A culture of violence

There have been many themes that have been repeating themselves all over the world this past year. When you look at the United States it’s almost laughable how things seem to be happening all over again and even with Brexit in Europe we have seen how, once again, there are fissures forming in international relations and we seem to be going back to an age where the world was solidly divided.

What’s amazing about this is that we only need to look in our history books to see that division at this level causes nothing but harm. When the cracks start to form in relations among nations, how much of a stretch is it that real conflict will follow? We keep thinking that things like this are harmless but it’s really only a matter of time before the proverbial pot bubbles over and when that happens we will be able to look back and pinpoint these moments as the start of it all.

I fear that the writing is on the wall these days and no one is paying attention. Again, “those who do not learn from their history are doomed to repeat it.” The saying could not be truer here in the Philippines where it feels like the recent past is about to happen in the present and history is once again set to repeat itself. We are once again welcoming a family the nation banded together to oust and we have a president who believes that violence is the answer to our problems.

I don’t begrudge President Duterte that there is indeed a real problem here in the Philippines. For too long criminals have run unchecked and politicians have been allowed to be corrupt and uncaring. There is no doubt that this problem – this hydra so-to-speak – did not grow overnight. It has been years and years in the making and runs so deep, embedded in the very roots of our country. I honestly believe that this is not something that can be fixed in the span of six months, or a year, or even six. What’s more, violence may seem like a solution but it’s only putting a band-aid over a bullet hole.

I suppose when you look at it, that seems to be the short-term answer most politicians and even nations turn to when they want things to go their way. Just look at our history and you’ll see a long and terrible time of violence and people turning to war and conflict to get what they want. Much of the world’s history was written in blood and that doesn’t seem to be changing as we grow and evolve. You would think that as we go along we would start to change for the better and find better ways to approach conflict resolution.

When we are young we are taught that violence is not the answer. How did this change over the years as we became adults? Did we just become less patient? Did the stakes suddenly get higher? Somehow from growing up believing that violence doesn’t solve anything, many people become adults who immediately turn to violence when faced with a problem.

We see it in every day situations all the time. Here in the Philippines alone road rage – something so trivial – has resulted in fistfights, brawls, and even death. Something as simple as cutting another vehicle can result in the driver threatening to shoot you and end your life. Is this behavior just being “tough” or some form of “machismo”? Is it something to be proud of? Being willing to end someone’s life over a small altercation. I don’t think so.

I read a news piece the other day that Pope Francis is calling for a renewed culture of nonviolence in global politics today, saying that violence only breeds even more violence and the only way to truly end the cycle is to stop. The pope went on to cite famous historical figures like Mahatma Ghandi, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King Jr. as models of nonviolent peacemakers saying how our leaders today should learn to “lead by example.”

In so many ways I have to agree with our pope. I understand that there are terrible conflicts in the world and sometimes skirmishes and fights are unavoidable, but these days it seems the immediate response to every little thing is to escalate it to violence. That is continuing to be the case in so many countries like Iraq and Syria and it’s even true in the Philippines today. Do we really believe that more bloodshed is the best way to solve our problems?

It’s no secret that our President’s “War on Drugs” is coming from a place of truly wanting to the help the Filipinos. After all, no one denies that drugs have caused so much violence and pain in the country and in the lives of so many. However, approaching the problem with a “kill them all” attitude is not helping. It is only fostering a community of fear. And when fear grips a community, violence and conflict are not far behind. People who feel backed into a corner will tend to lash out and I don’t think that’s the response we are looking for. How can the president hope to change things for the better by using the most medieval of means of achieving his goals?

I admit that I believe our country is in need of change. We desperately need to start fresh and make things better, not just for us, but for our children and our children’s children. But I believe that throwing away our most basic human rights and embracing violence is not the way to do it. Wouldn’t that just be us embracing the age-old way of approaching things once again? How can we wash the blood off our hands and just pretend like nothing happened? As Pope Francis said “violence is not the cure for our broken world. It just leads at best to forced migrations and enormous suffering.” We need to find better ways to fix the problems. Only then can we truly find change, move on, and begin to heal.