Issues

Culture of Fear… by:Maribeth Q. Galindo November 18, 2008

                     What’s with the culture of fear? How the people live if they are bounded with the culture of fear? Is there any possibility to put an end with the culture of fear? These might some of the questions that you would probably ask…..

                     Anyway, you are within the premises of culture of fear if you live in a society wherein the government leaders, influential personalities or group of people do actions that causes anxiety and sorrow. Thus, by impending danger, evil or pain among people it arouses distressful emotions, then you are bounded within the culture of fear.

                    Historically, before colonization period, culture of fear was instilled into the minds of the local settlers by their chieftains or the so-called Datu, the head of their barangay. According to history writings, it was made clear to all members of the community that those who were proven guilty of violating the laws will be punished. Thus, the imposition of cruel and bitter punishment such cutting the fingers of a robber or cutting the head of a rapist or a murderer developed the culture of fear for the other not to follow.

                   Moreover, during Spanish period, culture of fear was more emphasized by the Spanish colonizers in order to control the people of the colony. Any Filipinos who go against the Spanish government by any means will be punished. Those who questioned about the unjust Spanish governance in a form of writing were usually put into jail or some of them were exiled to far places. In addition, those who led the uprising against the Spaniards were arrested and executed. Sadly, most of the leaders of the revolts who implicated a revolutionary plot if caught were given harsh penalties. To name some, Agustin de Legaspi, Martin Mangan, Dionisio Fernandez and others who attempted to regain their lost freedom in Tondo, Manila were brutally hanged. Their heads were cut off in public and place in iron cages. These cruel penalties created fearful emotions among Filipinos. It developed anxiety to the colony and it brought sorrow to those who lose their loved ones. With the evil deeds of the colonizers, it showed a great danger to people who tries to detach from the Spanish tyranny. Indeed, it caused so much pain to those who became the victims of injustices. Nevertheless, same scenario happened during American and Japanese colonization. The inculcation of culture of fear was deeply implanted into the minds of every Filipinos.

                In the contemporary time culture of fear still prevail. Newscasters, radio announcers, writers or journalist who publicly criticized or exposed the anomaly of a certain person who has the position in the government unfortunately, they were assassinated. With the killing of these media people, it clearly shows that the culture of fear still prevalent at present time. Terrorist act were used in order for these people to remain in power.

                  Now, is it possible to put an end with this culture of fear? Yes, there would always be a possibility to end this up if the people will overcome the fear in their mind and be courageous enough to say something if they have seen any wrong doings and be brave enough too to stand for what they believe is right and truth no matter what it takes even sacrificing their own life. But it’s not easy to do this it takes a very long process of reshaping the mind of the people and abolishing the culture of fear. Can you take the challenge?…………….           

Is it right of the women to court? by: Maribeth Q. Galindo September 15, 2008

                         In the world where we live, everything is fast changing beliefs, traditions, laws, arts, norms and others. Sociologically, these changes are brought about by the new innovations, inventions, discoveries and diffusions thus, making people’s life more complicated.

                    One of the big changes that took place was the manner on how women were treated. Culturally, women were/are not treated equally with man, thus women were/are considered an inferior being. As time gone by, these impressions towards women are slowly corrected through education and therefore increasing the level of awareness about women’s right happened. Equality of rights between men/women is recognized by laws. With these, there are women who claim that one of their rights that should be enjoyed is courting the man. Do you agree? Now, if you belong to a conservative culture and your orientation about courtship is somewhat limited no doubt! Your answer is a big NO.

                         Apparently, women cannot do anything that she wants to do because she is bounded by the so ca culture. It’s the culture that tells what is good/bad, right/wrong, proper/improper, moral/immoral that put man/woman in a box that sets limit of what to do and not to do. Obviously, there is some culture that does not welcome courtship initiated by a woman. If a woman does it she will be labeled as flirt, cheap or negatively criticize. Women are discouraged to court the men simply because the culture says it.

                         On the other hand, modern women took the challenge. They excel in the fields of politics, business, education, sports and others just named it and you’ll find them. Thus, believing that they can also court the man because they too are capable of expressing what they have felt. Why not? If they have the guts to do it but be reminded to face the consequence like you might be rejected, ignored, or insulted by the man that you courted especially if the man has a conservative outlook of what courtship means. Thus, women are ready to be basted because it is also the right of the man to refuse a woman if he feels so. Now, would it matter if the woman courts a man? Do we really have the right to court the man? If you believe that it is our right, can you exercise the said right? What can you say man?

