in 12 of 23 colleges Julian Bato MORE THAN HALF OF THE 23 academic units in UP Diliman (UPD) posted a majority vote for the chair and vice chair bets of Alyansa ng mga Mag-aaral para sa Panlipunang Katwiran at Kaunlaran (ALYANSA) who will lead next year’s UPD University Student Council (USC).

According to the official tally of votes from the University Student Electoral Board (USEB), ALYANSA’s chair candidate Arjay Mercado won in 12 Diliman units, including voter-rich colleges, in the February 27 elections.

Mercado garnered a total of 5,145 votes in total, the highest number of votes cast for a chair candidate ever in UPD USC elections history.

Erra Mae Zabat of the Student Alliance for the Advancement of Democratic Rights in UP (STAND UP) led in 10 colleges to garner a total of 3,034 votes. Carla Monica Gonzalez

of Nagkakaisang Iskolar para sa Pamantasan at Sambayanan (KAISA) won in SOLAIR and garnered a total of 1,416 votes. (See sidebar) ALYANSA’s JP Delas Nieves dominated the vice chair race after garnering 5,175 votes. Delas Nieves won over STAND UP’s AllynnaHaneefa Macapado and KAISA’s Ram Tomaneng, who garnered 3,894 and 766 votes respectively.

Despite Macapado leading in 13 or majority of colleges, Delas Nieves managed to win after securing a majority in vote-rich colleges such as the College of Engineering and College of Social Sciences and Philosophy. Delas Nieves won in 12 colleges while Tomaneng failed to win in any unit.

This year’s elections, meanwhile, saw independent candidates leading the councilor race with Jethro David and Raymond Rodis securing the top two positions.

ALYANSA will hold seven of the 12 councilor seats and STAND UP for the remaining three seats.

The incumbent ruling party KAISA failed to clinch a councilor seat in this year’s elections. On February 27, the University Student Electoral Board (USEB) declared KAISA councilor candidate Regina Punzalan as sixth winning councilor, but it eventually nullified the proclamation.

The USEB erroneously used the number of automated votes for ALYANSA's Regine Rodriguez to input the total number of votes for Punzalan.

The clerical error bloated the number of votes cast for the KAISA candidate from 1,655 to 3,340, according to the Office of Student Activities.

KAISA only won a total of four seats for college representatives in the 34-member student council.

ALYANSA dominated in the college representative race, clinching seven

THE UP DILIMAN POLICE (UPDP) has yet to find a lead on the identity of two men who stabbed a parking attendant to death at the UP Law Center parking lot on February 20.

Ramon Dy, 25, was with his live-in partner Esperanza Sevillo when the incident happened. Dy allegedly went to find a secluded lot to urinate at around 8:30 PM, and then came back to Sevillo already bleeding profusely.

Bystanders in the area immediately brought Dy to the East Avenue Medical Center. By 9:05 PM, attending physicians declared him dead due to severe bleeding from seven stabs to the chest.

“Wala kaming makuhang lead kung sino yung pumatay dahil yung [live-in partner] ng biktima lamang ang nakakita ng dalawang nanaksak, pero hindi niya mailarawan ang mga suspek,” said UPDP Superintendent Leslie Gabriel.

Before the incident, however, two construction workers near the College of Law had allegedly been in conflict with Dy, according to Police Officer CB Oliquino. When Oliguino’s team went back to the crime scene later in the evening, however, the suspects have already fled.

To address the incident, the UP Law Student Government (LSG) is putting up a petition to tighten security in the college.

“We have a petition in the works which will be highly publicized for signatures sometime this week for tighter security, or at least protection as our classes end really late, delikado na,” according to the LSG.

As of the second semester, 627 students are enrolled in the College of Law, according to data obtained from the Office of the University Registrar.

The college offers evening classes to accommodate working students.

Last semester, crime rates in the Diliman campus increased by 17 percent, according to the UPDP. Most of the incidents, which include robbery, physical injuries, and sexual harassment, took place along Ylanan Street, University Avenue and Magsaysay Avenue, all of which are entry and exit points to the university.

In February 2012, Political Science student Lordei Camille Anjuli Hina was stabbed repeatedly with an icepick in the University Student Council office at Vinzons Hall. Hina has yet to claim justice as the suspect for the assault remains to be at large.

Likewise, a security guard stationed in Sampaguita Residence Hall received multiple stab wounds after nearly getting raped by a construction worker on June 2013.

Following the increase in the number of security-related incidents in the university, the UPDP are setting up tighter security measures by installing CCTV cameras and limiting the number of vehicles entering the university. UPDP’s only police car unit, the MU 114, is also making rounds to scan the campus for possible crime incidents and security breaches, said Garcia.

“Constant naman ang ginagawang pagmamatyag ng UPDP sa campus para masiguro ang seguridad ng mga mag-aaral nito,” said Garcia. ∞

Lower voter turnout Of the total 24,188 eligible voters, only 11,626 students or 48.07 percent cast their votes in this year's elections.

The Institute of Islamic Studies registered the highest turnout

at 90.91 percent, followed by the College of Law, Asian Institute of Tourism, School of Economics and College of Business Administration.

Voter turnout increased in small colleges such as in the College of Human Kinetics and College of Social Work and Community Development. At the same time, however, less students voted in bigger colleges such as the College of Engineering, College of Social Sciences and Philosophy and College of Science.

Over-all voter turnout in this year’s elections fell from last year's 48.4 percent. Despite the USEB allowing for an early voting for graduate students in an effort to increase the number of voters this year, only 809 or 12.27 percent of graduate students participated in the elections.

Continued to page 11

USC ELECTIONS OVER THE YEARS

Suspect in on-campus assault still unidentified Arra Francia

out of 20 positions. STAND UP won five, KAISA got four, and the rest of the college representative posts went to independent candidates.

This is the first time ALYANSA clinched the chair, vice chair and majority of the council positions in an election. (See sidebar) As the dominant party in the USC next academic year, ALYANSA, previously in favor for the reforms of the Socialized Tuition and Financial Assistance Program, said it would continue its call for higher state subsidy to UP and its campaign to advance gender rights, among others, Mercado said.

WHICH COLLEGES VOTED FOR WHOM? College ENGG CSSP CS CBA CMC CHE ECON LAW CAL EDUK ARKI STAT NCPAG CFA CHK AIT CMu SLIS CSWCD IIS SOLAIR SURP AC

Chair

Vice Chair

Voter Turnout 2886/5745 1095/2095 995/2629 863/1212 611/1061 568/1142 559/779 529/625 502/1268 471/1630 362/719 354/546 274/681 239/628 235/597 232/321 165/384 152/340 134/391 40/44 39/376 23/350 14/165

PARTY LEGEND ALYANSA

STAND UP

KAISA

INDEPENDENT

BALITA

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN

5

SABADO, MARSO 15, 2014

CHEd memo allows for ‘automatic tuition hikes’ Arra Francia Sa ika-28 taong paggunita sa 1986 People Power, muling nagtungo ang ilang grupo ng media, mag-aaral at iba pang sektor sa EDSA upang kundenahin ang pagpapatibay ng Supreme Court sa mga probisyon ng tinaguriang online na bersyon ng batas militar, ang Cybercrime Prevention Act. Inilabas ng SC noong ika18 ng Pebrero ang desisyon nito hinggil sa 15 petisyon ng ilang mga grupo kabilang na ang Collegian, na naglalayong ibasura ang ilang probisyong nakapaloob sa 14 seksyon ng Republic Act 10175, o ang Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.

