Justice is an ideal

Thumbs up to the Aquino leadership for its unswerving stance to weed the misfits that persist in the government organization. A pat on the back to the Department of Justice for remembering the sins of the past from whence the origins of our present misfortunes also come -- and a high-five for greasing the wheels of justice towards those who traded their sins for personal gain and favor. 

While we applaud Aquino’s resolve to bring to justice the “sinners” who were at the helm before him, but the way justice is accomplished under his charge resembles that of his predecessor: hasty, scheming and replete with malice. If P-Noy is earnest to bring real justice, he must learn to despise the same methods used by his adversaries or otherwise face the same ignominy and reputation of the “criminal” he tries to prosecute -- no less different and indifferent as the criminal itself. 

It is not because the former president deserves our sympathy, although it is our moral duty to render sympathy to those who are in pain, but I believe she deserves the sympathy of the judicial system – something that was deprived of her from out of popular impulse. And all these ruckus that demand for her incarceration remind me of the Good Book where Pontius Pilate succumbed to the will of the mob if only to gratify their whim and needless craving for a death sentence on Jesus. But Jesus, at the very least, had his day in court while GMA is already sentenced both in the eyes of the public and this regime.

And for those who are as impatient and dying as the DoJ to see GMA languish in detention, you can bet that she will have her day in jail even without the benefit of her day in court. It’s just only a matter of time. But whether or not GMA is guilty of the charges she was accused of, it is beside the issue. Before us is a case that will test our prudence and character as a nation. A case that does not only concern a former president but a case which concerns us all as to how justice is dispensed with in such distressing fashion specially by a regime rallying for true change.

As it seems, we have been made witnesses to a justice system that’s quick and swift against political foes where certainty of punishment becomes real even before they are heard; and where those who are designated to properly dispose of it can freely disturb its order and ignore the will and wisdom of the authorities above them. We have fought against the “wang-wang” which symbolizes privilege and abuse of position and yet we wrestle against “right processes” to see justice the way we want it and as swift and convenient as the wang-wang would have its way. If I’m not mistaken, the reason why lady justice is represented by a woman is to symbolize forethought, diligence and patience. But it’s such a pitiable sight that lady justice must aboard the wang-wang for the people who were charged to preserve her traditions wanted her to be fast and cold to their enemies.

A government intrinsically has no conscience but can be made conscientious if it is run by conscientious men. In the same wise, a government can be made kind if it is governed by kind men. Hence, I believe that justice is not just about being right – it is essentially about being kind. Between being right and being kind, kindness is far more desirable. For how can you be right when you are unkind?

If we are to serve justice, first we must look at the accused not as an offender but as a human being. His or her entitlements and rights as human being should be given our utmost regard. But here, in an attempt to impress upon the public that even former presidents are not above the law, the government had demonstrated no regard for the human condition knowing that GMA was evidently sick, distraught and harassed.

Justice without mercy is cruelty.

If a government is mean to a former president there is no reason for it to be any kinder to ordinary criminals. Fundamental to our belief in justice is that it is not just always about crime and punishment or our dealings with others, but also with ourselves. Justice, therefore, is not just only the will to do what’s fair and right towards our neighbor – it is a reflection of our sense of what is humane in the course of finding it. Justice is a personal ideal and when done collectively, becomes an ideal of a strong nation.

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