Philippine Brand vs Chinese Brand of Justice

Last Wednesday, 3 Filipinos died due to being drug mules. My condolences to the families who have lost a precious member of their family. Drug possession in China automatically condemns you to death penalty. However, with the case of 3 Filipinos, our country would like to an exception. Does this sound wrong? As the Malacanang repeatedly stated, we must respect the law of China.

However, media, being their usual selves, feasted on this issue making the grieving process for the families difficult. While I was listening to the radio, one of the families announced of their wish to be left alone as they wait for their beloved daughter's execution. Still, media became persistent and asked the grandmother's condition. As I recall, the questions were: Kamusta na po kayo? Ano ang mga plano ninyo? Ano ginagawa ninyo ngayon? Well, of course, the family feels sad. Why would you ask them of their plans? Isn't this invasion of privacy already?

Even if the radio seems irritating at that moment, I had no choice but to listen. What deeply bothered me the most was the concept of milagro or miracles for Filipinos. The association of miracles with fairness or justice is a bit skewed. Instead of determining the culprit, we plead for a miracle in something that is innately wrong and beyond our control. It's as if Filipinos have easily given up hope on brining justice to the crimes committed. Instead of the media feasting on their emotions, they should have helped identify the drug recruiters (since they're good at finding people too).

What is sad about the Philippines is we don't recognize the value of what each Filipino brings to the country. In that loss of recognition, we, in the end, lose sight of a greater country. Working as individuals, competing against each other will not bring the country to a competitive level at par with the other Asian countries. When someone does, all industries try to shoot it down with all kinds of disrespect one can ever imagine.

Based on the surveys conducted by a certain station, many agreed that the government did what it can. I appreciated that. We all have our limits. We all live in a global world. The best we can do is to educate each other to prevent from having another humiliating event from happening in our country.

We are all responsible for their fate. Each one of us brings the Philippines with us wherever we go. To be considerate to your countrymen, stop, listen and think before doing anything else.

As I end, I would like to quote from an article I've read about the China execution, "moreover, we confuse justice with mercy, or to be more precise, the Philippine brand with the Chinese brand of justice."