Unpacking Climate Justice: What does it mean and entail?
In our concern for an equitable distribution of benefits and resources, we tend to overlook two other critical dimensions of justice: participation and recognition.
All posts filed under: Politics
Editorial: Burying “heroes” and memories
Susan comes from a small rural village in the Visayas. Her family lives a hand-to-mouth existence, tilling soil that is not theirs. In September 1972, when Marcos declared martial law, and in the years that followed, their lives carried on as usual. Martial law merely passed them by with nary a scrape. With vague recollections of that period, it comes as no surprise that Susan’s family feels nothing towards the issue of Marcos’ burial in the Libingan ng mga Bayani. Susan herself, despite a first year college education, believes that the burial is just and right for one who has been president of the country. Susan’s reactions resonate with the throng of commenters on social media who feel strongly that Ferdinand Marcos is a hero. Some would label them as ‘ignorantly deluded,’ much like the holocaust deniers who believe that the holocaust was a figment of the German Jews’ imaginations, an event created to justify the subsequent occupation of Palestinian territories in Israel. But one cannot simply deny the murder of more than six million …
Caricature: NEVER A HERO
“There is no crueler tyranny than that which is perpetuated under the shield of law and in the name of justice.” -Charles de Montesquieu
The Philippines – US Bilateral Military Relations: The ties that bind, or so it seems?
In the aftermath of the Second World War, two important agreements that initially defined the legal parameters of US-RP security relations were signed. These are the Philippine-American Military Bases Agreement (MBA) and the Philippine-American Military Assistance Agreement (MAA). In furtherance of these agreements, the two countries also signed a Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) on August 30, 1951. The treaty stipulates that “an armed attack in the Pacific Area on either of the Parties would be dangerous to its own peace and declares that it would act to meet the common dangers in accordance with its own peace and safety… and in accordance with its constitutional processes” (Mutual Defense Treaty between the Republic of the Philippines and the United States of America). Through the MBA, the US initially maintained 23 military installations in the country, including the Clark Air Force Base and the naval installation in Subic Bay, for an initial lease period of 99 years. The MBA, however, was amended in 1979 and updated in 1983 to decrease the lease period to 25 years. The …
On being bobotante: Do we have the monopoly of intelligence?
Casting one’s vote during is not simply an act of choosing candidates – it is a culmination of our past and present social location, the lifelong conditions informed by our class, education, family, and religion that make us who we are and that allow us to arrive at a particular judgment of what is “best.”
The election question: How disconnected are we from rural realities?
While historical causes, political conditions, and entrenched patron-client relationships cannot be discounted in the examination of rural poverty, a rethinking of spatial organization may be in order to avoid the pitfalls of locational biases.
Editorial: Voting as an act of the social
These last few months have been difficult for many Filipinos. (Perhaps fun, for some.) “Difficult,” however, is an understatement to anyone who has gone through the stress of keeping up with the national elections – filtering tirades against one’s intellect, convincing others to rethink their picks, and rolling one’s eyes at “mema” rants on social media, some burning bridges along the way. We have been pinned down by the limited choices at our disposal, and swept up by our inclination to defend them, thinking to ourselves yet again that the only way to get through another term is to vote for the “lesser evil.” The 3rd Presidential Debates last 24 April 2016 is perhaps the culmination of a long process of elimination, resulting in a choice that reflects not only what we want in a society but the lens by which we view the world. The stress caused by the elections is warranted; it indicates the differences in our values, beliefs, and desires, despite sharing a country and a dominant culture. Indeed, the acts of …
Caricature: On change and the elections
No matter who wins in this year’s elections, remember: The world will keep on spinning. It’s up to you to make real change happen.
Rodrigo Duterte and the dilemma of masculinity
Duterte’s statement echoes what many in the Philippines believe – that it is normal for men to be philanderers because it is written in their biological make-up. Many believe that men are naturally macho, and women, naturally feminine, because the sexes are born that way.
Jejomar Binay and the ambiguity of defining dynastic politics
While the definition of political dynasty may be problematic as Binay suggests, what constitutes skills, knowledge, and experience is also unclear, and therefore subject to arbitrary interpretation.
VERSTEHEN 