WHY MAYOR ESTRADA IS WRONG ON HONG KONG
Rosa Parks. A different bus.
Subtitled: Filipinos Should Not Move to the Back of the Bus
As is often the case, kindly bear with me as I wander through some facts and acts, and examine things a bit, before arriving at a conclusion.
I’m sure most of you are aware of the background of the incident commonly known as the “Bus Massacre”. Eight Hong Kong tourists were killed on August 23, 2010, when an angry Filipino, holding the tourists hostage on a bus, opened fire on the hostages as Filipino police, trying to apprehend him, charged the bus.
The case has festered for three years because Hong Kong demands apology and remuneration from the Philippines while President Aquino holds to a “no apology” position. It is about as intricate as an issue comes. It reflects cross-cultural dynamics, national sovereignty, legal issues, and a lot of human emotions.
A Quick-Study of the Situation
Here is a wide-ranging list of some pertinent details that are in some way related:
- Hong Kong holds that the Philippine government was negligent in how officials handled the situation, resulting in unnecessary deaths. Hong Kong demands an official apology from the Philippine government, cash payments to families, punishment of officials in charge, and clear steps to assure a repeat will not occur.
- The Philippines (President Aquino) holds that the incident was the result of the hostage taker’s transgressions, and that Philippine officials responded the best that they could in a circumstance of considerable danger and unpredictability. The Philippines has expressed its regrets to the families of the slain tourists and offered financial remuneration to victims.
- Yesterday, November 5, 2013, Hong Kong’s Chief Executive issued a 30-day ultimatum to the Philippines, essentially “do as we tell you or face sanctions.”
- The bus scene was broadcast live by Philippine television stations. The hostage taker could see the approach of police from a television monitor on the bus.
- The Philippines conducted an immediate, comprehensive investigation and shared its report directly with China. The report was highly critical of the handling of matters by Philippine authorities. Indeed, Filipinos generally consider the matter “bungled” by government and police officials. The investigative report recommended charges against 15 people or organizations.
- China may have hardened Mr. Aquino’s stand by presenting a detailed list of instructions as to how the Philippines should deal with matters. Mr. Aquino considered the letter insulting. Hong Kong officials deny such a letter was sent.
- Manila Mayor Estrada, seeking to diffuse a situation which serves neither Hong Kong nor the Philippines well, has tried to deliver an official apology from the City of Manila to Hong Kong, along with a promise of payments to families. Hong Kong declined to receive the apology and angrily re-iterated its demands.
- Hong Kong is a part of China.
- China and the Philippines are in a territorial dispute near Philippine coasts. The Philippines has taken the matter to the United Nations arbiter for resolution, over China’s objection.
- China’s leaders refuse to visit the Philippines.
- Racially demeaning slurs fly both directions in social commentary.
- Hong Kong was accused by a human rights group in 2001 of racially discriminatory government acts toward foreign workers; Hong Kong defended itself by saying that proposals made by the organization would heighten racial discord.
- Mayor Estrada is a member of UNA, a major political party running against President Aquino’s LP candidates and candidates of other parties aligned with LP.
What Do We Take from This?
This is not as simple as Hong Kong would make it. “You messed up. Apologize, pay up and jail some people. Prove it won’t happen again.”
Some things are obvious:
- First and foremost, the matter was tragic for the Hong Kong families. No question.
- Second, there is no question as to who murdered, or caused the killing of, Hong Kong tourists. The hostage taker.
- Third, there is no question as to the poor handling of the matter by Philippine government officials and police.
The facts are clear, the investigations done, the matter understood.
To the extent that there are enduring issues, they pertain more to the relationship between Hong Kong – or China – and the Philippines than they do regarding the particulars of what happened.
The Philippine government is not without compassion, and has expressed its regrets to the families of those killed and injured. Certainly, no Philippine official WANTED this tragedy to occur. That innocence of motive, and the forthright self-examination undertaken by the Philippines, seems to have escaped the Chinese.
The incident remains hurtful as long as the matter is not laid to rest. The matter is laid to rest in the Philippines, officially, but not in Hong Kong, officially.
