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“ Quote in the Act
“A very severe earthquake disaster!”
Wen Jiabao, China’s prime minister, initially described a 7.8 magnitude
earthquake that struck in Sichuan Province on the evening of May 12,

“It’s grim, and getting grimmer.”

with about 5,000 feared dead.

A Western Diplomat in Yangon commented on the worsening situation in

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 CONTENTS IMPAC T May 2008 / Vol 42 • No 5

EDITORIAL The Church’s Social Teaching

Moderating hunger ................................................. 27 on Agrarian Reform .............................................. 7
COVER STORY Microfinance Saves a Cooperative ....................... 11
The Philippines’ ethical time bomb ..................... 14
BEC: dialogue, participation and
co-responsibility .................................................... 19
DEPARTMENTS

Cover photo by Roy Lagarde / CBCP Media

Quote in the Act ....................................................... 2
News Features .......................................................... 22
Statements ................................................................ 24
From the Blogs ......................................................... 26
From the Inbox ........................................................ 28
Why are we selling our beautiful land? ............... 16 Book Reviews .......................................................... 29
ARTICLES CINEMA Review .................................................... 30
Healing the land, building the future ................... 4 News Briefs .............................................................. 31

ARCHBISHOP Oscar Cruz did not cheat during the

2004 elections, or bribed election officials with jueteng
money. Neither did he have anything to do with the
fertilizer scam, the north and south railway projects
or any other gargantuan corruption and mega anoma-
lies that trampled this country underfoot to emerge guests of the First Gentleman who was celebrating his
bleeding with undeserved poverty. birthday at the Malacañang Park, like “pitiful GROs”
(guests relations officers).
All he does is denounce irregularities—but most espe-
cially the most uncomfortable irregularity that is the Almost immediately the female employees, at the prod-
present dispensation which he has tagged as the ding of PAGCOR, filed a libel suit against the Arch-
biggest gambling operator in the country. bishop who ironically was in fact defending their right
against exploitation. The case was, of course, dis-
Maybe the most courageous man-of-the-cloth there is missed by the Manila prosecutor’s office for insuffi-
in the country today, he has pursued his advocacy cient grounds.
against gambling—and all the evils that come with
it—up to the senate floor in a long battle of probing the But today Archbishop Cruz was issued a warrant of
fact that while Columbia had narco-politics, in the arrest after Justice Secretary Raul Gonzales, report-
country it is jueteng that decides who seats in the edly on Malacañang’s order, decided to resurrect the
uneasy chair of politics or not. “long-dead” libel suit after failing to muzzle the Arch-
bishop through relentless efforts of harassment and
He could have chosen to settle comfortably in his intimidation.
cathedra and savor daily the courtesies and the more
substantial returns regarded the dignitaries of the The same thing happened to John the Baptist who
Catholic Church. But he has decided to walk the denounced the immoralities of the king. The only
streets and suffer the brunt of an urban missionary, consolation is, his head was placed on a platter.
crucified almost daily with death threats and wanton
attacks from those within who see Christianity at its “Why are we selling out beautiful land?” is the ques-
best only in dispensing the sacraments and living tion posed by our cover story. Ester Perez de Tagle
within the framework of a baroque ecclesiology. points out rather clearly if strongly how the Japan-
Philippine Partnership Agreement (JPEPA) is a pseudo-
In June 2004, he assailed the government-owned ca- partnership meant to fleece the country out of what has
sino operator, PAGCOR, for exploiting its female remained after the devastating cyclone of endemic
employees who were reportedly made to entertain the corruption. Read on.

Volume 42 • Number 5 3
ARTICLES

Healing the land,

building the future
By Dr. Rene E. Ofreneo, Ph.D.

We are a ravaged and wounded na-

tion

T
he saga of Jun Lozada has shown us
how a powerful few can plunder the
nation’s wealth and treat the coun-
try like one small private property. It has
also shown us how the web of corruption
has led to the perversion of the justice
system, subversion of the electoral de-
mocracy and conspiracies to cover up the
truth.
The web of corruption is vividly re-
flected in the ‘systemic dysfunction’ or
the collapse of the system of checks and
balances in the government’s procure-
ment system, especially in the country’s
‘privatized’ infrastructure development.
This systemic dysfunction happens to
reflect a bigger national reality—the ero-
sion of values and the institutions that
make up good governance. The culture of
delivering good and quality service for
society has been replaced in many in-
stances by a culture of self-aggrandize-
ment for whoever is in power and whoever
has access to it. ‘Anong mayroon sa akin
dyan?’ are words often whispered in the
different corridors of power and gates of
decision making. Corruption is institution-
alized bad governance.
This vicious cycle of corruption-weak-
ened institutions-bad-governance is at the
roots of the mal-development, insurgency
and endless social conflicts in our coun-
try. The biggest victims happen to be the
poor who are denied the basic services
they need and the access to better oppor-
tunities in life such as education, decent
jobs and/or life-giving resources such as
farm lands and livelihoods. And yet, the
legislative and executive branches are

4 IMPACT • May 2008


bogged down in endless debates and mind-
less indecisiveness on how to enact and
implement urgent reform programs for the
poor such as agrarian reform, housing
reform, fishery reform and so on. And yet,
the same personae in the legislative and
executive branches have also shown great
alacrity and ingenuity in crafting laws and
measures segregating huge areas of the
country in support of large-scale mining
which spoil the land and environment,
agribusiness development for select for-
eign and domestic vested interests and
high-end resort-golf-subdivision projects
for the elite, old and new.
Clearly, if we have to restore the faith
of our people in government and in the
country’s future, we need to go beyond
Healing the land, building the future
changing the faces of the nation’s leaders.
We need a different People Power, a People
Power movement aimed at the empower-
ment of the people themselves, for it is a
movement aimed at restoring the Filipino
sense of community, nationhood, justice
and democracy. It is a movement to ad-
dress fundamental systemic concerns that
are at the roots of the present political and
economic malaise. This People Power
movement should contain the following
four critical elements of a National Reform
Agenda:
1. Letting the wheels of justice roll against
the big grafters
The Philippines is not lacking in laws
against corruption, economic plunder,
frauds against the public treasury, em-
bezzlement of public funds, smuggling
and so on. It also has institutions set up to
stop corruption at high places such as the
Ombudsman and Sandiganbayan. What is
clearly needed is national decisiveness in
implementing the laws and throwing the
books on the big grafters. The contracts of
the big infrastructure projects should be
disclosed to the public. The names of the
ten biggest smugglers should be pub-
lished. A popular government can only
show it is winning the fight against graft
and corruption if it is able to put behind the
bars of justice these big grafters. On the
other hand, it should be able to assure the
people that the NBI, PNP and other police
and military agencies are there for the
Photo courtesy of CBCP NASSA
Volume
Volume 42
42 •• Number
Number 55 5
Healing the land, building the future
primary purpose of securing their human
and civil rights.
2. Restoring faith in electoral democracy
The labyrinthine and medieval elec-
toral system must be overhauled and mod-
ernized. Again, there is no shortage of
what are the appropriate electoral reforms
needed such as the updating of the voters’
lists, computerization of the electoral pro-
cess and so on. What is needed is national
decisiveness, by the executive and legis-
lative branches, in adopting and imple-
menting the reforms.
3. Enacting urgent social and economic
reforms
The present bunch of economic tech-
nocrats loves to parrot the line that the
economy has never grown so fast and that
there is no need to rock the national eco-
nomic boat. The truth, however, is that the
economy is growing despite the corrup-
tion scandals in government because of
the continuous remittances by the ten
million overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).
The ugly truth is that we have an eroding
agro-industrial base, which is the reason
for the persistent unemployment and un-
deremployment problems and the growing
colonies of urban poor everywhere. The
6 IMPACT • May 2008
deeper truth is that many of the urban poor
have come from the countryside, where
rural poverty is endemic due to the lack of
progress in agrarian reform, weak institu-
tional support by government and the
haphazard manner by which the agricul-
tural sector has been opened up to global
commerce. Clearly, the challenge for a
popular government is to win over the
hearts and minds of the nation’s poor by
decisively instituting and implementing
bold social and economic reforms such as
agrarian reform, housing reform and fish-
ery reform, and so on.
4. Rebuilding values and forging a social
pact among the people
The new government must work with
all sectors in the inculcation of the values
of industry, integrity and nationalism. This
means distilling lessons and values from
our past struggles for nationhood and
from the sacrifices and examples of our
heroes. It has to stop the bleeding in
Mindanao and other parts of the country
by getting the peace process back on
tracks. It has to arrest the sense of defeat-
ism among the people through hard work,
a clear sense of national purpose and a
commitment to excellence in public ser-
vice. It has to lead by example. Above all,
it has to forge a social contract based on
a clear vision of national development
where the private sector, civil society,
ethnic communities, political parties, reli-
gious groups and other sectors of society
each has a constructive role to play in a
mutually beneficial way.
It must build a government of na-
tional unity and social reform. Such unity
must be forged by appealing to the sense
of patriotism of all traditional and non-
traditional political and social forces rep-
resenting the broadest sectors of Philip-
pine society and by offering them unity on
the basis of a common program of reform
and stabilization, which may include,
among others, the following:
a. an agreement to hold a constitutional
convention for the express purpose of
strengthening the democratic struc-
tures of society, ensuring genuine rep-
resentation in policy making bodies
by the marginalized sectors and set-
ting up standards of excellence for
would-be national leaders;
b. a social pact among labor, industry
and government on wage and price
adjustments within the overall frame-
work of saving and strengthening jobs
and businesses;
c. a commitment by business and indus-
try to conduct business
in a truly ethical manner
and respect the social,
environmental and labor
rights, and;
d. a commitment by gov-
ernment toreinvigorate
the countryside by
pushing not only for the
extension of agrarian re-
form but also working
for the transformation of
the small farmers and
agrarian reform benefi-
ciaries into modern com-
petitive producers of the
food requirements of our
people, raw material re-
quirements of our indus-
try, and export require-
ments of our economy.
Let us heal the
nation’s soul. “For I, the
Lord, I hate injustice,
robbery and iniquity.”
Photo courtesy of www.bayan.ph
(Isaiah 61:8A) I
This paper was prepared by the
Agrarian Reform Research
Group for the NRC II under the
aegis of Dr. Rene E. Ofreneo,
Ph.D., University of the
Philippines.
 ARTICLES

© JP ACUÑA / CBCPMedia
T
he Church’s social teaching (CST)
was not initially an organic system
but was formed over the course of
time by the Magisterium’s response to
social issues, inspired by biblical revela-
tion and Church tradition—by the teach-
ing of early Christian philosophers known
as the Church Fathers. From this source,
CST draws strength and light to under-
stand, judge and guide human experience
and history—including today’s Philip-
pines.
Traditionally, one central consider-
ation of CST is God’s plan for creation and
for the life and destiny of people all of
whom are called to the Trinitarian com-
munion or koinonia. It is a communion
marked by a radical equality and solidarity
among all people, regardless of their race,
nation, sex, origin, culture, or class. In this
communion: “There is neither Jew nor
Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there
is neither male nor female; for all are one in
Christ Jesus.” [Gal 3:28; cf. Rom 10:12; 1
Cor 12:13, Col 3:11] Each one is a
“koinonos”(Greek) or “socius” (Latin)—
in Pilipino “kasama’t kapatid” arguing
from the dignity of every person before
God as the ultimate foundation of this
profound equality and solidarity.
In this context, the human person,
called from the very beginning to be a
‘social being’ must understand the social
dimension of any act of ‘having’—con-
scious of the universal destination of
goods, believing that God destined Earth
and all her resources for all people. People,
themselves fruit of the Earth, are reminded
that their capacity to transform and in a real By Charles R. Avila
sense create the world through their own

The Church’s
work “is always based on God’s prior and
original gift of the things that are.”
Therefore, CST views the right to the
common use of goods as a moral first
principle that cannot be removed from the
whole ethical and social order. Private

Social Teaching
property regardless of its concrete forms
and juridical norms is in its essence only an
instrument for this universal destination
of goods; in the final analysis private prop-
erty is not an end but a means—subordi-

on Agrarian
nated to the right to common use, to the
fact that goods are meant for everyone.
Christian tradition never recognized
the right to private property as absolute
and untouchable. Early Christian teaching
is very clear on this—especially in its

Reform
condemnation of the absolutist and
exclusivist Roman law concept of prop-
erty. Down the centuries, no ideas have
clashed with greater consequence for the
lives of more people anywhere than the

