Bulan Observer

A MESSAGE TO ALL OF US FILIPINOS, says the Korean!

by attybenji

April 9, 2008 at 9:33 am

mr. rudyb.… it’s nice that you have had an unforgettable recollection and memories of martial law years in San Ramon. I guess you were referring to the mountain in sitio Kabangkalan or Talistison, a terrain overlooking the NIA dam, and the terrain in Parik, a border separating San Ramon & Kabugaan, where many NPA-Military encounters took place several times… It’s good to reminisce the experience of the nostalgic past, and the horrifying memories of martial law years in Bulan, particularly in San Ramon, being considered as a warzone during those yesteryears.

The military oprations, and NPA attacks then were concentrated solely in San Ramon because the PC/Army used NIA office thereat as their barracks, besides the fact that most of the NPA youth rebels then were legitimate residents of San Ramon, i.e., the family of Fruto, Mape, Gibaga, Guelas, Almoguera, Espela, Serrano, Bontigao, Godalla, Gealone, Guban, Gobris, et al., these people were actually victims of military abuses, thru saturation drive, hamletting, unfounded accusations, etc… I was only 4 years old then, pero dumdom ko intero an mga nangyari san panahon na kaduluman……mala kay alas 5 palang an hapon sa san ramon wara na sin nagbabasad basad na tawo sa kalsada, kay pag-abot sin alas 6 hangang 10 san gabi, puro ragakrak na san M16 an mababati mo, matingulon sa talinga an purutukan, kaya kadaghanan san balay sa san ramon puro may ukad sa sulod kay pag nagpurutukan narulumpat nalang sa ukad o buho para deri tamaan san bala, kay an mga lunob puro man lang baga himo sa amakan, pawud o tabla ……the rest is history… blah-blah-blah…

mr. Jun A….. baga san daku-dako an problema ta niyan kay habu na si mr. rudyb mag-react o response kay mapagalon kuno an pagsurat, he-he-he, ako ngani mapidlason na an tudlo ko san katutudlok kay insasayu-sayo ko lang an kada letra sa keyboard sine na computer…..

Anyway, let’s make a bit cambio to the new topic in the maintime, you know guys, I have a friend, who, works for the korean company, forwarded to me an informative email a couple of days ago, written allegedly by a korean student, who has been residing in the Philippines for years … . I do not know whether the name of this korean author is fictitious or not, (ala, juan dela cruz)… the message of the article is intended for the filipino people in general, and maybe to the people of BULAN in particular too…. here they are, as follows:

To all Filipinos. (pwede rin sabihon na … TO ALL TagaBULANs)

The message goes:
As you know, we have plenty of Koreans currently
studying in the Philippines to take advantage of
our cheaper tuition fees and learn English at the
same time.

This is an essay written by a Korean student i
want to share with you. (Never mind the Grammar;
it’s the CONTENT that counts) Maybe it is timely to think about this in the midst of all the confusion at present.

MY SHORT ESSAY ABOUT THE PHILIPPINES
by: Jaeyoun Kim

Filipinos always complain about the corruption in
the Philippines .. Do you really think the corruptionis the problem of the Philippines ? I do not think so. I strongly believe that the problem is
the lack of love for the Philippines ..

Let me first talk about my country, Korea ..
It might help you understand my point.
After the Korean War, South Korea was one
of the poorest countries in the world. Koreans
had to start from scratch because entire country wasdestroyed after the Korean War, and we had no natural resources.

Koreans used to talk about the Philippines , for
Filipinos were very rich in Asia .. We envy Filipinos.

Koreans really wanted to be well off like
Filipinos. Many Koreans died of famine.
My father & brother also died because of famine.
Korean government was very corrupt and is still very corrupt beyond your imagination, but Korea was able to develop dramatically because Koreans really did their best for the common good with their heartburning with patriotism.

Koreans did not work just for themselves but also
for their neighborhood and country. Education inspired young men with the spirit of patriotism.

40 years ago, President Park took over the
government to reform Korea .. He tried to borrow money from other countries, but it was not possible to get a loan and attract a foreign investment because the economic situation of South Korea was so bad. Korea had only three factories. So, President Park sent many mine
workers and nurses to Germany so that
they could send money to Korea to build a factory.
They had to go through horrible experience.

In 1964, President Park visited Germany to borrow
money. Hundred of Koreans in Germany came to the airport to welcome him and cried there as they saw the President Park .. They asked to him, “President, when can we be well off?” That was the only question everyone asked to him. President Park cried with them and promised them that Korea would be well off if everyone works hard for Korea , and the President
of Germany got the strong impression on them
and lent money to Korea .. So, President Park was
able to build many factories in Korea .. He always
asked Koreans to love their country from their heart.

Many Korean scientists and engineers in the USA
came back to Korea to help developing country
because they wanted their country to be well off.
Though they received very small salary, they did their best for Korea .. They always hoped that their children would live in well off country.

My parents always brought me to the places where
poor and physically handicapped people live. They
wanted me to understand their life and help them.
I also worked for Catholic Church when I was in the army.

The only thing I learned from Catholic Church was that we have to love our neighborhood. And, I d my neighborhood. Have you cried for the Philippines ? I have cried for my country several times. I also cried for the Philippines because of so many poor people. I have been to the New Bilibid prison. What made me sad in the prison were the prisoners who do not have any love for their country. They go to mass and work for Church. They pray everyday.

However, they do not love the Philippines .. I
talked to two prisoners at the maximum-security compound, and both of them said that they would leave the Philippines right after they are released from the prison. They said that they would start a new life in other countries and never come back to the Philippines ..

Many Koreans have a great love for Korea so that
we were able to share our wealth with our neighborhood. The owners of factory and company were distributed their profit to their employees fairly so that employees could buy what they needed and saved money for the future and their children.

When I was in Korea , I had a very strong faith and
wanted to be a priest. However, when I came to the Philippines , I completely lost my faith.
I was very confused when I saw many unbelievable situations in the Philippines .. Street kids always make me sad, and I see them everyday. The Philippines is the only Catholic country in Asia , but there are too many poor people here. People go to church every Sunday to pray, but nothing has been changed.

My parents came to the Philippines last week and
saw this situation. They told me that Korea was much poorer than the present Philippines when they were young. They are so sorry that there are so many beggars and street kids. When we went to Pasangjan, I forced my parents to take a boat because it would fun. However, they were not happy after taking a boat. They said that they would not take the boat again because they were sympathized the boatmen, for the boatmen were very poor and had a small frame. Most of people just took a boat and enjoyed it. But, my parents did not enjoy it because of love
for them.

My mother who has been working for Catholic Church since I was very young told me that if we just go to mass without changing ourselves, we are not Catholic indeed. Faith should come with action. She added that I have to love Filipinos and do good things for them because all of us are same and have received a great love from God. I want Filipinos to love their neighborhood and country as much as they love God so that the Philippines will be well off.

I am sure that love is the keyword, which Filipinos
should remember. We cannot change the sinful structure at once. It should start from person. Love must start in everybody, in a small scale and have to grow. A lot of things happen if we open up to love. Let’s put away our prejudices and look at our worries with our new eyes.

I discover that every person is worthy to be
loved. Trust in love, because it makes changes possible. Love changes you and me. It changes people, contexts and relationships. It changes the world. Please love your neighborhood and country.

Jesus Christ said that whatever we do to others we
do to Him. In the Philippines , there is God for people who are abused and abandoned. There is God who is crying for love. If you have a child, teach them how to love the Philippines .. Teach them why they have to love their neighborhood and country. You already know that God also will be very happy if you love others.

That’s all I really want to ask you Filipinos.

…….., BAGA DAW SAN PATAMA INE SA ATO NA MGA PILIPINO,,,, TOTOO KAYA NA AN DAHILAN KAYA DERI KITA NAG-AASENSO DAHIL WARA KITA SIN TUNAY NA PAGKAMOOT O PAGMAKULOG SA SADIRI NATO NA BUNGO?…… Mga tagaBulans, sige tabi maghiriwag na kita niyan nan magkasararo kita tungo sa progreso nan pag-asenso san saato bungto…….

They Need Someone, A Leader – by rudyb

rudyb
April 8, 2008 at 4:35 pm · Edit

to : jun a./atty. benji

before i proceed to compose and write this reply i have some lingering thoughts in my mind if i had to necessarily respond to your write ups as a rejoinder to my observation on the Future of Bulan. but i had to continue anyway as i felt you might have misinterpreted me or did not get my point on my opinion of today’s youth. i have no doubt that the future indeed lies upon the youth of today. you’re right in saying that they are the tangible present entity that connects us in the future. that’s why, every time i open this site i can’t help myself pause for a while and focus on the picture, scrutinize and analyze the faces of the children. first, i am very eager that i might be able to recognize thru their faces, looking for the smallest semblance that i would be able to recognize and guess who their respective parents are – hoping they are the siblings of one my friends or a relative. second, looking at their faces i do recall my early childhood years in our town. flashbacks rushes in my brain – my grade school era, remembering my teachers’ (mrs. del monte, mrs. golpeo, ms. gloriane, mrs. francisco, mr. gojar, mr. zuniga, mr. otilano, etc.) supreme sacrifice in molding our personality. my parents greatest love and guidance (i love you and terribly misses you so much wherever you are…) third, would contemplate what is the future of these children? do we have an emerging leader amongst them? would they succeed given their current environment? what values do they learn? from whom? carefully studying their faces i’m particularly engrossed by the girl in between the one with notebook and with the handkerchief. her face, in my opinion, is so strong, determined and focused. it seems she is challenged by the event (photo session) that someday she’ll be successful and triumphant beating all odds against her. and i agree with her if she will just be guided accordingly and appropriately. but do we have the right leaders today to make it happen?

going back to the PMA training camp, i will completely disagree with you that this is comparable with the Gulag type youth training camp. first, the institution is not totally isolated from the outside world, they are in constant contact with the corrupt military higher ups. second, their instructors are somewhat corrupt already and they’ll just pass on the legacy. third, the trainee/cadets themselves are the very example that i have mentioned – the aspiring police applicant (though some of them may be idealist). so what would you expect? let’s forget this thing, this is not an appropriate proposition.

youth of yesteryears, of the past, of the colonial era is totally very different from today’s youth – because they have the passion, a cause that they are fighting worthy of dying for, so in their veins runs the blood of heroism, the valor, bravery, intrepidness and fearlessness – all the adjectives that would fit and describe their love for our country. Dr. JP Rizal if he is still alive today surely would be very disappointed and a very frustrated person as he expected too much from the youth to be the hope of the fatherland and the movers of the nation – but he is partly to be blamed (pardon me for the word) for the result of his failed idealist aspiration. no matter how genius he is, he lacks the foresight and planning, he fell short of anticipating and preparing for the third, fourth till the execution of the mating move. but we can not blame him totally, he’s no Nostradamus. however, if he had not concentrated on his bla-bla alone and had he just laid down the groundwork and the solid foundation for a well trained, informed, attentive, concerned and responsive youth – presumably there will be less youths that are delinquent, addicted to drugs, joining violent and criminal gangs, suffering from unwanted pregnancies and abortion, or giving up to smoking, drinking, gambling and other vices and in conflict with the law, uncared for, school dropouts, etc…. today.

the consequences of his failure continued to reverberate up to Pres. M. Quezon with his “I would rather see my county run like hell by the Filipinos”, so the hell is with us today – we are the one suffering, again for lack of foresight and planning. i would say that there was a revival of patriotism during our generation – the Martial Law era, i can still recall, this is my third and fourth high school years before the ML was declared, the happy go lucky and who cares attitude of the youth during that time. we’re not fully aware that the left is already slowly creeping up and preparing for a mass recruitment and resistance right in the heart of our very own town. i can still remember when our barkadas were invited by classmates Ka Pepe and the other guy i already forgot his name, for a mountain hiking/trekking in San Ramon (they’re from that place). they showed us the highest and a very strategic point where you can see the dam and all the vehicles going in and out of Bulan leading to the divided hill with a curved road. with a binocular you can identify a civilian from military vehicle. not knowing that these places would be the site of the most bloodiest encounters and ambushcades during the ML days. after the trekking, drinking spree followed and introduction to the leftist propaganda. so many of my 4th year classmates (almost half) joined and almost all of them perished. with today’s rice crisis, again it reminds me of the same crisis during those years, while we are waiting for the rice delivery trucks someone has shouted “yaadi na” and off we ran to the old municipal building to queue up only to find out it was not rice but truckloads of stacked lifeless NPA bodies and there lies one of my classmates – Norma Fruto with a gaping wound in her back. there are lucky “returnees” like Jun del Monte (my childhood playmate), Francis Burgos (a friend) who later became a doctor and others and those who continued, the most prominent of which is the lady from Iraya (forgot her name) who rose from the ranks to became the 3rd most powerful and only woman Politburo member of the CPP. she was later captured somewhere in CAMANAVA area (i think in Malabon). these youths has something in common with the revolutionary youths which is the belief that there’s something worthy fighting and dying for – maybe the love for the country. but today’s youth there’s none, and are only exposed to anomalies, corruption, bribery, dishonesty and so forth.

to go on, the blunder was later on solidified by the Aquino administration, she totally missed all the opportunities to start up with a clean slate governance. maybe not her but again her relatives did it all just like what Marcos did. with Baby Lopa and Mokong or Komong Rodriguez i should say and “baba” Cojuangco around, they plundered the wealth of the country. to top it all they messed up the economy and mismanaged the energy sector that plunged the country into one of our darkest times. so we can not blame Greg and his cohorts (most of whom are bicolanos) if they have launched several coup attempts. but what about if Greg has succeeded in his cause to overthrow her? i would like to believe that probably we would be more stable and progressive as i believe he would implement reforms as a namesake of his group – RAM. correspondingly Estrada did it and Arroyo did it also. that’s why we are all here in this pit right now.

so where do the youth’s role fits in – again same as you guys, i also believe they are our future but they need someone, a leader or a group of leaders who can and will guide them through, help them out and reinforce them with the good moral values, the right attitudes etc., challenge and motivate them to be the good leaders that we idealized them to become someday. the leaders must have the foresight, good planning skills and has to be worthy and respectable role model.

but we are different, so we will fly like the king eagle do.

so i’m through with this and will be just happy to read your respective responses if there will be and i’m sure there will be. habo na ako masurat pa, mapagalon mag-isip saka magsurat baga lalo na kun makurolog na an daliri (sorry forgot the bicol word). no more response from me.

so until then God bless and regards.

