LITANY OF RESISTANCE In the long procession, the litany of the masses utters the binding covenant of the people’s will: the right of liberty, the reign of justice and long-lasting peace. September is reserved in our nation’s memory as a month of remembrance and resistance. It was on this month that a tyrannical dictator – Ferdinand Marcos – sprung out from his mother’s womb and soon reigned hell on earth. On September 21, 1972, the cornerstone of the congress dissolved with the writ of right deferred. In its place, military rule remained sovereign and an iron fist reigned over the plight of the masses. Not long after, an emboldened resistance surged. The youth emerged from the margins and into the forefront of leadership advancing the continuation of a century-long revolution. The memory of their sacrifices, Archimedes Trajano, Lorrena Barros, Liliosa Hilao, Rizalina Ilagan, Emmanuel Lacaba, and those slain in their youth, became the people’s passion towards ousting the dictatorship from Malacañang. In their wake lies a resurgence of darkness that looms to repeat the horrors of the past. Liberty has been restrained. The perverted democracy and dogmatism impede the call for equality and social progress. No less in the countryside wherein, the state’s response to the plight of the peasant farmers for genuine agrarian reform is met with hostility through the introduction of neoliberal reforms and military presence. Meanwhile, those who remained vigilant in the urban areas, particularly youth organizations, continuously suffer threats of harassment and intimidation. The state neglects the continuing call for basic social services. The impending decrease in the 2020 budget allocation for the Department of Education, Department of Science and Technology, and the Commission on Higher Education curtails the right of access to quality education. This is blatant disrespect to the history of youth struggle for their rights. Justice has only been granted in the pockets of the affluent and the corrupt. No justice has been given to the countless victims of impunity and abuse. The debacle on the clemency for Antonio Sanchez
raises doubt on the competence of the penal system, while the families of Eileen Sarmienta and Allan Gomez suffer the burden of injustices. Even more so, impunity reeks in the countless victims of the statesponsored campaign against drugs, scarring justice and slaughtering innocent lives. No amount of atonement can ever justify the resurgence of the Marcoses to power. They amassed conspicuous amounts
of wealth throughout their regime of tyranny which they now use to bribe their way to impunity. Their rise to power is a combined attempt of deceit and manipulation to strike confusion among the public. Duterte imitates the profanity of the Marcos tyranny without the need of a formal declaration of Martial Law. Lastly, the prolonged peace has been postponed in a renewed state war on terrorism directed inwards against its own populace.
SINAG was established in 1968 in a time when Philippine democracy was facing its biggest challenge since independence. The students of the College of Arts and Sciences deemed the need for an avenue to speak their critical minds and take a stand through an official student publication. Its name is portmanteau as SINing and AGham. Also meaning ‘a ray of light’ in Filipino, its name represents the paper as a source of light, especially in the dark times during which it was founded. While the dictatorship has fallen, the Philippines never left the darkness of social injustice and oppression. It was once SINAG’s motto: “Only those who wish to live in darkness are afraid of the light”, thus, SINAG continues to strive to provide light that we may one day live in the light of true freedom.
The counteri n s u r g e n c y program under the “whole-ofnation” approach consolidates both Oplan Kapanatagan and Kalasag, placing the land in a defacto state of martial law. All the while, economic and territorial wars among superpowers threatens the state of national sovereignty. Thus, the long procession must come full circle. In the parish, eager servants await while the masses anticipate their devotions – calls for liberty, justice, and long and lasting peace.
In the wake of remembering, let the sacrifices of the youth that came before inspire our feats towards struggle. Let us hold on to their names along with the lives they have led and rekindle the spirit of resistance. It is with the toiling masses amidst constant struggle that the youth of today can strive to continue the legacy of previous generations, and learn to rectify past mistakes in hopes of placing heaven on earth. More than ever, the youth must emerge again: For the writings on the wall has numbered the days of the tyrants.
Photo from Ibon Media Madugong araw ng mga puso ang salubong sa mga magsasaka matapos pirmahan ni Pangulong Duterte noong Pebrero 14, 2019, ang RA 11203 o Rice Tariffication Law. Pangunahing mayakda ng batas na ito ay sina Senadora Cynthia Villar at House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo bilang pag-amyenda sa RA 8178 o Agricultural Tariffication Act of 1996, na tinatanggal ang paglilimita sa dami ng mga inaangkat na imported na bigas. Mapapalitan ito ng taripa o papatawan ng mas mataas na buwis. Inaasahan ng Government’s Economic team na bababa ang presyo sa merkado ng bigas sa halagang P27 dahil sa pagpapatupad ng Rice Tariffication Law, na hanggang sa kasalukuyan ay hindi nangyayari. Ayon sa datos ng Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) nitong Agosto, pumapalo sa P38.4 kada kilo ang “milled rice” at
HINAGPIS SA SAK AHAN F R A N C J O N A S A BA
P43.5 kada kilo naman ang “well-milled rice”. Makikitang napaka layo sa P27 na pinangako ng batas. Sa kabila ng lahat, naging positibo naman si Socioeconomic Planning Assistant Secretary Mercedita Sombilla na papalo sa P27 ang kada kilo ng bigas. “The rice tariffication law is still the answer to improve the country’s agricultural sector” ayon sa kanya. Ayon naman kay Agriculture Secretary William Dar ay hindi pa umaabot sa merkado ang mga na-angkat na bigas dahil iniipon pa ito ng mga mangangalakal. “Iyong karamihan na na-import, hindi pa lumalabas sa merkado. ‘Pag lumabas iyan, bababa ang presyo talaga. Iyon po ang major reason,” sabi ni Dar sa press briefing niya nitong nakaraang Setyembre 4. Sa katunayan, nitong Agosto lamang ay umabot sa na sa 2.5 million metric tons ang na-angkat na bigas, ayon kay Dar.
Sa kabilang banda, kagyat naman na bumaba ang presyo ng palay mula nang maipatupad ang Batas. Mula sa karaniwang P17-P20 kada kilo sa panahon ng tag-init ay nabibili lamang ang palay sa halagang P12-P16 sa iba’t-ibang probinsya sa bansa. Sa datos na inilabas ng Amihan makikita ang labis na pagkalugi ng mga magsasaka sa kanilang mga naani na palay. Pumapalo lamang sa P7 kada kilo ang “basa”, at P10 kada kilo naman ang “tuyo” sa Licab, Nueva Ecija. P10 kada kilo naman sa Zaragoza, Nueva Ecija; P12-14 kada kilo sa Isabela, Sta. Cruz, Laguna, at Tarlac City; P8 kada kilo sa Pagsanjan, Laguna; P7.50 kada kilo sa Nueva Vizcaya, at P11 kada kilo naman sa Sorsogon. Problema din ng mga magsasaka ang kawalan ng pagkukunan ng kapital
sa napakataas na gastos sa pagsasaka, kaya gano’n na lamang ang sigaw ng mga magsasaka na subsidiya ang kailangan nila at hindi pautang. “[Itong] production loan po, [ang] interest po nito is 6 percent per annum, up to P15,000 per farmer, no collateral. Mayroon din po kaming working capital, P5 million per association or cooperative” ani ni Agricultural Credit Policy Council Executive Director Jocelyn Badiola. “We will make sure na nandiyan pa rin ang mga credit programs na mas mababa ang interests kaysa sa dati.” ani naman ni Agriculture Secretary William Dar. Ngunit ang problema’y hindi naman nararamdaman ng mga magsasaka ang ganitong klaseng programa ng gobyerno, tulad ni Narcing Manalad. “Saan sasapat ‘yang P15,000 na ‘yan? Samantalang ‘yong puhunan mo lang sa
pagsasaka ay dito pa lang sa mga input, halos P10,000 plus na” ani ni Manalad Ayon naman sa Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), mga miyembro lamang ng mga rehistradong kooperatiba ng gobyerno ang matutulungan nito. “Out of 2.7 million rice farmers, 150 lang ang registered” ani ni KMP chairman Danilo Ramos “Hindi po ganoon kadali ang sumama at magbuo ng kooperatiba” dagdag pa ni Ramos. Sa patuloy na pagbaba ng presyo ng palay ay patuloy naman ang pagmahal sa merkado ng bigas, at lumalayo sa pinapangakong P27 kada kilo. Kasabay naman nito ang araw-araw na pasakit sa mga magsasaka sa kamay ng kapwa niya Pilipino. Sabi nga nila, “Magtanim ay ‘di biro.”