Volume 42 • Number 5 7
The Church’s Social Teaching on Agrarian Reform
unfinished debate between CST and Ro-
man law. And historians will have to admit
that one can never be sure which idea is
really ascendant. The evidence is the
present social order. If it is more just, then
CST is “winning”; if not, then Roman law
still prevails even within the Church that is
supposed to have rejected it long ago.
Vatican update on Agrarian Reform
On the thirtieth anniversary of the
Philippines’ National Rural Congress, ten
years ago, the Vatican’s Pontifical Council
on Justice and Peace issued a CST update
entitled “Towards a Better Distribution of
Land: the Challenge of Agrarian Reform.”
The intent was “to increase and quicken
awareness of the dramatic human, social
and ethical problems caused by the phe-
nomenon of the concentration and misap-
propriation of land. These problems affect
the dignity of millions of persons and
deprive the world of the possibility of
peace.” (Intro. par.1)
At the very outset, the Pontifical Coun-
cil put it rather bluntly, making one believe
that the document had the Philippine expe-
rience very much in mind: “Often,” it said,
“the experience of agrarian reform, put
into action by many governments and
many countries, has failed miserably…
because of a kind of ‘original sin’ which
impeded their success: that of being
uniquely identified with the expropria-
tion of land and its subsequent sub-divi-
sion. All this is certainly necessary and
fundamental... but it is not enough.” [Land,
a Common Good for All Humanity, Cardi-
nal Etchegaray, No. 3] Isn’t this rather
instructive especially during the 40th anni-
versary of the National Rural Congress
when most of what we hear around centers
on asking government to continue a failed
program of land acquisition and land dis-
tribution?
Land ownership means steward-
ship
In shock, many may ask: “But isn’t
that precisely what agrarian reform was all
about—namely, about dividing up lands
and distributing them to the landless in
order for them to overcome their problem
of poverty?” In fact, no. The underlying
philosophy of agrarian reform is more so-
phisticated than merely a land-to-the-land-
less slogan: land does not belong to the
landowners alone—old or new—nor even
to the tillers alone but to all the people. It
is a limited resource for a growing number
8 IMPACT • May 2008
of humans, all of whom, to the very last
one, are without question land-dependent.
Land ownership must inescapably be re-
garded as stewardship—a mere means to
attain the ends of land use which are: food
security for all, decent habitats for all,
and an ecologically harmonious eco-
nomic regime for the common good.
Without this perspective, even social
justice measures would merely redound to
worse poverty. This has been the Philip-
pine experience for almost a century now
as various governments tried to imple-
ment “land reform” programs in the crude
sense of land acquisition and distribution,
but failed to focus on the clear goals of
development and rural industrialization.
We even missed out on modern support
services in the three crucial stages of the
process of pre-production, production
proper and post-production of agricul-
tural goods, and thus our newly “emanci-
pated” peasants have had a very hard time
coping. Many of them ended up much
worse off than during their share tenancy
years. Who could blame them if they often
felt that they would have been better off
with a caring paternalistic feudal lord? I
have personally observed this phenom-
enon from the early 1960’s to the present
time.
It is time to return to basics. We must
learn from CST to recognize Land—in-
cluding all natural resources—as a dis-
tinct factor of production, apart from and
together with Labor and Capital… mak-
ing the factors of production not two but
three in all. Labor and Capital represent
human effort and deserve fair recompense.
Land, however, is another matter. It is
produced by no person’s effort or respon-
sibility. It is one of the things that are “just
there”, and whoever uses it may prevent
others from doing so—thus making it im-
perative for a given society to agree on the is, quite clearly, due to the existence of
rules of the use of land. society and the latter’s activities.
The paramount rule should be for The managers of agrarian reform down
society to collect rent for the land (and for the decades boast of a two percent reduc-
all other natural resources) from those tion in Philippine poverty after many years
who have appropriated what is unques- of spending billions upon billions of pe-
tionably common heritage. To date we sos in the land acquisition and land parcel-
have not yet passed any such law that ing out program. The peasantry including
would tax away all or most of the “eco- farm workers and farmers has declared
nomic rent”— i.e. the rent that raw land or time and again that they are extremely
its resources would bring on the open dissatisfied. Even if the dubious claim of
market. What we’ve been doing, instead, poverty reduction were true, it simply is
is irrationally taxing human-made wealth not good enough!
rather than collecting rent from those who Many long years back in the very first
own or have exclusive control over what sections of the current agrarian reform law,
really belongs not to one or a few but to all. government assured everyone, that the
Not only is Land just “there”, for all “land “farmers’ welfare would receive the high-
animals” to enjoy and to use but its value est consideration—to move the nation

towards rural development and industri-
alization”. In pursuance of this, had the
conditions for the creation of new wealth
been already put in place, giving tillers
access to capital, technology and markets,
many of our people could already have
become richer or less poor.
We could have had the opportunity
“to enhance our dignity and improve the
quality of our lives through greater pro-
ductivity of agricultural lands.”
(R.A.6657, I.2) Needless to say, however,
this did not happen. Instead of greater
productivity toward food self-sufficiency,
we achieved the dubious distinction of
becoming the world’s biggest importer of
rice.
The state promised to be “guided by
ARTICLES
pointed out, because of the imbalanced
identification of the whole agrarian reform
program with one part thereof, viz. land
acquisition and distribution, which would
routinely eat up more than three fourths
of the total program budget to the near-
total neglect of its connection to the very
goals of the program , namely the enhanced
dignity and improved quality of farmers’
lives and their liberation from poverty with
the promised rural development and in-
dustrialization. Instead of rural progress
and social justice, land reform gave rise to
the biggest real estate scam in history—
the land conversion scam. In a little more
than two decades, tens of thousands of
farming families had no more farms to till.
They were made to jump from the frying
pan of feudal lords into the worse fire of
bureaucrat and land capitalist manipula-
tors.
Genuine land reform
It may not be too late to achieve au-
thentic land reforms and thus establish the
foundation for our country’s leap to over-
coming poverty and Third World nation
status and to finally becoming a strong
carefully industrialized national
economy—in other words, a First World
country at last. This would mean affirming
anew that since agriculture is the mother of
industry, we ought to engineer an indus-
trialization program that, in the main, is not
centered abroad like a hanging multina-
tional adjunct but, rather, one that is based
Photo courtesy of CBCP NASSA
on the surpluses at home of a highly pro-
ductive agriculture for the common good.
The Pontifical Council document reit-
erated over and over again that “an agrar-
ian reform program must certainly have
short-term objectives so that it can have
immediate results, given the serious na-
the principles that land has a social func- ture of the social problems involved. It
tion and land ownership has a social must therefore ensure that access to land
responsibility.” For the first time in the fully meets these objectives. In the me-
history of Philippine governments, the dium and long term, however, if agrarian
non-absolute character of land ownership reform is confined simply to land redistri-
was affirmed. It looked like the first Na- bution, the struggle against poverty and
tional Rural Congress, held in the late- underdevelopment will not be won.” [No.
sixties, had finally made its mark in the late- 45]
eighties. “Owners of agricultural land have The Council said: “The social teach-
the obligation …to make the land produc- ing of the Church does not consider indi-
tive.” (ibid.) And in that regard the State vidual property the only legitimate form of
committed to assist them—”through ap- land ownership, but also holds common
propriate technology and research, and property… in particular consideration.”
adequate financial, production, marketing [No. 11 passim] In today’s Philippines, we
and other support services.” (Iterum ibid.) have to seriously consider declaring a
But again, obviously, the commitment stop to the current scheme of land parcel-
was not adequately realized—in part, as ing and distribution. To continue with
the Pontifical Council document correctly business as usual in this aspect of the total
Volume 42 • Number 5 9
The Church’s Social Teaching on Agrarian Reform
program would evidence a national pen-
chant for throwing good money after bad.
Scarcity of land resource demands that the
government conserves the same for the
whole citizenry and for generations to
come. We ought rather to have, as an
alternative, the more realistic “land reform
on demand”—meaning in reply to orga-
nized farmers’ collective demand.
Let us, then, warmly welcome stew-
ardship agreements founded on the con-
sideration that beneficiaries will make them
productive and will pay land value taxes as
rents thereto.
We must urge government to help
beneficiaries consolidate small farm hold-
ings to correct the negative impact of land
parceling. Consolidation may take the form
of progressive integration of beneficiaries
with farmers’ collectives and cooperatives.
These farmers’ collectives and coopera-
tives shall carry on the management of the
consolidated farms within their territory
and pool available resources to insure
sustained productivity and greater returns
10 IMPACT • May 2008
to owner-cultivators. As such, individual
cultivators will enjoy psychological secu-
rity, knowing that they are not alone in
confronting the manifold problems related
to farming. (R.A.6657, Sec.39)
Next, we need to encourage govern-
ment to convert idle public lands suitable
to agriculture into state farms under the
management and operation of farmers’
cooperatives and associations. There
should be no lack of willing landless farm-
ers who will enter into “stewardship con-
tracts” under terms and conditions that
will insure maximum returns to them, sus-
tained productivity and government rev-
enues through lease rentals or in the form
of the land value tax.
Again, the Council said that while “it
is not possible to determine a priori what
the structure of farm life should be”, it
suggests that family-owned and farmed
enterprises should be actively promoted
but in the context of cooperativism or
consolidation. “Such farms should be large
enough to allow [the participating fami-
Photo courtesy of CBCP NASSA
lies] sufficient earning, to retain posses-
sion of their farms, to have access to the
land credit market, and to ensure
sustainability of the rural environment also
through appropriate use of inputs.”
Having in mind countries like the
Philippines, the Council rounded up its
recommendations with this exhortation:
“Agrarian reform must help indigenous
communities in various ways: to protect
and reconstruct the natural resources and
ecosystems on which their survival and
well-being depend; to preserve and de-
velop their identity, culture and interests;
to uphold their aspirations for social jus-
tice; and to ensure an environment that
allows for active participation in the social,
economic and political life of the larger
society.” [No.55, passim]
And, of course, we must continue
pressuring government to support indi-
vidual beneficiaries in the effective use of
land, of modern technology and environ-
ment-friendly farm practices to insure just
returns and productivity. Let us urge it to
speed up the consolidation of fragmented
farms, with sufficient regard to the rights
of owner-cultivators, to insure better ac-
cess to infrastructures, technology, farm
inputs and material, and financial assis-
tance from public and private agencies.
Then we should remind government
to support the establishment of an Agri-
cultural Marketing Service such as one
envisioned in AFMA or the Agriculture
and Fisheries Modernization Act taking
into account the fact that agricultural pros-
perity and food security are not merely
about food production and productivity.
Today they are more about post-produc-
tion and the appropriate food marketing
systems that relate to the basic and complex
process of moving food and farm products
from producer to consumer—quickly, effi-
ciently, and with fairness to all.
Finally, in order to really make a new
start on the 40th anniversary of the National
Rural Congress, we must immediately urge
government to declare all agrarian reform
beneficiaries’ immediate and absolute free-
dom from amortization debts to the Land
Bank of the Philippines. By historical logic
and definition, the former tenants as a class
have more than paid up their dues to both
landlord and state down the centuries and
down the decades. We may therefore link
hands firmly and rise to a new freedom—the
freedom of the children of the soil who
collectively own the land and in turn are
owned by it. We rise and shout: advance
agrarian reform towards rural development
and industrialization. I
 ARTICLES

“PAG MAY MAY PAUTANG,, SISIPAG

SISIPAG KA… … ATAT
HINDI PUWEDENG HINDI
HINDI MAGBABAYAD.
HINDI MAGBABAYAD
MAHIRAP MAPAHIYA,, KUNDI
AHIRAPMAPAHIYA KUNDI DI
DI NANA
UMUTANG”
MAKAKAULIT UMUTANG
MAKAKAULIT ” (“O
(“ONCE
NCEYOU YOU
BORROW, YOU
BORROW YOU BECOME HARD-WORKING
BECOME HARD WORKING… …
YOU CAN’ T AFFORD
YOU CAN AFFORD NOT
NOT TO PAY.. IITT IS
TO PAY IS SO
SO
EMBARRASSING
EMBARRASSING NOT TO PAY.. O
NOT TO THERWISE,
OTHERWISE
THERE
THERE IS
IS NO
NO WAY
WAY YOU
YOU CAN
CAN BORROW
BORROW
AGAIN”), COOP MEMBERS
AGAIN MEMBERS A LING E
ALING EMMA
MMA
AND A
ALING
LING EMELITA SAID.. N
MELITA SAID NOT
OT AA FEW
FEW
BENEFICIARIES, INDIVIDUALLY
BENEFICIARIES INDIVIDUALLY
INTERVIEWED, MADE
INTERVIEWED MADE AA SIMILAR
SIMILAR REMARK
REMARK
ON THE COOPERATIVE’’S
ON THE S MICROFINANCE
MICROFINANCE
PROGRAM FUNDED
PROGRAM BY P
FUNDED BY PONDO NG P
ONDO NG PINOY..