The Fight For Progress

To attybenji,

I like your fondness in going backward in time to ground your arguments to the themes that occupy us today as you draw lessons from history and pieces from written literaure. It’s very educational for all of us. We do hope we are reaching more and more tagaBulans-young and old- as we walk with them side by side in their fight for Progress. Again, a fight for progress because this helps us focus on the central themes in Bulan with a positive state of mind, as oppose to the fight for corruption which focuses more on “dirty” politics and politicians and which is a fight that leads us to self-defeat and resignation for we seek the faults more in the ” powerful ” corrupt governmnent officials (“against whom we are helpless anyway…” so our thinking) and corrupt political system that ever since made us believe we are chickens ( by repressing the proud eagle in us). The Fight For Progress brings us back to the ideals of Rizal and reactivates the forgotten proud and noble eagle in us and “BREAK FREE FROM THE SHACKLES THAT BOUND THEIR HEARTS AND MINDS SO THAT THEY MAY SOAR TO THE HEAVENS AND ATTAIN THEIR ASPIRATIONS” according to Rizal as he addressed the Filipino Youth. ” Soar to the heavens…” it means no other but the eagle in us.

The fight for progress doesn’t count out the fight against graft and corruption, it is a part of it but we avoid as much as possible using this terminlogy for reasons cited above and in other writings. We will continue with our objective as stated in About Bulan Observer. I believe however that the word progress must be given more attention today because it develops and maximizes our remaining personal resources (self-reliance). In short it is built upon our strength, not on our weakness, and makes bigger our chance of winning. This reminds me of the small group of warriors – the Greek Spartans under King Leonidas who had achieved the seemimgly impossible task relative to their being small in number. I think it was that they focused on their strength that they were able to reach their objective. Otherwise they would had ended up as chickens had they gone to the front with the fear of losing.

We don’t want to send our young tagaBulans to the front with the fear of losing but with a big prospect of winning. And take note that no sporadic government feeding program can ever strengthen our young tagaBulans. What they need is positive motivation so that they will never give up their fight for progress and would value again the meaning of labor.They become indolent when they are alienated from their own selves, from their inner eagles and when there is no greater frame that holds them together. With this frame I mean a strong society with which they can identify themselves- again, like a son to his father. This is the main damage that is overlooked when we talk about the havoc of corruption, i.e. that corrupt older generation practically kills their young ones by leaving them a broken society that cannot hold them together. Here the young ones cannot win but only lose. It’s not primarily the lost kaban ng bayan stolen by the adults that renders the youth hopeless and lifeless but it is the archetypal hero that is stolen from them that brings the greatest damage to the youth. A young one, no matters how it claims to already know everything, is still inwardly dependent to its parents. A sensitive mother and father know this and continue with their genuine, selfless love and acceptance for their young inspite of the hardships. It is therefore a crime against the youth for a politician to call on his or her young constituents as “mga padaba ko” after degrading the town with bad practices.

In my article The New Filipino I attempted to sketch my ideas of social change. There I must have made some flaws in arguments. But my main idea there is the bottom-up approach in bringing about a qualitative change in our society which begins with the individual, the family, the barangay,the municipal till the national level. As you can see, there are no shortcuts to this method.That’s why I have given up thinking about the national politics but started focusing on the place where we come from. Here we can only win if we begin to motivate our fellow tagaBulans. There are many practical problems that we cannot solve in Bulan like poverty, brain-drain. etc. But I truly believe that we are on the right track and all our efforts would someday bear its first fruits-the coming of proud and motivated young tagaBulans who would love to work together for a progressive town. A progressive town in turn holds its children together and keep them in place. Young people would no longer hate their town and leave but would love to stay there. Bulan has since long been losing great brains that would have been avoided had the town been progressive before. But lost ist lost. The task now is to prevent this from happening again. This is the challenge to the young leaders of Bulan who would someday be town officials themselves.

This requires only a little bit more time and patience. Shortcuts like the Gulag-camps, PMA’s, murdering all corrupt officials, etc. in fighting corruption and producing a better society will never function. It happened in some societies even in our time but extreme methods will only produce extreme results, extreme results again producing extreme methods till the point that you will be the victim yourself of the method you initiated. That’s not our fight for progress. We don’t want to be victims ourselves.

Someone would accuse us now of oral-diarrheria, which means that it’s nothing but bla-bla. Here he is missing the point. Rizal himself was a fine medical doctor. But it was his “bla-bla” (his writings) that moved the whole nation in his time. Until today we are still being moved by him, a long time already since he had given up his medical practice! Excuse me Dr. Jose Rizal for talking like this. For me you are still the master eagle and it was your pen, not your science of the eye, that has opened my eyes and made me see the illness of our society and the eagle that’s within me.

Thanks once again for your wrtings mr. attybenji and mr. rudyb. To attybenji, I have opened up a column for both of you to write your articles that are aligned with the objectives of Bulan Observer. I’m looking forward for more contributions to come from many tagaBulans for Bulan Observer actually belongs to them.

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

MAY PAG-ASA ANG BULAN – by attybenji

April 7, 2008 at 12:59 pm · Edit

mr. rudyb:

good day!

You’re a great man! Your insights and suggestions in the article “future of bulan” are provocative and informative too. Though, it is a bit radical, but it is also comical on the other hand…. But, seriously speaking, I would say that your proposition, or suggestion is the most viable and effective way of eradicating corruption as well as the remnants of corruption, or the tyranny of corruption in the government service.

The rigid and rigorous training and briefing and/or debriefing must begin right now within the privileged few (youth) – and to train only the chosen “idealist” and the “patriotic” trainees, the genes and blood samples must be exacted and thoroughly examined to see to it that they are not descendants by consanguinity or affinity of corrupt leaders of the past, neither contaminated by poisonous blood of some of the unpunished and unprosecuted corrupt officials of the past regime as well.

In your observations, you suggested the following …xxx.“probably the most radical thing to do is to set up Gulag type youth training camps – with identified selected idealist and patriotic “trainees”, isolate them from the rest of the world and bombard them with daily dose of anti corruption semantics.” xxx

…xxx….”another remedy is to zero base everything – identify all corrupt politicians, public servants, etc. root them out from their current positions, prosecute and execute and start with a clean slate replenishing program so nobody would be a model of corruption. again this is not the most practical solution as the “civil” western societies will gang up on us for human rights violation”…xxx.

Anyway, nevermind what the western societies would say, as long as your motive is not tainted with bad faith and anger, and the intention is noble in getting rid of the government of its rascals and crocodiles…… there is nothing wrong in annihilating all of them… para deri na pag-irugan san mga masunod pa na mga lider, deri mao tabi?

Actually, tama ka na hindi rin ito ang practical na solution para mai-eradicate ang ganitong katiwalian sa gobierno…. .at kung hindi nga lang kasalanan sa diyos, after executing the corrupt officials of the land; annihilate their families and descendants too who have the propensity to seek public office in the near future, so that nobody would emulate them”…..Though, the bishops and priests may get mad at you, but that is only temporary… the issue will just die down kapag tumatagal na ang usapin ….. I remember during the time of Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, who was executed during a popular revolt in 1989. His wife, Elena, and children were also executed sans judicial proceedings….by the angry mob…. so that their blood would not contaminate or resurrect in the bloodlines of the future leaders of the country…….nakakahawa daw kasi ang corruption..…

Joke Time muna para hindi mapagod ang mata sa pagbasa: Ano ang pagkakaiba ng snatcher sa isang politico? Ang snatcher pagkatapos magnakaw tsaka tumatakbo. Ang politico tumatakbo muna tsaka nagnanakaw. Eh ano naman ang tawag sa magnanakaw sa quiapo/baclaran at magnanakaw sa congreso/senado. Ang magnanakaw sa quiapo ay isang Criminal, ang magnanakaw sa congreso/senado ay tinatawag na Honorable.

Going back to the Gulag type training camp, for future leaders, which you suggested -sometime, or even most of the time, the rigid training and debriefing of the trainees would not serve its purpose. …. consider the PMA in Baguio (similar to gulag-type training camp) as training ground for future military generals and admirals or even future leaders of the country….. the PMA mission is as follows:
“To instruct, train and develop the cadets so that each graduate shall possess the character, the broad and basic military skills and essential to the successful pursuit of a progressive military career as a values-centered leader in the selfless services to the AFP and the nation.”
“Today, the Academy strives to epitomize the finest traditions of the service. It bears the standards of character founded on honor and fortified by discipline. It is a school, which has trained men for a hundred years in the defense of the state and furtherance of peace and order. It has a proud heritage to cherish, a glorious tradition to uphold, a noble standard to maintain, and a vital mission to accomplish.”
……And, the PMA motto is as follows: COURAGE, INTEGRITY, AND LOYALTY.
Despite the rigorous and rigid physical and mental training of the the cadets or cadettes in the academy, after their graduations, they easily put into oblivion the motto and mission of the academy…. meron bang colonels, commodores, admirals, or generals an galing sa acamedy na naghirap o mahirap after they retired from the service? WALA…… lahat sila ang yayaman po…..dahil kapag hindi ka yumaman o nagpakayaman, ikaw na yata ang pinakabubo o istupido na heneral sa buong republika…. Eh magkano lang ba ang sahod ng isang admiral o heneral? This is no offense to anybody, who has relatives in the AFP/PNP. ……..where is now the INTEGRITY or LOYALTY being the motto of the academy? Batu-bato sa langit…..

The PMA may be compared to that of the “gulag” training camp, where the cadets or cadettres are being endoctrinized, tortured (physicallly or mentally) and taught to be faithful/loyal to the republic, and the constitution as well…. Pero bakit kapag heneral or admiral na sila, biglang yumayaman……hesusmaria y husep….

Would you agree that sometimes its no longer the degree of education of a person or public official that counts in resisting corruption, educated or uneducated, degree holder or drop-outs (MA, PhD, DD, LLD, LLB, MD etc.), are all prone to commit the crime of corruption and to be corrupted?…..no doubt we have the so called “hoodlums in robes”, referring to judges and justices whose decision or resolution is for sale to the highest bidder, hindi naman lahat….

…..now, Going back to the youth as prime mover of the country and catalyst of change…..perhaps, if Dr. JOSE RIZAL is alive today, he would probably be the most frustrated and disappointed person today as he expected too much from the youth to be the hope of the fatherland and the movers of the nation.

Jose Rizal’s famous message for the youth was about the youth being the fair hope of the nation. What he exactly said was that the youth was “bella esperanza de la Patria mia”.

RIZAL DEFINED THE YOUTH: >>> as hope of tomorrow (the future of bulan maybe)
Under Spain, Filipinos did not have freedom and security for their lives and properties. They were forced to submit themselves and the fruits of their labor to the flag of Spain, the colonial government, and the Roman Catholic Church.

Those who fought for their rights could be stripped of their belongings, arrested, tortured, exiled or executed. The government taxed them heavily, and the friars tazed them more. They were also obliged to render labor without pay in building roads, highways, bridges, government buildings, church edifices, galleons and other public works.

Rizal saw the miseries of his people. He himself suffered cruelty one night when a Spanish lieutenant attacked him because he failed to give him the mandatory salute. Rizal did not see him because it was very dark. Despite the wound that he got, he was still imprisoned. Only 17, he appealed to the governor-general, but the highest official in the land only brushed him aside.

Rizal wanted an end to the oppression of his people. He would like to get the help of senior Filipino citizens but could not do so because most of them were subservient to the government and the church. He saw that they would rather spend lavishly on fiestas that afterward impoverished them, and cast their fortunes into Masses and religious items like rosaries, scapulars, and statues.

Seeing that the elder generations of his time were hopeless against tyranny and were submissive to the colonizers, Rizal turned to his fellow youth.
Rizal was 25 when he published the Noli Me Tangere, a novel that asked for extreme repairs of and cures for the cancerous colonial society of his countrymen.

He was 30 when he published El Filibusterismo, his second novel that urged the Filipinos to face a tragic revolution to finally end their sufferings.
Andres Bonifacio was 28 when he founded the Katipunan. Emilio Jacinto was only 20 when he was made the Katipunan’s secretary-general and one of Bonifacio’s right-hand men.

Emilio Aguinaldo was 26 when he became a revolutionary general and 28 when he was elected the country’s first president in 1897. He was 29 when he declared Philippine independence from Spanish rule on June 12, 1898. He was almost 30 when he began defending that independence and that infant republic against the Americans during the Filipino-American War.

Rizal was in his early twenties when he gave his countrymen the sense of nationhood and independence. Bonifacio was in his twenties too when he envisioned a revolution. Aguinaldo was also in his twenties when he led the establishment of the Philippine Republic.

Because of the youthful Rizal, Bonifacio and Aguinaldo, the Filipino people were able to acquire their independence, republic, national flag, and national anthem — their nationhood.
Bonifacio’s fellow Katipuneros were also at the peak of their youth when they launched a bloody uprising against Spain in August 1896. They and other Filipinos who fought during the Filipino-American War were young and dedicated as well.

