THE FUTURE OF DEMOCRACY
IN THE PHILIPPINES
Enrique Voltaire Garcia II
1965-1966 (First Semester)
While democracy as a political ideology
found its inception in the minds of classic Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle, and
its early implementation in the assemblies of Athens several millennia before Christ, its
acceptance by a substantial segment of the political milieu is nevertheless regarded as a
recent phenomenon. It was not until 1789 that democracy gained its first significant
foothold as a result of the French Revolution. The overthrow of Louis XIV and Marie
Antoinette by the Jacobins not only changed the political order in France, but also
inspired similar uprising against despotic rulers in other places, most notable of which
was the American Revolution which took place just a few decades later (sic).
Indeed democracy has had a trying time. As
a theory, its seemingly inherent dilemmas such as the incompatibility of the majority will
and general good have undergone meticulous scrutiny by philosophers of the past such as
Collingwood, Locke, Rosseau, and Mills. In practice it appears to have survived the tests
of science and logic in a number of countries , most prominent of which is the United
States. More recently however, democracy became an utter failure in many places in Latin
America, Africa and Asia. Democratic regimes have been overthrown either by coup
d’etats or popular revolutions.
If the historical experiences of democracy
both in theory and in practice can be a basis for any philosophical formulation, then it
is the realization that any political society has two basic aspirations which supervene
all others; the aspiration for individual freedom, and the aspiration for political order.
The Jacobinian revolution triumphed with its battlecry "Liberty, Equality,
Fraternity", overthrowing the oppressive order that for so long curtailed the natural
rights of man. On the other hand, democracies in many places had to be overthrown by the
same method of violent action. While these democracies guaranteed individual freedom in
their constitution, those guarantees soon became meaningless as the respective governments
proved to be too irresponsible and consequently too weak to afford adequate protection for
the very rights that they vowed to safeguard. The aspiration for order even at the expense
of constitutional rights and liberties therefore prevailed in these places.
It is in the context of these two basic
aspirations that we shall analyze the future democracy in our country.
Democracy is relatively new in the
Philippines. If it has finally come about it is because our historical experience as a
people resembles that in many respects that of France, the United States and other
democracies. We have experienced colonial and despotic rules over a span of four
centuries. These rules provided is with order but not contentment. Hence, the first
nationwide outcry for freedom and civil liberties came in 1896 with the revolution led by
one who was himself inspired by the French Revolution. In 1946 after many years of both
violent and peaceful struggle the fruit of our endeavours came. Democracy was established,
and civil liberties guaranteed.
Since then, however, the record of
Philippine democracy has not been very encouraging. Right after independence, our chosen
leaders signed away our most cherished national patrimony and our precious commercial and
industrial opportunities to foreign interests. In 1949 democracy ‘went dead’
with rampant cheating in the national election. Soon afterwards graft and corruption
became prevalent in the government services. Government scandals multiplied, prices
soared, slums mushroomed and morality plummeted down. These conditions encouraged the
Hukbalahap rebellion which, fortunately for Philippine democracy, was quelled in few
years. But our experience with the Huks seemed to have mattered little to us as government
officials continued to squander the people’s money through connivance with smugglers,
through ‘kickbacks’ and all forms of venalities. Three years ago our congressmen
passed the infamous congressional allowance item that made them the highest paid
legislators in the world. Today, lawlessness seems to be the order of the day. Juan de la
Cruz has to protect his person and property not only against unlawful intruders but also
against the very officers of the law, many of whom have reneged on their sworn duty by
joining the ranks of top criminals in the country. Indeed this seems to be the only place
where pirates of bygone days can still ply the very waters of the capital city. This seems
to be the place where the art of crime has attained perfection.
The outlook of democracy in the Philippines
is indeed bleak. The experiences of former Latin American may be very well ours too. Civil
liberties have slowly but surely been losing their meaning. Chaos no longer appears remote
and the aspiration for order, even if it will mean the surrender of basic individual
rights may very soon represent its symptoms.
If democracy in the Philippines has been a
disappointment it is because we as a people suffer from a lack of responsibility. Freedom
demands responsibility and its exercise and the absence of the latter will only bring
about an atmosphere of chaos which will render nugatory the constitutional guarantees that
we hold dear to us.
It is not yet too late to learn a lesson
from the experience of frustrated democracies. Our people are not yet advocating for a
dictatorship. There is still time for soul-searching, but the time may be just enough and
we cannot afford to lose it. |
