Chip Tsao issue and lessons in humility

Hong Kong: Chep Lap Kok International Airport has been dubbed as “The Best Airport in the World” by Forbes Magazine due to the ease and convenience to passengers. Its Terminal 3 rivals that of Singapore’s Changi International Airport, the world’s second best Airport according to the Magazine. But even the best has similar problems to our airports. This is why I was quite surprised when we arrived here last Sunday, a man was giving out handbills warning passengers not to use illegal public taxis or rent-a-car or colorum vehicles. Who would expect this to be happening to the best of the best airports in the world?

Back in the convention center, I had a good interview with Trade Assistant Carmela P. Panes from the Philippine Consulate General’s office. We only have a Consulate in Hong Kong due to our recognition of the One-China Policy, where Hong Kong is merely considered a Province or now a Special Administrative Region (SAR) also like Macau of the People’s Republic of China. The Philippine Embassy is located in Beijing.

At least we know that the Philippine Consulate, through Ms. Panes, assist Filipino businessmen who join events like Hong Kong Trade Development Council’s (HKTDC) International ICT (Information, Communication Technology) Expo at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. But their basic job is to care for the Filipino workers, mostly maids coming from the home country.

Of course, I couldn’t resist but ask Ms. Panes about the Chip Tsao incident, that unknown columnist from a Hong Kong Magazine that wasn’t actually sold in magazine stores (I tried looking for one, but failed to find it). Ms. Panes said this was a free magazine given out to hotels, bars or restaurants. But because of this “international” incident, Mr. Tsao is now famous, at least with our Filipino workers here in Hong Kong and Filipino journalists who returned the favor to Mr. Tsao. I did try to ask Ms. Panes if I could meet up with Chip Tsao, but the consulate has no connection with him.

I really don’t blame Mr. Tsao if he is ignorant about Filipinos; after all, most of the Pinoys he meets are maids. In fact when we arrived at the airport immigration counter, we were following some Pinay maids who were later asked to move to another line. We blindly followed this line, which turned out to be the line of Pinoys with a special work permit for Hong Kong. We had to go back to our old line.

As what fellow Philippine Star columnist F. Sionil Jose wrote a week ago: “Don’t hit the messenger, we should divert this outrage and indignation on those who made Filipinos a nation of servants!” and I agree with his observation because after the outcry subsides, our recruitment agencies will once again send more maids, not just to Hong Kong, but also to the many places that have huge appetite for Pinoy maids.

Although Mr. Sionil Jose blames the oligarchs and the Spanish and Chinese mestizos for making Filipinos poor in their own country, it is our corrupt politicians that make us poor. A smart and educated Filipino with the right moral fiber would never sell his vote. So despite the Education Sector given the biggest slice in the pie of government revenue spending, the majority of Filipinos remain to be uneducated. This is just okay for our politicians except for the new breed of politicians. 

As I said earlier, no one knew who Chip Tsao was until he wrote that article and sparked an outrage. So who made this unknown Chinese famous? Well, leftist Filipino groups pointed this to the media and the Pinoy maids reacted to what Mr. Tsao thought about Filipinos as a “Nation of Servants.” As the old adage says, “The truth hurts”.

It is unfortunate that as Christians we have truly lost that attitude that our Lord Jesus Christ taught us: “When someone slaps you on your right cheek, show him your left cheek as well.” Yet an article from a never heard of magazine sparks such a national outrage, when that article should have instead taught us some lessons in humility.

In the book entitled “Power and Responsibility” by Romano Guardini, he said, “Humility has become synonymous with weakness and paltriness, cowardice in a man’s demands on existence, low-mindedness—briefly, the epitome of all that Nietzsche calls “decadence” and “Slave morality”. It must be admitted that in almost two thousand years of Christian history, conceptions of humility and forms of practicing it may be found which fit Nietzsche’s description; but these are themselves signs of decadence, forms of decline from greatness no longer understood. True Christian humility is a virtue of strength, not of weakness. In the original sense of the word, it is the strong, high-minded, and bold, who dare to be humble,” I fully agree with the author’s view.