Microfinance
Saves a
Cooperative

Photo courtesy of CBCP NASSA

By Gemma Marin

Difficult years of the cooperative from OikoCredit in November 2000. Earlier Savings or capital was retained by the
in June, it started a microfinance program member by deducting 25 percent of the

M
aliliit na Sambayanang Simbahan
Diocesan Multi-Purpose Coop-
erative (MSSD-MPC) was estab-
lished on 01 December 1991, and was reg-
istered with the Cooperative Development
Authority (CDA) on 31 March 1992. It was
begun by 25 cooperators who were mem-
bers of the Basic Ecclesial Communities
(BEC) to help alleviate the socio-economic
problems in their communities in Camarines
Norte. With an initial capital of PhP2,500,
the cooperative engaged in rice trading
and swine marketing, and operated a con-
sumer store.
It also embarked on a lending busi-
ness in 1995, and was able to tap operating
funds from the Land Bank around 1998 and
called the Urban Program for Livelihood
Finance and Training or UPLIFT Philip-
pines funded by the Canadian Interna-
tional Development Agency (CIDA) and
Raskov Foundation also based in Canada.
Loan amounts began with PhP1,000 – 5,000
during the first cycle, and reached as much
as PhP150,000 in the next cycles. Interest
rate was three percent per month, payable
daily or weekly in amounts depending on
the capacity of the member-borrower to
pay. Common purpose for borrowing was
to obtain working capital for economic
activities like sari-sari store and piggery.
Collateral offered was usually chattel mort-
gage or movable properties such as motor-
cycle, television and other appliances.
loan amount for his or her account, plus a
monthly contribution of PhP100 each for
savings and share capital.
Mismanagement of the MPC from the
late 1990s until early 2005, however, placed
it in the red in 2004. The rice trading busi-
ness and consumer store closed shop in
2002 owing to enormous debts from its
customers. Marketing of swine was dis-
continued following a disease which hit
the area. Poor management of its credit
and microfinance operations was mani-
fested in delinquent payments by borrow-
ers and consequently high past due rates
for the coop. Officers engaged in extrava-
gant spending and carried out activities
that were not supported with board reso-

Volume 42 • Number 5 11
 Microfinance Saves a Cooperative
lutions. Systems, policies and procedures
were, in fact, sufficiently written and in
place but not strictly enforced. Low morale
among the staff translated into poor ser-
vices rendered to members who, in turn,
became affected by the deteriorating op-
erations of the coop. Many of the borrow-
ers continued to be negligent in paying
their loans. MSSD-MPC resorted to legal
means in dealing with a number of its
borrowers while its account with Land
Bank was restructured.
MSSD-MPC makes a turnaround
The General Assembly meeting in
April 2005 was a decisive moment for the
cooperative. A new set of board members
was elected. The new board was then
concerned about restoring the trust and
confidence of members as well as other
stakeholders in the cooperative. One of
the proposals put forward to resuscitate
the coop was to tap the financial assis-
tance of Pondo ng Pinoy (PnP) to launch
a microfinance program.
Skills training were provided from
accessing to actual management of funds.
© Denz Dayao / CBCPMedia
12 IMPACT • May 2008
Fr. Chito Estrella, PnP Coordinator for the
Diocese of Daet expounded, “May funds
para sa mahirap, kaya nga lang dapat
gumawa sila ng paraan para ma-avail
yun. Kasi pag sila ang gumawa ng paraan,
matututo silang alagaan yon at
palaguin.” (There are funds for the poor,
and they must find out and exert all efforts
to avail of these funds. Once availed, they
will learn how to manage it and make it
grow.) He added, “Sa microfinance,
makaka-reach out ka talaga. Aanhin mo
ang pera kung hindi mo gagamitin para
sa mahihirap?” (With microfinance, you
can really reach out to the poor. What’s
the money for if it can’t be put to use for the
poor who need it most?)
Given fresh, albeit diminutive funds
of PhP300,000 from Pondo ng Pinoy (plus
a PhP100,000 loan from the Provincial
Government) by the second semester of
2005, MSSD-MPC set out again to better
manage the microfinance program and the
cooperative organization as a whole. The
program was exclusively for regular mem-
bers, whether old or new, and those with
class A standing.1 The loanable amount
granted to a new member for the first cycle
was as low as PhP2,500. Interest rate was
leaner at 2 percent per month. Period of
payment was weekly or monthly. First re-
leases from the Fund occurred in Septem-
ber 2005.
Learning from previous years’ mis-
takes, the MPC imposed stricter measures
during pre- and post-disbursement of loan
funds. Prior to approval and release, for
instance, borrower-applicants were re-
quired to submit several documents, e.g.,
barangay clearance, endorsement from the
barangay captain, community tax certifi-
cate, and copy of bills payment. The appli-
cants were also subjected to a background
and credit investigation, and must be able
to assign two co-makers¯one family mem-
ber and one regular member from the coop.
The promissory note and trust receipt
document was now notarized, while loans
were insured by the Cooperative Life
Mutual Benefit Services.
As of 31 December 2007, the PnP
Microfinance Program of MSSD granted
some PhP1.5 million working capital loans
to a total of 94 borrowers. Loan amounts
were mostly PhP10,000 and below. Out of
the 93 borrowers, only 13 were able to avail
Photo courtesy of CBCP NASSA
 ARTICLES

of loans ranging from PhP15,000 to as

much as 60,000.
At post-disbursement, the coopera-
tive does not deny encountering prob-
lems in collection, especially with the La
Niña phenomenon since September 2007,
and which is seen to extend until June of
this year. Amounts due but unpaid as of
end-2007 totaled to some PhP135,000 in-
volving 28 borrowers. Livelihood projects
that were particularly affected were fish
and vegetable vending, palay trading, hog
and poultry raising and dried fish vending.
Nonetheless, reminder letters are sent to
the borrowers. Repayments per schedule
are closely monitored by the motivator/
collector. Regular visits to collect loan
payment and savings, and to monitor
projects are conducted. One-on-one con-
frontation meetings are also held to follow
up the more delinquent borrowers.
As one whole organization, the man-
agement sees to it that systems, policies
and procedures are strictly and properly
enforced.

Looking forward to better lives

Members were first told of the recov-

ery program of the coop during the General
Assembly meeting in April 2005. What

Photo courtesy of CBCP NASSA

excited them was the opportunity to bor-
row again for working capital for their
socio-economic activities, notwithstand-
ing the more stringent requirements, poli-
cies and procedures.
First-timers have been able to borrow
amounts no higher than PhP10,000. Yet
benefits already abound. The additional
capital for existing businesses allowed
them to purchase more materials or inven-
tory in lesser cost. The interest rate of 2
percent per month vs. 20 percent to 60
percent per month from other informal lend-
ers was far more favorable in terms of
paying smaller amounts of interest. This
then translated to higher incomes and
savings. Availability of funds has eased
the liquidity position of many borrower-
families primarily in terms of spending for
their daily basic needs. It even permitted
them to engage in other productive en-
deavors, settle past obligations or spend
for the school and health needs of their
families.
“Kung may pera, marami kang
maiisip na paggagamitan, kung ano ang
pagkakakitaan at puwede pang
mapalago. Kaysa naman sa walang
pera…” (When you have the money, there
are so many ways to use it, especially on
businesses which have the potential to
grow. This is definitely a lot better than
having no money at all…”), shared Aling
Angelina. Member-beneficiaries are now
poised to take in higher amounts to, in
turn, augment incomes to answer their
daily needs more easily, and other social
obligations.
Obtaining additional funds, although
small, has opened opportunities for the
poor clients to work harder, live and earn
better. On the other hand, MSSD remains
confident about achieving financial sta-
bility and regaining community credibil-
ity. Indeed, the “crumbs” offered by Pondo
Footnotes
ng Pinoy has not only rallied round on the
crisis faced by a struggling cooperative in
Daet, Camarines Norte, but it has also
begun to touch the lives of the poor com-
munities in the area. I
Glossary:
LBP – Land Bank of the Philippines
OIKOCREDIT – Oikocredit Philippines
UPLIFT-CN – Urban Program for Live-
lihood Finance and Training-
Camarines Norte
(Canadian Grant)
UPLIFT-JP – Urban Program for Live-
lihood Finance and Training-Jose
Panganiban
(Canadian Grant)
PnP – Pondo ng Pinoy
(Gemma Marin is a research assistant
of John J. Carroll Institute for Church
and Social Issues of the Ateneo de
Manila University)
1There are two types of members: regular
or those with share capital, and associate
or those without capital invested in the
coop. On the other hand, the loan standing
classification is defined as follows: A
– accounts with good loan payment
record; B
– with past due yet with savings; C
– with past due and no share capital in 6
months; D
– with delinquent record of loan payments.

Volume 42 • Number 5 13
ARTICLES

H
ealthy kidneys are a hot product in
the black market. Growing demand
and a lack of donors in developed
countries have turned developing coun-
tries like India, China and Pakistan into
quarries for unscrupulous businessmen
and doctors. And until recently, it looked
as though the government of the Philip-
pines was going to deal with its own black
market problem by effectively legalizing it.
After intense international pressure
was applied, the government has endorsed
a more ethical stand. But there is great
skepticism from observers about whether
it can keep its high-minded promises.
Here is what happened. On March 3

The
the Philippine Department of Health is-
sued an administrative order, “Revised
National Policy on Kidney Transplanta-
tion from Living Non-related Organ Donor

Philippines’
and its Implementation Structures”. The
proposed regulations sounded ethical, but
the devil was in the detail. Donors would
be allowed to specify a person to receive

ethical time
their organ or they could make a “non-
directed” donation.
This was a loophole wide enough to

bomb
drive a Mack truck through, permitting
poor donors to sell their kidneys to unre-
lated foreigners.
Former health secretary Alberto
Romualdez called this an “ethical time
bomb.” Harvard’s Francis L. Delmonico, By Dean Menchavez
of The Transplantation Society, the lead-
ing professional body for transplant sur-
geons, told MercatorNet that it “would
have enabled rich foreign patients to use
the Filipino as a targeted source of or-
gans”. The country’s Catholic bishops
denounced it: “Human organ sale or trade,
by its very nature is morally unacceptable.
It is contrary to the dignity of the human
person, his or her authentic autonomy and
the essential equality of all persons... [The]
body ought not to be treated as a commod-
ity or object of commerce.”
Under this barrage, health officials
revised the plan. Late last month they
closed the loophole and banned all kidney
donations to non-related foreigners. Re- ney transplants locally sextupled. Trans- sold a kidney.
cent reports indicate that legislators are plants from the living and related (i.e., a According to the PNS, these donors
even contemplating on extending the ban family relative) donors flatlined while the are all male, with an average age of 29. A
to non-related locals. number of non-related transplant donors third of them have not even reached high
ballooned out from 52 in 1999 to 473 in school. Most are farmers or tricycle driv-
Will a ban succeed? 2006. The number of foreign recipients in ers with a US$90 average household
2004 and 2005 increased by a whopping 62 monthly income. They received just
But how likely is that awful business percent. US$2,800 for a kidney, which they used to
of selling kidneys will evaporate over- What type of person has a kidney to pay debts, support their family or set up a
night? Organ trafficking has sunk deep spare for a bit of cash? Poor people. And business. In most cases, it turned out to be
roots in the Philippines. Between 1996 and the Philippines has lots of them. In Baseco, a bad deal. About three-quarters told re-
2006, according to the Philippine Society on Manila Bay, about 3,000 of the slum’s searchers they did not improve their lives
of Nephrology (PNS), the number of kid- 50,000 inhabitants are reported to have economically. Four-fifths felt their capac-

14 IMPACT • May 2008


ity to work was reduced. Almost none
would recommend that others sell their
kidney.
Despite a government-imposed cap
which had restricted the number of trans-
plants to foreigners to 10 percent of the
total, wealthy foreigners, many from the
Middle East, were the chief beneficiaries
under the old system. At the moment,
selling or exporting human organs carries
a 20-year jail term and stiff fines—but
prosecutions are rare. It is a lucrative busi-
ness for enterprising surgeons.
The Philippines’ ethical time bomb
Filipinos have
narrowly escaped
the establishment of
a legal market for
organs. But will the
new system work?
Critics are skeptical
That’s why Amihan Abueva of the
lobby group Asia Against Child Traffick-
ing fears that the new guidelines will just
be ignored, or that brokers will find loop-
holes. Dr. Gene Nisperos, of the Health
Alliance for Democracy (HEAD), notes
that several administrative orders have
been issued without ever being fully imple-
mented. Nisperos told MercatorNet that
the government’s privatizations of health
care makes him question the seriousness
of the virtuous new policy.
The government itself is skeptical. A
report for the Philippine Organ Donation
Program said last year that the health de-
partment was “unable to enforce rules due
to the lack of capacity and ability to monitor
accredited facilities… The organ donation
program of the country has also no mecha-
nism to adequately enforce ethical guide-
lines on accredited facilities… Compliance
to regulations is poorly documented and
enforced due to inadequately designed in-
centive structures, capacity limitations and
non-coordination of efforts”.
Liberal ideologues
One reason why government officials
may not be taking the kidney market seri-
ously is that it actually seems like a good
idea to starry-eyed economists. The Econo-
mist, for instance, is a consistent supporter
of legalizing an organ market: “Many people
will find the very idea of individuals selling
their organs repugnant. Yet an organ mar-
ket, in body parts of deceased people, al-
ready exists. Companies make millions out
of it. It seems perverse, then, to exclude
individuals. What’s more, having a kidney
removed is as safe as common elective
surgeries and even beauty treatments (it is
no more dangerous than liposuction, for
example), which sets it apart from other
types of living-organ donation.”
In an ideal setting, there would be
proper medical examinations to determine
a donor’s suitability. But in the slums of
Manila, the broker is not interested in
ensuring the donor’s health, and the do-
nor is not interested in telling the truth. It
is easy to fake urine samples or to normal-
ize blood pressure with drugs. Newsbreak,
a local news and affairs magazine, recently
featured the case of 50-year-old Doming
Umandap, a resident of Quezon province,
who died of a heart attack a few months
after donating a kidney.
In the Philippines and in other poor
countries there is no level playing field.
Family men without a dime are selling their
organs because they have nothing else to
sell. The Philippines needs another John
Steinbeck to update The Grapes of Wrath
for contemporary organ trafficking.
Only if there is a resolute political will
to enforce the law, will there be no more
Domings. Unfortunately few Filipinos be-
lieve that a new set of government regula-
tions is going to change anything. I
Dean Menchavez is a freelance journalist from the
Philippines. This article is reprinted with MercatorNet’s
permission.
Volume 42 • Number 5 15
C O V E R
S T O R Y

Why are we selling

our beautiful land?

