LAGIM SA PAGBABALIK NI GONGDI SA ‘PINAS

HINDI maalis na manayo ang aking mga balahibo sa sandaling makabalik sa Filipinas si Gongdi dahil hindi itinuloy ng International Criminal Court (ICC) ang kanyang paglilitis. Sa kanyang pagharap sa confirmation of charges ng sakdal na crimes against humanity laban kay Gongdi, inilarawan ni Joel Botuyan, abogado ng mga pamilya ng mga biktima ng extrajudicial killings (EJKs) kaugnay sa madugo pero palpak na war on drugs ni Gongdi, na babalik ang pangulo sa bansa na parang isang “namayaning bayani” (conquering hero) na ginapi ang ICC sa kanyang “pagbaka” sa kriminalidad sa bansa.

Ito ang paraan ni Botuyan upang kumbinsihin ang ICC Pretrial Chamber 1 na huwag ipagwalang bahala ang panawagan ng mga pamilya ng mga biktima ng malawakang patayan sapagkat hindi magiging katanggap-tanggap ang susunod na mangyayari. Magiging katawa-tawa ang Filipinas sa mata ng mundo dahil siniguro ni Botuyan na mapipilitan ang ICC na pauwiin si Gongdi kung hindi itutuloy ang kanyang paglilitis sa ICC.

“It is the view of the victims that this court must allow them to narrate the gravity, the cruelty and the brutality… the utter inhumanity of the crimes masterminded by Mr. Duterte. For this to happen, the charges should all be confirmed,” ani Botuyan. “The sight of Mr. Duterte being read and confronted with the grave and horrible charges against him would have constituted a vital component of justice for the victims,” aniya. “This case symbolically represents the last boat the victims can board in search of justice,” aniya. “If this chamber prevents the boat from sailing by not confirming the charges, the victims will forever be moored on an island where the nights are filled with the screams and cries of their massacred loved ones. There is absolutely no other recourse, aniya.”

“Truth is the antidote to the virus of impunity, Your Honors. The victims dread a future where charges are not confirmed. It will mean that the virus of impunity will continue to spread and infect many more.” Malinaw ang paglalahad ng taga-usig sa kanilang kuwento tungkol sa war on drugs ni Gongdi. Inaasahan namin na matutuloy ang paglilitis sa kanya sa maaaring magsimula tatlo o apat na buwan mula ngayon.

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HINDI masigla ang pagdiriwang ng ika-40 anibersaryo ng 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution. Pero hindi namin nakakalimutan ang ambag ni Jaime Cardinal Sin sa kanyang papel sa kasaysayan ng bansa. Isinulat namin ang sumusunod na sanaysay noong 2014.

THE GENIUS OF CARDINAL SIN

(Many young people may have a faint idea of the late Cardinal Jaime Sin. He was the influential Church leader, who influenced the course of Philippine history.)

WHEN ranged against those dime-a-dozen Catholic and non-Catholic prelates and ministers dabbling in Philippine politics, the late Jaime Cardinal Sin casts an incomparable shadow to the extent that not one of them would approximate his greatness. These current-day religious leaders are many times inferior to Sin, who showed to the world how a religious leader could influence a poor, deeply polarized society.

Sin was a genius; although a religious leader, Sin knew his politics. He was at the right place at the right time, as he spoke with unmatchable firmness that even dictator Ferdinand Marcos could not ignore. He was not as theologically brilliant as his contemporaries like Popes Francis, Benedict XVI, or John Paul II, but he proved to be the biggest thorn of the Marcos dictatorship, which the Catholic prelate viewed with disdain.

Sin’s unparalleled contributions, specifically the country’s return to democracy from dictatorship, had stemmed from two factors: the policy of “critical collaboration,” which he pursued without letup during his prelature at the Archdiocese of Manila, the biggest in the country, and his unquestionable integrity.

When he became the Archbishop of Manila in 1974, Sin laid out his policy of critical collaboration, where he expressed his desire for the Church to peacefully coexist with the Marcos dictatorship but reserve its right to criticize the many issues like wanton human rights violations and its perpetuation in power without any semblance of legitimacy. Sin’s critical collaboration policy was carefully couched along euphemistic and pragmatic terms. But, as history shows, his policy was largely criticism than collaboration.

Although it was not new and since he borrowed it from his colleagues in South America, who had troubles with dictatorial regimes there, Sin effectively used this policy. Marcos was never comfortable with him and the Church policy. The dictator used every means to co-opt Sin to his side, but the Manila prelate never gave him the satisfaction to support his dictatorship. It was a tantalizing success, as shown by his ouster in the 1986 EDSA Revolution.

I once covered a meeting of the Rotary Club of Manila, where Sin spoke as its guest speaker. Before those businessmen, Sin uttered a pronouncement that shook Marcos. “It is the Church, which would sound the bell for their doom,” Sin in what was his way to denounce the dictatorship. That was in 1983, or weeks after the August 21, 1983 assassination of martyred Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino, Jr.

Sin was also credited for brokering the Cory Aquino – Doy Laurel ticket that gave Marcos the political nightmare in 1986. Without Sin working on the background for the Cory-Doy ticket, Marcos could have won handily in 1986 “snap” presidential elections, as Doy Laurel was bent to run as the third presidential candidate to weaken her chances.

Sin’s sense of perfect timing, or the ability to discern when to speak the right things at the right time, was tested during the nascent stage of the EDSA Revolution in 1986. Without Sin’s urgent call for the Filipino people to go and support the rebel forces led by Johnny Enrile and Fidel Ramos, it would be inconceivable if the world would ever witness the near bloodless EDSA People Power Revolution. Most likely, Marcos could have obliterated the rebel forces holed in Camps Aguinaldo and Crame.

Without Sin’s frantic call for the people to express their solidarity with the rebel forces, the military uprising at EDSA could have been a mere footnote in history. Sin’s call was decisive to allow the people to participate in what could be described as the biggest political upheaval in the country’s modern history. Sin’s attraction as a political player deeply respected by every political leader stemmed deeply from his unquestioned sense of integrity.

No, he never kowtowed to Marcos in exchange for some pieces of gold or silver. No, he was never sweet with Imelda, who represented the other half of the conjugal dictatorship. Sin was never part of the dictatorship, but he instead chose to fight it.