Friday, July 15, 2005
Lee: Gray area
By Kelvin King Lee
Babble On
"He stands with the President, that is clear. And we can only be thankful that there is still some light around to dispel the gray, and it is in our own city."
EDSA I and EDSA II were both events where the battle lines were clear, the conflict obvious to everyone. It was black and white, back then. That isn't the case now. Everything is muddled up in a mottled gray. Staunch allies have turned against one another, and those who were once enemies, or at least rivals, have become allies, for the moment. The battle lines have crisscrossed so much that one can barely tell who's for who anymore.
The country is living in an era of gray. And it doesn't look like the colors are going to clear up anytime soon. Positions, stands and points of view have become blurred. Even the Bishops' statement seemed blurry, full of gray areas and muddled messages that could be taken to mean differently under different interpretations.
Even the Ateneo de Manila community is in a gray area, because of differing positions. Professors call for the President's resignation, as does the undergraduate student body as represented by their student council. The administration however, does not agree. They insist on the rule of law, that the Constitution be followed. The decision of the President to resign or not is hers alone.
However, Father Bernas, noted constitutional expert from the Ateneo Law School, personally believes that President Arroyo should resign, but only to allow for more conducive discussions on the current state of the Constitution and a possible need for change. He however, does not believe she will resign. One law professor I spoke to believes that there should be a call to go to the streets to take away the Presidency from her. He believes that none of the government institutions are credible enough to make change possible. Even the intellectuals have different positions. There is no black and white. Just a mottled gray.
The Philippines is so gray that it seems like clouds have permanently descended on the country, blocking out all sunlight, all clarity.
It makes me wish for the bygone days of EDSA I and II. At least back then, we knew who the enemy was. We knew who the people stood for. We knew where truth and justice were supposed to be.
Now however, truth and justice and the rule of law are just words bandied about by various parties with conflicting interests. The country is in a gray area. And we are all the more suffering because of it.
With the gray color of confusion all around, no one has thought of the future. If the people, in the supposed quest for truth demand and get Arroyo's ouster, then an extra-constitutional method of changing leaders has been set. And whatever future our country had will be obliterated. Future leaders of the country would be wary of the possibility of another EDSA revolution happening to them. An EDSA mindset would simply be harmful for the country.
Yet Father Bernas believes that such a mindset was already brought about by EDSA II, as evidenced by current events and Arroyo's policies. This mindset has clearly been detrimental to us, as popular politics rule the day and reforms cannot seem to get off the ground.
Such a political policy was supposedly what led the Ten Cabinet Members to resign last week and call for the President's ouster, and helped shade the Philippines into a grayer color.
However, some local leaders have attempted to shed some light into the murky gray. Mayor Duterte has spoken against moves for Arroyo's ouster. He has even threatened putting up a Mindanao Republic if Arroyo should be forced from power. He says that Arroyo should NOT resign.
Though I may not quite agree with the Mayor's thoughts on the Mindanao Republic, his position on Arroyo is clear and unequivocal. There was no dodging of the issue, no indecision, no gray area. He stands with the President, that is clear. And we can only be thankful that there is still some light around to dispel the gray, and it is in our own city.
E-mail me at babbleon@atenista.net
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (July 15, 2005 issue)
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