16 IMPACT • May 2008

 Why are we selling our beautiful land?
Photo by Denz Dayao, Bantayan Island, Cebu

"The JPEPA is a classic example of what

happens when the greed for wealth and
power blinds governments to what is right
and just and turns them into predators.
But the worst predators are those who
turn against their own land and people."

By Ester V. Perez de Tagle mind that it would damage our beautiful star and center of global marine
land, and its more valuable biodiversity biodiversity? Indeed, the JPEPA would be

W
ith the many unanswered ques-
tions on anomalies hounding the
GMA Administration since the
2004 Presidential Elections, the Filipino
people’s demand for their right to know
the truth has intensified. The emerging
web pattern spells out not just corruption,
but an even bigger crime—treason or sell-
out. In 2005, when GMA declared the Phil-
ippines “Open for Business,” offering for-
eigners mining rights to our rich mineral
patrimony at give-away terms, few Filipi-
nos thought that it was a sell-out. Never
Photo by JP Acuña
resources. Could foreign sell-out be the
bail-out for a regime sinking under ques-
tions of legitimacy, and running out of
money and local logistics to buy its hold
on power to hold off retribution? Not until
the NBN got connected along with other
mega-projects to the Spratlys deal did the
public see a sell-out and cry treason.
But buried in the voluminous pages of
the Japan-Philippines Economic
Pcartnership Agreement (JPEPA) is the
mother of all sell-outs. Once ratified, it
would beget other similar EPA’s since
other countries will understandably want
to get the same terms as Japan. Who would
not want to enjoy equal rights as citizens
to exploit the land and waters of an inter-
nationally recognized biodiversity super-
the beginning of the total sale of our natu-
ral resources and the end of our sover-
eignty. Its impacts are comprehensive and
irreversible. There is no need to dig up
damning evidence from other documents
nor extract it from witnesses. It is right
there, buried in its text.
Loss of Philippine Sovereignty
The JPEPA tramples on our Constitu-
tion and other laws, and surrenders the
Philippines to Japan without a single shot
being fired. The footprints are all over its
text. Even during the negotiations, the
people’s constitutional right to effective
and reasonable participation in economic
decision-making was already violated. It
usurps the legislature’s inherent constitu-
tional power to exercise authority over
foreign investments and to regulate com-
merce and trade. An example is the irre-
versible unilateral elimination of tariff pro-

Volume 42 • Number 5 17
Why are we selling our beautiful land?
tection within 11 years. This would result
in the much-increased flow into our coun-
try, of aggressively priced Japanese goods
enjoying the economy of scale, thereby
killing the backbone of our economy, our
small and medium industries, already suf-
fering from government neglect. Massive
unemployment would follow.
The JPEPA also usurps the power of
Philippine LGUs, which enjoy local au-
tonomy under the Philippine Constitution
including the legislative power to create
their own sources of revenues. Further-
more, it contravenes the spirit and intent of
our laws, like the Clean Air Act and the
Ecological Waste Management Act. It ties
the hands of our lawmakers. Future legis-
lation relating to investments will no longer
be possible with the minimal, incomplete
and wrong reservations or exemptions the
Philippine panel made and Japan’s vari-
ous extensive reservations to protect its
interests. For future measures, our reser-
vations indicate only provisions of present
law. This means that the Philippines is
relinquishing its prerogative to enact fu-
ture laws. The Filipino panel also agreed to
remove the phrase contained in previous
Philippine bilateral investment agreements
that allows for national legislative flexibil-
ity, “with respect to investments which are
made in accordance with the legislation of
that contracting state.” This makes the
JPEPA provisions irreversible and beyond
the reach of Philippine legislation, present
or future. The JPEPA even plans to “exam-
ine the possibility of amending or repeal-
ing laws and regulations that pertain to, or
affect the implementation and operation of
this agreement.”
18 IMPACT • May 2008
worsen to make way for Japanese Agri-
business and more mining. The JPEPA
would legitimize biopiracy. Protected by
Art. 90, the Japanese could patent their
manufacturing processes to prevent us
from commercially using our own bio-re-
sources. JPEPA provides neither suffi-
cient safeguards to protect our country’s
rich bio-resources, nor provisions on ac-
cess and benefit-sharing.
The Toxic Waste Threat
Japan, a small island state, cannot
© Rolex de la Pena/epa/Corbis
cope with the toxic waste generated by its
high industrialization. An AP Tokyo 1998
news report says “Japan has a new export
for the world—garbage. Export of hazard-
ous materials is generally banned, in line
with international conventions. So, busi-
nessmen are just calling it something else.”
Health and Welfare Ministry official
Art. 4. Philippine laws exist for the Tatsuro Akashi confirmed this, saying
good of our people but would be amended “There is no objective definition to distin-
or repealed to accommodate the good of guish waste from goods.” JPEPA Tariff
JPEPA. Lines list waste as among products en-
titled to preferential treatment and granted
National Treatment a tariff rate of 0%. Another threat is that
Japan, to avoid the toxic and hazardous
Art.89 accords to the Japanese inves- waste generated by its many dirty indus-
tors equal rights as Filipinos in the exploi- tries, may relocate these in the Philippines.
tation of our natural resources. It would be
open season for our priceless flora and What Benefits?
fauna with Japan getting the first shot!
How ironic, considering that it never apolo- Art. 95 and Art. 96 could not only give
gized for the atrocities it committed against the Japanese more rights than Filipinos,
our people in World War II. Worse, Japan’s they could also open our government to
comprehensive reservations and our lack multi-million dollar suits. Article 93 pro-
of the same make this provision hibits the Philippines from imposing on
unreciprocal. Japanese investments any technology
Annex 7, 2B, would allow Japanese transfer and any given level of hiring of
large-scale fishing in our already badly Filipinos. The Japanese do not impose
depleted seas. Their factory ships travel- these in their treaties with other countries.
ing in fleets and processing, canning, and So, what benefits do our people get from
packaging their catch on site, ready for the JPEPA? Even our nurses, who have
international and local markets, would been held up by the government as among
compete with our fish products. Because its biggest beneficiaries, do not want it.
of the economy of scale, their products Philippine Nurses Association President,
would be cheaper. So who would buy our Dr. Leah Sameco Paquiz, who has studied
products? The same could happen to our its impact on the nursing profession, wrote
agriculture and agro-forestry. The plight a paper against it. Decent, fair-minded Japa-
of the Sumilao farmers would be replicated nese like Japan’s Christian pastors, issued
many times over, and in greater magni- pronouncements decrying its great injus-
tude. Much of our limited land and water, tice to the Filipino people. The JPEPA is a
which should be used to plant food crops, classic example of what happens when the
could be used by the Japanese to plant greed for wealth and power blinds govern-
biofuel feedstock for their energy needs ments to what is right and just and turns
endangering our food and water security. them into predators. But the worst preda-
After all, even with no EPA, GMA had tors are those who turn against their own
awarded 1.2 million ha. to the Chinese for land and people. I
biofuel use, which was suspended due to Mrs. Ester Perez de Tagle is the founding chairperson
the NBN furor. Forest destruction could of the Concerned Citizens Against Pollution, COCAP.

Bishop Claver (center) with BEC leaders during the rural congress held in the Prelature of Libmanan, March 26, 2008.
BEC:
By Most Rev. Francisco F. Claver, SJ, DD
T
he Basic Ecclesial Community, we
call it GKK or Gagmay’ng
Katilingban Kristohanon in
Cebuano, started in Mindanao in the
1970’s, so the first BEC began there during
the time of Martial Law. We were forced to
go into it because the Federation of Free
Farmers which was starting strong in the
barrios became a creature of Martial Law.
When that happened, members of the Fed-
eration of Free Farmers, with their strong
social orientation, went back to the barrios
dialogue, participation
and co-responsibility
and became the nucleus, the beginnings
of the BECs in Mindanao. So it’s good to
remind ourselves of that. Also, the first
Rural Congress was held in Cagayan de
Oro.
But why in Mindanao? Because
Mindanao, at that time and up to now was,
and is, the most neglected portion of the
country. And that is why I think BECs
started well there, because what we did was
to go to the barrios, to go to the people, and
say, “you are the important ones”.
ARTICLES
© Dennis M. Sabangan/epa/Corbis
In January this year, the bishops put
out a pastoral letter on the national situa-
tion, and they said, “Let’s not just blame
the government for all the ills that we have.
Let’s take a look at ourselves.” This re-
minded me of something that happened in
Bontoc during my last year there. We have
these small Christian communities, like
yours, and one time we had a general
assembly of the whole Vicariate where the
parishes reported what they were doing.
There was a group of women who came up
Volume 42 • Number 5 19
BEC: dialogue, participation and co-responsibility
and they started to sing and dance in the
Igorot way. And this is what they said
“We are the corruption monitoring group
in our barangay, la la la…” “We look at the
projects that are started by our barangay
captain, and we see that they are substan-
dard, la la la…” So they danced and sang,
and went on to say, “But when they are our
relatives who do these things, we look the
other way…”
When I heard that, I said, that’s ex-
actly what is wrong with us! We talk about
corruption by others, but when our rela-
tives, or we, do corrupt things, we turn the
other way. That is the reason why the
bishops in their last letter in January said,
“Don’t just look at the people who are
doing all the corruption, look into your-
selves, because what we have found out
is, if this problem continues, it is because
we turn our eyes away.”
We are apathetic. We do not com-
plain. We accept corruption as standard
operational procedure. So that’s when we
realize that you can have all these politi-
cians being corrupt, but if the ordinary
people, that’s us, do nothing about them,
corruption will continue. So there’s not
much sense in calling for all these officials
to resign. Who will take their place? In
other words, what the bishops were say-
ing was, what we need is a moral reform of
the entire country. And so let’s start where
the people are—in the barrios. That’s why
we are coming to you.
Now you take a look at the Rural
Congress. The second Rural Congress
will take place this year. It will come out
with suggestions from the people just like
what you did here. Those will go to the
national congress. Now the important
thing is, who is going to act on those
suggestions? Whatever they come up
with, those plans, those decisions will
come down to you. And it’s the people in
the barrios that are going to do the action.
This is why in the Rural Congress you will
notice that the delegates will make very
much of the BECs, because they know that
the only ones who are going to implement
whatever the Rural Congress comes out
with are the people in the barrios—you.
You are going to be the implementers. And
therefore, you better understand what you
are doing.
Just listening to your presentation a
while ago, I see that nobody needs to tell
you what is wrong. You know it. The only
problem is how to get together. When we
started in Mindanao, there were only three
ideas that were very, very strong in all the
dioceses in Mindanao. Those were dia-
20 IMPACT • May 2008
logue, participation, and co-responsibil-
ity. What does dialogue mean? Let’s talk
to one another, listen to one another. I see
that you are already doing that. Participa-
tion—the one who is going to decide the
action is not the priest, or for that matter,
the leaders. It’s the people. Priests and
leaders have to listen to the people, to talk
to them. And the people have to listen to
them also, but in the final decision, the
decision should be by participation—they
have to participate. And finally, co-re-
sponsibility—the responsibility is with
you. It’s not with the priest. It’s not with
the bishop. It’s not with the government.
Although of course, they have their own
responsibility as well. But the real respon-
sibility is with you.
Take a look at those three: Dialogue—
are we listening to one another? Are we
talking to one another? Or, are your lead-
ers just giving speeches, there’s no feed-
back? So dialogue is very important. Sec-
ondly, participation—you are not just
going to be idle, listening to what your
leaders are saying. You have to correct
them if they are wrong. And you have to
help in the decision making. And then
finally, co-responsibility—you know what
we are talking about here? It is something
you often hear about—PEOPLE POWER.
That’s where real people power is.
Now, I’d like to mention something
here when we talk about dialogue. You
listen to one another, but there is also one
person to whom you have to listen. And
who is that? The Holy Spirit. Because that
is what you do in your BEC. You do bible
sharing, but you cannot just talk about the
bible, unless first you pray and then you
listen to the Holy Spirit telling you what
should be done in prayer. So when I talk
about dialogue among yourselves, what is
important here is that you also dialogue
with the Holy Spirit. That’s the bible shar-
ing, sharing the Word of God. The Word
of God means that the Spirit is still talking
to us. I mention this because when you talk me that in your diocese, I don’t even have
about the BECs you might think every- to talk about this because the BECs are
thing is action, action, and action. No! The well developed here, as I can see.
BEC is first of all based on prayer and on Let me share with you just one obser-
the bible. Those are the forces that give the vation about the BECs nationwide. In 1991,
BECs their strength. Keep that in mind. just after the beginning of Libmanan, the
Ultimately, the dialogue is going to be with Second Plenary Council of the Philippines
the Holy Spirit. made the BEC as a priority of the whole
Do you understand that? Because if Philippine Church. I have worked in
you do, then you see that what we have in Mindanao, and I have worked in Manila
the BEC is not just like any other organiza- for ten years before being assigned back
tions, like the Knights of Columbus, CWL, to Bontoc-Lagawe in Northern Luzon. So
or even the charismatic groups. The BEC I think I’ve covered the entire country! But
is the Church. That’s the real Church. And when I look at what’s happening in those
I’m very glad to see this here. It seems to other places, I see that some of the BECs

