we, too, are heroes

"a hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is brave five minutes longer." ralph waldo emerson.

trust the innate jovial disposition of filipinos to turn every gathering, even a protest march against widespread corruption in the government, into a fiesta. the gods gifted their cheerful spirit with a lovely weather -- just cool enough to let us stay in the outdoors for as long as we want without the need to fan ourselves or worse, die from the heat -- at yesterday's march calling for, among others, the abolition of the so-called pork barrel funds that have been abused and misused by lawmakers and their accomplice(s) in government agencies as well as in the private sector.
it was heartening to see a rainbow of people -- young and old, lovers and singles, the religious and the non-believers, workers and businessmen, leftists and rightists,  straight and gay -- all coming together, united by the urgent need to restore decency in the government, punish the crooks among us, and make sure that corruption will be eradicated so that the country can move forward and finally join the league of its more prosperous neighbors such as south korea, singapore, malaysia and japan.
(please remember that before the twenty-year plunder of our treasury under the conjugal dictatorship and their cronies, the philippines was the second wealthiest country in asia next only to japan. we were the envy of everyone else, the koreans, the chinese, the malaysians, the singaporeans, the thais. they all came to the philippines to learn from us be it in agriculture, medicine or something else.)

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this was my first time since edsa two to come out and join hands with other filipinos to call for radical changes in the government. sadly, edsa two was a nightmare. we got an even worse leader than the one we ousted in office judging from the number scandals from vote rigging (hello garci!) to misuse of public funds (fertilizer scam, etc) that gloria arroyo and her family and cronies got entangled with.
as for edsa one, well i was with the rallyists in spirit. i was then still living in the province, miles away from manille, but we monitored the situation through the radio and teevee (if there was a signal), prayed and celebrated afterwards.

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anyway.
i woke up quite early, around seven in the morning on monday (a public holiday in observance of the national heroes' day. how apt, di ba?!), just so i could be at the luneta park (where the national hero and martyr, jose rizal was shot by spaniards so many years ago), venue of the anti-pork barrel protest by nine. i walked all the way from my flat to the park. a thirty-minute walk, mind you. on the way there, i saw throngs of people wearing mostly white shirts (i wore black, another dominant colour), armed with water, food, umbrellas and jackets because there were rumours of a heavy downpour judging from the overcast skies.
it drizzled, but not much and not for long. afterwards, it was a beautiful weather, perfect for holding rallies, picnics with the whole family, and other forms of protest actions.

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while the crowd was mixed, the middle and upper classes certainly came in droves. they came ready with picnic baskets, picnic mats (those shiny, shiny things dominated the muddy grounds), some with their favourite pets in tow also dressed in anti-pork shirts. around lunch time, some of them left to dine at pricey restaurants around the area including manila hotel, while their less-wealthy counterparts ate packed-lunch right there at the luneta park.
but the masa, represented by the urban poor and militant groups such as anak pawis, was more organized. they had their lunch packs ready. they had placards and banners bearing their sentiments, a make-shift stage with a number of speakers and performers. i was able to catch one performance by a singer and was touched by the song's simplicity and the lyrics that went something like this (the song was in filipino) -- it was always the people who were at the forefront of rallies like this, but it was the vultures and the opportunists who reaped the benefits of their hard work.
i couldn't agree more. look at what happened to edsa one and two. only a few opportunists were able to enrich themselves.

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since i've been roaming around luneta to really feel the atmosphere, i met a lot of new friends including: an old woman who is a member of an urban poor group and whose husband is detained in muntinglupa. she earns a living by washing and ironing clothes, selling fish and vegetables, to support her five children. she spoke at their group's gathering at one corner of the park, telling everyone how the government has turned a blind eye on the plight of the poor.

then there's a university student leader, who said he has already spoken to three different groups during the day when we met. he is only nineteen years old, and judging from his smooth white skin, expensive shoes and the way he speaks (peppered with english. in fact, he can't finish a sentence in filipino), he is from a very well-off family (during our time, student leaders who were active in rallies came mostly from the lower to middle-class. correct me please if i am wrong). when i asked him why he is active in rallies like this, he said with utmost sincerity that it's for the country's future. i was touched! then ashamed because i always thought, like all middle-aged people, that youth is wasted on the young. that today's young are good only at texting, instagramming, picture taking (selfies anyone?), and facebooking. i was so glad to be proven wrong.

