Philippine Collegian Tomo 94 Issue 6 by Philippine Collegian

PHILIPPINE COLLEGIAN Opisyal na lingguhang pahayagan ng mga mag-aaral ng Unibersidad ng Pilipinas, Diliman › Martes 18 Oktubre 2016 › Tomo 94 Blg 6

THIRD WORLD PROBLEMS

lathalain

kulê

PASS OR FAIL

SUMMING UP DUTERTE'S FIRST 100 DAYS

opinyon

(RE)VISIONED

balita PAGPAPAGAWA NG FC, WALA PA RING USAD

kultura

2 › opinyon

LANDAS NG PAKIKIBAKA Dahil mayaman sa deposito ng mineral at yamang gubat ang mga lupang minana ng mga pambansang minorya, napalitan ng ingay ng makina’t lagari ang kapayapaan ng kanilang mga komunidad. Naging espasyo ang ekta-ektarya nilang lupain para sa mga proyektong may ganansyang kita sa mga negosyante, habang nagsilbing kampo ng militar ang kanilang mga kabahayan at eskwelahan. Ngayong Oktubre, hamon sa bawat kabataan na tumindig kasama ang mga katutubo sa paggigiit ng kanilang karapatan sa sariling lupa at pagpapapasya. Patunay lamang ang 3,500 bilang ng Lakbayani sa taong ito na walang armas ang makahahadlang sa kanila upang mag-organisa at bagtasin ang karagatan tungo sa kalunsuran.  philippinecollegian.org  phkule  phkule  phkule  phkule  phkule@gmail.com

editoryal Martes 18 OKTUBRE 2016 ISKO ON THE STREET Ano ang iyong reaksyon sa nagaganap na batuhan ng paratang ngayon sa pagitan ni Senator Leila de Lima at Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte?

“Kapag nakikita ko 'yung post, pinapalampas ko na lang. Para silang mga bata.” JC Macabodbod

4th year BA Malikhaing Pagsulat

“I see them as immature leaders. Not a good example.”

Landas ng pakikibaka Marka ng bawat pakikibaka ang paglikha ng isang tindig. Ito ang diwa ng Lakbayan 2016–hindi patitinag ang 3,500 pambansang minorya upang muling igiit ang kanilang karapatan sa lupang minana at sariling pagpapasya, kasama ang kabataan at iba pang sektor sa kalunsuran. Mga katutubo ang pangunahing biktima ng malawakang pagpapalit-gamit ng lupa, malakihang pagmimina, at militarisasyon dahil sa mayamang deposito ng mineral at yamang gubat sa kanilang lupa. Dagdag pa ang pagtotroso at mga proyektong may ganansyang kita para sa mga lokal at dayuhang negosyante, kapalit ng pagkawasak ng kapaligiran at pagbabakwit ng mga mamamayan. Tinatayang 619,000 ektaryang lupang minana ang sinakop ng 246 operasyong aprubado sa ilalim ng Philippine Mining Act of 1995, batay sa tala ng Katribu noong 2015. Sa halip na katutubo, mga dayuhang kompanya lalo na mula sa Estados Unidos ang nakikinabang sa mineral ng Pilipinas, kung saan 97 porsyento ng produksyon ang napupunta sa mga dayuhang industriya, ayon sa IBON Foundation. Naging instrumento pa ng dahas ang National Commission on Indigenous Peoples laban sa mga katutubo. Kasabwat ito ng Armed Forces of the Philippines sa pagsasagawa ng Oplan Bayanihan ng

Makakamit lamang ang tagumpay kung magkakaroon ng tunay at pangmatagalang pagbabagong lipunan

nakaraang administrasyon, na tumutugis sa sinumang kontra sa mga proyekto ng malalaking korporasyon. Upang mas lalong hadlangan ang mga katutubo sa paglaban para sa karapatan, ginawang kampo ng mga militar ang mga eskwelahang itinayo upang magkaloob ng kaalamang rekisito sa pagkamulat. Halos isang taon na mula nang paslangin si Emerito Samarca, executive director ng isang paaralan para sa Lumad, ngunit wala pang hustisyang nakakamit. Malinaw na nilalabag din ng estado ang karapatan sa sariling pagpapasya ng mga katutubo dahil sa mga patakarang may pagkiling sa pribadong interes. Kabilang na rito ang Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act of 1997 (IPRA) na nagbigay daan sa naglalakihang kumpanya para sa pangangamkam-lupa. Mahigit 19 taon na nang ipatupad ang IPRA, ngunit nanatiling mailap ang kapayapaan para sa mga pambansang minorya dahil sa pagtindi ng paglabag sa kanilang mga karapatan. Panahon na upang wakasan ang pananamantalang ito—malaki ang kapasidad ng nagkakaisang mga sektor upang matulungan ang mga katutubo. Makakamit lamang ang tagumpay kung magkakaroon ng tunay at pangmatagalang pagbabagong lipunan. Kagyat na aksyon

Ela Figura

1st year BA Theater Arts ang pagpapalayas sa mga militar mula sa mga komunidad at pagpapatigil ng mga proyektong sanhi ng pagkawasak ng mga katutubong lupain, kasama ang mga korporasyong dayuhan na pansariling ganansya ang habol sa bansa. Kasunod nito ang pagsulong ng mga sosyo-ekonomikong repormang nakapaloob sa kasalukuyang usaping pangkapayapaan sa Oslo, Norway. Nararapat maibasura ang mga palisiya gaya ng Mining Act at IPRA, at ipalit ang mga programang magkakaloob ng mga batayang serbisyo sa mga katutubo: edukasyon, pangkalusugan, kuryente, tubig, at pabahay. Matagumpay man ang naging unang kampuhan sa UP Diliman noong 2015, hindi rito nagtatapos ang laban. Hinihingi mula sa mga kabataan at kawani ng pamantasan na mas iangat ang kamulatan ng bawat indibidwal sa sitwasyon ng minoryang hindi tanaw sa kalunsuran. Ngunit higit kailanman, patuloy na suporta sa bawat kampanya ng mga pambansang minorya ang kailangan mula sa mga mamamayan. Naghihintay ang mas malaking espasyo sa labas ng pamantasan na siyang lunsaran sa paggigiit at paninindigan para sa karapatan ng mga mamamayan. −

Punong Patnugot Karen Ann Macalalad Kapatnugot Arra Francia Tagapamahalang Patnugot John Reczon Calay Patnugot sa Kultura Andrea Joyce Lucas Patnugot sa Grapiks Rosette Abogado − Jan Andrei Cobey − Adrian Kenneth Gutlay − Chester Higuit Tagapamahala ng Pinansiya John Daniel Boone Kawani Hans Christian Marin Pinansiya Amelyn Daga Tagapamahala sa Sirkulasyon Paul John Alix Sirkulasyon Amelito Jaena − Glenario Ommamalin 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 Telepono 981-8500 lokal 4522 Online phkule@gmail.com − www.philippinecollegian.org / fb.com/phkule / twitter.com/phkule / instagram.com/philippinecollegian

“’Yung mga binabato, ‘di na tungkol sa issue na hinaharap nila at labas na sa dapat pag-usapan. Hindi naman tama na isama pa ang mga bagay na ‘di na dapat pang pakialaman.” Gennifer Burgos 2nd year BA English Studies

“Sa palagay ko, wala na sa lugar 'yong mga paratang nila sa isa't isa dahil sobrang personal na ang mga ito. Kung ang isyu nila ay tungkol sa pag-iimbestiga sa extrajudicial killings, dapat hanggang doon lang ang kanilang alitan.” Angela B. Dela Peña 2nd year BS Family Life and Child Development