A Reflection on Measuring Philippine Development by: Maribeth Q. Galindo September 1, 2008

                    The Philippines, categorically, is a nation which, unfortunately belongs to the third world country, a definition of relatively struggling nation when it comes to economic progress and development. This category has been the country’s unfavorable image for a long period of time, hence, the government and other private sectors made strenuous efforts and programs to get rid of this status by creating different techniques just to improve the condition of living of every Filipino people in general.

                   This is maybe the reason the Development Academy of the Philippines conducted a study on The Social Indicators to hopefully implemented an appropriate program for national welfares. The social indicator’s project aims to gauge the present condition of the Philippines in the modern society; its objective is a system of measurement which is capable of depicting aspects of both improvement and deterioration in national welfares.

                    The report extensively contains an appraisal of the circumstances of Filipino welfares, its causes and effects and the right things to be done especially for political leaders to be more considerate in creating laws and programs. The social indicators presented hopefully will be used as guidelines in identifying and implementing the right policies. The government has its responsibility to rightfully disseminate the information to the general public, so they will be informed on the great deal of this awareness.

                   The term “welfare” as define in the report is used in broad sense. It is associated with “well being”, “happiness”, “quantity of life”, “state of development” and other terms which is meant to refer to the degree of achievement of the important goals of Philippine society as the whole project proceeded.

                   The following are the proposed set of social indicators for the Philippine welfare:

1. Health and Nutrition — free from hunger, malnutrition and disease in life.
2. Learning — Acquisition of knowledge and skill on the job.
3. Income and Consumption — freedom from poverty, for greater consumption and for protection against inflation.
4. Employment — people be able to work and to be fairly compensated.
5. Non-human productive resources — the rate of exploitation doe not prejudice future generation.
6. Housing, utilities and the environment — basic concern for proper housing, safe water, electricity and clean air to breathe.
7. Public Safety and Justice — basic concern for peace and order and for speedy, equitable and efficient justice.
8. Political Values — basic concern for a democratic government with freedom both to participate.

                      Social indicators then is equated with welfare indicators which is designed to reflect the degree of enhancement in any social concern on the degree of sharing in that enhancement among present day Filipinos and between those alive and unborn. But in analyzing different aspects of achievement and welfare, the policies should be totally diverse from other countries and territories because the Philippine society needs are far more different and that the national welfare is based on the present condition, culture and tradition of Filipinos. But even its citizen also has different needs, the underprivileged has different priorities and necessities compare to the upper class. They are more concern on their personal needs than that of their environment.

                       Thus, in order to achieve a progressive condition of the Filipinos, the indicators used for evaluating the improvement as well as the deterioration of the national welfare must be significant and clearly defined to come up with orderly and well organized policies to harmonize with the present situation of the Philippine society with fairness regardless of the class and status of each individual. The national welfares reflected different concerns and considerations specifically political, social and ethical. These concerns must be put into consideration when implementing policies to avoid biases and discrimination against certain groups and individuals. Ethnically, Philippines subdivided into different groups and this variation has mixed traditions, beliefs and needs and these considerations sometimes are so sensitive that the social indicators must be carefully outlined to compliment these factors.

                    The modern world is fast changing, norms sometimes dictate society and in order to be more responsive with this changes, the environment must completely in harmony with the level of condition of the lives of every citizen to function well in the society. The national welfares should be taken care of and be equally distributed to every single person to experience life in a more meaningful and sensible way. If these needs will not meet and if the welfare is inadequate, chances are, development and progress is impossible to achieve and as a result, slow improvement in the different aspects of life and convenience is too dim for everyone to experience. Economic and ethical concerns, in some ways are two inseparable states when progress is concerned because they both played an important role in the lives of the people. Without economic stability, society tends to slump down, without fairness in ethical conditions, environment lost the very profound of freedom in every areas. Therefore these two basic concerns should be satisfied first in order to achieve a just and humane society, penetrating further the real meaning of development.