The treatment of an ex-president as prisoner. There is an inconsistency that cannot be ignored. Here we are talking about preferential option for the poor and yet we seem to be more preoccupied with where an ex-president should be imprisoned. It is as if the most important thing about Erap’s being in jail is to give him privileges. The unstated concern is to treat him differently from other prisoners rather than to emphasize the harm done to the country because of his alleged crimes. Our attitude is really what is wrong. We are unable to shake off this general deference to the rich and powerful in our society at the expense of almost anything else, as a guiding principle of behavior. Had we really been more serious about equality before the law as the foundation of our democratic society, what should occupy us is the harm done by Erap’s governance to millions of the poor.
To me and perhaps to many others, house arrest for Erap is only a re-statement, and therefore a reinforcement, of our unequal society. The question that should occupy us regarding Erap’s imprisonment is whether the law has been justly applied. As it is, we have already made accommodations for him as no. 1 prisoner. If you ask me, Erap’s depression is too small a price to pay in pursuance of the rule of law. Others have observed that despite the lip service to the poor, there has been no concern for the conditions of jail for poor prisoners with non-bailable crimes.
Poverty that can be helped: But leaving aside concern for privileged conditions for Erap’s life in jail, let us move on to the question of poverty. Wawell Osorio, a Christian who has lived and worked among impoverished Muslims in Mindanao, sent a letter of appeal to this column. He cites two examples of poverty that he thinks can be helped with some will from the government. I daresay that much can be done about these causes if there were the same level of concern of extending privileges to Erap. The first is a teacher training program for about 150 Muslim teachers and the second is a re-settlement project of the Badjaos (actually 700 families, 600 of whom are Badjaos and 100 Tausogs and Christians) in two islands in Maluso, Basilan.
Changing the Filipino Muslims’ self-image through education. It is little known that one of the casualties of the recent war in Mindanao is the education of Muslim children in Basilan. The Christian teachers have left, too traumatized by the events to want to return. There would have been no teachers to continue the task of educating Muslim children until the United Fishermen Marketing Cooperative chaired by Benzar Asulo and Wawell Osorio, the Ateneo de Zamboanga headed by Fr. William Kreutz, SJ and its social arm SACSI with Marivic Montano, the executive director, and DECS Basilan’s Superintendent Dr. Omar Aranan took up the problem. Together they devised a crash training program for Basilan Muslim teachers to replace their Christian counterparts. This program fulfills the precepts of the prophet Mohammad about education, learning and scholarship but it very nearly did not take place except for the boldness and determination of Wawell & Co. There was no funding for the project but the organizers borrowed whatever amounts they could raise for the two-week training program in Zamboanga City and did it.
Wawell is convinced that training Muslim teachers is crucial to peace and the future development of Mindanao. Education is the only way to break the self-image of Muslims as warriors or
mujahadeen. Through education, Muslims and their children will be given a new hope for life that they had not thought possible because of war. Worse, this image of themselves as constantly needing to be at war might be self-fulfilling. This was why the training program for Muslim teachers had to be launched at all cost. This was why even without funds Wawell & Co. went ahead with the training program. Ateneo de Zamboanga advanced a hefty amount (P600,000) while the suppliers provided materials for the teachers during the training. There are still amounts to be paid back. Any contributions or suggestions to help the group pay for the cost is welcome. Please make contact with the group through this column for a very worthwhile cause.
The Badjaos –
modern-day slaves in the Philippines. The other program is the resettlement of 600 Badjao families in two islands in Maluso, Basilan which has been planned for two years now. Wawell & Co. are seeking help from the government for the resettlement project. There is a suggestion that one of the islands be renamed Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Island once the Badjaos are resettled there. An ongoing project to rehabilitate Badjaos by the Department of Social Welfare and Development, called
Ahon Badjao, does not seem to have taken off. Over one-half of the beneficiaries of the showcase project in Zamboanga City prefer to join the resettlement project instead. I understand that the DSWD in Basilan is not averse to discussing a joint effort for the resettlement.
According to Wawell, the basic problem about the Badjaos is their slavery. A number of the Badjaos are slaves; that is, they are bought and sold because of their continuing indebtedness. The story of the slavery of the Badjaos will take more than this column can allow. For the moment, suffice it to say that this is an example of extreme poverty that can be solved. Wawell says that resettlement is the key so that the Badjaos can buy out their debts. The debts run from a low of P7,000 for one family to a high of P200,000 for a cluster of 12 families. (Think what Jose Velarde’s account could have accomplished for them.) There are a few without debts, but these are not significant. If the Badjaos can be freed from debt, and provided with material support for livelihood, they could be on their way to support themselves. The Badjaos have special skills for deep-sea diving that no other tribes have – catching lobsters, giant clams, pearls etc. that can be put to good use. I understand that a proposal to make Badjaos self-sufficient is presently with the DSWD and they are awaiting a reply. With declarations of an option for the poor at the center of government policy, that reply should be forthcoming soon and we hope it would mean the liberation of the Badjaos.
My e-mail is
[email protected]
