ON THE morning of September 21, the day marking the 46th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law in the Philippines under the Marcos dictatorship, a forum at Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan urged law students and the youth, in general, to uphold and promote the rule of law.
The Rule of Law Youth Forum, a project spearheaded by Xavier Ateneo's Association of Law Students (XU-ALS), the student government of XU College of Law, served as a platform to examine the essence and value of the rule of law in four thematic areas: Human Rights, Women and Children's Rights, Indigenous People’s Rights, and Youth Empowerment and Participation.
“In the face of threats to our democracy, the discussion on the rule of law becomes relevant now more than ever,” said XU-ALS president Princess Kimberly Ubay-ubay in her message to the audience composed of law, college, and senior high school students and youth groups.
“Be remain steadfast and hopeful that we can change the narrative if we continue to speak out, uphold the truth, and stand for what is just,” she added.
The forum was packed with discussions on how the rule of law plays a crucial part in safeguarding human rights and protecting the marginalized segments of society. The said event at the XU Little Theater was held in partnership with XU Central Student Government and Balaod Atenista.
On human rights
In her presentation, lawyer Pilipinas Palma, a human rights advocate and lawyer at the Commission on Human Rights - Region 10, shared statistical figures and anecdotes of victims of human rights violations and extra-judicial killings, lamenting the culture of impunity and wanton disregard for the rule of law in the present administration's deadly “War on Drugs.”
For her, due process and equal protection of the law should be afforded to everyone, both the victim and the suspect.
“The proper response to the failure of our justice system is the political will to effectively apprehend, prosecute, and rehabilitate criminals,” she said, adding that the law should take its course and must not be put in the hands of those in power.
At the end of her talk, Palma asked questions, challenging the law students to stand by the rule of law: “Where do you stand for human rights? What is your responsibility as students, youth, members of a family and the society in upholding and promoting human rights?”
Women and children’s rights
Threjann Ace Noli, a social welfare officer of the City Social Welfare and Development (CSWD) of Cagayan de Oro, shared on how gender equality is central to realizing children’s rights. For him, gender equality is essential in creating a world of equity, tolerance, and shared responsibility.
In his presentation, he tackled the Magna Carta for Women (RA 9710) and Violence against Women and their Children (RA 9262). Both laws aim to empower and protect women from sexual exploitation and other sexual and gender-based violence and ensure equal rights and opportunities
Noli highlighted that in times of disasters and other crisis situations, women and children must be given special consideration where their needs must be part of the relief, recovery, rehabilitation, and reconstruction efforts.
He said that gender bias has negative impacts on women and children’s access to numerous social services and resources, including education, healthcare, ownership of property, job opportunities and wages, and decision-making in both the family and the public.
“It is our collective responsibility to ensure that our programs are gender sensitive,” he said, adding that there is more work to be done in minimizing the gap in gender disparities in various fields.
He also encouraged the public to report cases of abuses to their office.
Lumad rights
To this day, Indigenous Peoples (Lumads) continue to face serious threats and discrimination in schools, the workplace, and in the public eye. This was what Nena Lumandong, a Higaonon and volunteer at the National Commission on Indigenous People’s (NCIP), drummed during her talk.
She shared how their sacred lands and objects were plundered from them through unjust treatment and utter disrespect for their indigenous values, traditions, and human rights.
“It has always been our struggle, to stop the stigma, the discrimination towards us, Lumads,” she said in Binisaya. “The public needs to understand our culture and traditions, that we are diverse in this country.”
Based on the data from the United Nations Development Program, the Philippines, being a culturally-diverse country, has an estimated 14-17 million IPs belonging to 110 ethnolinguistic groups, concentrated in Northern Luzon (Cordillera Administrative Region, 33%) and Mindanao (61%), with some groups in the Visayas area.
At present, Bae Rose serves the focal person of IPs of CSWD-CDO, project consultant of the Philippine Coalition for International Criminal Court, and project coordinator of Building Bridges for Peace. She was also a former commissioner of the Philippine Commission on Women.
Bae Rose also discussed the Indigenous People’s Rights Act of 1997 (RA 8371) which called on the State to acknowledge the ICCs/IPs (Indigenous Cultural Communities) position as vulnerable groups that have been historically excluded from socio-economic opportunities and to guarantee that the IPs enjoy equal protection by the law.
Youth empowerment and participation
Lawyer Ernesto Neri, a young law instructor at Xavier Ateneo and junior legal adviser of the local government unit of Cagayan de Oro City for education, youth, and health programs, was the last speaker at the said forum.
His reflection centered on a line taken from the Preamble of the 1987 Philippine Constitution, “In Order to Build a Just and Humane Society.”
“The youth has an important role to play in changing our 'broken' system," he said. "We must continue to question policies, to engage, and to participate.”
Neri reminded the audience to “continue to uphold the rule of law and human rights, otherwise, we run the risk of losing it, again.”
He added, "Rule of law generally means exercising power within the parameters of law while rule by law means using the law to govern or where the law is nothing more than a weapon subject to the will of the powerful."
“Today is the 46th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law. We commemorate this day to remind us of what we lost ... and what we are losing now.”
An exhibit of photographs and video clips was also mounted at the atrium of Magis canteen to remember September 21, 1972, and the events after former President Ferdinand Marcos put the entire country under his iron-fist rule.
For Neri, the onslaught of revisionism that is proliferating at present should be met with hard facts of history. “Let’s continue to share the share stories of real people and real events, of martyrs and of struggles. Never again.” (Stephen J. Pedroza/PR)