SINAG hosts forum on mosquito press movement with campus pubs RYA N M A R T I N E Z
Mr. Bonifacio Ilagan, Martial Law writer-activist, and recepient of the U.P. Gawad Plaridel award 2019 shared the relevance of mosquito press movement.
After several years, college publications in UP Diliman gathered as one in holding an event for the historic role of campus editors and publications in the mosquito press movement during Martial Law. SINAG in partnership with the College Editors Guild of the Philippines (CEGP) along with Tinig ng Plaridell, Scientia, Kalasagg, and Philippine Collegian held “Kilusang Propaganda: Pahayagang Pangkampus sa panahon ng Batas Militar” last September 18, 2019 at PH 207. Mr. Bonifacio Ilagan, Martial Law writer-activist, and recipient of the U.P. Gawad Plaridel award 2019, implored the current roster of campus editors-in-chief to continue writing for the broader masses and to remain critical in “times of danger”.
“Even if we say that now is the time of living and writing dangerously, now is the time to push the limits and you can do that through campus journalism.” said Boni Ilagan. The program concluded with an assembly of UP Solidaridad, the systemwide alliance of campus publications in UP, for the preparations and pledge of support of campus editors for the weeklong protest action for the Martial Law commemoration. Despite lack of funds for its crucial operations and continuing harassment of campus editors, the forum is a testament to the combined strength of the campus press in asserting for their rights and living by their timeless mantra “to write is already to choose.”
Diliman upholds solid stand on academic freedom CLARK RECILE
The University Student Council and the Offices of the Sectoral Regents hosted a round table discussion entitled “In Defense of Academic Freedom” at the UP SOLAIR Auditorium. The forum tackles the issue surrounding academic freedom in the university after the heated argument in the senate hearing on Mandatory ROTC and the attempts of the AFPPNP to intrude campus premises. Professor Rolando B. Tolentino, Director of the Institute of Creative Writing, stated that the academe should be free from institutional censorship and that academic freedom is a right that students and teachers alike should be able to exercise. He said that academic freedom enables a more imaginative democratic method of governance— development for all. “Ang militar ang salarin sa red-tagging, vilification ng mga aktibista na siya nagbubukas ng puwang para sila’y paslangin… Ipagtanggol natin ang academic freedom at ang layon unibersidad, ipagtanggol ang karapatan ng mga mamamayan para sa paglaya ng
bayan, makibaka, wag matakot,” said Tolentino. According to Professor Giovanni A. Tapang, Dean of the College of Science, academic freedom is really at the heart and core of all scientific disciplines. Academic freedom grants us access to all the ideas, theories, and methodologies for the betterment and of our society and our environment. “Para sa isang indibidwal na siyentista… ang academic freedom ay umiikot doon sa kanyang scholarly practice. Kagaya ng bilang isang teacher, bilang isang researcher, at bilang isang scientist,” said Tapang. Professor Roland G. Simbulan, former Faculty Regent, asserts that knowledge is a product not only of individual academic research, but also vigorous, sustained, intellectual exchange, dialogue among scholars, and non-academic discourse. He also states that academic freedom is a freedom which is enshrined and guaranteed in Section 5 Article 2 of the 1987 Philippine constitution
as well as the United Nations Convention on Civil and Political Rights. “Academic freedom is a right that enables the community of scholars to individually or collectively express diverse perspectives, overt, contentious, controversial, and critical topics. Free from intimidation by [the] administration or by the political expression of the state… Academic freedom is essential to preserve full critical and through discussion within the university— the most important of society’s civil institutions,” said Simbulan. As Emeritus Francisco A. Nemenzo Jr. recalled his past as a former UP President, he reminds us that threats to academic freedom can also originate from inside UP. He states that we also have to be vigilant a b o u t individuals that invoke academic
freedom aiming only to promote self-interest. “We have to stand together and be more careful with the way we handle the issue… it will always be an issue because the united officials of the state will always be threatening the university. If we can fight, show our strength, show our unity, we can deter them,” Nemenzo said.
Hague Ruling sa West Philippine Sea, isinantabi I VA N S U G C A N G
Bagong Alyansang Makabayan - Gitnang Luson (Bayan GL), nakisama sa protesta noong nakaraang Hulyo para sa SONA 2019 bitbit ang kani-kanilang panawagan.
Noong ika-10 ng Setyembre, sinabi ni Duterte na isasantabi ang ating karapatan sa Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) sa West Philippine Sea (WPS). Matapos ito ng pagbisita ni Duterte sa China para buuin ang Joint Oil Exploration Deal sa pagitan ng Pilipinas at China. Ayon kay Duterte, ang pagsasantabi ng Hague Ruling na nagbibigay ng karapatan sa EEZ ay kinakailangan para “tiyakin ang economic activity” sa WPS. Iginiit naman ng dating Secretary ng Department of Foreign Affairs na si Albert Del Rosario, na lagi namang posible ang economic activity sa EEZ ng Pilipinas, ngunit kapag isinuko ng Pilipinas ang EEZ, hindi na ito mababawi. Sa mga nakaraang buwan ay tumitindi ang pag-aangkin ng China sa WPS sa pamamagitan ng pagpasok ng mga barkong military, militia, at mangingisda ayon sa isang report ng Rappler. Noong nakaraang Disyembre 2018 hanggang Enero 2019, umabot sa mahigit 95 ang militiang barko ng China na umaaligid sa isang isla ng WPS. Dumaan din ang apat na barkong pandigma ng China sa Palawan Area nang walang pahintulot ng AFP noong Hunyo. Higit pa rito ay namataan ang 140 na barkong pangingisda ng China nitong nakaraang Hulyo sa Pag-asa Island. Hunyo nitong taon lamang nang sabihin ni Salvador Panelo,
Tagapagsalita ni Duterte, na pinapayagan ni Duterte ang pangingisda at pagpasok ng China sa Pilipinas dahil sa “pagkakaibigan” daw ng dalawang bansa. Bukod sa pagpasok ng China sa West Philippine Sea, nagpapalakas din ang pwersa ng Estados Unidos sa ating teritoryo. Ang USS Ronald Reagan, isang dambuhalang aircraft carrier, ay dumaong sa Manila Bay nitong Agosto lamang. Hiwalay pa ito sa tatlong pagdaong ng mga barkong pandigma ng US noong 2018. Sinabi din ni US Defense Secretary na nasa interes ng US ang magpadala ng pwersa na magtitiyak ng pagiging bukas ng WPS sapagkat umaabot sa $3.4 trilyon ang dumadaloy na kalakal dito. Sa kabila ng nagpapatuloy na “trade war” sa pagitan ng China at US, ang dalawang pwersa ay patuloy na nagigirian sa pagbuo ng mahigpit na kapit sa WPS para sa pagtaguyod ng kanilang ekonomik na interes. Samantala, ang tagumpay na nakamit ng Pilipinas sa Hague Ruling ay patuloy na inaatras ni Duterte at nangangambang mawalan ng bisa ayon kay Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio. Ang tanong ni Carpio kay Duterte, dapat ba natin ito makita bilang isang tagumpay na pananalakay [ng China] nang walang isang balang pinuputok?
