A Homily for Peace

As the ghost writer of Mong Palatino (USC-UPD Chair), this was something for the 23rd anniversary of the Parish of the Holy Sacrifice at the UFO-shaped cathedral.


Warmest Greetings on on the 23rd Anniversary of the Parish of the Holy Sacrifice, with the theme Sambayanang Kristiyanong Naglalakbay Tungo sa Kapayapaan. As a Christian, I am deeply honored by the invitation to speak, and humbly come from the University Student Council to be part of this Shared Homily, to talk on Ways of making peace in the country not just an ideal but a reality.
This is an opportune time to talk about peace, we hear from the news that the Estrada government is waging an all-out war in Mindanao, even as it daily wages war on the lives of every Filipino. (pause)
As we ponder today the meaning of peace, we ask what it is that pushes our people to engage in war. As Christians, we have been taught to have a moral imagination – one that enables us to put ourselves in the situation of others, even if at times we consider these others as enemies. This imagination, I believe shall point to us the direction towards peace in the country.
It is said that the most perceptible manifestation of peace is the absence of war. But let us not be deluded by this statement. If the poor man has nothing to eat, then for him there is no peace. If a family has no house for shelter, no home to live in, then for that family there is no peace. If in society there is no social justice, then for our people there is no peace. Thus we can see that the absence of war is a simplistic definition of peace.
But even as we clarify this, it is evident that war is going on. The Mindanao crisis has reached such an intensity and has exacted the heaviest toll on the civilian population. To show the situation in the South, I have taken facts from the Research and Public Information Desk of HALAD-West, a non-government disaster response agency.
According to HALAD-West, "the first wave of hostilities between the government's military forces and the MILF started in the municipality of Carmen, North Cotabato. By March, armed violence broke out in Lanao del Norte after the government forces started attacking MILF formations in the area. Affected as a consequence were the towns of Munai, Pantao Ragat, Matunggao, Baloi, Kauswagan, Linamon, Maigo, Bacolod, Kulambugan, and Sapad all in Lanao del Norte; and some parts of Iligan."
(Look at the audience) You will notice how the names of these places are unfamiliar to us. What I'm trying to show is that the war has a face, that the communities affected are real, that the war in Mindanao has exacted its tolls, as felt by the real victims of war in the affected areas.'
Recent government figures indicate that some 113,706 families have been displaced. Many of these families remain in evacuation centers for fear of violence in their area or because their houses were burned down or destroyed from the AFP's indiscriminate shelling and aerial bombardments. Several towns in Mindanao are now virtual ghost towns. Self-imposed curfews have been adopted. These evacuation camps lack necessary facilities like potable water system, toilets, ventilation, sleeping quarters and beddings, kitchen and utensils. Other problems include shortage of food supplies, overcrowding, and very poor sanitation which poses health risks, especially to the elderly, pregnant women and children. Children have been affected by measles and cholera during their prolonged stay in the evacuation centers. People have also fallen ill due to stomach disorders, skin diseases, and upper respiratory problems such as cough and colds. Incidents of death due to ailments have also been reported.
Compared to the government's billions of pesos resources spent for the war, government agencies have extended only P37M for assistance, mostly relief. No comprehensive plan has been drafted for emergency.
The range of responses from different organizations has not been limited to relief and other assistance. Many organizations and individuals are calling for an end to the war in Mindanao. They have been pointing out the deadly costs of war as a reason to cease fire. Various peace initiatives are calling for, among other things
· A stop to the all-out war in Mindanao, indiscriminate bombings and the formation of vigilante groups
· Immediate resumption of peace talks between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines and rebel forces
· Respect for human rights and observance of international humanitarian conventions
· Relief and rehabilitation of the victims of war, and the provision of state funds for this purpose

I have sketched out the effects of an all-out war. But what we do not see is the daily war being waged on our other people by the government. War is not all about soldiers and rebels, it is not all about military victories and triumphs; it is about people who have nothing to eat. It is about the division of society into classes, and the action of people who are tired of being socially marginalized and who have to fight for their future. War is about the struggle for life, and how to sustain its existence. It is about a government, which should work for the people, but instead is neglecting its responsibility of giving adequate social services and continually burying the Filipino people in deepening poverty by its subservience to foreign economic, political and socio-cultural dominance.
War in our present situation is being worsened by a government which refuses to find the real causes of war and poverty, but instead chooses to divert the attention of the people from its own moribund existence by waging a costly and deadly, but nonetheless showy and with-all-the-effects war.
Solving war means digging up its root causes. The situation justifies us to take sides in the issues of the day. Should we continue supporting a government thirsting for the exercise of martial might? Or do we oppose, and take side for those hungering for a source of life, and of light?
It must now become clear to us that any improvement in the present situation necessarily demands vigorous and passionate struggle. Ang mamamayang naghahangad ng kapayapaan at kinabukasan ay nakikipaglaban upang makamit ito. The voices of people like us who want peace are drowned in the battle cry of those who have an interest in keeping the war going. Thus it is imperative for people who want peace to unite and work for the achievement of just and lasting peace. Ang mamamayang nagkakaisa, makakamit ang hinahangad.
Again, I greet you in behalf of the University Student Council of Diliman on the 23rd Anniversary of the Parish of the Holy Sacrifice. We are also celebrating the University of the Philippines 92nd Foundation Day. May these milestones be venues for the achievement of social change for a just and lasting peace. Mabuhay kayong lahat! Mabuhay ang Sambayanang Pilipinong naghahangad ng Kapayapaan!