UKOL SA PABALAT Dibuho ni John Kenneth Zapata

martes 18 OKTUBRE 2016

Pagpapagawa ng FC, wala pa ring usad − Camille

BALITA

Guadalupe Lita

Anim na buwan mula nang tupukin ito ng apoy, bubungad pa rin sa mga magagawi sa Faculty Center (FC) ang nagiitiman nitong mga dingding, basag-basag na bintana, nakatiwangwang na kisame at mahahabang piraso ng telang nagsasabing “police line, do not cross.” Unang araw ng Abril nang sumiklab ang apoy sa ikatlong palapag ng FC dulot ng pumalyang linya ng kuryente. Subalit hindi pa rin masimulan ng pamunuan ng UP Diliman (UPD) ang pagkukumpuni nito dahil sa kawalan ng opisyal na ulat ng Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), na siyang magtatakda kung anong remedyo ang dapat gawin sa gusali. “Hindi namin alam kung ire-reuse ba ang FC o ipagigiba. Based on the experience with BFP, hindi talaga sila maglalabas [ng report] and that’s what we should ask them,” ani Tsanselor Michael Tan ng UPD. Matapos ang sunog, mahigpit na ipinatupad sa UPD ang ika-10 ng gabi na curfew sa mga gusali, maging ang implementasyon ng “all lights out, all appliances unplugged” na palisiya upang maiwasan ang parehong insidente. Kawalan ng silid Kinailangang ilipat lahat ng apektadong departamento ng Kolehiyo ng Arte at Literatura (KAL) at Kolehiyo ng Agham Panlipunan at Pilosopiya (KAPP), 250 guro at kawani, at mga klase sa Palma Hall. Nitong Setyembre lamang nabigyan ng permanenteng silid ang mga guro ng Departamento ng Pilosopiya, Heograpiya, at Kasaysayan sa dating Chemistry Building. Sa kabilang banda, naghihintay pa rin ang mga propesor ng KAL na mailipat sila sa Melchor Hall, na siyang orihinal na paglalaanan dapat ng Arts and Humanities Cluster alinsunod sa Land Use Plan of 1994 ng UPD. “[S]inasabing sa Melchor Hall lilipat ang KAL subalit hindi kami makalipat dahil may kulang pang tatlong gusali para sa tatlong departamento ng Engineering,” pahayag ni Dekana Amihan Bonifacio-Ramolete ng KAL patungkol sa Land Use Plan. Hinihintay pa umanong matapos ang mga gusali para sa Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, at Geodetic Engineering bago palipatin dito ang KAL. Sa kasalukuyan, nagpagamit na lamang ng limang silid-aralan ang College of Engineering sa ikalimang palapag nito para sa mga klase ng Art Studies at Foreign Language. “[M]asakit pa ring makita na ang mga karatig-gusali ng FC ay ang gaganda't ang babago habang siya’y walang pinagkaiba sa unang beses niyang itinayo. Huwag sanang

ikatwiran [ng UP Admin] na maaari tayong magtiis habang nakikita nating naglalaan sila ng pondo sa Science & Technology, Engineering, at Mathematics,” ani Viktor Austria, kinatawan ng KAL sa Konseho ng mga Mag-aaral. Sunod-sunod na sunog Isa lamang ang FC sa mga gusali ng UPD na nasunog sa loob ng isang taon simula noong 2015. Sampung buwan lamang ang pagitan nito mula nang matupok ang College of Arts and Sciences Alumni Association (CASAA) Food Center noong Hunyo 13, 2015. Labimpitong araw naman bago ang insidente nang masunog ang Alumni Center. Hindi pa rin maikasa ang pagsasaayos ng CASAA dahil sa pagdedemanda ng mga nadamay na concessionaires sa isang empleyadong naging sanhi umano ng pagsabog ng tangke ng LPG na siyang tumupok sa kainan. Naantala ng nasabing kaso ang usad ng pagpaplano at rekonstruksyon. Ipinasa na ngayon sa Business Concessionaires’ Office (BCO) ang pangangasiwa ng food center, mula sa dating alumni ng unibersidad na nagpapatakbo nito. Naglaan na ng P5 milyon ang Chancellor’s Office mula sa kita ng UP sa renta ng land assets nito upang maipatayong muli ang Food Center. “Hopefully after one year mabuo na siya kasi kailangang-kailangan na ito,” ani Tan. Sa kasalukuyan, tumatanggap ang UP ng humigit-kumulang P60 milyon taun-taon mula sa renta ng UP Town Center, ayon pa kay Tan. Magiging mapili at sensitibo umano ang unibersidad sa “naming rights” na kasama sa kontrata sa pagitan ng UP at mga pribadong kumpanya. Hawak naman ng UP System ang pagpapasya sa pagpapagawa ng Alumni Center. Sinubukang makapanayam ng Collegian ang mga kinaukulan ukol dito subalit hindi pa nakatatanggap ang publikasyon ng tugon habang isinusulat ito. Hindi nakasama sa P1.1 bilyong 2017 Capital Outlay o pondong nakalaan para sa proyektong gusali at imprastraktura ng UP ang pagpapatayo ng FC, CASAA, at Alumni Center dahil sa limitadong subsidiya ng gobyerno sa unibersidad. “With the commercialized nature of Philippine education, corporations are taking on a greater role in universities such as UP. Such a step paves the way for the diminishing of UP's dependence on the state and ultimately transforms the essence of the public university,” ani Student Regent Raoul Danniel Manuel. −

SHORTLISTING OF TOP FIVE NOMINEES

27 October, Thursday

INTERVIEW AND ELECTION OF THE NEW PRESIDENT BY THE BOARD OF REGENTS

15 November, Tuesday

/PHKULE

BINHI AT BUNGA John Reczon Calay Inanunsiyo ni Kalihim Rafael "Ka Paeng" Mariano ng Kagawaran ng Repormang Pansakahan na ipawawalang-bisa niya ang sistemang "tambiolo" na tanging pinaiiral sa pamimigay ng lupa sa mga magsasaka ng Hacienda Luisita nang bumisita siya roon, Oktubre 1. Mula pa noong 2013, binubola katulad nang sa larong lotto ang titulo ng lupang ipamamahagi sa mga nagpatalang benepisiyaryong magsasaka; babayaran nila ang amortisasyon sa Land Bank of the Philippines sa loob ng 30 taon. Giit ng mga magsasaka roon, mapanlinlang at hindi makatarungan ang sistemang ito na pumapabor pa rin sa interes ng pamilya Cojuangco-Aquino.

UP Arboretum conversion to relocate 3K residents −

Camille Joyce M. Lisay

Around 3,000 residents of UP Arboretum are at risk of getting displaced should the government push through with its plan of converting the area into an ecological park by 2017. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has recently announced its proposal to convert the 17-hectare stretch into a tourist attraction within Quezon City. Plans to convert the arboretum into a National Botanical Garden have been underway since 2013. Signed along with the Department of Agriculture and the Beta Sigma Foundation, a memorandum of agreement (MOA) was signed in the same year which designates UP Arboretum as a priority protection zone, in accordance with UP Diliman’s Land Use Plan. A technical working group with UP Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs Nestor Castro had already started meeting this October to explore the project with the primary stakeholders of the ecopark plan. The decision for its approval is still pending prior to the consensus of its signatories, said Castro.

