Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Philippine Society : Same Yesterday, Same Today

Last Sunday, I was reading an article regarding the respected writer F. Sionil Jose. In the article, he asked why the Occupy Wall Street Movement is not happening here in the Philippines when it should because of the deteriorating social conditions.

The Occupy Wall Street Movement started from you-know-what country and it spread to many other nations. It is a protest movement against Big Business which are the prime cause of the world wide economic difficulties being experience by the poor and the oppressed. 
 
Next day my blogger friend Reese at http://www.randomxthoughts.com
posted an activity at Mendiola which is very similar to that mentioned above. Hmmm at last some Filipinos realized the need to import something from the land of flowing poisons and origin of weapons of mass destruction. And they want to do it at historic Mendiola where once upon a time innocent farmers were butchered in broad daylight during the regime of the mother of this present KING of Malacanang.

Because Mendiola and Recto Avenue are just a stone's throw away from where my cave is, I decided immediately to attend. So I was there yesterday.

The demands of the rallyists are not new. They are older, much much older than the rallyists themselves. Issues such as right to education, higher wages, poverty alleviation were the hot topics during my student days (ehem that was way way back). Now, several presidents have come and gone. And the youth of today are still at it!  

So I joined the young one's in shouting SAWANG-SAWA NA KAMI!!!

Personally, I can choose to live comfortably having a college degree and have worked for several years. But what about the millions of urban and rural poor? There is so much talk of love of country.

My former comrades are no longer here in this land of gold and silver and pearls and squatters. Some are now residents of the country they ranted against when we were marching in the streets before. A few opted to stay but I would be too polite to say they were eaten by the system. Ask them why and they would tell you in your face they need food for their 2 or 3 children. Okay...

I did not stay very long at the rally site due to my aching feet. So I left Recto Avenue with this question : What is the end of all these shouting  and fist-clenching? Will the KING listen to his avowed BOSS?

The answer seems to be depressing but my stomach is already revolting.

Youth activists come to face to face with policemen who prevented them from reaching Mendiola (December 6, 2011)

5 comments:

  1. i was also there bandang hapon na ako nakarating, i was texted na wag na pumunta sa mendiola kasi nagkakagulo na, i was instructed to went to plaza miranda

    i like the title - if it refers to the characteristics of the philippine society which is semi-colonial and semi-feudal and the end-result of this ia a society where the social ills is prevalent like hunger, unemployment etc...,i go with your title

    yes ito pa rin ang pinas:
    1. backward country, poverty is widespread
    2. mas papalaking gap ng mahirap at mamamayan
    2. papalit-palit ang mga pangulong pare-parehong tuta ng kano, corrupt, repressive

    yes ito pa rin ang pinas na kaliwa't kanan ang rally, as you said same demands, same slogan ang isinisigaw, taas-kamao pa rin...
    pero ang kaibahan: mas lumalakas ang pakikibaka ng mamamayan; mas lumalawak at lumalalim ang kilusang masa

    ganun ang pakikibaka di ba? matagal...mahaba dahil mahirap buwagin ang imperyalismo, pyudalismo at burukrata kapitalismo na daang dekadang nakabaon sa lipunang Pilipino

    natural sa kilusang masa na may mga nagpapahingang aktibista, for me ok lang iyon - ako nga nagtrabaho eh imbis na mag-fulltime;
    as you said - may nangibang bayan na o may pamilya na - but i am sure nasa puso pa rin nila ang kilusang masa at ang pagmamahal sa bayan

    when will this shouting and fist clenching end? matagal ito, mahaba...
    hangga't laganap ang kahirapan at kawalang katarungan
    at gusto ko sa pagtanda ko makalahok pa ako at makita ko ang pagtatagumpay ng sambayanang Pilipino

    ang mga nagpapahingang kasama/aktibista na napagod sa pagsigaw at pagtaas kamao ay papalitan ng mas maraming batang aktibista na mas mataas ang kamulatan sa ideolohiya, pulitika at organisasyon

    sa paglaon at pagtindi ng pakikibaka ang mga nagpahingang kasama/aktibistang ito ay babalik
    sa kilusan in any form they are willing to help...support the movement

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  2. @reese

    ganyan talaga mga kalahi natin hindi na mababago, ung ibang rally naman binabayaran ang mga pupunta para lang dumami sila ung iba sasama nalang basta basta kasi kaylangan nila ng pera kahit di nila alam kung ano pinag lalaban nila.

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  3. hi jun! kamusta?
    have a happy sunday

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks Reese and 2peeps for the comments

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