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It's taken a foreigner to ask the question
South Korean's essay should give us Filipinos pause
Those of us following the reports about the protests escalating at home and
abroad against the Arroyo administration could be excused for thinking that the
government will soon be removed. But from this distance, it looks to me more
like business as usual, with “walang nagbabago” being the continuing theme
of the tired old dramas regularly being played out in Manila.
Is it possible for People Power to be restaged in the country which invented it?
If so, would it be possible for us Pinoys to feel proud once again about doing
something extraordinary – but soon after wouldn’t we sink back into
depression and apathy because we haven’t got the strength of character to do
the really hard work of reforming both our institutions and ourselves?
Those of us following the reports about the protests escalating at home and
abroad against the Arroyo administration could be excused for thinking that the
government will soon be removed. But from this distance, it looks to me more
like business as usual, with “walang nagbabago” being the continuing theme
of the tired old dramas regularly being played out in Manila.
Is it possible for People Power to be restaged in the country which invented it?
If so, would it be possible for us Pinoys to feel proud once again about doing
something extraordinary – but soon after wouldn’t we sink back into
depression and apathy because we haven’t got the strength of character to do
the really hard work of reforming both our institutions and ourselves?
The fault, he
claims, lies in
the fact that we
Pinoys do not
love our
country. In
other words,
we lack
patriotism
claims, lies in
the fact that we
Pinoys do not
love our
country. In
other words,
we lack
patriotism
Will the rage felt towards Mrs Arroyo just keep
on boiling, with nothing much to show but a lot
of angry citizens? Will we glibly call hers the
worst administration in our country’s history,
forgetting the magnitude of Ferdinand Marcos’
and Joseph Estrada’s crimes?
Will we go on glossing over the saintly Cory
Aquino’s ineptitude for having squandered the
opportunity to make real changes at a time
when everyone rallied behind her?
Will we think that the endless graft among
minor officials and ordinary citizens is
on boiling, with nothing much to show but a lot
of angry citizens? Will we glibly call hers the
worst administration in our country’s history,
forgetting the magnitude of Ferdinand Marcos’
and Joseph Estrada’s crimes?
Will we go on glossing over the saintly Cory
Aquino’s ineptitude for having squandered the
opportunity to make real changes at a time
when everyone rallied behind her?
Will we think that the endless graft among
minor officials and ordinary citizens is
excusable because it’s a reaction to bad governance? Will we keep cursing
the system of government we inherited from the Americans?
One big question is whether the Philippines will ever attain maturity and
respect and overcome its long-entrenched corruption. That word, “corruption”
is the excuse we use ad nauseum to explain why we continue to be an
economically depressed nation.
But not too long ago, a young South Korean student studying in Manila named
Jaeyoun Kim wrote a fine essay which made the rounds of the internet. He
believes that the Philippines’ main problem is not corruption. The fault, he
claims, lies in the fact that we Pinoys do not love our country. In other words,
we lack patriotism.
It took some nerve for young Jaeyoun to say that, but he can be excused
because he wrote eloquently about his sorrow for our nation’s poverty even
as he pointed to the absence of self-respect and patriotism among too many
Pinoys.
He described the tremendous suffering that his country, South Korea,
underwent during the war in 1950-1953, which resulted in its becoming one
of the world’s poorest nations. Koreans then experienced famine and
deprivation, but they gradually overcame their adversities and eventually
succeeded in turning their country into a developed one. They had few natural
resources, but by pulling together patriotically, they became proud citizens of
their revitalized nation.
Jaeyoun pointed to how the government at the time sent many of its citizens
abroad, specifically to the US and West Germany, to study science and
engineering. When those students returned home, they applied what they had
learned to help rebuild their country. What a contrast between that and the
countless Filipinos who leave their country and never wish to return.
Crediting his parents with having instilled both love of God and country in him,
Jaeyoun revealed the way his compatriots practise Catholicism. The type of
faith followed by South Korea’s large Catholic community obviously differs
greatly from our version, which blends superstitition with religious beliefs.
Jaeyoun apparently knows our psychology well because he urged Filipinos to
desist from all the passive praying and bahala na attitudes we indulge in
which have been fostered the fatalism for which we’re famous.
With the South Korean model in mind, can we conclude that our country’s
narrow tribalism stems from our scattered islands and provinces? Has being
homogeneous made it easy for the South Koreans to be united and proud
citizens of their nation? Because we tend to care only about our immediate
families and clans, is this what has caused our downward spiral into the
stagnation?
Jaeyun Kim ended his essay with this piece of advice: “I want Filipinos to love
their neighbors and country as much as they love God [because] love
changes people, contexts and relationships. It changes the world.”
the system of government we inherited from the Americans?
One big question is whether the Philippines will ever attain maturity and
respect and overcome its long-entrenched corruption. That word, “corruption”
is the excuse we use ad nauseum to explain why we continue to be an
economically depressed nation.
But not too long ago, a young South Korean student studying in Manila named
Jaeyoun Kim wrote a fine essay which made the rounds of the internet. He
believes that the Philippines’ main problem is not corruption. The fault, he
claims, lies in the fact that we Pinoys do not love our country. In other words,
we lack patriotism.
It took some nerve for young Jaeyoun to say that, but he can be excused
because he wrote eloquently about his sorrow for our nation’s poverty even
as he pointed to the absence of self-respect and patriotism among too many
Pinoys.
He described the tremendous suffering that his country, South Korea,
underwent during the war in 1950-1953, which resulted in its becoming one
of the world’s poorest nations. Koreans then experienced famine and
deprivation, but they gradually overcame their adversities and eventually
succeeded in turning their country into a developed one. They had few natural
resources, but by pulling together patriotically, they became proud citizens of
their revitalized nation.
Jaeyoun pointed to how the government at the time sent many of its citizens
abroad, specifically to the US and West Germany, to study science and
engineering. When those students returned home, they applied what they had
learned to help rebuild their country. What a contrast between that and the
countless Filipinos who leave their country and never wish to return.
Crediting his parents with having instilled both love of God and country in him,
Jaeyoun revealed the way his compatriots practise Catholicism. The type of
faith followed by South Korea’s large Catholic community obviously differs
greatly from our version, which blends superstitition with religious beliefs.
Jaeyoun apparently knows our psychology well because he urged Filipinos to
desist from all the passive praying and bahala na attitudes we indulge in
which have been fostered the fatalism for which we’re famous.
With the South Korean model in mind, can we conclude that our country’s
narrow tribalism stems from our scattered islands and provinces? Has being
homogeneous made it easy for the South Koreans to be united and proud
citizens of their nation? Because we tend to care only about our immediate
families and clans, is this what has caused our downward spiral into the
stagnation?
Jaeyun Kim ended his essay with this piece of advice: “I want Filipinos to love
their neighbors and country as much as they love God [because] love
changes people, contexts and relationships. It changes the world.”
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