No Respect for Child Rights

Lawlessness and cowardice reared its ugly head this week in two provinces in the country when children were senselessly included among the victims of two separate incident of massacre. Murderers of helpless children know that these innocents have no way of fighting back against brute force, hence, they decided to show their lack of conscience by killing them.

The first of these murders happened in Barangay Tininghalang, Lapuyan, Zamboanga del Sur on 23 February 2012. Ten gunmen gunmen led by a certain Amie Andi arrived at Sitio Bihing around 5:00 P.M. and without any warning started shooting and lobbing explosives before fleeing the area.

Justice For Ma'am Loida, Justice for Teachers

It is not fun in the Philippines when grade school students see their teacher gunned down in front of them inside the classroom. This is what actually happened when 59-year old public school teacher Loida Pagatpat was brutally shot in front of her grade school class in Palanas, Masbate last 3 February 2012.

Worse, investigators still does not have any lead on the identification of the killer despite the PhP 100,000.00 reward offered by the victim's family. According to Pagatpat's relatives and friends, there is lack of progress in the investigation of the case.

The Genuine AFP Modernization Program

True to his word, President Benigno Aquino III has started to acquire modern equipment and vehicles for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) modernization program.

"Mulat po tayong kailangan pang palakasin ang inyong hanay kaya naman makakaasa kayo sa tuloy tuloy na modernisasyon ng inyong hanay upang mapabuti pa ang inyong serbisyo publiko," Aquino said in his speech during the Philippine Air Force (PAF) ceremonies last January 2012.

Freedom of Religion in Hospitals

There are several Catholic hospitals in the Philippines and they have been critical in delivering services in areas where private interest are not viable. However, in the light of public debates related to the possible passage of the Reproductive Health Bill, there is a question on whether these hospitals should be allowed to restrict doctors from performing common and legal medical practices? Do such restrictions unfairly impinge on the rights of non-Catholic patients and doctors, particularly those in rural or underserved areas where alternative hospitals are not readily available?

Well, I tend to believe that freedom of religion is a cherished ideal in the Philippines, even though at times it has not been provided to those whose beliefs run counter to mainstream or politically correct thinking. Nevertheless, it is a goal we should continually strive for and support as much as possible. With that in mind, hospitals that are owned and run by the Catholic Church, or by any other religious organization, should definitely be able to restrict doctors and other health care professionals in their employment from performing those procedures that go against their stated religious beliefs and doctrine. At the same time, there must also be certain conditions and caveats, because nothing exists in a vacuum.