Tiempo Muerto: The Dead Season on the Island of Negros S E A N A P O ST O L
Tiempo muerto, the dead season, has begun in earnest on the island of Negros. More than 40 civilians have been killed since the season started, more continue to die, and much more have died before that. Named for the period between planting and harvesting, tiempo muerto starts in April and lasts until September. For five months, there is no work in the fields. Farmers, in the meantime, search for odd jobs to feed their families. Mothers enlist as domestic help, father’s scout the cities for temporary work. It is a difficult time of hunger and hardship, but at least an end is in sight, with farmers returning to the sugarcane fields in the milling season. The government’s counterinsurgency measures on the island, however, have no set deadline. The past two months have been turbulent and bloody, the carnage continuing well into harvest, the island trapped in fear. This dead season might just end up becoming the island’s longest. SEASON OPENER The season opened on March 30 as simultaneous police operations ended in the massacre of 14 peasant farmers as part of Oplan Sauron, the codename for the PNP’s intensified counterinsurgency campaign. The slain included village chiefs and peasant leaders suspected of possessing illegal firearms and of being members of a special NPA unit. The official report justified the massacre as an act of self-defense, but subsequent accounts from witnesses and victims’ families painted a more gruesome picture: masked men barging into homes at night, shots ringing out as family members were dragged outside, their children agape in horror. It wasn’t until four months later, however, that the dead started piling up, and fast. O n July 18, f o u r
policemen were killed in an NPA ambush in Ayungon, Negros Oriental. The incident prompted an outraged statement from President Duterte, offering P1 million—later bumped to P5 million, and more recently to P7 million—as reward money for apprehending the suspects. Not long after, the bloodbath began. In a single week, 17 people were murdered in seeming retaliation for the ambush of four police intelligence operatives. The killings had things in common: riding-in-tandem gunmen killing civilians in broad daylight, groups of armed men barging into homes in the dead of night. July 25 proved to be the bloodiest day in the series of killings, returning seven dead in the span of 24 hours. The purge had gotten so out of hand that San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza issued a joint pastoral statement condemning the day’s string of murders, imploring all churches and religious houses to ring their bells every 8:00 PM beginning Sunday, July 28. But just hours later that night, Marlon Ocampo and his one-year-old son, Marjun, were shot dead in their home, his wife and child sustaining injuries. Six more people were killed in the following days, the murders capping off for the month on July 28. Church bells could be heard pealing around the island at 8:00 PM, to toll until the killings stopped. It was Sunday. ULTERIOR MOTIVES Police Brigadier General Debold Sinas, director of Police Regional Office in Central Visayas, cautioned against the immediate tagging
of the NPA in the aftermath of the killings. H e stressed that accusations pointing to the NPA should be substantiated since other motives might be behind the murders. Focusing on motives had gotten them leads on persons of interest unrelated to the NPA, though not ruling their involvement out altogether. Land disputes, he claimed, could have been one possible motive. And on this point, he wasn’t wrong. The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) said the same thing in their initial findings on the one-week purge, pointing to land disputes as a probable cause in some of the murders. Atty. Anthony Trinidad had represented the Bayawa siblings in a land dispute between informal settlers, a case that the latter won in court. Land disputes could have also figured into the killing of Marlon Ocampo and his one-year-old son, clashing against reports implicating the NPA. Federico Sabejon, meanwhile, had been organizing new claimants in a landholding in Siaton. All six of them were casualties in the one-week slay. Land issues are, of course, nothing new on the island of Negros. KILLING FIELDS Feudal relations persist in the nation’s sugar and hacienda capital, fueling centuries-old land disputes steeped in bloodshed. More than half of the sugarlands are controlled by big landlords, and this coupled with the hacienda system and endless landgrabs, has made most peasants poor and landless. Colonial legacies that reconfigured production around a single crop for export continue to persist on the island, embedding landlordism and an ecologically unsustainable monocrop farming system. According to Ibon Foundation, monocropping is the culprit behind tiempos muertos, the land sitting idle and hostage to the schedules of global production. Farmers incur large debts during the off-season and are forced to look for work elsewhere. The struggles of landlessness and intense poverty in the dead season have led farmers to
protest through direct land occupation called bungkalan, a method of sustainable agriculture that repurposes idle lands for collective farming and to feed farmers’ families and communities. But more than a sustainable method of farming and a form of resistance, bungkalan is an act of desperation necessitated by the demands of survival. Denied of land reform, this is among the few recourses farmers have to assert their right to the land and to survive until harvest time. The landed elite, however, will not allow this. GUNS AND GOONS Time and time again, struggles for agrarian reform on the island have consistently been met with statesponsored militarisation, from Cory Aquino’s Total War policy to Gloria Arroyo’s Oplan Bantay Laya. The Duterte administration is no different. In November 2017, Duterte signed Memorandum Order No. 32, reinforcing Proclamation No. 55 that placed the nation into a state of national emergency, the memo noting that “sporadic acts of violence have occurred in the country, particularly in the provinces of Samar, Negros Oriental, Negros Occidental, and the Bicol Region.” The memorandum claims to prevent the further loss of innocent lives, ordering the deployment of additional police troops and armed forces. A month later on December 27, six members of peasant groups were killed in simultaneous police operations in part one of Oplan Sauron. Since the order came into effect, at least 87 people have been killed. The 17 casualties of the July
slaughter included a human rights lawyer, education officials, peasant leaders, a farmer, an anti-mining advocate, a barangay chairman, a village chief, a former mayor, a city councilor, a barangay tanod, a father and his one-year-old baby. Far from quelling the supposed threat posed by insurgents, the spate of killings resulted in the deaths of numerous civilians and noncombatants, among them human rights defenders, environmental activists, and leaders in the agrarian struggle. The state has set its priorities straight. Though the declaration of martial law has so far been shelved, it remains operational through MO 32, the recent deployment of more than 300 Special Action Forces troops—in addition to AFP battalions, vigilante groups, death squads, and paramilitary groups—set to make matters worse. No end in sight On August 5, PNP chief Gen. Oscar Albayalde announced that the situation in Negros was under control. The island was back to normal. There will be no need to impose martial law. On August 15, Joshua Partosa, a Grade 11 senior high school student, was on his way to school with two siblings on an early Thursday morning. Suddenly, four motorcycle-riding assailants opened fire at him, injuring him. When he tried to run away, one of the men chased after him and plunged a steel bar into his neck. Two more people were shot dead that day. It is now the milling season in Negros but the slaughter has continued unabated. Farmers have returned to the fields diminished in number, the distinction between harvest and the dead season no longer meaningful.