“While an ecopark has its perceived benefits, we must look at its consequences. The development of a park will mean that the current community in UP Arbo[retum] will be displaced,” said Juan Antonio Magalang, the Environmental Concerns Committee head of the University Student Council. The UP Arboretum is located behind UP Ayala Land Technohub, and is further divided into five blocks where settlements are clustered into Blocks 1 and 3. Areas designated for preservation are situated in Blocks 2 and 5. It also serves as a home to over 9,298 and 77 varieties of plant and animal species, respectively. Initially intended for research and development, UP Arboretum has turned into a large community, some of whom are workers and staff members of the university. Members of the community have previously raised concerns on the safety within the area. Just recently, two men reportedly linked to drugs were shot dead at Block 4 inside Arboretum. The area has been known to be a hiding place for criminals because of the forest’s shady parts. “Naging pugad na ng mga criminal

ang [UP Arboretum] dahil liblib at hindi madaling pasukin. Kamakailan lang nagkaroon ng Oplan Tokhang sa Block 4 kung saan dalawa ang patay pero hindi sila taga-rito sa amin,” said Salvi Paredes, a resident of UP Arboretum. Amid the displacement of the residents, environment Secretary Gina Lopez claimed the conversion will help the community within Arboretum earn profit. “I want an ecological paradise here where there is renewable energy, good septage, and medicinal plants where people from all over the country, the world even, can converge. You can make some money and the community makes money, that’s the way they get out of poverty,” Lopez said in a press conference. Developments like these must come with ethical judgment, so we must remain vigilant, and engage in constant communication with the administration, Magalang said. −

18 OKTUBRE 2016 BALITA martes

#TAASKAMAO

Need for reforms delay SK polls anew −

arjay ivan gorospe

Elections for the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) set this month have been delayed anew, with lawmakers citing the need for reforms in the youth council before electing a new roster of officers. Voting 20-2, the Senate passed on September 13 the Senate Bill No. 1112, which seeks to postpone the SK elections for one year. The House of Representatives passed their version of the bill on the same day, with 214 representatives voting to move the polls to October 31, 2017. This postponement marks the third time since the SK elections were first halted in 2013. “We consulted our chapters throughout the country and there is actually strong resistance to the planned election postponement, as the public is not convinced with the reasons behind the local election postponement,” said Kabataan Partylist Representative Sarah Jane Elago. Established in 1975, the SK was formed for the youth to have a voice in community affairs, as well as for the government to gain means on tapping the youth for various development initiatives. The main functions of the SK are to initiate programs designed to enhance social, economic, and cultural developments. Instead, the youth council has been known to sponsor only sports festivals and pageants in the barangay level, including waiting sheds and sidewalk murals. The youth council has been weak in terms of coming up with legislations, promoting the development of young people, submitting reports, and holding consultations, according to a study conducted by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in 2007. We have temporarily stopped the implementation of youth team building projects to accommodate changes in the

council, said Jia Marie Luberisco, a member of the Barangay Tagpos Youth Task Force in Antipolo, Rizal. “Di naman pwedeng puro [barangay] kagawad lang ang kikilos so as a youth dapat nakakatulong din,” Luberisco said. The postponement will allow more time for the full implementation of SK Republic Act 10742, which would enable the youth council’s mechanisms in youth participation and nation building, said Senator Juan Edgardo Angara in his sponsorship speech. The included reforms include antipolitical dynasty provision that bars relatives of elected officials up to the second level of consanguinity from pursuing youth council posts. This would address the criticism that the SK has served as the training ground for young politicians to establish dynasties before they pursue higher posts. Moreover, the reform act would raise the age requirement of running officials from 15 to 17 years old to 18 to 24 years old. The revised age bracket allows elected officials to enter into contracts and be held liable for them. SK officers will also be required to undergo leadership training on good governance and fiscal transparency. However, National Youth Commission Chair Aiza Seguerra urged the members of the Congress not to defer the SK, stating that removing the SK would disenfranchise the Filipino youth in governance. “The SK is the most concrete expression of the constitutional mandate that encourages civic engagement among young people,” Seguerra said in a speech in Congress. By providing this venue for young people to participate in governance, we are investing in the next generation of effective local and national leaders, she added. −

SMASHED Kenneth Gutlay

The UP Women’s Badminton Team crushed the opposition in the finals badminton game against the Ateneo Blue Eagles at the Rizal Memorial Badminton Hall, October 15. This victory is the Fighting Maroons third consecutive championship title and ninth overall.

Maroons, ikinasa ang ikatlong panalo kontra Falcons, 70-66 −

HANS CHRISTIAN MARIN

Naisakatuparan ng UP Fighting Maroons ang ikalawang sunod at ikatlong panalo sa University Athletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 79 men’s basketball matapos pabagsakin ang Adamson University Soaring Falcons, 7066, ika-12 ng Oktubre sa Mall of Asia Arena. Ipinamalas nina dynamic duo guards Jett Manuel at Paul Desiderio ang husay at galing matapos kumamada ng pinagsanib na 36 puntos, kabilang ang dalawang magkasunod na jumpshot sa huling minuto ng sagupaan. Naging susi din ang 13 puntos at 5 of 5 sa field goal ni rookie guard Javier Gomez de Liaño upang masungkit ng Maroons ang tagumpay. Nakamit ng UP ang unang apat na puntos ng bakbakan sa unang quarter sa bisa ng jumpshot mula kay Manuel at layup mula kay forward Paolo Romero. Ngunit hindi napigilan ng koponan ang 12-1 run ng Adamson sa kalagitnaan ng quarter sa pangunguna ng walong magkakasunod na puntos ni guard Nico Paranada upang mapag-iwanan ang Maroons, 9-20. Nag-alab naman ang opensa ng UP sa ikalawang quarter matapos nilang isagawa ang 13-4 run sa bisa ng tatlong magkakasunod na tres mula kina guard Jarrell Lim, Gomez de Liano, at Manuel at apat na magkakasunod na puntos mula kay center Gelo Vito upang wakasan ang half, hawak ang kalamangan, 30-29.

Ipinagpatuloy ng Maroons ang pananalasa sa ikatlong quarter kung saan dalawang beses nilang nakamtan ang double-digit na kalamangan: 45-35, mula sa turn-around hook shot ni center Jerson Prado, at 50-40 mula sa nagbabagang tres ni guard Dave Moralde. Naging balanse rin ang opensa ng koponan sa quarter kung saan pitong manlalaro ang nakapag-ambag ng puntos. Nagpakitang gilas agad ang UP sa huling quarter sa pangunguna ni de Liaño na umiskor ng dalawang magkasunod na mala-kidlat na fastbreak layup at isang naglalagablab na tres upang makamit ng koponan ang pinakamalaking agwat sa bakbakan, 65-54. Ngunit hindi agad sumuko ang Falcons kung saan halos maisara sa apat na puntos ang kalamangan, 65-61 matapos ang tres ni guard Robbie Manalang. Hindi na hinayaan pa ng Maroons na makahabol ang Adamson matapos ang mga makapigil-hiningang jumpshot mula kina Desiderio at Manuel at isang free throw mula kay Lim sa huling minuto ng bakbakan upang tuluyang magpunyagi, 70-66. “After our win against Ateneo, that is something that we want to give value to and that is to come out as winners again after that big win,” ani UP Coach Bo Perasol. Nagpakawala si Manuel ng 16 puntos, anim na rebounds, at tatlong assists;