Mamerto Natividad and Flaviano Yengko were the youngest Filipino generals to perish on the battlefields while fighting the Spaniards, dying at 26 and 22 respectively.

Gregorio Del Pilar was 22 years old when an American bullet struck him in the face. He was the youngest Filipino general to die during the Filipino-American War.

The youth of Rizal’s time was the first generation of patriotic and idealistic Filipino youth. They were the pioneer young generation that offered their talents, strength and lives for the motherland.

Rizal’s call on the youth to become the fair hope of the motherland is still applicable today. Millions of today’s young people have the ability to build better generations, better future and better civilizations…

>>>> BUT, WHAT IF THE YOUTH OF TODAY TURN OUT TO BE THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT JOSE RIZAL HAD ENVISIONED for AND DREAMT of, like for instance, the youth become delinquent, addicted to drugs, join violent and criminal gangs, suffer from unwanted pregnancies and abortion, or give in to smoking, drinking, gambling and other vices and in conflict with the law, uncared for, refused to go to school, etc…. In that case, I would say that the youth is now …… the hopeless of tomorrow…

>>> IN THE LIGHTER SIDE of the comment, kindly allow me people to tell you a short anecdote between a “father and the son”….. plus the short story of the “golden eagle” vis a vis the moral lesson of said stories…… in particular the message to the youth…… as hope of tomorrow………….. the future of the country lies in their hands. HERE THEY ARE, as follows:

Story of: “A BLIND FATHER & A SON”
(Anonymous)

One day a son wanted to test the acumen of his blind father, a wise man.

Knowing fully well that his father could not see, the son challenged his father to a guessing game. A son queried: “Father, I know you are a wise man in the entire village but let me test your intelligence. Please tell me whether the sparrow bird in my hand is DEAD or ALIVE.”

The father did not reply outright to the question propounded by his son. After few seconds had passed, he uttered: “My son, if I will say that the bird is alive, you will hold it hard and the bird will die, In that case, you win and I loss. Now, if on the other hand, I will say that the bird is dead, you will now let the bird to fly high alive. Again, I am a loser and you are still the winner.”

“My son, the answer to your query as to whether the bird is dead or alive, lies in your hand.”

Moral Lesson…Totoong nakasalalay ang kinabukasan ng bayang ito sa kamay ng mga susunod na henerasyon ka kung tawagin ay “Kabataan”. Dahil ang mga kasalukuyang nanunungkulan ay mga palaos na, at ang sisibol na mga bagong pinuno ng ating bayan ay manggagaling sa hanay ng mga kabataan… of which Jose Rizal alluded to as the “HOPE OF THE FATHER LAND”…

Story of: “THE GOLDEN EAGLE”
(Song of the Bird) by Anthony de Melo, SJ)

A man found an eagle’s egg and put it in the nest of a backyard chicken hen. The Eaglet hatched with the brood of chicks and grew up with them.

All his life the eagle did what the backyard chickens did, thinking he was a backyard chicken. He scratched the earth worms and insects. He clucked and cackled. And he would trash his wings and fly a few feet into the air like the chickens, After all, that is how the chicken is supposed to fly, isn’t it?

Years passed and the eagle grew very old (uugud-ugod na). One day he saw a magnificent bird far above him in the cloudless sky. It floated in graceful majesty among the powerful wind currents, with scarcely a beat of its strong golden wings.

The old eagle looked up in awe. “Who is that?” he said to his neighbor chicken.

“Ah that’s the Eagle, the King of the birds,” said his neighbor. “But don’t give it another thought. You and I are different from him.”

Then, the old eagle never gave it another thought. He died thinking he was a backyard chicken.”

xxx This short story is a challenge …… the youth who would not dare the challenge to aspire for something can be likened to an old eagle. Others would just succumb to the trials and tribulations. Others are afraid to fail so they didn’t give a try….Robert Kennedy once said “Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever hope to achieve greatly”. Likewise, Bill Clinton said that “there is no guarantee of success, but not to try is to guarantee failure”.

After all, everyone has a potential to be great in his own right…… as future leader of the country, particularly an mga kabataan sa Bulan…

Otherwise, like the above story, we would all die thinking we are a backyard chicken…. Instead of flying high like a golden eagle…

MAY PAG-ASA ANG BAYAN (BULAN)…. Ito ang ating bayang sinilangan…

Mabuhay ka rudyb and mr. jun a….. god bless you and your family always….

A Message To The Youth Of Bulan – by attybenji

(I’m posting here a very informative comment by mr. attybenji. This is an article in itself so I place this to the front for everybody to see and read. jun asuncion )

April 5, 2008 at 5:28 pm ·

To: Mr. Jun A:

…Good day and my warmest greetings!

Definitely-Maybe, the term “corruption” has been abused, corrupted and over-used word already in the country today, (sa tv, radio, newspaper, forum, debate, talk show, etc.) referring to malfeasance, nonfeasance and misfeasance in office and stealing government funds while in office. Nonetheless, we cannot avoid citing or talking about the term corruption as always, because every time we talk about good governance and public service in government as this country is being run like hell by unscrupulous public officers/politicians with insatiable greed for money and power….as if corruption is already part and parcel of the public service… Sadly, corruption has been with us since time immemorial. As a matter of fact, “It only took 30 pieces of silver for Judas to betray and sell our Lord Jesus Christ”… Thus, we cannot distance ourselves from discussing corruption in conjunction with good governance, public service and election as well. Because, each time, we see a government project, we always have the impression that no doubt a certain official or officials must have profited from it… sigurado ako dyan at ipapaputol ko ang daliri ko kapag walang komisyun o kickback dyan si meyor, si congressman, si gobernor, si district engineer, including the contractor and his sub-contractor, he-he-he-he. And, we are not born yesterday, ika nga…S.O.P baga ine!

Maybe, I was interpreting you literally on this subject, but it does not matter…

Truly, the word corruption implies negative thing simply because it is contrary to public policy, good customs, honesty and good values…
…that instead of talking about corruption as negative, we must talk about progress being a positive thing… You are correct…. It’s just a matter of interpretation and connotation of a given word or term…

consider this….Another word that implies negative thing is the term “politics” per se, now a days, politics has a distorted or twisted meaning conceptualized by politicians themselves to defend their positions and/or contradict the accusation made by the people in the opposition… i.e., ‘pinupulitika ka lang niyan”, “namumupulitika lang ang mga yan”, “pulitika lang yan”, “malayo pa ang election namumulitika na”. These phrases connote negative thing. But, what is politics anyway? Politics, in political science lingo, “is the art of good government”… if politics is the art of good government, why is it that the word politics has been commonly equated with graft & corruption or character assassination and other black propaganda. In that case, people cannot be wrong in trying to equate politics with that of graft & corruption…after all, most, if not all, of the politicians, particularly those who, are in power, have been corrupted already, contrary to the constitutional injunction re, full accountability of public officers which reads that “Public service is a public trust. Public officers and employees must at all times be accountable to the people, serve them with utmost responsibility, integrity, loyalty, and efficiency, act with patriotism and justice, and lead a modest lives”… (modest lives??? Sino??? eh si meyor, si congressman, o si governor…. habitual gambler at biglang yumaman ng maupo sa pwesto sabi nila)… based on the above mentioned criteria, mukhang bagsak yata lahat ang mga public officers natin saan mang lupalop ng pilipinas)

Perhaps, right now, right then and right here, a change must begin from the youth of today as future leader of the country… Bulan, in particular, is now looking for the principled leader whose integrity cannot be compromised in exchange of financial advantage, political affiliation and other monetary consideration…. We are looking for the real “mr. clean” in public service, who will become future leader of bulan, the incorruptible with progressive mind, so that we can translate the word politics at least into positive and progressive thing in public service.

The FUTURE OF BULAN LIES UPON THE YOUTH…..

By the way, a point of clarification… Senator Nene Aquilino Pimentel Jr. did not actually move for the total abolition of the SK, as a training ground for youth leaders and a means of getting the youth involved in community development.

Pimentel, however, said an alternative mechanism should be created to ensure continued youth representation in local government units (LGUs), or, replace the existing SK with some other mechanism,”.

With or without SK as an organization, I would believe that there is always a Future of Bulan (…& goes with the saying that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel)…after all, there is no law against hope and hoping. Thus, the hope of our town lies upon the hands of the youth of tomorrow who will become future leader, who is beholden to anyone, except to his/her oath of office, with no personal and vested interest being insulated from any form of political patronage or partisan or political party’s affiliation and so on and so forth.

We call upon the Youth of Bulan to be a catalyst of change and beneficiary of progress…but, that time is yet to come….. in the near future…..The youth must be progressive not regressive, move forward not backward, pro-active not inactive, more so the youth must be a dreamer, reactionary and visionary of tomorrow.

Talking about SK matter, I would recall that since the establishment of the SK many years ago, I cannot find a project undertaken by the SK for the advancement, upliftment and betterment of the youth in the countryside (social, religious, economics program, etc.) despite the gargantuan yearly appropriation of funds made by law for each and every barangay, except for the commonly visible projects such as barangay kiosks made of bamboo and anahaw (This kiosk is project of SK)

In fact, the establishment of the kiosk would invite the youth to become lazy and indolent all the time, eh ginagawang tambayan lang ng mga kabataan all day and all night long for no reasons at all….

Adding to the problem of the youth is the insurgency in the rural areas, they are afraid to till the soil or plow the field and plant kamote or kamoteng kahoy to support their daily sustenance because they are afraid to be caught in the cross fire between the insurgents and the military men. Because of this circumstance they become idle, indolent and lazy all through out, not to mention also the lack of moral support and encouragement of the parents, due to economic hardships and scarcity in life to support the education of the children until college…
….”anak hirap ang buhay natin, pwede ba pagkatapos mo ng high school magtrabaho ka na lang bilang katulong or housemaid, para makatulong ka naman sa mga nakababatang mong kapatid at para makaahon-ahon tayo sa kahirapan”…. This is a sign of surrender on the part of the parents to support the education of the children to become productive citizens of the country.

Children who did not finish college due to extreme poverty are always susceptible to becoming unemployed in the year or years ahead. And, unemployment will make the youth vulnerable to, and at the risk of committing crimes due to lack of opportunities of employment, as the saying goes, “a hungry stomach knows no law”, then if stealing is the only way to survive, committing a crime would justify the means in order to feed the hungry stomach…

Relative to your Article (as response to my comment) the “FUTURE OF BULAN”…. and may be as a challenge to the youth of Bulan, as future leader/s of the country, (local or national level) allow me to quote and reproduce hereunder salient portions of the message delivered by Filipino Ambassador to Spain, Isabel Wilson during the 1998 WYD in Portugal, alluding to the youth as the catalyst of change and beneficiary of progress… Here they are:

“TODAY’S YOUNG PEOPLE WILL BE TOMORROW’S LEADERS OF A WORLD WHICH IS IN CONSTANT FLUX. THEY ARE AT THE THRESHOLD OF THE 21ST CENTURY AND THEIR FUTURE WILL DEPEND ON HOW THEY HANDLE NEW CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES.

TECHNOLOGICAL BREAKTHROUGHS HAVE ENABLED THE YOUTH TO GAIN ACCESS TO UNLIMITED INFORMATION. STATE-OF-THE ART COMMUNICATIONS BRINGING INFORMATION TO THE MOST FAR-FLUNG AREAS HAVE MADE IT POSSIBLE FOR THE YOUNG TO BE OUTSPOKEN AND MORE AWARE OF THEIR RIGHTS UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW.

WHILE MODERN SOCIETY HAS MANY ADVANTAGES, THERE ARE CERTAIN GRIM REALITIES WHICH MUST BE FACED. TODAY’S FAST-PACED, FREEWHEELING LIFESTYLES HAVE SPAWNED THE GROWING MENACE OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE, AIDS, AND UNWANTED PREGNANCIES EVEN AMONG THE VERY YOUNG. THE SPECTER OF POVERTY, AS WELL AS UNEMPLOYMENT AND ILLITERACY, LOOMS OVER THE YOUTH, ESPECIALLY IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES. WHEN WE CONSIDER THAN IN 1995 , THE TOTAL WORLD YOUTH POPULATION WAS ESTIMATED AT 1.03 BILLION, POSITIVE ACTION TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF OUR YOUTH IS URGENT YESTERDAY, TODAY, AND TOMORROW.

THE PHILIPPINES HAS ALWAYS PLACED PARAMOUNT IMPORTANCE ON THE SIGNIFICANT ROLE OF THE YOUTH IN NATION BUILDING. IN 1870, OUR NATIONAL HERO JOSE RIZAL, IN HIS MESSAGE “TO THE FILIPINO YOUTH”, CALLED THE YOUTH “THE HOPE OF THE FATHERLAND” AND EXHORTED THEM TO BREAK FREE FROM THE SHACKLES THAT BOUND THEIR HEARTS AND MINDS SO THAT THEY MAY SOAR TO THE HEAVENS AND ATTAIN THEIR ASPIRATIONS. GREGORIA DE JESUS, HERSELF A GREAT WOMAN AND THE WIFE OF ANOTHER PHILIPPINE HERO, ANDRES BONIFACIO, ALSO RECOGNIZED THE ROLE OF THE YOUTH IN SOCIETY AND THROUGH HER DECALOGUE TO THE FILIPINO YOUTH, REMINDED THE YOUTH OF THE 1800s OF THE FILIPINO VALUES THAT PROPELLED THE NATION TO INDEPENDENCE AND PRESERVED ITS TIME-HONORED TRADITIONS AS A DISTINCT RACE.