are strong; some are weak; some are just
beginning. So in Northern Luzon, we’ve
asked ourselves, what are the essentials of
a BEC that all the others should have?
In a national survey in 1995, we found
out that there were 95 names for the BEC. So
we asked what was common among them.
And we decided on these three—First,
bible-sharing where the people come to-
gether to share their thoughts on the bible.
That’s very important because that’s where
you get in touch with the Holy Spirit. Sec-
ond, pastoral planning. You just don’t in-
sert in the BECs and talk and pray. You have
to go into action. What is the Spirit telling
you about your problems now—poverty,
corruption, lack of development, all these
things—what is he telling you? You have
to act. And the third most important reason
is participation . Everybody must partici-
pate in this process.
Now, those are the most important
things in the BEC. And that’s what I ask
you to do. But I know that I have no reason
to say that this is not happening here. I
have been talking to your priests and to
the bishop and I can say that you are far,
far advanced more than many dioceses in
the country. This I can say, looking at what
has been happening in Mindanao, the
ARTICLES
Visayas, and Northern
Luzon. So keep it up and
let’s see what’s going to
happen. Just think of this, if
this happens all over the
country, then we can have
that moral reform that we
are often talking about. If
we have that, then we can
call ourselves a truly Chris-
tian nation.
Just one last thought.
You know, whenever we
hear reports about us, Fili-
pinos, in the international
press, we react. I remember
that time when Senator
Roco was still here. There
was a candy in Britain that
was called Filipina. How did
Senator Roco react? He
said, “let’s complain about
this”. What I’m trying to
point out here is that when-
ever we hear Filipinos down-
graded, we react. We are
very sensitive. But when
we hear every year that our
country is number one or
number two as the most cor-
rupt nation in Asia, we do
not react. And here we are,
we are a Catholic nation,
but we have no reaction on
our good reputation.
And this is where the
bishops are asking you.
“Let’s do something about
it, but let’s start with our-
selves. Let’s not just blame
others, let’s start where we
can.”
Let me end with those
women I was telling you
about, dancing in Bontoc.
You know how they con-
sider their work with regard
to this national problem? They said “If we
see what’s happening in Manila we tell
ourselves, we can do nothing about it. But
if we go down to the barrio, if we take a look
at the barangay captain, there we can do
something.” And their philosophy of ac-
tion is very simple: “We do what we can,
where we are, with the little that we have,
and with other little people like us.”
I hope that it will also be your philoso-
phy not just in the Church but in society
at large. Thank you. I
A talk given during the BEC Rural Congress of the
Prelature of Libmanan where more than a thousand
lay leaders gathered on March 26, 2008 in preparation
for the upcoming National Rural Congress.
Volume 42 • Number 5 21
N E W S
FEATURES
Quake kills 7,600 in
Sichuan alone
CHENGDU, China, May 12, 2008—The
death toll from the quake that struck Sichuan
reached 7,600; whilst the number of
wounded are expected to be as high as
10,000, according to local authorities in
Beichuan County, north-eastern Sichuan.
Some reports say that at least 80 per cent
of all buildings in Beichuan have collapsed.
No one has yet tried to estimate the
number of casualties at the epicentre of the
quake in the still isolated county of
Wenchuan.
The Xinhua news agency reported
the collapse of three school buildings in
Dujiangyan; many are feared dead.
At least 900 students might be buried
beneath a high school.
Some reports said that four children
died in the collapse of an elementary school
in Liangping, in Wanzhou diocese, with
hundreds more wounded.
The BBC reported one casualty in
Mianyang (Santai County).
Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, who has
Islamic court ‘authorizes’
conversion from Islam to
Buddhism
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, May 8,
2008—A Malaysian court has accepted
the request of a woman convert to Islam to
return to Buddhism, her original religion.
The sentence is the first of its kind in
recent months, which has seen progres-
sive closure on the part of judges regard-
ing cases of citizens who want to leave
Islam, the nation’s majority religion.
The case was reported by Ahmad
Munawir Abdul Aziz, lawyer for the Coun-
cil of Islamic Affairs for Penang state, in
the north of the country. According to the
lawyer, the tribunal granted permission to
Siti Fatimah Abdullah to re-embrace Bud-
dhism, which she had left in 1998 in order
to marry a Muslim of Iranian origins.
Recently cases similar to that of Siti
Fatimah have come to light, but have re-
sulted in a ban on changing religions,
22 IMPACT • May 2008
arrived in the capital of Sichuan of
Chengdu, said he will follow rescue opera-
tions and the distribution of aid.
The quake, which struck at 2.28 pm
local time (0628 GMT), measured 7.8 on the
Richter scale, levelling buildings across
this southwestern part of the country.
Tremors were felt as far away as Beijing
and Shanghai, but the epicentre was in
Wenchuan, 92 kilometres northeast of
Chengdu. (AsiaNews/Agencies)
creating strong ethnic and religious ten-
sions in Malaysia. The most famous case
is that of Lina Joy, an ethnic Malay.
Last year after a lengthy legal battle
her conversion to Christianity failed to
gain legal recognition.
Despite guarantees of full religious
freedom, Malaysia has established that all
questions regarding the faith of ethnic
malays—including their conversion—be
judged by the Islamic courts rather than
civilian law.
In fact, two legislations exist in the
country: Islamic law and constitutional
law, which often are in direct opposition to
each other.
In the case of Lina Joy this is evident:
the Constitution guarantees religious free-
dom; Islamic law prohibits conversion to
another religion. (AsiaNews/Agencies)
Judge
approves
Catholic
newspaper’s
lawsuit to use
‘Allah’
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, May 6,
2008—A judge in Malaysia ruled on
Monday that a Catholic newspaper’s
lawsuit that seeks to secure the right to
use the word “Allah” may proceed, the
Associated Press reports.
The Herald newspaper is seeking
to overturn a government order prohib-
iting the paper from using the word
“Allah” for God in its Malay-language
section. The government says the word
refers only to the Muslim God and its
use by non-Muslims might confuse
Muslim believers.
In addition to revoking the prohi-
bition, the newspaper also wants the
court to rule that the word “Allah” is
not for the exclusive use of Muslims.
The Herald has argued that “Al-
lah” is an Arabic word that predates
Islam and has been used for centuries
to mean “God” in the Malay language.
High Court Judge Lau Bee Lan has
ruled that prosecutors’ objections to
the newspaper’s lawsuit were “without
merit.” She said she will allow the
newspaper to contest the ban in court.
“The court agreed that the church’s
application is not frivolous, nor vexa-
tious nor an abuse of process. It de-
serves to be heard,” said Derek
Fernandez, a lawyer for The Herald. He
told reporters that the court will set a
trial date at another time.
Religious minorities in Malaysia
have increasingly complained that their
rights are being undermined by gov-
ernment efforts favoring Islam,
Malaysia’s official religion. Ethnic
Malays, nearly all of whom are Muslim,
comprise about 60 percent of the
country’s 27 million people. Ethnic
Chinese and Indians are the largest
minorities and are predominantly Bud-
dhist, Christian or Hindu. (CNA)