i also met an old man who was selling bottled water. i asked him if he knew what was going on, he gave me a lecture about pork barrel and where the funds should be used. having said that, he said he was glad that there was such a huge turnout because it boosted his earnings for the day. i told him that if this trend continues, he should have his own initial public offering and i will be the first to write about the story. he laughed. then convinced me to buy one, even if i brought my own bottled water.

then at another part of the park, there was an old man with his own megaphone who was delivering his anti-corruption speech while roaming around. when he passed by in front of me, i and others beside me clapped our hands.
they are just some of the heroes of our time.

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while everyone was in a friendly mood, they knew when to turn up the heat. when former chief justice renato corona (who was impeached for falsifying his statement of assets and liabilities) appeared earlier in the day, he was booed by the angry crowd. the beleaguered lawyer, a chief defender of former president gloria arroyo, now in hospital arrest and facing corruption charges, and his entourage had no  choice but to leave.

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as corona finally realized the demise of his career in public service, erstwhile singer, comedian and failed local government politician jograd dela torre revived his. the crowd lapped up his anti-corruption song, aptly titled kawatan or thief, that was played over and over and became the official anthem of the anti-pork rally, alongside the old-time and sentimental favourite bayan ko.

part of the song goes:

hay.. bakit ba tayo'y nag hihirap
habang ang iba'y nagpapasarap
kahit anong sikap
hangga't may mga korap
na ang business nila ay crime

kukurakot sila dun left
kukurakot din dun sa right 
ang dasal ko lang 
bangungotin sila tonight

kawatan ng money money money
ay naku kayo ay huling huling huli 
mga adik sa pera, gahaman sa kwarta
tigilan niyo na ang mag cheating cheating
pagka't kayo na ay buking buking
wag ganid sa pera, baka kayo makarma
yeah!

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the lyrics of the song added more colour to the official slogan and battle cry that the protesters chanted the whole time with tight fists: makibaka, wag magbaboy! (let's fight, don't be a pig!)

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it was funny that some took the anti-pork literally.
at a makeshift binalot (a filipino restaurant serving mostly bar-b-qs and other grilled stuff) stand near the quirino grandstand, there was a sign that said they would not be serving any pork dishes to sympathize with the protesters.
then some rallyists said they would not buy those yummy pork chicharons being sold by vendors in the park because "bawal ang pork ngayon."
hahaha.

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according to news reports, it was the first massive rally under the three-year-old administration of president benigno aquino the third, who, on friday, in a last-ditch effort to pacify the angry people, announced the scrapping of the pork barrel. but upon closer scrutiny of his press statement delivered at the presidential palace while being flanked by senate president franklin drilon and speaker feliciano belmonte, it was clear that he did not actually abolish the pork. rather, he just wanted tighter screws on the fund releases as well as disallowing non-government organizations from becoming beneficiaries of the money.
same rotten banana, indeed, but different brand.
this time, the people cannot be fooled anymore.

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at around two, the militant groups, including students, marched to mendiola near the presidential palace to continue their protest, this time making sure that the president would hear their angry voices. i wanted to go with them, but my coughing has gone worse. my legs and back were aching, and my stomach was grumbling. instead, i went to a nearby restaurant where there was a freedom wall in front, signed up, then had a free brewed coffee.
then i walked again all the way to my flat at around three. stopped along roxas boulevard to have a soothing back massage for fifty pesos only.
then had a blissful sleep afterwards.
ah to sleep; perchance to dream.

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critics may say that the march failed to meet its goal of a million protesters. while the crowd estimates vary from as low as seventy-five thousand to as much as four-hundred thousand, it doesn't matter.
what is important is that we have shown to the whole world that we can again be united as people to fight a good cause, edsa one and two's failed dreams notwithstanding.

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that's all. until the next big gathering fairies, bitches, princesses and wannabes.

(all pictures were taken from facebook posts of friends. apologies for using them without first asking your permission. i just fell in love with them that i hope you won't mind.)