A HUNDRED YEARS LATER, FILIPINOS CONTINUE TO PUT GREAT FAITH AND CONFIDENCE IN ITS YOUTH. THE 1987 CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES CLEARLY STATES THE COUNTRY’S YOUTH POLICY IN ARTICLE II, SECTION 13: “THE STATE RECOGNIZES THE VITAL ROLE OF THE YOUTH IN NATION-BUILDING AND SHALL PROMOTE AND PROTECT THEIR PHYSICAL, MORAL, SPIRITUAL, INTELLECTUAL AND SOCIAL WELL-BEING. IT SHALL INCULCATE IN THE YOUTH PATRIOTISM AND NATIONALISM AND ENCOURAGE THEIR INVOLVEMENT IN PUBLIC AND CIVIC AFFAIRS.”

THE NATIONAL YOUTH COMMISSION (NYC) WAS CREATED THROUGH RA 8044 TO SERVE AS A POLICYMAKING AND COORDINATING BODY OF ALL YOUTH PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS OF THE GOVERNMENT. BEYOND MERE COORDINATION, THE COMMISSION IS ALSO INVOLVED IN THE POLITICAL, SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT OF YOUTH. THE NYC HAS ENSURED COMMITMENT AND YOUTH PARTICIPATION IN LOCAL AND INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES ON GLOBAL YOUTH CONCERNS. THUS, FILIPINO YOUTH ADVOCACY GROUPS WORK TIRELESSLY TO CREATE A BETTER AND GENTLE WORLD.
THE NYC HAS ALSO FORMULATED A MEDIUM-TERM YOUTH DEVELOPMENT PLAN (MTYDP) FROM 1999 TO 2004, WHICH WAS APPROVED IN MARCH THIS YEAR. IT CONTAINS THE COUNTRY’S VISION FOR “A GENERATION OF MORE ENLIGHTENED AND EMPOWERED FILIPINO YOUTH WHO ARE VALUE-DRIVEN, ACTIVE AS WELL AS INNOVATIVE, WITH A STRENGTHENED BELIEF IN A SUPREME BEING AND IMBUED WITH PATRIOTISM YET OPEN TO GLOBAL COMPETITION AND COOPERATION.” THE PLAN ALSO IDENTIFIES THE GENERAL CONCERNS THAT CHARACTERIZE THE FILIPINO YOUTH’S ENVIRONMENT AND MAPS OUT STRATEGIES TO ADDRESS THESE CONCERNS.
VARIOUS INITIATIVES INVOLVE THE YOUTH IN ACTIVITIES OF GOVERNMENT AND BUSINESS TO MOULD THEM INTO MATURE AND WELL-ROUNDED INDIVIDUALS. THE CREATION OF A YOUTH COUNCIL CALLED THE SANGGUNIANG KABATAAN (SK) FOR YOUNG PEOPLE FROM 15 TO 21 YEARS PROVIDES THEM WITH OPPORTUNITIES TO PARTICIPATE MORE ACTIVELY IN AFFAIRS INVOLVING ALL LEVELS OF GOVERNANCE, FROM THE GRASSROOTS TO THE NATIONAL LEVEL. THE NATIONAL YOUTH PARLIAMENT WHICH IS HELD EVERY TWO YEARS PROVIDES YOUNG FILIPINOS WITH A FORUM WHERE THEY CAN VOICE THEIR NEEDS AND PROBLEMS IN THE FORM OF RESOLUTIONS WHICH ARE THEN PRESENTED TO CONGRESS.

THE YOUTH ENTREPRENEURSHIP PROGRAM EXPOSES YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN TO EXPERIENCES WHICH WILL HELP HONE THEIR SKILLS IN BUSINESS.
VULNERABILITY TO UNDESIREABLE ACTIVITIES IS CAUSED BY A LACK OF MATERIAL AND FINANCIAL MEANS TO DO OTHERWISE. THE SUPPORT AND GUIDANCE OF THE FAMILY IS CRUCIAL FROM CHILDHOOD TO ADULTHOOD. STUDIES INDICATE THAT YOUNG PEOPLE TEND TO LOOK AT THEIR PARENTS AS ROLE MODELS, WITH THEIR MOTHERS PLAYING A MORE CRITICAL ROLE. IN THIS REGARD, GOVERNMENTS NEED TO STRENGTHEN SUPPORT FOR THE FAMILY., IN ADDITION, STRONG EMPHASIS MUST BE GIVEN ON SOUND SOCIAL VALUES NOT ONLY IN THE HOME BUT ALSO IN THE SCHOOLS.

WE MUST ACCEPT OUR RESPONSIBILITIES NOT ONLY AS PARENTS AND ROLE MODELS BUT ALSO AS A MATURE AND RESPONSIBLE GENERATION CONCERNED WITH THE DEVELOPMENT AND WELL-BEING OF OUR YOUNG. WE CANNOT ALLOW FUTURE GENERATIONS TO FACE THE FUTURE WITHOUT A SOLID FOUNDATION BASED ON SOUND VALUES, LOVE AND PEACE. LAWS TO ENSURE EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR ALL OUR CHILDREN MUST BE IN PLACE AND IMPLEMENTED WITH URGENCY SO THAT THE YOUTH OF TODAY CAN FACE UP TO THE CHALLENGES OF THE NEXT MILLENNIUM.”.

Mabuhay ka Mr. Jun A…. god bless..

The Future Of Bulan

(This is my reponse to attybenji’s comment on Stop it now- or the strength of the Barangay)

Thanks for your comment and for your updating me about the SK. With you Bulan has found another spokesman in its fight for progress. You know I’m beginning to dislike the word corruption for it seems to me that it has been overused and “corrupted” already and so seems to be losing its semantic power. People have been desensitized already to it that it seems they don’t react to it anymore. The whole world is using this term and since there are countless cultures and mentalities throughout the world, each with different history, religious beliefs and stage of development, the word itself cannot claim to have a universal meaning, for in practice, what is considered already as a form of corruption in one country is viewed maybe in another country as a form of virtue. Corruption is defined in many ways : philosophical, legal, moral, political, etc. Theoretical definitions have in general one thing in common, i.e., a negative one. But it is in different cultural settings where the word loses it’s theoretical significance and gives way to local practices. Corruption is consciously or unconsciously linked with the moral concept of right and wrong, or of what is allowed or not allowed as in law. However, we know for instance that in one city or province, what is right or wrong, what is allowed or not allowed, may differ practically from another city or province even if the said cities or provinces belong to the same country. Even in Europe, things vary from country to country, or even from city to city within the same country. Federalism contributes also to plurality of legal definitions. And hyper-democratism has paved the way to cultural and moral relativism.

So let’s talk about the fight for progress. In this way we keep our positive mindset intact and maybe we can count more on the participation of many tagaBulans. The word progress is commonly understood as positive. You and me understand one thing when we hear for instance description like progressive person or town. Forget the philosophers, for if they would want it, they could transform this word into a negative one. What is important is that in practice, we all agree that is positive and that is universal in meaning. Check out all the dictionaries that you know and you’ll find no negative association to it. I like the simple definition of it as ” to advance, to move forward, to gain”. Even Physics I think would define it something like ” a motion in space from point a to point b”, in biology it means “growth”. When a school child progresses, this is big news for the parents, a reason to celebrate! In human societies, progress means therefore positive development, an event that is in accordance with the universal human instinct of improving the quality of life by acting upon the given physical world and the society to where he belongs so that his needs for food, shelter, participation and protection are satisfied.

The lack of food, shelter, participation and protection is still a problem today, not only to the first homosapiens that inhabited the earth. This is a problem in our modern-day Bulan. For though technologies have advanced since human discovered how to produce fire to our modern internet technology, there are still tagaBulans who have nothing to eat and no protection, no shelter and no chance to participate ( to work or get employed). For many of our kabungtos these needs are not being satisfied. This is the reason why we turn back to the institution that is established to address to these needs- the government. The government is primarily there to work on how to improve the quality of life of its constituents, this is a social contract that we do during elections with the government that we elect. We entrust them the power to manage the resources for them to offer and coordinate solutions to the problems of the people. For a mayor therefore to run away with the kaban ng bayan ( public treasury) is a disgrace.

I understand that all our efforts that we exert now is focused on preventing the kaban ng bayan to be stolen again by a thief so that this could be used to the last cent for the progress of Bulan. Would you consider the children to be happy when the father would come home with no more left for them by spending his money in a drinking-spree with barkadas (friends) after work, or a mother who spends the money for her beauty kits? Many tagaBulans are unhappy. Many kabataans (youth) are without life perspective .

Every tagaBulan should participate in bringing the town forward and do what is right. That’s the reason why I do not agree with Pimentel’s reasoning why he is for the abolishment of the SK. Do you still remember the saying “like father, like son”? To abolish the son, we should rather first aboilish the father. To put an end to SK due to “fund irregularities” is to suggest that we put an end to all, if not many, municipal and city governments throughout the entire country, including the national government itself. For where in our country can you not find “fund irregularities”? Wherever transparency in politics is regularly avoided, common sense would make us assume about fund irregularites- as the case maybe in Bulan. And to say ” due to the absence of serious efforts to prevent (…fund irregularities ) ” is already to accept for these “father” public officials that they are not serious enough and have failed themselves. For how can they blame the young ones when by being crook themselves they cannot train their sons and daughters anymore, or teach them what is wrong and what is right for they themselves do not know the distinctions of these simple categories anymore. To distrust the youth is to distrust the future. This is not in accordance with the concept of progress that we have talked about. To forget the youth is to forget tomorrow and to have no more faith in human society. I say it again that the survival of society depends on the visions of the youth and naturally on the good things they have learned from their elders. The survival of Bulan depends on the youth of Bulan of today. Remove the youth of today and you’ll have an empty place once called Bulan in a few years. Don’t train the youth of today, and you will have a government in the future that is the same as today’s government. Do you like to continue with this poverty and ignorance and with this poor quality of governance in Bulan for the next fifty years? I still firmly believe that there is no other way than to train the youth for Bulan to progress, much like a father who trains his young son the trade of farming or fishing so that this son would survive when he is no longer around.

The problem with the SK that Pimentel mentioned is the result of the ineffective political leadership in all levels of governance in our country.We don’t punish the young ones for emulating the bad things we showed to them. We adults should rather behave well. In other words, it is the frame that must be changed, not the picture, for the frame is defective and doesn’t keep the picture solidly and securely in place. I know that to raise our voice against their plan to abolish the SK is almost like blowing in the wind. But since we love Bulan, we must continue with what we tagaBulans consider is right for our survival, and that is in the first place by not giving up our young tagaBulans, but in continuing in one form or another with their training and involvement in Bulan politics- with or without Pimentel.

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

Peace For All

A verse to reflect upon as we observe the season of Lent with families and friends.

2 Chronicles 7:14

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

The same verse in Tagalog-

Kung ang aking bayan na tinatawag sa pamamagitan ng aking pangalan ay magpakumbaba at dumalangin, at hanapin ang aking mukha, at talikuran ang kanilang masamang mga lakad; akin ngang didinggin sa langit, at ipatatawad ko ang kanilang kasalanan, at pagagalingin ko ang kanilang lupain.

The Sound Of Silence

Yes, it would be a good topic –Positive Mindset and Corruption in Politics. Hower, I suggest to do it on another occasion for what interests me now is this deafening sound of silence in barangay Fabrica and Aquino. Well, what has happened to them? A sudden silence after all those noises ? Many would see it as a sign of retreat and defeat. Or are they merely making use of their legal right to silence? Let’s be positive.

In any case, silence is an interesting subject. Silence in between musical notes for instance is what makes music possible. Let’s practise positive mindset and guess that maybe they are just composing a New Symphony of Truth for the Barangay Aquino Symphony Orchestra under their famous First-gentle conductor. If so, then they rightly need such a creative period of silence. To compose an avantgardistic twelve-tone piece colored with rich dissonance and harmonic twists is no easy task, requires hours of concentrated work behind closed doors.
Or it could be that they are just reflecting on a sad event that occurred to them. In this way, we give them enough space and respect while they commemorate something in silence.We need not always to be stern to our own people, especially to our leaders.
TagaBulans are Christians and in Christianity silence like during meditative prayer is a common practice and is said to have a nourishing effect on our spirit, like during those holy retreats that we know where we islolate ouselves and do nothing but pray and confess all our sins and transgressions and vow to ourselves a pious way of living thereafter.So let’s just assume that our dear leaders have chosen this moment of silence as they try to reach the divine in their innermost being in their quest for spiritual enlightenment so they may continue with their Christ-centered leadership and devotion to the poor in Bulan the day when they go back to work again. I ask you then dear town-mates to respect this sound of silence, do not disturb and avoid making unnecessary noise.
It’s indeed very beneficial to have a positive mindset for this help us to interpret things soundly, keeps our paranoia away and prevents us from pathologising little things happening in Bulan. I for one love the silence that surrounds me when I write in late hours. In Bulan I loved those moments of silent full-moon nights when I used to sit outside on a bench or on the wall of PTA Elementary school with the guitar in hand. Of course I can’t help but associate these moments with the great song of the great dou Simon and Garfunkel– the Sound Of Silence– the first stanza of which I now quote:

         “Hello darkness, my old friend,
           I’ve come to talk with you again,
          Because a vision softly creeping,
          Left its seeds while I was sleeping,
        And the vision that was planted in my brain
        Still remains
          Within the sound of silence.”

Very fitting to our theme, isn’t it? I really enjoyed playing and improvising on this song during my high-school years in Bulan. Thirty years had passed and my style of guitar playing has changed a lot since then. But this song has remained the same. Like you, the vision that is planted in my brain still remains- to see a brighter Bulan (within the sound of silence?)

