Definitely a Hero

We knew that one day this would come. The incessant downpour of deaths as a result of the war on drugs, and still many other kinds of senseless violence in this country, have finally led to this. A boy, his voice broadcast all over the nation, telling it like he sees it: "A policeman? That's not a hero. The only thing he does is shoot!"

This was just in the context of a television show. He was only playing a game. The hosts were lost in a whirl of fun and impromptu comedic lines. The boy was then asked if he wanted to award a fake trophy to an actor dressed up in a policeman costume. After all, wasn't the cop a hero?

Apparently not. To the shock and embarrassment of the hosts, the live viewers, and the entire nation, the boy's voice rang out. Of course he wouldn't give the trophy to the policeman. He wasn't a hero!

No longer is a policeman automatically a good man. We now have to carefully place adjectives and descriptors before the noun. Like "good cop, bad cop." Rogue cop. Corrupt policeman. Even "erring policemen" in the words of Presidential spokesman Harry Roque when describing those "who digress from standard protocols and abuse their power."

Of course this world view isn't scientific. How the nation views policemen might vary across social strata and economic classes, islands, and provinces. For all I know, plenty of areas still perceive the police, automatically, and without hesitation, as a force for good. So perhaps, instead of wasting money trying to figure out how popular our senatorial candidates are this early in the game, the census takers and pollsters can try estimating public perception of our law enforcers.

Are they still seen as peace enforcers? Protectors? Dutiful sons and daughters of the nation? Or do alarm bells ring when eyeballs land upon the uniform?

The Angono police station recently published tips on how to avoid rape. The tips? "Don't wear short dresses. Don't walk by yourself in a dark place. If you're going on a date, don't drink alcohol".

Add "victim-blamers" to the list of descriptors.

The Philippine National Police has to be careful that those whom they seek to protect do not look at cops as those that their charges wish to be protected from. So much negative publicity, and even movies and television, has unfortunately tarnished their image.

After a private screening of “Buybust,” a cop movie that premiered in New York and soon to be released in local theaters, I came out exhausted. Action sequences aside, the movie forced onto viewers many kinds of cops. The rats. The corrupt and the twisted. Those who connive with the drug dealers. The torturers. And then there was the heroine. The one who clung to her ideals. The one given the chance at triumph and redemption.

The denizens of Grasya ni Maria, a squatter hellhole that represents our country, are unable to distinguish between the forces of good and the forces of evil. Even as the heroine screams for help because she is police, the residents turn upon her and her squad.

Are we at that point already? Was that point of view reflective of reality right now? Or is “Buybust” just a warning from prescient social scientists masquerading as film writers and directors?

It might not be your or my reality, but it certainly is that little boy's.