Ilan sa mga probisyong kwinestyon ng mga grupo ang pagpapataw ng mas mataas na kaparusahan sa mga paglabag sa batas gaya ng “online libel” at “cybersex.” Pinapawalang bisa din ng mga petisyon ang pagbibigay kapangyarihan sa gobyernong subaybayan ang paggamit ng isang tao ng Internet.

Samantala, idineklara ng SC bilang unconstitutional ang Section 4 (c) (3) ng batas na nagpaparusa sa pagpapakalat ng unsolicited commercial communication o “spam”, Section 12 na nagpapahintulot sa pamahalaang mangalap ng realtime traffic data, at Section 19 na nagpapahintulot naman sa Department of Justice na pigilan ang access sa mga pinaghihinalaan nitong

computer data.

Gayunman, hindi kinatigan ng SC ang mga petisyong kumukwestiyon sa natitirang probisyon ng batas gaya ng Section 4 (c) (4) na nagpaparusa at nagpapataw ng mas mataas na parusa sa “online libel”, o ang pagpapaskil ng mga mapanira at malisyosong pahayag sa Internet.

“Cyberlibel is actually not a new crime since Article 353, in relation to Article 355 of the penal code, already punishes it. In effect, Section 4(c)(4) merely affirms that online defamation

constitutes “similar means” for committing libel,” ayon sa desisyon ng SC. Habang pinagtibay ang pagpapataw ng mas mataas na parusa sa “online libel,” ipinaliwanag ng mataas na hukom na hindi maaaring patawan ng dalawang beses ang nagkasala sa ilalim ng Revised Penal Code at Cybercrime Prevention Act para sa parehong pagkakataon.

Idineklara din ng SC bilang “unconstitutional” ang probisyong nagpaparusa sa mga taong tutulong

Hans Christian Marin

ECSTATIC

Photo by Airnel Abarra pinakasikat na isport sa UAAP, ayon kay Juliano.

Sapat ang budget na inilalaan ng UP sa mga koponan nito upang manatiling “mediocre” ang kanilang kampanya sa UAAP, ani Juliano. Umaasa lamang sa P75 na Athletic fee na binabayaran ng mga estudyante kada semester at ilang mga donasyon na galing sa mga alumni at pribadong kumpanya.

“Upang mas tumaas pa ang pwesto ng UP, kailangan maginvest sa recruitment at academic tutorial services bilang marami namang magagaling na atleta sa UP,” ani Juliano. Sa kasalukuyan, may prayoridad na sa pagkuha ng iskedyul para sa mga klase ang mga atleta at may mga libreng pagkain na rin na inilalaan para sa iba.

“Despite having high academic standards, UP still need to prove that it can compete in athleticism.

Next season, I’m eyeing third or second. Mahihirapan pang magchampion lalo at pinaghahandaan namin ang 2015 bilang UP ang host doon,” ani Juliano. ∞

Beach Swim- Chess Table Tennis BadVolley ming Tennis minton ball W M W M W M W M W M W M W

Basket Volley ball ball M

W M

UP 8th 6th 7th 7th 4th 8th 1st 1st 6th 2nd 6th 1st 2nd 4th 4th 3rd Track Fencing Taek- Poom- Judo and wondo sae Field

M W M

Base ball

Foot ball

Total points

W M W Mixed M W M W M W M W Mixed Overall

3rd 4th 4th 6th 3rd 2nd

2nd

Continued to page 11 Supporters of the Alyansa ng mga Mag-aaral para sa Panlipunang Katwiran at Kaunlaran (ALYANSA) expressed their joy during the canvassing of votes for the University Student Council Elections (USC) held in Vinzons Hall last February 27. ALYANSA dominated the polls and captured majority of the councilor seats including the Chair and Vice-chairperson positions respectively.

FIGHTING MAROONS, PUMANGATLO SA OVERALL NG UAAP INANGKIN NG UP FIGHTING Maroons ang ikatlong pwesto sa overall championship ng Season 76 ng University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) upang ungusan ang ilang mga bigating koponan katulad ng Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU) at Far Eastern University (FEU).

Naisakatuparan muli ng UP ang isang over-all podium finish sa ikalawang sunod na taon, bitbit ang tatlong gold, anim na silver at tatlong bronze sa 15 larangan ng pampalakasan.

Naipagpatuloy din ng Maroons ang hindi pagbaba sa ikalimang pwesto sa loob ng sampung taon matapos nilang magkamit ng 235 puntos sa pangkalahatan.

“Some teams did well but some whom I was expecting to do better came out short,” ani Ariel Juliano, direktor ng UP Varsity Program.

Lumikom ang pinagsamang Men’s at Women’s division ng Maroons ng mas maraming puntos sa 10 isports sa UAAP kumpara noong isang taon.

Kabilang dito ang Swimming, Chess, Table Tennis, Tennis, Badminton, Track and Field, Fencing, Taekwando, Football at Poomsae, isang uri ng Taekwando na tinanghal bilang bagong isport sa UAAP ngayong season.

Sa kabila naman ng 0-14 na pagtatapos sa season ng Maroons basketball team, nanatili pa rin ang puso ng koponan kahit na tumigil na sa pagbibigay ng financial aid ang dating managers ng koponan na naglalaro sa

sa pagpapakalat ng malisyoso at mapanira umanong pahayag sa Internet. “The terms ‘aiding or abetting’ constitute broad sweep that generates chilling effect on those who express themselves through cyberspace posts, comments, and other messages,” ayon sa SC. Gayunman, naninindigan pa rin ang mga grupo sa kanilang panawagang ipawalang bisa nang tuluyan ang mga probisyon ng RA

2nd5th 5th 5th 2nd 4th 110 109

12

231 (3rd)

Media, iba pang grupo nagprotesta kontra ‘e-Martial Law’ Hans Christian Marin Sa ika-28 taong paggunita sa 1986 People Power, muling nagtungo ang ilang grupo ng media, mag-aaral at iba pang sektor sa EDSA upang kundenahin ang pagpapatibay ng Supreme Court sa mga probisyon ng tinaguriang online na bersyon ng batas militar, ang Cybercrime Prevention Act. Inilabas ng SC noong ika18 ng Pebrero ang desisyon nito hinggil sa 15 petisyon ng ilang mga grupo kabilang na ang Collegian, na naglalayong ibasura ang ilang probisyong nakapaloob sa 14 seksyon ng Republic Act 10175, o ang Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.

Ilan sa mga probisyong kwinestyon ng mga grupo ang pagpapataw ng mas mataas na kaparusahan sa mga paglabag sa batas gaya ng “online libel” at “cybersex.” Pinapawalang bisa din ng mga petisyon ang pagbibigay kapangyarihan sa gobyernong subaybayan ang paggamit ng isang tao ng Internet.

Samantala, idineklara ng SC bilang unconstitutional ang Section 4 (c) (3) ng batas na nagpaparusa sa pagpapakalat ng unsolicited commercial communication o “spam,”

Section 12 na nagpapahintulot sa pamahalaang mangalap ng realtime traffic data, at Section 19 na nagpapahintulot naman sa Department of Justice na pigilan ang access sa mga pinaghihinalaan nitong computer data.

Gayunman, hindi kinatigan ng SC ang mga petisyong kumukwestiyon sa natitirang probisyon ng batas gaya ng Section 4 (c) (4) na nagpaparusa at nagpapataw ng mas mataas na parusa sa “online libel”, o ang pagpapaskil ng mga mapanira at malisyosong pahayag sa Internet.