MILF appeals to BUC not to
intrude in peace talks
DAVAO City, May 10, 2008—The Moro
Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) appealed
to the members of the Bishops Ulama Con-
ference, a group pioneering in the efforts
of introducing interfaith dialogue as an
instrument of promoting peace in
Mindanao, not to accept the proposal of
the government of the Republic of the
Philippines to implement the ceasefire
agreement.
Khaled Musa, deputy chairperson of
the MILF committee on information said
that if the BUC will accept the proposal this
will become “a let down for men of faith”
like bishops and ulamas.
Presidential Adviser to the Peace Pro-
cess Secretary Jesus Dureza earlier said
that the government is intending to tap the
services of BUC to help in the accomplish-
ment of peace process after the Malaysian
contingents to the International Monitor-
ing Team (IMT) pulled back to Kuala
Lumpur starting today, May 10.
Davao Archbishop Fernando Capalla,
one of the co-convenors of the BUC also
said in one of the interviews that he is
supporting the call for the resumption of
peace talk between the government and
the MILF.
But the prelate did not go into details
if that would mean helping in the imple-
mentation of peace process.
Capalla, however, pointed out that
“there seems to be some groups who do
not want the problem of Mindanao
solved.”
While he also personally supports
Church launches workshop in Lahore to train for peace
LAHORE, Pakistan, May 5, 2008—In
Lahore the National Commission for Jus-
tice and Peace (NCJP) has recently
launched a peace education programme
designed to address the rising intoler-
ance, violence and extremism in the coun-
try which needs harmony.
The first phase of the project, which
was dedicated to peace, brought together
34 men and women, including ten Mus-
lims.
Msgr. John Saldanha, archbishop of
Lahore, welcomed the participants to the
cathedral urging them to dedicate them-
selves to justice and dialogue.
the resumption of the peace talks, Capalla
said “there were, and there are still flaws,
blunders, and mistakes in the choice of
people and substantial contents of the
direct and indirect activities and projects.”
He added, “Since the Tripoli Agree-
ment of 1976 brokered by the administra-
tion of President Ferdinand Marcos and
the Organization of Islamic Conference
(OIC) until today, 32 years later, the peace
process is considered to have failed dis-
mally to bring about true and lasting peace.”
Meanwhile, in a statement posted at
Luwaran, Musa said Capalla enjoys good
credibility in Mindanao even among the
ranks of the MILF and he is confident that
the archbishop will not accept what he
branded as “a cheap move of the govern-
ment to save the peace talks.”
“Making them sweat and sacrifice to
maintain peace and order like policemen
after the government intentionally defile
the peace process is absurd,” Musa said
as quoted by Luwaran.
Musa added that if the BUC will really
accept the new mission given by the gov-
ernment it will still end up like the plight of
the Malaysian contingents who gave up
the role as peacekeepers.
He also reminded the BUC that the
first who assumed this role as honest and
impartial truce observer was Father Eliseo
Mercado Jr., OMI from 1997 to 2000 but
ended up telling off the government for
willfully making a big mockery of the
ceasefire and the peace process. (Mark S.
Ventura /CBCPNews)
“We are trying to promote a peaceful
path towards social transformation and
stability in some parts of the country like
Punjab, Sindh and the North West Fron-
tier Province,” said NCJP Director Fr.
Emmanuel Yousaf. “Participants love
peace and this is the only weapon against
Pakistan’s decline.”
“Violence has marked our society,”
said NCJP Executive Secretary Peter Jacob.
“But now it is the time to see what peace
can do. Dialogue and non-violence are the
basis of every religious teaching and we
must put into practice what our conscience
tells us.” (AsiaNews)
N E W S
FEATURES
CBCP urges bolder
fight vs child porn
MANILA, May 5, 2008—The Media Office of
the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Phil-
ippines (CBCP) is urging public leaders and
ordinary people to join the battle to end child
pornography.
Msgr. Pedro Quitorio, CBCP Media Of-
fice Director, said the Church is seriously com-
mitted to pursue its crusade against the prolif-
erating child pornography in the country.
The priest said at a press conference
Monday “the Church has no reservations
when it comes to matter like pornography
especially those that victimizes children.”
Quitorio urged people to demand, “that
ending child pornography be made a top prior-
ity of the government.”
“Even if we come from different political
agenda or culture, race or religion, we have to be
united and help each other to defeat this,” he said
referring to the need for solidarity in fight against
pornography which transcends socio-political
barriers that divide the country today.
“This is a disease. This is a social and
psychological disease. But more than a disease,
Ithinkthephenomenonisgettingbigger.It’slike
the evil itself haunting our society today.”
Optical Media Board chair Edu Manzano,
meanwhile, said authorities and non-govern-
ment entities must collaborate with other sec-
tors, the Church especially, to combat the
sexual exploitation of children.
Manzano said he welcomed the religious’
sector’s efforts to stop child porn but called on
the law enforcement bodies for more regula-
tions to halt the underground industry.
The actor, who is also the country anti-
piracy czar, likewise warned that the sexual
exploitation has reached a new phase with the
Internet as its distribution method.
The CBCP had been denouncing the
proliferation of pornographic materials in the
country and called for the banning of these
materials.
Both the CBCP and the OMB in July last
initiated the formation of an ad-hoc committee
to address the influx of porn materials involving
minors in sex acts.
Movie and Television Review and Clas-
sification Board (MTRCB) chairperson
Consoliza Laguardia was also a panelist at the
press conference. She lauded both groups for
their efforts to fight “the terrible crime against
children.”
“It’s really our moral obligation to care for
children and save them from being sexually
exploited,” she said. (Roy Lagarde /
CBCPNews)
Volume 42 • Number 5 23
STATEMENTS
Reclaiming the Integrity of Creation
A CBCP-NASSA Statement on the Occasion of the Earth Day Celebration
“Our degraded environment is but a reflection of the pol-
lution of the inward environment. The problems begin in
the human heart, the inner core of the human being.”
(Cardinal Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI)
A
s nations around the world mark the
global celebration of Earth Day, the
Church and the Filipino people are
called upon to think about the heartrending
state of our environment amidst the loom-
ing crises on global warming and climate
change.
The world wakes up each day with the
news of disasters and calamities in differ-
ent parts of the earth, in different forms to
different people with different magnitudes.
Climate change has recently given us fright
and has raised worldwide concerns. Stron-
ger typhoons, longer droughts and pesti-
lences severely affected human lives.
Super typhoon Reming devastated a
vast part of the province of Sorsogon
leaving 734 dead and causing US$508
million damage to properties, infrastruc-
ture and agriculture. Similarly, another
super typhoon Milenyo left an equally
extensive devastation in Metro Manila
leaving 100 dead and causing millions of
pesos damage to properties. Heavy rain-
fall caused landslides and mudslides in
Guinsaugon, killing 200 people and dis-
placing some 1,500 more; and Mt. Bulusan
in Sorsogon had been spitting out ashes,
sulphur, and smoke since 2006, placing
the immediate vicinity in heightened alert.
Extreme weather conditions in the form of
longer droughts cause infertile and un-
productive lands. More frequent and
stronger typhoons destroy crops which
affects agricultural yields. These natural
disasters are even more aggravated by
man made and man-induced disasters
such as mine tailing spills in Boac,
Marinduque, cyanide spills in Rapu-rapu,
Albay and the collapse of mine tunnels in
Mt Diwalwal.
The frequency and intensity of these
occurrences give us a sense of urgency to
evaluate and resolve what has gone wrong.
Over the years, man continuously
24 IMPACT • May 2008
April 22, 2008
and progressively places stress on na-
ture and creates destruction and imbal-
ance in the planet. Mining for gold along
with other precious metals and non-me-
tallic minerals such as coal, cement and oil
had placed a great strain on our environ-
ment. Specifically, the large-scale clear-
ing of forests and open-pit mining opera-
tions increase the concentration of green-
house gasses in the atmosphere, which
cause global warming. Destructive fish-
ing such as the use of dynamite and
cyanide poison the coral reefs and de-
plete the fish stock.
As stewards of God on Earth, we are
duty-bound to regard Creation with ut-
most respect, to protect and conserve
Nature’s life-giving biodiversity, and to
judiciously use her natural resources to
fulfill the essential needs of people now
and for succeeding generations.
There is need to pause and assess the
situation we are in such as to respond in a
Godly way. It is our urgent responsibility
to ensure the health and sustainability of
our ecosystems and the survival of our
communities, especially the poor.
The National Secretariat for Social
Action, Justice and Peace (NASSA-JP) of
CBCP, recognizing the present environ-
mental challenge to the prophetic mission
and witnessing of the Church, issues the
following calls:
1. Collectively, nations should limit con-
sumptions of fossilized fuels to de-
crease greenhouse gasses specifically
carbon dioxide along with the use of
renewable sources of energy such as
solar and wind energy.
2. Reforestation is a must to restore
natural forest cover. Proper waste dis-
posal should be encouraged and imple-
mented.
3. The government should amend exist-
ing laws and policies particularly na-
tional mineral policies that are proven
to be detrimental to the environment
and are disadvantageous to the Fili-
pino people. The government should
encourage the prosecution of all who
violate environmental laws and/or fail
to properly implement them because
such negligence results in various en-
vironmental tragedies. Political will is
a renewable source and resides not
only on government institutions but
also on the Church, non government
organizations (NGO) and civil society
organizations (CSO).
4. Individually, we can take part in caring
for our environment by making each
member of the family realize that ev-
erything we have is God’s gift and
must be cared for lovingly and care-
fully. With these thoughts, it is easier
to encourage everyone to dispose
garbage properly and to use resources
sparingly.
5.We call on the church hierarchy to be
more vigilant, enlightened and inspired
in serving as guardians of peoples’
faith and providing pastoral guidance
to their flock in making moral judg-
ments particularly on issues of eco-
logical concerns.
Everyone needs to work hand in hand
and face up to the challenge ahead of us.
Our immediate and total response is not
only a matter of fostering a collective legacy
but that of securing the survival of genera-
tions to come.
It is my fervent prayer that our people,
starting from the members of the Basic
Ecclesial Communities, will heed this call
and respond to the real threats of environ-
mental degradation, pollution and climate
change now looming before us.
SR. ROSANNE MALLILLIN, SPC
NASSA Executive Secretary

Stop the Reckless Genetically-Engineered-
Rice Experiment on Filipinos!
S
ince Sept, 2006 through 2007, thou-
sands of Filipinos were concerned
with the reported discovery of ge-
netically engineered (GE) rice in US long-
grain rice shipments to different countries,
especially to the European Union. Many
groups and individuals—teachers, stu-
dents, religious, priests and bishops, work-
ers, farmers, government and business
employees, and others wrote President
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, the Department
of Agriculture, the Bureau of Plant Indus-
try and the National Food Authority op-
posing the entry and import of US rice
which may be contaminated with the re-
ported “unauthorized GE rice”.
Despite their best efforts to urge the
authorities to act against the entry of the
said contaminated US long-grain rice and to
stop its importation, it has entered the coun-
try seemingly surreptitiously in 2006 and
this year as US “cheap rice” imported by the
NFA itself in the midst of what media projects
as “rice crisis” (People doubt this crisis
because a number of provinces are known
to have bumper rice harvests and it seems
importation is resorted to so routinely by
the government to the dissatisfaction of
many local farmers whose harvests have
not been bought by the NFA.)
GE Rice Sold in Major Supermar-
kets
Thanks to the relentless monitoring of
Green Peace which took samples from su-
permarkets and got them tested in a Japa-
nese laboratory. Tests show the presence
of GE rice in US long-grain samples in Nov.
2006 and recently. On the first occasion,
Purefeeds, Inc. distributed “Uncle Sam Texas
Long Grain in major supermarkets like
Shopwise, SM and Robinsons (Phil. Daily
Inquirer, 29 Nov. 2006). While it was an-
nounced by the NFA that Purefeeds prom-
ised to pull its stocks from the market, a
cursory visit to a branch of SM in Manila
showed the then ongoing sale of Uncle Sam
Texas Long Grain. This April, samples of
the Blue Ribbon Texas Long Grain was
found “positive for GMO rice strain LL601”.
Those of Riceland Arkansas Long Grain
were found “‘contaminated’ by a still un-
known GMO strain”. Both are sold at S & R
supermarkets in Metro Manila. (Phil. Daily
Inquirer, 25 April 2008).
It was reported that “NFA Administra-
tor Jessup Navarro last month said that the
shipment had been tested and certified as
GMO-free by the Eurofins Gene Scan
through the US Dept. of Agriculture” and
that “the test results were also verified by
USDA/Grain Inspection, Packers and Stock-
yards Administration.” (To its credit, ac-
cording to a reliable source, the Department
of Agriculture has been insisting that no GE
rice enter the country and so Mr. Navarro
was referring to a testing protocol of US rice
shipment. In addition, DA Administrative
Order #8, 2002 “directs that before any
plant or animal is imported or released to the
environment, it must undergo a risk assess-
ment by the Bureau of Plant Industry, the
Bureau of Animal Industry and the Fisher-
ies Products Standards so that the potential
risks of GMO products to health and envi-
ronment could be reviewed.”
EU Rejects US-tested “GE-free” Rice
Green Peace, however, doubts the re-
liability of US tests because “since Jan.
2007, twenty-three (23) US-tested GMO-
free rice shipments were rejected in the
European Union (EU) because they tested
positive for GMOs under EU
standards”.(Business World, 17April 2008).
Six days after Green Peace announced
that the US “cheap rice” imported by the
NFA was found positive for genetically
engineered/modified (GE/GM) rice and
asked the government to stop its sale,
major newspapers have not reported any
urgent move on the part of government to
do anything about this.
Rats Fed with GE Soy, Corn, Po-
tato Show Health Damages
It seems that the authorities are not
duly worried that there are reported sepa-
rate studies which show that considerable
damage to internal organs and blood
changes occurred among rats fed with cer-
tain GE soya, corn and potato (GM Watch
Daily Oct. 2005; May 2005; June 2005; Feb.
2007 at http//www/gmwatch.org). The re-
sults of the said studies with GE corn and
potato were concealed for years and it took
court action to force Monsanto, the devel-
STATEMENTS
oper, to make public their findings. The
scientists who reviewed these animal stud-
ies point to the necessity of “full scale tests
on the influence of GE products over living
creatures” before these are marketed. No
such tests have been done on any of the GE
food and food products imported into the
Philippines, much less on the said GE con-
taminant of US rice shipment.
Nowhere in the world is GE rice legally
marketed and eaten. Filipinos on this scale
are the first to eat this untested, unautho-
rized GE rice that strayed into rice crops
which the US has shipped to different coun-
tries.
Is not the sale in supermarkets and
other outlets of NFA-imported US “cheap
rice”, found contaminated with GE rice,
tantamount to the government forcing Fili-
pinos to act as guinea pigs in a nationwide
haphazard feeding experiment? Unwittingly,
uninformed and unsuspecting Filipinos are
willing and paying subjects of this GMO
experiment. Who is monitoring this? Who
is in charge? Who is accountable for what-
ever harm can happen to health, to environ-
ment?
Philippine rice varieties can be con-
taminated by GE rice in a manner similar to
what has happened to rice crops in the US.
What can happen to the poor farmers, to us,
rice-eating Filipinos? What can become of
Philippine agriculture, of the economy?
Together with all concerned Filipinos,
Lingkod Tao-Kalikasan calls on President
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to order the recall
of all US long grain rice and rice products
from supermarket shelves and other NFA
distribution outlets NOW. We join Green
Peace in asking “the government to quaran-
tine the February shipment (44,000 metric
tons or 880,000 bags) and conduct a joint
sampling (as stringent as EU standards) of
the imported rice to safeguard Filipinos
from the unauthorized rice”. We ask Secre-
tary Arthur Yap of the Department of Agri-
culture to implement strictly and transpar-
ently its own Administrative Order #8
regarding genetically engineered plant and
plant products and animals in order to safe-
guard public health and the environment.
Sr. Ma Aida Velasquez, OSB
Coordinator, Lingkod Tao-Kalikasan
29 April 2008
Volume 42 • Number 5 25
FROM THE
B L O G S
Same commandments,
worse sins
N
ot long ago, there was
that loud and clear
worldwide news saying
that a Vatican official came out
with a list of “New Seven Mod-
ern Social Sins”. Needless to
say, the whole of Christendom
was caught unaware and
wherefore much surprised by
the news which was more dis-
turbing than interesting. The
more intriguing questions im-
mediately asked were the fol-
lowing: Why…are there new
Commandments? Why…do we
not have enough sins?
Why…should life be made
more difficult?
As it turned out, the media
outfit that came out with the
news proved to be wrong. In
local media language, some
people somewhere were “na-
kuryente”, i.e., suffered a big
burn, committed an honest mis-
take. The truth is that the Com-
mandments—as old as human-
ity and thus much older than
the Church—are exactly the
same since God handed them
down to Moses for humanity
to obey. In other words, there
are really no such things as
“new” sins. Instead, the Vatican
official concerned just men-
tioned new worst ways of vio-
lating the same Commandments
during these so-called “Mod-
ern Times”.
The sins of these times
against the Commandments of
God are more fatal and detri-
mental to people on account of
their much worst or grievous
consequences to society. This
is why these violations of the
same Divine Mandates are said
to be not only “new”, but also
“modern” and “social”. And
“seven” were enumerated in
line with the number of the fol-
lowing long standing seven
capital sins, i.e., the origin of
many other transgressions ul-
timately against others: Pride.
26 IMPACT • May 2008
Avarice. Envy. Anger. Lust.
Gluttony. Sloth.
The “New Seven Modern
Social Sins” that bring more
intensive havoc and extensive
damage to people—especially
the helpless, the poor and the
sick—are the following: 1. Bio-
ethical violations such as the
manufacture and prescription
of abortifacient pills. 2. Dubi-
ous experimentations such as
those laboratory researches
done on human embryos. 3.
Proliferation of prohibited
drugs among individuals of all
ages. 4. Environmental pollu-
tions that poison the earth and
contaminate the winds. 5. Ex-
cessive wealth or concentra-
tion of resources in the hands
of few people or corporations.
6. Greater or bigger divide be-
tween the rich and the poor. 7.
Installation of poverty as a way
of life for the majority.
In the Philippines, the
more commonly perpetrated
and deeply felt “social sins”,
needless to say, are the last
three that have immediate rel-
evance to institutional lying,
administrative cheating and
government stealing on the
part of certain highly placed
and well-known political lead-
ers with their close associates.
The two Commandments
grossly violated by these char-
acters are still exactly the same:
“DO NOT STEAL…DO NOT
COVET YOUR NEIGHBOR’S
GOODS.” (Exodus 20:15, 17).
The worse sins in this other-
wise blessed country is thus
only to well known: endemic
graft and structural corrup-
tion. The devastating and la-
mentable impact of these par-
ticular sins against the Sev-
enth and Tenth Command-
ments are already too well
known to still merit elabora-
tion.
www.ovc.blogspot.com
Republic of shortages
T
his country is now a land of big and shameful
shortages. First, there were shortages of fertilizers,
ballot boxes as well as votes. Then, there were
shortages of commissions, “bukols” or “tongpats”. Now,
there are shortages of rice, pigs and irrigation systems.
Lately, there seem to be also shortages of lots for building
foreign high-rise condo units in Subic, and shortages also
of islands for sale in Spratly.
The present government also suffers from likewise
many huge and disturbing shortages: shortages in honesty
and integrity plus consequent shortages in credibility and
acceptability. Meantime, the same government has been
long ably generating surpluses in graft and corruption,
surpluses in the increasing distrust and disgust of the
people, plus surpluses in demanding taxes on one hand—
while incurring more debts on the other. No wonder then that
barely a day or two ago, the World Bank itself said that the
cost of corruption in the Philippine amounts to some 30
billion pesos yearly. No wonder that recently, the country
bagged the abominable crown of “Asia’s Most Corrupt”—
and this is not in any way funny.
There is definitely no shortage in this government when
it comes to the long litany of scandal ridden contracts and
secret lucrative deals. Much less is there any shortage in the
official secrecy law—called “Executive Privilege”—to cover-
up even criminal abuse of public funds. But just the same,
there is much shortages in transparency of the South Rail
Project, in the accounting of the irrigation fund, in the
disbursements of Quedancor. All these shortages cost the
Filipinos multi-billion pesos with nothing much to have and
to hold, to rejoice about and be proud of.
For all intents and purposes wherefore, this country can
not be aptly called the “Republic of Shortages”. This may
sound offensive and rude even—for which proper apology
may be asked and readily given. But the title is mainly
intended to describe the sad plight of the Filipino people.
And it is hard to say that the above said shortages are all but
partisan politics in cause and complete falsity in nature.
Furthermore, there are also shortages in the resolve of doing
away with drugs and robbery, murders and other criminal
offenses. The truth is that there are still other shortages in
the Philippines such as those in truth and justice, in peace
and order, in the common good and public welfare. Finally,
there are likewise shortages in socio-economic comfort at
the present and hope in the future.
All the said shortages in the country have been so many
in number and so long in standing that a good number of the
people has grown accustomed to them. They wherefore live
and behave as if such moral and financial liabilities were
something normal, and would rather pay attention to survive
their difficult day to day plight in having some pesos in their
pockets; some food on their tables. This indifference is most
pleasing to the present administration. The truth however is
that the longer this ruling administration stays in power, the
more and worse shortages Filipinos will surely experience in
the country.
www.ovc.blogspot.com