One can surmise that if the situation were reversed, Hong Kong officials would take essentially the same position as the Philippines has taken. It is the appropriate stance to take to protect sovereignty and legal rights. And, of course, if the situation were reversed, Filipinos would be outraged at Hong Kong’s refusal to apologize and there would be rallies in protest in the Philippines.
A neutral observer would argue that the matter should go to an international court for resolution, but no such steps have been taken. When the Philippines took China to the international arbiter over territorial rights, China objected angrily. One can imagine the same reaction if the Hong Kong matter were taken by the Philippines to an international arbiter for resolution. The Chinese do not respect such venues and are not willing to subjugate their national interests to other states or international courts.
Yet Hong Kong expects the Philippines to subjugate her national interests to Hong Kong.
As with the island territorial dispute, there is only one resolution that is acceptable to Hong Kong. The one that Hong Kong – that China – wants.
The Philippines could diffuse the anger by bowing to Hong Kong’s demands, but doing so would:
- suggest there was a willful negligence rather than incompetence,
- set a precedent of legal and financial obligation for future incidents that had tragic results,
- infringe on sovereign decisions of the Philippine state,
- risk encouraging Chinese adventurism (China seeing the Philippines as weak).
Clearly, diplomatic restraint is not a hallmark of Hong Kong’s approach. One cannot help but reflect back on Taiwan’s outsized outrage against the Philippines regarding the killing of a Taiwanese fisherman by Philippine Coast Guard troops. BEFORE the Philippines or Taiwan had investigated the incident.
Another Disturbing Time
This Chinese attitude of superior morality, superiority of act and perspective, reminds me of the United States in the 1960′s when many whites claimed superiority over other races, and government laws supported the view. When white racial stereotypes, bigotry and laws were challenged in the 1960′s, the white response in some parts of the country was anger. Much like the Chinese who relentlessly voice a loud disgust, disdain and condemnation of Philippine’s acts.
It was an ugly time in the U.S.
Blacks who did not behave were punished, sometimes in the courts, sometimes vigilante style. There was only one race that determined what was correct. It was white. Blacks were instructed to:
- Drink from the black drinking fountains.
- Visit the black bathrooms.
- Sit in the back of the bus.
- Stay out of our white schools.
Heroes emerged from the fracas, from the push-back by black Americans. Perhaps the two most notable were Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks (cover photo).
Rosa Parks changed the world the day that she decided she deserved to sit in the front of the bus, no matter what happened.
Is China Racist?
Clearly there is an ugliness to what is going on in the seas between China and her neighbors.
There is an edginess, a hostility to Chinese behavior that is disturbing. The Taiwan incident. The Hong Kong incident. The conflict over islands. China demands. Demands. Demands. Insults, condemns, expresses outrage and demands.
Disturbing.
Clearly, the Philippines is not behaving the way China wants.
Should the Philippines “behave”?
I have written elsewhere, and cited literature, that China’s history is steeped in disdain for the darker natives who inhabit lands across the seas. This is an aspect of her “Middle Earth” perspective, being the center of all that is right and important about the world.
Well, it is unnecessary here to make that kind of distasteful observation, of racism. I know too many Chinese in the United States who are educated and intelligent and not at all racist. And I know that the Chinese in the U.S. were sorely discriminated against in the 1800′s when the railroads were built substantially with Chinese sweat labor. So it cuts both ways.
So I won’t lift the heavy finger of racism here. The Chinese thuggery very likely emanates from its military cadre. They certainly issue the most racially tinged threats. And perhaps it is merely their authoritarian bent that needs to be brought into a better diplomatic line by Chinese leaders.
So perhaps it is enough to say that China – and Hong Kong – and Taiwan – display a similar striking disregard for the independence and sovereignty of neighbor states, and particularly of the Philippines.
Where is the diplomatic restraint that gives credit to the Philippines for wanting to right its wrongs, for wanting to punish those who acted illegally or rashly in the bus incident? Or credits the Philippines for being forthright and candid with her investigation. Where is the respect for the Philippines as a separate, independent, sovereign state?