Konsensiya ng Bayan:Frail Cognizance on CRSRS G I A N A L A R R AU R I
NEVER AGAIN: Protestors from several sectors gathered as one to commemorate the 47th anniversary of Martial Law. The United People’s Action had the theme: Laban Kabataan! Laban Bayan! Inhustisya at Diktadura, Wakasan! Last September 26, the CSSP Student Council (CSSP SC) opened up a feedback form regarding their proposed amendments on the Codified Rules for Student Regent Selection (CRSRS) sent to organizational heads in the afternoon. This is their way of informing and consulting the student body regarding their specific amendments on the SR selection that is set to be submitted to the Office of the Student Regent (OSR) on October 1st—leaving roughly five (5) days for the evaluation of the said proposal. The College of Social Sciences and Philosophy (CSSP) today consists of students that are mainly dominated by a large number of first years and second years, following the first two graduates of the K-12 program. Even so, this legitimizes the fact that majority of the student body does not know about the whole Student Regent (SR) selection process. Yet, the council already sought for feedback regarding their proposed amendments. In fact, the only information the CSSP students can access about the CRSRS from the CSSP SC are specific sections placed alongside their proposals in the feedback form, leaving no trace nor copy of the full file of the codified rules. Several students also expressed their lack of knowledge about the SR selection process, as a result of CSSP SC’s inability to conduct an earlier and more comprehensive information drive about the said matter. Merely handing over the feedback form to organizational heads initially, defeats the purpose and duty of the student council to reach out properly to the whole student body not just about their initiative to get suggestions and comments from their proposals, but more on how they genuinely relate with their
own college constituents. Discussing these proposals to various organizations in their tambayans on a Friday, and 4 days before the deadline of the feedback form, does not guarantee a well-informed student body. This separates CSSP students who are not part of organizations—missing out on vital information that they too need to know. Moreover, some of the department representatives were not even fully informed about the initiative of the CSSP SC to conduct a feedback form regarding the said amendments that the council should have made as one. This breeds lack of transparency of the student council among its own colleagues. All of the proposed amendments of the CSSP SC are deemed to be similar to their proposal last year and was already unanimously rejected by the 47th General Assembly of the Student Councils (GASC). Among these proposals are concerning the ff: Article III. Qualification of Nominees, Article V. Duties and Responsibilities, Article VII. Autonomous University-wide Process, Article VIII. System-wide Process, and Article IX. General Provisions. As stated in their feedback form, the CSSP SC initially wanted to include good academic standing as one of the criteria in the SR selection process. This amends Art. III. Qualification of Nominees. According to them, it is “reflective of not just [the SR’s] prowess in time and work management, but it also serves as an indication of the SR’s capabilities of fulfilling their academic requirements while at the same time fulfilling their duties in the BoR, without sacrificing one for the other.” However, SALIGAN sa CSSP deemed this argument to be disregarding of the right of students who genuinely are capable and
willing enough to serve the UP students. Their right to participate in the democratic process of SR selection will be stripped away from them. SALIGAN sa CSSP deemed that this argument makes the selection process “noninclusive and non-democratic”. In Art. V. Duties and Responsibilities, the CSSP SC wants KASAMA sa UP (KSUP) to be excluded from being involved in the SR selection process information drive as they labeled this act to be “redundant”. As not all university and college student councils are members of KSUP, CSSP SC argued that, “removing the provision in the CRSRS disables alienation which, in turn, ensures genuine representation, inclusivity, and maximum participation.” Supporting the OSR’s campaigns on the democratic rights of its constituents is one of the many crucial basis of membership of the KSUP. CSSP SC on the other hand, is not part of this said alliance. According to the CRSRS, the role of KSUP is to “launch massive information drive on the historical vision-mission of the OSR and the historical role of the students in the struggle to reestablish the OSR and in the selection process, and to inform all students and student organizations regarding the SR selection process through organizational memoranda, personal orientation and other similar means and to ensure maximum participation of all the students to the selection process by conducting symposia, fora or similar activities.” SALIGAN sa CSSP also argued that the role of KSUP is to “ensure that the most accurate account of the OSR’s history is taught uniformly to the pertinent councils.” This also prevents the possibility of false dissemination
of historical accounts as well as vital information on the SR selection process. This emphasizes the tight relationship that KSUP and OSR have, making KSUP the entrusted alliance for the SR selection information drive. CSSP SC also stated that the role of KSUP in disseminating massive information drive is somewhat already the same with the role of university and college student councils, yet this goes back to their inability to properly inform not just their own constituents in the council but also majority of its student body. In Art. VIII. System-wide Process, CSSP SC proposes to grant each local college council (LCC) at least one vote in the systemwide process, this is incremented by one additional vote per 1,000 population. They argued that, “all LCCs be empowered and enfranchised as they are the duly-elected student representatives of their respective local colleges.” With regards to the 1,000 student threshold, they also mentioned that, “the additional 1000 that will entitle an LCC to additional votes depending on population is proposed in order to address the problem of proportionality as it is inevitable that some LCCs represent large constituencies relative to others.” This defeats the crucial essence of the whole SR selection process. SALIGAN sa CSSP then mentioned that, “the point of the SR selection process is to build [unity] between all constituent units. It should not be a matter of popular vote, but rather, consensus based on principle. To give each LCC at least one vote, incrementing per additional 1,000 in population, is to give UP Diliman an unfair advantage in the voting process.” This leads little to no proper representation of other UP units that are smaller in population.
Lastly, in Art. VII. University-wide Selection Process, CSSP SC intended to amend the number of days prior to the required deadline for the submission of vision paper and GPOA of the SR nominees. From 14days prior to the deadline of the submission of requirements to the OSR, the CSSP SC proposed to change this into 30-days. Aside from this, they also proposed another 30-days from the 10-working days prior to the required presentation of the OSR to the LCCs regarding the submitted requirements of the nominees. The CSSP SC said that, “the submission of the nominees Vision Paper and GPOA thirty days earlier is a mechanism designed to allow SCs to present to their respective constituencies the nominees’ plans and vision.” In Art. IX. General Provisions, CSSP SC also proposed that there should be at least 3 academic years before rules in the CRSRS can be amended again. “The CSSP SC believes that in order to assess the effectivity of these aforementioned amendments, there should be a set period of implementation for the amendments made. However, with the “highly-volatile political situation in the university and in the country, limits to changing these rules would make it difficult for the GASC to adjust to the relevant concrete conditions in the time frame of the SR selection” SALIGAN sa CSSP opposed. Despite the content of the specific amendments that CSSP SC proposed, the SR selection process is still far from the knowledge of the majority of its student body—placing the Konsensiya ng Bayan on a frail cognizance of its political environment.