Moderating hunger
I n this otherwise beautiful country with its wonderful
people, the maxim that recently became a national
favorite is “Moderate their greed”—a futile advisory
to certain key officials in government known for their
untrammeled avarice and rapacity. Their fundamental
concern is how to fill their many big and deep pockets—
their banks accounts here and there. Money is the god
they worship. Honesty and integrity just as truth and
justice are definitely not in their dictionary, much less in
their conscience.
During these ominous days in the country, there can
be another timely injunction this pitiful administration
would surely want people to be told: “Moderate their
hunger.” Begin with everyone eating but “half rice”.
Then eat much corn mixed with a little rice. Lately, they
have their bread mixed with camote and calabasa.
Incidentally, all these bad news are specially directed to
the poor and destitute, the manual laborers and contrac-
tual workers in the country. This is the stark and
disturbing reality: There is no affordable rice precisely
for those who already have much less in life. Many of
them are no longer eating thrice a day. Now, they have
to eat even less, the little money they have even buy
lesser food. The times are bad and cruel.
One hates to think that these days are reminiscent
of the Japanese occupation of the Philippines. Those
were the years when people were unceremoniously
killed or became victims of forced disappearances.
EDITORIAL
Dead and even mutilated bodies were then found here
and there. Human dignity was trampled upon. Human
rights were irrelevant. Guns reigned and dissent was
outlawed. Families were separated. Women were vio-
lated. Children were made to beg. “Mickey Mouse”
money was legal tender. Garbage was precious. Food
was scarce. And there was no rice!
Lo and behold—all the above social maladies that
gripped the country more than five decades ago now sound
rather familiar. The evil then that ruled this nation is once
again governing the people. The Filipinos are again poor
and destitute, once more oppressed and depressed, again
wanting and hungry. While the peso is said to have
appreciated very much, it however buys much less. People
are again wearing shabby clothes, living in shanties and
endlessly looking for rice—for cheap rice wherever and
whenever this could be found. Many and long “pila” for
rice is once more the norm of the day. Never mind the
sweat and tears provided they find rice.
The people are bombarded by glorious rhetoric and
rosy economic gains. Official developmental statistical
reports are infallibly marvelous and impressive. People
were amply provided with “super-visions” and prom-
ised “super-regions”. But where is the rice?
Something must be wrong—very wrong. Someone
must be lying—much and often. Somewhere should be
the solution. Somehow there must be an end to this
continuing crucifixion of the Filipino people.
Volume 42 • Number 5 27
FROM THE
I N B O X

O The king’s
NCE upon a time there from malnutrition and neglect.
was a rich King who Greatly grieved, the King
had four wives. said, “I should have taken much
He loved the 4th wife the better care of you when I had
most and adorned her with rich the chance!”

robes and treated her to the
finest of delicacies. He gave
her nothing but the best.
He also loved the 3rd wife
very much and was always
showing her off to neighbor-
ing kingdoms. However, he
feared that one day she would
leave him for another.
He also loved his 2nd wife.
She was his confidant and was
always kind, considerate and
patient with him.
Whenever the King faced
a problem, he could confide in
her, and she would help him get
through the difficult times.
The King’s 1st wife was a
very loyal partner and had made
great contributions in maintain-
ing his wealth and kingdom.
However, he did not love the
first wife. Although she loved
him deeply, he hardly took
notice of her!
One day, the King fell ill
and he knew his time was short.
He thought of his luxurious life
four wives
and wondered, I now have four
wives with me, but when I die,
I’ll be all alone.”
Thus, he asked the 4th
wife, “I loved you the most,
endowed you with the finest
clothing and showered great
care over you. Now that I’m
dying, will you follow me and
keep me company?”
“No way!” replied the 4th
wife and she walked away with-
out another word.
Her answer cut like a sharp
knife right into his heart.
The sad King then asked
the 3rd wife, “I loved you all my
life. Now that I’m dying, will
you follow me and keep me
company?”
“No!” replied the 3rd wife.
“Life is too good! When you
die, I’m going to remarry!”
His heart sank and turned
cold.
He then asked the 2nd wife,
“I have always turned to you
for help and you’ve always
been there for me. When I die,
will you follow me and keep me
company?”
“I’m sorry, I can’t help you
out this time,” replied the 2nd
wife. “At the very most, I can
only walk with you to your
grave.” Her answer struck him
like a bolt of lightning, and the
King was devastated.
Then a voice called out:
“I’ll go with you. I’ll follow you
no matter where you go.”
The King looked up, and
there was his first wife. She was
very skinny as she suffered
In truth, we all have the
four wives in our lives:
Our 4th wife is our body.
No matter how much time and
effort we lavish in making it
look good, it will leave us when
we die.
Our 3rd wife is our posses-
sions, status and wealth. When
we die, it will all go to others.
Our 2nd wife is our family
and friends. No matter how
much they have been there for
us, the furthest they can stay
by us is up to the grave.
And our 1st wife is our
Soul—often neglected in
pursuit of wealth, power and
pleasures of the world. How-
ever, our Soul is the only
thing that will follow us wher-
ever we go.
Cultivate, strengthen and
cherish it now, for it is the only
part of us that will follow us to
the throne of God and continue
with us throughout Eternity.
rowena.dalanon@cbcpworld.net

Years later, a group of men got in the

Trees that wood

ONCE there were three trees on a hill in the
woods. They were discussing their hopes
and dreams when the first tree said, “Some-
day I hope to be a treasure chest. I could be
filled with gold, silver and precious gems.
I could be decorated with intricate carving
and everyone would see the beauty.”
Then the second tree said, “Someday
I will be a mighty ship. I will take kings and
queens across the waters and sail to the
corners of the world. Everyone will feel
safe in me because of the strength of my
hull.”
Finally the third tree said, “I want to
grow to be the tallest and straightest tree
in the forest. People will see me on top of
the hill and look up to my branches, and think
of the heavens and God and how close to
them I am reaching. I will be the greatest tree
of all time and people will always remember
me.”
Many years went by. One day, a
group of woodsmen came upon the trees.
When one came to the first tree he said,
“This looks like a strong tree, I think I should
be able to sell the wood to a carpenter ...”
and he began cutting it down.
At the second tree a woodsman said,
“This looks like a strong tree, I should be able
to sell it to the shipyard.”
When the woodsmen came upon the third
tree, one of them said, “I don’t need anything
special from my tree so I’ll take this one,” and
he cut it down.
When the first tree arrived at the carpen-
ters, he was made into a feed box for animals.
He was then placed in a barn and filled with
hay. This was not at all what he had prayed for.
The second tree was cut and made into a small
fishing boat. His dreams of being a mighty ship
and carrying kings had come to an end. The
third tree was cut into large pieces and left
alone in the dark. The years went by, and the
trees forgot about their dreams.
Then one day, a man and woman came to
the barn. She gave birth and they placed the
baby in the hay in the feed box that was made
from the first tree. The man wished that he
could have made a crib for the baby, but this
manger would have to do. The tree could feel
the importance of this event and knew that it
had held the greatest treasure of all time.
fishing boat made from the second tree.
One of them was tired and went to sleep.
While they were out on the water, a great
storm arose and the tree didn’t think it was
strong enough to keep the men safe. The
men woke the sleeping man, and he stood
and said “Peace” and the storm stopped. At
this time, the tree knew that it had carried
the King of Kings in its boat.
Finally, someone came and got the
third tree. It was carried through the streets
as the people mocked the man who was
carrying it. When they came to a stop, the
man was nailed to the tree and raised in the
air to die at the top of a hill. When Sunday
came, the tree came to realize that it was
strong enough to stand at the top of the hill
and be as close to God as was possible,
because Jesus had been crucified on it.
The moral of this story is that when
things don’t seem to be going your way,
always know that God has a plan for you.
If you place your trust in Him, He will give
you great gifts. Each of the trees got what
they wanted, just not in the way they had
imagined. We don’t always know what
God’s plans are for us. We just know that
His ways are not our ways, but His ways
are always best.
rowena.dalanon@cbcpworld.net

28 IMPACT • May 2008

 B O O K
REVIEWS

Catechesis… The Hierarchical Nature of

Making Our Christian Faith Alive!
The Canonical Imperatives of Parish Personal Prelatures
Catechetical Instruction A Study of the Foundational Charism of Opus
Dei and its Canonical Configuration as a
Msgr. Joselito Cerna Asis, JCD Personal Prelature
The home has been and still remains the hub where children Jaime B. Achacoso
first learn their abc’s and with it their knowledge of the faith
through catechetical instructions received from parents—their The first of a series of Canon Law notebooks written by Fr.
first teachers. This book on catechesis affirms this fact. How- Jaime Achacoso, this monograph presents a study of the foun-
ever, it also posits the responsibility of the parish community, dational charism of Opus Dei and sets out to clarify some
particularly the parish priests in providing catechetical instruc- common complexities in comprehending the nature of Per-
tions to the Catholic faithful. Presented in two parts with two sonal Prelatures such as
chapters each, the volume gives an exhaustive presentation Opus Dei. An insider’s take
of the importance of catechesis based on canonical consid- on the essential points
erations. Part I gives a historical overview of the catechetical that characterized the exist-
instruction from the early centuries, the Second Vatican Coun- ence of the Opus Dei
cil and post-Vatican Council. Part II tackles the provisions for founded by St. Josemaria
parish catechetical instructions in the 1917 and 1983 Codes de Balaguer, the study was
of Canon Law. Well grounded in the teachings of the Church, first published with the
this volume is an excellent resource material for Catechists. same title in the Philippine
As Archbishop Leonardo Legaspi, Canonical Forum, Vol. III
says so succinctly in his foreword, (2006), journal of the
“The many practical advantages of Canon Law Society of the
this book are not limited to the better Philippines. The author, a
understanding of the nature and ex- priest of the Prelature of
tent of the duty of parish priest to the Opus Dei is the Secre-
catechesis, but also the juridical con- tary of the Canon Law So-
siderations of the various pastoral ciety of the Philippines and
situations where catechetical min- Associate Editor of Philip-
istry is indispensable.” This volume pine Canonical Forum. The
is an edited version of a doctoral dis- notebook is published by
sertation for a degree in Canon Law Canon Law Research &
titled “The Canonical Imperatives of Communication Founda-
Parish Catechetical Instruction.” The tion (CLRC).
author, from the Diocese of Daet, is
currently the assistant secretary
general of the Catholic Bishops’
Conference of the Philippines.