The current mantra from Hong Kong is “an apology is not enough.” It is the tenor of an adult lecturing a child.
Such offensive demands.
Why Mayor Estrada Is Wrong
Mayor Estrada’s goals are honorable:
- Get this problem behind us.
- Build a harmonious commercial, tourism and OFW relationship with neighbor Hong Kong.
- Protect Filipino workers in Hong Kong.
There are pragmatic reasons why it is wrong:
- It establishes a precedence of guilt for future government acts that, through the acts of criminal or unstable minds, end up tragically.
- It risks encouraging Chinese adventurism by showing the Philippines as weak.
- It undermines the President’s firm stance which protects the sovereignty of the Philippines in its broader resistance against Chinese territorial expansion. (It is akin to VP Binay’s going outside the chain of command to try to strike a peace agreement in Zamboaga.)
I’m inclined not to read political manipulations into the Mayor’s acts. I believe he wants a cure, plain and simple.
But here’s my real objection.
Mayor Estrada would have the Philippines move to the back of the bus. As if we are to know our superiors, and respect their demands.
No.
It is up to China – and Hong Kong – and Taiwan – to respect Philippine good faith, good intent, and straight dealing. It is up to the Chinese to grant the Philippines the right to exist as a self-determined state of laws and good will.
The appropriate neutral ground for a dispute is an international arbiter. Resolution of the dispute cannot come from Hong Kong over the sovereign rights of the Philippine state to manage her own affairs.
President Aquino’s insistence on a firm, law-based approach is offensive to the Chinese. As was Rosa Park’s insistence that she be allowed to sit in the front of the bus, to whites.
Indeed, standing on principle presents risks. The Philippines risks the well-being of Filipino workers in Hong Kong, innocents caught up in the unrestrained emotions of the Chinese. In the mob reaction fueled by a Chinese press that is almost as obnoxious as her military leaders. And the Philippines risks another tear in the relationship between China and the Philippines.
But what does it say to Asia – indeed, to the world – if the Philippines moves to the back of the bus, as instructed by China?
As it was in 1963, so it is in 2013, exactly fifty years later. It is the principle that matters.
It is important that China learn that all states stand equal, one to the other. It would be even better if China could somehow comprehend that her leadership in Asia can best come by DEFENDING her neighbors’ sovereign rights and territorial claims, not attacking them.
Short of that kind of renewed insight, the Philippines must do what the Philippines must do. In a respectful world filled with independent and earnest sovereign states, the Philippines determines where she sits.
Not China.
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NOTES FROM THE EDITOR
No blog Friday. We have better things to focus on right now. See you on the other side, when electricity gets restored. Take good care.
2. Millions of bribe money to Congressmen and Governors (October 2007)
3. Cheating in 2004 Elections (HELLO GARCI)
4. Joc Joc Bolante Case (Fertilizer Scam, P728 Million)
5. JOSE PIDAL Bank Account (Unexplained Wealth, P200 Million)
6. NANI PEREZ Power Plant Deal ($2 Million)
7. Use of Road User’s Tax for Campaigning
8. Billion Peso Macapagal Boulevard (Overprice of P532 Million)
9. Juetengate? (Illegal Numbers game kickbacks)
10. Extra Judicial Killings
11. Arroyo Moneys in Germany (Exposed by Senator Cayetano)
12. General GARCIA and Other Military Men
13. Billion Peso Poll Automation contract to(Mega Pacific) (P1.3 Billion)
14. Northrail Project($503 Million)
15. Maguindanao Results of 2007 Elections (ZUBIRI, BEDOL)
16. NAIA-3
17. Venable Contract (Norberto Gonzales)
18. Swine Scam (Exposed by? Atty. Harry Roque
19. GLORIA Arroyo son hidden assets in united states
20. EURO GENERAL’S
21. CALAMITY FUND SCANDAL.
22. C-5 road controversy — Senator Manuel Villar
23.P550-million worth of funds from the Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration (OWWA).
