It has been more than three decades since our nation took down a dictatorship ridden with corruption and countless human rights violations. Through the 1986 People Power Revolution, our fellow countrymen asserted that enough is enough, that the abuse and violence perpetrated by the State shall be no more.
Yet in the past three years, we have once again allowed a President to continuously antagonize these rights and unapologetically violate them. While advocates care about human rights, he cares about human lives, says President Rodrigo Duterte, whose War on Drugs has led to thousands of extrajudicial killings.
Almost everyone merely suspected or allegedly involved in drug-related activities was gunned to death in Oplan Tokhang, which is the only way the country’s chief executive officer thinks the drug problem can be eradicated.
The President’s statements are dangerous, for life itself is an imperative part of the human rights he willfully disregards.
What’s even more saddening is that this right is taken away continually yet Duterte is still met with boisterous laughter and thunderous applause. Officials and notable individuals who were vocal against the President are constantly persecuted. Opposition senator Leila de Lima and Rappler CEO Maria Ressa were arrested on questionable accusations. National Democratic Front consultant and human rights defender Randy Malayao was killed while he was riding a bus in Nueva Vizcaya.
To say that we have regressed into the days of Martial Law is an understatement. The deterioration of human rights is happening more rapidly this time around, yet this doesn’t seem enough to jolt us into taking collective action.
After the People Power Revolution successfully ended the Marcos regime, the Filipino people became complacent and took the newfound democracy for granted.
Ill-willed politicians and other numerous figures regressed to corruption, unscathed for decades, as if we have forgotten the evils of the past. Plunderers and murderers have slithered their way back to power, even going as far as playing the victim seeking vindication as they run for public office again.
The blame is on all of us who have fallen numb to politicking. Our lack of action has rendered a divided nation, unable to fight our common enemies.
Instead of setting aside our differences and hold these offenders accountable, we chose to go against each other. Instead of holding liable instigators of historical revisionism and other forms of disinformation to suit their self-serving interests, we chose to castigate their victims. A society is easier to subjugate when it is divided, with its vulnerable sectors bound to suffer the oppressive rule the most.
Apathy offers nothing but superficial refuge, allowing us to turn a blind eye to atrocities as long as we think we have nothing to lose. Never mind that indifference is as cruel as neglect. Never mind that silence is tantamount to siding with the oppressors.
Lest we forget, history has bore witness to how collective action, with its many forms such as protests, prayers, songs, and linked arms, has been successful in overthrowing a dictator.
It is impossible to win the fight for our human rights if we are not united, moreso if we don’t open our eyes to the realities of our society. We must go beyond merely engaging those with political beliefs different from ours and unite in resolutely holding corrupt officials accountable for their offenses.
In a time when our basic human rights are being trampled upon again by the very State that should protect them, everyone must take part in resisting and dissenting. May today serve as a reminder and a wakeup call to every Filipino that the 1986 People Power Revolution is a product of countless battles of our countrymen who sacrificed their lives to end the Marcos dictatorship. Let their sacrifice live through our rage and remembrance.
This editorial first appeared on Facebook on Feb. 25, 2019.