DBM cuts budget , crucial sectors suffer G I A N A L A R R AU R I
The allocated funds for the 2020 budget proposal prioritized President Duterte’s massive infrastructure development and military upgrades and programs. As announced by his administration last August 21, 2019, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) will be having P188.6 billion ($3.6 billion) for the year 2020—increasing by 3 percent its budget amount for 2019. In the 2020 Budget Priorities Framework briefer released by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), the Build, Build, Build Program will reach an amount of P1.8 trillion, or around 6.9 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2020. The GDP is projected to grow from 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent next year. DBM showed that promoting infrastructure investments shall support tourism and agriculture development, efficiency of transport infrastructure, and social-infrastructure programs.
President Duterte approved the P4.1 trillion budget or the National Expenditure Program (NEP) for 2020 presented by DBM last month. It was calculated to be higher than the 2019 national budget of only P3.662 trillion by 12 percent. The Office of the President (OP) received double allocation of funds from its previous budget of P2.5 billion for the last three years. A bulk of the OP’s P4.5 billion budget for 2020 is devoted to confidential and intelligence funds. The Commission on Audit finds this allocation for confidential funds “difficult to audit.” Its specific use remains undisclosed to the public as this concerns plans for national security as well as peace and order. As promising as it seems, these preparations for the year 2020 are at the expense of some crucial offices— affecting gravely its own citizens. Some of which are Department of
Agrarian Reform (DAR), Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Health (DOH), Department of Education (DepEd), and Commission on Higher Education (CHED). In a report released by ABS-CBN News last September 6, DAR’s budget fell from its budget of P1.1 billion this year to P940.8 million for 2020. Lawmakers continue to campaign for a higher budget in agriculture. While the National Food Authority (NFA), remains at P7 billion, DA expressed that with this it could only produce 5 percent of locally produced palay. DA on the other hand, proposed P333.1 billion pesos but DBM only approved an amount of P7.1 billion. Furthering the crisis on rice produce and situation of local farmers. Labor force, as one of the crucial departments of the country, also experienced a grave cut from their
IPAGLABAN: Students along with their calls join the UP Day of Walkout and Action on August 20, 2019 as a protest against campus militarization.
previous budget. Last September 4, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III told the House Committee on Appropriations that they proposed for a P20-billion budget but DBM reduced it to only P 14.42 billion. Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) will also be affected by this cut from DOLE.
Its budget was reduced down to P1.27 billion. Bello asserts that its department deserves more amidst DBM’s assumption that it has the ability to maximize its financial resources. This will affect DOLE as an essential sector in securing manpower for the country’s economy.
Karahasan sa Ngalan ng Kapangyarihan M A K I M E R C O L I TA
Ang katagang “change is coming” ay puno ng mga pinaslang na mga katutubo, magsasaka, maralitang taga-lunsod, mga bata at iba pang mamamayang isinakripisyo ng estado sa ngalan ng kaunlaran at kapangyarihan ng iilan. Halos kasing taas na ng utang ng bansa sa US at China ang listahan ng extrajudicial killings at iba pang paglabag sa karapatang pantao sa ilalim ng rehimeng Duterte, habang kasing baba na ng sahod ng manggagawa, at presyo ng palay ng mga magsasaka ang pag-asang may matatamo pang pagbabago sa buhay ng pangkaraniwang Pilipino. Hindi na maitatatwa ang hakbangin ng rehimeng Duterte para panatilihin ang ganitong kalakaran na magsasalba sa kaniya sa puwesto, sa katunayan liban sa batas militar sa Mindanao ilang oplan o operasyong militar na ang isinulong nito sa loob lamang ng tatlong taon. Noong Nobyembre 2018, nang payagan nito ang Memorandum Order No. 32 o “state of lawlessness” sa rehiyon ng Bicol, Samar at Negros, na siyang naghudyat ng serye ng pananakot at pagpatay sa mga nasabing lugar. Nakapaloob ito sa Executive Order No. 70 na tinaguriang “whole-of-nation approach” isang paraan ng pamahalaan para hadlangan ang lumalakas na paglaban ng mamamayan sa mga polisiyang anila’y hindi tumutugon sa pangangailangan ng bayan. Pinatindi pa ito nang buuin ang National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, pangrehiyong patakaran na susugpo diumano sa mga tumutuligsa sa gobyerno maging ang mga Regional Peace and Order Councils (RPOC) ay nagplano at bumuo rin ng task force na tutugon sa EO 70 ng rehimen.
Sa inilabas ng AFP-PNP Joint Campaign Plan Kapanatagan 2018-2022, sinasabing ito ay kontra-insurhensyang programa mula sa Oplan Kapayapaan na nagtatalaga ng joint security, peace and order and development support operations, sa mga lugar na pinaghihinalaang may malakas na puwersang pag-aalsa, maging ang mga ligal na organisasyon ng mamamayan tulad ng Anakbayan, Anakpawis, Bayan Muna ay damay sa operasyon. Sinakop ng batas ang mga lugar kung saan ay talamak ang kaso ng pangangamkam ng lupa at land conversion, na tinatapatan ng masidhing paglaban ng mga magsasaka at mamamayan. Ayon sa ibinalita ng grupong KARAPATAN ay halos nasa isang daan na ang napaslang na mamamayan ng Negros mula noong ipataw ang batas doon. Karamihan pa sa mga napaslang ay magsasaka, at tagapagtaguyod ng karapatang-pantao sa ilalim ng kautusan batalyong mga militar, ang ikinalat sa tatlong rehiyon na nagnormalisa ng pananakot at pamamaslang. Ayon sa KARAPATAN-Bicol, umabot na sa 62 ang kaso ng pagpatay sa rehiyon mula at pagkaraan ng pambansang eleksyon; karamihan sa mga pinaslang ay maralitang magsasaka mula sa Masbate at Sorsogon. Hindi rin nakaligtas ang Samar sa hagupit ng militarisasyon. Tinayang apat na serye ang puwersahang paglikas sa lugar ng libu-libong pamilya mula sa San Jorge, Calbiga, Las Navas, San Jose De Buan, Pinabacadao, at iba pang bayan sa Samar. Sa katunayan ay naitala rin ang aerial bombings sa Matuginao sa Las Navas. Ayon pa sa report, hinihingian ng ID ang mga residente ng lugar at kapag walang katibayan ay kinukuhanan ng
litrato ang mga ito. Maging ang color coding ay umiiral sa lugar bilang tanda kung sino ang itinuturing na kaaway at hindi. Abril nitong taong lamang, dalawang kapitan ng barangay na sina Pining Lebico at Wilmar Calutan, ang pinaslang matapos magsampa ng petisyong nagpapaalis sa mga militar sa kanilang lugar sa Brngy. Beri, Calbiga, Samar. Isinangkot rin ang mga taga-kumunidad sa “fake” at “forced” surrenders o mga taong pinapunta sa kampo ng militar upang linisin umano ang kanilang pangalan, at lumagda sa isang kasunduan na parte ng surrender document para ipakita sa publiko na may napapala ang militarisasyon. Tinernuhan pa ng mga militar ang paghimok ng isang livelihood assistance kapalit ng pagsuko ng mga pinaghinalaang rebelde. Sa dami at masalimuot na pag-iral ng memo order 32 at executive order 70 sa pangkabuuan, ay hindi mabanaag ng mga mamamayang apektado nito ang ipinangakong hatid na sosyo-ekonomiko at pampulitikang pag-unlad ng bansa. Sa katunayan, ang katiyakan ng pangako ay nakikita lamang sa kriminalisasyon ng mga bilanggong pulitikal o yung mga pinatawan ng gawa-gawang kaso, paniniktik sa anumang pagkilos o pagtitipon, pagpatay, puwersahang paglisan sa pamayanan, sekswal na pang-aabuso, iligal na ginawang ligal na operasyong militar sa mga kabahayan, pagwasak sa komunidad, pananim, at iba pang paglabag sa karapatang-pantao sa aktwal. Ang batas na ito ay hindi upang lutasin ang problema sa lupa, sahod, edukasyon, karapatan sa pagpapasiya, soberanya, at katarungan kung hindi sa ngalan lamang ng pananatili sa kapangyarihan.