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

Stop It Now! – or the strength of the barangay

The word is derived from balangay, the name for the sailboats that originally brought settlers of Malay stock to the Philippines from Borneo, each boat carrying a large family group, and the datu being the leader. As we know, it is the smallest local government in our country, the grassroots of our political organization, codified under the Local Government Code 1991.

Throughout the country there exist about 42,000 barangays. Bulan alone is composed of 63 barangays. Now what’s the importance of this little statistical data? Well, very big! Following our bottom-up approach in realizing socio-political change in the Philippines (see The New Filipino ), the barangay is our point of departure in bringing about a realistic qualitative change in our politics, particulary Bulan politics. We always seem to ignore the fact that a barangay is a government unit in our country, in our town. It is the oldest political unit, it’s the base that supports and makes possible the municipal government. This is the key to change for each one has an easy access to it, to the punong barangay (barangay captain ) and to the seven barangay Kagawad (barangay councils) in comparison to the Municipal Government whose mayor probably cannot be reached any time. But your barangay captain is accessible almost all the time, in fact, he may be your neighbor. A friendly gestalt who is willing to listen to your concerns as you walk with him by the fields or as you sweep your backyard in the afternoons. You cannot get this kind of intimacy with your mayor for one thing maybe he or she cannot walk around without a handful of bodyguards.

The barangay captain is a man next-door. We must forget for awhile the municipal mayor and concentrate on giving importance to the barangay officers, be ready to offer your help to them anytime. Give recognition to their work , give them your suggestions to the problems of the barangay. You may not realize it but in this setting it is almost direct democracy in action. Think of the small barrio meetings being held from time to time where people can voice out their opinions to matters that concern them and sometimes arriving at a speedy agreement or solution. The barangay should be strengthened nowadays in Bulan if the people want a solid anchor to a government that represents and serves them. If the barangays are united for the good of all, then you have a town that is strong and proud and is able to direct its course.You know, all these problems of corruption and abuses take place only when the government is not rooted in people’s heart and soul and when the people are “broken-hearted” among themselves.

Eleanor Roosevelt rightly remarked “Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent” or as we used to say “It takes two to tango”. When you dance to a music you don’t like, this means you cannot say no. People of Bulan suffer then because they just dance along with the music which is not their music. How about if you would gather your strength and say “Stop it, I want my music now!”?

This is the moment we are all waiting for when all the barangays would come together and would say “Stop it now!“. This would herald a new chapter in Bulan’s history and usher the birth of a new Bulan that shines. Ideally, politicians should start from this grassroots level before they should become councillors or chief executive. But this is a process that requires more time for the people to fully understand and integrate in their political thinking and put into practice. For we have seen that a person that is just placed to the top by virtue of wealth and connections is not the solution to the problems of Bulan but rather an additional burden to the town. The hero should come from below, not from above, from Bulan and not from somewhere else.

We should not forget that it was the vision of the the prime author of this Local Government Code 1991-Senator Pimentel -to establish strong self-reliant barangays all over the country. According to him,the barangay officials are the front-liners of the Philippine Government, with the punong barangay as the “face” of the Philippine Government as far as his constituents are concerned, and that the barangay is the key to national development. Behind this is his concept of decentralization of power with the final aim of establishing a federal form of government for the Philippines. I also think that Federation holds the key to the progress of the whole nation for it activates self-reliance and diminishes dependency to the national government which since ages operates on the system of political patronage which in turn hinders fair and equal distribution of national wealth and fosters corruption.

At this point it is also of crucial importance to maintain the Kabataang Barangay for therein is the seed of future local government that is firmly rooted in the traditions of Bulan. Leaders who identify totally with the people think and act for the people and share respect and common visions with one another. There is trust, and trust is a vehicle for progress. In my case for example, I trust that our Justice Department is in good hands for the incumbent Municipal judge also started with the Kabataang Barangay. The youth begins to perceive and appreciate their own town the moment they involve themselves in the Kabataang Barangay. Here they learn the rudiments of political interaction and begin developing their visions for their town. The survival of culture resides in the visions of the youth. It is of utmost importance then that we have to motivate the Kabataan– the Youth- from all corners of Bulan to participate in political process in order to put an end to the political passivity that lingers in Bulan and hinders progress. The German Literature Nobel laureate Heinrich Böll commented that the wealth of the society can be seen in the contents of their trash cans. I may remark also that the strength of the community is seen in the contents of the heads of the people, the grassroots, i.e., on how opinionated the people are. Go and ask anyone in the market of what they think about their mayor or about Bulan as a whole. The strength of their arguments reflect the strength of Bulan.

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

Response To Timothy- or The Pillar Of Truth

It was the result of my observations that led me to question the role of Roman Catholic Church in nation building, recognizing the fact that Religion and the Church plays a crucial factor in character building of the individual. But why then is a society that is composed of such Roman Catholic -raised and Roman Catholic- educated people is susceptible to moral corruption as expressed in their daily business with one another and most obviously in their political affairs which begins from the national down to the local government officials and extends down the line of traffic policemen. Of course there are still some honest public servants, but they are little exceptions to the rule.The fact is Corruption -and not Religion- has long been accepted as a way of life in the Philippines (and in other Roman Catholic nations as well) since the coming of the Spaniards. Is this but a reflection of the inherited corrupt nature and tradition of the Roman Catholic Church that infiltrated the collective unconscious (C.G.Jung) and psyche of the Filipino (and of other catholic nationalities ) after centuries of Roman Catholic dominion? Take note that here I’m talking about the man-made institution (Government?) of the Roman Catholic Church, and not the Religion of Christianity as founded by Christ himself.

Observing that many other Roman Catholic nations are also very corrupt like the Philippines has led me to conclude that Catholicism has failed to be a tool for building a better society. I do not accuse but merely reflect back the facts observed and the documented records of the Roman Catholic Church herself. Then, what is a supposedly grandiose and forcefully imposed foreign church worth for if it had no function in the society it had willingly conquered? Is it just there to gather the flock every Sunday, collect money from the “Faithful” and send it to the Bishop of Rome? In any case, there is just this missing factor in the Roman Catholic culture and system of education which hinders the individual to transfer positively the Christian teachings he learned in his interaction withthe society, particularly the way that he handles the public office entrusted to him if he is a public servant. Or is the Roman Catholic Church nothing but an edifice of corruption and therefore do not possess the moral authority, hence ineffective, in preaching the pure gospel of Jesus Christ which is characterised mainly by love of God and His Commandments (Thou Shall Not Steal, Though Shall Not Kill…) and love and compassion for fellow men and all creations?

In my studies I came to realize that Christianity was shamelessly corrupted and politicized the day when the Roman Emperor Constantin 1 showed interest in Christianity through the Edict of Milan in 313 which now treated nicely the long time persecuted Christian communities and his calling to life the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD which decreed which books must be or must not be included in the Bible and the adoption of Catholic Christianity as official state Religion of the Roman Empire in 380 by Emperor Theodosius I in Thessalonica. The Edict of Milan which ended the persecution of the early Christians would not testify to the genuine personal appreciation of Constantin of Christianity for he himself remained worshipping the Deus Sol Invictus-the Unconquered Sun God-and continued his working on the falsifications of Christian religious history, allowing himself only be converted to Christianity through Ambrose just moments before his death. It was rather clear from the outset that everything was a politically-motivated move of these emperors who realized the unifying potential of the growing Christian population at a time when the pagan Roman Empire was declining (The crisis of the 3rd Century in the history of the Roman Empire) and from this date on, the corruption of Christ’s teachings started, beginning with the incorporation into it of many pagan practices of ancient Rome, to the horrible abuses of perverse Popes acting in the name of Christ, the series of Roman Catholic Church-led Crusades, notably the 35- year crusade against the Cathars beginning in 1209 that killed thousands of people, the permanent institution of Inquisition in the 12th Century (Malleus Maleficarum- The Hammer Of Witches !) that led to the burning of heretics (people holding a different opinion ) at the stake (remember Savonarola?), persecution of scientists including Galileo, and finally the confiscation of the properties of these accused and/or murdered people. This gruesome burning and crusades lasted for 475 years, the last woman in Europe to be executed on suspicion of witchcraft was Anna Göldi, in Glarus, Switzerland in 1782 who was finally rehabilitated last year by Glarus local authorities.

With this background of brutal corruption and the failure of Roman Catholic educators to recognize this cruel past of the Roman Catholic Church, no sane man could expect that Roman Catholicism is the answer to the quest for Truth (” no matter how the Roman Catholic Church of today presents the “sweetness and light” that Roman Catholic Christianity brought to the world”) and therefore could contribute to Filipino progress, morally and politically. There is danger in denying history. You surely know George Santayana’s warning with respect to this.
The founding of schools and hospitals was no way a sign of progress for the Spaniards who came in 1521 and founded them came not really to introduce the real Christianity but they came to introduce and to represent the corrupted version of Christianity (which actually became a form of government known us Theocracy, with the Pope as the absolute authority ) dating back 325 ( and not the Christianity before this date as taught by Christ himself, his Apostles, the Apostolic Fathers and the ante-Nicene Church fathers i.e.,before the council of Nicaea, who, though defending (Apologia) the Christian faithfrom false doctrine, were still dedicated in transmitting the gospel in its true and pure form, in contrast to the post-Nicene Church Fathers who were now just interested in the writings of Articles of Faith( or better, Constitution Of Faith?) and Theology (the most famous being Augustine), all of which were geared at cementing the power and authority of the pope ( a title of pagan and pre-christian origin itself ) and the church of Rome and its pagan-soaked catholic rituals. One such man-made Article of Faith is the Doctrine of Infallibility which was decreed by the Vatican Council (Vatican Senate ? ) in 1870.
The Spanish Conquestadores who, in 1521, came, saw and conquered the Philippine islands, allegedly to “Spread Christianity”, came in fact to spread Terrorism, for they were no doubt acting in the spirit of Inquisition, echoing the notorious Spanish Inquisition at the end of the 15th century under Ferdinand and Isabel. Thus they came to conquer, to kill and enslave the natives and to sequester the whole of Philippine Archipelago.
Timothy, Progress is not measured in terms of roads, schools, hospitals and bridges built but in the upgrading of the moral and political consciousness of the Filipino people. Were colonisation, oppression, aggression, murders, suppression of truth, slavery, pillage and denials part of the teachings of Christ himself, and were they conducive to socio-economic and moral upgrading of the Filipinos during this entire Spanish occupation which lasted for almost 400 years? Surely not.
Was the public execution by firing squad of the then strongest intellectual critic Dr. Jose Rizal in 1896 not enough to show the intention of the Roman Catholic Church in preventing the Filipinos from developing and, above all, from using their own intellect? I declare once again that the message was clear. During this occupation time, the Spanish civil government and the Roman Catholic Church were one and the same in their intention, though the Catholic friars were much more feared by the Filipinos (Indios, according to them) than the Spanish civil authorities.
The inability of the Catholics to pray a spontaneous original prayer is not the failure of the individual Catholic but a symptom of the authoritative, truth-denying and dogmatic system of teaching of the Roman Catholic Church (only the Catholic clergy, and not a lay Catholic, is allowed to interpret the Bible to prevent “misinterpretation” ) which does not take pleasure in the development of individuality but in the passive submission of the flock, which is understandable in light of the undisputed Roman Catholic history of persecuting heretics, meaning people who use the brain given to them by God and who think in the opposite direction.
The 1 Tim 3:15 was referring to Jesus Christ’s Church as the Pillar Of Truth, not to the Roman Catholic Church that for a long time in its history were presided and represented by indecent people, impostors and murderers, people not worthy an inch of Christianity. If you look back to the old written pages (profile?) of this Church, you cannot help but shudder and admit that it is built neither upon Jesus Christ nor Simon Peter the Rock but that it is built upon the rock of Gotteslästerung-of Blasphemy- itself.
Your statement that “the fact that most of the lawyers, teachers, doctors and nurses (priests, engineers and psychologists as well? ) are Catholic clearly refutes the idea that the (Roman ) Catholic Church prevents developing and using your intellect”.
Well, the mind is the only thing that cannot be caged even if threatened with crucifixion as what the Romans did to Christ in Golgotha or to Simon Peter in Rome, the beheading of Paul (also in Rome) or the immersing of an Apostle named John in boiling oil, or the beheading of that poor Swiss woman Ana Göldi. And besides the Roman Catholic Church has nothing against teachers and nurses as long as they don’t question the foundation of the Roman Catholic Church, its dogmas and canons, the Infallibility of the Bishop of Rome and naturally its gruesome medieval history. This is the truth Timothy that you are tasked to protect- and I hope you’re enjoying it.
Now, to your last statements “we’ve already established that there is no fact, but just a common myth, an urban legend”, and “Hopefully, you are open to the truth which is far different.”
Here, you sounded like those typical Catholic religion teachers who were so dogmatic and not open to the truth which is far different by not allowing us to study the Bible (I haven’t seen one in the classroom) but instead devoted their time in teaching us the Articles of Faith of the Roman Catholic Church authored by Vatican Senate (not by Chirst or Simon Peter), and by not mentioning a word about the history (and secrets) of the Holy Roman Catholic Church. Ignorance of History, or were they victim themselves of such method of instruction? You know you cannot defeat facts with philosophical syllogisms alone, a subject you surely love so much, for you need this tool in speaking in defense of (Apologia) the Holy Roman Catholic Church- and you will have more such occasions that will keep you busy for the rest of your life in view of the Roman Catholic scandals now coming more and more to light. You can continue on arriving at a beautiful logical proposition after inferring from two premises, or throw up Bible verses here and there to make your point. But the fact that Roman Catholic nations are mostly corrupt-like the Philippines or Italy or, for this matter, the Vatican City itself, remains simply a fact, only it is not beautiful. The Truth is simply there to be seen , there is nothing to hide.