“Cyberlibel is actually not a new crime since Article 353, in relation to Article 355 of the penal code, already punishes it. In effect, Section 4(c)(4) merely affirms that online defamation constitutes “similar means” for committing libel,” ayon sa desisyon ng SC. Habang pinagtibay ang pagpapataw ng mas mataas na parusa sa “online libel,” ipinaliwanag ng mataas na hukom na hindi maaaring patawan ng dalawang beses ang nagkasala sa ilalim ng Revised Penal Code at Cybercrime Prevention Act para sa parehong pagkakataon.

Idineklara din ng SC bilang “unconstitutional” ang probisyong

nagpaparusa sa mga taong tutulong sa pagpapakalat ng malisyoso at mapanira umanong pahayag sa Internet. “The terms ‘aiding or abetting’ constitute broad sweep that generates chilling effect on those who express themselves through cyberspace posts, comments, and other messages,” ayon sa SC. Gayunman, naninindigan pa rin ang mga grupo sa kanilang panawagang ipawalang bisa nang tuluyan ang mga probisyon ng RA 10175.

Naghahanda ng mosyon ang ilang mga grupo katulad ng Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, Bayan Muna, National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) at Kabataan Party-list upang muling suriin ng SC ang mga probisyon ng batas, lalo na ang pagapaparusa sa “online libel.”

“By extending the reach of the antediluvian libel law into cyberspace, the [SC] has suddenly made a once infinite venue for expression into an arena of fear, a hunting ground for the petty and vindictive, the criminal and autocratic,” ayon sa NUJP. Ang paggamit sa mga serbisyong e-mail, chat at social networking Continued to page 11

6

LATHALAIN

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN

SABADO, MARSO 15, 2014

Instigador de la guerra The invisible hand behind Venezuela’s riots

Ronn Joshua Bautista THE STREETS OF CARACAS ARE A BATTLEFIELD. For the past few weeks, antigovernment demonstrators have been wreaking havoc in the Venezuelan capital, calling for the ouster of Nicolas Maduro, the elected president and successor to the late revolutionary Hugo Chavez.

Mostly from right-wing groups, protesters are torching buses, buildings of state-run institutions, and supply trucks that run the city’s operations. Masked rioters from private universities are seen in media reports clashing with the police almost on a daily basis.

Given the international media’s hyped-up reports about these angry riots, it is easy to assume that these calls for Maduro’s ouster are proof that all the people of Venezuela are up in arms against Bolivarian leadership. Yet behind the cameras, the events that unfold prove just the opposite.

As tensions escalate in Caracas, the work of an outside party can clearly be recognized in these violent riots.

They have nothing to lose, and the whole country to win. With the aid of bureaucrat cohorts on the ground, the most powerful enemy of the Bolivarian Revolution wields great power and influence: the United States of America.

Staged conflict Despite having the mandate of the people for the past 16 years, Venezuela’s socialist experiment still faces challenges by vanguards of the old order.

In recent years, Venezuela’s political opposition, mainly comprised of wealthy businessmen, have been organizing protests in the capital and relentlessly criticizing the government for supposedly taking away “economic freedom.”

Extreme-right wing opposition leaders such as former mayor Leopoldo Lopez and 2012 Presidential candidate Maria Machado for instance, have continuously blamed the government’s heavy economic regulations for the country’s perennial shortages.

Since Chavez’s death, empty shelves have become a common sight in Venezuelan stores. Products like bread and luxury items like toilet paper become a rare sight as an ever-growing inflation rate, now at 56 percent, drive prices through the roof.

However, recent government investigations would show that this economic crisis appears orchestrated rather than a direct effect of the country’s protectionist policies.

In various parts of the country, government officials have uncovered 40,000 tons of food hidden in remote locations while some stores have been discovered to have been selling at 1,200 percent more than the government’s official price.

Remaining staunch in their call for a reversal of government policy though, Lopez and Machado still rallied people from Caracas’ more developed districts on February 12, the Venezuelan Youth Day, to force the government to do a La Salida, or Exit, from its present socialist economy and revert to its pre-Bolivarian freemarket system.

These protests have killed at least 20 people since then, according to government and opposition accounts.

If Venezuela’s history is any indication, the right’s La Salida present grim prospects—for the past has proven that Venezuela’s old economic system caused worse crises. Back when the opposition had been running the country under a free-trade economy, the country’s inflation rate reached as much as 100 percent and left the country vulnerable during the 1980 global recession.

Should the country return to this economic system, the only ones who would benefit are business owners themselves and a power that is not even Venezuelan at all: the US. Agent saboteur Since Venezuela’s socialist transition, the opposition always had the backing of the US. According to declassified US federal documents, the US has largely financed activities that sought to destabilize the country including the opposition’s coup d’etat against Chavez in 2002.

Through assistance programs like the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the US has channeled more than $100 million to non-government organizations and youth groups in opposition-controlled municipalities during the past 15 years.

There is even little attempt at being discreet about these donations.

Documents from online whistleblower WikiLeaks trace these funds to opposition political campaigns and rallies.

Given Venezuela’s rich oil reserves and protected economy under its current government, the US’ blatant disregard for sovereignty comes as no surprise. “The US is known to intervene in countries’ politico-economic affairs in pursuit of natural resources [especially those] that protect their economies and resources for their people’s welfare,” explains Xandra Casambre, senior researcher at independent think tank IBON Foundation.

In the past, the US has actually been involved in more than 1 0 coups in the entire Latin

American region, some of which had installed dictatorships like in Guatemala and Honduras that had only made the countries indebted to the US. With Caracas up in flames, the US is once again forcing itself into affairs only Venezuelans must resolve.

Should their plot succeed, should the riots engulf the whole country, the Bolivarian Revolution that has uplifted the lives of many will soon come to an end.

Counter-revolution The elite-led riots in Caracas however provide a valuable insight— that the country’s efforts towards socialist reconstruction continues to face strong opponents among US cohorts at home.

Since Chavez’s Bolivarian Revolution in 1998, the country has tirelessly pushed for programs that redistributed wealth to the poor. Using revenues from its nationalized oil industry, the government has heavily invested in comprehensive social services like free primary to tertiary education, free healthcare, and subsidized goods that have effectively reduced Venezuela’s poverty rate from a peak of 65 percent before Chavez’s election to 23 percent in 2012.

Meanwhile, in terms of jobs, these programs have drastically lowered the country’s unemployment rate from 18 percent in 1998 to almost 5 percent in 2013.

Decades after though, i t s biggest challenge now is opposition plots to usurp power and sabotage the country’s Bolivarian project.

In the past, the country was rocked by several corruption s c a n d a l s .

Bureaucrats

who were still in power were accused of brokering suspicious deals between the government and their own companies. The corporation Pro Arepa which supplies the government’s food program and funded by billions of dollars of oil exports had been linked with several top officials.

Because of these businessmen who are still in government, the country’s socialist agenda have lagged due to the loss of billions of government revenue.

Unable to continue its national industrialization efforts, Venezuela’s resources are now being channeled instead to repaying loans worth $46.5 billion to China.

As Chavez’s Bolivarian Revolution nears its second decade, there remains the challenge to defend the interests of the poor and marginalized against imperialist agenda. Although Chavez and Maduro’s supporters continue to dominate the government, the US and its accomplices from the landed elite are still able to shake up the country’s foundations.

To truly liberate Venezuela, t h e road to genuine socialism entails unity among the Venezuelan people against their true enemy.

F o r clearly, what kept them back was never the government that they elected nor the government that articulated their desire for genuine and inclusive change, but the U S and its agents – the enemies of progress, the instigators of chaos.

