The Philippine Online Chronicles

When Madrid was targeted in an act of terror that saw almost 200 people die in a train bombing, the city and the country of Spain united in mourning for the victims. Barely a day after the tragedy, hundreds and even thousands of locals started congregating in public places in brazen display of solidarity and refusal to be intimidated by the efforts of groups to destroy the resolve of the Spanish people. Similar scenes were also seen following the attacks in London. After the smoke cleared, a considerable number of people from one of the busiest cities in the world took time to offer flowers near the scene of the crime and pay tribute to the senseless loss of life that had just transpired.

Strangely, this is not what is happening in the wake of the hostage crisis that sadly cost nine Hong Kong nationals their lives. To put it really simply, these people were just taking a vacation – perhaps wanting to take a load off from the usual hustle and bustle of the Hong Kong metropolis. They have chosen to go to the country and give the Philippines’ relatively ailing tourism sector a pick me up considering how far our neighboring Southeast Asian countries have come.

Instead of having droves of Manila residents flock to the scene of the crime or even the Chinese Embassy in the Philippines to offer some flowers, candles, prayers and support for the victims, what is being portrayed in the media right now are very shameful displays of insensitivity and lack of compassion. Photographs taken in front of the still-cordoned crime scene have made the rounds in social networking sites and even CNN has started broadcasting the images. The network has also said that the images have stoked further the already simmering tension in Hong Kong – a territory which has a lot of Filipino migrant workers.

It’s a bit gut-wrenching to see some students still clad in their school uniforms to pose in front of the bullet-riddled bus that was actually the place where almost a dozen people died just a couple of days ago.  Even more appalling was the photo of a guy who was grinning with his thumb sticking out to sport an “okay” sign was also very annoying. The coup de grace was certainly the set of photos taken by members of the police and the SOCO (scene of the crime operatives) with a female member of the SOCO seemingly smiling as she posed in front of the smashed windows of the bus. As a blogger, I also embarrassed that at least one blogger has taken this situation so lightly that he had the gall to take a picture behind the police line just a day after the deadly incident.

The capacity to care

A handful of private citizens have also gone to the lot near Quirino Grandstand to pay their respect, offer flowers and say some prayers for those who perished and perhaps come to terms with the already eroded image of the country to the rest of the world. In terms of scale however, it is dwarfed by the actions of the insensitive few who have caught the ire of many Hong Kong and Chinese nationals. Filipinos have proven that they are capable of a great degree of outpouring of love and compassion when the nation as a whole united and gave former president Corazon Aquino a send off fit for a nation’s favourite daughter and respected aunt. However, it seems like Filipinos have not shown the world just how much they really care about what just happened to innocent tourists from Hong Kong on that fateful August morning.

The mishandling of the hostage crisis along with the incompetence of the local police force has led some Hong Kong nationals to take out their pent up frustrations against their Filipino domestic helpers. While it is unfair and definitely wrong, the people living in Hong Kong are probably livid to the indifference being shown by the Filipinos who have taken pictures near the crime scene. While the Philippines has always been one of the top destinations for tourists from HK and the rest of China due to its relative proximity, many have since decided to cancel their tours due to the recent events. The loss of life and the diplomatic spat between Hong Kong and the Philippines would surely cost the latter considerable tourism revenues. According to the Department of Tourism, Hong Kong is the fifth leading source of tourists for the country with over 13 000 visiting the country in 2010.

In other fronts

During Typhoon Ondoy and Pepeng, the rest of the world generously opened their hearts and their pockets to donate millions of pesos through various charities that were willing to receive money on behalf of the victims of the typhoons and floods. These events also sparked a great sense of “bayanihan” or solidarity among those who could afford to give donations. Those who had time to spare opted to volunteer considerable hours in venues that allowed for the collecting and repackaging of relief goods.

The United Nations has also said that the disaster that has befallen the Indus River Valley of Pakistan has become so huge that the humanitarian crisis that has resulted from it is worse than the combined aftermaths of the 2004 South Asian Tsunami, the recent earthquake in the politically-unstable region of Kashmir and this year’s quake that levelled the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince. Despite the strong call for donations to aid the millions of people who have been displaced by the flooding, the world has been slow to react. Filipinos who were fortunate enough to receive some of the generosity from the rest of the world haven’t really opened their wallets to make a sizable contribution. Ask the people you know if they’ve given to Pakistan relief efforts and you’ll be very lucky if you can find more than three people from your circle.

It feels like as if the country is very fast to try and appeal to the kindness of others when the Filipino people are in need but is somewhat blasé during the times when other countries are the ones in need of compassion and assistance. The optimist in me would like to think that this comes from an inability to express the necessary sentiments that could communicate genuine concern and grief over a given situation. It’s almost as if the escapist tendencies of Filipinos has allowed for the leeway to block off the rest of reality so that the rest world can go on and move forward as the nasty afterglow of the event lingers in the background.

This willingness to just forget about the “inconvenient” presence of responsibilities and criticism seemed really evident as the country immersed itself in the artificial and pretentious pomp of the 2010 Miss Universe pageant that saw the nation’s representative Maria Venus Raj come up with a respectable fifth place finish despite flubbing the answer to the final question.  It was a welcome distraction during the tense moments that preceded the standoff and subsequent tragedy but it needs to be underscored that the jubilation about Raj’s success and the death of over half a dozen people were within 14 hours of each other. Any other country watching how the Filipinos have carried themselves shortly after the hostage taking would certainly feel slighted. While Filipinos did have the right to watch and celebrate the success of their kababayan – and yes, the Miss Universe pageant was certainly scheduled way ahead of time as opposed to the hostage crisis being an unexpected fortuitous event that caught everyone by surprise; a certain of decorum would have been required as far as behavior shortly after the tragedy is concerned.

Picking up the pieces

As we as a nation try to salvage what bit of dignity of we can still salvage on the failed operation of the police, the failure of the government of Noynoy Aquino and the wanton disregard of some irresponsible members of the media for the safety of the hostages, we should also examine how we as Filipinos dealt with the situation and conducted ourselves. Yes, the incompetence of the police, corruption and government and perhaps the arrogant demeanor of some media outfits are so routine to us that we’ve accepted them as a fact of life and part and parcel of being Filipino but at the end of the day, we must not allow these so-called realities cloud our ability to feel compassion – and more importantly to show this feeling of sadness and grief outwardly to those who are really hurting.

As much as we want to divorce our identity with the police, the government and the media, we are united by the thread of being Filipino. The move to distance ourselves from the players who have caused this embarrassing and tragic result for the Philippines does nothing but make us cold to the real deal – people died on our home ground. And yes, it happened in Luneta – one of the most hallowed grounds in all of the Philippines for being the burial place of Dr. Jose Rizal. It happened so close to the Quirino Grandstand; the place where many Filipinos hummed and sang with Noel Cabangon as Noynoy Aquino was inaugurated as the country’s new President. What started out as being a place where hope was once again born is now a very gloomy reminder to police incompetence and yes, insensitive usiseros who are now tabloid fodder in Hong Kong.

Yes, as a nation, we have endured many disasters – both man-made and natural. We have been hardened in our resolve by these challenges but hopefully, this ability to be steadfast and resilient has not made us xenophobic and just apathetic to the struggles and trials of other people.  There are a lot of people from Hong Kong who certainly feel that way right now.

Photos by Anton Sheker. Some rights reserved.