In Christ Alone,

jun asuncion

Wanted: World Mayor 2008

Bulan Observer congratulates Lady Mayor Marides Fernando of Marikina City for being chosen one of the 50 Finalists for the World Mayor award 2008 out of the original 820 recommended candidates from all over the world. From these 50 Finalists, the World Mayor project, organized by City Mayors- an international network of professionals working together to promote strong and prosperous cities as well as good local government- will pick up the World Mayor 2008 depending on his or her votes and the voters’ strength of arguments as to why they vote their candidates. Voting is going on on-line. If you want to vote, visit the link to the World Mayor Website on the Blogroll at your right side.

Mayor Marides Fernando is good news for us Taga-Bulans and Filipinos for this proves to us that the plague of corruption that has befallen the entire archipelago, including Bulan, has no chance against an educated, morally upright and noble personality like Marides Fernando. I’ve studied her profile and her achievements ( and that of her husband, the ex-mayor Bayani Fernando ) for Marikina City and found them really exemplary. In this way, I’m proud to see her name on the list beside Elmar Ledergerber, the mayor of Zürich, and all other outstanding mayors from all other citites and continents. A ray of hope for the future mayors of the Philippines? Whereas, during the past World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, I almost shiver seeing our President sharing the stage with Switzerland’s President Pascal Couchepin and other Luminaries of Politics and Economy. Davos is an elevated Swiss alpine city in Canton Graubünden, famous for being a Kurort, a health spa, with it’s clean, fresh air and transparent morning snow. I just hope that our President had learned some lessons about cleanliness and transparency during her visit in this beautiful alpine city.

Naturally, there is no snow in Marikina and the air is not as clean as that of Davos. But have you ever seen the Marikina Glass City Hall? Well, what can be more transparent than a Glass that is clean? I would have preferred and felt good seeing this Lady Mayor Marides Fernando shaking hands with President Pascal Couchepin of Switzerland.

Well, back to Bulan our mayor is still hiding the documents of the CBT project.Very funny, indeed. Compared against Mayor Marides Fernando– well, it’s night and day. We know that the more you hide, the more you will smell bad. For the progress of Bulan and peace of mind for all Taga-Bulans, I advise our mayor to stop now playing Hide and Seek- for we are not little children anymore – but to follow the example of Mayor Marides Fernando, be simple as she is, and lay down the documents on the table for the concerned Bulan tax payers to see. What’s wrong with that? You really do not need a lawyer to teach you what honesty is or the protection of a courtroom to tell the truth and be transparent and besides, should there be flaws on the documents, well , it will not cost you your life. On the contrary, people of Bulan would be proud of you should you step to the front now and tell the truth. As you know, Taga-Bulans are very forgiving people to someone who belongs to them. Let’s work together for the good of our Town. It may not be Marikina, but who knows, someday it might be on the list.

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

The Road To Freedom

(This is my response to Roy Gersalia’s article entitled A Source Of Courage And Inspiration as published in his kaadman site)

You’re right, courage is not an absence of fear, but that by choosing the right thing, man overcomes fear to give place and honor to his own convictions. It is the emotion of fear that tests the real value of a man. Out of fear either man chooses to hide or step to the front. Rizal is a better example for us Filipinos. He told the truth, was denounced by some, was executed by the Filipinos- upon order of the Spaniards. He did what was right. Rizal died, but not in vain, for until this day his message is very much alive: Step to the front, tell the Truth and you shall be free! Simple as it is, but it’s the rarest quality you’ll find in the Philippines for it is a corrupted country- because of egoism. Egoism is the root of all Evil, and Moral Corruption is its best result. A morally-corrupted one is coward. As Maryjoy has observed, the Philippines is over- populated with cowardice. Our Politics is medieval, it is a failure, and the cause is a moral one. Jun Lozada wants freedom so he told the truth. Whatever awaits him now and his family is no longer an issue for him- he is now a free man! Does the public really understand what Freedom is? As I have said, the majority is submerge in darkness, like all the egoistic president’s men you referred to, for egoists are blind and have chosen eternal damnation in hell of ignorance. Some of us are just lurkers, with eyes half-open, undecided yet, either to leave the cage or not. A matter of strength.Time will tell.
Maryjoy, Catholicism is not the answer to our quest for the Truth, but rather a hindrance. It is not interested about our Freedom, but in the submission of its people, the eternal submersion of its children in darkness, the suppression of critical thinking, the denial of reality and resignation to the situation. Vatican is only interested in submissive obedience and the “religious” payment of the church taxes for the preservation of its imperialistic and colonial power. This Church is the disguised extension of the Roman Empire till the present time. Catholics are therefore vassals to the “infallible” Pope, the powerful Emperor.The Catholic Church has been around for a long time now and has failed to contribute to our progress in many aspects, including the moral one. The Philippine nation prides herself to be the only predominantly catholic nation in Asia, and for a long time now also prides herself as Asia’s most corrupt nation, where dictatorship, greediness, deceptions, denial, egoism, killings, social injustice, distrust, superficiality and perversions of all kinds are at the top of the agenda. Can we still dare to attribute to the catholic church that of being a source of encouragement and inspiration? Even for a simple-minded somebody who doesn’t know the details of the matter, he or she would simply agree with the fact that there is something wrong with the “catholic ” Philippines, where the national and local governments are run like hell by Filipino politicians and employees, shamelessly amassing their wealth at the expense of the weak, poor and needy. We had had centuries of experience with Catholicism and it’s clear now to accept that within this religious context, or with this religious tool- your choice- it’s virtually impossible to build a better society. This is blatant reality in our country. This is not scapegoating, this is my critical observation. We were raised as catholics and grew up as catholics, were drilled to memorize ready-made prayers authored by Vatican, and we are champion in reciting them mechanically. But ask a catholic to pray spontaneously and it will be clear in matters of seconds that he or she cannot do it; he was just not taught, hence, did not learn to pray freely.This simple example illustrates already the hidden intention of the Catholic Church, i.e., to prevent you from developing and using your own intellect. This fact, being so common, had blinded us and caused us to search the explanation for our failures somewhere else. Again, Rizal realized this fact already in his time that is why he emphasized Education as the light of the people, the development of critical thinking. The central Europeans realized this havoc before and they protested, and so the Protestant church came into being. Nowadays we are witness to the fact that protestant nations are much more social and human, politically and economically progressive. Look at Italy, Spain and Latin American governments- they are basically corrupt, chaotic and underdeveloped, qualities that we have in abundance in our catholic Philippines.

This is not to offend your belief in God, for here we are talking only about the Church, the Roman Catholic Church. I know you are familiar with the distinction.

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

Protect Yourself

The Right of Self-Defense is as old as man himself, much older than the written laws ( positive law) which came much later, and is the ultimate right at his disposal when there is an immediate threat to life and limb. This right springs from our instinct of self-preservation. It is thus a natural, biologically-rooted right. Philippine jurisprudence sanctioned this natural right by incorporating it in our body of laws and codes specifically under Section 1, Article 11 of the Revised Penal Code of the Philippines.

Here’s the author David Kopel for a little legal historical background: “According to Giovanni da Legnano, fourteenth century Milanese ( Milan, Italy) scholar “self-defense proceeds from natural law, and not from positive law, civil or canon.” While positive law did sanction self-defense, self-defense was not an artificial creation of positive law, but rather was an inherent instinct. Although the fourteenth century world was strictly hierarchical, Legnano allowed for self-defense against one’s superior, or even against a judge, if it were clear that the defender was the victim of an unprovoked violent attack. Even a slave could defend his own life against a master, because the law did not allow masters to kill their slaves. Self-defense is lawful, wrote Legnano, not only in defense of life, but also in defense of lawfully possessed property, with deadly force if necessary.The principle of self-defense allows a person to come to the aid of a relative or friend whose person or property is being attacked. Aiding others is not compulsory, however, unless a person can do so safely. Notably, a victim is not required to use only the precise level of force that his assailant uses: “suppose a strong and vigorous man strikes me with his fist, and I am a poor fellow who cannot stand up to him with the fist. May I defend myself with a sword?” Legnano answered in the affirmative. ” So Legnano’s logic.

Here is what Article 11, paragraph 1 of the Revised Penal Code of the Philippines says about Self-Defense.

Art. 11. Justifying circumstances. � The following do not incur any criminal liability:

1. Anyone who acts in defense of his person or rights, provided that the following circumstances concur:

First. Unlawful aggression;

Second. Reasonable necessity of the means employed to prevent or repel it.

Third. Lack of sufficient provocation on the part of the person defending himself.

Here is the whole thing again:

Everybody wants to live in peace and avoids as much as possible any kind of aggression or violent situation. However, reality teaches us that there are people who cannot resist -for various reasons and motives- to perpetrate evil actions ( unlawful aggression) against a non-provoking, innocent ( lack of sufficient provocation) third party. Under sudden attack, any healthy person instinctively repels the attack to protect his own life. In this situation which normally happens unexpected and quick, you have mostly no time to plan your action. Your success is measured in the end by the fact that you are still alive by either causing the assailant to flee or by incapacitating him, worse, killing him. Hurting or killing the assailant in the end is by no means a free-wheeling affair. Now it’s the turn of the legal experts and the court to judge your reaction ( reasonable necessity of the means employed ) and result of such reaction to the said unlawful aggression. The burden of proof rests upon you now. But, first, this is the problem that comes after and doesn’t pose a direct threat to your life anymore and, second, this time you have a lawyer defending you.

Of course we do not wish that we would be in such a situation where we have to fight to defend our lives. However, If there are threats or intimidation happening to you or your family, then it is also your right to do something for your own safety and to be alert, be careful and be observant and use the tools available. Nowadays there are many ways you can do for your protection aside from directly informing the authorities (Police, etc. if you feel being threatened or intimidated by a third party ) and undertaking those common safety measures that we all know as we go on with our daily life.

If there is a perceived threat, then it’s time to double your alertness and security measures. The following course of actions may add to improve your personal security:

1. Use of your cellular phones

Create a sort of Tele-Alarm System among yourselves by calling and informing your friend directly about your security problem. This friend in turn calls the next one and so on until everybody on the list of your Tele-Alarm System has been reached and informed. You have to speak among yourselves during your meetings the course of actions to be undertaken , everything of course will depend on the nature and gravity of the situation.

In a place where politicians are corrupt, oftentimes you wouldn’t be able to trust even the law enforcers. Once the police have sold their loyalty and professionalism to a crook politician, then they have lost their credibility and sympathy of the people and are therefore no longer in a position to demand respect. In fact they have reduced themselves to private goons, becoming like poor watchdogs for the selfish interest of their boss and of themselves and they behave foolishly like licensed criminals.

In such a situation, to act as a group is much more effective than to keep your problem to yourself and to solo your security measures. Prepare ready-made emergency sms (Text), store it in your cellular phones and just send it quick in situation where you can not call anymore or when silence and discretion is of high priority.

2. Use of your photo, video or cellular phone cameras.

If correctly (no malice intention ) employed, this method is very effective in documenting your observations- and in exposing abuses , corrupt activities and other malevolent actions of criminal people, corrupt police officers and politicians. Once a domain of photo-reporters, journalists and secret agents, this method is now practically employed by everybody. If needed make use of gratis platforms like youtube to upload and post your materials. Always make a backup of your video materials for future use like court hearings, etc. Latest example of the positive use of video reporting taken by a farmer secretely is the exposure of the brutal police treatment of the farmers defending their land and properties after they were disowned by the state in the name of modernization boom (construction of highways, bridges, factories etc.) where the said farmers’ properties happen to stand on the way. The chinese government, repressive and denying as it is, were forced to publicly apologize to the world and to these farmers after the video material appeared in Internet.

3. Link your group to other people and professionals (Lawyers, local Journalists, Local Radio Reporters, Barangay Captains, Head Teachers, Religious Leaders, etc.) so that they may know the existence of your group and it’s purpose and so that they may also be encouraged to create one and also to assist you in legal matters and the like. If this would spread in the whole town, resulting in the formation of many such groups, then it would be high time to create, let us say, a Citizen Self-Defense Network. This is one way to combat abuses and intimidation from people who are supposed to protect you, yet due to corruption ended up protecting their own selfish interest using their office and ,worse, the weapons paid by you,- the tax payers.

You must always remember that the Philippines is a Constitutional State, it’s a rule of law ( not a rule of one man or woman), meaning our civil liberties and rights are provided for in the Constitution (see Bill Of Rights ), and that you are not a criminal if you are aware of your rights and if you make use of them, defend or fight for them. And do not forget, Bulan is part of Philippine jurisdiction, thus the Constitution also applies to Bulan, to every tagaBulan. As I have said before, Bulan is no longer an isolated town with timid population where elected government officials (and a few feudalistic people ) may just rule and abuse their office and people as they wish. Concerned tagaBulans all over the country, all over the globe are now watching Bulan and are ready to help prevent abuses and expose to the whole world corrupt public servants by their names. In Bulan, sovereignty also resides in the people! It is populated now by people who are becoming conscious of their political culture, people with well-developed sense for justice and duty for the community, people who desire for progress and real change for the better. The tagaBulans are on their way to modernising their thinking yet remaining proud of their noble traditions.

Again, let us help one another in protecting the integrity of all tagaBulans.