∞

Photographs : Patricia Ramos Page design : Ashley Garcia

LATHALAIN

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN

7

SABADO, MARSO 15, 2014

Digital

divide

Continued from page 1

administration’s lack of priority in protecting the basic rights of the public. In fact, it has even supported policies that effectively curtailed the freedom of speech of internet users by passing the Cybercrime Prevention Law. Such policies undermine the importance of establishing freedom of speech in another more accessible platform such as the virtual world, most especially in times of political crisis where free speech is trampled upon by oppressive regimes. At the height of the political turmoil in the Arab world, popularly known as the Arab Spring, social media sites Facebook and Twitter became a vital tool for East Africans in organizing mobilizations and spreading awareness all over the world.

“Napakahalaga ng kalayaang magpahayag maging sa internet para sa pagsulong ng pakikibaka ng mamamayan. Mabilis [itong] daluyan ng impormasyon araw-araw at komunikasyon sa panahon ng mga kilosprotesta, lalo na sa panahon ng pampulitikang krisis,” says Sonny Africa, head executive of independent think-tank IBON Foundation.

Error 404: Access not found While the local mainstream media and research institutions have harped on the popularity of the internet in the country, there exists a great divide when it comes to internet access.

Seven of every 10 Filipinos still do not have internet access, according to estimates from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), an agency of the United Nations (UN) that coordinates telecommunication operations and services throughout the world. (see sidebar) Currently, the country is home to 320 Internet Service Providers, but ownership is dominated by only three conglomerates — Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT), the leading telecommunications provider in the country, Bayan Telecommunications, and Globe Telecom — all of which are located in urban areas. (see sidebar) With the control of private companies over infrastructure, internet connection in the country remains slow and expensive compared to other countries. For the minimum speed of 512 kilobytes per second (Kbps), Filipino consumers would spend P990. This would already take up nine percent of the budget of minimum wage employees in Metro Manila earning around P11,600 every month. On the other hand, consumers in Malaysia can already have 1.5 Mbps connection speed for around P650.

The poor accessibility of Internet reflects the lack of infrastructure for internet connection, says Department of Science and Technology Undersecretary Louis Casambre, in a press conference. Even basic utilities in the country are lacking, such as electricity needed to power computers and mobile phones. As of June 2012, 29.5 percent of 115,092 barangays in the country still need to be connected to electricity, according to National Electrification Administration.

While connecting to the internet is relatively easier for someone living in highly urbanized areas such as in Metro Manila or Cebu, only 49 percent of the municipalities and cities in the country have access to the internet. “A good portion of our population lives in remote areas with no Internet or wired broadband Internet access infrastructure, essentially excluding them from the benefits and building capacity of the Internet,” says Casambre.

Limited network connection Internet should be treated as a public good that will promote development, says UN Special Rapporteur Frank La Rue. However, the poor internet access in the country only reflects the government’s failure to see the internet beyond its current status as a commodity that presents prospects of huge profits.

During the 20th session of the Human Rights Commission in July 2012, 47-member states have unanimously passed the resolution to declare internet access as a fundamental right. South Korea, the country with the fastest internet connection in the world, is one of the signatories.

States have upheld their commitment to protect basic human rights such as the right to expression and opinion, and have recognized internet access as a right encompassing the freedom of speech. “[T]he same rights that people have offline must also be protected online, in particular freedom of expression, which is applicable regardless of frontiers and through any media of one’s choice,” the resolution read.

Surprisingly, the Philippines is not a signatorycountry in the said resolution — reflecting the current

Illustration : Ysa Calinawan, Ash Garcia Page design : Jerome Tagaro

Network troubleshooting Efforts in closing the divide between those who can and cannot access the internet does not only underscore its importance in the freedom of speech and expression.

Technology, particularly the internet, has become a driver for development.

“Internet has become a key tool for social and economic development, and needs to be prioritized, even in the world’s poorest nations,” said ITU secretarygeneral Hamadoun Touré.

Not only can internet be used for information and research, but can also be a tool for developing agricultural nations like the Philippines. India, for instance, has engaged local farmers in a project called ‘agrIDS’, where they will send digital photographs of crop situations to agricultural experts for advice. Not only was the project efficient for farmers and agricultural experts, but has also bridged the information gap.

Better use of the internet also allows the improvement of healthcare services. United Kingdom, one of the signatories of the aforementioned UN resolution, allows patients to have medical consultations with their doctors through the video calling program Skype. This has allowed patients to save more time and lessen costs.

In the country, online services of healthcare service PhilHealth are available, where members can check the payment of their employers in their account online.

Members of Social Security System can also check their accounts and submit transactions online. Yet, despite the efforts of the Philippine government in tapping the internet to make public services more efficient, these are only limited to those who have internet access— largely coming from the cities. This only highlights the need for an immediate action from the government to help internet become more accessible for rural areas in the country.

“The internet, as a medium by which freedom of expression can be exercised, can only serve its purpose if states assume their commitment to develop effective policies to attain access to the Internet. Without [these], it will become a technological tool that is accessible only to a certain elite while perpetrating the digital divide,” says La Rue. For Internet access is a right that every Filipino is entitled to, and it is the very first and thus crucial step towards crashing the country’s twenty years of digital divide. ∞

8 Mary Joy T. Capistrano SIMPLE LANG ANG KANILANG pananamit—pants, long sleeves, at botas. Mayroon silang bitbit na bag na may lamang iilang piraso ng damit, pagkain, gamot, at iba pang personal na mga gamit. Hindi rin mawawala ang ilang papel na kanilang ginagamit sa pagkikipagaralan sa mga baryo.

Sila ang mga babaeng gerilya, iba sa pangkaraniwan dahil umaakyat sila ng bundok hindi bilang isang porma ng libangan kundi upang makibaka.

Sistemang Pang-aalipin hanggang Marianismo Namulat tayo sa biswal na imahen ng isang babae—pantahanan, laruan, biktima, ikinakalakal. Subalit binibigyan naman tayo ng buhay na patotoo ng mga kababaihang gerilya o mandirigma ng New Peoples Army—na ang lugar ng babae ay nasa pakikibaka.

Ilan sa kanila ay sina Teresa Magbanua, Lorena Barros, at Margarita Favis Gomez— mga kababaihang manunulat, manggagawang pangkultura, guro at mandirigma.

Kung babalikan ang kasaysayan sa panahong primitibo komunal o mala-komunal, may pagkakapantaypantay ang mga mamamayan anuman ang kanilang kasarian.

Kalakhan ng mga gawain, pilosopiya at danas ng mamamayan ay nililikha ng komunidad. Bahagi ang mga kababaihan sa paglikha ng desisyon at mga gawain tulad ng pangangaso, pagtatanim at maging sa pagdepensa ng kanilang komunidad.

Ang pag-usbong ng panlipunang uri—sa pamamagitan ng mga barangay at pamayanan na nakapaloob sa sistemang pangaalipin at katutubong pyudalismo— ang magbibigay-diin sa hindi pantay na pagtingin sa lipunan at maging sa kasarian. Sa ilalim ng ganitong sistema napupunta sa kamay ng mga panginoong maylupa tulad ng mga datu ang lahat ng lupang kanilang nasasakupan.

Samantala itinuturing namang babaylan at pinuno ang mga kababaihang kabilang sa mga naghahari o mayayamang katutubong pamilya. May pribilehiyo din silang kumatawan sa mga giyera. Umigting pa ang sistematikong pagkontrol sa kababaihan nang sakupin ang bansa ng mga Kastila at Amerikano.

Bagama’t kasama ang kababaihan sa pakikidigma sa mga mananakop, makikita ang tuminding kalagayan ng dominasyon sa kababaihan—sa mga antas ng kasarian, uri at lahi.

Higit na nasadlak ang mga kababaihan sa reproduktibo at domestikong gawain (pag-aanak, panganganak, pag-aruga ng anak at lalaki), habang tinanggal sa kaniya ang dating karapatan sa produktibong gawain (pangangaso, pagtatanim).