Desiderio ng 16 puntos at tatlong rebounds; at Best Player of the Game Gomez de Liaño ng 13 puntos, anim na rebounds, at dalawang steals para sa Maroons. Naging mainit din ang opensa ng koponan matapos magambag ng 50.88% sa field goal kumpara sa 40.91% lamang ng Falcons at 16 assists kumpara sa 10 lamang ng kabilang koponan. Umangat ang panalo-talo kartada ng UP sa 3-6 samantalang bumagsak naman ang sa Adamson, 4-5. "We're gonna enjoy this win, but we have stronger opponents coming up. We're taking it one win at the time,” ani Manuel. Susunod na haharapin ng Maroons ang Far Eastern University Tamaraws (7-2) sa Oktubre 22, ikalawa ng hapon sa Smart Araneta Coliseum. QUARTERSCORES 9-20, 30-29, 50-44, 70-66 UP 70 Manuel 16, Desiderio 16, Gomez de Liaño 13, Moralde 5, Lim 4, Vito 4, Harris 4, Romero 4, Prado 2, Webb 2 AdU 66 Sarr 18, Manalang 10, Ochea 8, Paranada 8, Manganti 6, Ng 5, Espeleta 4, Pasturan 3, Mustre 2, Camacho 2 −

MARTES 18 OKTUBRE 2016

LUPAING KATUTUBO Chester Higuit

Inihanda ng UP Diliman ang kampuhan para sa mahigit 3,500 pambansang minorya sa pagitan ng Kolehiyo ng Sining Biswal at University Avenue mula ika-30 ng Setyembre hanggang ika-16 ng Oktubre. Pinagtulungan ng mga mag-aaral, propesor, kawani at iba pang boluntaryo ang kampuhan na mananatili sa unibersidad hanggang ika-27 ng Oktubre upang paigtingin ang panawagan ng katutubong minorya sa pagpapatigil ng militarisasyon ng kanayunan at pagtatamasa ng karapatan sa sariling pagpapasya.

UP Baguio student pub wins over libel −

BALITA

UP prexy nominees weigh in on eUP −

MEGAN AGLAUA

THE FORMER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF (EIC) of UP Baguio’s (UPB) official student publication has finally been acquitted of libel, four years after it was filed by a journalism professor in the campus. The Regional Trial Court Branch 6 in Baguio City junked the libel case against then Outcrop EIC Jesusa Paquibot on September 22, after the prosecution failed to prove that there was actual malice in the supposedly libelous article. UPB Journalism Professor Ma. Rina Locsin-Afable claimed that her reputation was under attack in the satirical article titled “Yupiang Yupi,” published in the Outcrop’s lampoon issue in July 2011. Afable demanded that Paquibot be jailed for the article, as well as a published apology from the staff. Affidavits submitted by a faculty member and a student testified that Afable was the professor being referred to since she bore the same initials as the character “Raulo Locaret.” They further asserted that the first name of the character was an insensitive reference to Afable’s late father, former newspaper editor Raul Locsin. The court disputed this claim, saying readers would have been unaware of Afable’s identity had she not revealed that she was the subject of the column. Taking offense over the article was also not enough reason for libel, according to the ruling.

The satirical article stems from the State of the Youth Address in July 19, 2011 at UPB, wherein a professor shamed a photojournalist in front of her class. While the Outcrop sent Afable a letter of apology for “emotional damages the professor might have suffered,” the publication stands firm in asserting that the article had no malicious intent to purposely defame and impugn Afable’s character. Moreover, the column under which the libeled article appeared had already been using satirical language since its first appearance in the paper. Similar to the Collegian’s “Eksenang Peyups,” the message of Yupiang Yupi is “centered on regarding freedom of expression and the rights of the students to exercise it,” Paquibot said in an earlier statement. Paquibot has now graduated from UPB and is currently working for the National Commission for Culture and the Arts. The Collegian tried to contact both Paquibot and Afable but has yet to receive responses as of press time. “I did not know why this was allowed to happen in UP… No one should be an instrument in repressing freedom of the press,” said Harry Roque, a professor from UP College of Law and lawyer to Paquibot. Libel cases have historically been used to silence the press. For instance, Malaya publisher Amado Macasaet was

sued for libel in 1999 after reporting on the alleged briberies within the Supreme Court. Libel is being used to silence members of the critical press,” said Vijae Alquisola, former national president of the College Editors Guild of the Philippines (CEGP). The filing of the libel case against Paquibot was also not a pursuit of justice but rather a blatant effort to repress the campus’ freedom of expression, according to a statement by the Outcrop in 2012, released immediately after the case had been filed. Despite being acquitted of the case, many students remain afraid to join and write for the student publication, according to incumbent Outcrop EIC John Aquino. Members of the publication claimed that the libel case inflicted a “chilling effect” on the campus press at the time. “We could not properly defend the publication since there is already a stigma attached if one has a libel case,” Aquino said. “Libel is just one of the many campus press freedom violations a student publication can experience. Currently, hundreds of publications all over the country are suffering from repression such as withholding of their fund. May this victory serve as an inspiration for the campus press to unite and fight for genuine press freedom,” CEGP National President Jose Mari Callueng said. −

ARRA FRANCIA

NOMINEES FOR UP PRESIDENT weighed in on their plans to continue the implementation of incumbent UP President Alfredo Pascual’s eUP project, in a forum on October 13 at the UP Film Institute. eUP is a P752 million project which seeks to computerize all transactions within the university. UP College of Law Dean Danilo Concepcion and UP Vice President for Academic Affairs Gisela Concepcion both agreed that the program is needed for modernization and to manage UP’s resources. UP Diliman (UPD) Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Benito Pacheco called the project a work in progress,

while Department of Science and Technology Undersecretary Rowena Guevara claimed that eUP can be perfected in the next six years. While supporting the need for modernization, Commission on Higher Education Prospero de Vera III said the program must foremost be of aid to the students. Meanwhile, former UPD Chancellor Caesar Saloma explained how eUP is an infrastructure project and noted issues on its implementation. The Board of Regents will be releasing a shortlist with five nominees on October 27, after which the UP president will be selected on November 15. −

Electoral board proclaims new Law Rep −

CAMILLE JOYCE LISAY

THIRD-YEAR LAW STUDENT David Roy Padin will sit as the UP Law Representative to the University Student Council (USC) for academic year 2016 to 2017, following the nullification of the candidacy of the sole candidate for the post last semester. The voter turnout of the previous UP Law Student Government (LSG) elections failed to elect then sole candidate Juan Paolo Artiaga for the post, who lost to 340 abstain votes against 174 votes. The special elections held by the LSG on September 8 proclaimed Padin

as the official law rep to the USC, according to the rules of the University Student Electoral Board. Padin garnered 169 votes against contender Kathryn Leuch with 92 votes. “I am turning over my law duties to him since the LSG decided not to file an election protest,” said acting UP Law Representative Rafael Ricalde, LSG’s external vice president. The special elections resulted in a 40.30% voter turnout, half of last semester’s 80.21% voter turnout. −

18 OKTUBRE 2016 LATHALAIN MARTES

SINU-SINO ANG BUMUBUO SA MGA PAMBANSANG MINORYA? Binubuo ng pambansang minorya ang 15 hanggang 20 porsyento ng populasyon sa bansa—pawang marhinalisadong grupo sa usaping pang-ekonomiya, pulitika, at lipunan. Kinabibilangan ng 153 ethnolinguistic na mga grupo sa buong bansa, nahahati ang pambansang minorya sa mga grupong ayon sa mga rehiyon: • Mamamayang Moro (13 ethnolinguistic groups) • Lumad (18 ethnolinguistic groups) ng Mindanao • mga mamamayan ng Cordillera at Aggaym Kalinga (7 ethnolinguistic groups) • iba pang mga grupo sa Hilagang Luzon • Aeta ng Gitnang Luzon • Dumagat, Mangyan, at Palawan Hill tribes ng Timog Luzon • Tumandok at Ati ng rehiyon ng Panay sa Visayas.