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

A Government Run Like Hell

Thank you prodebate4 for sharing your thoughts and your battles in life. Our country is still in experimental stage, still searching for the best form of government and leadership, the so called search for identity after the historical traumas that twisted our perception and development, divided and wounded us deep and rendered weak our collective soul. Some neighboring asian countries seem to have already found the political and economic order that fit them, they are able to stand up after the fall, for they had also their share of traumas. This is individual psychology manifesting itself among nations. Some are strong and recover quick, some are weak and need more time to heal. Your fight against the Marcos rule was just the beginning, for though you won, the battle has just begun. This is now a fight on the educational level. Rebellion doesn’t solve the problem, as experience has shown us. We now canalize our political energies into a form of change that even the youngest in the family will comprehend and able to participate. No more rebellion and bloodshed for they bring only more wounds and sufferings, and on this level, the young ones and the weak can not participate, thus leaving us a lost and weak generation again after the fighters had grown old or disappeared. In this way, development is not possible. This is why we’ve remained stuck to Manuel Quezon’s “a government run like hell by Filipinos” even up to this day.

No more rebellion, but our fight against corruption and corrupt government officials continue as well as our fight in protecting the integrity of the people of Bulan. Bulan Observer contributes to this task by continuously observing our town

and commenting to the developments happening and spreading it around the globe. It is my goal to link Bulan Observer to national and international institutions already established and recognized worldwide like Transparency International, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, etc. so that we will be more effective in combating corruption and abuses. Bulan Observer has no other wish than to see – today and tomorrow- a municipal government of Bulan that is not run like hell by vicious and repressive people devoid of insights and visions, but by progressive, intelligent and dignified politicians and public servants equipped not only with real visions for their constituents but with the courage to give far-ranging solutions to the problems of employment, health care, nutrition, housing, education, security and environmental protection , to name just a few.

Well, for our mission for life, I wish you a lifetime of patience. Without somebody sacrificing, no goal can ever be achieved.

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

We Deserve Justice

by prodebate4
January 22, 2008 at 2:24 pm ·

Greetings to you Mr. Asuncion! This is good news– one of the nicest websites of Bulanenos–salamatonon tabi saimo!Ive read through the write ups here. You & Mr. Malajakan both shared very interesting insights and opinions, yet not new to my thinking. I was actually engaged, once–in both sides! I started as the plain-ideological rizalist–the peaceful-thinker and -writer of the campus, inspiring and indirectly influencing the intellectual, rebellious minds of the elite student organizations. Undoubtedly, the same strings of ideas and concepts of changes pulled me into realizing my writings into LIFE.In the end, i myself became the Bonifast(cio)! I became politically aggressive with innumerable factors: esp. of impatience and zero Tolerance capabilities to then Marcos dictatorial, unjust, corrupt regime!

I do understand the bitterness of Mr. Malajakan-for one, i hailed from a very poor family too. Where no opportunities seemed to be in sight-no matter how one tries. Where Hunger is urgent and couldnt wait another day or week.
Where the urgent need of medicines to an ailing brood or mother wouldnt be healed by my brilliant thoughts.
When i struggled for the scholarship, i fought for it. When i was maintaining the scholarship, i also fought for it. Before i graduated, i fought again to abolish dictatorship, long agonies of mass assemblies, vigils, per se joining demonstrations as a Symbol of consistent manifestation towards our Defiance or Resistance to the most degrading Suppression of all human rights!!! When i graduated, i fought again to secure a job against the children of the most influencial sons & daughters of manila`s elite. I was struggling both for my existence and for the freedom of my fellow-vigilant students arrested, disappeared. I was all the while fighting for the causes of my own principles..the democratic rights we all would want to enjoy and live for.

Alas! When Marcos escaped, we won half the battle! A complete Deliberance! Weve finally proven that IF WE ARE GOING TO FIGHT FOR A JUST CAUSE, SEALED ON TIGHT CONVICTION THAT WE DESERVE JUSTICE, NO TASK IS IMPOSSIBLE!

THE PATH TOWARDS JUSTICE IS LONG, NEEDS DEDICATION & SELF-SACRIFICES.

After this era, i should admit im still indirectly struggling with the remnants of the 20 years deep rooted corruption or evils in all sectors of our society. But–this is my country. It will take time to re-educate and create a new breed of disciplined, self-reliant, intelligent filipinos loving their own country and trusting their fellowmen.

The Bulan Municipality is maintained to look clean but it has obviously a powerful-secured- indoor Corruption Hall.

Let this website and other Tagabulans (Kabatas, Kaadman, etc) be the foundation for crushing this indoor corruption hall. Lets build together, with years of undying devotion towards a free-corrupt-justice hall soon!

Mabuhay kamo intero!

Sakaling Umpisahan Nila

A Letter from a concerned Bulan citizen

gmbaula
January 23, 2008 at 10:29 pm ·

kahapon lang muli ko pong nakausap ang aking kasamahan na takot na takot dahil sa kanyang mga nababalitaan na meron na daw pong banta sa aming seguridad at buhay.nag-usap kami at nag palitan ng mga ideya, at pina -liwanag ko sa kanila na natural na ganon ang magiging reaction ng mga decastro sa kadahilanan ayaw nilang mamulat ang ating bayan para sa ganun manatili sila sa kapangyarihan.si mang dolfo na medyo may edad na nag salita at sinabing nanaisin ko pang lumaban at mamatay kesa makitang patuloy na yinuyurakan ang ating karapatan at malugmok ang bulan sa mga katiwalian sa walang humpay na panggigipit at pananakot ng diktadurang mayora at kanyang kasabwat na ex mayor at buong sangguniang bayan.
naka handa na rin po kami sa mga darating na araw na may dugong dadanak at mga buhay na malalagas sakaling umpisahan nila ang bagong antas ng labanan.pagod na rin po ang mga nakakaraming sambayanan ngunit may takot sa isip na baka balikan kong sila ay maki-alam at lumaban sa mala diktadurang pamumuno ng mayora at ex gimeng.patunay lamang na isang instrumento ang pananakot na ginagamit ng administrasyong ito para manatili sa poder.
salamat…

muli para sa malayang bulan
gmbaula

The Solid Foundations Of Your Rights

We treasure the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as declared by the General Assembly of the United Nations and adhere to our Constitutional Rights as described in our 1987 Constitution under Article 3: Bill Of Rights. They are the solid foundations of our Rights. From these International Agreements and Philippine Laws we draw our understanding of personal protection in our town Bulan. They give us peace of mind and security. Only we have to be conscious about these laws, that they exist and are made for us. There is nothing wrong to know and to follow the laws of the country. If some people are threatened to know that you are conscious about your rights and that you abide by the laws, then there is something wrong with them. It is our duty to adhere to our constitution to help us realize our vision of becoming a morally and politically upright people.

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

Bill Of Rights

Article 3:
Bill of Rights

Principles

SEC. 1.
No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, nor shall any person be denied the equal protection of the laws.

SEC. 2.
The right of the peole to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures of whatever nature and for any purpose shall be inviolable, and no search warrant or warrant of arrest shall issue except upon probable cause to be determined personally by the judge after examination under oath or affirmation of the complainant and the witnesses he may produce, and particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized.

SEC. 3.
(1) The privacy of communication and correspondence shall be inviolable except upon lawful order of the court, or when public safety or order requires otherwise as prescribed by law.
(2) Any evidence obtained in violation of this or the preceding section shall be inadmissible for any purpose in any proceeding.

SEC. 4.
No law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, of expression, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and petition the Government for redress of grievances.

SEC. 5.
No law shall be made respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference, shall forever be allowed. No religious test shall be required for the exercise of civil or political rights.

SEC. 6.
The liberty of abode and of changing the same within the limits prescribed by law shall not be impaired except upon lawful order of the court. Neither shall the right to travel be impaired except in the interest of national security, public safety, or public health, as may be provided by law.

SEC. 7.
The right of the people to information on matters of public concern shall be recognized. Access to official records, and to documents, and papers pertaining to official acts, transactions, or decisions, as well as to government research data used as basis for policy development, shall be afforded the citizen, subject to such limitations as may be provided by law.

SEC. 8.
The right of the people, including those employed in the public and private sectors, to form unions, associations, or societies for purposes not contrary to law shall not be abridged.

SEC. 9.
Private property shall not be taken for public use without just compensation.

SEC. 10.
No law impairing the obligation of contracts shall be passed.

SEC. 11.
Free access to the courts and quasi-judicial bodies and adequate legal assistance shall not be denied to any person by reason of poverty.

SEC. 12.
(1) Any person under investigation for the commission of an offense shall have the right to be informed of his right to remain silent and to have competent and independent counsel preferably of his own choice. If the person cannot afford the services of counsel, he must be provided with one. These rights cannot be waived except in writing and in the presence of counsel.
(2) No torture, force, violence, threat, intimidation, or any other means which vitiate the free will shall be used against him. Secret detention places, solitary, incommunicado, or other similar forms of detention are prohibited.
(3) Any confession or admission obtained in violation of this or Section 17 hereof shall be inadmissible in evidence against him.
(4) The law shall provide for penal and civil sanctions for violations of this section as well as compensation to and rehabilitation of victims of torture or similar practices, and their families.

SEC. 13.
All persons, except those charged with offenses punishable by reclusion perpetua when evidence of guilt is strong, shall, before conviction, be bailable by sufficient sureties, or be released on recognizance as may be provided by law. The right to bail shall not be impaired even when the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus is suspended. Excessive bail shall not be required.

SEC. 14.
(1) No person shall be held to answer for a criminal offense without due process of law.
(2) In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall be presumed innocent until the contrary is proved, and shall enjoy the right to be heard by himself and counsel, to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him, to have a speedy, impartial, and public trial, to meet the witnesses face to face, and to have compulsory process to secure the attendance of witnesses and the production of evidence in his behalf. However, after arraignment, trial may proceed notwithstanding the absence of the accused provided that he has been duly notified and his failure to appear is unjustifiable.

SEC. 15.
The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended except in cases of invasion or rebellion when the public safety requires it.

SEC. 16.
All persons shall have the right to a speedy disposition of their cases before all judicial, quasi-judicial, or administrative bodies.

SEC. 17.
No person shall be compelled to be a witness against himself.

SEC. 18.
(1) No person shall be detained solely by reason of his political beliefs and aspirations.
(2) No involuntary servitude in any from shall exist except as punishment for a crime whereof the party shall be duly convicted.

SEC. 19.
(1) Excessive fines shall not be imposed, nor cruel, degrading or inhuman punishment inflicted. Neither shall death penalty be imposed, unless, for compelling reasons involving heinous crimes, the Congress hereafter provides for it. Any death penalty already imposed shall be reduced to reclusion perpetua.
(2) The employment of physical, psychological, or degrading punishment against any prisoner or detainee or the use of substandard or inadequate penal facilities under subhuman conditions shall be dealt with by law.

SEC. 20.
No person shall be imprisoned for debt or non-payment of a poll tax.

SEC. 21.
No person shall be twice put in jeopardy of punishment for the same offense. If an act is punished by a law and an ordinance, conviction or acquittal under either shall constitute a bar to another prosecution for the same act.

SEC. 22.
No ex post facto law or bill of attainder shall be enacted.

Social Justice and Human Rights

Human Rights

Here’s what our Constitution of 1987 says on Social Justice and Human Rights :

Article 13:
Social Justice and Human Rights

SEC. 1.
The Congress shall give highest priority to the enactment of measures that protect and enhance the right of all the people to human dignity, reduce social, economic, and political inequalities, and remove cultural inequities by equitably diffusing wealth and political power for the common good. To this end, the State shall regulate the acquisition, ownership, use, and disposition of property and its increments SEC. 17.
(1) There is hereby created an independent office called Commission on Human Rights. (2) The Commission shall be composed of a Chairman and four Members who must be natural-born citizens of the Philippines and a majority of whom shall be members of the Bar. The term of office and other qualifications and disabilities of the Members of the Commission shall be provided by law. (3) Until this Commission is constituted, the existing Presidential Committee on Human Rights shall continue to exercise its present functions and powers. (4) The approved annual appropriations of the Commission shall be automatically and regularly released.

SEC. 18.
The Commission on Human Rights shall have the following powers and functions: (1) Investigate, on its own or on complaint by any party, all forms of human rights violations involving civil and political rights; (2) Adopt its operational guidelines and rules of procedure, and cite for contempt for violations thereof in accordance with the Rules of Court; (3) Provide appropriate legal measures for the protection of human rights of all persons within the Philippines, as well as Filipinos residing abroad, and provide for preventive measures and legal aid services to the underprivileged whose human rights have been violated or need protection; (4) Exercise visitorial powers over jails, prisons, or detention facilities; (5) Establish a continuing program of research, education, ad information to enhance respect for the primacy of human rights; (6) Recommend to the Congress effective measures to promote human rights and to provide for compensation to victims of violations of human rights, or their families; (7) Monitor the Philippine Government’s compliance with international treaty obligations on human rights; (8) Grant immunity from prosecution to any person whose testimony or whose possession of documents or other evidence is necessary or convenient to determine the truth in any investigation conducted by it or under its authority; (9) Request the assistance of any department, bureau, office, or agency in the performance of its functions; (10) Appoint its officers and employees in accordance with law; and (11) Perform such other duties and functions as may be provided by law.

Protect The Integrity Of The People Of Bulan

In accordance with the objetives of Bulan Observer, we will now find ways in helping protect the integrity of the people of Bulan. To start with, below is a copy of the Universal Declaration Of Human Rights as proclaimed by the General Assembly Of The United Nations. The Philippines was elected as a member of the new United Nations Human Rights Council in May 2006. There will be more possibilities to expose crimes and abuses to the people and environment and we will deal with them soon.

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Article 1.

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights

Article 2.

Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.

Article 3.

Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person

Article 4.

No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.

Article 5.

No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

Article 6.

Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.

Article 7.

All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law

Article 8.

Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law.

Article 9.

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

Article 10.

Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.

Article 11.

Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence

Article 12.

