We cannot deny the fact that our beloved country has
experienced the scourge of injustice and inequality all throughout the course
of its history. Perhaps, injustice has been our country’s deep-seated dilemma
since time immemorial. Gone are the days when our grandparents would told us
that their time was called “peace time”. Today’s society is harassed by heinous
crimes, innumerable death tolls, unjust contractualization among workers,
widespread corruption in the government, unstable economy and many others that,
as St. John in his Gospel would tell us,
“If these were to be described individually, I do not think the whole world
would contain the books that would be written.”[1]
How
does the contemporary Juan and Juana view justice nowadays? What is
the Catholic response to this contemporary view of the Filipino about justice?
Justice and How Contemporary Filipinos View It
Filipinos
are known to be a conservative people. Filipinos are known to have a good value
system. That was before. Today, when we speak about justice, there are really a
lot of opinions emerging from different points of view. Some are still inclined
with what the Church teaches about justice. Still others are too radical in
their understanding about justice. As a preparation for this reflection, I have
come across an article which expresses the anonymous writer’s view of the
needed “justice” in the Philippines nowadays.
The
present system of justice in this country is too slow and far too lenient. Too
often the punishment given to criminal offenders does not fit the crime
committed. It is time to stop dragging out justice and sentencing and dragging
our feet in dispensing quick and just due. All punishment should be
administered in public…Murder should be punished in a manner similar to the way
it was committed…Second time offenders of sex crimes such as rape should be
castrated and emasculated slowly with a dull, rusty knife. The criminal should
be revived every time he passes out from pain. This heinous crime deserves this
much at the very least. After all, this person has violated another person and
taken something away, a trust that can never be fully restored. The victims of
these crimes never fully trust again.[2]
Nowadays,
we are afflicted by numerous crimes and violations. Dead bodies of people, both
guilty and innocent, are thrown on creeks or on the road after they have been
shot dead. Many Filipinas are engaging into cybersex and prostitution. Until
now, contractualization among workers is rampant. We have been unjust with the
use of our environment and its resources. Still others risk their lives to
become drug mules because of their sole reason: matinding pangangailangan. Unfortunately, most of the Filipinos are
losing the sense of morality and justice in order to sustain their living.
As I
see it today, there are three (3) main descriptions about justice in the
Philippines. First, justice is as slow
as a sick and dying turtle. As I browse over the broadsheets some days ago,
I read an article that mercilessly tagged our country’s justice system as the “slowest
in the world.” It is sad to hear but what can we do? Let us take some instances
about this. Still remember the Ozone Disco tragedy? How about the Maguindanao
Massacre? Or the Mamasapano incident where forty-four members of the Special
Action Force (SAF) of the Philippine National Police (PNP) were cruelly killed
by rebels? How about the recent Marawi siege? These are just some of the
thousands and thousands of unresolved cases of injustices in the history of the
Philippines. Perhaps that columnist was right in telling us the upsetting and
inconvenient truth.
Second,
justice is only available for those who
have gold bars for lunch. The more money you have, the more justice you
acquire. The truth can be sold with shining price tag on it. Justice is
commonly portrayed with a blindfolded person holding a balance scale.
Unfortunately, the person holding the balance scale is blindfolded – with
money. Only those who can afford paying so that the truth may be concealed are
the ones justified. As the song goes, Hangga’t
marami ang lugmok sa kahirapan, at ang hustisya ay para lang sa mayaman[3]
Lastly,
justice is something unimportant as a
fly on a pile of dung. When asked about what we should do in order to
maintain justice in the society, there are a lot of opinions coming from
others. Some react negatively, saying that the offenders should be punished
right away with death. Some say that now is the proper time to restore capital
punishment. Some say that this revival of the death penalty will be of great
help in maintaining order in the society. But the worst part is that many other
Filipinos do not care about these things that are happening in the society!
Many Filipinos would say, “Eh ano ngayon
kung marami silang pinapatay? Buti nga ‘yan sa kanila!”, “Ah basta ako, nakakakain ako ng maayos at
natutulog ng masarap sa aking higaan. Wala akong pakialam sa mga palaboy.”
We must remember that not doing anything in order to alleviate the sufferings
of others is itself injustice.
What Should We Do?: The Catholic Response
After
describing the present situation in our country and the contemporary Filipinos’
perspective about justice, what now is the Church’s response to the distorted belief
about justice?
First,
we cannot talk about justice without
considering the main subject of it: the human person. Man is created to be
a free and intelligent being, created in the image of God. He is the crowning
glory of creation. He has a dignity immensely superior than any created thing.
Along with this dignity are the rights which are inviolable and sacred.
Justice, then, requires that all persons should have the enjoyment of all their
rights. Furthermore, man does not appear only as an individual; rather, he
stands in relation to his fellowman and to other living creatures, and he can
act responsibly.
Second,
we need justice in order to reach the
fullness of our personhood. When God created man and woman, He bestowed on
them the faculties of freedom, free will and intellect in order to use these to
attain fullness of life. Despite sin, violence and injustice, God is there for
human beings. People (not just in our country but also) in the world should
regard themselves as a community and accept certain differences between
individuals and peoples, since this variety is to be seen as wealth.[4]
Everyone
should look upon his/her neighbor as his/her another self, with the same
inalienable rights. In recognizing our neighbors’ rights, we do not only render
justice but we also fulfil Jesus’ commandment of love. In fulfilling this
commandment of love, we become more human like Jesus.
Third,
laws are indispensable means of
maintaining justice and are never optional. Justice is the constant will to
give men due to God and neighbor.[5] The
Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us that the society must ensure social
justice, the conditions that allow individuals and associations to gain what is
their due.[6]
The beloved St. John Paul II supported this by saying that social justice
demands respect for the dignity of the person and that what is at stake is the dignity
of the human person.[7]
That is why there are existing laws, whether they are promulgated by the
government or by the Church. Laws help us maintain order in the society. Laws
are of great help in ensuring that justice is served in the society. Justice
without law is not justice in the same manner that law without justice is not
law.
Lastly,
no one has the right to take away one’s
rights. Not even the government or any cruel leader has the authority to
violate the rights of its subjects. If the state does this, then it clearly
commits injustice. That is why the Church is very vocal in expressing its concern
whenever justice is not granted and rights are violated. We have to be clear
that the Social Teachings of the Church are not political strategies or ideals.
What the Church calls for is not the adoption of some rebellious outline. The
Catholic doctrine of justice is one of the main protectors of order, peace, and
progress in a country. It gives the State the authority for the realization of
its end, while at the same time blocks the road to oppression and violence. It
helps us to build a just society and assists us to live holy lives in the midst
of modern-day challenges.
Conclusion
We
are now encouraged by the Church to stand for justice. Justice transcends the
letters of the law. Justice should be complemented with love, mercy,
forgiveness and solidarity. As members of the society, we must ensure that
social justice is observed and protected by respecting each person’s rights, by
eradicating any form of discrimination, by the exercise of human solidarity
especially among the poor, by just distribution of goods, by proper and equal
compensation for work. Through all of these, world peace finds its realization.
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