ANU-ANO ANG MGA PANAWAGAN NG MGA NAKARAAN AT KASALUKUYANG LAKBAYAN?

2010

Lakbayan ng Anakpawis para sa Lupa at Katarungan Sa pangunguna ng Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas, naglunsad ng 10 araw na caravan ang mga magsasaka mula sa iba’t ibang panig ng bansa upang irehistro ang patuloy na kawalan nila ng sariling lupa, pagpatay sa mga magsasaka, at pandarambong sa pondo ng agrikultura sa ilalim ng administrasyon ni dating Pangulong Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

2011

Lakbayan para sa Kapayapaan at Karapatang Panlipunan Kasabay ng malawakang kilos-protesta ang paggunita sa pagpapatupad ng Presidential Decree No. 27 ni dating pangulong Ferdinand Marcos, na nagsilbing pundasyon ng mga repormang agraryo na pinakinabangan lamang umano ng mga panginoong may lupa at malalaking korporasyon.

2012

Lakbayan ng mga Mamamayan ng Timog Katagalugan para sa Karapatang Pantao Ang Lakbayan 2012 ay isang Mindanao-wide caravan patungong Zamboanga City city para sa isang malawak na mobilisasyon laban sa nakatakdang pagdating noon ng mga karagdagang Amerikanong sundalo sa bansa.

2013

Lakbayan para sa Libreng Pamamahagi ng Lupa sa Hacienda Luisita Inilunsad ng mga magsasaka ng Hacienda Luisita at Gitnang Luzon ang apat na araw na martsa mula sa probinsya ng Tarlac patungong Angeles City, San Fernando, Bulacan, Department of Agrarian Reform National Official, at nagtapos sa Mendiola. Iginiit nila na kagyat nang ipamamahagi ang 4,915 ektaryang lupain batay sa utos ng Korte Suprema noong Abril 24, 2012.

2014

Lakbayan para sa Tunay na SONA Pambansang Lakbayan ng mamamayan mula Mindanao, Visayas, Bikol, Timog Katagalugan at Gitnang Luzon para sa Tunay na SONA ng Bayan.

2015

Manilakbayan ng Mindanao: Rage against the attacks on Lumad and the people of Mindanao Walang humpay na atake sa mga paaralan, komunidad, at mamamayan ng Mindanao ang nagtulak lalo na sa mga Lumad na tumungo sa Kamaynilaan upang igiit ang karapatang pantao. Dumaranas sila ng militarisasyon at pandarambong ng mga kumpanya ng minahan, na humantong sa pagpatay ng kanilang mga lider at pagsasara ng mga paaralan tulad ng Alternative Learning Center for Agricultural and Livelihood Development (Alcadev) sa Surigao del Sur.

2016

The Struggle of National Minorities Towards Just Peace and Genuine Social Change Tinatayang nasa 3,000 Lumad at 500 indigenous people ng Cordillera, Gitnang Luzon, at Timog Luzon ang naglakbay papuntang Kamaynilaan upang igiit ang hustisyang panlipunan at karapatan sa lupaing ninuno at pagpapasya sa sarili. Isasagawa sa Lakbayan 2016 ang serye ng mga kultural na programa, mga panayam at symposium hinggil sa sitwasyon ng pambansang minorya sa bansa.

ANU-ANO ANG MGA DAHILAN NG KANILANG PAGLALAKBAY? Paglabag sa karapatang pantao

490 BIKTIMA

Extrajudicial killings sa ilalim ni Aquino • 82 katutubo • 8 Moro • 283 magsasaka

34 BIKTIMA

Enforced disappearances sa ilalim ni Aquino • 2 katutubo • 2 Moro • 23 magsasaka

Militarisasyon at operasyon ng mga grupong paramilitary (2015)

25 DOKUMENTADONG PARAMILITAR SA BANSA 55 BATALYONG MILITAR SA MINDANAO 95 KASO 4,265 ESTUDYANTE Pag-atake ng mga sundalo at mga grupong paramilitar sa mga eskwelahan sa Mindanao

Apektado

81 PAARALAN NG MGA LUMAD Apektado

500 LIDER NG KOMUNIDAD AT ORGANISASYON Sinampahan ng gawa-gawang kaso (para takutin at patigilin sa paglaban sa pagmimina at pananakop ng lupain)

40,000 BIKTIMA

sapilitang paglikas dahil sa militarisayon

Gabay sa Lakbayan −

ALDRIN VILLEGAS & CAMILLE PAJARILLO

Naglalagablab na apoy mula sa mga sulo ang naging hudyat ng pagdating ng pambansang minorya sa UP para sa Lakbayan 2016. Tinaguriang mga lakbayani, naglakbay patungong Kamaynilaan ang halos 3,000 Lumad at 500 katutubo mula sa Cordillera, Gitnang Luzon, at Timog Luzon upang igiit ang kanilang karapatan sa lupang minana at sariling pagpapasya. Binibigyang diin ang terminong “pambansang minorya” na mas akma at mas masaklaw dahil hindi ipinapalagay na indigenous people ang mga Moro at ilang grupo sa Cordillera. Ayon kay Chancellor Michael Tan, tumutukoy ang terminolohiyang “pambansang minorya” sa proseso ng pagtulak sa ilang grupo sa laylayan, o sa usaping heograpikal sa kabundukan. “The ‘minority’ status is not just one of numbers but of a social situation, of people deprived of many basic rights, including the right to ancestral lands,” aniya. Taunang isinasagawa ang Lakbayan, bitbit ang mga panawagan ng mga sektor na nasa laylayan—mula sa paggigiit ng karapatang pantao hanggang sa pagpapatalsik sa mapaniil na gobyerno. Ngayon, bitbit ng mga lakbayani ang panawagan para sa kapayapaan at tunay na lipunang pagbabago. LITRATO NI ALIONA SILVA

MARTES 18 OKTUBRE 2016

LATHALAIN

ON GOVERNANCE

ON PEACE AND HUMAN RIGHTS Among the immediate calls for this term is to resume the peace process and end the armed conflict between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines and the National Democratic Front. It aims to solve the root causes of poverty by enforcing socio-economic reforms and upholding basic human rights. The president did not fail on this with the second round of peace talks in place in Oslo, Norway. Duterte made good on his promise of negotiating peace with the Communist Party of the Philippines by ensuring the release of 19 political prisoners in August, said Sociology Professor Sarah Raymundo, who was one to draft the People’s Agenda. However, human rights violations like illegal detention and vigilante-style killings have been rampant in his term, thus pulling his grade down to 3.0. There have been more than 18,000 illegal detention cases and 3,400 killings reported as of September 23, higher than the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos’ record. The country's drug problems are rooted in poverty which the administration should address first, Raymundo said.

SUMMING UP DUTERTE’S FIRST 100 DAYS −

DANIEL BOONE

UNABATED CORRUPTION, CONTRACTUALIzation, killings, and land grabbing cases in the past six years have proven former president Benigno Aquino III’s failure to improve the living conditions of Filipinos. It is no surprise then that the simple “change is coming” motto of Rodrigo Duterte helped him win the presidency, along with his pro-poor positions and taste for plaid fashion. Even the progressives who remained critical of the past regimes led 30,000 people on

July 25 to support and present their demands during Duterte’s first State of the Nation Address. They crafted the People’s Agenda—a document containing short and long-term proposals to address the public’s need. Hopes are high under the new administration. As Duterte marked his 100th day in office, the Collegian assesses how much of the people’s agenda have been addressed so far using the UP Grading System where 1.00 is the highest and 5.00 is the failing grade.