24. P780-million LWUA funds-PROSPERO PICHAY
25. BISHOPS’s SUV-Gloria Birthday gift
26. Arroyo linked in P325M lotto intelligence fund
27. Arroyo got P200M in kickbacks from govt projects-Zaldy Ampatuan
28. P200.41 billion or $4.6 billion in Malampaya royalties from 2002 to May this year.
29.LACSON ACCUSED FG MIKE ARROYO OF SELLING 3 REFURBISHED HELICOPTERS TO PNP AT P105 MILLION EACH
30. 600, 000 metric tons of Rotten rice imported from India.Kishore Hemlani, an Indian trader allegedly close to Arroyo, reportedly bagged the P9.5 billion contract for the rice importation.
31. DATO ARROYO wife bought the condo unit for $570, 000, 70-square-meter one-bedroom, one bathroom unit (Unit No. 533) at the luxury high-rise, full-service Gramercy Towers located at 1177 California St. in upscale downtown San Francisco.
32.- P50-million bribe to FG for the president’s veto of two franchise bills
33. The additional funding led to a 41-percent spike in advertising expenses, from P76.129 million in 2008 to P107.420 million in 2009, which went mostly to ads for Arroyo’s achievements.
34. The report said the PIA received from the Department of Budget and Management a notice of cash allocations amounting to P344.789 million, even though only P222.488 million was appropriated for it under the national budget.
35.- Denial of pork barrel funds to Malacanang’s political enemies
36.- Praises for Jovito Palparan, alleged mastermind of extra judicial killings of militants
37.- Removal of govt bodyguards for former pres and Arroyo critic, Cory Aquino
38.- Appointment of manicurist as a member of the board of Pag-Ibig
39. Appointment of gardener as deputy of the Luneta Park Administration.
40. MIDNIGHT APPOINTMENT of an Arroyo, RENATO CORONA, as SC Chief Justice 200+ other illegal midnight appointments
41.- MIKEY ARROYO’s undeclared properties in California
42.- Pardon of controversial convicted criminals like Ninoy’s murderers
43.- EO 464; requiring Cabinet members to seek presidential clearance before testifying in Congress hearings
44.- Promise (on Rizal Day) to not run for the presidency in 2004
45.- “Vote Buying” by giving away Philhealth cards
46.- Taxpayers’ money for her giant billboards and and PCSO tv campaign ads[/b]
47- Appointment of Ben Abalos, a staunch GMA ally, as COMELEC chair
48.- Mikey Arroyo’s importation of 32 thoroughbred horses from Australia worth P384 million.
49.Former First Gentleman Mike Arroyo used 2 choppers 16 times, son Mikey 69
50.PAGCOR spent P1 BILLION (1,000 million equivalent) on coffee
51.Jose Miguel Arroyo owned helicopters’ all Robinson R44 Raven Is with Series Nos. 1370 to 1374. A total of $1, 423, 025 was paid to Lionair for the five helicopters.
52.Pagcor ‘pabaon’ to Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo: P345M
53.The godmother’s ties to the Pinedas(Jueteng lord)
54. Illegal Joint Venture Exploration in Spratly Islands with the Chinese government in 2004. Up to now, no official reports were released about the exploration of Spratly Islands.
2. The Philippine government had already offered $75,000 to the family of each victim.
3. Hongkong is not an independent country, it’s just part of China. In diplomatic view, this is a mere city asking demands from a sovereign country. A mayor demanding from a president or a king. Which is absurd.
“Hong Kong declined to receive the apology and angrily re-iterated its demands.”
Will they also apologize for stealing a chunk of our territory (which clearly belongs to us)?
“Hong Kong declined to receive the apology and angrily re-iterated its demands.”
“Hong Kong declined to receive the apology and angrily re-iterated its demands.”
* Is the country in better state right now?
* Is graft & corruption minimize?
* Did the present administration promise to reform the land for the poor?
* Are the politicians very honest in dealing all the cases to the Filipino people?
* Are the POOR getting better after 1986? 1992? 1998? 2010? 2013? 27 years after 1986?
“Hong Kong declined to receive the apology and angrily re-iterated its demands.”