January 20, 2008 | 12:00am
“Liberty of each, limited by the like liberties of all, is the rule in conformity with which society must be organized.” — Spencer
I was pleasantly surprised by STAR online readers comments that in general said Filipinos should not be offended because the New York based Freedom House said the Philippines being only ‘partly free’.
These STAR online traders have more political savvy than senators who want to be president. In my view, this is the right perspective. There are many ways to view the ‘survey’ that dropped the Philippines from being totally free to being only partly free. From a certain standpoint, all countries, as it is with all individuals, there is no such thing as absolutely free. We can only be partly free because of the limitations put on it by other individuals’ freedom as defined by the eminent philosopher Herbert Spencer. And that goes for countries too. So what is Freedom House talking about?
It’s talking from its particular standards and criteria. When it says the Philippines received the “downgrade because of the spate of political killings specifically targeting left-wing political activists”, it assumes facts that as far as I know are still in debate.
When I read that Erap’s pardon was another reason for the downgrade, alarm bells rang. It is politically motivated, not isolated from other criticisms that have bombarded the Arroyo government since the failed attempts to oust her. Other countries cited by the group as having had reversals of freedom were Pakistan, Kenya, Egypt, Nigeria and Venezuela. It claims that while Mauritania joined the list of democracies, the Philippines, Bangladesh and Kenya dropped off to partly free. Thailand and Togo were upgraded from not free to partly free.
Freedom House is perfectly free to say what it thinks about freedom in the Philippines. But by the same token Filipinos are also free to say what they think of Freedom House and its statements. The meaning of “freedom” in modern times has been expanded to include colonialist struggles. This expanded meaning is just as disturbing as the standards for freedom being placed on countries like the Philippines, ironically the only real colony that the US ever had. In this context freedom is taken to mean the degree of participation in “democratic (not constitutional republic) political systems, without the influence of superpower country in any means.”
How about revolutionary struggles that succeeded to gain freedom from foreign colonialists and domination? Those are political reversals as well. But that is only half the story. Some countries in Asia (principally the Philippines) and likewise in Latin America and the Middle East might have ceased to be considered colonies but during the Cold War these newly independent countries evolved into “puppet states”. The Philippines became independent just as the Cold War began. It can be said Philippine foreign policy developed under the umbrella of American hegemony.
The downgrade of the Philippines as ‘only partly free’ should be taken with a pinch of salt. It is not strange or bad if a private think-tank like Freedom House serves American interests whether advertently or inadvertently. I think it has more to do with the fear of diminishing influence of the US in what has been its vassal state since its independence. America’s diminishing influence has been quickened because of increased relations between the Philippines and China, the acknowledged superpower in the region as well as with the ASEAN countries. If it is any consolation to Filipinos, Freedom House also includes some 2.4 billion people in the world who it says are not free by its standards. Not surprisingly half of them live in China.
More annoying are local politicians who quickly jumped on Freedom House’s conclusions for pogi points. Since all these senators want to be president they blame President Arroyo for the downgrade without any regard for the wider picture of its geopolitical basis. Senators Aquilino Pimentel Jr., Francis Escudero and Loren Legarda enthusiastically joined in chorus with Freedom House against the Philippine government. I am afraid Pimentel shows his political limitations yet again with statements like “Philippines’ adherence to democracy has continued to dwindle since the time of ex-President Ramon Magsaysay in the 1950s.” What’s the matter with him? Where has he been or does he not know how Magsaysay came into power? Even some Americans can help him know that. There are dozens of books and witnesses about this. Our democracy during the ’50s is as tall as Ramon Magsaysay.” He may be trying to be funny but he is wrong.
As for Press Secretary Bunye he is wasting his breath if he thinks that a more “systematic and thorough research and consultations” would alter Freedom House’s views. Its definition of freedom is flawed from the start because it ignores the complexity and specificity of freedom from country to country. By its definition not even the US is completely free.
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Alternative media. Asean leaders, among them the former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir have been aware of the importance of alternative media. A story like Freedom House’s list of democracies would have been differently treated by non-Western media. That need is increasingly being provided by Al Jazeera English, the Middle-East-based English-language news and current affairs channel. Recently it launched on Hong Kong Cable extending its reach to more than 100 million households worldwide.
Al Jazeera English is supported in Asia by its Kuala Lumpur Broadcast Centre, which includes dozens of Asian correspondents such as news anchors Veronica Pedrosa and Teymoor Nabili. Al Jazeera English is the first English-language global news and current affairs channel to be headquartered in the Middle East. Al Jazeera English’s dedicated page on YouTube is the video-sharing website’s most watched news channel.
“News has always been our flagship program and the addition of Al Jazeera will further enhance the width and depth of our news service with the channel’s unique content and perspective,” said Benjamin Tong, the executive director of Hong Kong Cable Television. “I have little doubt that the channel will be welcomed by our viewers.”