Sa relihiyosong kultura at kolonyal na urbanisasyon ng mga

KULTURA

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN

SABADO, MARSO 15, 2014

Gerilyang paraluman

Kastila, iginiit ang Marianismo – ang paghulma sa kababaihang bilang palasuko, sunudsunuran, kimi at mahinang imahen ng Birheng Maria.

Ang paghulma ayon sa imahen ni Maria ay hindi lamang pagsunod sa Diyos maging ang pagpapasaklaw sa kolonisador na Kastila, panginoong maylupa at lalaki.

Sa katunayan, ang Marianismong ito at ang pangkabuuang ideolohiya ng pagpapasunod sa kababaihan ay tumatagos hanggang sa kasalukuyan.

Armadong Kababaihan Hindi nakaligtas sa ganitong kasanayan si Maita Gomez na nagaral sa Assumption at St. Scholastica’s College sa Maynila. Kilala ang kanyang pamilya na nagmamayari ng malawak na asyenda sa Pangasinan. Lumaki siya sa karangyaan ng buhay—mula sa mga gamit hanggang sa paaralang pinasukan. Sa murang edad, narating niya ang iba’t ibang lugar tulad ng Asya, Aprika, Europa at Amerika nang regaluhan siya ng kanyang lola sa kanyang pagtatapos sa sekundarya.

Lalong nagningning ang tala para kay Maita Gomez nang makamit niya ang gantimpalang Miss Philippines noong 1967. Matapos ang isang taong pagmomodelo, nag-asawa si Maita at nanirahan sa Philadelphia at New York kung saan nagtapos ng pag-aaral at nagtrabaho ang kanyang asawa.

Bumalik si Maita sa UP upang magtapos ng kanyang pag-aaral. Dito ay naging aktibo siya sa paglahok sa mga demonstrasyon. Naging kaibigan niya ang mga mahihirap na estudyante, at narating niya ang

iba’t ibang lugar upang magsagawa ng medical mission.

Gayunman, tinalikuran ni Maita ang lahat ng tagumpay at karangyaan sa buhay upang sumama sa armadong pakikibaka ng mga kababaihan. Bunsod ito ng kanyang pagkakasaksi sa kalagayan ng mga nasalanta ng Bagyong Yoling noong 1970. Tatlong taon siyang namuhay sa kabundukan ng Bicol at tatlong taon sa Gitnang Luzon.

Iniaanak naman sa panahon ng Batas Militar ang iba pang kababaihan na nagpakita ng tapang laban sa mapaniil na estado. Isa na dito si Maria Lorena Barros, kilalang makata at aktibista. Kabilang siya sa mga nagtatag ng Makibaka, isang progresibong organisasyon ng mga kababaihan sa ilalim ng administrasyong Marcos sa panahon

ng Unang Sigwa.

Halaw sa kanyang katauhan a n g “bagong Pilipina,” salungat s a pagiging Maria Clara. Bente anyos pa lang siya ng maging bahagi ng New People’s Army (NPA). Katulad ni Maita, iniwan niya ang mapagmahal at nakaririwasang pamilya upang ialay ang sarili sa bayan.

Nananalaytay sa kanyang ugat ang pagiging rebelde— katipunero ang kanyang lolo at dating miyembro ng Hukbalahap ang kanyang ina.

Nagtapos siya sa UP ng kursong Antropolohiya.

Sumama siya sa mga demonstrasyon kung saan naantig ang natutulog niyang damdamin para sa mga estudyante at iba pang mga mamamayang naninindigan at patuloy na nananawagan ng pagbabago sa pamahalaan.

Kilala namang rebolusyunaryo ng Iloilo si Teresa Magbanua, o mas kilala bilang ‘Nay Isa. Nag-aral siya sa Maynila ng edukasyon at bumalik sa Pototan, Iloilo upang magturo.

Nag-asawa siya matapos ang tatlong taong pagtuturo. Nang sumiklab ang digmaan laban sa mga Kastila, sinamahan niya ang kanyang mga kapatid na sumama sa rebolusyon.

Pinamunuan niya ang mga serye ng pag-aklas laban sa mga Kastila, Amerikano at Hapon. Namatay siya noong Agosto 1947 sa edad na 78.

Muling pagbangon Naging lunsaran ang madilim na karanasan ng kababaihan sa mga dayuhan upang umigting ang pag-

aaklas sa bansa. Dito inianak ang mga progresibong grupo upang ganap na lumaya sa kamay ng mga dayuhan.

Pinamunuan ng magigiting na babae tulad nila Maita Gomez, Lorena Barros at Teresa Magbanua ang mga progresibong grupo na patuloy na lumalaban hanggang sa kasalukuyan.

Ilan sa mga grupong ito ang Women for the Ouster of Marcos and Boycott (WOMB), Malayang Kilusan ng Bagong Kababaihan (MAKIBAKA), at Gabriela Women’s Party.

Naging tuntungan ang mga progresibong grupo upang ipagpatuloy ang sinimulang laban ni Andres Bonifacio at iba pang mga Pilipino.

Unang binuo ang MAKIBAKA ng mga progresibong kababaihan na naghahangad ng kalayaan noong Abril 1970. Tumatak ito sa kasaysayan dahil sa bitbit na adhikaing pagbabago sa pamamagitan ng pambansang kalayaan.

Sinasalamin ng paghawak ng mga kababaihan ng armas ng lumalalang karahasan na nararanasan sa bansa.

Kagustuhang lumaya sa mapaniil na katayuan sa lipunan ang nag-udyok sa mga kababaihan na lumaban.

Isa si Maita sa bumuo ng Gabriela, isang koalisyon ng kababaihan na nagsusulong ng mga pangunahing karapatan ng mga babae. Napagtagumpayan din ni Maita ang pagtatayo ng Kababaihan para sa Inang Bayan (KAIBA), unang pampulitikang partido ng kababaihan na nagbalik sa mga babae na magkaroon ng posisyon sa pamahalaan.

Samu’t saring adbokasiya ang lumalabas upang lumaban para sa karapatan at panawagan hinggil sa mga isyung panlipunan. Subalit ilan pa bang hinirang na beauty queen ang mangangahas na bumalikwas sa imaheng binuo ng mga marahas na sistemang buhat pa sa mga mananakop?

Bukod sa isyu ng pantay na pagtingin—diskriminasyon at isteryotipiko ng pagiging mahina— ipinaglalaban din ng mga kababaihan ang pangunahing isyu sa lipunan tulad ng pandarahas sa karapatangpantao, walang habas na pagtaas ng presyo ng bilihin at kuryente na dagdag pahirap sa mga mamamayan, kawalang aksyon ng pamahalaan sa panawagan ng mga manggagawa at patuloy na pagpapasailalim sa kapangyarihan ng mga dayuhan.

Sa panahong kailangan ng mas pinalakas na pwersa na siyang dadalumat sa katayuan at kalagayan ng kababaihan, tunay na hindi makatarungang ang lakas at kakayahan ng mga kababaihan ay ipagkasya lamang sa pagiging tila palamuti sa halip na maging mapagpasya sa pagkamit ng inaasam na tagumpay. ∞

Illustration : Ysa Calinawan Page design : Ashley Garcia

KULTURA

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN

9

SABADO, MARSO 15, 2014

Imprisonment of beauty A Review of Damas de Noche

Performed by The UP Repertory Company A play by Joi Barrios Lyrics by Romulo Baquiran Directed by Bryle Leaño and Gio Potes Musical direction by Gian Odeste Julian Inah Anunciacion AS THE STAGE LIGHT RACED through the territories of their skins, the women—five, six in number— writhed in sync with the smooth riffs and heart-pounding drum beats.