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks

Article 13.

Everyone has the right to freedom of movement

Article 14.

(1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.(2) This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 15.

(1) Everyone has the right to a nationality.(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.

Article 16.

(1) Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution.(2) Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.(3) The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.

Article 17.

(1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.

Article 18.

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

Article 19.

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers

Article 20.

Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.

Article 21.

The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government

Article 22.

Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality.

Article 23.

(1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.(2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.(3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.(4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

Article 24.

Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

Article 25.

(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.(2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

Article 26.

(1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.(2) Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.(3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.

Article 27.

(1) Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.(2) Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.

Article 28.

Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.

Article 29.

(1) Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.(2) In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.(3) These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 30.

Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.

This Is Their Job

by prodebate4
January 24, 2008 at 12:21 pm · Edit

History tells us that merciless japanese soldiers schocked, molested and awed the Bulanenos during the II WW! That time, the Bulanenos had only bolos and ancient armories. Still, this did not stop the Guerillas to let them succeed. Nowadays, its even difficult to hide. We are equipped with censor locators, hohoha!Seriously, if anyone would harm you, we know who are the prime suspects. If anyone would harm leading Oppositionist of Bulan, there would be a leader accountable for Investigation. No one can escape forever covered with Golds!
Suppression and Fear is not our fight.
WE are crying out for a Democratic Government, reducing (rampant) Corruption forces, and for the governmentt officials to uphold these rights, to respect the souvereign will of the people.They are public officials elected by the people. They are accountable to us.Thus, they must fulfill their duties to come into terms with the opposing, investigative constituents.

How? Its also one of their governmental challenges. This is their job. Stop gaming..lets work seriously!

The Opposition

To oppose is to fulfill an important duty that is demanded in a democratic society; to offer an alternative view, argument or action to that which is proposed by the ruling party.This is what makes democracy an important tool in the people’s quest for progress for it gives space for creativity and intelligent ideas. In a room with ten people who are given a task to solve a problem, expect no good ideas to come out and fill up the room when nobody is allowed to talk, or when all other parameters like seniority, gender, beauty, social status and tradition, academic titles, etc. would rule other than sharp thinking and creative spontaneity. The outpouring of ideas can cause collisions among some of them ( hence democracy is loud from time to time). However, in such a group one can only show the best that one has if given the chance to speak. This is the group dynamic inherent in a democratic society- it applies that healthy dosage of pressure to each allowing everybody in an atmosphere of freedom to function at his maximum.

This enhances growth as we can see in western countries that have already drawn huge benefits from democracy. Economy, Arts and Sciences flourish. Did the former Soviet Union, China or East Germany produce Nobel Laureates during the last two decades? Nobel Prizes in Sciences practically went to the USA, West Germany, Switzerland, Japan. On the other side we have witnessed how totalitarian regimes literally deprived themselves of progress as in the case of Eastern Germany after the annexation by Krutschev. The east Germans remained underdeveloped in many aspects in big contrast to their West German counterparts who benefited from socio-economic progress. ” I was practically switched-off growing up in such an atmosphere of control” said an (ex-east) German friend of mine, and his colleague added, “I grew up in East Germany with only one thought in my head – to escape”.

There is no progress when everybody thinks only of escape. Progress is there when people love to stay in their place, make the best out of what they have and continue working together in realizing their vision. One of the paradoxes of democracy is that it needs opposition for it to survive, not just a friction-free working together where no critical thinking is allowed. There lies the beauty of the system. Like chess, the credit of the match does not go only to the winner but also to the loser for he equally worked hard in opposing the moves of the latter thus co-producing in the end the beauty of the whole match. This is how I define political opposition. It is a series of intelligent moves that force the ruling party to be careful and watch their actions and give out their best, whether they like it or not.

Therefore, to oppose is to offer alternatives, not only criticize and offer nothing concrete. When the government falls to corruption, it also means that the opposition did not do their job well , for either they were not united among themselves or they also became corrupted. Here we are talking about opposition as a political party which performs partly the check and balances function in a democracy. Hence, a good government owes a lot of its beauty and good performance to an able opposition, just like our chess winner. Without opposition, a government is ugly, unsure of itself, lacks a genuine legitimacy and that necessary pressure from the other side, thus it mostly retrogrades to tyranny and corruption.

Vladimir Kramnik used to be a student and chess training partner of the former world champion Kasparov. Later on he even defeated Kasparov himself and became world champion. The same is true with a good opposition, it may be the next government. Interestingly Kasparov has joined the Russian politics after he left the world of chess and is now in the opposition, no longer fighting against Vladimir Kramnik but against Vladimir Putin. It keeps me wondering if he is really several moves ahead of Putin.Would it come to a mate or a draw? In any case, to oppose means to be intelligent and offer good, if not, better alternatives if one really wants to capture the king someday.

No doubt, we have in Bulan very good chess players. But I doubt if there is a good opposition in the government, for if there were one, the present government administration have been a lot better. On the other hand, if the administration had systematically repressed the opposition, then it had voluntarily deprived itself of the positive use of a mirror, so no wonder why this administration cannot see the scars on its face.

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

The New Filipino- or never give up

This is a mail from a stranger who is also fighting for the same cause like you do. I just discovered your site and I’m really impressed by your courage in saying what you think. Our difference is that I have given up lately our national politics and started focusing on the local politics of Bulan, a town in Sorsogon province, my little town. This may sound funny to you but I think we can solve the national political problems if we start from below, “from the bottom to the top” so to speak – beginning from the individual, the family, the neighborhood, the barangay and then the town. My logic is simple: If the people of Bulan would become morally strong and politically conscious then they would start electing good leaders, too. The town would become proud and progressive. And let us say if the rest of the 1, 529 towns (or municipalities) of the country would do the same, then we would end up having 1,530 morally upright and serious town mayors in all corners of the Philippines. Indeed, already a solid foundation for better provinces and cities. Following the equation we would end up with around 81 equally good governors, again already a good figure to start talking about national government and national political maturity.

Don’t accuse me of wishful thinking for it is not if we start from the bottom, from me and you and so on. It is more wishful thinking to attempt to change the national politics as it is now the way it was. No chance. Even if by a good chance an intelligent, educated, noble and morally upright person would become president for the next eight years, the Philippine society would never an inch be better because the foundation is still the same- weak and corrupted. After his term it would be mess again. A friend told me that the dream- of you and me- about a better, progressive Philippines would remain nothing but a dream and that we need to kill all the Filipinos first and start fresh ( innocent, pure, not corrupted ) all over again. I may add to his comment that indeed it’s a dream, but one that leads to a nightmare the moment you wake up! Anyway, I reflected upon his idea and said to myself, if I would take him literally, then my question would be : Who would start when there’s no one left? And soon I saw in my mind an empty Philippines, except for the flora and fauna left on their own and and the empty towns and cities and other infrastructures. Then I playfully thought, let the Japanese, Vietnamese, Germans or the Swiss occupy the empty land and let us see how it would go. Let’s take for instance the Swiss or the Germans for I know these people more. The Swiss when transplanted into the Philippines (without their money, start from a scratch, just their human resources), using the existing infrastructures of the Philippines would need about 20-30 years to build and transform the country into a first-world country, well managed and well-developed one, taking into consideration the time they would need to adjust to a changed environment and climate, to multiply themselves and fill up the land slowly (for they are roughly only 7 million in numbers) and the marine economy and its mangement experience they must first make ( for they don’t have oceans or seas ). And they would need time learning how to manage the abundant natural resources they now have and coordinate all these sources of production. In Switzerland you only have water as the most abundant natural resource, otherwise you just have the massive alps and a few acres left for the crop. But it’s in the human resources where their wealth reside. However, one thing is for sure: That within a year they would already have organized among themselves a stable and functioning government that’s there for the people and by the people in the truest sense of the word and- a year more or so- a functioning economy with an intricate banking system, watch and pharmaceutical industries, educational system, health care, insurances, etc. If applied to the Philippines, these 20-30 years would mean nothing but more miseries in all levels assuming people wouldn’t wake up and act and work together right now.

From this mental experiment going back to reality ( grim reality of Philippine society) to change the society from the bottom up will require generations, hence a lot of time, until we come up with a New Filipino, after all his poisoned mind and spirit had gone through layers of filtering and cleansing, equipping him at the end with a good moral make up, ready to apply what he learns, seriousness towards duty and responsibility, proud and conscious of himself. I wittingly excluded intelligence for we already have this resource from the beginning, only that our mind was and is easily corruptible due to lack of knowledge, self-esteem and self-respect. There are also Swiss or German people who have these deficiencies and Switzerland and Germany are far from being a perfect society , but they have these personal qualities that we badly need in the Philippines for us to be politically, socially and economically progressive. Don’t be impatient if this would require a lot of time, our dream becoming a reality only then by the emergence of that New Filipino we talked about. He would be “lucky” indeed but in him lies also the responsibility to retain what his ancestors had worked for. Not lucky was the New Society of Marcos in the 1970’s, for out of a corrupt intent he forgot his intelligence and behaved like a moron and came up with such an idiotic concept of changing the society forcefully from above and down to you and me. Clearly it did not function if seen from our honest intent for our country.But if by his concept of a New Society was based on himself as the New Filipino, the model of a corrupt politician and greedy New Filipino, then he had succeeded fully in changing the society from top to bottom, for after him it went downhill in everything about Filipino, a succession of corrupt presidents and corruptible population in the entire archipelago. Indeed, viewed from this angle he was very, very successful!

Back to our approach of changing also from the top to the bottom, I think it would require eternity, hence a dream that would never come true. We might as well shift our attention to what we as individuals can do to educate myself and yourself morally and politically and share our ideas with others. Forget Mrs. Arroyo’s monkey politics and the equally corrupt monkeys around her for awhile for it is a hopeless case. And let the Filipino suffer the consequences of their own corruptible character, ignorance and stupid choice. After all it’s them who sold their votes and placed her above themselves. Therefore, I think we are on the right side if we take the bottom-up -approach. There is no need to be discouraged even if it needs a lot of time and commitment and sacrifices of many , but do what is left for us, namely to continue working for this dream by thinking globally (nationally?) yet acting locally.
So keep going, and never give up.

jun asuncion
Bulan Observer

A sign of defeat?

All over the world it is known how corrupt our president and her administration is. The killing of journalists , political and student leaders critical to her regime, the “hello, garci tape”, the cancelled broadband deal with China are all stinking trash so pungent and obnoxious that no typhoon that devastated the archipelago until now has ever made it to neutralize this stench. Our president is small in stature yet her doings are monstrous in the true sense of the word. She has a large appetite and, together with her equally voracious husband, surely has the capacity to devour the entire Philippine provisions within a few feeding sessions. This is the image of the national government from the outside, the number one export article of the Philippines: Greediness. And these are the socio-political associations that come to mind among expatriates and non-Filipinos alike the moment they hear the word Philippines: poor, sick-man (or woman?) of Asia, corrupt, greedy and primitive politicians, underdeveloped. If the person is of different nationality, he might add to it the beautiful landscape, the beautiful people, nice hotels , etc. just to inject in you an antidote to your reddening face. But as you know, these beautiful landscapes are not our own making. You will sense the difference though through his or her facial expression when you talk about Taiwan, Vietnam – or Japan for that matter. The eyes inflate out of fascination and respect. This time you may not feel embarrassment but depression, your eyes dropping to the floor as you wonder again- why are we like this? A Filipino carries with him the whole Philippines unwittingly the moment he embarks on a journey in search of a place that would nurture his dreams, that would justly compensate his skills and get respected. With him are the memories of entire life , the recent farewell hugs and kisses from his dear ones at the airport. But with him travels also the entire burden of a country’s scams and failures that would increasingly confront his expatriate’s Dasein sooner or later. And he is not alone, but they are by the thousands who leave the country for this common purpose. And thousands, if not, millions, are being indignated, embarrassed or depressed the moment a scandal caused by a vicious few in the Philippines dominates the news media again. For then all these known cliches are endorsed once again. No matter how the expatriate considers his relationship with his old country, his reflex to “cover up” his country against malevolent ( yet true) remarks from others is omnipresent. Adan Silangan hit the truth when he wrote that it’s the expatriates who suffer the most from these scandals. To be outside is to be vulnerable, like being at the front line. Interestingly, the government keeps sending many to the front and proclaim them as Ambassadors of Goodwill and – to make the irony perfect- reward them with the scams they export.Truly, this is unfair towards this group of people who help keep the economy run by sending millions, if not billions of pesos every year. This is a public display of egregious ingratitude on the part of the government.

Now with the Internet connections becoming more accessible everywhere, new more political burdens are added to the life of an expatriate- for now he is receiving not only the national but also the newest developments from his local town or barangay! In the case of Bulan, it is interesting to observe how the national government is mirrored in our present administration, perhaps just differing in scale- a big fish vs. small fish ? Be that as it may. But they have one thing in common, namely their voracious appetite and their export business. In Manila you have the First Gentle Mike, in Fabrica the First Gentle Geming, with their respective little wives but with appetites far bigger than themselves. So Bulan is now also an exporting town, but not fish,- for fish are suspiciously disappearing in Bulan-, but the trash of corruption and moral decay. Not all expatriates suffer this time, but the taga Bulans expatriates everywhere who are still connected with their town and who someday will be coming back home.

So, is leaving home and being an expatriate a sign of defeat? Categorically, I think not. On the contrary, it is heroism, for now you stand at the front line, and far from that comfort of being home and yet carries that home with you in your daily life and the burdens you are getting from home and the often times offending remarks you’re getting from people in your chosen home. Did you get it right?

jun asuncion

Bulan Observer

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Hi, Jeffrey! Yes, of course, you may reshare this short reply to your query some years ago.

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