ON SOCIAL POLICIES The People’s Agenda demands accessibility to basic social services including education, housing, healthcare, and sustainable jobs for the people. In terms of helping the poor, Duterte’s 100 days have done more compared to Aquino’s six years, Raymundo argued, citing improvements on the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR). DSWD Secretary Judy Taguiwalo already assessed the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), Aquino’s conditional cash transfer system. Its dependents will continue receiving benefits but there will be no new batch of beneficiaries, since sustainable jobs are being created, Taguiwalo earlier said. Despite this, Duterte failed to address issues in the healthcare sector which the previous administration left in a deplorable condition. With only an average of less than four physicians for every 10,000 Filipinos, a P31 billion slash in its budget only exacerbates the problem. Shortage of classrooms, facilities, and teachers meanwhile remain a common picture in the education sector, which is further aggravated by curriculum shift K-12 program. Even if the program resulted to more than 400,000 dropout rate in Grade 10 alone and possible displacement of 25,000 teaching and non-teaching staff, education secretary Leonor Briones intends to push it through.

Putting an end to the culture of impunity is among the calls of the People’s Agenda, yet public and private officials guilty of corruption have yet to be persecuted. Duterte fails on this demand. Former President Gloria Arroyo was released from hospital arrest after the Supreme Court ruled to acquit her from graft and plunder cases. Aquino has also not been held accountable despite the pork barrel scam and the Mamasapano incident, among others. These are worsened by plans to give Marcos a national burial—a grave insult to the victims of human rights violations during the Martial Law. Instead of terminating the request, the Supreme Court ordered instead to keep Marcos in Ilocos until October 18.

ON FOREIGN POLICIES For the longest time, progressive groups have demanded to scrap international pacts like the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement and Visiting Forces Agreement, because they stand as threats to the country’s national sovereignty. Duterte’s recent pronouncements have been very progressive, thus a passing mark. However, what needs to be done is push him to commit on his statements, Raymundo said. Posing rage toward the United States (US), Duterte argues that the country should break free from America’s “invisible chains” to genuinely proclaim freedom and independence. The country shall survive without US’ assistance because we are not mendicants, Duterte said in a press conference. Ending joint military exercises along the country’s dependence to their military equipment is a way toward an independent foreign policy, said Renato Reyes, secretary general of multi-sectoral group Bayan in a statement. “The Philippines should endeavor to build its defense capacity that is not tied to US war games, US bases, and so-called US military ‘aid,’” he added.

ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Whether or not Duterte’s promised changes are for the better is up for debate, as there are things to commend as well as to criticize. With around 2,000 days left in office, Duterte should focus into addressing people’s demands, rather than brushing off criticisms and speaking ill of his critiques. Only then can he fulfill his promise of change for the better. PAGE DESIGN BY JAN ANDREI COBEY

Aside from pushing national industrialization through the development of the country’s major industries, the agenda aims to forward the economic needs of other sectors. DAR Secretary Rafael Mariano has already ordered the distribution of the 358.22-hectare land which is part of the disputed vast sugar estate Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac City. On October 1, the tambiolo system which treats land distribution like raffles was dismantled in the area, apart from imposing a two-year freeze on land conversion which prevents agricultural land from being turned into industrial zones for multinational corporations. Still, the government’s strategies on economic development have been incomplete. Contractualization and measly wages remain, while mining projects and militarization continue to displace the national minorities. Policies to negate the continuing privatization of the energy and transport sectors have yet to be implemented.

KULTURA martes 18 OKTUBRE 2016

off the mark Andrea Joyce Lucas

−

L ate in August this ye ar , a trailer started circulating online. It featured a hooded figure holding a mechanized bow, with a quiver full of arrows strapped on his thigh. This new superhero from GMA claims himself to be the new face of justice, a defender in the midst of the smoke-filled city plagued with crime. He calls himself Alyas Robin Hood. But even before the show aired, netizens were quick to label the new show a rip-off of the The CW Network hit series Arrow. In responding to vocal critics, writer Suzette Doctolero passionately defended the show, arguing that it does not take inspiration from Arrow, but from the “masterplot” of the “vigilante figure,” the British folk figure Robin Hood. But it seems that it was not only the masterplot of the vigilante figure at work, but another masterplot of a different kind—the formula of a show saleable and viable for mass consumption.

again and again, Doctolero said in defense of Alyas Robin Hood. Many artists and creators, however, disagree. For them, the look and feel of Alyas Robin Hood along with the timing of airing the show was still suspect, as it appears to feed on the popularity of Arrow among Filipino fans. Masterplot is said to work in secret because each iteration becomes a fresh take on the skeletal story. Doctolero thus undermines her own defense—there is an insistence on using a masterplot but no mention of any new things that Alyas Robin Hood adds to the table. The argument is thus a thinly veiled attempt to conceal how the show depends on the promise of a tried and tested formula.

Something borrowed Doctolero defended Alyas Robin Hood by insisting that, because it is a modern Filipino retelling of the Robin Hood folktale, it could not just have been a ripoff. Both Arrow and Alyas Robin Hood, after all, derive their stories from the British masterplot. A masterplot is a “recurrent skeletal story, belonging to cultures and individuals that play a powerful role in questions of identity, values, and understanding of life,” said Porter Abbott, professor of literary theory at the University of California. Masterplots often work in secret—a story or an author could be using a particular masterplot unwittingly, he added. There were only a handful of masterplots in the world that we use

Ratings reign supreme The production of local TV shows is mostly all about “pegs” that are trending and popular, said Carljoe Javier, managing editor of Anino comics and professor at the Ateneo de Manila University. He recounted his experience as a consultant for a show, “It was frustrating because you get tied to some other concept, rather than trying to follow the spirit of the material you are working on.” The lack of new things on popular television is tied in to how the content is bound by modes of production. Javier pointed out that the model of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) governs this production. “[Shows have to be] appealing to the market that's being targeted by FMCG," he said. The primary target market for these “products” remains to be the poor, who continue to wield power in the ratings game. They habitually watch television, are engaged, and therefore the ideal consumers with whom profit could be ensured.

ion

at str

Illu b

uia

Ab oga

do Pag e

Des

ign

by J u

l Ya

n Esp

eleta

Theodor Adorno, in his seminal “The Culture Industry: Enlightenment as Mass Deception” said: “The entire practice of the culture industry transfers the profit motive naked onto cultural forms.” Products are tailored for mass consumption according to the ideology of the culture industry. This results in the sameness evident in many local shows. “The autonomy of works of art, which of course rarely ever predominated in an entirely pure form, and was always permeated by a constellation of effects, is tendentially eliminated,” Adorno said. New concepts and new stories rarely ever make it into production, because they do not fit preconceived notions of what sells. And the culture industry does not even need to defend itself from the charge of making shows only for profit—this is dismissed by saying that these shows are purely for entertainment anyway. Potential rebirth In contrast, there has been a boom in television shows in the United States, brought about by the new ways people could watch them. Where before the TV industry is monopolized by a few major networks, cable channels and streaming sites like Netflix and Hulu have entered the picture. Cable and streaming services have not only made TV watching more flexible for the audience, these also contribute a variety of new shows to watch. Some of these shows have been immensely successful, like HBO’s Game of Thrones and Netflix’s Stranger Things. In the Philippines, attempts to make creations more accessible via new distribution channels had been frustrated by profit. In 2014, the leading committee

of the Cinemalaya Film Festival briefly made its films available on YouTube, before they were taken down because many filmmakers and studios involved decried the potential loss in profit. The TV industry is likewise constrained by the monopoly of major networks, such as GMA and ABS-CBN. As they dominate the airwaves, we see TV shows with the same look and feel to them, starring the same actors and actresses again and again, rehashing formulas and remaking the same hit shows. Despite being a sixdecade-old industry, TV remains riddled with cliché but marketable plots: the rags to riches tale, the case of switched identities, and the story of “rich boy meets poor girl.” Finding an alternative to the usual offerings from mainstream media, a lot of independent performers and artists have emerged with creative ideas through more accessible channels. Some of them, like online personalities Mikey Bustos and Lloyd Cadena, utilize Facebook and YouTube to share content with their viewers. But as they gain more popularity, they are soon co-opted into the moneymaking scheme of mainstream media as new “talents.” Mass media production is thus permanently crippled by the designs of profiteering. In order to raise its level, the industry must ultimately be liberated from the chokehold of business interests. Doctolero insisted on the relevance of Alyas Robin Hood because it highlights the figure of a social justice defender. But this figure will be more appreciable and the story more potent if only they were free from the masterplot of marketable media. −