The Dance of
Life
Let us pray Weaving Sorrows and
A guide to the rubrics of Blessings into one
Sunday Mass Joyful Step

Paul Turner Henri J.M. Nouwen (Edited

The book is a guide on what
should happen on a Sunday Mass.
The celebration of the Sunday
Mass nowadays has become so
unpredictable with so many varia-
tions and creativities being added
here and there. Although there are
rubrics to follow in the celebration
of the Mass, still many factors,
mostly cultural, influence the litur-
gical celebration. The author says
rubrics are not absolute, but these should not also be easily
disregarded. Comprehensive in its presentation, the book
gives a clear explanation of the significance of each part of the
Mass. Lucidly explained too are the meaning of gestures as
well as the importance of the vessels used in the celebration.
The concluding section of the book tackles general matters
pertaining liturgical renewal in the Church. This volume pub-
lished by St. Pauls, indeed is an excellent guide for priest s,
liturgists and anyone interested in understanding deeply the
details of the Mass.
by Michael Ford)
One of the most prolific spiri-
tual writers of the 20th century,
Henri Nouwen has touched so
many lives with his profound
understanding of humanity as
reflected in his writings. He
has written innumerable books all borne out of his personal
relationship with God and his experience of God’s uncondi-
tional love among handicapped people at L’Arche with whom
he spent the last ten years of his life. This volume, a compila-
tion of Nouwen’s writings, editor Michael Ford painstakingly
put together strands of Nouwen’s reflections on varied range
of emotional and spiritual issues, guiding the readers to find
meaning in their personal life’s struggles. The profound in-
sights scattered in the pages of this book will guide readers
find their own way out of the tunnel of darkness, loneliness
and turmoil of life’s uncert ainties. To Nouwen, one’s relation-
ship with God is like “any dance of celebration” which “must
weave both the sorrows and the blessings into a joyful step…”
Published by Paulines Publishing House.

Volume 42 • Number 5 29
ENTERTAINMENT

thoughts and in-

sights. If names de-
CATHOLIC INITIATIVE fine the persons, one
FOR E NLIGHTENED can easily understand
why and how Fingers,
MOVIE APPRECIATION Sorrow, and Love are
so-named; it is diffi-
cult to see why two
characters are called
Title: THE AIR I BREATHE
Happiness and Plea-
Running Time: 97 mins
sure (except for one
brief moment of plea-
Lead Cast : Kevin Bacon, Brendan Fraser, Andy sure, perhaps). The
Garcia, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Forest splendid performance
Whitaker of the cast makes up
Director: Jieho Lee for some loose ends in
Producers: Paul Schiff, Emilio Diez Barroso, the plot. Some scenes
Darlene Caamano Loquet are contrived, seem-
Screenwriters: Jieho Lee, Bob DeRosa ingly a deus ex
Music: Marcelo Zarvos machina resolution to
Editor: Robert Hoffman problematic situa-
Genre: Crime/ Drama/ Romance tions.
Cinematography: Walt Lloyd Since the film is di-
Distributor: Viva Productions, Inc. dactic, it imparts many
Location: Mexico lessons, both good
Technical Assessment:  and bad. Excessive
Moral Assessment: zz greed is the nemesis of
CINEMA Rating: For viewers 14 and above Happiness and he re-
alizes his mistake too
late: “I was stupid. I
wasn’t thinking”. He
pays for this mistake
with his life. Fingers,

F ollowing a false Pleasure (Brendan house and shoots posite elements of the lord in a world of
lead, Happiness Fraser) is scarred by him. Love (Kevin Ba- human existence: gambling, violence,
( F o r e s t the memory of his little con), a doctor, has Happiness, Pleasure, and whoring, also has
Whitaker) uses a brother’s death when long been in love with Sorrow, and Love. The excessive greed for
credit card to bet $50 they both get in- Gina (Julie Delpy) but major characters in power and wealth but
million on a horse that volved in a street never had the courage the film personify nowhere do we see in
unfortunately suffers fight. He becomes a to tell her so, and lost each of these ele- him remorse or retri-
a mishap. Pressured trusted collector and her to his friend. In her ments. Only Sorrow bution. Something
by the owner of the ax-man of Finger who research lab, Gina is has a stage name, tragic is bound to hap-
gambling joint, Fin- favors the taciturn bitten by a poisonous Trista; she whispers pen when Pleasure
gers (Andy Garcia) to and psychic accom- snake. Her only her real name later to meets Sorrow and yet
pay his debt within plice. Sorrow (Sarah chance of survival is the dying Pleasure. A the encounter has
two weeks or else all Michelle Gellar) is a to have a blood trans- cinematic semblance deepened and en-
his fingers will be cut, lovely and popular fusion within 24 of a morality play, The riched both of them.
Happiness stages a pop singer whose hours, a rare blood Air I Breathe is With these hapless
one-man bank rob- contract is turned type that only Sorrow preachy and allego- creatures, one wishes
bery. He stuffs his over by her heavily has. Racing against rizes the powerful and that something right
loot in a bag, makes a indebted manager to time, Love searches for destructive grip of Fin- could happen to their
desperate dash to Finger. She loathes Sorrow. Falling into gers (Andy Garcia), a lives. Could a bundle
freedom, gets bumped the idea of having Fin- the pit of despair, Sor- criminal don, on the of money dropping
by a car, steals a mo- ger as her manager but row decides to com- lives of Happiness from the sky hold the
torbike and runs to is bulldozed into the mit suicide. And view- (Forest Whitaker), key to a second
the rooftop of a build- fix. Pleasure, strongly ers hold their breath Pleasure (Brendan chance for Sorrow?
ing. Besieged by cops attracted to Sorrow, as they watch the fi- Fraser), and Sorrow One has to move on
who warned him not offers his place as a nal sequence of the (Sarah Michelle even if it’s hard start-
to move, Happiness safe house where she film. Gellar) in contrast to ing over. But in the
laughs as he casts can hide from Finger. The film is report- the saving power of end, let us believe that
away the bag full of Sorrow falls in love edly based on an an- Love (Kevin Bacon). “Love is stronger than
money. The cops with Pleasure. Finger cient Chinese proverb While flashbacks pro- death” for the hope
start shooting and discovers that Plea- that identifies four vide the context of the that love brings is
Happiness falls to the sure has betrayed him, emotional corner- personae, the voice- transforming and re-
ground and dies. breaks into the latter’s stones as the com- over expresses their deeming.

30 IMPACT • May 2008


CHINA
Officials offer advice Columbans move to Prelate calls for unity Scrap proposed reli-
on May pilgrimages, HK to reflect voca- amid violent clashes gion ban
devotions tions trend
Catholic authorities in main-
land China have taken the un-
precedented step of advising
Catholics on how to conduct
Marian devotions and make pil-
grimage arrangements. The Chi-
nese Catholic Patriotic Associa-
tion and Bishops’ Conference of
the Catholic Church in China have
urged all dioceses in China to
organize pilgrimages locally
rather than in other provinces or
municipalities, reported the Asian
Group wants anti- Islamic court ‘autho- MYANMAR
church news agency UCA News.
Christian
ISRAEL
scrapped
Cabinet ministers A Christian council in India dhism
lend Olmert support has appealed to the governor of
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud
Olmert, under investigation for
allegedly receiving hundreds of
thousands of dollars from a Jew-
ish U.S. businessman, received
public support from ministers of
his Kadima party recently amid
reports that the probe could last
months. The developments sug-
gested that Olmert could remain
in office for some time with no
certainty that the probe will result
in formal charges.
NEPAL
Tibetan women
nabbed
Police arrested over 500 Ti-
betan women on May 11, includ-
ing many Buddhist nuns, before
what was to be the first all-female
rally versus China’s action in Ti-
bet. Authorities said protesters
were nabbed for carrying Tibetan
flag and wearing headbands that
read “Free Tibet.” Police said
those detained were being held in
detention centers around the capi-
tal, and would be freed later.
HONG KONG
Maronite Catholic Archbishop The government should re-
The Missionary Society of St.
Columban, which has had head-
quarters in Ireland since the
society’s founding in 1918, has
moved its offices from Dublin to
Hong Kong to reflect that its voca-
tions come primarily from Asian
and Pacific Rim countries. Catho-
lic News Service said the Hong
Kong offices opened May 1.
INDIA
law rizes’ conversion Pope urges aid for
from Islam to Bud- cyclone victims
A Malaysian court has ac- ternational donors on Tuesday to
the state of Andhra Pradesh to
halt legislation that would ban
non-Hindu religious activity
around the Hindu temple town of
Tirupati, the Ecumenical News
International reported. “This or-
der is in total violation of both the
letter and spirit of the Indian con-
stitution,” the Global Council of
Indian Christians said in its ap-
peal to the governor, Rameshwar
Thakur.
NORTH KOREA Tamil T igers sink
navy cargo ship
Students arrested for
Bible reading Tamil Tiger rebels sank a warning
Ten college students in Ham
Kyung Book Do Chung, North
Korea, were recently investigated
and arrested for reading a Bible
and watching a video CD about
the Bible. In the Free North Korea
Broadcasting report, it was re-
vealed that most of the arrested
students attended Chung Jin Col-
lege. These students shared the
Bible and video CD with their
friends. They also distributed the
Bibles and video CDs to the other
college towns.
LEBANON
Bechara Rai of Jbei urged sectar-
ian groups to reconcile peace-
fully and asked the Vatican to
help amid violent clashes. “The
Lebanese do not at all want war.
We are insisting that the Christian
political leaders be wise and avoid
participation in this armed con-
flict. We are calling on them to do
everything to reconcile peace-
fully the two groups,” he said.
MALAYSIA
Pope Benedict XVI urged in-
cepted the request of Siti Fatiman
Abdullah, a woman convert to Is-
lam to return to Buddhism, her
original religion that she had left in
1998. The sentence is the first of
its kind in recent months, which
has seen progressive closure on
the part of judges regarding cases
of citizens who want to leave Is-
lam, the nation’s majority religion.
SRI LANKA
Militia bosses extra-
dited to the U.S. as
navy cargo ship, the MV Invin-
cible, moored in the northeast of
Sri Lanka yesterday in an attack
coinciding with key elections in
the tense eastern province. The
guerrillas said their Sea Tiger
commandos managed to infiltrate
the tightly guarded port of
Trincomalee in the early hours,
holing the cargo ship as it was
being loaded with ammunition
destined for government troops.
The navy said the ship sank after
the underwater explosion, but no
lives were lost.
Volume 42 • Number 5
N E W S
BRIEFS
INDONESIA
ject proposals to ban the minority
Ahmadiyah faith and not align
itself with the extremists who have
fomented violence against them,
Human Rights Watch said. “Ban-
ning a religious minority not only
violates the Indonesian Constitu-
tion and the internationally rec-
ognized right to freedom of reli-
gion, but will tarnish Indonesia’s
world image as a moderate Mus-
lim-majority,” HRW said.
provide generous and effective
aid to help Myanmar deal with the
death and destruction caused by
a cyclone. In a telegram sent in
his name to the Catholic bishops
of the country once known as
Burma, the Vatican expressed
the pope’s deep sadness and
heartfelt sympathy and assured
his prayers for the victims and
their families.
COLUMBIA
Colombia extradited 14 former
paramilitary leaders to the United
States on May 14 to face drug-
trafficking and other charges after
authorities said the warlords vio-
lated terms of a peace pact with the
government. The move came as
U.S. ally President Alvaro Uribe
faces pressure over a growing
scandal tying some of his law-
maker allies to the outlawed mili-
tias and U.S. Democrats resist a
Colombia trade deal because of
human rights concerns.
31