A random rant on EDSA People Power's 31st anniversary

Because of a comment on this post shared via Facebook. Forgive me for ranting because I could not help it. Nevertheless, know that I am not retracting anything.


To those who bash us "anti-Marcos" peeps by citing the atrocities of the administrations after Marcos, especially those in the two Aquino eras:

I for one DO NOT JUSTIFY the cruel incidents that involved the post-Marcos/EDSA People Power '86 administrations, like the Hacienda Luisita incident and the massacre of protesters back in Cory Aquino's time. As in Martial Law, I DO NOT WANT those other brutal incidences (include in the list the Ampatuan massacre and the recent EJKs) TO HAPPEN AGAIN.

Alam niyo kung ano yung nakakainis (at nagpo-post ako ng ganito ngayon)? You TRY TO JUSTIFY the MASSacre of Martial Law while condemning the other administrations' faults, WHEN IN FACT THEY ARE ALL THE SAME. THEY ARE ALL ANTI-HUMAN RIGHTS. No administration is perfect, sabi ninyo. Totoo naman. Pero wagas kayo maka-criticize ng ibang administrasyon samantalang bulag-bulagan kayo sa mga mali ng Marcos admin/regime.

You're telling us that we are unfair. But look at the previous paragraph and the following sentences. Sino kaya sa atin ang unfair? You call us "dilawan." Heck, I'm telling you that not all anti-Marcoses are pro-Aquino, and I am one of those anti-Marcoses who must admit that, even though all presidents have done some good anyway, even the other presidents, other government figures in our country, still have much to work on, much to fix. Just as we citizens do.

Kaya 31 years na ang People Power, parang wala pa ring nangyayari sa atin. We have always been stuck in the past. Okay then, tell us and the thousands of families who lost their loved ones in the Martial Law era to fucking "move on." Sige, stuck na rin sila sa past. Stuck na rin kami sa past. But even when we "forgive," consequences still come as a result of actions. You can never blame these families if they are having a hard time to "move on" as you suggest. You can never blame us for feeling the same way for them, even though we weren't yet born into the world during the Martial Law era. There were so much blood, so much lives, wasted. So many wise voices oppressed. And sadly, some more in the following administrations. Sige, also tell us and the activists, Marcos era to present, that, "You should have just shut up!" I am not an activist, in the sense that I do not join rallies, but heck, you can never blame them from protesting because they're trying to tell the government what needs to be fixed. They are crying out to the government on our behalf for help--only to find their end in death by either "salvage" or being run over by a police car, or by any other brutal way.

Moving on, moving forward, does not mean that the guilty will go unpunished.
Forgiving does not mean you approve of what is in fact wrong.

Nowadays I really want to be "apathetic," to not give a fuck at all to the things happening around me. But it doesn't help. Neutrality was never helpful, and it might not even exist, really. "Unbiased" does not mean having no bias at all, but choosing what one would think is the right side to take--right meaning which side best serves not only one's personal interests but also the welfare of others. As for me, I take my stand not for some president, but for the country's freedom from impunity, corruption, and abuse of power.

PS. I do not deny that there were actually ulterior motives behind the first People Power Revolt. But you know what? The real revolution, one that really cares for God and country as oneself, starts in each and everyone of us ðŸ˜Š

Comments

Popular Posts