Covered in revealing, virginal-white corsets and conservative skirts that flowed down to their ankles, these women of the night surrendered their bodies to the music with such energy as to relay, in desperation, their anguish through a dance of defiance.

The virgin, the saint, and the whore Adding further bleakness to realities it stripped naked, Damas de Noche, a play by writer Joi Barrios, was devoid of music and dance in its original production in 2001.

Professor Romulo Baquiran adorned the text with a libretto enhanced by UP Underground Music Community.

Though already on its fourth restaging, Damas de Noche was not lost in the ephemeral passing of histories. Its current restaging by the UP Repertory Company (UP Rep), under the direction of resident UP Rep artists Bryle Leaño and Gio Potes, did not leave the urgency of the stories trapped at the turn of the century; instead, the play’s attempt at bringing the story to contemporary times was evident with the choreography, execution, and minimal revisions in the text.

The play opened in a prison cell.

The setting’s characteristic shape of “parisukat” limiting the physical and emotional freedom of the women characters had been a consistent motif in the play. In the eyes of a discriminating public defiled by an established patriarchal order, the five main characters were exiled from the list of women, and were scrutinized as mujeras de publicas— ladies for the public.

The narratives of the characters explicate the intricacies of hegemonic systems that dominate women: a tobacco company worker who turned to prostitution to save her mother from her abusive husband, an aspiring zarzuela actress who got raped by her recruiter, a lovely young woman driven to silence and muteness after being raped by fourteen men, an ideal-driven woman in love who was mistaken for a prostitute. In all of these, Magdalena—“puta ng lahat ng pahanon”—played the Puck of the story, narrating the events with utmost frankness and cynicism, without exposing her own story.

UP Rep remained truthful to the fragmentary nature of the play, highlighted by the sensual, frenzied choreography that bore semblance to pre-colonial rituals. Appearing at sporadic intervals throughout the play, such motif escalated in the song “Nabasag na Banga” after which Maria asked Leonarda what she would do with her already broken

Ladies of the night famish in their own narratives of struggle against oppression.

jar. “Pagtatagpiin ko. Baka sakaling mapakinabangan pa,” Leonarda replied, hinting a shattered history.

In a symbolic-political attempt to “upgrade” the women’s struggle into a wider fight for gender equality, UP Rep cast a man to play one of the koro girls, Leaño explained,. It must be emphasized that the fight for women’s liberation is inextricably a fight that must involve all sexes.

The want of escape from the prison was both a personal and a shared sentiment among those who were oppressed. The women’s need for freedom was encapsulated as Maria proposed escape into Palawan where they could live undisturbed by the cruelty of hegemonic systems of patriarchy, feudalism and capitalism. After momentary fantasies of escape, fear of being ostracized overcame them instead.

Emancipation of the female body Women in the play appeared alike--mechanical dolls of an abusive system that weighed the worth of a woman by how strictly she subjected herself to conventions of passivity and obedience, curtailed perfectly by doctrines of the prevailing religion.

By subscribing themselves to these hegemonic dictates, these women lost ownership of their bodies.

For women to conceal their eroticism—a feminine value distorted by the existing male view to immorality--to be regarded as respectable women was a false

belief instilled by a male-dominated society to maintain its ideologies, writer Audre Lorde explained in her critical essay, “The Uses of Erotic.”

Stereotypes were attached to women who veered from these male-built norms. Believing women who wandered through the night to be prostitutes, Leonarda was automatically tagged as such, even though she only braved the night to search for Miguel, her lover.

In keeping stereotypes intact, the patriarchy was invulnerable.

With a potential of being utilized as empowerment, eroticism was defiled by men to suit their advantage such as prostitution—a direct rejection of the power of eroticism. One of the songs in the play, “Karne,” portrayed this corruption of eroticism perfectly as the women would sell themselves as if they would sell meat in the marketplace.

The revealing costume of the koro of women was suggestive of rebellion against the established Maria Clara stereotype consistent throughout the play, succumbing to eroticism of women—a need for escape.

The culture of machismo was prevalent in the colonial setting of the play—an arena controlled by the power of the Catholic religion.

With the characters stories depicted as results of having colonizer after colonizer juggle the country in a rape of identity, oppression of women was clearly depicted not only as a product of ruling class ideologies and politics. Traditionally, only one actor played the part of Man in all its oppressive permutations: a Chinese employer who made a woman’s virginity a business, a revolutionary lover who never listened, guardia civil who preyed on women.

The musical concluded with a ritual reminiscent of pre-colonial worship of woman and her body in a frenzied prayer to a Deity unknown to the Patriarchal religion brought by the colonizers. The symbolic ridding of the women off the bands around their wrists was the sole indication of revolt.

Leonarda pines for her lover Miguel as he decides to leave her due to her degrading reputation.

Escape from prison Damas de Noche did not fall into the easy trap of blandly depicting female oppression. Instead, it sought to hunt for its roots, to supply explanations and even to hint solutions.

In the social binary French poststructuralist feminists indicated, women were always assigned as the inferior between the two.

This view discarding women birthed to lack of concern in their welfare: human trafficking, forced migration, and lack of reproductive health law.

Desperation to survive forced the marginalized female into succumbing to this societal structure.

Women’s groups such as GABRIELA registered that the generally negative cultural perception of women brought by foreign domination, landlessness, and political repression could be overthrown by the overhaul of the patriarchal, feudal and imperialist value systems and societal structures. Otherwise, desperation would only make it easier for women to continue to accept their unfortunate lot.

Differences among women was not the factor the divided them into inaction from countering this system but silence, Lorde explained.

This was the idea was portrayed by one of the characters, Clara, who initially accepted silence as her only escape.

The play brought to the contemporary audience the battle against women oppression, yet the freedom from prisons—the numerous “parisukat” that limited women movement—must not be limited to the stage solely as the stage lights were shut down. And as what the ritual dance suggested, collective action was imperative to struggle against the hegemony not only of Man but of these brutal systems of feudalism and capitalism.∞ Photographs : Chester Higuit Page design : Ashley Garcia

OPINYON

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN

10

SABADO, MARSO 15, 2014

Who’s afraid of fear?

Victor Gregor Limon LAST NIGHT, I CAME ACROSS an article which discusses a rather controversial study on fear. Published in September 2013 by the science journal Nature, the study was conducted by American neuroscientists Brian Dias and Kerry Ressler. According to the article, the duo “provocatively” suggested that fear is a behavior that may be inherited and may persist throughout generations.

It was controversial because modifications in genetic sequence are conservatively considered to be the only way for acquired traits to be transmitted across generations. It’s also a little bit funny, because like many experiments that cannot be done on actual humans, it involved a number of illfated mice instead, plus the scent of cherries and almonds, and small doses of electric shock. Poor creatures, the things they have to endure in this day and age.

Other scientists were incredulous, dealing out harsh judgments like “The claims they make are so extreme they kind of violate the principle that extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof.” The science community could be a vicious world. But have these doubtful scientists been to the University of the Philippines?

Last Friday, I was invited to an educational discussion hosted by UP Variates, a student organization in the School of Statistics. The primer I presented was the result of the Collegian’s years of research since the Socialized Tuition and Financial Assistance Program (STFAP) was implemented in 1989—a time lapse enough for a generation of students to pass through the national university.

I’d go so far as saying most of those who attended the forum were convinced that socialized tuition hampers the university’s duty to open its doors to all poor but deserving students and ensure that UP education serves a nationalist, scientific, and massoriented agenda.

