Die another day

            The recent fatality of a journalist in Cebu makes its mark as the 11th media practitioner to be killed in 2004 and the 60th since 1986.

            It is no wonder that the Philippines has been tagged as the second journalist-hostile country. However, next to Iraq, a war torn nation, it is incredulous that our very own motherland, which does not experience the ravages of war, would be the second most likely place to see dead members of the press.

            Being a region known as unreceptive to writers is no laughing matter for us. Seeing as we are democratic in nature and therefore allow the freedom of speech to be practiced freely, it would be hypocritical for our country to have the distinction of being named as 1st Runner-up for being inhospitable to pressmen.

            Despite the government’s assurances that they are upholding press freedom, more and more media men get killed every year. So far, 2004 has claimed the lives of 11, a record high. God knows just how many more of them are going to be murdered this year and the succeeding years.

            What is the matter with us all? We thought that we hold the ideals of freedom in our minds and that these same ideals helped us to spurn the rulings of a dictator 18 years ago and make us into the independent state we now are. And yet, here we are, just plain observers to the massacre of the agents of truth, who have been fundamental in helping us formulate these principles of autonomy, by unscrupulous individuals who do not want the truth to be set free lest it endanger their personal and selfish interests.

            If we truly are what we claim ourselves to be, and that is sovereign beings, then we should put a stop to these killings, which are a direct violation to the freedom of speech. We should do something to halt the slaughter of our innocent media practitioners, who do nothing but inform the people of the facts, yet are slain because of what they are doing.

            The government should also play a vital role in this endeavor. And that is why we are urging the government to do all they can in their power to catch the hoodlums responsible for the death of journalists nationwide. The people cannot do this alone. It is only through the combined efforts of our officials, hand in hand with the citizens, that we can find a remedy to this ailment plaguing our society.

            Let us not permit the untimely and unjust demise of our writers. Instead, we must let them die another day—a day when the time is right for them to pass from this world to the next./Ripples