'Racialized'

One of the newer terms that’s been used in politics and media is “weaponized” or “weaponizing” where people turn an otherwise neutral thing such as gender or the likes and use it as a weapon to attack, beat down or criticize their opponents. In the last few days, the latest strategy I’ve seen is how a serious public concern has been “racialized” where no less than the President and his men have fought back public criticism for the government’s slow response to the novel coronavirus by calling it racial discrimination or xenophobia.

I beg to disagree with the President and his advisers on the matter because the current paranoia and panic that the President and his men have referred to in recent days is the result of officials desperately trying to contain matters, particularly information, in the belief that by doing so they could maintain an impression of normalcy and the belief that government is in control. Yes, the government was and is in control as far as their agenda is concerned, because they were the only ones who actually knew what was going on, what was done and what was not being done. In the mean time, the whole world was already talking about the disease, how contagious it was, how the number of deaths and the infected increased day by day while the DOH delayed acknowledging the seriousness of the situation, claiming they had to wait for confirmatory results from Australia, one of the countries which declared the nCoV as a serious health concern 10 days before the Philippines did. The simple fact is the Philippines got left behind as governments around the world took definitive action to protect their borders and their citizens. No one is asking for an apology or has resorted to labeling government officials, but please, let us not weaponize xenophobia or racialize a legitimate public health scare that has nothing to do with race or color. 

If President Duterte’s advisers had been monitoring international news coverages, they could have informed the President that many Hong Kong Chinese were demanding that their government close down the borders with mainland China. Some towns near Wuhan and around Mainland China had already set up civilian volunteers to guard the entry ways to their towns to prevent non-residents from entering in order to prevent the virus from spreading and contaminating local residents. These were Chinese expressing the same concern and suggestions that Filipinos were doing. Are Pinoys being xenophobic simply because they are Filipinos? Where is the racism in wanting to temporarily stop flights to and from China to prevent a virus from spreading, the very same enemy virus that a high Chinese official referred to as the enemy. Many of us have seen news videos of drones being used in Wuhan, China that patrol the streets and accosting residents who go outdoors without face masks. Telling them to put on their mask or go home and avoid infecting others or getting infected. So when the Chinese do it to fellow Chinese that’s ok and not racist, but we Filipinos are not even allowed to suggest quarantine and health actions to protect Filipinos? That is so wrong on so many levels.

When President Duterte said on national TV that “China has been kind to us,” I wish he could have heard the individual and collective dismay or disgust of viewers. Their response was a collective “NO,” but not because Filipinos are racists or xenophobic. They simply resent and reject China’s intrusion and annexing of Philippine territory, naval bullying of small filipino fishing boats, and the chaotic open door policy of the Duterte administration for Chinese POGO workers and tourists who eventually overstay to set up businesses that compete and displace the business of Filipino Chinese and Pinoys. We don’t discriminate against a race, we simply do not welcome criminals who kidnap their fellow nationals, who put up restaurants that don’t welcome or allow Filipinos to enter, criminals who put up brothels and prostitution dens and gangs that manufacture, smuggle and sell large volumes of shabu under the protection of Filipino officials they have corrupted!

When you think about it, Filipinos have not targeted, retaliated or even directed their displeasure against mainland Chinese nationals. The Filipinos are actually expressing their displeasure and disapproval toward the Duterte administration’s preferential treatment for the mainland Chinese, which for all intent and purposes is the official and national policy dictated upon us by the Duterte administration. Filipinos are pointing out the failure of leadership and government to act swiftly in favor of Philippine public health and safety. Perhaps that is the government’s definition of racism and xenophobia; it’s when you disagree with the government’s special treatment, protection and defense of mainland Chinese and when you tell them how to do their jobs correctly!

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I recently visited the Philippine Children’s Medical Center or PCMC and I overheard from one of the doctors that a number of private hospitals were pressuring the PCMC management to accept PUIs or Patients Under Investigation for nCoV from private hospitals. It seems that the mere presence of PUIs was enough to drive away potential clients and patients. In the mean time, the congressional committee on health is reportedly preparing to investigate reports that other private hospitals have been refusing to accept potential PUIs. I’m thankful that the senior management of the Philippine Children’s Medical Center politely declined the requests of the private establishments because their first priority is the well-being of children whose health are already compromised by pediatric illnesses. The PCMC is no place for PUIs or novel coronavirus patients!

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