However, some students and groups express fear of what may happen if we scrap the current version of the STFAP, the Socialized Tuition System (STS). I believe that such fear is deep-rooted, socially constructed, even inherited throughout long years of being led to believe that socialized tuition is the only way for UP to survive.

For who among us now could remember that bygone era when full tuition subsidy for the poor, dorm privileges, and stipends for the needy were conditions that are actually possible on

We have been docile for a very long while already, often choosing to fear that which we have never yet experienced

a low UP budget and a flat-rate tuition fee? Why do we fear this?

As the implementation of the STS looms next year, I am beginning to suspect we are being treated like mice— conditioned to fear the unknown so that we would choose to settle for the status quo—the safe, the familiar, the convenient, the supposedly practical.

In a phone interview with UP President Alfredo Pascual early this year, which I had to do while on a jeep somewhere in Iloilo, he claimed there is no considerable opposition to the STFAP. “Where are these students who are against socialized tuition?” he asked. I had to bite my tongue to keep myself from making a response.

Similarly, the UP Board of Regents approved the STS, despite objections from the Student and Staff Regents— a shameless act that seems to display their confidence that the UP community is incapable of fighting fiercely for an alternative to this status quo.

We have been docile for a very long while already, often choosing to fear that which we have never yet experienced—and only because we have yet to succeed in making it happen. I say it’s time we prove them wrong and show them who’s the boss here. ∞

Wow this is doge Ronn Joshua C. Bautista I HAVE RECENTLY TAKEN A liking to this meme of a Shiba Inu dog called Doge.

Having stumbled upon it one day while looking for dog food recipes in Google, this meme, literally just a picture of a Shiba Inu with broken English phrases in comic sans, has gotten a worldwide cult-following during the past year – and I have become a new fan.

Usually using words like “wow,” “so,” and “such,” Doge’s face have appeared on top of seemingly random pictures in the Internet, often carrying messages that are too childishly constructed to comprehend. Yet, it is this very incomprehensibility that has made Doge and Doge-speak so iconic.

Today, I have made Doge my laptop wallpaper and subscribed myself to daily Doge memes on Facebook. But five months since my first encounter with Doge, its novelty has still not worn off for me.

I still laugh at every reposted Doge meme. Heck, I still even use Doge-speak around my friends.

What is it about this otherwise quiet and wellmannered Shiba Inu that still amazes me?

What is it about this otherwise quiet and well-mannered Shiba Inu that still amazes me?

I don’t know really. Maybe because I have a dog, too, I guess – not that my dog is a Shiba Inu or that she speaks in comic sans.

You see, my dog has always been the highlight every time I come home to the province after two or three weeks of torture in Kule and my classes. My dog would always run all the way from her cage to run around me and try to push me down with her tiny paws. Of course, she never succeeds. After all, she is just a foot tall. But I always pretend I do and sit down to pet her and rub her belly.

She would be one of the many great things about coming home.

After maybe thirty minutes of playing with our dog, I would go inside our house covered in fur that has always infuriated my OC parents.

Nonetheless, I would change clothes and eat my first homemade meal in weeks.

For the next few days, I would be able to procrastinate all day long because nothing in that house reminds me of acads. I could waste the day sleeping in my own bed or spend it playing catch with our dog.

My almost-monthly trips home have never been productive, to be honest. Our house has become my hiding place from all my responsibilities at school.

I realize now then that, maybe, my obsession with Doge has always just been a longing to go home.

The hilarious Doge with its golden coat and random randomness somewhat have similarities with our yellow-brown dachshund back home. With Hell Week just around the corner, who wouldn’t want to just escape from it all and have a fluffy little creature trying to follow you around?

Now that I’m miles away from home again, the best I can do now is just look at Doge. Wow. ∞

OPINYON

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN

Continued from page 4

11

SABADO, MARSO 15, 2014

Continued from page 5

EKSENANG PEYUPS

NEWSCAN

CHEd memo allows

ALYANSA wins in for ‘automatic 12 of 23 colleges tuition hikes’ Voter turnout has remained less than 50 percent throughout the student elections history. The highest turnout was recorded at 48.9 percent in the 2012 elections.

(See sidebar) “Medyo nakakadisappoint na pababa ang trend [sa elections]. It means na may kailangan pang-iprove ang student leaders sa mga students para ma-enganyo sila bumoto,” said Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Maria Corazon Tan. Tan cited weak information dissemination and the student leaders’ lack of involvement in the student community as possible reasons for the lower voter turnout this year.

“Kailangan mas iparamdam ng mga student leaders ang katuturan at kahalagahan ng USC. Bukod sa paglilinaw ng programa, kailangan rin nilang alamin ang concerns at issues ng students at estado. Kailangan nilang bumuo ng programa o platform na based on student issues,” Tan said. ∞ Continued from page 5

Media, iba pang grupo nagprotesta kontra ‘e-Martial Law’

upang malayang magpahayag ng mga opinyon at nalalaman ay maaaring makitil dahil sa ilang mga parusa katulad ng pagkakakulong, ayon sa pahayag ng UP College of Mass of Communication (CMC).

Hindi rin malinaw ang ilang probisyon ng batas na maaring ituring ang paggawa ng “memes” sa Internet bilang “alteration of electronic documents” na isang krimen sa ilalim ng RA 10175, dagdag pa ng UP CMC. Pinirmahan ni Pangulong Benigno Aquino III ang batas noon pang Setyembre 2012, ngunit hindi ito agad naipatupad dahil sa inilabas ng SC na 120-araw temporary restraining order. Pinalawig pa ng mataas na hukom ang restraining order noong Pebrero ng nakaraang taon.

“The cybercrime law is a clear manifestation of state fascism by directly attacking our freedom of expression. At present, we have existing laws against cyber sex, cyber bullying, [among others]. They just need to be implemented,” ani Eduardo Gabral, national chaiperson ng Katipunan ng mga Sangguniang Mag-aaral sa UP. ∞

10175.

Naghahanda ng mosyon ang ilang mga grupo katulad ng Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, Bayan Muna, National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) at Kabataan Party-list upang muling suriin ng SC ang mga probisyon ng batas, lalo na ang pagapaparusa sa “online libel.”

“By extending the reach of the antediluvian libel law into cyberspace, the [SC] has suddenly made a once infinite venue for expression into an arena of fear, a hunting ground for the petty and vindictive, the criminal and autocratic,” ayon sa NUJP. Ang paggamit sa mga serbisyong e-mail, chat at social networking upang malayang magpahayag ng mga opinyon at nalalaman ay maaaring makitil dahil sa ilang mga parusa katulad ng pagkakakulong, ayon sa pahayag ng UP College of Mass of Communication (CMC).

Hindi rin malinaw ang ilang probisyon ng batas na maaring ituring ang paggawa ng “memes” sa Internet bilang “alteration of electronic documents” na isang krimen sa ilalim ng RA 10175, dagdag pa ng UP CMC. Pinirmahan ni Pangulong Benigno Aquino III ang batas noon pang Setyembre 2012, ngunit hindi ito agad naipatupad dahil sa inilabas ng SC na 120-araw temporary restraining order. Pinalawig pa ng mataas na hukom ang restraining order noong Pebrero ng nakaraang taon.

“The cybercrime law is a clear manifestation of state fascism by directly attacking our freedom of expression. At present, we have existing laws against cyber sex, cyber bullying, [among others]. They just need to be implemented,” ani Eduardo Gabral, national chaiperson ng Katipunan ng mga Sangguniang Mag-aaral sa UP. ∞

Next week’s questions 1. Sa iyong palagay, nakamit na ba ang hustisya para kay Kristel Tejada? Bakit?