HIYAS: Ang ika-30 Anibersaryo ng Kontra-GaPi WILNA CALMA
Solidarity Statement L A BA N K A BATA A N , L A BA N BAYA N ! I N H US T I S YA AT D I K TA DU RA , WA K ASA N ! Apat na pu’t pitong taon na ang nakalipas nang ideklara ni Ferdinand Marcos ang Batas Militar hudyat ng simula ng madidilim na karanasan ng ating bansa. Tinapatan ito ng tapang ng mga publikasyon na piniling magsulat, magmulat, at magpahayag ng katotohanan alang-alang sa paglilingkod para sa bayan.
Litrato mula sa Kontra-GaPi KULTURA AT SINING: Ipinagdiwang ng Kontemporaryong Gamelan Pilipino (Kontra-Gapi) ang kanilang ika-30 na anibersaryo noong buwan ng Agosto-- patuloy na binubuhay at mas pinayayaman pa ang kahalagahan ng kultura at sining Pilipino. (Litrato mula sa Kontra-Gapi)
Sa isang pagbalik-tanaw sinimulan ni Propesor Pedro “Edru” Abraham ang kanyang talumpati kung saan kanyang nilahad ang kasaysayan ng Kontemporaryong Gamelan Pilipino (Kontra-GaPi) sa konsiyerto nito noong Agosto 17, 2019. Ayon sa kanya, ang unang ideya ay nagsimula noong siya ay pinagkatiwalaang gumawa ng musika para sa isang produksyon ng Dulaang UP noong 1989, ang ‘Isang Dulang Panaginip.’ Sa pangyayaring ito ipinanganak ang Kontra-GaPi na sa loob ng tatlumpung taon ay nakapaglinang ng isang hiyas—ang hiyas ng sining at adhikain ng at para sa mga Pilipino. Nagsimula man sa isang panaginip, ang grupo ay patuloy pa rin na umiiral bilang katotohanan at inspirasyon. Sinalubong naman ng masigabong palakpakan ng mga manonood ang pagtatapos ng talumpati ni Propesor Abraham na hudyat ng pagsisimula ng konsiyerto. Ang palakpakan ay unti-unting natunaw sa hangin at ang tugtog ng gamelan ang umukopa sa bawat sulok ng Abelardo Hall habang parehong ang mga miyembro at manonood ang dumanas ng kasaysayan ng Kontemporaryong Gamelan Pilipino mula Agosto 12, 1989 hanggang sa kasalukuyan sa pamamagitan ng musika, sayaw, at iba pang uri ng maka-Pilipinong sining na itinanghal sa konsiyertong iyon. Ang Kontemporaryong Gamelan Pilipino, na kilala rin bilang KontraGaPi, ay ang residenteng pangkat sa etnikong musika at sayaw ng Kolehiyo ng Arte at Literatura sa UP Diliman. Ang salitang “gamelan” ay hango sa
wikang Indonesian na ang ibig-sabihin sa Ingles ay “to strike” na tumutukoy sa mga instrumentong pinapalo o percussive. Ang mga ganitong uri ng instrumento ay may mga katulad na makikita sa Pilipinas gaya ng agong at kulintang. Bilang resulta, ang kultura ng gamelan ensemble na mula sa Indonesia ay niyakap upang magkaroon ng Pilipinong bersyon nito. Dito ay mahihinuha na ang sining na itinatampok ng Kontra-GaPi ay hango sa katutubong kulturang matatagpuan sa Pilipinas at mga karatig-bansa nito sa Timog-Silangang Asya. Upang maipakita ito sa bawat pagtatanghal, ang mga musika at sayaw na likha ng grupo ay pinagtagpi-tagping tunog at galaw mula Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao, hanggang sa mga kapatid na kultura nito sa Asya. Sa ganitong klase ng likha, ang mga tinahing kulturang ito ay nagbunga sa nagkakaisa at kontemporaryong porma ng sining na nagsisilbing instrumento upang maiangat sa kamalayan ang mga katutubong yaman ng bansa na siyang nanganganib sa pagkalimot. Bunga ng tunguhing ito ay ang pagturing ng Commission on Human Rights sa Kontra-GaPi bilang ang residenteng performing group nito na siyang katulong ng Komisyon sa pagdiriwang at pagbibigay-diin sa mga karapatang pantaong taglay ng bawat Pilipino. Itong taon lamang ay nagkaroon ng programa ang KontraGaPi at CHR sa Lumad Bakwit School sa UP Diliman (UPD), sa Far Eatern University (FEU), sa Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP), at maging sa tatlong sekondaryang paaralan sa Cordillera Administrative
Region (CAR). Ang mga programang ito, na may temang “Culture as a Human Right”, ay binuo ng pagtatanghal at palihan na pinangunahan ng KontraGaPi at mga aral at naratibo mula sa mga propesyonal ng CHR. Ang mga inihandog na pagtatanghal ng grupo ay nakasentro sa mga adhikain nito gaya ng pagmamalasakit sa bansa, pangangalaga sa kalikasan, at paglilingkod sa bayan na siyang naipararating sa pamamagitan ng “pag-chant”. Ang layunin naman ng palihan ay ang mas malalim na maipakilala sa mga manonood ang musika, sayaw, at mime na likha ng Kontra-GaPi. Sa pamamagitan ng kanilang sariling isipan at katawan ay nakikilahok ang mga mag-aaral at mga guro sa pag-alala at pagdiriwang ng kulturang pinagsibulan. Ang mga gawaing ito ay napagtibay ng mga aral at naratibo ng CHR. Nais nilang iparating na ang karapatang pantao ay maaari ding mabigyang-halaga sa pamamagitan ng pagdiriwang ng kultura. Ang dakilang pangyayaring ito ay hindi lamang napatatag ang aral na ang pagbuo ng kultura at identidad ay isang pantaong karapatan, kung hindi nagsilbi rin bilang tahanan kung saan ang talento, kultura, at pagkakakilanlan ng bawat grupo at bawat mag-aaral ay naipamalas at naipagbunyi. Ang pakikipagtulungan sa CHR ay isa lamang paraan kung saan naihahandog ng Kontra-GaPi ang kanilang sining at adhikain. Sa halos araw-araw na pagtugtog at pag-iimbita ng iba’t ibang paaralan at organisasyon,
publiko o pribado man, ang layunin ng grupo ay naisasakatuparan. Lalong nabibigyang- kabuluhan ang kanilang ngalan—Kontra-GaPi—na sa pamamagitan ng magiting at matapat na pagtatanghal ay napatunayang posibleng magamit ang sining Pilipino bilang isang uri ng aktibismo. Tatlong dekada na ang KontraGaPi ngunit malayo pa ito sa dulo. Ang mga nailahad na halimbawa ay maituturing na simula pa lamang. Ang tatlumpung taon ay masasabing maikli kung ikukumpara sa pangako ng hinaharap. Sa pagtatapos ng konsiyerto, ang Kontra-GaPi ay patuloy pa rin na makikibahagi sa mga programang pinagdiriwang ang Pilipinas, ang Pilipino, at ang mga pagkakakilanlan nito. Sa ngayong naipasa na ni Propesor Abraham ang pamumuno kay Propesor Erwin Rafael, ang pangkat ay magpapatuloy pa rin sa pag-arte, pagtugtog, pagsayaw, at pagbahagi ng mga nalalaman tungo sa malaya, makatarungan, at mapayapang Pilipinas. Kaugnay nito, ang Kontemporaryong Gamelan Pilipino (Kontra-GaPi) ay nagbukas ng kanilang pinto para sa mga mag-aaral o hindi, UP o non-UP man noong nakaraang Setyembre para sa mga nais maging miyembro nito. Ang inasahan lamang sa mga nais sumali ay ang kagustuhang matuto at kahandaang danasin ang etnikong musika at sayaw sa kontemporaryong paraan. Para sa mga karagdagang detalye, maaaring bisitahin ang kanilang Facebook page na “Kontra-GaPi”.