MARTES 18 OKTUBRE 2016

−

SANNY BOY D. AFABLE

Had it not been for the popular uprising in EDSA thirty years ago, we could still have been living in the golden age—a long period of stability and prosperity despite threats of communist insurgency and Moro secessionism. And so, to avoid bloodshed, the longestserving president and architect of the New Society Ferdinand E. Marcos had to step down from his office after 21 years of invaluable service to the nation. This is the version advanced by the present Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines, the “official repository of government documents” run under the Office of the President. Apparently, this version of history contradicts the version held by many, who decried the Gazette’s claim and described it as “historical revisionism.” This revision leaves on the ash heap of history the memory of those who stood up to the dictatorship. As with all conventional accounts dominated by the Aquino-Marcos rivalry, the elite—not the people—is the protagonist of this narrative.

fact, revised to create more accurate accounts of the past. When the friars took it as a matter of historical truth that the Filipino are indolent and backward, Jose Rizal belied this claim by digging up the history of advanced pre-colonial societies in the Philippines. In the neutral sense of the word, revisionism is thus a legitimate process of writing history. But it has gained a negative connotation after World War II when holocaust denialists called themselves “holocaust revisionists.” Historical revisionism is now used interchangeably with “historical negationism,” to mean the attempt to negate widely accepted versions of history, or even to deny facts, as in the case of Marcos revisionism. The underlying issue with historical revisionism is not the attempt to rewrite history per se. It is that forces—often members of the political or economic elite—clash over the power to frame the many narratives in the past in order to serve their own interests.

Story-telling Filipinos already had a concept of “kasaysayan” that is rooted in indigenous culture long before the country was colonized, said Jaime Veneracion of the UP Department of History. “Kasaysayan ang tawag natin sa isang makabuluhang paglalarawan ng nakaraang salinlahi […] Ang kabuluhan ay nakatuon sa isang tiyak na grupo,” he explained. Being a complex chain of narratives with a “writer” and intended readers, history is thus open to discourse. Throughout history, dominating historical interpretations have always been questioned and, in

The victors’ narrative As a subjective understanding of the past, history has many faces. Marcos loyalists choose to focus on the superficial infrastructures built during the “golden age,” while liberals recount how they restored and championed “democracy.” In this sense, history does not simply mirror power relations in the past — it is also shaped by them. The traditional function of history was to “speak the right of power” or to secure the victor’s dominance, Michel Foucault said in “Society Must Be Defended.” Such was the case with Martial Law, having been explained by Marcos as a ploy to impede the “threat” of communist “insurgents.” However, the spike in recruitment for the New People’s Army came after Martial Law was declared, due largely to Marcos’ abuses. This version of history, according to Foucault, has only served the interests of masters, monarchies, empires, or in the case of martial law history, the rival elite powers. It ignores at large a past of “dark servitude and forfeiture”—the many narratives of oppression and struggle that the nation witnessed under the dictatorship and which continue to exist today. These grand narratives, to cite, ignore that three decades since the dictator was overthrown, people are still arrested for their political expression; farmers remain landless and starving; and indigenous peoples are evicted from their lands to give way to foreign investments. These accounts of the people’s struggles challenge the elite’s picture of the past and the present, forming what Foucault called “counterhistory”—a “revisionism” of the victor’s history.

PAGE DESIGN BY JAN ANDREI COBEY ILLUSTRATION BY GUIA ABOGADO

A history of the people No less than President Rodrigo Duterte leads the open attempt to rewrite Martial Law history from the perspective of the Marcoses—one that runs counter to the story of the people. Despite strong opposition from many groups, the president still expressed his desire to bury the late dictator in the Libingan ng mga Bayani. This shows that history is now deemed an antithesis of nation-building, when before it served as a guide and source of meaning. There are popular calls to “move on” from remembering Martial Law as it supposedly divides the nation and impedes progress. This view dangerously distorts our identity as a nation nourished by a sense of history. The lack of critical understanding of the people’s narratives stems from versions of history that are untold from the Filipino people’s point of view. Popular narratives of Martial Law history fall short to emphasize the long and brutal mile it took before the “peaceful revolution” in EDSA. The Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses to Malacanang (CARMMA), a multi-sectoral network of Martial Law victims and dissenters, explains that many people think the dictatorship years were “the golden years of our country’s history [because they are] unaware of the terrible prices at which they came.” This is due to the lack of discussion in popular history books and syllabi. According to CARMMA, these “have never been changed to include the other side of the Martial Law era.” Ultimately, attempts to write and rewrite history should always be anchored on the experiences and material reality of the people, and not on the deified icons who are evidently invested in how history is shaped. This history will serve not only to narrate the past but also to fuel the people’s struggles in the present. −

KULTURA

opinyon

martes 18 OKTUBRE 2016

Third world problems −

Andrea Joyce Lucas

Recently, a well-known actress drew flak for her strongly worded remarks on President Rodrigo Duterte’s stance on foreign aid. The president dared the United States (US) and the European Union to withdraw their aid during a press conference in Butuan City, as he saw foreign assistance a threat to the country. He also asserted that the Philippines “will survive” without it. The said actress thought otherwise, claiming that the Philippines is only a “third world” country, not a global superpower who could refuse aid from countries like US. If foreign aid were to stop coming, the Filipinos would starve: “Hindi na nga nakakakain ang marami, gugutumin mo pa lalo,” she pointed out. Reading her thoughts on foreign aid, I recalled the time I spent a few days with the native Aetas living on the mountainside in Floridablanca, Pampanga. The settlements where the natives lived easily match anyone’s mental image of the “third world”—the Aetas lived in small huts open to nearly all the elements. They

do not have easy access to basic social services, such as education and medical assistance. Even water was hard to get—the natives have to walk through several kilometers of steep and rocky mountain trails to get to the nearest stream. But contrary to the remarks of our actress from earlier, these natives were not so keen on receiving aid even as they lead their lives in poor conditions. In welcoming visitors, they never asked for anything in return and in fact, readily shared what little they had. Ate Baby, with whom I stayed for the night, even brought out her newest sheets for me to use. As opposed to alms or aid, it was opportunity that these natives craved: education for their children, stable jobs, and dependable income. Ate Baby stressed the importance of education for her children to live well. She wanted for them to be armed with their learning, so as not to suffer her own struggles with discrimination and harassment. Ate Baby also shared her desire to go back home, to her kin’s lands