2. Ano ang official soundtrak ng iyong hell week?

Send in your opinions and feedback via SMS! Type KULE <space> MESSAGE <space> STUDENT NUMBER <required> NAME and COURSE (optional) and send to:

0935 541 0512 0908 180 1076 Non-UP students must indicate any school, organization or sectoral affliation.

REHAB-A-LIB!

Ze Elekshun Edishun!

HALEEEEEER MGA CHUKCHAKCHENES eklavu!

Nagbabalik ang pinakamagandang vaklusheee sa balat ng unibersidad! Nakakamiss mang-echos ng mga impaktita lalo na at napakaraming mga nakakalerkey na kaganapan ngayon! Sa linggolinggong pang vevekizz ko sa Kule, ay bet, nawit na rin ang most wonderful time of the year, the elekshuuuun.

Akalain niyo yun, isang buwan kong napigil ang panlalandi! Kaya naman I’ll share my thoughts about the election na, bebe.

Sharing # 1. Sa ilang linggong pang veveckler ni UP Diliman Heckler sa mga kandidato, ay nako nakaka-Hagardo Versosa yun ah, tinalo pa ang pang-eechos ko, imbyernang yan, kung makagawa ng mga issue. Aba, akala niya kung sino siyang maganda, mas malandi pa rin ako sayo! Pero in fair, binigyan niya ng ibang kulay ang eleksyon, nako dapat next year may kulay berde na, at siyempre, brown, if you know what I mean.

Sharing # 2. Pero siyempre alam naman natin na magiging Asul na ag unibersidad from the Dilaw last year. Nako congrats sa aking kasister na si Arjay, im so proud of you dear, alam mo yan! Walang binatbat sa iyo ang pearls ni Carla at scarf ni Erra! At siyempre, bet na bet ko rin ang pagkapanalo ni Carl Santos, congrats, bebe luv. Alam naman natin kung sino ang one true love mo dba? Sorry na lang sa iba, chos.

How I wish. Kay Menchani Tilendo naman, nako, mench to be ka nga talaga to be a councilor girl, ikaw na! Kawawa nga lang itong si Reg Punzalan, luhaan, sugatan at hindi tuloy mapakanibangan, chika!

Sharing # 3. Umasa rin ako sa mataas sana na voter’s turnout, nako lagi naman akong napapaasa lang e. Sa dinami-rami ng populasyon sa UPD, 48% lang talaga ang may pakialam sa nagaganap sa ating unibersidad. Nako, gising naman UP, mga iskolar na pag-asa ng bayan!

Wag na puro landi, makialam din naman pag may time. O baka naman kasi nawalan na lang sila ng tiwala sa USC anu?

Kaloka ang mga kaganapan sa eleksyon, pero sa lahat ng mga ito, buti na lang magandang vaklushi pa rin ako. Sana lang at wag mapako ang mga pangako ng Bagong USC! Sige mga bakla, Boomkaraka na ako, Muah muah Chupchup!

We, the Sigma Delta Pi Sorority has teamed up with Bangon Bayan, UP School of Library and Information Studies Student Council and Sigma Kappa Pi Fraternity, to answer the call for help of UP Tacloban and Sacred Heart School in Palo, Leyte for a new Library.

Support and help us find book donations and/or make your own donation for the rehabilitation of the libraries of these important academic institutions. They are in need of any medical, nursing and midwifery books but other books are also necessary.

Cash donations are also welcome as this will allow the institutions to purchase specific books that they need.

You may contact Ms. Ola Gealogo (09152364084) for your donations and we will arrange a pick-up of your donations.

Join us as we rise for women’s empowerment and know how courage can change a girl’s life in:

RISE UP A talk on women’s right to education and a special screening of GIRL RISING. March 15, 2014 9AM-1PM UP Film Institute Learn more about the situation of gender equality in education here in the Philippines and why it is important that we give women access to education. We will also be having a special screening of Girl Rising, a film by Academy Awardnominated director Richard E. Hobbins, that showcases the story of 9 girls living in the developing world: ordinary girls who confront tremendous challenges and overcome nearly impossible odds to pursue their dreams. Prize-winning authors put the girls’ remarkable stories into words, and renowned actors give them voice.

The University of the Philippines College of Music Faculty Concert Series

Pre-register now to avail of discounted ticket prize! http://tinyurl.com/ RiseUp2014

presents:

This event is presented to you by: UNESCO Club UP Diliman UP Center for Women’s Studies JCI Manileña Philippine Commission on Women World Vision Spark Philippines KMQR Events

EXTREME MAKEOVER The UP Symphonic Band Prof. Rodney Ambat, Conductor John Lester Armenta, Soloist March 20, 2014 Thursday, 6:30 PM Abelardo Hall Auditorium College of Music UP Diliman Featuring original works for symphonic band by: Arnold Schoenberg, Paul Hindemith, Alfred Reed, Bert Appermont, Jan de Haan, Johan de Meij, and Satoshi Yagisawa.

Tickets are priced at 200 php 50% discount for students 20% discount for senior citizens For inquiries, please call 929-6963, 926-0036 Trunk line: 981-8500, loc 2639 or email Eva Garcia-Cadiz at gondour03@yahoo.com Special thanks to our co-promoters: UP CMu Student Council, UP Tiklado, UP CoNeMus, UP Tugma, and UP Dawani Women’s Choir!

See you there!!!

CONTACT US! Write to us via snail mail or submit a soft copy to Rm. 401, Vinzons Hall, UP Diliman, Quezon City.

Email us at pkule1314gmail.com.

Save Word attachments in Rich Text Format, with INBOX, NEWSCAN or CONTRIB in the subject. Always include your full name, address and contact details.

Also brought to you by: Monde Nissin Corporation King Louis Flowers and Plants Inc. In partnership with: UP Subol Society Supported by: UP Buklod-Isip DZUP Radio Circle Media Partners: Rappler WhenInManila.com Circuit Magazine

UP Circle of Administrators (UP CIRCA) in celebration of its 22nd Anniversary presents SERIESLY? The Pilot Episode A series quiz bee contest featuring cosplay as side competition March 20, 2014 5pm | NCPAG AVR Form a group of three and Register here: http://tinyurl.com/ Seriesly2014 Registration fee is only Php150 per team!

NOWHERE MAN

Alan P. Tuazon

Sound of silence IT WAS ALWAYS EASIER TO find someone to blame when things would go wrong.

In a class which I took not out of requirement but out of curiosity, the professor set the class not on a heated debate but on cold silence. What brought such silence was the topic of the academic calendar shift. I could not trace how the topic surfaced from a hearty debate on Rabelais.

It was uncanny—seeing my active and participative classmates fall prey to silence when a pressing issue invaded the room. Had they dismissed the idea as too mundane for their refined taste? Why did the enthusiasm subsided when such issue surfaced that would redo the calendar of the State University to hastily surrender itself blindly to neoliberal policies? A pair of freshmen kept doodling, latecomers at the back hid behind people in front of them to avoid being caught asleep, active students in front expressed irritation of having such topic arrive in a discussion on art.

One could always blame the changing demographics of UP—populated by middle class kids raised with egoist ideologies of studying, excelling and graduating for one’s own welfare—for the existing lack of interest in social issues.

Who could put blame on them anyway? An entry to UP was beyond affordable, and failing subjects was a waste of financial resources, they would argue.

They, too, were victims.

As the division between pros and antis regarding the calendar shift reached its height this week, the fear of choosing sides also pervaded. “Taking a stand is only for the brave,” a friend once told me. Last time I checked honor and excellence requires bravery. And now is the time to prove if our bravery is for the greater good of the majority rather than the few. ∞