Walang takot na isiniwalat ng mga publikasyon ang pilit na itinatagong ganid sa kapangyarihan sa ilalim ng karahasan. Sa kabila ng mga marahas at pagkontrol noon sa midya, hindi natinag ang mga mamamahayag upang makapaglimbag ng mga alternatibong diyaryo sa pamamagitan ng mosquito press na tahasang tumutuligsa at nananawagan ng pagkilos para ibayong labanan ang mapaniil, magnanakaw, at mamamataytaong diktador na si Ferdinand Marcos. Sina Emmanuel Lacaba, Lorena Barros, at iba pang mga estudyanteng mamamahayag, ay ilan lamang sa mga nangahas na lumaban sa diktadurya noong Batas Militar at maituturing nating magigiting na martyr ng bayan hanggang ngayon. Sa kasalukuyan, hindi malayo ang rehimeng Duterte sa landas na tinahak din ni Marcos. Sinasalamin ito ng dumarami pang mga biktima ng kanyang extrajudicial killings, korupsyon sa loob ng pamahalaan, pagiging tuta sa US at China, red-tagging, iligal na pagdakip, pagpaslang, at pagsampa ng mga gawa-gawang kaso sa mga mamamahayag pangkampus. Sa kabila ng kahirapan at karahasang dinaranas ng mamamayan ngayon, patuloy pa rin ang mga publikasyon sa pagsulat at pagmulat. Sa aming pagsusulat, kami ay patuloy na pumipili at pumapanig. Pumapanig sa mga mamamayang bitbit ang kanilang mga istorya ng pakikibaka simula pa noon. Pumipiling makipaglaban hindi lamang para sa kalayaan sa pamamahayag maging pati na rin sa kalayaan ng ating bayan. Nakikiisa ang SINAG, bilang opisyal na publikasyon ng Kolehiyo ng Agham Panlipunan at Pilisopiya sa laban ng bawat isa. Iskolar ng Bayan, magiting tayong lumaban at patuloy na maglingkod sa bayan. Laban kabataan, Laban bayan! Never Forget!
“I love the gays but---”: Maikling Suri ng Die Beautiful, Krisis sa Identity, at “Pagtanggap” ng Lipunang Pilipino M E LV I N M OTA “If you were given the chance to live again, what would it be?” Sa dinami-rami ng tanong na isinulat ni Mother (Mimi Juareza) sa kodigo ng mga pwedeng lumabas sa Q&A, ito lang ang nag-iisang naisaulo ni Trisha Echevarria (Paolo Ballesteros), ang bida sa pelikulang Die Beautiful ni Jun Robles Lana. Dahil dito, kahit na irampa niya ang kanyang pinakamagandang gown at swimsuit, mapasakit niya ang tiyan ng mga manonood sa kakatawa, o di kaya’y mapamangha niya ang mga ito dahil sa kanyang ipapakita sa talent portion, hindi siya nananalo dahil palagi siyang ligwak sa Q&A. Ngunit bakit nga ba hindi niya mairaos ang Q&A at ito lang ang tanong na kanyang nakabisa? Dito lumalabas ang tunay na mensahe ng Die Beautiful at kung bakit sa tatlong taon pa lamang mula ng ito ay nilabas, maituturing na itong modern classic. Umiikot ang kwento ng Die Beautiful sa pagkamatay ni Trisha, o mas kilala bilang Patrick ng kanyang pamilya, na ibinilin sa kanyang best friend na si Barbs (Christian Bables) na sa oras na mamatay siya, magkakaroon siya ng makeup transformation sa bawat gabi ng lamay, mula kay Angelina Jolie at Miley Cyrus hanggang kay Beyonce at Julia Roberts. Ikinuwento rin ng pelikula ang napakagulong buhay ni Trisha, mula sa pagtakwil kay Patrick ng kanyang ama (Joel Torre) hanggang sa mga naging karanasan ni Trisha bilang isang ina, asawa, at beauty queen. Simula pa lang, mayroon nang malinaw na mensahe ang pelikula: Pangarap ng batang si Trisha na maging isang beauty queen kaya naman kung anu-anong costume gawa sa papel, plastik, o mop ang isinusuot niya para umawra. Pero ang hindi alam ng batang si Trisha, hindi lamang hanggang entablado ang pagiging isang beauty queen dahil tayong lahat ay nabubuhay sa isang malaking beauty contest. Ang ilan sa mga pangunahing elemento ng isang beauty contest, o beaucon, ay ang pagbibigay sa sarili ng isang pangalan, pagsusuot ng mga bonggang costume, at pagsagot sa mga tanong na ayon sa pelikula, inihanda na at nakakabisa. Sa madaling salita, yumayakap ang mga sumasali sa mga beaucon ng ibang pagkatao, isang pagkukunwari para sa mga manonood. Maaaring sa mga manonood, ang mga beaucon ay isang uri ng entertainment pero para sa mga beauty queen, isa itong paraan ng catharsis. Ito ang nagsisilbing lugar para sa kanila para magkaroon ng expression sa isang lipunang mapanghusga, kaya naman gumagamit sila ng ibang persona para kahit pansamantala maramdaman nila ang tunay nilang pagkatao bago sila bumalik sa “tunay nilang pagkatao.” Ngayon kung titingnan natin, hindi eksklusibo sa mga beauty queen ang pagpapanggap para matanggap ng lipunan dahil lahat tayo ay mayroong punto sa buhay natin na sinubukan nating ibahin ang ating pananamit, pananalita, o pananaw dahil sa mga mata at taingang nakatutok sa atin. Ito ang araw-araw na kinahaharap ng mga
miyembro ng LGBTQ+ community sa Pilipinas. Bawat kilos at salita, binabantayan, dahil ang lahat ay nakatingin at nakabantay na ikaw ay magkamali at isisi ito sa iyong kabaklaan. Dahil dito, napipilitan silang maki-ayon sa heteronormativity na umiiral sa lipunang Pilipino - uunahin na lang ang ‘normal’ sa iba kaysa mailabas ang iyong identity. Ang heteronormativity ayon kay Michael Warner, isang queer theorist, ay ang pagtingin sa heterosexuality bilang ‘normal’ at bilang resulta nito ay ang pagtingin sa mga bahagi ng LGBTQ+ community bilang ‘other’ o naiiba.
