Christmas catastrophes

Were all the natural or man-made disasters that came upon us on Christmas a wake-up call from God? When widespread destruction occurs causing pain and suffering, the human spirit is definitely awakened but do we ever change to improve for the better?

Last week news after news came out about different disasters happening in different parts of the world. On Christmas day, as we were rejoicing and merrymaking our countrymen in the Visayas were terribly hit by Typhoon Ursula. In fact, the typhoon didn’t contain itself in the Visayas alone, it also affected areas of Luzon. The very destructive winds and heavy rains lashed and wreak havoc in the regions killing 28 people, 2 injured and 12 missing.

Tens of thousands were stranded at ports waiting for the skies to clear and the seas to calm down. According to the Philippine Coast Guard, there were at least 23,789 stranded passengers in Bicol, Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas, Southern Tagalog, Northern Mindanao, Western Visayas, and Southern Visayas. Dozens of domestic flights were also canceled on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Typhoon ‘Ursula’ made 7 landfalls before releasing its full strength on the Calamian Islands. The first 3 in Eastern Visayas on Christmas Eve (Salcedo, Eastern Samar, Tacloban, Leyte, Cabucgayan, Biliran), the next 3 in Western Visayas on Christmas Day (Gigantes Islands, Carles, Iloilo, Ibajay, Aklan, Semirara Island, Caluya, Antique) and the 7th in Oriental Mindoro (Bulalacao, Oriental Mindoro). Signal #3 with winds of 121 km/hr to 170 km/hr was hoisted in Lubang Island, Cuyo Islands, northern part of Palawan (Linapacan) while Signal #1 with winds of 30 km/hr to 60 km/hr was hoisted in Batangas, Romblon, Marinduque, Bataan, Cavite, the rest of mainland Palawan (Taytay, Dumaran, Araceli), and southern part of Quezon (Sampaloc, Lucban, Tayabas, Lucena, Dolores, Candelaria, Sariaya, Tiaong, San Antonio, Pagbilao, Padre Burgos, Agdangan, Unisan, Pitogo, Macalelon, General Luna, Catanuan).

Seriously damaged from Ursula’s wrath were Tacloban City, Aklan, Biliran, Eastern Samar and Capiz. In Capiz, several homes and buildings including the Lantangan Elementary School, Dumalag Municipal Hall, and the Robinsons Mall in Roxas were destroyed. Even the beautiful resort islands of Coron and Boracay were not spared.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (or the NDRRMC) should know that these areas were also hit by terrible typhoons in the past years. Around 20 storms and typhoons hit these same areas each year killing scores of people and wipe out harvests, homes and infrastructure, keeping millions perennially poor. It’s also about time the NDRRMC get their act together to improve mangement systems in these disaster prone areas.

If government can afford a multi-billion budget, it should be able to support the LGUs in these regions. The evacuation centers are quite pathetic causing more sickness and suffering to an already devastated lot.

*      *      *

In other parts of the world: Venice, Italy a tourist haven was hit by high waves damaging many icons of the city and costing around $1 billion dollars for repairs. Many are pointing to the cruise ships that dock in the areas. In New South Wales, Australia (including Queensland, Victoria, Western and Southern Australia) bush fires continue to blaze. Almost a thousand homes were lost in the fires affecting 3.7 million hectares. A huge number of koalas have died. The Australian summer hit is “apocalyptic” causing much suffering in the region. New Zealand’s White Island volcano erupted and killed 17 people. In the beautiful hills of Valparaiso, Chile a wildfire consumed a hundred homes and the city declared a “communal emergency.” Thousands of people were also displaced by floods in parts of Thailand and Malaysia. In Moscow, Russia temperatures are soaring high. What should have been a snowy, white Christmas became a very hot and gloomy one. While Hong Kong protesters continue their demonstrations on Christmas day.

All throughout the year we experience many highs and lows – testing the very core of our spirit. Nature has been crying out for help. When will the issue on climate change ever be taken seriously and given immediate action? What about the sorrows and the strife caused by humanity? When will we ever learn and bring about the change we need from within and from without? Yes, these are things to ponder on for the coming year – let’s start ushering the season with hope for 2020.

*      *      *

Today is the 123rd death anniversary of our national hero, Jose Rizal. Last year, national artist for Literature and founder of the Philippine PEN (Poets and Playwrights, Essayists and Novelists), F. Sionil Jose urged writers to read the works of Rizal at the 61st Philippine PEN National Congress at the Cultural Center of the Philippines in Pasay. The PEN is the local chapter of the international federation of writers promoting freedom of expression. Jose said, “Read more on what they (heroes) have written in the past. Start with Rizal because his works are important.” He cited Rizal’s classic novels Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, which talked about the Filipino society. “As writers, you must also be able to transcend your ego and recognize that you belong to a larger community… It is not your obligation…to live and write like Rizal. We just have to write from the society that we know. We can only do this if we know ourselves and if we are rooted in our country,” he added. At the Congress, Jose told budding writers to get inspiration from Filipino writers instead of imitating the style of American writers.

Filipino writers play a significant role in nation-building. Perhaps it is indeed time to read Rizal’s works so we can take part in solving the problems of society instead of being part of the problem.

The way Filipino writers write today and the way our leaders lead this nation, as my late father, Max Soliven once said, “Ay pobre Filipinas! Jose Rizal might lament, if he were alive today. So full of talent, bravery, and promise. So bereft of leadership.”

A new year is about to unfold. May we learn from our mistakes of the past year and move on to become better persons.

Happy New Year!