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Pissed

15 April 2011

Okay, so I was tapping away at the keyboard, enjoying a rare, lazy Saturday morning when I encountered this on Facebook:



As for the comments to the photo:
Rg Gumanao: hahahahahaha...buang jud ka karlos!
Rafael Mandala: hahaha bagay
Karlos Manlupig: ‎Rg Gumanao - haha. ikr. Rafael Mandala - thanks. sobrang namotivate ako na maging part ng GPH peacepanel.lol
Rafael Mandala: hahahahahhahahaha
Karlos Manlupig: ‎Rafael Mandala - kapag ako nag-ala Mike Defensor, kasalanan mo talaga ito
Rafael Mandala: hahahhaa bakit ako? haha
Karlos Manlupig: dahil sa pagcomment mo ng "bagay" namotivate ako
Rafael Mandala: bagay na bagay :D
Karlos Manlupig: teka...bagay? saan na party? GPH o NDF? lol
Rafael Mandala: GPH
Karlos Manlupig: scary. pero pwede rin. walang pera sa NDF. mga pulubi. samantalang sa GPH, show me the money.lol
Rafael Mandala: Hahaha. Karlos Manlupig, GPH Chief Peace Consultant, bagay na bagay.
Karlos Manlupig: lul! kinikilabutan ako.
Karlos Manlupig: scary.hahaha
Rafael Mandala: Hahahha. Ka Karlos Manlupig, pwede rin
Ed Xing: lol. ayos ah. :))
Kyle Paolo Tumbiga: Pwede pwede. Haha.

Somehow, the photo and the commentary that followed just rubbed me the wrong way. At first glance, the photo was not offensive actually. It was just Karlos doing a stupid impersonation of Sir Ednar.

But the context was a different story. The picture was presumably taken during a panel discussion between the NDF and the government, one of a series of events underlining the peace talks to end the country's long-standing communist insurgency. In the light of such serious stuff, one is bound to ethically observe a certain sense of propriety and delikadeza, something which Karlos Manlupig isn't exactly known for (and which perfectly explains the circumstance of this photo).

What did me in was this exchange above:

Karlos Manlupig: teka...bagay? saan na party? GPH o NDF? lol
Rafael Mandala: GPH
Karlos Manlupig: scary. pero pwede rin. walang pera sa NDF. mga pulubi. samantalang sa GPH, show me the money.lol

My eye twitched. Now, I understood the photo for what it was. It was a taunt, an accidental (or is it deliberate?) undermining of the efforts and motives of one of the government's more competent panel members to date. What are the reasons that would compel a young NDF member to pose for such a picture? You can imagine these reasons yourselves and none would be because he simply admires Sir Ed.

So, as the avid interloper, I commented:

"I know Sir Ednar Dayanghirang personally and he's genuinely, passionately concerned about bringing an end to this conflict. And this is what he gets for his troubles? An activist doing a mocking impression behind a nametag bearing his name? I can't believe you guys. Hindi ito cool dude."

In truth, maybe I was stretching the word "personally" quite a bit. But I can say I know Sir Ednar better than Karlos does. I remember that weekday morning when I was a guest in his house, sipping coffee, while listening to him talk about his recent appointment by the President as a peace panel member.

Surprisingly, when he was young, he was also an activist and that spirit of civic involvement that made him one, he carried on until today. He communed with farmers, the masses, knew their needs, understood the other side of the fence, so to speak. He was aware that he was making history, a history that should end with the cessation of all hostilities. For years, he admitted, past administrations had been coasting through the peace talks, hoping time will erode the insurgency. But that tactic no longer worked and it was his job to address the issues squarely in the face, the issues which have kept the insurgency burning till now, and bring about the long-awaited peace.

Did I interpret the photo too seriously? I don't think so. If the tables were reversed and it was, say, Norberto Gonzales, Jr. doing an impression of Fidel Agcaoili, I'm sure the NDF will find offense and will surely smell blood.

So I said what I said. Because Sir Ednar doesn't deserve this. Because we, the nation, do not deserve this as well.

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