Bawat kilos at salita, binabantayan, dahil ang lahat ay nakatingin at nakabantay na ikaw ay magkamali at isisi ito sa iyong kabaklaan. Sa kontekstong Pilipino, maaari din nating sabihin na bahagi ng heteronormativity ang pagkakaroon ng gender binary, bagkus ang pagtanggap sa mga bakla at lesbiyana ay naaayon pa rin sa nakikita ng mata ng lipunan bilang ‘normal’. Pag ikaw ay isang gay, kailangang isa kang feminine gay, at kung ikaw ay lesbian, kailangan namang isa kang masculine lesbian. Dahil dito, umuusbong naman ang pagkakaroon ng invisibilization ng iba pang mga SOGIESC (sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sexual characteristics) - at dito muling pumapasok ang krisis sa identity na paulit-ulit nilang kinahaharap. Napipilitan silang magpanggap dahil sa takot na mabugbog sila ng kanilang ama, mabastos sa daan, matanggal sa trabaho, pag-usapan ng mga chismosang kapitbahay, isumpa ng simbahan, o hindi mahalin ng taong mahal nila. Sa sobrang lala nga ng krisis na ito, makikita rin sa Die Beautiful na hanggang kabaong, nagpapanggap si Trisha bilang ibang persona sa pamamagitan ng mga makeup transformation sa halip na ipakita ang tunay niyang pagkatao. Sa puntong ito, gusto kong bigyan ng pansin ang isa sa mga pinakamahalagang karakter sa Die Beautiful - ang kapatid ni Trisha na si Beth (Gladys Reyes). Mahalaga ang karakter ni Beth dahil siya ang kumakatawan sa kasalukuyang “pagtanggap” na binibigay ng Pilipinas sa LGBTQ+ community. Walang punto sa pelikula na makikitang sinaktan o sinigawan ni Beth si Trisha hindi gaya ng kanilang ama. Hindi rin kailanman binanggit ni Beth na isyu para sa kanya ang pagiging transgender ni Trisha. Sabi nga ng nanay ko noong pinanood namin ang pelikula sa sinehan, “mabait naman pala si Beth.” Pero ang problema kay Beth ay isa siyang naglalakad na ekspresyon ng “I love the gays but--” dahil sa paulitulit niyang pagsawalang-bahala sa mga pambubugbog ng kanilang ama kay Trisha na ni minsan hindi niya sinaway o tinutulan, sa kawalan ng pakialam sa kalagayan ng
kanyang kapatid matapos siyang gahasain, at sa pagtawag niya ng “Patrick” kay Trisha kahit na paulit-ulit na niyang pinatay ang pagkatao niyang iyon. Ang pagtanggap ni Beth kay Trisha, gaya ng pagtanggap ng Pilipinas sa LGBTQ+ community, ay ang pagbibigay sa kanila ng karapatang maging bakla nang may kundisyon. Tanggap lamang kapag kapaki-pakinabang sa pamilya, nakakapagpatawa, artistic, “hindi masyadong bakla,” kapag sinusunod mo yung ipinipilit nilang identity sa iyo, o kapag ikaw ay patay na, at ang nakadidismaya pa rito ay ang pagbibingi-bingihan sa oras na sila’y maglabas na ng kanilang mga panawagan ukol sa nararanasan nilang mga abuso at diskriminasyon sa lipunan. Totoo, hindi nga iligal ang maging bakla sa Pilipinas hindi gaya ng sa mga karatig nating bansa pero hindi ibig sabihin nito ay itinuturing na ng ating bansa ang mga bakla bilang mga tao. Tanggap dapat ng lahat ang identity ng isang tao na ibinigay niya sa kanyang sarili nang walang kundisyon, walang dapat na pinipilit. Pinapakita ng Die Beautiful na ang kasalukuyang estado ng Pilipinas ay nagtutulak sa isang malaking krisis sa identity dahil sa binibigay na pressure ng ating mapanghusgang lipunan. Dahil dito, pinagkikibit-balikat lamang ng ating lipunan at ng ating pamahalaan ang kanilang mga panawagan para sa kanilang mga karapatan dahil sa simula pa lamang, walang maayos na aparato ang ating bansa para sa komprehensibong pag-unawa tungkol sa SOGIESC gaya ng edukasyon. Si Trisha ang kumakatawan sa pagsigaw ng mga LGBTQ+ community ng paghingi ng pagtanggap sa pagkatao nila bilang sila. Nakakapagbagbagdamdamin ngang isipin na natapos ang isang linggong lamay ni Trisha nang walang ginagayang persona kundi ang kanyang sarili, ang “pinakamagandang pagkatao ni Trisha” ayon kay Barbs. “If you were given the chance to live again, what would it be?” Ito lamang ang nakabisa ni Trisha dahil umiikot ang kanyang buhay sa pagkukubli ng kanyang identidad k a y a tumatak sa kanya a n g
Photo from imdb.com
kasagutang “Nobody. Nobody but me.” Hinihingi ng Die Beautiful ang oras ng mga Pilipino upang makinig, umunawa, at kumilos para sa mas inklusibong Pilipinas. Suportahan natin ang pagsulong ng mga batas gaya ng SOGIE Equality Bill na siyang magbibigay ng safeguard para sa LGBTQ+ community laban sa anumang uri ng diskriminasyon, at samesex union na magbibigay ng pantay na karapatan sa mga mag-asawang LGBTQ+ sa social security, healthcare, edukasyon, at marami pang iba na natatamasa ng mga mag-asawang heterosekswal. Hindi ito ang oras para magbingibingihan, dahil hindi na dapat umabot pa ng kamatayan bago pa nila makuha ang i n a a s a m n i l a n g pagtanggap.
An allusion to the myth of
u r p h s e O V O N RYA N C A L M A
over the land
ll was The descent to he unnoticeable ering Even the unfalt e th faltered to alluring melody ampion Of a genius, a ch s with Who smote enemie no company l was With his music al d ce tran under In hopeful bliss ue skies of bl ted red That were pain r te af ng lo not e And came the snak silent Whose bites were
D I B U H O N I LY R A P U N O
Yet deadly Death took over The Sirens wailed agon The sleepless dr ed ho ec s whose roar
Slept, silenced Alas, Cerberus subdued, with heads of three Once indiscernible Became obvious more and more Hell was breaking loose To the exploits of vultures Tityus fell prey
Whose voices were hushed
To a deafening silence Left unheard But for some time alone Endured shall these be To take back what had been lost Finally set free Away from this hellhole Into the light
Of sustenance Tantalus was denied
Forward shall one stride
And a heavy burden to carry
Always heeding, never forgetting
Sisyphus was left with
That looking back would not suffice
Concretes awash with blood
In not losing Her
Of tortured souls here and there
Never again Not anymore