As opposed to alms or aid, it was opportunity that these natives craved: education for their children, stable jobs, and dependable income

near Pinatubo where they used to live in relative ease. This is parallel to what other ethnic groups and national minorities struggle for: the right to their ancestral lands and selfdetermination. They are oppressed by the constant threats posed by the military and paramilitary forces, and crippled by the fact that their ancestral lands are taken from them. And so they fight to put an end to all these— to reclaim their ancestral lands, their freedom, and their identity as a people. In considering foreign aid, we must take our cue from these nativesꟷour national minorities. After all, foreign aid does not come without strings attached, as economic and military aid from the US are thinly veiled ways to benefit from our own lands and resources. Ultimately, we must break free from their influence, so we could grasp our own identity and grow as a nation able to stand on its own. −

The art of losing −

Dominique Santiago

My sister asked me this morning for her necklace back. It was a silver chain with a rose pendant that she loaned me two weeks before for Sunday mass. I wore it for a week and a half, until it suddenly disappeared from my sight, (probably) gone forever. This is not the first time I lost something valuable over the past month: the earphones that came with the new phone I bought, the earrings my mom gave me last Christmas, and even the tiny pieces of rubber placed on a laptop’s back for protection against rough surfaces. Losing things have become so frequent that instead of saying “not again,” the inner voice in my head just says “there goes another one.” Perhaps me losing these things is just a prelude to the even more important ones I’m about to lose in the future. A sort of training, if you will. I’ve been consciously setting aside the nagging fear of graduation and having to leave UP for the last few months. Every time it enters my mind, all I could think about are the things I’m about to lose soon: overnight stays in the Kule office, the coolest stories

Perhaps me losing these things is just a prelude to the even more important ones I’m about to lose in the future

you get to overhear inside Ikot jeeps, spontaneous late night conversations with friends at the Sunken Garden about everything from the professors you hate to that cute GE classmate. It’s silly, given that some people would probably pull the months ahead just so they could wear their sablay as soon as possible. Some would even curse at this university for housing them longer than they ever wanted. Of course, I want all that as much as the next guy does. To finally get rid of the sleepless nights and coffee-induced pressworks that have characterized my stay in the university would be welcome relief for my already anemic body. But it also means losing a fouryear routineꟷ more so, losing the people you spent it with. When my friends checked out of the Kalayaan dorm ahead of me in freshman year, I cried the entire night just thinking about how things will never be the same again. I even wrote a letter to each one of them, detailing the favorite moments I shared with them. I would have fulfilled my intention of giving them the letters the next

day, had I not read them again and realized they were too cheesy for anyone’s amusement. I tried to stay in touch with those friends, but as the case always is, life kept getting in the way. I’ve made more friends than I ever thought I could during my stay in UP. Now that I’m about to leave, I guess I’ll just have to practice losing as many material things as possible to prepare for the real heartbreak to come. −

LAKBAYDIWA e u l a ca b i l i n g

Palusot Sabi nga sa isang kanta ni Rico Blanco: “kung ayaw may dahilan, kung gusto palaging merong paraan.” Ito ang gustong-gusto kong sabihin sa isang kagrupo ko sa klase, na ayaw bumisita sa Kampuhan o dumalo noong Salubungan noong Huwebes. Busy at may curfew raw—mag tatranscribe na lamang siya at isusulat ang aming papel, base sa mga karanasan at interview na makukuha namin sa Lakbayan. Hindi naman ako madalas makaramdam ng inis sa aking mga kaklaseng may ganitong atityud pagdating sa paggawa ng proyekto, kahit pa ‘yung mga tipong magpaparamdam lamang kapag tapos na ang gawain. Ngunit sadyang malapit sa puso ko ang nagaganap na Lakbayan dahil ang tatay ko’y may lahing Dumagat—isa sa mga katutubong grupo na kasali sa caravan. (Paglilinaw para sa nagtanong sa Twitter nang makapasok ako sa Kule: hindi po ako isang Lumad). Bagaman ‘di ako nakaranas ng direktang karahasan noong bata pa ako, sapat na ang mga istorya sa akin nina Tatang at Nanang tungkol sa mga karanasang pagbabakwit nila. Baul ng kwento lalo na si Tatang, na naranasang magbakwit simula pagkabata. Bukod nga raw sa hirap ng papalit-palit na matitirhan, dagdag pa rito ang bigat ng mga alaalang nabuo sa lugar na lilisanin. Kwento naman ng karahasan ang mas madalas kong naririnig kay Nanang, na volunteer sa mga alternatibong paaralan sa mga katutubo. Madalas daw umano siyang sundan pauwi ng mga ‘di kilalang tao, kahit wala naman siyang kahina-hinalang dala o ginagawa. Matinding pagkabagabag at takot siguro ang naramdaman ng mga magulang ko noong mga panahong iyon. Mapalad man ako ngayon na nakakapasok sa UP Diliman at may mga kasama sa dormitoryong tinutuluyan, ramdam ko pa rin ang pangamba ng aking mga magulang kapag umuuwi ako sa Maynila. Siguro nga’y may mga sugat talaga na matagal ang paghilom, kung hindi, nag-iiwan ng marka at pilat sa kaluluwa. Nakaugat ang kultura’t pamumuhay ng mga katutubo sa kanilang lupain—ito ang kanilang buhay at pinagkukunang yaman. Kung may malawakang operasyon man ng pagmimina o pagtotroso na nagreresulta sa pagkawasak ng kanilang kapaligiran, nangangahulugan din ito ng pinsala sa disposisyon ng mga katutubo. Magsilbi sanang sagisag ng kapatiran ang Lakbayan, para sa mga katutubo kasama ang mga ordinaryong mamamayan dito sa lungsod. Makita rin sana ito ng aking kagrupo bilang oportunidad upang mas makilala ang mga katutubo, o ‘di kaya’y makahango ng inspirasyon upang higitan ang anumang ginagawa niya ngayon sa buhay liban sa pagsusulat ng repleksyong papel ukol sa karanasang hindi niya naman naranasan. −

MARTES 18 OKTUBRE 2016

SIPAT Balancing Act â&#x2C6;&#x2019;

ADRIAN KENNETH GUTLAY

PIGEONHOLE The Collegian is opening its spaces for students to voice out their ideas, opinions, and commentaries about certain issues through 400-500 word write-ups, 5x7 300 PPI photos, comics, and any other media. Just send your outputs at phkule@gmail.com and get a chance to have your work published at the Pigeonhole portion.

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

MAY 2015

OPINYON

LAKBAYAN 2016

Lakbayan ng mga Pambansang Minorya para sa Sariling Pagpapasya at Makatarungang Kapayapaan OCTOBER 17, MONDAY 8 AM Engagement with the National Commission for Indigenous People 3 PM Engagement with the Department of Justice Different workshops/seminar/immersion activities Cultural Night of Tribes OCTOBER 18, TUESDAY Engagement with the Department of National Defense and Philippine National Police Peace Forum with National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Consultants Different workshops/seminar/immersion activities (morning) Cultural Night of Tribes OCTOBER 19, WEDNESDAY 10 AM Engagement with the US Embassy 2 PM Legislative Forum at the House of Representatives Different workshops/seminar/immersion activities (whole day) Cultural Night of Tribes OCTOBER 20, THURSDAY 9 AM Interface with the Department of Social Welfare and Development 2 PM Forum with RESIST! (Anti-Free Trade Agreement Alliance) Different workshops/seminar/immersion activities (whole day) Solidarity Night with Advocates OCTOBER 21, FRIDAY 10 AM UP Community and Lakbayan Solidarity March to Mendiola Culminating Cultural Night OCTOBER 22-27, SATURDAY-THURSDAY Manilakbayan ng Mindanao

#LAKBAYAN2016

#Kampuhan2016 #JustPeace #SelfDetermination #SaveOurSchools #SOSDiliman Illustration by John Kenneth Zapata