Tell it to the Marines

Contrary to popular belief, “Tell it to the Marines” refers not to the United States Marine Corps but to the Royal Marines of the United Kingdom. It was supposedly started in the 1800s by seasoned sailors in reference to greenhorn marines just getting their feet wet in naval life. The complete phrase was, “You can tell that to the marines, but the sailors will not believe it.” The point, of course, is that marines are a naive lot bound to believe tall tales.

Let me take off from that and refer to an ongoing tussle between PMI Colleges and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) that is cause for concern among those in the maritime industry, both here and abroad.

PMI is the first maritime school in the country, established in 1948 by Tomas Cloma. Today, it has the largest number of students from its campuses in Manila, Quezon City and Tagbilaran, Bohol.

Through the years, graduates of PMI have given honor to their school by constantly excelling in exams for deck officers and marine engineers, conducted by the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC). Not surprisingly, PMI grads make up majority of the 30 percent Filipino workforce in merchant marine vessels all over the world.

However, a CHED resolution last year threatened to mar PMI’s record in maritime education. The resolution was an order for PMI to shut down two of the school’s flagship courses — Bachelor of Science in Marine Transportation (BSMT) and Bachelor of Science in Marine Engineering (BSME).

CHED officials said its order was based on observations made by representatives of the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) who had conducted an inspection audit of several maritime schools in the country in 2006. EMSA is a body that regulates and serves the interests of leading commercial shipping companies in Europe who are major recruiters of seafarers in the Philippines.

Thereafter, CHED made follow-up inspections which led to the issuance of its closure order last May 2011. The Commission said that PMI and other maritime schools were in violation of the “Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping Convention.” Justifying its move as a way to avoid the possibility of European Union-registered ships no longer hiring Filipino seafarers, CHED stood firm in enforcing its order even as it acknowledged that PMI has been among the top suppliers of mariners in the industry.

PMI officials, faculty, students and alumni jointly labeled CHED’s action as drastic and asked the Commission to reconsider its directive. They argued that the order would put the hundreds of students of the two courses in limbo which was a violation of the Commission’s own Manual of Regulations for Private Higher Education which disallows it to stop or close any degree or program in the middle of the school year. Nonetheless, the school took due action and informed CHED of the positive steps it had taken to address the observations and deficiencies cited by EMSA and the Commission.

According to PMI officials, CHED simply ignored the point that it was violating its very own manual when the Commission stood its ground and denied the request for reconsideration. It also ordered PMI to stop accepting enrollees for its BSME and BSMT programs. CHED however, allowed graduating students to complete their courses and offered financial assistance packages to those who would have to transfer to other schools.

PMI supporters claimed that CHED’s actions were band-aid solutions to a serious damage that the Commission would inflict on the school and the industry. Protest actions were held in front of the CHED office in Quezon City, with one demonstration marred by violence initiated by some of the Commission’s overzealous security personnel.

PMI brought the issue to court, seeking a Preliminary Injunction and/or a Temporary Restraining Order.

After a number of hearings that included a change of the presiding judge in the Quezon City Regional Trial Court, last December, Judge Rena M. Samson granted PMI’s motion for the issuance of a TRO.

CHED, this time with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) in tow, elevated the matter to the Court of Appeals.

A lawyer friend whose son is a recent graduate of PMI says he has religiously followed all the hearings, noted the arguments and pleadings of both sides and studiously read the judge’s verdict on the issuance of the TRO. More important, he says, is the fact that as of October last year, PMI had already complied with all the requirements and attended to the supposed deficiencies listed by CHED. In short, from his (and even from my non-legal point of view), the issue versus PMI has become academic. “So what is CHED’s continued beef with PMI?” he asks, and hopes that CHED’s reply will not be one for the marines.

* * *

A survey done by the Philippine Legislators Committee on Population and Development showed that 87 percent of Filipino parents are practicing corporal punishment, i.e., inflicting verbal and/or physical violence on their children. Advocates of child rights are working to stop the practice that in many cases result in emotionally distressed children up to their adulthood.

Legislating the banning of corporal punishment is one big step to change this saddening picture. In the Senate, SB 873, an anti-corporal punishment bill authored by Sen. Jinggoy Estrada is pending in the Senate committee on youth, women and family relations chaired by women and child rights advocate Sen. Pia Cayetano. In the House of Representatives, HB 4455 authored by Rep. Susan Yap of the 2nd District of Tarlac and Party-list Rep. Bernadette Herrera-Dy seeks to promote positive and non-violent discipline of children. Surprisingly, three local ordinances have been passed legally banning corporal punishment: these are in Lagawe, Ifugao; Llorente, Eastern Samar, and Cawayan, Masbate.

 The importance of a law banning violent punishment of children was emphasized by visiting members of the Swedish Parliament and officers of Save the Children Sweden. Sweden was the first country to legally ban corporal punishment in 1979. Mention was made of a study on the effect of 30 years of banning punishment in the northern European country. Only one to two percent of Swedish children experience physical punishment nowadays, and there has been a decrease in the incidence of youth crimes of theft and property damage. “It’s never too late to change how we discipline our children, and a law banning all forms of corporal punishment is a key step in achieving this change,” said Morgan Johansson. “If passed into law, it will institutionalize parenting sessions in communities so parents can learn how to properly raise their kids through positive and non-violent forms of discipline.”

Save the Children has been campaigning for the elimination of all forms of corporal punishment of children globally and in the Philippines since 2005. The advocacy for a law is being undertaken by Save the Children Philippines, together with Child Rights Network (CRN), a national advocacy network consisting of 16 child rights organizations, including UNICEF, Philippine Legislators Committee on Population and Development, and the Philippine government’s Council for the Welfare of Children.

Young people are complaining about violent forms of punishment they experience — from being slapped and beaten and cursed by parents, and thrown erasers and books by teachers. In the forum held with the Swedish parliamentarians, 18-year-old Mary Rose Ibay, monitoring head of the Active Youth Movement or AYM, which is based in Barangay Bayani, Silang, Cavite, said an increasing number of youths, aged 12 to 18, are pushing for a law, “para wala na pong batang makaranas ng pananakit.”

* * *

Email: [email protected]