I recently came across a comment to a blog posted by a friend of mine. The premise used by her friend who wrote it really got my “serve the people” juices flowing. His main argument was this:
“Poverty is a choice.”
Since we’re celebrating International Human Rights Day on Dec. 10, and this contention really got me agitated, I decided to share with all of you what I had to say in reply to that message, with a few changes. Here goes...
I’m sorry but I just got to butt in. I resent the assumption that people are poor because they choose to be. Filipino peasants aren’t poor because they’re lazy. They’re poor because they were never offered the option to be anything but. They’re forced to toil from 4 a.m. to 6 p.m. every single day because they have to till lands that they do not even own. They’re lucky if they get at least one sack of rice come harvesting time, that’s it. Until that much awaited season comes, they’re forced to live on salt and corn rice on good days, and banana with salt on bad ones. Trust me, I’ve been there. I saw firsthand how deplorable the daily lives of most peasant families can be. My fellow students and I lost a whole lot of weight in the three months that we spent there for the simple reason that the peasants we were staying with during our integration really had nothing else to offer.
So please, don’t believe the lies that you hear. Filipinos are not poor because we’re lazy; we’re poor because majority of our resources are owned and exploited by a tiny percentage of our population. And I’m not just talking about natural resources; these landlords and big business people literally own majority of our fellow citizens. Most of us are slaves in one way or another. Workers are slaves to business owners that’s why most Filipinos are forced to live from paycheck to paycheck, working for very low wages (hence, cheap labor). Peasants are slaves to the land owners, who control their every move, even the food they have on their table each day.
I can talk all day about the anti-worker and anti-people policies that politicians past and present have implemented but I won’t. It’s too depressing. And I don’t want to point fingers anymore. We already know who the culprits are. I’d rather focus on what we can do to change things. I’ll get to that in a minute. I need to correct a few misconceptions first.
If you think those groups constantly marching in the streets, including Satur Ocampo, the man you dubbed a “shameless freak”, are merely out to manipulate issues to push their own agenda, my heart goes out to you. You’ve become not just blinded but cynical as well. It’s sad how people never seem to get past these groups’ marching and chanting and see the things they do behind the scenes. They don’t just talk about changing our society; they’re actually doing something about it. I challenge everyone to spend one day with a Non-government organization affiliated with these groups, just one day, and you’ll see how they spend time in urban poor areas or some other place, organizing the mothers, and other dwellers who have no jobs and helping them jumpstart their livelihood programs, patiently educating every single one along the way to make the program sustainable. And they do this without the generous compensation or kickbacks that people in congress get whenever they launch a livelihood project. It’s a wonder how people could ever believe that these people are evil. I’m amazed at how quick some people are to judge. It pays to investigate and get to the root before making any claims. It’s not even fair to pass judgment on others. We just don't have that right.
I don’t mean to be harsh but I just have to say this – our ignorance and apathy are the very things that are keeping us from ending all our country’s problems; whether it’s corruption or exploitation or repression or the most blatant human rights violations committed against Filipinos every single day.
And the killing! Who gave us the right to end the life of another? When did that happen? How one could ever justify killing a person is beyond my comprehension. I had a friend who died before he reached the very young age of 25 simply because he was at the wrong place at the wrong time. The military wounded him in the leg, he was alive when they dragged him off. But after hours of torture, his body finally gave out and he left this world, all because some people lack the capacity for mercy. It breaks my heart to even talk about this but I think it’s time we face the facts. Human rights violations, whether committed against rebels or against the military or even against my friend, would still remain that – a blatant disregard for basic human rights.
We have the capacity to think, make our own decisions and choose sides. God gave us free will after all. But He did not give us the right to trample all over the rights of others. So whether the victims are from the left, middle or the right side of the political spectrum, it doesn’t matter. We simply don’t have any right to abuse the rights of others, we just don’t. So why should we have to condemn one side and uplift the other? Why should we let our prejudice cloud our judgment? Every single person has rights. That’s my point. There’s no need to count bodies or point fingers. The keyword here is RESPECT. It’s that simple.
As to your question regarding what we can do, there’s a world of options out there. All we have to do is venture out of our comfort zone, our cozy little nook where life is grand and everyone else is to blame for their own misery. There are basic human rights to defend, houses to be built, livelihood programs to be planned and implemented, people to clothe and feed, masses to educate… the list is endless. My challenge to you and everyone else out there who still live in the illusion that we are not being exploited is this – find one organization that is currently working on at least one of those projects that I mentioned and help out. It’s the least we could do. No, you don’t have to join the leftists or head to the mountains, there are other options besides that. We just have to find the right fit for us.
Religious groups have activities to help out. If you’re interested, I’m sure your local church group can guide you. If you’re interested in helping NGOs, there are also hundreds of those in Cebu, just waiting for you to contact them. If you’d rather help international groups like Habitat for Humanity, etc., I hear they’ve got local chapters already. All we really need to do is strike a balance between our individual capacity and our ideals, beliefs and aspirations. My point is, do something! Let’s end this deception once and for all and work together to break the bonds of exploitation that has gripped the masses since time immemorial. Let’s put an end to apathy and start working for genuine democracy. Let’s give power back to the people! Like you said, we are the government. Isn’t it time for us to get back the dignity that we’ve been denied for so long? After all, the right to dignity is the most basic human right of all.
I hope I haven’t maligned anyone’s ideals. I'd hate to offend others. I just wanted to share what I learned from personal experience in the hopes that more people would work towards a better society, one that’s free from slavery and exploitation, one where people get what they deserve and treat each other with respect, one where everybody is free to exercise their rights with no fear of violence or any other inhumane treatment, one where we each have our dignity intact. Is that too much to ask or hope for?
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